Fort Wayne Police Department Patrolman Todd Hughes sat in the F.O.P.A. Lodge Hall, his pancake plate wiped clean except for an oozing puddle of warm maple syrup.
Having just gotten off his second-shift patrol, Hughes was one of the many police officers . . .
Sally Becker Segerson is doing the best that one woman can to provide Fort Wayne’s homeless population.
The Fort Wayne philanthropist has been running her Street Reach for the Homeless service for about the last eight years, and the program continues . . .
As gambling games go, Milo’s ball fetch had to be the cutest of the night.
The therapy dog and his owner, Turnstone Occupational Therapist Zoe Martin, made a contest out of seeing which ball the adorable 1 ½-year-old Golden Retriever would bring . . .
Usually quieter during the winter months, the Fort Wayne Sport Club was brimming with activity on a recent February evening.
The group hosted their annual Corn Hole and Euchre Tournament, attracting nearly 100 members of the public looking for fun times, . . .
Amanda Vance has an inkling about why so many of her library patrons are racking up more reading hours this winter.
It’s the bookmarks.
“People have found the (SPARK) program through our bookmarks more than anything else,” said Vance, the Waynedale . . .
The Fort Wayne Pet Food Pantry will be open every other Saturday beginning in January 2019 at 2502 Church St. in Waynedale. “We are very excited to be a part of the Waynedale Community and look forward to building local relationships”.
. . .
As manager of the Waynedale Branch of the Allen County Public Library, Amanda Vance always looks forward to this time of year.
That’s because it’s time again for a Waynedale holiday tradition that brings decorative holiday wreaths to her library, . . .
A Waynedale veterans group celebrated the recent Veterans’ Day with a powerful memorial to service people lost in the line of duty.
In celebration of Veterans’ Day, the American Legion Post 241 put on display its “Honor the Fallen Wall,” showing hundreds of pictures of the myriad of servicemen and servicewomen lost in the line of duty since Sept. 11, 2001.
The “wall” consisted of several tall panels placed around the Post’s backroom, on which large photos of those lost were shown. The public – and especially the veterans’ loved ones – were allowed to tour the wall, and place notes on the pictures in remembrance.
The event was open to the public, and any and all veterans, according to past Post Commander, David Miller.
“You don’t have to be a Legion member to come, but, if you’re a veteran, you’re a veteran. And that’s pretty important to us,” Miller said.
When the Post, located at 7605 Bluffton Road, offered the same event last year, more than 1,000 people toured it, according to Miller. This year, the display began on the Thursday before Veterans’ Day, November 8, and continued through the weekend, up to and including the holiday, which occurred on Sunday, November 11. According to Miller, when a “Gold Star Family” (those who’ve lost loved ones in action) came to see the photos, the rest of the crowd was cleared out to allow privacy for their mourning.
On Thursday, November 8, the Post invited more than 80 members of the Wayne High School JROTC to come and tour the wall. “When these young people see these pictures,” Miller said, “it quickly becomes very personal.” While folks toured the wall, patriotic music played softly in the background.
On Saturday November 10, the Post hosted a Paddle-Auction Fundraiser to raise money for the display, and the Post in general. Several local groups and businesses donated items to be auctioned, including Rudy’s Cigars, Red Lobster, Old Smokey’s Whisky in Tennessee, Partners First, All-State Insurance, and Sweetwater Sound, who offered up a guitar and a remote-controlled, rideable cooler with an American Legion logo emblazoned on its side.
Also in town to see the display were two officials from the national Legion organization. Jim and Vickie Koutz. Jim is the Past National Commander of the Legion (from 2012 to 2013), and Vickie is President of the Legion Auxiliary, which is the Legion’s women’s group.
“We’d already seen this display in Indianapolis in April,” Koutz said, “but, of course, we wanted to see it again.”
For Jim Koutz, a U.S. Army veteran, the wall was very personal. A friend whom he had gone through basic training with in 1969, Lonnie Weisheit, was one of those lost, he said.
Miller believes that was, indeed, the entire point of the Legion’s display.
“When you take a look at this,” Miller said, “and the Post-It notes and private messages that the families stick on their loved one’s pictures, his is their father or mother who they never got to have that last conversation with, it is definitely humbling.”
Located at 7039 Elzey Street, the Waynedale Masonic Lodge has been doing their Community Breakfast event on the first Saturday of each month since about 1993, according to Justin Pose, a Masonic Worshipful Master.
Pose said the idea of their event is not just to offer breakfast to hungry folks, but to give a little back to the community while also bringing people together.
“It keeps us connected,” Pose said. “What you’re always reading about is that people feel connected through Facebook or through their phones. This is actually meeting someone face-to-face and shaking hands. With something like this, you get an actual human connection.”
On one recent chilly October morning, about 20 folks crowded into the building’s downstairs area within the first few minutes of the lodge opening its doors at 6 a.m., to munch on their choice of breakfast fare, including eggs (prepared in the style of their choice), toast, bacon, sausage, pancakes, and French toast.
Not long after, however, around 9:30 a.m., the lodge saw its usual rush of patrons, attracting a crowd of about 90 to 100 folks. The breakfast lasts from 6 to 10 a.m.
According to Keith Jacobsen, Junior Warden with the lodge, the breakfast usually brings in about 100 people, roughly 75 community members, and about 25 Masons working the event.
All the food prep and clean-up is done by brothers of the lodge, Jacobsen said. Those brothers often include Bob Beir; Don Feller; Dallas Day (best known as the “pancake man”); and Pat Pedden, known as a “Jack of All Trades.”
Donations usually raise about $100 for the lodge from each breakfast, Pose said.
The Waynedale lodge is comprised of about 370 members said Pose, a 38-year-old teacher who grew up just off Sandpoint Road. Pose said his father also was a Mason, and he also proudly stated the Waynedale lodge recently had been declared the top Masonic Lodge in Indiana, which has more than 350 lodges statewide.
One couple sitting near the rear of the room on a recent Saturday morning said picking their favorite part of the event was easy.
“We just love all the food,” said Paul Hirschman and his wife, Barb, Fort Wayne residents who’ve been coming to the event for about a year. “It’s all made-to-order, and so, so good.”
