I was around age 7 when I asked my mom if she would cook me a turkey for Thanksgiving. Most years, my family enjoyed a Thanksgiving feast at my grandparent’s house on my mom’s side of the family.
        But not that year.
        Mom cooked a tasty butterball with all the fixings, which included dressing.
        I didn’t want any dressing, just turkey, mashed potatoes and gravy, green beans and rolls.
        My mom made it anyway and I had to eat a big heaping spoonful of dressing.
      I sat at the kitchen table struggling to eat a spoonful of dressing. What should have taken 5 minutes or less, took more than two, maybe three hours.
        My mom was insistent that I eat the dressing, all of it. And everything else on my plate.
        I recall her saying, “You wanted a turkey meal and you are going to eat it.”
        Some 50 plus years later, I’m still not a fan of dressing.
        I loved my mom’s cooking, but I never cared for her dressing.
        It had a different taste about it. I admit it, the dressing at school lunches tasted better.
        I still don’t eat dressing, but I have enjoyed many Thanksgiving and holiday meals through the years.
       There’s nothing better than a plateful of Thanksgiving blessings, a Dallas Cowboys game on the television and time spent visiting and catching up.
       From 1987 – 1991, my brother, Tom, and I would make the trek from Tulsa to Dallas on Thanksgiving Day to watch the Cowboys play at the now former Texas Stadium. We made lots of great memories.
       I remember 1992 which was my first Thanksgiving after leaving Tulsa in August of that year to return to college at the University of Missouri-Columbia.
       Mom and Dad, along with my aunt Alice and cousin, Ronnie, from near Fayetteville, Ark., came for the Thanksgiving weekend at my duplex apartment in Ashland, Mo., a small community south of Columbia.
        I had to work some that weekend, but enjoyed having them there and eating several home cooked meals. And of course, having my folks clean my apartment for me.
         I don’t think I’ve ever missed a Thanksgiving or Christmas meal in the 64-years I have been on this earth.
         And this year is no different. I enjoyed a blessed Thanksgiving meal with Debbie and my Iowa family this week.
       I don’t know what it means to do without. I’ve always had food on the table, a bed to sleep in, family, friends and many wonderful and blessed opportunities.
         I don’t ever recall going hungry or doing without any holiday or any day ever. My folks didn’t have much, but they made sure my brother and I had all the above mixed with lots of love.
         I know that there are many who struggle to purchase food and live on limited budgets or no budgets.
       I’m thankful for our area pantries and community outreaches who do so much to meet the needs of those in our area.
         And soon, the Salvation Army Bell Ringers will be out and about collecting donations to help others. Did you know that 90 cents of every dollar donated to the Salvation Army stays in Poweshiek County?
        If you can help in any way from volunteering to making a donation at a local organization, outreach or pantry, it will be a gift that keeps on giving all year long.
         Take time this year to do something good for others and thank God for the many blessings life has given you.
         Have a great week and always remember that “Good Things are Happening,” every day. 

      I never listened to much country music as a youngster outside of Tanya Tucker’s “Delta Dawn” and Jeannie C. Riley’s “Harper Valley P.T.A.”
     Hee Haw was a regular in the Parker house on Saturday nights growing up as well as the Porter Wagoner Show with Dolly Parton.
     I once attended a Minnie Pearl show in Tulsa and while visiting Opryland in Nashville in 1974, I got to see Conway Twitty perform. And I have attended some country music shows at the Iowa State Fair such as Confederate Railroad, and set outside the grandstands and listened to a few others. And I once met the country band Sawyer Brown during a visit to the casino in Tama and got all the members autographs.
     Growing up, I was aware of other country artists, especially those from Oklahoma such as Reba, but never listened to their music.
    I was more into rock and roll in high school and beyond before making the switch to Christian rock after attending a free concert in a Tulsa park in April 1981 put on by Sweet Comfort Band, a California band that performed gospel songs with a beat. The band had performed a concert at Oral Roberts University the night before and decided to host a free concert the next day.
   Since marrying Debbie 19 years ago, I have listened to a lot more country music and I even attended a George Strait concert with the family at Wells Fargo in Des Moines in 2012. Strait puts on quite a show without fireworks and a theatrical set. It’s just George, his guitar and band, his voice and the Wrangler Jeans.
