Nappanee Advance-News, Volume 129, Number 23, Nappanee, Elkhart County, 8 June 2006 — Page 1

Advance News Serving Nappanee & Wakarusa

Embrace the Pace CLASS OF '44 The Nappanee High School Class of 1944 will hold its reunion dinner at noon on June 10 at the Country Table. STEAK IN THE PARK The Wakarusa Lions Cliib will host its annual Steak in the Park June 10 in Wakarusa's downtown park from 4:30 to 7:30 p.m. Tickets may be purchased through any club member. CAR SHOW The 4th Annual Antique and Classic Rods and Custom Car Show is scheduled for June 17 in downtown Wakarusa. Come enjoy the car show and explore the downtown shops. Cars will be on display starting at 9 a.m. and trophies will be awarded at 11:30 a.m. Trophies will be awarded for the following categories: Hard luck, farthest drive, best of show; best vintage 1900-1927, best -vintage 1928-1950, best street rod and best truck. The Wakarusa Historical Society Museums will also be open from noon to 3 p.m. For more information on the car show contact Wayne Sawyer 862-2309 or Dick Metzler 862-4772. CAPTAIN'S CLUB The North Wood Booster Club (Captain's Club) will host its annual golf outing at McCormick Creek Golf Course on Thursday, June 22 at 1 p.m. There is still space available, and anyone who's interested in participating may contact Jay Olson at 773-4127 or Don Lehman at 773-2112. BEAUTIFICATION Nominations are now being accepted for the second quarter Beautification Award. The second quarter qualifications include window dressing and landscaping. A letter or phone call to nominate a business will be accepted until June 30. Please reply to the Nappanee Area Chamber of Commerce, 451 N. Main, Nappanee, IN 46550 or telephone, 773-7812. REUNION A reunion is planned for those who attended the Locke St. Missionary Church on Saturday, July 8 at the Nappanee Missionary Church from 3 to 7 p.m., with dinner being served at 5 p.m. Tours of the Locke Street facility will also be given from 2 to 3 p.m. The cost of the dinner will be $8 for adults and $5 for children between 4 and 10. Please RSVP to Glennis Brecheisen (773-3455), Ann Umbaugh (773-7486) or Elaine Hunsberger (7733389) before June 30.

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Downtown project runs into a snag

By Anthony Godson Editor The beautification of downtown Nappanee was supposed to begin this summer, but now the downtown's facelift may be put off a little while longer. After receiving a federal grant through the Transportation Enhancement Act, the Nappanee Redevelopment Commission decided to use the approximate $1.6 million to upgrade the downtown area. After working with the engineering firm Land Plan Group, the commission put the bids out for the project, but on two separate occasions, the bids came in way over budget. "The first bid was over the money we had," redevelopment commission executive director Larry Andrews said. "The second bid also came in over." The first bid came in nearly $300,000 over budget. After making some tweaks to the plans, the second bid was submitted and still came in nearly $170,000 over budget.

Habitatfor Humanity home begins construction

By Anthony Godson Editor While the largest Farmer's Market in the nation was being constructed a few miles to the north, another slightly smaller, building was being erected in Nappanee last weekend. The future home of the Mohamedein family began construction on Saturday, as Habitat for Humanity began its home in the Wa-Nee area. "This has started out with a bang," Habitat for Humanity of Elkhart County Executive Director Richard Miller said. The construction of "Howard's House," named after longtime Wa-Nee educator and Habitat volunteer Howard Rogers, began on June 3 and is expected to be finished by the end of the month. "We began putting on the roof and walls today," Miller said. "Work will be done on the home through this week, and by next Saturday we'll be laying the sheet rock. The following week, we'll be putting up the drywall. By the fourth Saturday, we're hoping to be done." For the first workday at the site, around 30 people picked up a hammer, a saw or whatever they could to help. "We have between 25 and 30 people here today, representing