Pose said it’s not just about eggs and pancakes, but really is about community.
“A lot of people will tell us that this is the best-kept secret in Waynedale. We’re proud of being here,” Pose said, “My whole goal is to get more involved in the community. Waynedale is still kind of a town within a town, and we want to be a big part of that.”
Demolition on the venerable old building was completed about the middle of October, according to officials from Sweetwater Sound, the company that owns the Quimby Village property.
“The building was so dilapidated,” said Jeff Osterman, Vice President of Performance Improvement with Sweetwater Sound. “We just felt it would be an improvement to the image of the entire plaza.”
The Village Bowl had been a part of the historic Fort Wayne shopping plaza since it was first built in the 1950s. But the last pin fell inside the old alley in 2011, and the edifice has sat vacant and decaying ever since.
Osterman said the razing of the building, located at 1710 Bluffton Road, started about two weeks ago, and crews experienced no major problems in bringing it down. “And there were no hazardous materials inside,” he said.
In fact, so much of the building’s old interior already had been stripped away – some sold for scrap – that not much work was required on the inside. None of the bowling alleys or old ball machines were even left behind, Osterman said.
“The inside mechanical had already been stripped away, we just pretty much had to knock down the brick and cement exterior, and the roof,” he said.
Although Osterman didn’t have exact figures for the demolition’s cost, he said the entire bill was covered by Sweetwater.
The company plans to convert the now-empty space into additional parking and new landscaping for the renovated plaza, Osterman said.
“We’ll be adding about 100 new parking spots, as well as some new trees, shrubs, and additional landscaping to improve Quimby’s appearance,” he said.
Osterman said the additional parking will be beneficial to the Clyde Theatre, because its performances have been so popular.
“We’ve been having so much success with the shows at the Clyde (theater),” Osterman said, “that venue really will benefit from the extra parking.”
It won’t be long before no trace is left of the old bowling alley.
“The rest of the building will be down in a week or so,” Osterman said. “And we hope to have the new parking lot done before the snow flies.”
“Both of my boys have spent time working here,” Workman said proudly. “And I’ve been volunteering here for about 20 years.”
On a recent chilly October Friday night, hundreds of visitors came to experience the fruit of the Workman family’s labors, filling St. Vincent’s church parking lot, then lining up dozens deep to make their way into the popular Halloween attractions.
Located at 8965 Auburn Road, the cost to go through the attractions are: $10 for the Haunted Castle; $10 for the Black Forest; and $16 to walk through both.
In operation since 1980, the attraction is maintained and operated by youngsters and adults associated with the St. Vincent’s Boy Scouts, Troop 2, Varsity Team 6402, and Venture Crew 2802.
Volunteer help also is given by local Cub Scout groups, as well as by other local Boy Scouts, the American Heritage Girls and other individual volunteers.
More than 100 volunteers give their time to staff the attractions, Workman said, including doing all the creepy makeup it takes to put a fright into all the folks who tour the Castle and Forest.
In 2010, the Haunted Castle moved to its current location, a new two-story building next to St. Vincent Scout Lodge.
The Haunted Castle consists of several haunt scenes, including creepy fortune tellers, ghouls popping out of dusty coffins, and bloody-faced vampires lurking in dark corners, waiting for guests to cross their paths, so they can jump out and scare them. Blood-curdling screams and ghostly moans waft in the air throughout both attractions, piercing the silence one experiences when first entering.
The castle also features two slides that let guests quickly move from the top floor to the ground floor. The Black Forest, meanwhile, is an outdoor haunt that leads visitors through a winding gravel trail along Beckett’s Run Creek.
It takes about 30 minutes to stroll through each attraction.
The Castle and Black Forest also feature autumn-themed concessions, with hot dogs, popcorn, soft drinks and hot chocolate for sale at reasonable prices.
Money raised from admissions and concession sales all go to support the Boy Scouts, Workman said. “This helps to pay for the Boy Scout program all year long and take care of the property,” Workman said.
Workman, whose sons Tommy and Billy both were Boy Scouts who’ve benefited from the funds brought in by the Castle and Forest, said the attractions are about more than just a fun Halloween scare.
“It’s something to do with your family; it’s fun; and it’s a reasonable price,” he said. “And we wouldn’t have been doing this for 30-plus years if people didn’t enjoy it.”
The Haunted Castle and Black Forest are open Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays up to (and including) Halloween night. Thursday and Sunday hours run from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m.; Friday and Saturday hours are from 7 p.m. to 11 p.m.
In addition, guests will receive $1 off their admissions if they bring a canned good to donate. The Black Forest also is hosting a Trunk or Treat for children on October 28, in which volunteers welcome trick-or-treaters to their cars – as if they were homes – and pass out candy and goodies to the children.
For more information on both attractions, visit www.hauntedcastle.com
On the very day of its birthday – October 8 – the center, located at 3320 N. Clinton Street, held the annual Community Health & Information Fair from 8 a.m. to noon.
Welcoming the public into the building for everything from blood pressure, vision and bone density screenings to blood tests for cholesterol and blood sugar; to flu shots and other immunizations; to breast cancer screenings from Francine’s Friends Mobile Mammography inside its mobile testing truck, the fair drew dozens of eager folks looking to find out more about local agencies and, perhaps, check out their health at a reduced cost.
Sponsored by organized labor and the local United Way, the event was open to those 18 and older, and was free to attend, although some of the health tests did cost a nominal fee.
“This facility has a lot offer,” said Mike Bynum, Director of Labor and Community Services for the local United Way. “And one of the main reasons we put this event on is – as a community – we have a responsibility to help each other, to make Fort Wayne a good place to live and retire. This is really about helping people be exposed to services they might not otherwise know about.”
Several groups set up tables inside Turnstone’s cavernous gymnasium area, including the local Boys & Girls Club; the American Red Cross; Familia Dental; Ivy Tech; the Community Transportation Network; the Allen County ASPCA; Visiting Nurse, and Citilink.
In fact, guests could receive a “Bingo” card showing all the logos for the agencies in attendance, and get them marked for each group they visited. Once their card was marked by all the groups they had seen, they could enter their card into a sweepstakes to win a $25 Kroger gift card, Bynum said.