“Milk Cow Blues” was my favorite song.
     And I would be a miss not to mention that we had backstage passes to the Grand Old Opry on our honeymoon thanks to the now late country comedian, T. Bubba Bechtol, who invited us backstage after I wrote him an email before the wedding to say we were going to be at the Opry.
      While at the Opry, we got to meet and get autographs from the now late Jean Shepard, Porter Wagoner and Little Jimmy Dickens. We also met and got autographs from Ricky Skaggs and Chely Wright 
      Anyway, Debbie and I were watching the country music awards (CMAs) last week and that is when I first heard of country artist Jelly Roll.
     Jelly Roll, born Jason Bradley DeFord, has had an interesting life, a hard life of time in prison before he could drive and two kids, one which was born while he was in a jail cell.
    Since getting out of prison, Jelly Roll has made an effort to turn his life around. He credits his wife for moving him in a positive direction. 
     He’s still has some things to work on, but we all do.
    The heavily tattooed Jelly Roll started his singing career as a hip hop artist who transcended to country rap and country rock. 
    After accepting the award for new artist of the year, what Jelly Roll had to say is a message we all should take to heart.
   “There is something poetic about a 39-year-old man winning new artist of the year. I don’t know where you’re at in your life, or what you’re going through, but I want to tell you to keep going, baby,” he continued. “I want to tell you success is on the other side of it. I want to tell you it’s going to be OK. I want to tell you that the windshield is bigger than the rearview mirror for a reason.”
     Jelly Roll’s message may not be mainstream, but his message touches people. It touches people that others may not be able to reach.
     We all miss it and have done things we are not proud of, but the key in life is to forgive ourselves and others, put the plow in the ground and keep looking forward to bigger and better things in life.
       Have a great week and always remember that “Good Things are Happening,” every day. 

         I read on social media the other day that my hometown of Tulsa now has its own Monopoly board game.
Officials with Top Trumps USA, an arm of Hasbro, announced in early February that Tulsa, a city of 410,000 plus, had been chosen to have a Monopoly board game in its honor. At that time, Hasbro asked Tulsans to submit suggestions for what could be on the board.
      “I am honored to have Tulsa represented in one of the most popular games in the world,” said Tulsa Mayor GT Bynum at a board game announcement event. “To be selected for the MONOPOLY: Tulsa Edition speaks volumes about our city and the many landmarks that make Tulsa unique. I want to thank Top Trumps USA for choosing Tulsa and I’m eager for Tulsans and others to get a chance to celebrate our city in this new and exciting way.”
          The new game was unveiled on Nov. 1.
It features such popular Tulsa sites as the Golden Driller (a 75-foot-tall statue depicting an oil worker), the Gathering Place along the Arkansas River, Quick Trip (Tulsa is headquarters to the convenience store chain), Tulsa University, Tulsa Zoo, Greenwood Rising Black Wall St. History Center (near where the 1921 Tulsa Riots took place), Ida Red General Store (Tulsa gift store), Cain’s Ballroom (famous honky-tonk), Admiral Twin Drive-In, Guthrie Green, Center of the Universe, Oneok Field (home of the Tulsa Drillers baseball team), the Outsiders House Museum and Circle Cinema (a historic Tulsa movie theater).
       There are hundreds of places that didn’t make the cut such as Oral Roberts University, the Blue Dome District, Cherry Street, Philbrook Museum of Art, Gilcrease Museum, Tulsa Performing Arts Center, the Mayo Hotel, The Church Studio (a recording studio in an old church that was once owned by the late Leon Russell), Route 66 that rolls through Tulsa, Tulsa Air and Space Museum, Oklahoma Aquarium, the Cave House, many of Tulsa’s art deco buildings or anything to do with Tulsa history of oil and the Oil Capital of the World designation.
       With the town the size of Tulsa, I suggest that Top Trumps USA comes out with version two of the Tulsa Monopoly game and include other Tulsa sites.
        I’ve already started my 2023 Christmas list and I have the new Tulsa Monopoly Board Game listed as a gift idea.
        I have a lot of fond memories of growing up in Tulsa and opening gifts on Christmas morning and on my birthday. I always enjoyed my mom’s homemade decorated cakes. We always went on a vacation in August, went to church together and so much more. I will always be grateful for my folks and all they did to give my brother and me the best they could. We didn’t have a lot, but we had everything we needed.
