Sunday, July 25, 2021
Zebiscuit, Oh Camel Ye Faithful and Emu-Ji Win Exotic Animal Races
by TAMMY KNOX | photos by Coady Photography
A full house of racing fans came out to Indiana Grand yesterday to witness a first of its kind in the state of Indiana. The track hosted ostrich, camel and zebra racing during the third All-Quarter Horse Day for 2021.
Zebras were first to step onto the track. The four entrants were ridden by Indiana Grand jockeys and exercise riders with Amara Kranz scoring the win aboard Zebiscuit. Other entrants included Stripes with Francisco Quintero, Led Zeblin ridden by John Baker, and I’ll Be White Black ridden by Cristian Reyes. Kranz said in a post-race interview this was a bucket list item for her to guide a Zebra in a race.
“They came out of the gate fast,” said Kranz, who is an exercise rider. “I’ve ridden some tough horses before but never a Zebra. I was just worried about hanging on.”
Four camels stepped into the starting gate next with Oh Camel Ye Faithful getting an early jump on the field and striding home to the win with Jockey Natasha Fritz aboard. Other entrants included Hump Day with John Baker, Drama Dairy with Cristian Reyes and Humpty Dumpty with Bennett Greely.
“I just held on with my knees and set up a little and shot him his head,” said Fritz. “And then I just yelled ‘ye ye ye’ the whole way.”
The final event placed five ostriches in the starting gate. The birds started out of the gate and went all directions. Jose Ruiz was able to sit still and hold on as Emu-Ji ran the fastest to the finish line. Other entrants included Flightless Fred and Mandy Green, Ken the Kicker and Cristian Reyes, Ostri-Sized and Elias Vallejo and Two Toed Tony and German Rodriguez.
“I just held on and tried not to fall off,” said Ruiz.
Reyes, who rode in all three events, added, “It was really great. I didn’t know where the ostrich was going. I just tried to stay on.”
The event was provided by Hedrick Promotions based in Nickerson, Kan. The group travels across the country each season to provide Exotic Animal Racing at racetracks and special events. They are headed back to the farm before loading up next week and heading to Nevada for their next show.
Dear Readers,
It was exciting being in Milwaukee when the Bucks won their first NBA championship in 50 years. It proves that sometimes it is better to be lucky than smart. When we planned our trip to Milwaukee, we didn’t know the Bucks would even be in the finals. We were in Milwaukee to see a traveling art show. It was advertised as an “Immersive Experience” of Dutch post-impressionist Vincent Van Gogh. Yes, the guy who famously cut off his own ear. The NBA championship was just a bonus.
Another bonus from the trip is that I found the exception to the rule, “There are no stupid questions.” I proved that axiom wrong on the day of the big game. We were staying in a downtown hotel located near Fiserv Forum, where the Bucks play. There was only one other passenger in the elevator when we were headed to the game. I asked the fellow if he was going to the game. He said, “Yes, I am.” Later, when watching TV, Sandy said, “Look it’s the guy who was in the elevator with us.” It was one of the referees. I told Sandy that he probably thought I was a wise guy trying to be funny. Sandy said that he probably realized that I was just some rube in town for the Van Gogh exhibit. Sandy is probably right.
As Paul Harvey always said, “Now you know the rest of the story.”
BELOW: Addison Times Columnist Kris Meltzer recently traveled to Milwaukee, Wis. to see a Vincent Van Gogh exhibit.
NOTEBOOK
The following couples applied for marriage licenses last week at the Shelby County Clerk’s office: Philip Hester, 66, and Jackie Baird, 66; and David L. Williamson, 26, and Bobbi S. Lowes, 27.
Larry and Susan Lux won gold in a Greensburg mixed pickleball tournament yesterday.
Come listen or come play! As Shelby County celebrates its 200th year, the Shelby County Public Library is tapping into its Appalachia roots with a time-honored bluegrass jam in the library’s plaza, Friday, Aug. 27. The Moon Cave Ramblers start the event at 7 p.m. An Open Circle Jam follows at 8 p.m. for anyone who brings an instrument and a stool or chair. Mel’s Catering will serve a pork chop meal at 7 p.m. Bourbons and Brews Mobile Bartending will provide a cash bar at the event. The family-friendly fundraiser is $15 for adults and $8 for children 12 and under. Tickets are available at the library and online.
The Shelbyville High School girls soccer team wrapped up a successful camp at Anderson University with a 3-0 scrimmage win. Golden Bear senior Sophie Parker was named the squad’s Most Valuable Teammate by Anderson coaches.
