Saturday, August 17, 2024
‘Sages’ Share Wisdom with Middle School Students
photo by JACK BOYCE
Lao-tzo wrote a “sage does not accumulate for himself.” On Wednesday, several local business and organization leaders freely distributed their knowledge to Shelbyville Middle School students in a “Coffee (& Water) with Sages” event, held in the school library. Participating sages - John C. DePrez Jr., David Finkel, Phil Haehl, John Hartnett, LaTisha Idlewine, Lee Marks, Nick O’Connor, Scott Spahr, Dr. Matt Vance and Bob Williams - answered questions about mentorship and decision-making to small groups of students in 10-minute rotations.
The students later reviewed their notes and reflected on the experience. Conner Clagg, a seventh grader, said he appreciated David Finkel’s advice that sages are not just helpful when you’re young. “You can have mentors throughout your entire life,” Clagg recalled Finkel saying.
After speaking with Bob Williams, seventh grader June Meltzer noted that while any one of his previous career positions would be impressive, she enjoyed hearing wide-ranging insights from the former mayor, police chief, political party chair and other leadership roles. Several students said they learned much from John Hartnett’s example of carrying on Kenneth Self’s legacy at the Boys’ Club.
Eighth grader Henry Rife said he particularly enjoyed meeting John C. DePrez Jr., a retired news executive. “Mr. DePrez had many interesting stories,” Rife said. “Even his encouragement to never stop learning just made me want more than 10 minutes with him.”
The sages were asked to share a defining moment from their careers, and students were given time for follow-up questions, meeting the new state standards for Communication and Collaboration. They also heard about the challenges of leadership.
“The most interesting thing I heard was how mistakes aren’t just mistakes, but are learning opportunities,” Zane Shelton said.
Bailey Conners also appreciated the varied insights. “What I liked most about the event was not just getting to hear about their jobs, but them telling us the steps that led to success,” she said.
And the SMS library was the perfect location for such serious conversations, Rife added. “I liked how the event was so formal, yet it was like having a conversation with a friend over lunch.”
BELOW: Shelbyville High School graduate and rising Notre Dame freshman Wyatt Haacker, retired Judge Charles O’Connor, who is a Notre Dame alumnus, and Shelbyville Middle School student Chloe Caldwell chat during a luncheon at Shelbyville Middle School, held simultaneously along with the “Coffee with Sages” event. | photo by JACK BOYCE
NOTEBOOK:
A vehicle ran off the South Riley Highway at the intersection of West McKay Road, striking a utility pole belonging to AT&T. The pole was completely removed from the ground, and a utility pole belonging to Duke Energy was snapped near its base. The driver stated he had been up over 24 hours and had fallen asleep while driving.
NATIONAL NEWS: The average age gap between American husbands and wives is down to 2.2 years apart, down from men being on average 2.4 years older than their spouse in 2000, and down from an average of 4.9 years in 1880. Today, the proportion of straight married couples where the spouses are about the same age is for the first time an outright majority, with 51 percent of couples in 2022 roughly the same age, 40 percent with a husband three or more years older, and 10 percent with a wife three or more years older. (Pew Research Center/Numlock)
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580 West Taylor St.
Editor’s Note: The following is the next installment in a serialized version of “580 West Taylor Street,” by Joseph E. “Joed” Landwerlen.
by JOSEPH E. LANDWERLEN
Holidays, Part I
We always began the new year by trying to stay awake on New Year’s Eve until Dad took his old 12-gauge shotgun out at midnight on December 31 and joined the neighbors by shooting several rounds in the air to welcome in the new year. We always had boiled cabbage with smoked sausage and potatoes for that noon meal on January 1; the tradition was thought to bring you good luck for the whole year. The next two holidays were basically celebrated at school: Lincoln's birthday on February 12th and Washington's Birthday February 22nd. We learned about them and did class work to support their memories and their lives and accomplishments.
