Fostoria Railroad Festival Saturday
Oct 9th, 2004
Where; Downtown area of Train City, USA
Also some early history of
local R/R
-------------------
Ribbons of Steel Wind Through
City
From R/t Aug. 30,
2004
Article by Larry
Huffman
Ever-encircling steel webs
complicated by addition of interurban lines
Like shiny ribbons,
steel rails began appearing in Fostoria in the 1870's.
Only later would
those ribbons more resemble handcuffs.
In those
pre-automotive and pre-airplane days, the passenger train was the transport of
choice -- and necessity -- for those who traveled any distance. Departures
were an event, with the rattle of cars over the rails, the hiss of steam, a
light shower of cinders and smell of soot and hot lubricant.
First to arrive, with
the guiding hand of Charles W. Foster, was the Lake Erie and Western, entering
the city from Fremont in 1850's, and later heading west into Indiana.
Starting as the
Fremont and Indiana, some small consolidations brought the name change,
The line was taken over by the New York Central in 1899, followed by the Nickel
plate in 1922.
The Columbus and
Toledo was next to lay rails through the blossoming city (Fostoria) in
1872. This road in 1881 became the Columbus, Hocking Valley and Toledo,
later became known as the Toledo and Ohio Central, then finally the New York
Central..
The Baltimore and
Ohio came to town a year later, in 1873, laying rail in an east-west direction ,
and remaining with that name until modern days.
The Nickel Plate (New
York, Chicago and St. Louis Railway) came along in the 1880's, and the city was
beginning to be enmeshed in a spider web of steel.
Also present for a
whple eas the Atlantic and Lake Erie, which was swallowed in the
mergers. One of the least-known of the rail lines through Fostoria
was the Mansfield, Coldwater and lake Michigan Railroad, which paralleled the
Baltimore and Ohio.
As if the ever
encircling steel webs were not enough, the interuban lines arrived at the turn
of the last century, running until around 1932.
The Toledo, Findlay
and Fostoria Railway Co. ran into Fostoria in 1901 from Findlay before turning
toward Pemberville and Toledo. The company then bought the Tiffin,
Fostoria and Eastern, and then a Fostoria and Fremont line opened.
The rise of
automobile travel brought the interurban cars to the end of the
line.
As the interurban
lines faded and consolidations continued, the six main lines shrank to C&O,
B&O, Nickel Plate, New York Central, The C&O and B&O merged,
then bought the Western Maryland Railway in 1968, to become the Chessie
System. The company became CSX as the Seaboard Coast Line became part of
the company. CSX is the largest railroad in the nation today.
So also, the New York
Central has faded from days when it was the force in the railroad
industry. Consolidation came with the Pennsylvania Railroad, another
financially troubled line, forming the Penn Central. When that too failed,
Conrail was formed and about six years ago went into bankruptcy, with CSX and
Norfolk Southern sharing the remains.
The Nickel Plate also
died, as the Norfolk and Western absorbed the smaller line along with a number
of others, The final merger came with the Southern Railway..
Thus, today, CSX and
Norfolk Southern are the only two lines remaining of all those that came
before. CSX operates two main lines, and Norfolk Sothern one.
While the under
passes in the city and closue of some grade crossings brought the number of
grade crossing down from 53, and traffic has been some what alleviated, the
problem of access to some parts of the city remains a problem.
That is now being
addressed with proposed overpassed, one on West Tiffin Street another on Jones
Road and a third to the East of the city..
Fostoria Mayor, family swept away
by presidents's men
Secret Service
picks up Davolis
By BRIDGET
CAMBELL
( R/T Staff Writer
)
As President George
W.Bush's motorcade was driving through Fostoria Saturday, (Aug.30, 2004) Mayor
John Davoli and his family were following close behind -- in a van driven by the
Secret Service.
In a surprising turn
of events, Davoli was able to join the Bush motorcade and later meet the
comander in chief himself.
"It was the chance of
a lifetime," the mayor said.
As news of the
president coming through Fostoria arrived last week, Davoli said early
that he didn't know exactly what to do. He had tickets to see the
president speak in Perrysburg, but at the same time he wanted to be with fellow
Fostorians to welcome the president as he made his way along Countyline
Street.
"About midweek the
Secret Service advance team called me to coordinate with the city," the mayor
said. "At that time I told (the Secret Service agent) that I was in a
quandary about what to do."
Half-jokingly, Davoli
asked the agent if they could swing by and pick him up as the president drove by
his home on Countyline Street Saturday.
