Monday, September 30, 2013

Nature's Remedy

This little Tin of Nature's Remedy laxative pills was also in one of the boxes I bought at the Auction on Saturday. The cap is stuck shut and I didn't try to pry it open. It rattles when you shake it so I assume there are still some pills in the box. I hadn't seen anything about "Nature's Remedy" for many years but it brought back the memory of my Brother having a HS girlfriend who's initials were NR. I don't remember the connection but somehow he translated her initials to Nature's Remedy. She didn't stay in Garland HS but transferred to Seward where she graduated. In Garland she was known as "Norma Jean" and when she transferred to Seward, she went by "Jean". It was one way of getting away from the stigma of Joker's referring to her as "Nature's Remedy". Incidentally, I put it on eBay this afternoon and volunteered to pay the postage for the lucky buyer. 

Sunday, September 29, 2013

Calumet Baking Powder Bank

Among the items in the boxes of "stuff" I bought at the Auction yesterday was this empty Calumet Baking Powder can. While some people spent thousands of dollars yesterday at the Auction in Pierce, NE to acquire old vehicles that brought back memories of an earlier day, I got mine with this empty can. I earned my first money by shocking grain and raking scatterings with the thrashing run when I was 15 years old. We had very little "personal room" in our small farm home with 7 of us sharing 5 small rooms. Mother  gave me  a Calumet Baking Powder can which Mother had emptied in which to save my earnings. I didn't have a lot of money from that first summer's work but it helped me through my Junior Year of HS. I again shocked grain and ran a bundle wagon for the neighbors during the next summer. When the small grain harvest was over and I had my 16th birthday, I got a job on Highway Construction which gave me an opportunity to save enough in my "can"to get me through my Senior Year. It wasn't until  the next year when I had rented a farm in my name and opened a checking account at Cattle National Bank in Seward, that I "Out grew" my old can. It was great to get one back yesterday and reminisces about how important $15.00 were at one point in time. 

Saturday, September 28, 2013

Auction Day

We are watching the Lambrecht vehicle Auction program on the History Channel this evening. It's just amazing what people pay for those old vehicles. It appears to truly be a national, if not international, event. This really put Pierce, Nebraska, on the map. Sixty years ago Pierce was know as the Vetch capitol of Nebraska. During my early days with SCS we went there for a Field Day where harvesting and processing vetch was promoted. And, to think that Mr. Lambrecht was "storing" vehicles even at that time. We also had a large Auction here is Seward today. The Sommerfeld,s have collected a wide range of "stuff" for many years. This was their 2nd or 3rd Auction. The amount of "stuff" still available was amazing.  While prices didn't compare with the Pierce auction, things seemed to sell well here in Seward. I was the successful bidder on two boxes. They included a variety of items and I have already put a couple of them on eBay. Hometown auctions like Sommerfeld's are a social and entertainment event as well as a way to "recycle" merchandise. Jeanie Lambrecht is being interviewed as I write this and told of how the Drought and Depression of the  '30's affected her parents and many of us who were around then and "never throw anything away". 

Friday, September 27, 2013

Horse Apple Hollow

I played golf (??) this afternoon at Chas Krutz' "Horse Apple Hollow" private golf course near Seward. Chas and his wife Mel have a beautiful 50 or so acres along Plum Creek. They have lived there for 50 years and continue to improve the place every day. Gene Oetting, Don Nelson and Jerry Irwin joined Chas and I for the "round". The course has some unique rules. For instance, you must improve your lie. Pins are permanent and are not removed. The Greens are a 5' diameter circle of sand on most holes (some are just grass) If your ball is within a club length of the pin, it's a gimme. There is no reason to use a putter. About half of the holes play across Plum Creek. There are more holes than fairways since some are multipurpose. It was an interesting afternoon. I probably enjoyed the wide variety of trees and shrubs as much as the golf. Chas was a most gracious host, and I can now cross this local attraction off my Bucket List. 

Thursday, September 26, 2013

Good Kids

This picture was taken 50 years ago at about this time of the season. "Ellen" the little girl in the center of the picture lived with her parents in one of our nearby Fairlington Apartments in Arlington, VA. We had been back there for a bit over a year at this time and were pretty well adjusted to the area. Verlon took a school bus to Gunston Jr. Hi. and the other 3 walked to Fairlington Elementary. Elaine had spent some time in the hospital and was recuperating at home at the time. President Kennedy was assassinated later in that fall. It happened on Jon's 9th birthday and a school party had been planned that was cancelled. Those were trying but happy years. I was on my way to a successful career in the USDA Soil Conservation Service though my 2-week take home pay was less than $300.  Elaine went to work for Civil Defense at the Pentagon about a year later which helped to make ends meet. Civil Service employment in those days was not as financially rewarding as private industry but it did provide for a good retirement annuity which we are enjoying today. It provided a good lesson in "deferred benefits". 