“The vendors are just great,” Bynum said, “and they’re very supportive of our guests here today.”
The fair also garnered the help of about 20 volunteers who helped work the event. Most were retirees who had been active members of organized labor, Bynum said.
The history of the event actually goes back about 25 years, according to Sally Zuber, a retiree from the United Way, who has worked the fair since its inception in 1993. That first year, she said, it was only held for United Auto Worker retirees, and was done at the UAW Local No. 57 Rec Hall, located off U.S. Highway 27. “The CEO of Parkview was on our board at the United Way,” Zuber said, “And he helped come up with the idea of a health fair for retirees.”
In 1996, the fair moved to Turnstone, and was opened to all retirees, not just those from the UAW, she said. Later still, the United Way opened the event to the general public.
She said the event really has evolved into a way to get out information and help those who may not have the money to get tests done at their family physician.
“We’re really just trying to reach those who may not be able to afford to go to the doctor,” Zuber said.
David Siples shepherded his two puppies around the moist grass, as they ran, scratched and sniffed everything in sight.
On a recent cool and breezy autumn afternoon, the Waynedale man brought his two dogs to Pawster Park to let them run, play and socialize with other local canines and their owners.
Quietly tucked off Winchester Road, and cleverly named Pawster Park, the roughly one-acre local dog park offers two sides, one, a large, grassy area with ramps and other objects for canines to play on, and another side with benches and shelters for owners to sit and watch.
“It’s really just an off-leash area for dogs and their owners to socialize,” said Jason Smith, Manager of Athletics and Aquatics for Fort Wayne Parks and Recreation.
Siples, an economics and U.S. History teacher at South Side High School, has been bringing his two dogs, a brother and sister named Scout and Abbey, to the park since they were puppies, he said.
His dogs, who are both a mix of Australian Shepherd and Husky, came to the park almost every day when they were puppies – about 8 years ago – back when they had much more energy, he said. Now, they probably come to the park about five times a week.
“When they were babies,” he said, “we had to find a way to burn all that energy off.”
The park was built about the year 2000, Smith said, after a group of local dog enthusiasts came to the Parks Department, asking them to construct something they and their pups could enjoy together.
The group offered to do their own fund-raising to pay the construction costs, so all the Parks Department did was donate the land needed to create it.
“They got the money, and the rest is history,” Smith said.
Using land that was once two softball diamonds – which, according to Smith were rarely used – the Department crafted a new area for dogs and the owners to enjoy the outdoors.
But, use of the park isn’t free or unregulated.
Users must go to the Parks Department office – located at 7705 E. State Blvd. – to pay the $40 per year fee to become members. They also must provide the department with proof that their dogs have been vaccinated for rabies, distemper and parvo, Smith said.
“This is so we know that the dogs that are in there are vaccinated to the standards we know are safe,” Smith said. “Our first goal is to keep all dogs and owners safe. And they have to have proof that these shots were given by a vet.”
Once all that is done, owners are given a pass key that opens the gate lock to get into the park.
Smith said Waynedale is lucky to have such a convenient place for owners and their puppies. The only other dog park in the Fort Wayne Parks system is Camp Canine, located at Johnny Appleseed Park, 1500 E. Coliseum Blvd.
Other dog parks exist around the city, he said, but none other operated by the city Parks Department. Pawster was, in fact, one of the first dedicated dog parks to be built in the state outside of Indianapolis.
In fact, Smith said, his department still gets calls from around the state from other cities interested in building their own dog parks, asking questions like how much space is needed, how expensive is the annual upkeep, what’s the department’s liability for the park, and other such queries.
“In fact,” he said, “I just got a call today, because they want to build one in South Whitley (county),” he said.
Smith said Pawster really is about just making dogs happy, which, in turn, makes for a happier populace.
“More than anything,” Smith said, “this gives people with dogs the chance to exercise them without a leash. It really makes for a happier dog and thus, a happier family.”
Siples was just happy to have a place to let his two dogs exercise, and perhaps meet other like-minded dog owners.
On a recent Saturday afternoon, Scout and Abbey cavorted with about 10 other dogs and their owners, enjoying the cool fall weather and all the amenities the dog park had to offer.
“There’s companionship, camaraderie, meeting other dogs, letting them stretch their legs,” Siples said, “It’s just a nice, open space; a nice community; it’s really a nice facility; a great combination of public and private.”
The four-year-old little girl was remarkably calm amidst the swirl of activity all around her as the annual Monarch Festival was held at Eagle Marsh on September 9.
Hosted by the Little River Wetlands Project (LRWP), and held inside the cavernous, red barn at Eagle Marsh – thanks to the day’s rainy, cloudy skies and cool temperatures — this year’s event attracted hundreds of folks hoping to find out a little bit more about the iconic butterfly, and perhaps even see some fluttering examples of its kind.
LRWP Chair, Betsy Yankowiak, said the fair typically attracts 1,000 to 1,500 people. On this cool, cloudy day, however, she was just hoping for more than 500 people to attend.
Dozens of tables were set up for visitors, each staffed by a different group presenting their information or selling their wares during the festival.
The Fort Wayne Children’s Zoo table offered a simulation of what pollen looks like when it sticks to a butterfly’s legs. Using pipe cleaners and corn meal and flour, kids could recreate the way pollen grips onto a butterfly’s extremities as it flits from flower to flower.
The Purdue Master Gardeners table offered free milkweed seed and milkweed seed bombs to help people grow the monarch’s favorite plant. “All we need to do is plant milkweed,” Yankowiak stressed. “If we do that; the monarchs WILL find it.”
At the honey table, the beekeeper was selling varying sizes of their honey in jars and smaller amounts in plastic straws filled with its sweet nectar.
The Little River Wetlands Project table was offering booklets and brochures, as well as hats, shirts and stuffed animals emblazoned with the LRWP logo.
One station even offered homemade guacamole, salsa and hot sauces for the hungry crowd to sample, as well.
Several glass aquariums held dozens of monarch caterpillars and eggs, happily munching away on milkweed leaves.
And, of course, several other tables featured mesh cages filled with the beautiful adult orange and black-winged butterflies.