HOOSIER NEWS: Farm ground on Fortville’s south side is back under consideration for a housing development from another builder after officials turned down a proposal there last year. Olthof Homes, based in St. John in Lake County, is proposing 172 single-family houses and 176 paired villas on about 112 acres at the northeast corner of Fortville Pike and County Road 850N. Last year, Fortville officials turned down a proposal from Indianapolis-based Arbor Homes for 317 single-family houses on the site. Leaders cited the proposed neighborhood’s deviation from town standards and how the town’s comprehensive plan calls for the area to remain agricultural. (Greenfield Daily Reporter)
This Week in Shelby County" works by George L. Stubbs Sr. are owned by the Shelby County Historical Society (Grover Center) and used with permission.
MYSTERY PIC
The above picture, housed at the Shelby County Public Library, has nothing written on it. The location is not known, and library staff said it is not on W. Broadway.
Last week’s Mystery Photo was identified! The parents are Jack and Dee Goodrich, and the girls are “Bunny”, Valarie and Nancy. We are still looking for “Bunny’s” actual name. Library staff were told the family moved to Shelbyville for work at the GE plant and moved away when GE closed here.
If you have information, please contact email Donna Dennison, ddennison@sscpl.lib.in.us. Thank you, everyone, for helping us identify these photos!
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.
20 YEARS AGO: 2001
Bobby Labonte’s True Value IROC Race Car was on display at Builders Lumber & Hardware.
The Plan Commission announced a meeting to discuss downtown parking and safety on Public Square. “To address safety on Public Square, a reconfiguration is proposed to reduce circulation conflicts and improve the pedestrian setting,” The Shelbyville News reported.
30 YEARS AGO: 1991
Shelby County Chief Deputy Prosecutor Bryan Barrett, 30, resigned. He had been employed at the prosecutor’s office since May 1984, having served as a certified legal intern and deputy prosecutor. Prosecutor James Lisher said he wished Barrett would reconsider. “I’m sorry to lose him. He’s been an excellent deputy prosecutor,” Lisher said.
40 YEARS AGO: 1981
Hundreds of people gathered in Morrison Park to enjoy the 10th annual “Cornstock” Music Festival. The free concert featured five bands from around the area.
50 YEARS AGO: 1971
Paintings of the Red Mill were on display at the Red Mill Guild Show near Boggstown, attracting a crowd of over 500. Luke Buck was judged best in show and also won the Shelby National Bank Purchase Award for his rendition. Other winners, among the 250 entrants, were Barbara Mangus, Dorothy Cox, Marilyn Baker, Clayson Baker, Kenneth Metz, Dorothy Trueb, Mildred Sandman, Sandy Robison, John Eberhart, Doloris McDonald, Helen Craig, Myron Finchum, Jean Ellen Cunningham, Stacy Robison, Brian Schilling, Nan Joesten, John Bridges, Nancy Breeding, Virginia O’Donnell, Dan O’Donnell, Bobbi Reed, Scott Carson, Julie English, Danny Oeffinger, Bob Hunt, Mark Simon, Kenneth Gardner, Jim Coulston and Gary Reed.
60 YEARS AGO: 1961
The eight candidates for the Sugar Creek Fair Queen contest, to be held on the grounds of the Boggstown Presbyterian Church, were Carol Kozderka, Jane Needler, Donna Coers, Sally Weakley, Donna Shaw, Madeline Giltner, Linda Asher and Cheryl Drake.
70 YEARS AGO: 1951
Shelbyville’s Rev. Josephine Huffer, pastor of the Trinity Methodist Church, was featured in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch for her 27 years of service at the local church - a record for length of service for a Methodist minister - and her “untiring efforts for betterment of East Shelbyville and her church.” The article started, “There was a time when Walkerville, across the tracks and the river, was about as Godforsaken as a community could be. Its one little frame church was as good as abandoned. There was a woman (Martha Anderson) with a faith that was strong who rang the church bell on Sunday mornings, although the ringing brought no worshippers. At last, another woman came to the pastor of the forlorn church and serve the forgotten community. That was 27 years ago. Now there is an edifice that is worth $100,000, a congregation of 600 and a redeemed community. That is what the Rev. Josephine Huffer has done for Trinity Methodist Church of Walkerville…” The article said Walkerville was once a place where “the workers lived shabbily, pinched between the fairground and the cemetery at the far side of Little Blue River, spanned by a covered bridge. It was peaceable enough, though something of a problem, with a name of its own so that it would not be identified with Shelbyville, a proud and prosperous city.” Huffer’s first service was attended by four people. (The Reverend’s first husband, Rev. Wilbur Campbell, died in 1918, leaving her with three small children to raise. She later married Rev. William Huffer, who died in 1939.) Huffer died at age 66 in 1953, in her 30th year of pastoral service. She is buried in Forest Hill Cemetery. She had been the first woman minister in Indiana to be licensed. BELOW: Trinity Methodist Church and the parsonage where Huffer raised her three children.
