Friday, January 19, 2024
GETTING THE PICTURE
Children’s author and illustrator Troy Cummings leads interactive sessions at Golden Bear Preschool and the SCS board room on Wednesday. The event also included a book signing. | submission
Annual Student Trip to D.C. Remains Popular Spring Break Option
Group photos of past Shelbyville Middle School 8th grade trips to Washington D.C. line the 400 hallway. Students often ask about the missing photos: 2002 (post-9/11) and 2020 (pandemic). | photo by KRISTIAAN RAWLINGS
Over three decades after an eighth grade class trip to Washington D.C., Shelbyville Middle School students are once again gearing up for the annual excursion. The popular experience is only on its third faculty sponsor: Roland Stine, Dave Young and now Josh Moore, who has been in charge since 2013.
“It’s so important to expose our kids to our nation’s history in a more realistic way,” Moore, who teaches social studies, said. “It becomes no longer just a story, but they see the Capitol, and places directly connected to George Washington, Thomas Jefferson and Andrew Jackson.”
The longevity of Shelbyville’s trip has made it a hallmark offering for the tour company. SMS was one of the first schools to stop at the Flight 93 National Memorial in Pennsylvania en route to D.C. The company now asks Moore to offer guidance to other schools considering trips.
Some destinations on the itinerary didn’t exist when the first one was made in the 1980s. The Dwight D. Eisenhower Memorial recently opened, as did the Smithsonian National Museum of African-American History and Culture. “It’s massive,” Moore said of the museum, which opened in 2016.
Due to the many sites, students are kept moving from early morning to late. A night walk through the Korean War and Vietnam Veterans Memorials are a student favorite. Indiana congressmen and senators have also met with the group.
And just as Steinbeck advised, “We do not take a trip; a trip takes us,” the unexpected is expected.
A political truck blockade a couple of years ago meant students ditched the bus and rode the metro. One year, a stop at Arlington National Cemetery included the once annual Medal of Honor ceremony.
“That involved the full color guard, previous Medal of Honor recipients and ‘Taps,’” Moore said.
They also often interact with survivors at the Holocaust Memorial Museum, and a Secret Service agent outside the White House chatted with students on a recent trip, answering questions about intrusions and agent pay.
This year’s trip, set for Spring Break, includes 67 students, who are currently lining up hotel roommates.
“It really sparks an interest for kids to want to return to our nation’s capital with their families,” Moore said. “I always have ninth graders come up to me and ask, ‘Can I go back?’”
NOTEBOOK:
A vehicle hit the concrete wall of the casino parking garage on Monday, deploying all the airbags. The vehicle was towed due to the sustained damage. The driver was checked by medics but remained on the scene.
A vehicle struck a pedestrian on Mechanic St. at the intersection of N. Harrison St. on Tuesday evening. The driver said he did not see the pedestrian in the crosswalk and had the green light to turn north onto Harrison.
A structure fire was reported at 875 Webster St., Shelbyville.
NATIONAL NEWS: The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau proposed new rules yesterday that would cap the fees banks charge customers who try to spend more than they have in their accounts. The agency proposed $3, $6, $7, or $14 as the upper limits and is seeking public input on the right amounts. Unsurprisingly, banks, which frequently charge $35 per overdraft and stand to lose billions in annual revenue if the rules take effect, are expected to fight hard against them. (Morning Brew)
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This Day in Shelby County History
2014: Congressman Luke Messer stopped by Linne’s Bakery to chat with locals. His major complaint was against the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. He also fielded questions and shared thoughts on foreign policy. “We cannot ignore what’s happening in other parts of the world,” he said in regards to issues with Iran and North Korea.
2004: Work began on drilling two 56-foot-deep holes used for elevator shafts in the new Major Hospital Cancer Care Center. Excavation for the basement was expected to begin in a week.
1994: Nearly 200 Shelby County homes lost power as temperatures dipped to record lows. The outages mostly occurred in Flat Rock, Norristown and Geneva. The weather station at Cunningham Garden reported a low temperature of 28 degrees below zero. The previous Indianapolis low for that date was 17 below, set in 1984.
1984: A Shelbyville News article noted that leading scientists said development of “fusion power” could end the world’s energy crisis by 2020. The fusion power process was running ahead of development expectations, Princeton University officials said.
Shelbyville Junior High School eighth graders, led by Mrs. Asher and Mr. Hobbs, were taking regular trips to the Shelbyville Klubhaus to learn the game of racquetball.
1974: A Northwestern School bus slid on ice off a curve and went through a fence on Oris Young’s property. The bus, driven by Duane Stucker, had several junior high school and high school students on it, but no one was injured.
A new free bicycle registration plan was offered by the city in an effort to cut down on bike thefts, and help police return bicycles to owners. Police had purchased 1,000 identification stickers at seven cents apiece.
1964: Jerry Joe Schantz, 10, son of Mr. and Mrs. Loren Schantz, Shelby Township, received the No. 1 bicycle registration plate, presented by Jack Warble. Jerry had won a safety slogan contest to get the first plate. Kim Thurston had placed second, getting the No. 2 plate.
After several southern Shelby County residents reported seeing strange lights and flashes in the sky and hearing the sound of aircraft, Air Force officials said it was due to aerial flares during a night reconnaissance training mission conducted from Camp Atterbury. The Air Force said to expect the same each Friday night through March.
1954: A man in his twenties who had been seriously wounded in World War II attacked Blue River Inn owner Homer Wertz at the W. Jackson St. establishment. Wertz had been trying to calm the man down, the report said.
Robert Bennett was named recipient of the eighth annual Distinguished Service Award by the Shelby County Jaycees. Dwight Brinson was named recipient of the Good Government Award. The awards were given at a banquet held at the Alcazar. Dr. Norman Richard, winner of the award in 1946, presented the Distinguished Service plaque. Arthur Williams was master of ceremonies for the event. Several past recipients of the Good Government Award were present: W.F. Loper, Russell Klare and Joe Banta. Previous recipients of the Distinguished Service Award present were Dr. Richard, Bob Eck, Bill Reimann and Bob Good.
1944: More than 10,000 pounds of paper had been collected by local Boy Scouts in a recycling drive.
Despite advance warning, the blast of whistles and sirens heralding the opening of the War Loan Drive came as a surprise to some. The fire station was inundated with calls about the noise.
1934: Nearly 75 men participated in a Shelby County Crow Hunt, sponsored by the Shelby County Better Hunting and Fishing Club. The men collected 1,508 crow feet.
1924: Mr. and Mrs. Edwin Porter contributed $500 for the purchase of surgery equipment and furniture for the room. City Council members issued a formal thank-you to the Porter family. “Edwin Thompson Porter, in whose memory the fund was established, was one of the best known young men in this city,” The Republican said. He had been a reporter in Shelbyville and Indianapolis, and died in 1922.
1914: Students at Kent school, west of Shelbyville, held a corn show. Otis Oldham won first prize and Charles Gosney won second. Mr. R.F. Boger, teacher at the school, organized the event. The corn would be on display in the R.W. Buxton Drug Store.
OBITUARIES
None today