Unique in nature, monarchs are the only butterfly known to make a two-way migration, as most birds do. When the weather begins to turn cooler in the northern hemisphere, the butterflies begin to head south, with most eventually wintering in the mountains of Mexico. And because, according to Yankowiak, most monarchs don’t weigh much more than a dead leaf, the insects must use a combination of air currents and thermal drafts to make their journey.
Some travel all the way from Canada to Mexico, then back in the summer, a total of more than 3,000 miles.
Unfortunately, development has erased much of the land and the plants the monarchs need to survive, thrive, reproduce, and migrate.
“Since 1990, the monarch population has declined by 90%. The U.S. landscape has changed so drastically,” Yankowiak said. “A lot of the natural milkweed has been removed; and the little places that used to have the milkweed have disappeared.”
Yaro Carpenter, Koko’s mother who was keeping a close eye as her daughter got her hand painted by Camille Krouse near the barn’s rear entrance, said while it was she and her daughter’s first time at the annual event, they were happy they came.
“Every table has some kind of a great activity or something we wanted to buy,” Carpenter said. “It’s really been a lot of fun.”
After having been closed for work for several months, the Dairy Queen at 501 Lower Huntington Road finally opened for business again on June 1. The spot had been closed since about September of 2017.
Since the place used to be an old gas station, according to District Manager Andrew Yablonsky, renovations were sorely needed.
Construction was finished about mid-May, Yablonsky said, and the café remained closed for an additional two weeks to train the staff on their new restaurant.
The updated lobby now seats 86 people, significantly more than the old 20-person capacity. New booths and new LED lighting were installed giving the dining room a more sophisticated air, and new light fixtures were added outside, as well.
Improvements were made to the parking lot, too; about 20 spots were added, giving the place about 40 total parking places. Renovations also moved the restaurant’s large freezer outdoors to make more room for the expanded dining room.
And, perhaps, most importantly, the restrooms are no longer outside of the restaurant. Because the business was an old gas station, both bathrooms were once outdoors in a single unisex restroom. Now, the eatery offers separate bathrooms inside, Yablonsky said.
While Yablonsky didn’t know the exact cost of all the improvement work, he said the work went over budget, due to unexpected costs. He estimated the price to be “at least $200,000, for sure.”
And while the expenditures were significant, local benefits are many. Yablonsky said his store hired 40 new employees to staff the improved eatery. While most of those workers are part-time, about 10 to 15 percent of his workforce are students at Wayne High School.
Yablonsky said the work really has turned his restaurant into a Waynedale jewel.
“I’m sure the whole community could’ve argued that this was badly needed,” he said. “It’s probably the nicest restaurant in Waynedale now,” Yablonsky said, “and it’s good for the community because we’re open year-round. So it’s a place where people can come and get their treats – even in the winter.”
Featuring new tee pads, new mulch on several fairways, and new signage throughout the course, a better disc golf course was unveiled at Tillman Park last month.
The park’s course – located along Tillman Road between Calhoun and Lafayette Streets – was chosen for the improvements because other parks were either too busy with other activities or too near an existing disc golf course, according to Brian Miller, a member of the Fort Wayne Disc Golf Club.
“Our committee sat down with the Fort Wayne Parks Department several months ago, and decided Tillman would really be the best place to focus our efforts,” Miller said.
Disc golf works very much like regular golf, only players use a disc – or Frisbee – to complete each hole. And rather than sinking a ball into a hole, the object is to toss your disc into a metal basket (with chains to help catch the disc) in the fewest number of throws.
The discs are slightly smaller and heavier than ordinary Frisbees, however. The “drivers” – used for the players’ opening throws, are made of a thicker, harder plastic with a beveled edge. “You wouldn’t want to try to catch those,” Miller joked.
And while the Fort Wayne Parks Department bought nine new baskets for the new course, the club paid for the other 12 with its own funds, to the tune of about $350 a basket, Miller said. Individuals donated the money for two additional baskets, he said.
Miller said he also sold sponsorships for each new cement tee on the numerous holes for $150 each. Several businesses and individuals stepped up, contributing the cash for the tees. Signs on each tee denote those who contributed to make the work possible.
While donations helped pay for materials to build the tees, labor to construct them – and all the course improvements – were provided by the Disc Golf Club, Miller said.
Additional improvements made at the course include new cement tee pads, where players make their first throw, on several holes; new, fresh mulch along the fairways; and new directional signs throughout the course directing players to the holes and the next tees.
Because the park actually used to be a landfill, the improvements there serve a two-fold purpose, Miller said. “We’re not only creating something fun, but we’re reclaiming that land for a useful purpose,” he said.
Miller actually helped design the new course, and strived to make it challenging and varietal. “I wanted a variety of holes,” Miller said of his design. “Not just par 3-, 4- or 5s, but a course that was challenging throughout.”
The course’s grand opening was held on July 13, and featured officials from the local disc golf community, as well as the Director of Fort Wayne Parks and Recreation, Steve McDaniel.
“We are excited about the opening of Tillman Park Disc Golf Course and the potential for bringing more prestigious events to Fort Wayne,” McDaniel said during the grand opening.
Once the course was officially opened, the local disc golf club held a tournament there that attracted about 80 players, Miller said.
There aren’t any formal leagues that play at the course, although Miller said members from his 125-person club play there about every other Sunday during the warmer months. The other Sundays are played at Swinney, and pretty much every Sunday during the winter. Anyone is welcome to play at the course; there’s no cost to play. “All you need is your own disc,” Miller said.
Miller said he’s happy to have been a part of the course improvements.
“It’s free, it’s exercise, it’s fun,” Miller said. “It’s just another thing for people to do in this area.”
Toward that end, Brough, the Fort Wayne-raised real estate professional, has opened a new storefront at 3518 Broadway, right next to the newly revitalized 07 Pub, operating what he calls a “design-based real estate firm with a showroom.”
Calling it “Modern Mill,” Brough’s storefront offers a showroom for its interior design products on the ground floor, and the headquarters for his renewable energy company on the building’s second floor.
“Fort Wayne is very much ready for this; we’re bringing the real estate brokerage home,” he said. “We’re coming back home, but we’re bringing the big-city vibe to Fort Wayne.”