80 YEARS AGO: 1941
A thief broke into the Donald Hungerford hardware store in Manilla and stole a chisel, which was then used to pry open windows at the D.E. Carmony Funeral Home, the Elmer Perkins store and the Earl Mahan barbershop. Four dollars, a watch and the chisel were listed as missing.
90 YEARS AGO: 1931
Rev. Frank Niles, orator, scholar and sociologist, delivered a sermon at the Laura Morrison Park on “America’s Greatest Institution and Its Present Peril.” A Black quartet, the Royal Four, sang spirituals and “plantation melodies” before the speech.
100 YEARS AGO: 1921
A city baseball league was formed. Teams included the Chamber of Commerce, Elks, Rotary Club, Knights of Columbus, Eagles, Big Four and the Post Office. “Good has-been ball players will be seen in the lineups of the different teams and it remains to be seen as to whether they can stage a comeback,” The Republican reported.
OBITUARIES
Forrest “Myron” Caffee, 67, of Shelbyville passed away Saturday, July 24, 2021, at MHP Medical Center in Shelbyville. He was born January 13, 1954, in Shelbyville, the son of Johnnie Myron and Margie (Lindsey) Caffee. On September 3, 1995, he married Audrey Neville, and she survives. In addition to Audrey, Myron is survived by his sister, Rachel Jones and partner, Steve White, of Highpoint, North Carolina; brother-in-law, Frank Griffin of Shelbyville; and several nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents; sister, Virginia Griffin; and brother, Bryce Caffee.
Myron graduated in 1972 from Southwestern High School. He was a farmer and school bus driver. Myron retired in 2012, having driven 25 years for Southwestern Schools and 12 years for Shelbyville Central Schools. Myron had a big heart and it meant the world to him to be a school bus driver, and he loved the children. Myron was a member of Shelbyville Christian Fellowship. He was a volunteer fireman for the Marietta Volunteer Fire Department.
Visitation will be from 4 to 8 p.m. Tuesday, July 27, 2021 at Freeman Family Funeral Homes and Crematory, Carmony-Ewing Chapel, 819 S. Harrison St. in Shelbyville. Funeral services will be at 10 a.m. Wednesday, July 28, 2021at the funeral home, with Rev. Dennis Hirschauer officiating. Interment will be at Miller Cemetery in Shelby County. Memorial contributions may be made to the Marietta Volunteer Fire Department, 5371 W. Marietta Railroad Street, Shelbyville, Indiana 46176. Online condolences may be shared with Myron’s family at www.freemanfamilyfuneralhomes.com.
Stacy L. Cox, 57, forever 29, of Shelbyville passed away Thursday, July 22, 2021, at MHP Medical Center in Shelbyville. She was born April 8, 1964, in Shelbyville, the daughter of Billie and Sudie (Caffee) Cox. Stacy is survived by her mother of Shelbyville; daughters, Jessie Cox, Jerrica Cox and Haley Riddle and husband, Daniel, all of Shelbyville; brother, Troy Cox and wife, Hope, of Indianapolis; sisters, Kelly Cox and Stephanie Paxton, both of Shelbyville; granddaughters, Everly Grace and Avery Lynn; and several nieces and nephews. She was preceded in death by her father.
Stacy graduated in 1982 from Rushville High School, and obtained an associates degree. She was a member of Bible Mission Church. Stacy formerly worked at PMC for 22 years. She was a loyal and devoted member of the Donald Trump Fan Club. Stacy enjoyed playing Royal Story on facebook. She also enjoyed crafting and canning. Stacy had a giving heart and helped raise many children throughout her life. She was also very dedicated to helping feed the homeless.
A gathering of friends will be from 3 to 4 p.m. Saturday, July 31, 2021 at Freeman Family Funeral Homes and Crematory, 819 S. Harrison St. in Shelbyville. A celebration of Stacy’s life will be at 4 p.m. Saturday at the funeral home, with Pastor David Gooding officiating. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to Freeman Family Funeral Homes, to help defray the funeral expenses. Online condolences may be shared with Stacy’s family at www.freemanfamilyfuneralhomes.com.