      Anyway, I have lots of board games, including many of the Monopoly ones. I also have a host of antique board games from the 1970s such as the Six Million Dollar Man and Bionic Women. And I have a long list of old board games I want to buy.
        Funny things is, I don’t play board games that often. Debbie has threatened to sell some of them if I don’t start playing them. A lot times I don’t play because some board games take most of an entire day and I would miss my nap. I do enjoy playing dominos and bingo. 
         I remember back in the day my uncles and aunts on my mom’s side of the family would gather around my grandparents’ kitchen table when they lived in north Tulsa in the late 1960s and play the game of Rook for hours on end. I have a Rook game, but never learned to play it.
       I enjoyed a homemade version of rummy called Cut Throat Rummy, a game that uses three decks of cards. Jokers and twos were wild and you had to have runs and sets starting with seven cards and going to 13 cards. It was a fun game.
         I love buying Christmas gifts and seeing the smiles and spending time with family.
        I’m already hearing of people setting up their Christmas trees. I’m sure we will be setting ours up around Thanksgiving. Our oldest nephew is a big Christmas fan. He carries our tree up from the basement and sets it up in 30-minutes or less.
        Christmas is only six-weeks away!
       If you can, make it a priority this year to spend time with friends and family during the holidays. And if you have a few extra dollars, give it the local food bank, take part in a Christmas angel tree and buy a family in need some Christmas gifts. It’s also important to check on others wellbeing. If you can, volunteer to make life better for others.
       Have a great week and always remember that “Good Things are Happening,” every day. 

       The Ax Murder House in Villisca, Iowa where Josiah B. and Sara Moore and six children were murdered on June 10, 1912. 

        Debbie and I were at a craft show in Indianola on Saturday to sell our books and photography. It is the second of five craft shows we are attending this fall to sell our goods.
We’ve been attending and selling at craft shows for more than 15-years in places such as Clarinda in Southwest Iowa, the Quad Cities, Coralville, Des Moines and even Calamus, a small town in Clinton County.
         We’ve met some of the most interesting people at craft shows.
         I recall a couple years ago during our first year at the Clarinda Craft Carnival meeting two senior ladies, possibly in the early 80s, who grew up and attended high school in Villisca, home of the Ax Murder House.
          Villisca is just more than 20-miles from Clarinda.
         They shared a story about when they graduated high school. After graduation, the two sisters left Iowa to spend the summer working at a resort in Colorado. While introducing themselves to other staff, they said they were from Villisca, Iowa.
           “That is where the Ax Murder House is,” one young fellow said.
            “Ax murder,” they asked. What ax murder?”
           Driving by the house gives me the creeps, so I can’t image growing up in Villisca and not knowing about the ax murders that took place on June 10, 1912. Somebody came into the house and killed Josiah B and Sara Moore and six children, which included the couple’s four children and two guest children. They were all brutally murdered with an ax or some type of blunt instrument.
           The murders were never solved.
           The ladies said that evening they called home and asked about the ax murders. Their parents said they didn’t talk about it because relatives of the slain still lived in town.
            “We didn’t know,” one of the ladies said.
            The other lady said, “I went to a dance there in high school and remember the ax over the door, but I never gave it any thought that it was where a murder happened.”
          We have stopped at the Ax Murder House twice, but it has limited hours for tours and we missed it both times. However, groups can spend the night in the Ax Murder House for a sum of cash.
         I wouldn’t mind taking a tour, but I have no desire to spend the night in a house where a murder happened. I don’t care if it was 111 years ago.
          Craft show attendees are a different bunch. Some of them seem lost in thought while others are friendly and love to talk. 
            I like going around visiting and checking out what others have to offer. At Indianola, I stopped to check out a cosmetic booth. I don’t wear cosmetics, but the lady was smiling and  was nice to visit with.
           We talked about hand lotions and she proceeded to give me a touch of two different kinds, one after the other. The second round of lotion was so thick it reminded me of the grease used to pack wheel bearings.
            My hands were so greasy that I made my way to the men’s room, where I promptly washed my hands. It took four rounds of soap to get the greasy goo off my hands.