And while Brough’s storefront just officially opened on June 23 of this year, the Bishop Luers graduate has been involved in real estate for years.
“I’ve been in real estate most of my life,” Brough said, “so this was natural for me.”
After having spent several years in San Diego, California, working in the solar energy industry and at flipping old houses, Brough decided to move back to his hometown in about 2007 and try the same business here.
Brough began selling and marketing solar panels to local homeowners, and while installing and showing those products, the furniture and designs in his staging homes drew a lot of customer attention and appreciation.
So, he thought, why not combine the two businesses into one and create a whole new entity?
Operating much like the HGTV show “Fixer Upper,” Brough’s company helps customers not just to install solar panels and save on their energy bills, but to upgrade the look and feel of their home’s interior, as well.
His firm also assists homeowners with any work they might need done to their roof, siding, electrical, plumbing, or concrete. “All things above and below the roof are what we get involved in,” Brough joked.
Modern Mill will even help people with financing their improvements, he said. “That’s the people I want,” Brough explained, “the people who know what they want, but don’t know how they’re going to pay for it.”
So far, Brough said, business has been booming. “We just started marketing ourselves about two months ago, and we’ve already got more leads than we can handle.”
He said the interest in his new business isn’t just good for him and his new firm, but for the city’s south side, and Waynedale, as well.
“All this together is bringing life back into this area,” Brough said.
As a former writer, copy editor and teacher, Sophia Ulmer had no idea what her future had in store.
These days, however, the 30-year-old is spending her time teaching community members how to work with, prepare, and eat more healthy food.
“We need programs like this,” Ulmer said. “Food is everything and education is everything. It’s imperative that we empower people to make well-informed food choices.”
Ulmer is one of a handful of folks teaching classes around the community called Healing Kitchen, a program sponsored by the local group Brightpoint. The name actually is an acronym for Healthy Eating Active Living.
Funded by grants from the St. Joseph Community Health Foundation and Parkview Health, the classes have been around for about three years, according to Brightpoint Vice President of Operations, Sherry Early-Aden.
The classes are held at seven different locations around the city, including Hopewell Pointe here in Waynedale. That class, being held at 8033 Community Lane, will be going on for the next eight Tuesdays, according to Brightpoint.
The classes last for about eight weeks. Each session includes education about healthy food, as well as a cooking demonstration. Students also are given a 165-page Brightpoint book called Our Healing Kitchen that offers information on healthy foods, as well as more than 20 recipes to get people started on their journey toward healthy cooking and eating.
On a recent Monday afternoon, Ulmer settled down with about 10 residents of Ryker Reserve Senior Living, located at 1825 Laverne Avenue, and some of their family members, teaching them about healthy ingredients, then showing them how to use those things to make a delicious cold corn and bean salad.
After teaching the seniors and their families about each ingredient and showing them how to chop and prepare it, Ulmer passed out samples to her hungry classroom.
According to Early-Aden, the classes don’t just give folks a chance to sample delicious and healthy fare, but it helps improve their life as well.
“It’s really meant to be fun and interactive,” Early-Aden said. “It’s just a great way to introduce new foods and improve these people’s quality of life.”
Those interested in taking the classes, or who just want more information, should log on to Brightpoint’s website, at www.mybrightpoint.org. Those interested in actually taking the course should make sure they RSVP for the class, in order to ensure the instructor has enough materials for all the students who’ll be attending. People should call Monica Woods at Brightpoint to RSVP, (260) 423-3546, ext. 269.
That’s the problem that one local teenager is hoping to remedy with his altruistic Eagle Scout project, aimed at securing beds and bedding for the local families in need.
Working as a volunteer with the Mustard Seed Furniture Bank, Boy Scout, Will Luley, has created a drive to collect as many beds and as much bedding as he can for the collection agency, so it can be donated to those who may not be able to afford beds or bedding for themselves or their children.
A tall, lanky teen who will be heading into his senior year at Bishop Dwenger High School this fall, the 17-year-old has been in the scouts for 12 years, and completing this project would help him earn the coveted Eagle Scout status.
Luley has been volunteering at Mustard Seed, 3636 Illinois Road, since he was a freshman, as part of Dwenger’s requirement that all its students volunteer somewhere in the community.
As a part-time worker at the bank, Luley has tackled any number of tasks they needed. From building a storage and countertop area in the back of the building, to organizing hangers and blankets, the teen has become a valued addition to the bank’s work force.
“He knows how to prep stuff, that’s why he’s valuable,” said Suzie Jordan, Mustard Seed’s Executive Director, “We keep giving him stuff to do, but he kept drifting back to kids’ beds.”
In fact, Luley not only is working at the bank on Illinois Road to collect the needed bedding, but he’s also set up donation barrels at two churches he’s affiliated with to collect sheets, pillows, pillow cases and blankets. The barrels are at Most Precious Blood and Queen of Angels churches. The teen also has set up a donation website online where folks can donate cash to the cause, if they wish.
Luley and Mustard Seed are gathering specific bedding: It must be twin size, and the sheets and blankets must be new – no used items are being taken. Jordan estimates the cost of a bed and bedding being collected would be about $135 for each bed if Mustard Seed had to go out and actually purchase it.
“I’ve really enjoyed this project,” mused Luley, who proudly wears a Boy Scout sash featuring almost 30 patches for his completed scout training. “This will help kids from ages two to 18 who don’t have a bed to sleep in; and it will be beneficial to kids all over northeast Indiana.”
According to Jordan, the actual beds and frames are being donated by Wolf Corporation, so the main focus for Luley’s project is to gather the needed sheets, pillows, pillow cases and blankets to go with the physical beds. “They’ve been very generous to us and our project,” Jordan said of Wolf.
With beginnings in 2002, Mustard Seed is a furniture bank that collects furniture – some used and some new – that it either donates or sells at very low prices to help lower income residents.
The bank runs strictly on donations. No government grants or United Way funds are used in its operations. So far, according to Jordan, the bank has served roughly 16,000 children from more than 9,000 households in our region. Those numbers mean more than 9,200 beds have been donated since the center was opened.
Jordan appreciates the tough job that Luley is helping them do.
