Amherst News-Times, 1999-06-02

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Retiring cop liked helping others — Page 5 I Three tracksters head to state — Pane. 8l
Amherst News-Time*
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>dnosdny    Juno  2.   1999
Amherst, Ohio
MLS to graduate seniors Sunday at Palace
More than 1,300 parents
and friends are expected to
gather in the Lorain Palace
Civic Center to see 288 seniors graduate from Marion L.
Steele High School during
June 6 commencement
exercises.
The graduation ceremonies
will begin at 2:30 p.m. with
the Rev. Christopher Robinson, pastor of the First Baptist Church of Lorain, present
ing the baccalaureate address.
Also speaking will be MLS
principal Fred Holland, superintendent of schools Robert
Boynton and other school dignitaries. Other featured speakers include Stephen Szucs,
president of the senior class,
and Stacy Strickler, a representative of students attending the Lorain County Joint
Vocational School.
The class valedictorian, who
will be announced during
June 4 commencement practice, also will address students
and adults attending the ceremonies. The practice will be
held at 9 a.m. in the Palace
Civic Center.
Tickets for those wanting
to attend the co
will be distributcu i~ amm>	
during the practice session.
For more information, call
Marion L. Steele High School
at 988-4433.
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Birthday cards bring flood
of joy to lifelong resident
Nettie Schmidt got a big
surprise when she turned 80
on May 25. She was showered with dozens and dozens
of birthday cards, some from
people she doesn't know.
Schmidt, a lifelong Amherst
resident, received 80 birthday
wishes from 80 friends, family and neighbors she knows
and another 80 from people
she never has met but would
like to someday.
The "card shower" was the
idea of her daughter, Barbara
Shimer, who wanted to remember not only her mother
in a special way, but everyone like her who is a "shut-
in."
Schmidt was left wheelchair
bound and speechless by a
stroke eight years ago, but remains happy, alert and active.
"My idea was that I think
other people should think of
shut-ins because too often
they are forgotten. They don't
get out and a lot of people
don't see them," Shimer explained. "I want them to*
know people remember them
and care about them."
Some cards came from the
Veterans of Foreign Wars auxiliary and Fraternal Order of
Eagles auxiliary, organizations
to which she belongs.
After that, word of
Stumer's effort spread by
mouth around town.
About 20 cards came from
fourth graders at Harris
Elementary School whose
teacher, Kim Gambish, is a
friend of the family and
wanted to let students express
themselves through litde
poems.
Students enclosed a small
picture of themselves. One
card read:
Eighty years of fun,
Eighty years of love,
Eighty years of stars shining on you from above,
You've had too many
happy moments for me to
announce
But throughout all the years
of your life, you're the one
that counts.
Many well wishers were
friends while others were people who remembered from the
years she worked at the Ben
Franklin store downtown in
the 1960s. Still others were
from acquaintances she met
over the years.
It was the many cards,
poems and expressions of
Sisters carry on
Memorial Day's
parade tradition
to honor their dad
by GLEN
MILLER
Nawa-Timaa reporter
•ar*     •
: On Monday, Geri Rice and her
litter Joyce Gam-Rehoreg stood on
Washington Avenue as they quietly
but efficiently put together Amherst's annual Memorial Day
parade.
The Marion L. Steele High
School marching band went here,
the parade cars there and the honored veterans for whom the day is
remembered bad their own special
place.
As usual, everything came off
Without a hitch thanks to the two
women, even though everybody has
learned where to go, where to stand
and what to do over the years.
! Still, they have acted as parade
bolice. Rice stood at the top of
Washington Street giving directions
While her sister did the same at the
tear. Together, they got the event
off to a start without stragglers, last-
minute hatches, or delays.
• But after 26 years of overseeing
the pavade, the two women have decided to make way for naw blood,
although Rice said she may be willing to assist her successor.
The job waa passed on to them
from their father. Most Plato, who
began organizing the parade when
they were just children.
: "I don't want to sound like we're
UrJng credit for Memorial Day or
the parade m Aniherst. It was going
pa a long time before us. We just
kind ef acted aa ttewtsdt," Rice
ttd. "Now it's time to pass me
loach and get aew people involved."
: Plato ia • member el American
i to lit. which*
ily operating out of Veterans of the
Foreign Wars Post 1662 on Cleveland Avenue. The VFW and American Legion have shared the honored
duty of leading off every other year
and will continue to do so.
Either VFW or American Legion
chaplains have conducted memorial
ceremonies at area cemeteries depending on which organization
leads the parade. Visits to cemeteries begin at 6 a.m.