FCDC Food Pantry gets a big shipment

By Anthony Godson LUIVOf In order to give food to Wa-Nee residents in need, the Family Christian Development Center must first get the food from a larger organization. On May 30, Feed the Children came to its aid. "Feed the Children in Elkhart helps deliver food to rural areas," Ken Woodcox, director of the FCDC's Food Pantry, said. On May 30, Feed the Children delivered enough food to fill two box trucks. The food was then placed in storage at Nappanee Storage, where it will be held until it is all used up. "This food will probably be here for about three weeks," Woodcox said. Three weeks seems to be a pretty quick amount of time to get rid of a storage unit full of food, but at the FCDC, it's pretty common. "We serve about 450 families a month," Woodcox said. "Each family gets to pick out around S4O to SSO worth of food, and they may come back twice a month." So with space limited at the FCDC a storage unit was needed, and acquired. 'Our basement is full," Woodcox said. "When we get extra food, one of our needs is extra space. Things just always work out." In order for families to receive food from the Food Pantry, all they have to do is show up at the FCDC. Those who meet the financial requirements and live in the Wa-Nee area are then eligible. "We are there to serve," Woodcox said. "That's all." 1

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ADVANCE NEWS PHOTO/A.W. GADSON Downtown Nappanee was suppose to receive improvements this summer, but after bids came in too high, the project may be delayed.

The tweaks, which were supposed to put the project back on line, included taking out certain parts of the project. The omitted items were: Pavers at the U.S. 6 and SR 19 intersection; an irrigation system for the proposed planters; reworking the parking

five or six different churches in the area," Miller said. One of those volunteers was Jeff Baumann, a young man just looking to help. "My father-in-law goes to church Turkey Creek Church of the Brethren, so I decided to come with him," Baumann said. "I just like to help out." He'd done volunteer work before, but for Baumann, this home was his first experience with Habitat for Humanity. "Right now, we're doing the framing of the house, and I have some novice experience v th that," he said. While Baumann was a novice at work, Laura Snow has be.ome a professional, working a the construction assistant at the site. "Things are going well," she said about the first day ot work. 'e have lots of volunteers. We've gotten a lot done." The combination of professionals and volunteers is what makes the construction of a Habitat home so unique. "We have pros on the job, and we let the others do what thay do best," Miller said. By the end of the day, the framework and roof were on the home, helping Shama Abdalla Mohamedein realize what her new home will look like.

lot at the northwest comer of SR 19 and Lincoln Street; and rod iron fences enclosing plant life. After receiving the bad news, Nappanee learned that it wasn't alone. "About 60 percent of the projects that were bid that day were

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ADVANCE NEWS PHOTOS/A.W. GADSON Above: Volunteers and profess, jnals alike gathered at Heritage Parkway on June 3, helping to construct the latest Habitat for Humanity home in the Wa-Nee area. Below: Kevin Ramer places some nails in the new home.

"I love this community," Shama Abdalla said. The excitement of moving her family into its new Nappanee home caused Shama Abdalla to have a rough night's sleep. "I couldi. t sleep because I just kept thinking about the home," she said. A gloomy day may have caused Shama Abdalla's lack of sleep to have an effect on her, but with the sun shining brightly on Saturday, no one could complain. "It's just a perfect day," Miller said. Baumann agreed. "The sun's out and there's a nice, perfect wind," he said. If that climate can show up for the next three Saturdays, then the Mohamedein family will be ready to settle in. "I am happy about this," Shama Abdalla said.

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ADVANCE NEWS PHOTOA.W. GADSON Irvin Mfer helpe to move some of tie food donated to theFCDCs into a storage unit t k! t o

over budget," Andrews said. "It has a lot to do with fuel costs. Contractors just aren't sure what prices will be in the future." Now, the redevelopment commission must look at alternatives.

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"We're just going to regroup and see what we can do," Andrews said. With the construction season already under way, there's a distmct possibility that the project will be delayed until 2007. "In my mind, and I don't totally know this, but it could be delayed until next year," Andrews said. Another obstacle the commission must take into account is the .act that construction could not be taking place during this year's Apple Festival, set for mid-September. Because of the festival, Nappanee's time frame to complete the project is smaller. With so many items already deleted from the project, the commission must now focus on what must be done in the project. "If we don't re-do the sidewalks and lighting, then that's it," Andrews said. "We have to do those things."