the BEACON Newspaper, Indiana beacon 1-18 web | 页面 16

Page 16A O Honored Veterans and the Manchester Community attended the Veteran's Day Program at school. MANCHESTER By Leona Houchens Community Correspondent [email protected] Every November the com- munity goes to the school to honor our beloved veterans who have fought to preserve our freedoms. On Nov. 10 nearly one hundred people turned out to see and hear the children of Manchester pay tribute to our Veterans. As three-year army veteran Jeff Brown said, “The pro- gram was great. If I had to THE BEACON ur Communities house in the big woods! So give yourself a very per- sonal Christmas present this year. May you find the time to reflect on what you are most thankful for and gird yourself up with an attitude of grati- tude. It will make you stron- ger, and you may live longer! God Bless all of Manchester with an amazing Christmas and a very Happy New Year! The Manchester Elementary Student Council from left to right, standing is Kylee Neff, Kelsey Halpain, Autumn Mitchell, Rylee Schloss; kneeling is Brodie Teke, Jackson Mathews, Juliette Hurst, Gracie Van Winkle, and Callie Davidson. Absent was Zayne Miller. do it again for our country, I would!” We too will do it all again. We will continue to honor all our veterans and say, “THANK-YOU!” for all the sacrifices they have made for us! We are also very thankful for the 1800 items donated to the school the week before Thanksgiving. Manchester El- ementary’s annual canned food drive put on by the student council was the best this year! Mrs. Dole’s sixth-grade class got a pizza party for bringing in over three hundred items. All donations went to the Community United Methodist food pantry at the corner of Rt. 48 and Possum Ridge Rd. Chinese Buffet & Take Out Open Sun-Thurs 11AM-9:30 PM Fri-Sat 11AM-10PM 391 W Eads Pkwy Lawrenceburg, IN 47025 [phone] follow us at Facebook.com/grandbuffetlawrenceburg for community events and discounts 10% OFF All-You-Can-Eat Buffet with coupon January 2018 The results are in! Over one hundred Manchester children were surveyed, and nearly half of them think that Mr. Ashton’s donkey should be called “Smokey.” The majori- ty of adults like “M. Chester.” Of course, everyone will call him whatever they please, and he will still answer to no one, being the lawn ornament that he is. In a recent email, Candi shared how the donkey they call “Wilbur” was a “source of happiness” every time they passed by him on their way to her boyfriend's medical treatments. Candi wrote, “We still drive by when we go to Lawrenceburg, even if our destination is on the other side of town, just to find our ‘Wilbur’!” It may seem a silly thing to some, but we are very thankful to the Ashtons for all the joy their little burro has brought to so many people during their travels. I have found it is the little things in life that have ac- cumulated into a heart that is full of gratitude daily. Here are just a few in mine: The chorus of little voices that call out my name as I walk down the halls of Manchester Elementary, their arms reach- ing out for a hug as I pass by. The goodness of God to get to live in the freest country on the planet, where I still walk down the streets unafraid. All the “Happy Birthdays” that appear on my Facebook page each year from people I barely know, just because people care. The thrill I feel when I know my grown chil- dren and their families will be coming home for Christmas and staying for several days. And most of all, I am eter- nally grateful for my husband of thirty-four years who still makes my heart zing, as we grow old together in our little AURORA By Fred Schmits Community Correspondent [email protected] Hi Neighbors!!! Last week a group of neighbors was discussing a recent article of the BEACON at the “liars bench” (oops- The gossip filtration station). The conversatio n resulted in the name of another Aurora resident who has a life history of being a “riverman.” Larry Starker began a career on the waterways, espe- cially the Ohio, upon gradua- tion from Aurora High School in 1958. Mr. Starker served as a magnet for some of our neighbors in various ways. Larry’s career began on the Aurora ferry soon after gradu- ation. During that time, he saw barges pass upon which workers were lounging, drink- ing coffee, and having a good time. ”That’s what I want to do,” stated Mr. Starker. He be- gan the first step of accepting a position as a deckhand with Ohio River Co. later that year. Since his employer didn’t have enough men licensed to perform certain jobs on the river, Mr. Starker decided to take an exam conducted by the United States Coast Guard which has jurisdiction over the Western Riverways. Mr. Starker passed the exam and earned a license to be a Mer- chant Marine Officer. He was then qualified as a Master of Towing Vessels upon Western Waterways. Mr. Starker operated tow boats in harbors and on the open river for many years. On one occasion when he was serving as a pilot, he had to stand in the “pilot house” for 19 days!! This was very unusual. Mr. Starker mar- ried Linda Mindell Fish in Mr. Larry Starker made a career of being on the river. 1978 and adopted a daughter. He lived on a 50’ house- boat- quite different than the homes most people had. Since a work-posting on the river consisted of duty time of thirty days on for twelve- hour shifts followed by thirty days off, Mrs. Starker was often alone. It takes a spe- cial woman to be a wife of a “riverman!” Mr. Starker’s dad often kidded him about being, “back after your 30 days!” His friends thought he had been in jail! Before too long, the Starkers moved from being on the river to a position of maintenance in the Cincinnati harbor. Mr. Starker retired in 2006. Unrelenting stress is not a well-known fact of working on tugs, no mat- ter which position. Constant danger from weather and the current of the river are always concerns. Stress and strain are especially bad when sailing upriver. One very special experience to Mr. Starker was owning a tug boat for three years. He stated that this was okay, but the position of an owner was very difficult. Mr. Starker held many different positions including deck hand, first mate, pilot, and captain. Memories of these positions are clear to this day. The “pilot house” changed over the years from the days of visually operat- ing a tow to now using radar, radio, and telephone. The technical advances in today’s operations and equipment have enabled large amounts of goods to be transported all over the states. Volumes of cargo in the ag- gregate have reached close to one million tons per year. The value of cargo on one tow can be as high as four million dollars per tow. A tow consists of a tug and possibly twenty barges in an arrangement that is as long as four city blocks! The costs of a tug itself has risen to four or five million dollars alone. Equipment advances have changed from hand-drawn “chart books” used to show paths on the river from signal point, to signal point to “sail- ing lines charts.” “Only God knows what this is,” stated Mr. Starker. He explained that signal points are the lights one sees on the shores along the rivers. These lights change from green to red and back announcing nearby traffic. Even with today’s radar, lim- its still exist. Radar cannot de- tect fiberglass vessels around a tug, especially pleasure boats, which causes danger- ous situations. High electric transmission lines reflect on a radar screen as something in the path of a tug. This results in many horn signals being used to announce one’s pres- ence in the dark or fog. Many tugs have used the telephone to call someone on shore to ask if a tug is around them. Mr. Starker enjoyed his expe- riences: the people with whom he worked, the adventure of the river, and the beauty of the States and rivers. He did learn that the origin of the Green River where, “Paradise lay,” mentioned in a song was none other than Mammoth Cave! Well, that’s it. Except do you ever wonder… is govern- ment relevant? Call me. IF YOU LIKE THE BEACON…PLEASE SUPPORT OUR ADVERTISERS, AND TELL THEM YOU SAW THEIR ADS IN THE BEACON. THANK YOU!