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June 14, 2004 |
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About Town Dave Uphoff |
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Sesquicentennial a smashing success
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Minonk's sesquicentennial celebration this past weekend was a smashing success. Everything ran
smoothly and there was something for everyone to enjoy. The only thing that could have been better
was the weather. The carnival was rained out Thursday night and Friday and Saturday became hot and
humid. However, on Sunday the weather cooled off and it became a delightful day.
While I could not attend all of the events because of my commitment to the display at my building and the showing of the Minonk History video, all reports were that everything turned out great. The streets of Minonk were lined with people coming to view the downtown exhibits. One of the biggest hits was the "Minonk Rembered" video put together by Minonk native James Weistart. Everyone really enjoyed the video of old photographs with the accompanied background music. James's use of panning and zooming in and out of photographs gave life to the pictures. He has allowed me to sell copies of the videos as a way to raise funds for this website. Unfortunately, I cannot sell it "as is" because of copyright infringement on the music in the video. I am contemplating remaking the video with a narrative rather than the music which would allow me to sell it without violating copyright laws. I will make an announcement later. The highpoint for me was the dedication of the Westside Park pavilion. This was a project whose origins go back to 1988 when Judy Reeser, Clara Fewell, and I got together at my house to discuss how we could raise funds to save the old bandstand in the park. We held fundraisers and created a new design for the bandstand in hopes of restoring it to public use again. However, it was in an advanced state of disrepair and was torn down in 1997 by the city. Undismayed, I designed plans for a park pavilion to replace the bandstand and presented it to the city council who embraced the concept but stalled on approving funds for its construction. It was not until Dean Barth was elected to the city council that momentum picked up to build the pavilion. A new committee was formed and another fund drive was held. After the fund drive, bids were let for its construction. All bids exceeded the amount of funds available for its construction. To the rescue came local volunteers. Minonk plumber Rich Beschorner told me that we could do it ourselves with local skills. Then Randy Kleen, a local contractor, agreed to coordinate the project after receiving assurances from Dave McBride, the president of the Labor Union Local 996, that he would provide union help to finish the project. We decided to go ahead and had a ground breaking ceremony last June 12. |
Today we have a beautiful pavilion that not only enhances the beauty and the use of the park, but also makes a statement
about our city. Anyone who witnesses the pavilion's simple but elegant lines for the first time will understand that
this is a community who takes pride in its appearance. Sure, we could have built a cheaper pavilion with metal sheeting and
wood stick posts. However, functionality cannot be the only consideration when designing a building that represents the
community. Style, dignity, and beauty must also be considered. We do not choose our clothes or our furniture
based on utilitarian reasons only. Why would we want to design a public building that is based only on utilitarian reasons
to represent the quality of our community?
Some naysayers have mentioned that the pavilion is not needed. To them I say that even if it were never used, it still is an important structure because it is a war memorial for those who have died for our country. What better purpose can a building serve? I want to take this opportunity to thank everyone who has supported the new Westside Park pavilion. Over 90 people volunteered to help construct the pavilion and 125 people donated money. Click here for a list of volunteers. While everyone's help was important, I would like to mention those who made a special contribution. First of all, I want to thank the unions for their help and support - Labor Local 996, Plumbers Local 99, Operative Plasters and Cement Masons Local 18, Area 152, and Carpenters Local 183. Locally, I want to thank Dick Davis and Howard Knack for excavaction work, to Brian Kirkton for electrical work, to Rich Beschorner for the plumbing, to Dick Meierhofer and his crew for helping us to meet Saturday's deadline for the dedication, to Randy Kleen for coordinating the project, to Randy and Bill Pingle for having the burden of laying over 1500 blocks, and to the City of Minonk crew for putting in the sidewalks and for providing general support. We were able to build the pavilion for 1/3 of the cost of the bid estimates received. And it was done without any government grants. To meet the deadline for the dedication ceremony required a lot of last minute effort. Three people came to the rescue. Virgil Folkerts, who has spent a lifetime of service to this community, and Vietnam War veteran Larry Stalter both helped me finish the interior of the building and Chuck Pratt helped Randy complete the block work. The Westside Park pavilion is an example of what can be accomplished by a volunteer oriented community that can work together. Those who worked on the project can be proud of their accomplishment. I thank everyone who helped me realize the dream of completing a project that started 16 years ago. |