“This is not an easy job; this is a multi-faceted project with a lot of organization and public relations that he’s tackling.”
She said the end result will be a blessing for Mustard Seed, and for the generous teen Boy Scout.
“What’s a feather in Will’s cap, is a feather in Mustard Seed’s cap.” Jordan said.
With the arcing mounds of dirt covering the fairways and numerous construction equipment dotting the landscape, it doesn’t exactly look open for golfing.
“People drive by and don’t realize the front nine is still open,” said Ernie Cook, the Course General Manager.
But, while the course is going through a transformation, half of the course remains open for play.
The course – and much of the land it sits on – recently was purchased by Indiana Tech for a new sports complex the college is constructing.
Indiana Tech has planned about 6 million dollars worth of improvements for the land, according to Matt Bair, Director of Marketing and Communications for Indiana Tech. The work includes a new softball stadium, a new track-and-field complex, and a new 25,000-square-foot athletic facility that will host the school’s wrestling squad, as well as become the new home for coaching offices, media rooms, as well as laundry and sports equipment rooms.
Work on the site likely won’t be finished until 2019 or possibly even early 2020, Cook said. He said not only has the college done a great job of dealing with its purchase of the old course land, but the upcoming complex will be a great addition to that area of Fort Wayne.
“Indiana Tech has been first class all the way,” Cook said. “I think this [new development] will really be a gem for the south side of town.”
Located at 7102 South Calhoun Street, the original front nine holes of the course have been in business since 1927. The well-known clubhouse was built in the mid-1990s, Cook said.
The course was actually designed by a golfing legend by the name of Donald Ross. Though he passed away in 1948, in the early part of the 20th century, the transplanted Scotsman left behind a legacy of 413 courses all over the United States. His designs include such famous locations as Pine Hurst No. 2 in North Carolina, Seminole in Florida, and the site of the 1996 U.S. Open, Oakland Hills, just outside of Detroit.
Currently, the course remains a popular alternative to the city-owned golf courses. In fact, Cook said, the course reduced its fees recently because of the current construction.
While it once cost $21 for nine holes with a cart, now it costs $17. “That keeps us more in line with city courses,” Cook said.
Cook said while it’s sad to see half of his beloved course disappear, nine holes still remain. And the new development from Indiana Tech should make the area shine!
“I hate to see nine holes go away,” Cook said, “but I love what it’s going to become.”
In fact, Indiana Tech will keep the front nine holes open even after the new Indiana Tech complex is finished – probably in the spring of 2019 — Bair said, and has possible plans to use it for some of its course instruction.
“We’re very excited about obtaining this course,” Bair said. “We can definitely incorporate this into some of our programs.”
For more information about the course, go to their website: www.golfdonaldross.com
Programs throughout Fort Wayne are helping to make sure kids get a nutritious lunch during the summertime.
One of the biggest servers of affordable summer grub is the venerable Community Harvest Food Bank, and its Kids Café program.
The food bank operates five centers throughout Allen County where kids can go to get the free or reduced-price lunch they normally have access to during the school year.
Served at no cost to the kids, the lunches are very similar to the ones they might get at their school cafeterias during the school year, said Melissa Hoover, TEFAP and Kids Café Supervisor for Community Harvest.
The meals usually consist of two ounces of protein, two ounces of grains, one-half cup each of fruits and vegetables, and a milk. Those requirements come in a variety of forms, according to Hoover, from chicken and burgers to meatloaf or spaghetti.
The program, which is funded by the Indiana Department of Education, typically serves up to 250 children each day, Hoover said. Total costs for the lunches vary, but she said last summer it wasn’t unusual for the bank to spend about $1,800 a month on providing meals for all their centers.
And the program doesn’t just offer food, Hoover said. Many sites also provide summer activities for the children as well. Some offer weekly field trips – including a trip to the roller-skating rink — computer learning and arts and crafts. The café at the Renaissance YMCA even offers a program called Lunch Patrol, where children not only get a lunch, but get to enjoy a live DJ, face painting, balloon artists, a splash pad, and some time with members of the Fort Wayne Police Department, and the police dog, Bella.
Another lunch program is operated though the Fort Wayne Community Schools, and is called the Summer Food Service Program for Children (SFSPC), and has more than 40 sites that offer a free mid-day meal.
Schools near Waynedale that offer the lunches include Kekionga Middle School, located at 2929 Engle Road; Waynedale Elementary, at 7201 Elzey Street; and Indian Village Elementary, 3835 Wehnohah Lane.
The lunches are served Monday through Friday, unless otherwise noted. Most lunch sites began serving on June 5, and continue the service through Friday, July 28. No meals will be served on Tuesday, July 4, in observance of the Independence Day holiday.
For the Kids’ Café program, there’s no need to sign up or fill out any forms, according to Hoover.
“They can just go to one of our centers,” Hoover said. “There’s no requirements; no paperwork.”
She said the Kids’ Café is essential to fighting one of the worst problems of our time: hungry children.
“Childhood hunger is a terrible thing,” Hoover said. “If our kids are hungry, they can’t learn, they can’t play, they can’t function. That’s why programs like this are so important.”
Those interested in finding out more about the program, or to locate their nearest feeding center should either log into the food bank’s website, at www.chfb.org, or call Hoover directly at (260) 449-9713 ext. 101.
For Jeff Hall, it’s been a month of questions.
As one of the owners of Hall’s restaurants, he’s had to tell numerous customers who stop-in to the venerable Bluffton Road restaurant, exactly what’s going on at the diner, and why it’s been closed for the last month.
Renovation construction on the time-honored favorite is moving ahead, but more slowly than management anticipated, so the restaurant at 1502 Bluffton Road has been closed recently.
But, no worries. Folks will be enjoying their Big Buster hamburgers again soon enough, according to Hall.
The original plan was for renovation work to build six vehicle slots outside the restaurant for drive-up service – two wings outside the building, essentially, for cars to pull up and order from the Hall’s menu. Plans also called for new booths, tabletops, chairs, and new lighting in the dining rooms. They also wanted to install new tile in the restrooms, and apply a fresh coat of paint to the building’s exterior.
