Tuesday, May 21, 2013

Random observations

There's a slight breeze blowing. Old Glory is waving from a front porch. It should be called the stars and strips because it is torn to shreds that waver and writhe. We have the right to fly the flag, burn it, wear it, whatever, but to display it like this is sloppy and lazy. Then again, maybe it's some sort of political statement.

I'm listening to scanner radio on my phone. Voices from Oklahoma are coming across the ether. The news is tragic and heartbreaking, and I have to ask, "Where is God in all this?" The tornadoes carried his wrath, but what's he angry about? Why kill innocents? He would have done better to obliterate Wall Street or descend on Washington D.C.

A few areas of Second Street still have old brick sidewalks, the bricks having been worn down by decades of foot traffic. If only we could extract their history. (What would it tell us?) They're a connection to the past.  Let's hope they're never paved over.

The stench from the sewer plant is enough to make you retch. It hangs low in the air because of the humidity, as the breeze nudges it gently up towards the center of town.

A car with the windows down rides past blasting out rap. On the recording is a man ranting about something. He sounds angry and is talking really fast. Have you ever heard a tender love song done in rap? I doubt it's possible to do so.

Author to present slideshow on historical events in the Columbia-Wrightsville area

LANCASTERONLINE
Glenn Banner, local author and retired teacher, will host a slideshow on historical events in and around Columbia and Wrightsville during the Millersville Area Historical Society meeting at 9 a.m. Saturday, June 8, in Millersville's Municipal Center, 100 Municipal Drive.

MORE HERE:
http://lancasteronline.com/article/local/852158_Author-to-present-slideshow-on-historical-events-in-the-Columbia-Wrightsville-area.html

Underground Railroad tour to visit Columbia, Lancaster, Drumore, Christiana

Recently uncovered information about Underground Railroad activity in Lancaster County will be brought to life on a July 20 field trip sponsored by the Lancaster Mennonite Historical Society.

Norma Grace and Ronald Strawbridge will lead an excursion to historic sites, complete with dramatic presentations and historical lessons.

In Columbia the group will "meet" Robert Loney, whose family was among the first to be freed in the early 1800s and begin Columbia's free black community. Loney worked with Quaker abolitionist William Wright and ferried hundreds of escaping slaves across the Susquehanna and assisted with the work of Quaker activist William Wright.

Historian Randolph Harris will talk about the role of Thaddeus Stevens and his housekeeper, Lydia Hamilton Smith, at the newly restored site of Stevens' office, now part of the Lancaster County Convention Center in Lancaster.

Participants will then visit the Drumore Quaker Meetinghouse and see the homestead of "switchturner" Joseph Smith, who hid escapees in his barn. Stories will illustrate how the use of railroad terms and other coding helped provide secrecy for the network of persons assisting runaways.

At Christiana's Underground Railroad Visitor Center, historians "Bud" Rettew and Nancy Plumley will detail the story of the Christiana Resistance of 1851. This cataclysmic event helped further polarize the nation in the years leading up to the Civil War.

Capping the tour will be a "soul food" meal and dramatic presentation of "From the Slave House to the White House," on the moral and spiritual odyssey of Sojourner Truth.

Cindy A. Strawbridge, playwright, says this theatrical work "meant to inform, instruct, and inspire its audience to learn the true meaning of determination, perseverance, and triumph."

Reservations will be accepted on a first-come basis. The cost is $90 for Lancaster Mennonite Historical Society members and $100 per non-members.

Call 393-9745 for more information. The motor coach will load promptly at 8 a.m. at the Lancaster Mennonite Historical Society headquarters, 2215 Millstream Road, and return about 4:30 p.m.

http://lancasteronline.com/article/local/852136_Underground-Railroad-tour-to-visit-Columbia--Lancaster--Drumore--Christiana.html

National Watch and Clock Museum to hold Civil War Ball June 22

The National Watch and Clock Museum, 514 Poplar St., Columbia, will present an American Civil War Ball Saturday, June 22, from 6:30 to 10 p.m.

The ball will celebrate the 150th anniversary of the burning of the Columbia-Wrightsville Bridge and honor the fighting men and women presented in the museum's Enlisting Time exhibit. Attendees are encouraged, but not required, to wear period costume, whether they choose blue or gray.

Music will be provided by the Gilmore Light Ensemble. The Victorian Dance Ensemble will assist those who want to learn the dances. The dance ensemble demonstrates and teaches dances of the mid-19th century.

Punch, cash bar and hors d'oeuvres will be available throughout the evening.

Tickets are $30 per couple or $20 for individuals. For tickets or more information, visit nawccstore.org or call 684-8261, extension 211.

http://lancasteronline.com/article/local/851818_National-Watch-and-Clock-Museum-to-hold-Civil-War-Ball-June-22.html

Monday, May 20, 2013

Columbia school board drafts 5.7% tax hike

LANCASTERONLINE
Columbia School District officials approved a preliminary budget Thursday that would raise property taxes by 5.7 percent.

The school board blamed underfunding of special education as a major cause for the tax hike and appealed to Columbia residents to write to Harrisburg to ask for fairer funding structures.

To fund the $22,375,000 budget, residents in Columbia will need to pay a millage rate of 27.37 mills, an increase of 1.37 mills or $137 for a home valued at $100,000.

MORE HERE:
http://lancasteronline.com/article/local/851921_Columbia-school-board-drafts-5-7--tax-hike.html

Columbia prepares for Sunday festivities, parade

LANCASTERONLINE
The Columbia United Veterans Council is inviting the public to its Memorial Day celebration at Columbia's Locust Street Park on Sunday, May 26, at 1 p.m., followed by a parade at 2:30 p.m.

MORE HERE:
http://lancasteronline.com/article/local/851768_Columbia-prepares-for-Sunday-festivities--parade.html

Police nab suspect

LANCASTERONLINE
Police identified a suspect in the stabbings as Zachary Groft, 22, of the 500 block of Cherry Street, Columbia, Police Detective Matthew Leddy said.

They arrested him at his home without incident a short time after the fight, police said.

MORE HERE:
http://lancasteronline.com/article/local/851657_Police-nab-suspect-in-two-stabbings-in-Columbia.html