             It made for a fun laugh while sharing the story with Debbie.
A few years ago, we attended a craft show in Wapello along the banks of the Mississippi River. The most popular item of the day was the cinnamon rolls sold by the band boosters or some school group. People were walking around in a daze while eating cinnamon rolls and looking off into the Heavens. We didn’t sell too many books that day. I would be surprised if many vendors sold much.
         On the flip side, last year at Clarinda, we had people buying from us as we packed up our table.
         The goal is to give our books and photography exposure while enjoying time together doing something we love.
           I encourage you to enjoy life, smile and when a bump comes along, keep on moving forward.
           Have a great week and always remember that “Good Things are Happening,” every day. 

​       Rose Foubert, right, enjoys a laugh with a long-time customer and friend during a retirement party at the EV Malt Shop in North English on Sunday, Oct. 15. Rose and her husband, Dave, have sold the popular eatery after more than 23 years in business and are retiring. It was standing room only as folks came to share well wishes with Dave and Rose all while enjoying a tasty BBQ meal with all the fixings. The event is small-town living at its finest.

        It’s not uncommon to drive through a small town and not see a soul. Someone might be mowing the yard or working in the flower bed, maybe tuning up their old Chevrolet, but most days, small town living is peaceful and quiet.
         But when a family falls on hard times or suffers a setback, folks come from everywhere to help. It’s like they grow out of the woodwork or spout from the yard.
          They bring a pocketful of cash and show up in great numbers for their friends, family and neighbors.
The same holds true for a town celebration or when a veteran is welcomed home. Maybe the community center needs updated or a new playground for the area youngsters is needed. Or the local fire department needs a new truck or some updated gear.
       I’ve witnessed, not only personally, but as a journalist the many times folks have come together to help each other through a rough patch in life or make their community better.
Just this year, after our van caught fire, Ron the Barber in Montezuma set up a fund drive to help us get another vehicle. And a co-worker of mine also set up a fund drive. Together, the funds raised made a difference and we were able to get a vehicle.
         It amazes me how generous folks can be and the love that they share for others.
         Having grown up in a big city, there are a lot of goods folks there as well.
         I’ve always said that a big city is a bunch of small towns tied together.
      I mowed my neighbor’s yards and tossed the morning and afternoon newspapers on their porches. I stopped to visit on occasion, most often at Mr. and Mrs. Belknap’s home to the north of my boyhood home, where I enjoyed playing dominos with Mr. Bell, as I called him.
       Anytime I go back to Tulsa town, I always drive by my boyhood home. The last time I was there, I stopped and Debbie took my photo in front of the old home place.
        I have lots of great memories.
      On Sunday, Oct. 15, I made the trek to my old stomping grounds of North English. I got my start in the world of small-town journalism at the North English Record.
        I have lots of fond memories of my 2.7 years in North English. There were lots of great people who gave me the opportunity to share their story in the pages of the Record.
        I made friends quickly and was often invited to eat dinner with town folks. My publisher in Marengo said I would set up interviews in the early evening so I could stay and eat supper. There’s some truth to that statement.
        Anyway, I was in North English to wish Dave and Rose Foubert, long-time owners of the EV Malt Shop, the best in their retirement.
        Dave and Rose met while working at Amana Refrigeration. Rose heard that the EV Malt Shop was for sale, so she left her job at Amana and took a chance.
        That was June 2000.
       It was a chance that paid big dividends as the malt shop was a popular place for families to gather and the locals to catch up on the town gossip while drinking a cup or two of coffee.
And on Sunday, it was standing-room only as folks came to share a kind word and laugh, give Rose a hug and shake Dave’s hand, all while enjoying a fresh BBQ pork sandwich, cole slaw, baked beans, chips and slice of cake.
       It was great seeing some the folks I remember from back in the day. I had to ask some their names as I knew them, but didn’t remember their names.
      I wouldn’t trade the experience of working at a small-town weekly for anything. It’s been my home for almost 26-years. People have been good to me.
      I met my wife, Debbie, in Montezuma and she is such a blessing to me. Together, we are doing great things.
       It’s good to take time to visit and reconnect with folks. I appreciate everyone who has opened their hearts and homes and shared their stories for others to enjoy through my pen and camera.
         Living in a small town is just the best.