Originally, all this was to be done while keeping the business open. But as the work dragged on and became more delayed, the owners decided to close the restaurant while the renovations were finishing.
According to Hall, the work was much needed. “It was long overdue for that location,” he said. “There haven’t been any major renovations there since the 1980s.”
The work will also install a new walk-up window on the north side, where customers can order from the outside of the building. Hall said with his restaurant’s close proximity to the Waynedale trail that runs across the Bluffton Road bridge and near Quimby Village, customers will be able to stop for a quick snack while walking, biking, or jogging the new trails.
As for the cost of the work? Hall cagily said they weren’t really sure what the total cost was at this point, only admitting it was more than was originally estimated. “You got to pay as you play with this kind of stuff,” he said, “that’s just reality.”
Those running the restaurant are also toying with the idea of new items for the time-honored menu, though Hall offered his assurances that all the old favorites – such as the Big Buster hamburger – would remain.
He said the new foods weren’t exactly on the front burner right now. “We’ve got bigger fish to fry,” he said, referring to the continuing construction work.
Although the main restaurant has been closed while work is finishing up, the fast-food take-out Hall’s Food Factory next door has remained open if folks really were craving their Hall’s favorites.
Hall estimates that work will finish up – and the restaurant will reopen – sometime after the 4th of July holiday.
“It took a lot longer than we thought,” Hall said, “but we’re resolved to do it right. And we’ll be there when we’re there.”
Mary Miller, a black belt in martial arts, normally spends her spare time teaching classes at the Basche School in Fort Wayne.
But, on a recent, sunny summer morning, she holed up in a conference room at the Waynedale branch of the Allen County Public Library, punching, kicking and shouting with a group of youngsters looking to learn a little more about karate.
As part of the library’s series of summer events, Miller played host to about 20 children and their parents, teaching them the basics of karate and its philosophies.
The session began with Miller leading the class in a round of jumping jacks; then some leg stretches, and the slapping of their hands in unison over their heads. Miller’s assistant, a boy named Skylar – clothed in a red robe with a green belt — stood next to her throughout the class, obeying her commands and shouting, “Yes, Ma’am,” afterwards.
The class mostly focused on basic martial arts moves and how kids could protect themselves from strangers and bullies. It was just one of a collection of summer activities centered right at the Waynedale branch this year.
Through June and July, the library, located at 2200 Lower Huntington Road, is offering a range of programs aimed to attract youngsters and adults, alike.
One of the library’s most popular offerings is the SPARK program, which encourages teens and adults to get the most from their summer by learning though engaging activities, presentations and reading incentives. SPARK stands for Science, Play, Arts, Reading, Knowledge.
Using charts the library provides, folks can keep track of the time they spend reading during the warm summer months. Children who track the most time reading can earn prizes, from books, to magnifying glasses, to egg shakers, to ear buds for teens.
For adults, the library offers a book club that meets once a month – on the second Tuesday of each month. Folks read a pre-selected volume, then get together to discuss the book.
Adults are also the target group for the card and board gaming group, which begins regular meetings on July 3rd, then on Mondays after that.
Teen readers are encouraged to try the library’s Wreck this Book seminars, in which old, discarded books are used to make arts and crafts projects. There’s also a writing class aimed at teens, as well as robot racing.
For families, the first Monday of each month is Family Fun Night. On those evenings, the branch hosts movies, games, and art activities the entire family can enjoy.
Another popular series of activities this year is the library’s PotterFest 2018, a celebration of the 20th anniversary of the release of the first Harry Potter book, “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone.”
That program includes everything from a session on how to make Butter Beer; to making chocolate frogs; to wand making; and even jewelry making, where kids can craft a golden snitch bracelet.
“It’s a way to combat the Summer Slump,” said Steve McCord, the branch’s Teen Librarian. “We try to keep them entertained and their reading polished.” He said the programs are a good way to spend your time at the library.
“It’s a way to stay entertained during the summer,” said McCord, who’s been at the library since the year 2000. “It’s all just a way to keep people busy and happy during the summer.”
SPARK Summer Learning is funded in part by the Foellinger Foundation, The Friends of the Library and the Library Foundation, according to McCord.
A black belt since 2010, Miller has been teaching her martial arts classes at Allen County Public Library branches around the city this year. Having already visited the Monroeville, Little Tiger and Tecumseh branches, she said her Waynedale experience was a positive one.
“For a smaller library, this was a very good turnout,” she said. “You know, we can’t teach these kids to be like Bruce Lee with one class, but we can teach self-control, discipline and a little skill and confidence.”
For more about events and activities going on at the Waynedale Library, you can visit: www.acpl.lib.in.us/home/explore/locations/waynedale
Lierin Rossman spends most of her week working hard as an attorney at the downtown law firm of Stucky, Lauer & Young. But on a recent, chilly April morning, she was shuffling through a Waynedale park, toting a flimsy, plastic trash bag and picking up other people’s garbage.
As part of a citywide – and nationwide – effort to clean trash from parks, neighborhoods, vacant lots, trails and greenways, the Great American Cleanup took place on the morning of April 21.
According to its national sponsor, the Great American Clean-Up is touted as the country’s largest beautification and community improvement effort. Last year alone, more than 4 million volunteers took part in the effort around the nation.
Groups who took part in the local event this year ranged from churches, youth groups, schools, businesses, neighborhood associations, families, and even some individuals who just wanted to help by themselves.
The roughly 5,300-strong people – comprised of about 280 groups — of trash-collecting volunteers fanned out throughout the city, cleaning such areas as Girl Scout Troop #00547, Cub Scout Pack #3302, Boy Scouts Troop #430, Kingston-along the St. Marys Pathway, Dupont Road between Lima and Coldwater Roads, and the neighborhoods around South Side High School.
In Waynedale, groups tackled the land around Airport Expressway, near Smith and Bluffton Roads; Avalon Missionary Church-Lower Huntington Road, Winchester Road near Babcock Lane; and at the soccer fields in Foster Park East and, in nearby Pawster Park.
Sporting t-shirts provided by the City of Fort Wayne, and with gloves and plastic trash bags also given out by the city, the volunteers got to work cleaning up the park from about 8:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.