In between those presidents' birthdays was St. Valentine's Day. Now, we boys in grade school couldn't figure out why we should give a girl a card saying, “Be My Valentine.” First, we didn't know what a Valentine was; also, girls had “cooties” and were to be avoided at all costs. At most, it was a day that we had to be nice to one another and give the girls a little piece of cardboard that they seemed to enjoy.
The next holiday was Easter, which we celebrated at the Calvary Baptist Church on Colescott Street, across from my grandparents’, Ed and Lettie Bassett's, house. We also had a small children's play and recitation of Biblical passages at the church. But, the big deal to us kids at Easter was the day before, when we would color eggs. Dad was the push behind coloring the eggs, and Mom would boil four or five dozen eggs. Newspapers were spread over the dining room table, and the tablets from the PAAS boxes were dissolved in cups of vinegar-tainted water to give us eight or nine different colors. Eggs were written on with crayons and dipped in the separate colors and placed around to dry. After the eggs dried, we would hide some for the little ones inside the house or outside, according to the weather. During the next few days, we had deviled eggs, egg salad, and any other use of the leftover eggs that we could find; every year, we would get sick of eating eggs by the end of the following week.
Mother's Day and Father's Day was the giving of cards and flowers; of course, we kids would be on our best behavior. Mom still had to cook the meals, but with our help.
I know that we as children did not understand or appreciate the work and commitment that they went through as a mother and father at that time.
We were out of school by Memorial Day, and it was celebrated by decorating loved ones’ graves. Most of the decorations were flowers grown at home, like peonies that bloomed in the last of May. The flowers were placed in coffee cans wrapped in aluminum foil and lovingly carried to the cemeteries. In the afternoon, most people listened to the radio broadcast of the Indianapolis 500 race.
July 4th was spent celebrating the birthday of our country with parades and outdoor gatherings. Hot dogs and hamburgers were cooked inside because very little outside cooking was done, so picnics and outdoor gatherings were mostly food cooked at home, and everyone brought their favorite dish for a large pitch-in. At that time, fireworks were illegal in Indiana, so the only fireworks were those conducted by the professionals. Labor Day meant getting ready for school to start, usually a week or two later. And then there was Halloween. (To be continued.)
SHS Courier Archive Highlights:
November 13, 1957
While the stairway at the front entrance remained two-way, other stairways in the building were restricted to one-way traffic to help with congestion.
Dr. Wynn Arnholter, an Indianapolis psychologist, gave a lecture in the gym on “Teenage Problems.” A panel of students - Paul DePrez, Diana Page, George Stubbs and Marcia Bausback - directed questions to her.
A dedication ceremony was held for the new electric organ in Paul Cross Gym, purchased with funds raised by alumni.
Courier staff members were Don Hogan, Steve Schott, Steve Moberly, Bob Frost, Judy Coers, Shirley Bennett, Carole Weaver, Bill Greenlee, Phil Mings, Rich Wetnight, Ramona Lee, Freda Fleener and Karen Hirschauer. Marion Chenoweth was sponsor.
SHS English teacher Miss Moore and her sister, Mrs. Rohm, a teacher at Hendricks, had spent the summer traveling Europe. They returned to the U.S. via the liner “Homeric.”
The edition included a “Did You Ever Notice?” column with the following entries.
That the clock inside the senior high office is usually about two minutes slow.
That Anna Brackman crosses her legs and swings her right foot while studying? Then she usually goes to sleep.
That sleepy expression on Carol Ann Ballard’s face occasionally during 5th hour study.
The book lying on Kenny Bayless’ desk recently, entitled “Do You Know Your Vegetables?”
That Bill Reimann owns a very bright orange shirt?
George Stubbs, student council president, who announced the one-way stairway plan and put up the signs, going up the down stairway?
This Day in Shelby County History
News around Shelbyville and the surrounding area as reported on or about this date in history. Selections are curated from the Shelby County Public Library Genealogy Department.
2014: The Shelbyville News covered “The Ice Bucket Challenge” on social media, in which a person challenged dumped a bucket of ice water over their head and donated $10 or opted out and donated $100 to the ALS Association. Since the challenge went viral a month prior, the ALS had raised $22.9 million, up from the previous year’s donations of $1.9 million during the same period. Sheriff’s Cpt. Dennis Parks had recently participated. Mayor Tom DeBaun had accepted the Ice Bucket Challenge multiple times.