Wednesday, September 25, 2013

Ted Kooser, Poet and Friend

Ted Kooser, former  U.S. Poet Laureate and Pulitzer Prize winner in Poetry, gave a reading of some of his new poems this evening. It was held in the Parish Hall of St. Andrew's Episcopal Church. It was a delightful evening with his telling a bit about the circumstances that led to each poem before its reading. Most of the poems were about people, places and things for which we were already familiar. That gave them an extra measure of enjoyment. My favorite this evening was about his old dog, Alice, who is no longer with him. He told of Alice's ghost waiting at the foot of the ladder as he scraped and painted, and having even taken a picture of his barn, the poem really came to life. 














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Tuesday, September 24, 2013

New Kiwanis Year

Steve Hambek, Kiwanis Lt. Governor of Division 22, installed Shane Baack as President of the Kiwanis Club of Seward last evening.  Shane has been serving a President since Chad Denker moved to David City in August. Wess Robotham was installed as President elect and Shannon Robotham as Vice President. Wess and Shannon planned the event that was held at the Heritage Hall in the Seward City Park. Tom Reif and the  Spare Time Lounge and Grill served an excellent 2-meat dinner with home made ice cream for dessert. The Kitones sang and President Shane recognized a number of outstanding Seward Kiwanians. Dr. Gene Brott was recognized as the Kiwanian of the Year. It was a very nice evening. Our Club is one of the largest in the Nebraska-Iowa District, and it's great that we also have the "Helping Hands Kiwanis Club" in Seward. It is a relatively new club with many members who work out of town and unable to attend our old club's Monday noon meetings. Lt. Gov. Hambek lives in Seward and is a member of the "Helping Hands". 

Monday, September 23, 2013

Seward HS Basketball Program 1946

Elaine went through some old papers yesterday and among them was this program from a Central City vs Seward HS basketball game back in the spring of '46. The listing of the Seward players is most interesting. They had a great team that year with Wendell Rivers and Merle Reiling as Seniors.  Juniors, Dick Hagemoser, Don Bickle and Kenneth Schulz and a supporting "cast" of Gilbert Hulbert, George Rada, Gene Sloup, Darrel Karr, Dick Tempel, Don Strunc, Darrel Graff, Cliff Walker, Phil Hutson and Richard Buls. The program has a listing of Seward businesses as well. I listed it on eBay this afternoon with a starting bid of $1.00. Few of the players are still around. It may be of interest to some of their Grandchildren or others. Elaine was a Jr. in Seward HS at the time and a member of the Pep Club. At that time only a select number were "voted in" as members. It was before she and I had met but I followed the team quite closely. I was playing town-team basketball with Garland at the time and doing some refereeing. This is the first item I have listed on eBay since early last spring. It is usually a wintertime activity for me and with fall officially here, it seemed like a good time to start. The item can be viewed on eBay by entering "Central City vs Seward" or by the number 290983671493 in the search box. 

Sunday, September 22, 2013

Old Middle School Property in Seward, NE

This building was part of the Seward Public School system for nearly 100 years prior to a 3 block area being sold about a year ago. It had served as the District's maintenance building for many of it's final years of use. It was built for and used as a "manual training shop" for many, many years. My younger brother Jerry probably learned more in this building than he did in the HS class room. The carpentry skills learned here helped him to have a successful career in the building trade. I still use a "shoe polishing box" that he made in this building over 60 years ago. It is still a very attractive structure and while most of the buildings on the 3 block area will be demolished, I hope that some future use might be found for this one. It is at the northern edge of the southmost block that has tentatively been planned for "town house development".  It will be near a proposed "Wellness and Technology Center" but just might be able to be saved without hindering other proposed development. The Developer just needs someone or organization to propose a useful purpose for it. 