Within a few minutes, Rossman and her coworkers already had bagged several crumpled papers, plastic bags, even the plastic end of a discarded syringe.
“You don’t realize how much trash is out here until you start walking the areas,” said Chris LaPar, another lawyer with Stucky, Lauer & Young. “You just don’t see how much there is when you’re driving by.”
“We all have a responsibility to clean up after ourselves,” added Dan Lauer, another attorney with the Waynedale cleanup group.
Once groups around the city finished their local cleanup efforts by around noon, they were invited to congregate downtown for a thank-you celebration hosted by the city. Held in Headwaters Park East from about 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m., the party offered free hot dogs, chips and drinks for the volunteers, as well as a free raffle ticket with the chance to win gift cards from such places as Kroger, Applebees, Pizza Hut, Vera Bradley, Batteries Plus and DeBrands Chocolates.
WMEE 97.3 played music for the event, and there also were games for children: Ring toss and games of catch played with recycled milk jugs. The free hot dogs were grilled up by volunteers from the John Chapman chapter of the local Kiwanis Club.
Frank Suarez, Public Information Director for City Utilities and Public Works, said the event was important for a city like Fort Wayne.
“When you live in a climate like ours, with the winters we have,” Suarez said, “the wind and storms tend to blow away the trash and knock over bins; plus, there are people who just plain litter. This is a way to beautify those areas and help clean up that garbage.”
Sponsors for this year’s event included radio station WMEE 97.3, Glad trash bags, Lowes, Menards, Dow Chemical, Chick-fil-A, Applebees, Pepsi-Cola, Parkview Hospital, Kroger, Pizza Hut, Sport One, Sweetwater Sound, PhD Manufacturing, TriState Warehousing, Visit Fort Wayne, Fuel Dynamics and the local Boys and Girls Scouts.
Last year, the event collected more than 190,000 pounds of debris. And although final collection statistics weren’t available on this year’s cleanup, the group was able to pick up 190 discarded televisions and roughly 730 tires that had been thrown away on public lands.
Besides giving her a chance to get out in the spring weather, Rossman said her time cleaning up the park was the right choice for her Saturday.
“It’s the right thing to do,” the 31-year-old Rossman said while stooping to grasp an errant cardboard cup, “And it’s only once a year. Plus, there’s a lot of kids who play here all the time; so, this is important.”
After 28 years with the city of Fort Wayne, she’s become something of an expert on the city’s Three Rivers Water Filtration Plant on Baltes Avenue downtown.
“This lets the public see what’s here and see how they get their water,” Zehr said after leading a tour of about 30 people around the facility one recent Saturday morning. “It’s a very important job, and people don’t realize how much goes into it.”
Marked by a looming gothic-style tower where the St. Marys and St. Joseph Rivers meet to form the Maumee, the 25-acre plant just east of Spy Run Avenue was originally sited there because the land already was owned by the city, although city leaders originally wanted to build something called “Three Rivers Park” on the land.
In 1931, when designers realized that making the building into something architecturally unique would add no more than one percent to the total construction cost, there was unanimous agreement that the edifice should be crafted in the collegiate gothic style. An architect noted at the building’s 1933 dedication, “Surely no more beautiful spot could be wished for than the Three Rivers Park site, affording as it does a splendid view from across the rivers in any direction.”
The building is, in fact, covered in Indiana limestone, and features ornate carvings on many of its walls to celebrate local flora and fauna. About 28,000 cubic yards of concrete was used in the original construction – enough to build a sidewalk from Fort Wayne to South Bend.
When it was constructed in 1933, the building cost $2.5 million, and the roof covered about 1.3 acres. After all the modern upgrades, the roof now lies over about 2.3 acres.
The plant’s process for cleaning the city’s water is a complex one.
To start the process, the plant pulls water from the St. Joseph River. Screens on the water intake pipes keep out trash, leaves, limbs and other large debris that may be floating in the water. Pumps then send the water to the highest point in the plant and – from there – gravity pulls the liquid through the rest of the system.
Once inside the plant, both a chemical and physical process is used to make it clean and safe enough to drink. The first step is to add ferric sulfate, polymer, lime and carbon; physically mixing the chemicals into the raw water with large paddles. This is called the “flocculation stage,” and causes contaminants to stick together in large clumps called “floc.” The carbon added to the water soaks up agricultural chemicals and helps remove offensive odors and tastes. The added lime helps to soften the water.
The water then goes through several filters to make sure it’s clean. Using filters made of sand, the microorganisms and suspended particles in the water are trapped in the tiny pockets between the grains of sand. The sand grains also attract many particles like tiny magnets. The sand is cleaned regularly to remove organisms and debris that are trapped in it.
And, in 2013, a pump room in the plant was retrofitted to add UV pipes to kill an organism in the water called cryptosporidium using ultraviolet light, as mandated by the Indiana Department of Environmental Management.
The water then leaves the plant on its way to homes, via a series of pumps, storage tanks and pump stations. In all, there is more than 1,177 miles of water mains throughout the city to deliver H20 for everything from drinking, cooking, bathing, washing the car, doing laundry and even firefighting.
Tours of the building are offered in the spring and fall, usually one Saturday a month. About 150 to 200 people typically attend the tours throughout the designated days, said Mary Jane Slaton, Program Manager for Fort Wayne City Utilities. Slaton said the tours let citizens get a peek not just at the complex operations inside, but the attractive building that supplies much-needed water.
“It’s just an opportunity to open it up and let people see what we do,” said Slaton, who’s been with the city for 25 years. “A lot of people in the city drive by here and wonder what goes on inside. Plus, they get to see the building and the unique architecture at the same time.”
The city is offering free tours both at the Baltes Avenue plant and at its pollution/sewage treatment control plant at 2601 Dwenger Avenue this spring. Dates and times for the tours are as follows:
Baltes Avenue: Water Filtration Plant-Saturday, April 21 – 10 a.m. to noon and Saturday, May 19 – 10 a.m. to noon
Dwenger Avenue: Pollution/Sewage Treatment Plant-Saturday, April 14 – 10 a.m. to noon and Saturday, May 12 – 10 a.m. to noon.
For more information you may wish to call the city’s help line at 311.