         Have a great week and always remember that “Good Things are Happening,” every day and always.

        I’ll never forget the many Christmas gatherings in the 1970s at Uncle J.B. and Aunt Rosemary Jackson’s stately southern-style home near downtown Tulsa.
     Every year, about a week or so before Christmas, the Jacksons would open their home for a large Christmas celebration. No one was a stranger as the door was always open.
      There was always plenty of conversation as folks connected to the Jackson family spent an hour or two catching up since they last met. The large dining room table and nearby buffet was filled to the brim with tasty food. At times, the food spilled over onto the kitchen counters.
      Once everyone got caught up and enjoyed a meal, it was time to settle in for some Christmas Carols from a small book of Carols kept in the Jackson’s grand piano bench, only to be used once a year.
       Then Santa would stop by and everyone from young to old went home with a gift and a round of hugs.
       Uncle J.B. was my grandmother’s brother on my mom’s side of the family.
      He was raised in Alabama and came to Missouri when the Jackson family moved to New Madrid in the Bootheel of Southeast Missouri in 1932.
       It was in New Madrid that my grandparents married on Oct. 29, 1932. My grandpa’s family, the Hortons, had migrated to New Madrid from Alabama eight years earlier.
     Uncle J.B. was stationed at Pearl Harbor during World War II. After the war, thanks to the GI Bill, he attended Freed Hardeman College in Henderson, Tenn. It was there in 1946 that Uncle J.B. met Rosemary Adams, who was from Tulsa. They married on June 15, 1947 and raised four beautiful daughters, Mary Gail, Kay, Jan and June.
     After moving to Tulsa, Uncle J.B. joined his father-in-law, Ben Adams Sr., at Home Furniture, the family-owned furniture store in downtown Tulsa. Ben opened the store in the late 1920s.
      “Granddaddy sold new and used furniture that he received as a trade in,” said Kay. “He kept his own books and took payments weekly on the notes he carried for people. He had some customers that kept coming back for 40 years.”
      Kay said some of the customers thought home was Uncle J.B.’s name and they would call him, “Mr. Home.”
      Having known Uncle J.B., I’m sure being called Mr. Home was never a concern of his. I always remember him as a gentle, compassionate man with lots of love to give.
      Uncle J.B. worked at the furniture store during the days and attended Tulsa Business School at night, where he earned a business degree. He then joined the business school staff as an employee and I believe went on to run the school.
      “After he (Uncle J.B.) received a promotion at the school, he started working during the day there but continued to work on Saturdays at the furniture store,” recalled Kay. “Daddy would make deliveries of furniture to people’s homes and also did upholstery and refinishing of some of the old furniture traded in.”
       “And he was very good at it,” Kay went on to say. “Our home was filled with antiques and many of those were acquired through the furniture store as old furniture that people had traded in for new. My dad could make them look new. He was very talented in that way.”
      Kay, who is nearly six years older than me, remembers spending every Friday night with her grandparents, the Adams.
       “Many Saturday mornings I would go with granddaddy to the store and he would give me a quarter to dust the furniture,” Kay recalled. “I have so many good memories of the store.”
         My mom loved Uncle J.B. and Aunt Rosemary and if my memory serves me right, after her junior year in high school in Van Buren, Mo., she came to Tulsa to spend time with the Jacksons. After she graduated in 1955, she moved to Tulsa and it was there that my mom met my dad, who grew up east of Tulsa in the Verdigris River bottoms, or the sticks, as I call it. They met through a mutual friend. And ironically, were married on June 15, 1957, the same day 10-years after Uncle J.B. and Aunt Rosemary were married.
         My mom said Uncle J.B. and Aunt Rosemary were the reason she came to Tulsa.
        She carried a $2 bill in her purse and when Mom needed money, she’d stop at the furniture store and Uncle J.B. would give her two $1 bills in exchange. When she earned enough money, she’d buy her $2 bill back. I now have the $2 bill among my many family treasurers.
        Urban renewal led to the closing of Home Furniture in 1964 to make way for the Williams (now Magellan) tower, which was built in the 1970s.
      Life is full of treasures. I encourage you to take time to find the many treasures life has offered you and keep the memories fresh in your own heart.   
       Have a great week and always remember that “Good Things are Happening,” every day and always.