Saturday, September 21, 2013

Lil Red

Lil Red looks happier writing his blog this evening than he has during the week. It was a tough time for him as Coach Pelini was not only criticized by some of his "friends" for the loss to UCLA  but was the victim of an audio tape being released that was made without his knowledge 2 years ago that included numerous expletives. Though Nebraska beat South Dakota State 59-20, they actually trailed 17 to 14 at one point. It is obvious that the defense needs to improve before meeting the Big-10 competition. While some of the family got to the game today, Elaine and I were happy to stay home and watch it on TV.  We knew it had been some time since we attended a Husker game and found it was on August 29, 1998. Nebraska beat Louisiana Tech 56-27 in that game. It was Frank Solich's first game as Head Coach. Nebraska players included Correll Buckhalter, Joel Makovicka, Bobby Newcombe, Eric Crouch, etc. Tech passed for 590 yards and their All American receiver,  Troy Edwards, caught for over 400 yards of it. We went with Don and Jean Kolterman and enjoyed the game despite the hot weather.

Friday, September 20, 2013

50 Years Ago

We moved back to the Washington, D.C. area of Northern Virginia during the summer of 1962. This picture was taken a year later and we became more comfortable exploring the sights of the area. The recent incident at the Navy Yard in the SE brought about some discussion of how we seldom crossed the Anacostia River. In fact we didn't get into the area SE of the Capitol very often. When we got to the Nationals Baseball Park a few years ago, it was all new territory to us. However, we did have the pleasure of visiting many parks and points of interest. The fact that there wasn't an admission fee was a factor. Our first few years back there were our most trying of "living within our income". We had to stretch our pennies as far then as at any time of our married life. What made it even more difficult was the friends of our kids having many of the things that weren't available to ours. I was reminded of that while picking up 8 phonographic records at a Garage Sale this morning. We were able to buy 2 new records during the first year that we lived back there, but we really appreciated them. (And, as you might expect, we still have them.)

Thursday, September 19, 2013

Elaine in the Switchgrass

This picture was taken 25 years ago when we were raising Certified Trail Blazer Switchgrass out at our farm. The grass had headed-out and nearly reaches the height of Elaine's shoulders. I bring this out today after having "burned" a DVD that includes many of our pictures from 1985-2001. It's amazing how much information can be stored on one DVD. We already have all of our digital pictures from 2002 to the present time, on DVD's. This picture also caught my eye after having visited with Stan at coffee this morning about Switchgrass. He was not aware of how it looked so I had clipped a few heads and had them there for him to take with him. Switchgrass is a Native Warm Season grass that has been very popular for planting in mixtures with other warm season grasses on Conservation Reserve Land. "Trail Blazer" was the cultivar that we raised but new ones are being developed. It has been utilized to some extent for the production of Ethanol. As a perennial it has the potential to be a sustainable source of energy. In addition, it's beautiful to look at and makes excellent wildlife habitat. 

Wednesday, September 18, 2013

First Impressions

Our First Impressions Committee of the Seward Chamber of Commerce has made (or caused to be made) some progress in the past 15 years to improve the "first impression" visitors have when they come into our city. We now have a lady on the Committee who is following her Mother in conducting walking tours of the City Square on the 4th of July while talking about the businesses, the buildings and their history. The 2nd story of downtown business buildings are not utilized as they were a few years ago and many have fallen into ill repair. This has become very noticeable while conducting the tours. She is working with the local business owners to improve the impression visitors have when they visit our town. She is finding suitable material at our EtCetra Store and offering to put curtains on the upstairs windows without any cost to the owners. A great example of improving First Impressions.

Tuesday, September 17, 2013

Sadie's Fancy Rig

We got out to see Julie and Sadie this afternoon. She was standing at the glass storm door to greet us as we pulled up. She seems to change every week. Some of her sounds are getting close to words. She likes her "KiddieKar" and can go backward faster than foreword. It has a "dash-board" with buttons that play different musical tunes. She knows exactly how to play the music that she seems to enjoy so much. We were pleased to see their new lawn green. It looks like it's coming along real well. The grass we seeded here hasn't shown yet. It is to warn up tomorrow but has been cool and cloudy the past several days. Yesterday's high temperature was 65 degrees so that doesn't do much to get grass seeds sprouted. While we were out in the Ridge Run neighborhood, we clipped off a few stems of Switchgrass along the roadside. I have a coffee buddy with a farm and some conservation reserve land and not sure of what the various warm season grasses look like this time of year. I will take the sample along in the morning and have a brief training session. It's amazing what you can learn from coffee drinking buddies. 