"There was silence on
the other end, and more silence --- then he said they would see what they could
do." the mayor said.
It wasn't until late
Friday evening after the entire Davoli family had been cleared with national
security, that Davoli received confirmation that they would indeed be picked up
by the presidential motorcade on Saturday.
"I told them we'd be
standing by McDonald's and all be wearing red shirts." he said.
Inclement weather,
slowed Bush's travel from Lima, bringing him into Fostoria around 5:30 p.m.
(motorcade was running over an hour behind schedule at this point)
The mayor, with Lisa,
and children Sarah and Mathew, stood on the sidewalk when two Secret Service
vehicles quickly pulled up to where the Davolis stood.
"They came to almost
a screching halt," the mayor said. "It happened so fast. The frisked us, used
metal detectors and then rushed us into the vehicle and we pulled out right
behind the buses,"
As the motorcade
drove towards Perrysburg, Davoli witnessed something he won't soon forget about
the day he met the country's 43rd president.
It wasn't the hectic
excitement of driving under the highest level of protection the country can
offer, or the thrill of helicopters overhead keeping a watchful eye on the
comander of the United States.
It was more simple
--- more symbolic.
"We were on a country
road and there were no crowds, waving --- but there waa a long driveway
leading to a farm house and a single man standing at the end of the drive,"
Davoli said.
The lone man, a
veteran in his military cap, stood saluting the president as he drove
by.
"I'll always remember
that," Davoli said.
After arriving at
Fort Meigs, the mayor and his family were standing near the stage as Bush spoke
when a member of the Secret Service came up and told Davoli the president
had been impressed with the turnout in Fostoria. "I asked him if he would give
the president a plaque."
"Would you like to
present the president with the plaque yourself?" he asked.
The plaque, provided
by Kaminsky and Son Jewelers, thanked the president on behalf of the city of
Fostoria for visiting the state of Ohio.
Davoli and his family
were taken back stage, pass the crowds, to where the prisident's bus was
parked.
The only others there
were a small group of veterans, Secret Service agents and the Whitehouse
photographer.
After Bush shook the
veterans' hands, they left -- leaving the Davoli family alone with the
president and his staff.
"He told me that
Fostoria had a great turnout and he wished he'd been able to stop, (he had
intended stopping at Elm and Countyline Streets) but Mother Natue had gotten the
best of them" Davoli said.
"I presented him with
the plaque on behalf of the great city of Fostoria and thanked him for taking
the time to come through our town," Davoli said.
The president then
complimented the mayor on his fine looking city, and how gracious the citizens
had been and thanked him for the "nice looking plaque."
As the president
began to board his bus to continue on his campaign trail, he turned back around
and looked at Davoli one more time saying: "I want to thank you for your service
as mayor."
Davoli answered
back. "No -- thank you, Mr. President."
|
click for full size picture
|
 |
This Photo taken by a White
House photographer, Mayor John Davoli stands with
President George W. Bush in
Perrysburg Ohio, after traveling with the Bush motorcade
from Fostoria. Mayor
Davoli and his family were able to speak with the president and
present
him with a plaque on
behalf of the city of Fostoria.
Reagan, Ronald Wilson
40th president
Ronald Wilson Reagan, 40th president of the United States, who
transformed the Republican Party and substantially defined the
terms of contemporary political debate during two momentous terms
in office, died yesterday afternoon. (June 5, 2004). He was 93.
Ten years after Reagan announced his Alzheimer's disease in an
open letter to the American people, he reached the end of his
long twilight at his home in Bel Air, Calif., in the company of
his wife and their children.
"My family and I would like the world to know that President
Ronald Reagan has passed away," former first lady Nancy
Reagan said in a written statement. "We appreciate everyone's
prayers."
President Bush received the news shortly after 4 p.m. Eastern
time; he was in Paris and had just left a dinner with French
President Jacques Chirac. In Washington and California, plans
were quickly implemented for the capital's first presidential
funeral in more than 30 years.
Plans call for Reagan's body to lie at his presidential library
in Simi Valley, Calif., early this week and then travel by Air
Force One to Washington on Wednesday, where he will lie in state
in the Capitol Rotunda. Late in the week, probably Friday, there
will be a funeral procession with horse-drawn caisson from the
Capitol to a spot near the White House. From there, a hearse
will carry the casket to Washington National Cathedral for a
funeral officiated by the newly nominated ambassador to the
United Nations John C. Danforth, an Episcopalian minister and
a former Republican senator from Missouri.