      Ron Hensel, aka Ron the Barber, visits with Roberta See of Grinnell during the second annual Montezuma American Legion Post 169 Car Show on the Montezuma Square on Saturday, Sept. 30. Ron, the local Legion Commander, organizes the show, which drew nearly 180 cars this year.

        If you have ever spent any time in Montezuma, you may know or have heard of Ron Hensel, aka Ron the Barber.
        I’ve been a friend of Ron’s since he opened his barbershop on the west side of the Montezuma Square in September 2008. He’s trimmed my head ever since we first met.
       I don’t know if Ron has cut more hair off or if I’ve lost more hair in the last 15 years. I don’t quite have the head of hair I once did back in the day.
     When able, I enjoy stopping by the barbershop to visit and catch up on the latest town gossip and news. There is always an assortment of folks from farmers to local good old boys who come for a trim or stop by to talk politics or town happenings.
      You never know who might be in the barber chair or waiting their turn.
     Ron grew up in Milo and is a graduate of Southeast Warren High School.
     After attending barber school in the early 1960s, Ron cut hair in a barbershop on the Indianola square.
     He served in the U.S. Army during the Vietnam War. And after that, he operated a barbershop on Army Post Road for a number of years.
      He and his wife, Bea, bought a piece of land at Lake Ponderosa in 1997. Two years later, they sold that lot and purchased another lot on the west lake, where they built a comfortable home. They sold their lake home and moved to Montezuma nine years ago.
     It didn’t take Ron long after moving to the Montezuma area to become involved in the business community. He has been a long-time member of the Montezuma Community Boosters and remains active in the Montezuma Lions Club.
       He was named the Montezuma American Legion Blakely-Stevens Post 169 Commander in 2010.
      One of his first moves as commander of the Legion was to give the Legion Hall, located on the backside of the Memorial Hall, a good scrubbing and paint job.
    He’s worked tirelessly to promote the Legion and was involved earlier this year in starting a Sons of American Legion Chapter in Montezuma.
      The Sons of American Legion is for sons and grandsons who had a father or grandfather in the military. The Montezuma chapter has grown to 43 members. The sons next undertaking is the Wreaths Across America campaign coming this Christmas. The WAA allows folks who have veterans buried in one of Montezuma’s cemeteries to purchase a wreath and have it placed on their graves by a veteran. Area folks can also purchase wreathes for loved ones buried in other cemeteries and place them there themselves.
      Under Ron’s leadership, the Legion has grown to nearly 100 members, the largest in Poweshiek County. In addition, Ron oversees the placement of American Flags around the town square during holidays and other events and prior to Memorial Day activities, at the local cemeteries. He also leads the town Memorial Day service.
     Ron has always been a big supporter of Montezuma athletic and school events. When  the Montezuma Fire and Ambulance Department gives Montezuma students firetruck rides as part of fire week activities, Ron always has a big bowl candy at the barbershop. When he hears the siren, he grabs the bowl and heads outside where he tosses handfuls of candy to the students as they roll past the barbershop.
     And in 2013, Ron was instrumental in helping bring the Freedom Rock to Montezuma. When he learned about the 99-county Freedom Rock tour that year, Ron approached the City of Montezuma to get the ball rolling on the project. With the help of Legion members, a rock was found north of Montezuma and put on a trailer with the use of a bulldozer and brought to town. It was painted by Ray “Bubba” Sorensen II in August 2016 and is located on the southeast corner of the Montezuma Square.
     And last fall, Ron and his wife, Bea, where recognized with the Greater Poweshiek County Foundation “Spirit of Giving” honor. The honor is handed out each fall to community members and leaders from across the county.
     In mid-May, when my van caught fire and burned, Ron started a fund drive to help Debbie and me get another vehicle in June. What a blessing!
      Ron’s latest undertaking is a new Legion Hall.
     In June 2021, Scott, Kevin and Kerri Carl, the grandchildren of the late Cloyd M. and Francis Carl, donated two acres of the original Henry F. Carl farm to the Legion for construction of a new legion hall.
    Since that time, Ron and members of the local American Legion have been busy selling watermelon at community events and raising funds to build a new legion hall.
     In 2022, Ron organized the first Montezuma American Legion Car Show to raise funds for the building. The event drew 115 cars and trucks and a large crowd.