Monday, September 16, 2013

Solar Lighted Kiwanis Flagpole

Marv Taylor, Chairman of our Kiwanis Flag Pole Committee, and I went out to Ray Bieber's home this afternoon and installed the Solar Light on top of a recently installed Flag Pole. Marv's crew has now installed over 700 flags since the project began back in 2000. Ray and I go back to 1960 when we were both "non-traditional" students at the University of Nebraska taking Chemistry 101.  Ray had been in the Military and I had worked for a few years before starting to take College Courses. Ray and I got together at our house a few times to help each other through that difficult course. We didn't see each other for maybe 30 years when we recognized each other and renewed our friendship. Ray went on to get his Masters Degree at UN-L and a PhD out in Colorado where he taught for a number of years. It was a most enjoyable afternoon visiting with an old friend at his beautiful home in the Garland hills. 

Sunday, September 15, 2013

Old Flowerday Farmstead

This picture was taken 10 years ago when we went on Elaine's birthday trip out past the farms where she and I were each raised. While we visited here again this year, the whole farmstead area was planted to corn which made it difficult to get down to the barn. The old corncrib, windmill and barn are the only remaining landmarks of what was once a "bustling" farmstead with horses, cattle, chickens, dogs, and people. Elaine had "Jack" (Carolyn's little poodle) with her on this picture and he is no longer with us. Neither the barn nor Elaine have really changed much during the past 10 years. 

Saturday, September 14, 2013

New Grass Seeding

The Nebraska-UCLA football game was on ABC at 11:00am this morning. With the Huskers up21-3 early in the game, I had every expectation of writing something about the game. However, when they ended on the short end of a final score of 41-21, I decided to write about something more interesting, like the backside of our house where we took out the large Pfitzer last week. I have worked the ground, scattered fertilizer and Blue Grass seed and have kept it watered down. Elaine helped as we also mowed the grass in the back yard. I did some adjusting to our lawn sprinklers now that we have new grass seeded. This may not be very interesting but it beats the Husker football game. I actually went to sleep watching it during the 4th quarter. 

Friday, September 13, 2013

Our Concolor Fir Tree

It was 10 years ago that our next door neighbor to the south of us had the two Pin Oaks in his front yard cut down. It was a local tree service that had the equipment and "know how" to get the job done. He even has a "stump grinder" that takes it out below ground level. While watching this operation, I never suspected that we would need these professional tree removal services. However, time passes, trees grow, and the Concolor Fir in the SW corner of our back yard is reaching the stage of needing some serious "pruning". It is a tree that we grew as a seeding out at the farm and moved it in during the late '80's when it was about 3-4 ft. high. It is next to the alley where electrical and telephone wires come to a pole next to our house which services 3 homes. The nature of the Fir tree is for the branches to "sag" as they grow longer. To the unobstructed tree, the sagging is hardly noticeable. However, We have the utility wires running through the tree which hold up the branches producing a "gap" which is unsightly. To say nothing of the danger and risk of a heavy snowfall which could cause us, and our neighbors to lose power and phone line. I just may have to call the tree butcher. The cost to have a tree planted is very little compared to having one removed. We have had considerable pleasure from the "friendly Fir" even though we did have to move a lawn sprinkler head, plus it shaded out our Rhubarb and Asparagus, it was worth it. 

Thursday, September 12, 2013

Lincoln Airport

We got Verlon down to the Lincoln Airport this morning for his 10:02 flight to Chicago. It appeared that everything was O.K. when we left to come home. We learned later that after boarding and getting out to the end of the runway, mechanical problems were detected which took over 1 1/2 hours to repair. As he hurried to the gate in Chicago, his plane pulled away. He was able to get a later flight and finally got home in Richmond, VA about 7:30pm. It was a long day for him. We were very appreciative of every thing he got done for us while he was here in addition to having a good visit. It kind of follows the pattern that Dad used years ago. It seemed that after a family dinner when everyone began to get sleepy, he would come up with the need to move cattle from one pasture to another, or something of the sort that involved several people. We jokingly said that we got along better working together than playing together. Verlon even mentioned when we talked with him this evening that this was one of his best visits. 

Wednesday, September 11, 2013

Father, Son, and a New Chevy

This picture is of our oldest son Verlon and I, taken in the summer of 1952. The green '52 Chevy behind us was our first new car. I played CF for Garland in the Blue Valley League for a number of years. Verlon located the old 35mm Kodachrome slide of this picture while with us the past few days while working on our Home Maintenance. I played my last game when I was 35 years old, and Verlon tells me he played softball until he was 41. Town Team baseball was a big deal back in those days. We also got our first TV that same year, and we were really living the "American Dream". 