The body will then be flown back to California to be buried
at the Ronald W. Reagan Presidential Library and Museum.
Official plans will be announced this morning, a library spokesman
said.
"This is a sad hour in the life of America," Bush
said after speaking with Nancy Reagan by telephone. "A
great American life has come to an end. Ronald Reagan won America's
respect with his greatness and won its love with his goodness.
He had the confidence that comes with conviction, the strength
that comes with character, the grace that comes with humility
and the humor that comes with wisdom."
Blinking back tears, Bush added: "He always told us that
for America, the best was yet to come. We comfort ourselves
in the knowledge that this is true for him, too. His work is
done. And now a shining city awaits him."
It was an almost unbelievable life, a melodrama, a rags-to-riches
tale, a multi-part saga written by someone with boundless imagination
and an infinite sense of the possible. Born in tiny Tampico,
Ill., educated at Eureka College in nearby Dixon, Reagan was
a radio sportscaster, a Hollywood B-movie star, host of a TV
variety show, a soap salesman, a motivational speaker, governor
of California and -- starting at age 53 -- arguably the most
important American political figure since Franklin D. Roosevelt.
So it was no wonder that he believed all things were possible,
from the collapse of the Soviet Union, which he predicted even
when the clash of superpowers seemed near its most menacing
point, to the complete disarmament of all nuclear arsenals,
which Reagan proposed in a stunning arms-control summit near
the end of his administration. What seemed to some as naivete
struck others as good old gumption.
Reagan was a champion salesman of the American dream, mayor-for-life
of the land he called "a shining city on a hill."
Democratic presidential candidate John F. Kerry said, "Ronald
Reagan's love of country was infectious," and he praised
the late president for his "goodwill in the heat of partisan
battle."
"Even when he was breaking Democrats' hearts, he did so
with a smile and in the spirit of honest and open debate. Despite
the disagreements, he lived by that noble ideal that at 5 p.m.,
we weren't Democrats or Republicans, we were Americans and friends,"
said the senator from Massachusetts.
Like all forceful leaders, Reagan deeply angered some -- but
his gift for communication and his bedrock optimism attracted
far more supporters than critics. In 1984, he was reelected
with the largest number of popular and electoral votes in U.S.
history. Though the nation has added about 50 million people
since then, no candidate has surpassed his record. His electoral
vote landslide that year was among the most lopsided in history.
He entered the White House older than any previous occupant,
and yet as the candidate of fresh ideas, from supply-side economics
to welfare reform. He intrigued and imprinted students of the
1980s much as John F. Kennedy had done for the previous generation,
dispatching them into the mills of commerce rather than the
halls of government.
It had been 20 years since a president had completed two full
terms. Five administrations had been cut short: by assassination,
Vietnam, Watergate, rampant inflation and civic malaise. In
a sense, Reagan's signal achievement was that he restored in
Americans their hope for normalcy.
"He got the country to believe in itself again,"
his longtime aide Michael K. Deaver said in an interview before
Reagan's death.
Beyond that, experts argue over his record. Among the ranks
of Republican conservatives who live and breathe Reagan's catechism
of low taxes, small government, unregulated liberty and a strong
military, he is rated one of the most important presidents in
U.S. history. They credit him with winning the Cold War.
"Ronald Reagan was a president of great historic impact
who led the United States with strength and conviction, and
the positive impact of his policies is still felt today here
and around the world," Republican Party Chairman Ed Gillespie
said. "Because Ronald Reagan lived, people across the globe
live in greater freedom and prosperity."
Reagan's critics acknowledge that he dramatically recast the
nation's political agenda, replacing the aging New Deal consensus
with an entirely new language. But they see little good coming
from it.
As Walter Williams, professor emeritus of the University of
Washington, put it in a recent book, "Reaganism -- with
its antigovernment, antiregulation, antitax, and probusiness
philosophy -- achieved its objective of hamstringing the federal
institutions concerned with domestic policy." Williams
blames failures from the Enron scandal to inadequate airport
security on that achievement.
In a recent history of the Republican Party, Lewis L. Gould
of the University of Texas rates Reagan as the most important
president in terms of his influence over the party, but gives
him a more mixed report as chief executive. "Reagan stands
supreme as the embodiment of GOP virtues and conservative ideals,"
he wrote. "Reagan transformed the Republican Party into
a conservative unit with a diminishing band of moderates on
its fringes. . . . Reagan thus serves as a talisman of what
it means to be a Republican."