As children they decorated their
bicycles and rode in the parade. As
Rice and her brothers or sisters got
old enough to drive, they were recruited as drivers who would pick
up vets who couldn't march in the
parade. They were chauffeured to
various . Memorial Day functions
and along the parade route in can
loaaed by Amherst area auto
dealers.
But as Rice and Garn-Rehoreg
got older, they helped their father
organize the parade. He would stand
at the top of Washington Avenue
along with the marching bands. Rice
would be in the middle with various
mobile units while her sitter would
take up the rear, which it composed
of baseball teams. *
Eventually, Plato stepped down
and they stepped into hit shoes aad
continued for 26 yean.
In that time, Jheir Oa*gaanizatioa
hat become ao good mat Hole work
hat to be done the morning of the 10
am. event Everyone knows where
to go and whan to Mart.
"Thit la jutt a cooperative town
that the parade goat off without any
problems," Rice mplrtml "It's jutt
a maaater of putting each nek in its
piece aa k
theft**
love that have made
Schmidt's 80th birthday one
that she will remember. Her
birthday party wasn't anything
special. She shared ice cream
and cake with her daughter,
her husband, Ted, 85, and
granddaughter, Libby Adkins
and her husband, James Adkins, and grandchildren, Jimmy
and Blair.
It was her daughter's idea
to mail out fliers announcing
the idea to friends while
keeping it a secret from her
mother, whose bright spot in
the day is receiving mail.
Shimer suggested cards be
mailed May 18 through May
24 and only expected to receive about 85 to 90 cards.
She was dumbfounded by the
response, especially from the
people the family does not
know.
"It shows there's a lot of
<*OaaBaaataajjt°ple out there," she
said.*"
At first her mother wasn't
surprised when one or two
cards arrived. That changed
May 18 when the mailman
save up trying to jam 35'
Nettie Schmidt is surrounded by dozens of
cards and her f wnily during a small 80th birthday party. Frormnaft are her great grandson,
Jimmy, granddaughter, Libby Adkins, daughter
Barbara Shimer, and great granddaughter,
Bla>r Adkins
cards in the Schmidt's
mailbox.
"She became suspicious and
knew something was up but
wasn't sure what Eventually,
we had to tell her. She's
been all excited and all
smiles since," her daughter
explained. "I don't think I've
seen her happier."
After all, not many people,
especially Schmidt's age, get
153 birthday cards wishing
her a happy 80th and a continued good life.
Local Boy Scouts line up to appear in the an nual Amherst Memorial Day parade.
unit aad that one."
The two women tee themselves
aa Utde mote man ceoth-ctondnect-
mganOa*cha>atnc^musaCaJandi-on-
miiacaai parade unitt. Their conducting ;hM-become eaeteovv the yean
thanks to a one-day oae of baad-
bekl radios from tha Amhent Police
Department   for   inttaat
Rice hat been adanmnt about her
and her atomr't Memorial Day duties bacapae of her lather's philosophy about tha piapom of Ae day.
"Th* ia not a hohm*y hoopla
k it a memorial* *e
we really aaa doing la
heroes."
At such, politics have been kept
out of the event. Cwiapaigning of
any kind has been forbidden, although all elected officials have
been invited to participate.
Thit year, in election year, candidates were allowed to wear T-ahMi
identifying themtelvet. although
flien tnd other carnrjaignmg was
forbidden.
"It't juat iaappvopriaia given the
uon for the day and parade," the
the public schools as soon at it ia
over.
Next year. Rice arid the plant to
do something different — sit and
watch, weihing the hat never
Nord grant
funds first
historical
site leader
by QLEN MLLER
News-Times reporter
Scott Kodger's job aa executive
director of the Sandstone Museum
Center will be to help bring Amherst's history as the Sandstone;
Center of the World to life.
Over the next two years, it will be
Kodger's responsibility to develop;
the museum center on Milan Av-;
enue into a small village of sandstone buildings attracting visitors
from near and far.
Kodger, 29, is working under a
two-year grant from the Noid Fam-I
ily Foundation that enabled the Anvi
herst Historical Society and Sandstone Museum Center to hire him;
several weeks ago.
"It's a great opportunity because;
most places are established, to when!
you become executive director you!
are just taking over the job," he said.;
"Here, I get to help made decisions;
creating this museum. It gives me a!
chance to pot my own imprint on!
it." I
It also brought Mm near home.
His family is from the
•Ve been e Am thing to do and art
thing to do," the arid.
If* leety made ea appreciate what
it. I'd jam (to to tee more
its purpose.''
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