Tuesday, September 10, 2013

Deck Treatment

House Maintenance continued today with Verlon applying a fresh coating of "preservative" to the deck. It really brightened it up since it was 2 years ago when last teated. There were other things done during the course of the day, and this evening we had a family "Pizza Party" at our house. Sadie was the center of attention. While she didn't participate in the Pizza, she ate a good supper. For the first time, we saw her "stab" some food with a fork and put it in her mouth.  She is always so proud of herself when she does new things. 
Yesterday Lincoln recorded its first 100 degree day of the summer. It was in the low 90's today with a shower rain about 6:00pm. There has been thunder and lightning since then, and we are now getting a hard rain. It may be too late to help the corn or soybeans, but is certainly welcomed for our water situation in general. 

Monday, September 9, 2013

Union Cemetery in Seward County, NE

The only thing that can make an old abandoned cemetery more forlorn is dead trees. Several years ago one of the County Commissioners took on the project of "cleaning up" all of the abandoned cemeteries in the county. The County also took responsibility for minimum maintenance. This one is located in "B" Township of Seward, County NE. According to records compiled and published by the Seward County Genealogical Society, the earliest burial is of Nancy A.  (Darnall) Clapp who died on February 12, 1860. There is a note stating: "I don't believe there were any burials in Union Cemetery much after the year 1900." It is also noted that, "there are 14 known graves and many without stones." We didn't get through the gates the other day, but I did lean across the fence near the gate and took this picture. It appears to indicate a 1942 burial. However, you wonder if this stone may have been just placed here. 

Sunday, September 8, 2013

35-mm Kodachrome Slides

We took a break from our Home Maintenance work today and enjoyed Verlon's being here as a social visit. He is shown here in my Den looking through some boxes of early 1950's, 35-mm Kodachrome slides. I bought the little "viewer" at an Auction some years ago which helps when looking for a specific picture. He was successful in finding the one he sought from the 2nd box. It is amazing how well the Kodachrome slides hold their color after 60 years. We took them down to WalMart this evening where they will put them on a DVD and print copies. We have left all of our early slides in their original boxes, dated, lettered, and with a few words of what is pictured. The boxes are filed in chronological order and stored in a big cardboard box. Over the years we have had many of the slides scanned and put on CD's or DVD's but there are many that have never been scanned. It continues to be a great source of family information 

Saturday, September 7, 2013

Schweitzer Auction Service conducted the sale of Household Items for the Owens and Einspahr families today. It was held in the 4-H building here in Seward. We had  great help getting brush hauled to the "Burn Pile" early this morning and then down to the Auction. Sadie was there with Julie and John but Grandmothers, Carolyn and Bev shared in the pleasure of taking care of her. I got a couple bargains and Verlon got some neat old tools. Carolyn got several things and all of us enjoyed ourselves. There was a good-sized crowd and the Auctioneers did a great job of catching bids. Like with most Auctions, there are many bargains and some things sell for more than anticipated. It's the Market Economy in it's finest form. 

Friday, September 6, 2013

Fish Supper in Bee, NE

Remembering that "all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy" and thinking that it might also be true of "the rest of us", we went to Bee for Fish Supper this evening. We have done that in the past when Verlon has been here and tonight we were pleased that Carolyn could go with us. We also enjoy picking up Cousin Terry who lives in Bee to accompany us to Lou & Mary Ann's. The food was exceptionally good tonight. Our having done more physical work the past couple days may have been a factor, but we all really enjoyed it. We not only continued to check off items on the "Home Maintenance" list but also enjoyed a lot of food and fellowship.

Thursday, September 5, 2013

Home Maintenance

Our son from Richmond, VA is spending a few days with us and helping with annual maintenance projects. He flew in yesterday and made great progress today by taking out a big old Pfitzer on the  west side of the house, pruned the Japanese Maple (as shown in the picture), and trimmed the Yew Hedge on the north side of the deck. We also did a few other things including a lot of good visiting. He has come back about this time of year for the past several to do the painting, caulking, and "carpentry work" that is so important in keeping a house in good condition. We make up a list of things each year that we feel need to be done and often he sees things that we haven't even recognized. We are fortunate in having him spend this time with us. 