Reagan's successor, president George H.W. Bush, quickly discovered
just how deeply Reagan had carved the new creed into Republican
stone. Bush's decision to raise taxes as part of a broad budget
deal with congressional Democrats outraged the GOP base and
crippled his bid for reelection in 1992.
Gould added, however, that "when hard choices loomed,
Reagan and the people around him preferred a conservatism of
gestures rather than one of substance."
At the end of his presidency, Reagan lamented that he had not
substantially cut domestic spending, despite years of rhetoric,
nor had he come close to balancing the federal budget.
Unquestioned was Reagan's ability to connect with the American
public through formal speeches, offhand remarks, even mere gestures.
He was the most effective presidential communicator since Roosevelt
and probably one of three greatest to hold the office -- Abraham
Lincoln, master of the written speech; Roosevelt, master of
the radio address; and Reagan, master of television.
Wounded in an assassination attempt shortly after taking office
in 1981, Reagan quipped, "I forgot to duck."
Dogged by worries about his age during his reelection campaign,
he promised during a presidential debate: "I am not going
to exploit for political gain my opponent's youth and inexperience."
Comforting a nation stunned by the 1986 explosion of the space
shuttle Challenger, he said: "Nothing ends here; our hopes
and our journeys continue."
Crystallizing the final stage of the Cold War confrontation
between Western liberties and Soviet repression, he visited
the Berlin Wall in 1987 and challenged Soviet Premier Mikhail
Gorbachev to tear it down. In a perfect summary of his core
faith, Reagan declared, "After these four decades, then,
there stands before the entire world one great and inescapable
conclusion: Freedom leads to prosperity. Freedom replaces the
ancient hatreds among the nations with comity and peace. Freedom
is the victor."
Reagan's legacy can be seen in the current White House, where
his example is revered; in Congress, where Reagan Republicans
captured control of the House in 1994 and have held it ever
since; and on the Supreme Court, where Reagan appointees hold
the balance of power on most issues. (He filled four vacancies,
elevating William H. Rehnquist to chief justice and adding Sandra
Day O'Connor, Anthony M. Kennedy and Antonin Scalia.
He left the public eye in 1994, soon after attending the funeral
of Richard M. Nixon, the last president to die.
Reagan's farewell note to his fellow citizens was his final
masterpiece. "I only wish there was some way I could spare
Nancy from this painful experience," he wrote in the same
small, neat hand he used for thousands of personal letters.
"When the time comes I am confident that with your help
she will face it with faith and courage."
In a recent speech promoting stem cell research, Nancy Reagan
said her husband had been for several years "in a distant
place where I can no longer reach him." Death in Alzheimer's
disease usually results from the accumulated effects of immobility,
disordered swallowing and malnutrition. Pneumonia is often the
immediate cause of death. The stress of illness can also worsen
underlying cardiovascular disease, triggering heart attacks
or strokes. Alzheimer's is now the eighth-leading cause of death
in the United States, and its rate is rising.
"In closing let me thank you, the American people, for
giving me the great honor of allowing me to serve as your President,"
Reagan wrote 10 years ago. "When the Lord calls me home,
whenever that may be, I will leave with the greatest love for
this country of ours and eternal optimism for its future."
Update on Emerine Mansion
June 5, 2004
It's hard to put a price on history, but Virgene Barkley knows
that the price is definitely more than $140,000.
She rejected just such bid for her historic limestone structure
on the corner of South Wood and West Tiffin Street at auction
June 1, 2004..
To participate in the auction, seven potential buyers wrote
deposit checks of $1,000 each. After a tour of the home's three
floors, auctioneer Phil Cole opened the bidding at $400,000.
It dropped to $125,000 before the first bid was placed. The
price rose to the $140,000 sum, but was not enough to tempt
Barkley.
Virgene Barkley will put Emerine Mansion on eBay
History for Sale
Fostoria mansion heads for the auction block
From R/t May 8, 2004 Article by Gene Kinn
-
Related picture -
One of Fostoria's historic showcase homes is going on the auction
block.
What is being billed as the "Emerine Mansion," at
200 W. Tiffin St, will be sold to the highest bidder on June
1, 2004 by Phil Cole Real Estate & Auction Co.
An article in the Fostoria Times on Feb. 2,1893, stated, "One
of the handsomest residences to be erected in Fostoria will
be that of Andrew Emerine Sr., which will be located on the
northwest corner of Wood and Tiffin Streets. The plans for this
structure have already been drawn and disclose a stone building
with all the modern improvements and conveniences. The beauty
of the exterior will be only exceeded by the perfect symmetry
of the interior, The building will cost about $8,000 and will
make a splendid home for a useful and industrious citizen."