2004: Melinda Brouhard, a junior at Shelbyville High School, was named Bears of Blue River Festival Queen, crowned by Festival board members Connie Moore and Sharon Bernard. Mandi Riggs was Miss Congeniality while Rebecca Allen was first runner-up. The Festival celebrated its 25th anniversary by having former queens sing patriotic songs. Former queens present were Darla McFadden Young, Laura Stieneker Furiak (the first queen, 1981), Sandy (Monroe) Whitten, Sara Gonzalez, Sarah Allen, Kimberly Chapman and Mallory Mechel Burgess. (There was no Festival queen the first year, 1980.)
1994: Vocational school enrollment was up throughout the county. A new school-to-work program was helping with enrollment, Blue River Career Programs Director Robert Hobbs said.
1984: Mary Ann Burdine, 38, a Shelbyville native, was murdered in Denver. She had been shot at close range with a .22 caliber rifle. Her husband, Raymond Burdine, was charged.
1974: Shelby County’s population was expected to reach 68,000 by 1990, a consulting firm working on the county’s comprehensive plan, reported.
1964: Shelbyville’s new $48,800 fire truck arrived and was displayed on Public Square. The boom extended to a height of 65 feet. Mayor Ralph VanNatta, Sheldon Keigh, Fire Chief William Smith and City Attorney George Glass posed for photos with the new truck on the Square.
1954: The Shelbyville Board of Public Works and Safety discussed the establishment of a magistrate court here following city attorney Paul Bernard’s recommendation, which would have eased the case load off the city court and circuit court.
1944: Robert Owen McCray, formerly of Morristown, was awarded the Purple Heart for wounds received in action on D-Day in Normandy. McCray had received shrapnel wounds in both legs.
1934: A “smoker” was held at the St. Joseph alleys for men who wanted to be drafted onto teams for the league. Brunswick was reconditioning the alleys.
1924: A two-headed calf was born on the J.K. Bassett farm north of Shelbyville, near the Blue River Country Club. The calf soon died, and Bassett said he would keep the body through the weekend for anyone who wanted to see it.
1914: Numerous dead fish floating in Blue River near the Vine Street bridge were gathered and burned. Refuse from the canning factory was blamed for the death of the fish.
OBITUARIES
Carol Sue Russell, 84, of Shelbyville, passed away Friday August 16, 2024 at Morristown Manor. She was born January 13, 1940, in Shelbyville to Elza Copple and Mable (Lusk) Copple.
Carol was a member of UAW Local 1793. She retired from GE/Wellman with over 40 years of service. Carol was a dedicated worker, but her grandchildren were the center of her life. She loved to spend time with them and cherished all the memories made through the years. She enjoyed watching her shows, and there is no denying that watching UK basketball was her favorite.
She married Dean Russell on March 29, 1974, and he preceded her in death on March 22, 2021. She is survived by her daughters, Debbie (husband, James) Jaggers of Kentucky, Sherry (husband, Kevin) Gibson of Kentucky and Jeanie Russell-Mohr of Waldron; her sons, Tony Carnes of Kentucky and Rick (wife, Missinda) Russell of Muncie; her grandchildren, Cody (wife, Katie) Russell of Rushville, Cpt. Jarrett (wife, Cpt. Monique) Mohr of Ft. Liberty, Dustin (wife, Jenna) Hadley, Chad Jaggers, Brandon Jaggers, Jessica Jaggers, Joey Carnes, Brandon Carnes, Kyle Carnes, all of Kentucky and Tommy Mohr of Fairland; several great-grandchildren and sister, Helen June Copple of Kentucky. She was preceded in death by her parents; her husband; her sons, Bobby Joe Carnes and Jeff Carnes; and her daughter, Kelly Russell.
Funeral Directors Greg Parks, Sheila Parks and Stuart Parks are honored to serve Carol’s family. Online condolences may be shared at www.murphyparks.com.