    The show was such a success, that Ron and the Legion decided to bring it back in 2023. Ron spent part of the summer attending various car shows around the area handing out flyers advertising the Montezuma show.
     It paid off as this year’s show, held on Saturday, Sept. 30, drew 180 vehicles from classics to newer cars and trucks, race cars, customized golf carts and even a 1969 Airstream camper and 1969 customized pickup truck.
     It was a great show and testament to the hard work of Ron and the Legion members do in the Montezuma community.
     Next time you’re in Montezuma, stop at the barbershop and shake Ron’s hand and say thanks. If you would like to make a donation to the future legion hall, I’m sure he would be happy to accept the donation.
      Ron is definitely a leader who is making things better than he found them.
     Have a great week and always remember that “Good Things are Happening,” every day and always.

​       Darrell Brand, a now retired long-time teacher, administrator and coach, does the traditional breakdown routine during Braves Night activities.

        Being a community journalist, I sometimes find myself in odd predicaments.
      That was the case last week at Braves Night at Montezuma High School. Braves Night is a pep rally and crowning of the Hometown King and Queen held at MHS on the Thursday of Homecoming week.
      Part of the festivities include the Breakdown routine hosted by Darrell Brand, a now retired long-time teacher, administrator and coach at Montezuma.
        The Breakdown has been a part of homecoming at Montezuma for long before I came on the scene.
Brand, who is in his 80s, still has the moves and quite a vertical leap.
       When I first came to Montezuma, Brand wore a ballcap backwards and a pair of plastic glasses with an extra big nose while doing the routine. He did away with the garb several years ago, said his wife, Sherma, tossed it in the trash.
       Brand bends over, claps his hands and jumps around while he chants “breakdown” along with the players and crowd, doing so several times. He ends the routine with “breakdown” to silence, or an attempt at silence. In some cases, when the athletes and crowd miss it, he starts over.
        It’s fun and makes for great pictures.
      Before the breakdown routine started that evening, I was seated in the middle of the gym on the south bleachers. In front of me was a mat used by the cheerleaders. Behind the mat were 10 chairs in sets of two spaced evenly apart for the 10 members (five couples) of the homecoming court.
       Further back was a podium and then seated on the north bleachers were the football, volleyball and cross country teams.
       I’m thinking that Brand is going to do the breakdown routine on the mat in front of me. I was wrong, he set up camp behind the homecoming court.
        I got up from my somewhat obscure seat and made my way to where the homecoming court was to get a better view and photo of Brand and his breakdown routine.
         I bumped into one of the queen candidates, apologizing for my misstep.
        “No problem J.O.,” the young lady said.
       Even Brand was smiling at me as I fumbled around trying to get the best position for a good picture. And of course I was standing in the middle of the gym for everyone to see. 
        I did Ok. I got a couple good shots and that is what I was after. I only need one for the paper and I got it.
        I’ve walked in front of people at concerts, plays, ballgames and graduations for years.
     I walk alongside parades and get close to the floats to take the best pictures. That gives me the opportunity to get better crowd shots. 
     At volleyball and basketball games, I roam all around the outside of the court. I do the same on the football sidelines, always keeping my eye on the ball just in case a player is headed my way.
      There’s nothing worse than to get one’s lights knocked out by a football player running zero to 60. That happened to me at Montezuma football game at Wapello my first year in town in September 2000. I got hit twice in the first half and broke my camera lens and flash into two pieces. I had a bruise on my stomach as big as a watermelon.
      I have had some closes calls in the years since, but thankful I’ve not been run over or knocked down. When I see a player running toward me carrying a football, I go the other way.
        I was at Star Lanes the other day ordering a couple cheeseburgers for Debbie an I. While waiting, I struck up a conversation with a young lady and her two boys who were there bowling.
      She commented on my work saying, “When I see you come in the door, I know we are going to get some good photos.”
       These were really kind words that touched my heart.
      I’ve always said that my backside has been in a lot of momma’s photos. I’m also positive that a lot of my photos and stories have been on a lot of momma’s refrigerators and scrapbooks.
      What a ride this newspaper venture has and continues to be. I love community journalism and I am always ready for the next good photo or digging out the next feature. 