Another newspaper article about the structure says "The
home is from the Romanesque period, built from local native
limestone."
Mr. Emerine a German immigrant, ran a harness business here
before founding the First National Bank, an institution in this
city for more than 50 years. When Emerine died, his daughter,
Lucy, continued to live in the home until her death in the early
1940's
The next owner of the mansion was Harry Howbert. president of
Buckeye Stages, Fostoria's first bus company. He lived there
until Roy Kissling, a local shoe repairman, bought the home
in 1971. Kissling and his wife did a good deal of restoration
there.
In 1985, the home was purchased by Charles Barkley. Barkley
had been employed at Atlas Crankshaft for more than 25 years,
retiring in 1980. He was a 1938 graduate of Fostoria High School
and a 1948 graduate of the Chicago Institute of Arts. When he
passed away in 1993 ownership of the home reverted to his daughter,
Virgene Barkley who still owns it.
Virgene opened Corporate Etc., a bed and breakfast,at the location
in 1995 and continued to operate the business for several years
before closing it.
The home contains 4,768 square feet of living space, not counting
the full basement and attic
The first floor contains a center foyer, library, parlor and
formal dining room all with fire places, a sitting room, sun
room, kitchen, butler's pantry, food pantry and laundry room.
On the second floor is a center hall, siting room suite, four
bedrooms, one with fireplace, and a separate maid's quarters
with a bedroom and a combo bedroom/sitting room.
There are 13 beveled Fostoria Glass windows, leaded and stained
in the building.
It is listed on the Historic Register.
A Local Army Reserve
Soldier shares another view on Iraq War.
Fostoria
Man, returns from Iraq
From
The Advertiser-Tribune March
24, 2004
By Cathy
Willoughby
For over a year, one area man observed, and helped to deliver
first hand news on unfolding events from the front lines of Operation
Iraqi Freedom. Relaying information to press from around
the world, Fostoria resident Jefferson Wolfe served his country
from the fiery sands of Iraq as a member of the Army Reserves
Public Affairs unit.
A reporter for The Advertiser-Tribune, Wolfe left Fort Campbell,
Kentucky on April 1, 2003 and arrived in Kuwait. His unit
was attached to a Marine unit at Camp Commando, the First Marine
Expeditionary Force from Camp Pendleton, California.
Broad expanses of sand, high winds and extreme heat greeted him.
While he was first in Kuwait City, Wolfe saw his first sandstorm.
"It looked like a tan snowstorm," he said "You could see it coming
and going . People would go out in it, they didn't
seem to think too much of it."
After a sandstorm, everything is covered in fine layer of dust.
Soldiers quickly learned that no amount of cleaning would rid
them of the constant presence of sand, Wolfe said.
On April 25, 2003 five Public Affairs officers from Wolfe's unit
moved out to the north, first to Numineah then on to Babylon.
there was one of Saddam Hussein's palaces, one of two homes of
the former dictator where Wolfe lived for a time.
Huge and empty, the Palace made it's own noises in the night,
creating an eerie atmosphere. When Wolfe awoke after the
first night, he looked out the window to another sandstorm, leaving
visibility low.
"Then the sun came up, and the sandstorm burned off." Wolfe
recalled. "and it was living in a resort. The Palace was
a beautiful building. And it was on the Euphrates River, which
was really beautiful," he said.
Initially there were four Public Affairs officers and three enlisted
PA's with the Marines headquartered in Babylon.
Wolfe's role was to field calls and accompany the international
press during many of the newsworthy events coming from the area
they were stationed.
In the south, occupied by Shiites, he worked with press at the
mass grave site.
"Reporters were always coming to look at the Babylon ruins," he
explained. "Fox news ,CNN, U.S. News and World Report. In
Tikrit, I met Geraldo Rivera."
"A ceremony that noted the exchange of Spanish for Polish forces
involved many international press representatives," Wolfe
said.
In December, his unit was sent to the Army's 4th Infantry Division,
which was headquartered in Tikrit. The opportunity to set
up a press conference led to Wolfe's absence during the biggest
news story in Tikrit, the capture of Hussein.
"My job was to answer e-mails from reporters, schedule reporters
and keep track of embedded reporters." Wolfe said. " Before
Saddam was caught, at some base camps there were 12 to 15 embedded
reporters." The Associated Press, Reuters, FOX, Agency France
Press and news agencies from many countries descended on sites
of major events, especially in Tikrit following Saddam's capture.