Wednesday, September 4, 2013

Animal Dung on Graveled Roads

You may wonder what this is and so do I. On our drive out in the "hills" yesterday, we came across several such substance on the graveled roads we traversed. When we saw our first of these substances, we didn't recognize them as animal dung. This "pile" is about 2 inches in diameter, and an inch and one half high. It is made up of 3-4 circles with the top one not much over an inch in diameter. Where there was one clump like this, there were 3-4  smaller pieces. Oddly, we must have seen 8-10 such clusters over a distance of 6--8 miles. All of the "deposits" appeared to be 2-4 days old. During the past few years, Farrel hogs have been identified in the area. My best guess is that it's Feral Hog Dung.  I would welcome any comments and corrections.

Tuesday, September 3, 2013

Wonders of Nature

Michael Forsberg, wildlife and conservation photographer provided entertainment at the Cattle National Bank & Trust Co., Appreciation Dinner this evening. Michael is a native Nebraskan who is gaining national prominence with his photos and books. This picture of a Bobcat is one taken by "movement triggered" photography at the Audubon Prairie within 15 miles of Lincoln where the Forsberg's live. It was a most interesting program. He spoke and showed pictures of the Sandhills Cranes, his underwater photography of aquatic life,  his involvement with the Platte River Time Lapse Photography Project, etc. We will be watching when more of his work is shown on TV and his pictures in the Nebraska Land Magazine.
We also maintained Elaine's birthday tradition of going for a drive in the country out northeast of Seward where we were raised. It is a beautiful time to drive on the country roads with wildflowers blooming and native grasses and plants in all their splendor. The scene here is at Johnson Dam about 3 miles north of Garland and just over half a mile from where I grew up. I also had the honor of being crew chief of the survey party that "staked out the dam" and was the Construction Inspector when it was being built as one of the early PL-566 dams. The water level in the lake is low this fall because of our dry summer. But our drive this afternoon and seeing the things of nature in all their glory, tied in nicely with Forsberg's message  and pictures celebrating natures wonders.  Happy Birthday, Elaine.

Monday, September 2, 2013

Expanded Memorial Stadium


This is what the newly remodeled Memorial Stadium looked like on Saturday evening when 91,131 fans watched the Huskers win 37-34 over a very talented Wyoming team. Brett Smith, their Quarterback was very impressive. The Stadium was built with a capacity of 31,080 in 1923. Engraved in the SW corner Pillar was the words of Hartley Burr Alexander, “Not the Victory but the action; Not the goal but the game; In the deed the glory.” I was familiar with the Inscription before ever seeing a game or being inside. It was clearly visible from 10th street which was our normal route into Lincoln. In 1940, the Henry Schulte Field House was built that contained the scoreboard and clock. The “knothole” bleachers set up beyond the south end zone was the location from where I saw my first game. Permanent bleachers were set up at the south end zone in 1964 increasing the capacity to 48,000. In 1965 bleachers were added to the center section of the north end zone over the top of the Schulte Field House taking it to 52,455. The north bleachers were expanded bringing the capacity up to 62,644 in1966. A press box was added in 1967 taking it to 64,170. South end zone bleachers were extended in 1972 allowing 73,650. To make room for Husker Vision and Handicapped seating in 2000, seating was reduced to 72,700. Sky boxes and additional Club seating was added in 1999, (74,056) but actually reduced to 73,918 in 2000 to make room for more Club seating. Significant changes were make in 2006 with Sky boxes added in the north end zone and other changes brought the capacity to 81,067. Now during the past year, sky boxes have been added on the east side along with other seating there making the total capacity up to that 91,000 level.

Sunday, September 1, 2013

Olde Glory Theatre and Community Hall

This is the old Presbyterian Church in Seward, NE. It was "decommissioned" as a Presbyterian Church a few years ago and has been utilized by another "break-away" group for the past couple years. After they moved on to larger facilities recently, the place was put on the market and purchased by the Seward Area Chamber of Commerce. Pat Coldiron, Chamber Executive Director and others spoke at a recent Open House where they discussed plans for the facility. It has been renamed, "Olde Glory Theatre and Community Hall". Goehner, a small nearby town, has a history of several years of  Melodrama performances and may try to duplicate their previous success here. There are other groups that have indicated interest in  Theatre use of the building.  The relatively new "Fellowship Hall" with a kitchen has potential for many uses. It is "handicap accessible" with an elevator to both levels. Pat and others are very optimistic about its future. I am personally pleased to see the building being utilized as planned. I have a picture of our Kindergarten Rhythm Band standing on the Church steps after having played there for a concert. It was where  my Great-Grandmother's funeral was held back in the 1930's. We also worshiped there during the 80's and early 90's; so the place has a lot of precious memories. I don't know how successful it may become in its "reincarnation" but certainly wish everyone involved "God's Favor".