       Have a great week and always remember that “Good Things are Happening,” every day and always.

​      Photojournalist and author Dave LaBelle, left, checks out the Iowa State Fair photo book while J.O. and Debbie Parker look on during the 2023 All-Iowa Writers’ Conference held on Saturday, Sept. 16 in Montezuma. The Parkers, who host the writing conference, donated the State Fair and Midwest Old Threshers Reunion books they published to LaBelle. J.O. first learned of LaBelle and his work as a student in the 1990s at the University of Missouri-Columbia.

       It was the spring of 2010.
      I stepped into the house after a long day at the Poweshiek County CR and Debbie, who was seated in the living room, said, “I want to hold a writers’ conference.”
      “And I want to invited Donald Harstad to speak,” she added.
      Harstad of Elkader is a 26-year veteran sheriff’s deputy in Clayton County turned author. He wrote his first novel, “Eleven Days” in the late 1990s, which became a New York Times Bestseller. He went on to write several other novels including: “A Long December,” “Code 61,” “The Big Thaw,” “Known Dead,” and November Rain.”
      I didn’t know anything about hosting a writers’ conference, so I was a bit leery at first, but encouraged Debbie to reach out to Harstad.
       She found an email and wrote him that evening. He wrote back at 3 a.m. and said he’d love to come speak at our first conference.
         Shirley Damsgaard was there that first year as was Tamera Jones, Alan Loots, Mike Manno and others.
        We’ve had a crime lab employee speak at our conference one year, and a Grinnell Police officer spoke of police duties and dealing with crime.
        Our third year, we had Larry Weeks with Brownells come and talk about gun identification. He said some authors write about crime and don’t know a thing about guns. It was an educational presentation.
       We’ve had nationally known authors, editors, illustrators, historical fiction, romance, crime, Christian and children’s authors. There are far too many to name.
      And one year we received a grant to bring national best seller Laura McHugh to Montezuma. We also enjoyed a presentation by Darcy Dougherty Maulsby, an agriculture journalist and author of a number of Iowa books, including “The Lincoln Highway in Iowa,” “Classic Restaurants of Des Moines” and “Iowa Agriculture: A History of Farming, Family and Food. 
      The first nine years we held the conference in the Montezuma School, Memorial Hall and Community Hope Church before moving it to Grinnell for one year in 2019.
        Then Covid hit and the writers’ conference came to a grinding halt for three years. But thanks to Debbie’s persistence, we brought it back this year.
      She spends from four to six months finding authors to speak each year. She receives a lot more “no’s” than “yeses.”
       And what a great lineup we had this year for the conference held on Saturday, Sept. 16 at Community Hope Church. They included Crystal Ferry, aka Stella Bixby of Montezuma, Laura Snider, a lawyer an author; Iowa State University Professor Kevin Kimle and his wife, Patti, who gave a moving narrative on the Underground Railroad in connection with their book, “The Only Free Road.”
      Also speaking was Joseph LaValley, who has seven books based on fictional newspaper editor Tony Harrington. And Adrianne Finlay, an English professor at the University of Northern Iowa spoke about the writing process and shared about her books.
      And lastly, a royal treat was Dave LaBelle, who calls Dyersville home. LaBelle is one of my favorite photographers and is the author of “The Great Picture Hunt,” and The Great Picture Hunt 2,” “I don’t want to know all the technical stuff..I just want to shoot pictures,” and “Lessons in Death and Life” His most recent book, “Bridges and Angles: The story of Ruth,” is a novel based on his mother, who was swept away in California flood in the 1960s when LaBelle was a senior in high school.
        I first learned about LaBelle as a photojournalism student at the University of Missouri. I have followed his work for years and have all of his books.
       When I learned that he had moved to Iowa, I reached out to LaBelle earlier this summer via Facebook and he agreed to come speak. I was on Cloud 9 all day as I shared my story with him and donated our books on the Iowa State Fair and the Midwest Old Threshers Reunion.
        LaBelle spent his time not only telling his life story, but talking about how words and pictures go hand-in-hand. He closed his presentation by encouraging the conference attendees to find their purpose in life and make the best of what is in front of them.
         We all have dreams and purpose. Today is the day to make a step to see those dreams come to pass.
         Have a great week and always remember that “Good Things are Happening,” every day and always.