In Tikrit, the Public Affairs unit stayed with the 4th Infantry
Division in the presidential palace complex,specifically in what
was called the Water Palace.
The Water Palace was build on top of a man made lake," he said
" There were fish swimming underneath." That building was
just one of many, each with an indoor pool. The complex had it's
own roadway system and was located near the Tigris River.
It was there that he saw a helicopter come down, watching it out
the back door of the building in which his division's headquarters
were set up.
"Then they kicked off a big operation to try to get rid of the
guys that shot down the helicopters," Wolfe said.
Times spent with the Iraqi people were infrequent, he said, yet
when the opportunity arose, he ventured out to find that they
were friendly and generous.
In the south, all Americans were greeted warmly, he added.
"Everywhere in the south, they were very friendly and accommodating."
Wolfe said. They were excited that Saddam was gone.
They said, 'Saddam 'Donkey' which was a big insult."
Among those who made a lasting impression on him was a barber,
whose English improved and spoke of losing his brother to Saddam's
henchman. Another was a translator, who had been a cab driver
in San Diego at one time, Another was a television producer
who had been a basketball star in Iraq.
"No matter where you were, they would gather around and practice
English," Wolfe said. " They would say, George Bush was
good." and the little kids would ask for candy."
Though the adjustments to 130 degree heat and blistering winds,
Wolfe found the country and its people fascinating.
"I got a better feel for a part of the world that I didn't know
much about." he explained.
Spending a year without the comforts of home also gave him an
appreciation of what one really needs, he added.
"The first time we had cold pop we had gone a month without."
he said. "Someone got Pepsi that was bottled in Iran, it
was the biggest treat in the world when it's 110 degrees."
He also found that he would rather deal with extreme heat than
cold.
"At first 130 degrees scared the heck out of me, but you get used
to it." Wolfe said. " It's amazing how wonderful
110 feels after 130. 110 feels balmy, your body works properly.
Although 130 with wind is miserable. It's like standing
in front of an oven all day, it burns the eyes."
There are places he would like, to see when he returns someday,
such as an arch south of Babylon and the site where Abraham was
born. He would also like to interact with the Iraqi people
more
"I wish I had more time to get out and meet those folks,"
Wolfe added..
- Click for picture -
Saddam Hussein
hid in Tikrit Iraq.
===========================================
Jeff Wolfe, local Fostorian, is the Son
of Mr. & Mrs. Robert Wolfe (retired LtCol. U.S. Army) 1706
North Walnut St. Fostoria.
Stained Glass
Window at Veterans Memorial Chapel
Artist'
work combined to make final design
By
TIM SOSTER
R/t
Staff Writer
-------------------------
The veteran's Memorial Chapel walls are up, the roof is on and
now the stained glass window is getting ready to be cut.
After weeks of debate over the designs, the
chapel committee of local veterans agreed on a design comprised
of two drawings by three people John Cockie, Dean Mossier and
Samantha Sayre.
The kneeling soldier was added to the design by the Veteran's
Ministry Assoiation, and the window went back to the drawing board.
"They agreed on the drawing and another composite
was made and the committee voted on the second drawing and a couple
of the members were upset about the changes," said Mayor John
Davoli.
"In any group you will always upset some people. But this
has been a real pleasant project."
The mayor then decided to have another meeting to get another
vote.
The committee again voted for the same design.
"I just got the call (Wednesday)." said Linda
Radcliff, (A local woman) from R&L Stained Glass who
will make the window.
Radcliff said once she receives the contract from the city, she
will begin the process.
"Right now, it'll probably be about two weeks before I have the
design drawn and ready," Radcliff said.
The window is scheduled to be completed just prior to Memorial
Day, Radcliff added.
The Chapel is schedujled to be didicated on Memorial Day 2004.
The city has received more than $10,000 in the past week
from the veteran's organizations through their charitable bingo
funds.
That brings the overall total to almost $80,000 of the projected
$210,000 projected cost.
The AMVETS post just signed a contract to donate the proceeds
from their charitable bingo, according to Diane Lind, the mayor's
secretary.
Harold-Floriana Funeral Home, Hoening Funeral
Home and Mann-Hare Funeral Home each donated $2,500 for the window
and the Fostoria Woman's Club donated $3,750.
Lind said there is still room for another sponsor for the window
that will cost under $15,000
=======================================================================
Below
is a drawing of the stained glass window design that will grace
the Veteran's Memorial Chapel at Fountain Cemetery. Each
pane will be 2 1/2 by 3 feet.