40 years and more
May 18 – May 24
By STEVEN MURREY
Managing Editor
smurrey@cherryroad.com
1985
• Janus Developmental Services, Inc., which services mentally and physically disabled clients in Tipton and Hamilton Counties, honored outstanding staff members, volunteers, and clients at its annual awards banquet. Tipton residents honored included Don Anderson, Romana Biggs, Steve Ingram, Harry Wray, and Jeff Campbell.
• From his beginnings in a log cabin through nearly 50 years of service to the railroad, life goes on for 87-year-old Paul Schimmel, the self proclaimed “oldest resident of Kempton.” Born in a cabin near Kirkland in 1898, Schimmel was one of four siblings. When he graduated highschool, he landed a job at the Brass Company in Frankfort, but quit just 30 days later. He was hired at the race of .54 cents an hour by the Nickel Plate Railroad. He met his wife Ann in 1943, and the two were married until her death in 1975. He moved to Kempton to avoid the big-city lifestyle, and retired in 1970 after 48 years of service. A member of the Kempton Christian Church and Brotherhood of Railroad Carmen, Schimmel also collects models of railroad engines, displayed throughout his home.
• Although it’s not quite the Indianapolis 500, Clyde Allmon, administrator at Miller’s Merry Manor, and Mayor Tom Balser raced wheelchairs at the local nursing home. This and other wheelchair races were a part of festivities to celebrate National Nursing Home Week.
• James Calhoun will represent Tipton High School at the 1985 Hugh O’Brien Youth Foundation Indiana Leadership Seminar at Butler University.
• Steve Day, manager of Hook’s downtown Tipton location, was honored with a Gold Key Award at the company’s banquet in Indianapolis. This is the seventh time Day has won the award. The Tipton store was one of only 59 to receive the award this year.
• Tipton’s number one singles tennis player will advance to the Mt. Vernon Regional after going unbeaten in sectional play. Nodjya Cook, a junior, won matches against Taylor and the host Hot Dogs to advance in the singles portion of the IHSAA state tournament.
• Several Tipton Middle School girls’ track runners recently participated in the State GAA meet. The top finish for the Lady Blue Devils was the 800-meter relay team of Lisa Cripe, Andrea Plake, Tracy Barnes, and Sue Herner. They ran a 1:58.5, good for fifth place.
• Burglary suspect Lawrence R. Powers watched his wife go to jail and his alleged accomplice testify against him before both sides in his Tipton Circuit Court trial rested their cases. Powers was found guilty on all five charges of resisting law enforcement, battery, theft, possession of a controlled substance, burglary, and habitual offender in connection with the Nov. 18 burglary at Griffy’s Pharmacy, 102 S. Main Street.. The jailing of his wife Theresa came after a remark she made to Douglas R. Stropes, who was also charged in the burglary, while the two were in a room adjoining the courtroom. Theresa allegedly told Stropes, who testified against Powers, that he was “committing suicide.” She was found in contempt and will serve 90 days in jail.
• 84 seniors will graduate as part of Tri-Central High School’s Class of 1985. Cynthia Colbert, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Carl Colbert of Windfall, is valedictorian. Jodie Floyd, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Ronald K. Floyd, of Sharpsville, is salutatorian.
• Tipton Police Chief Gary Stout has warned Tipton County parents, “It could happen here.” He noted that a number of incident of the past few days prompted him to issue a warning to parents to keep a close eye on their children, even as they play in their own yards. Reports have come in from Atlanta and Elwood, as well as Tipton, about individuals trying to lure children into their cares. Stout said the cases do not seem to be related. A Tipton woman reported to police that her five-year-old daughter was playing on the sidewalk in front of their home in the 400 block of North West Street when she stepped inside for a moment. From a window inside, she saw a small yellow car with a hatchback and an out of state license. There were three men in the car, and it parked across the street from her home. An older man exited the car and walked towards her child, and she came back outside and made a sharp turn and walked toward a truck parked on the opposite side of the street. The Elwood incident involved what was believed to be a teenage boy who attempted to pick up a two-year-old boy.
• 161 seniors will graduate from Tipton High School; Joseph “Chuck” Dickey and Julie Moeller will serve as co-valedictorians. Dickey is the son of Mr. and Mrs. Fred Dickey, of Tipton, and Moeller is the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Perry Moeller, Tipton. Becky Smith, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Steve Smith, of Tipton, is salutatorian.
• Tipton was honored with an EPA citation for having the best-operated wastewater treatment plant in the medium advanced-plant category. Selection for the award was based on the plant’s ability to operate at effluent levels below permit limits, remove ammonia even though not required, maintain outstanding records, and its employment of outstanding laboratory practices.
1975
• Tipton resident Lisa Ross was chosen Miss Glass 1975 during the recent pageant; she is the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Donald Ross. Lu Ann Tanzilli was first runner-up.
• Members of the Northern Community School Board have until May 23 to respond to an unfair labor practice complaint filed by Virginia Chambers, president of the Northern Tipton Federation of Teachers. Chambers, a teacher at Sharpsville-Praire Elementary, alleges the board refused to bargain the starting and ending times of the teachers’ work day with the teachers’ federation.
• The service station on Ind. 28 at the west edge of Tipton is now under new ownership. Marshall Rogers, of Elwood, has opened a Union 76 station at the site that had previously operated under other gasoline dealers. Rogers alongside his son Ronald also operate the Union 76 station at the intersection of Ind. 13 and Ind. 28 in Elwood.
• Windfall residents turned out in droves to help locate a missing two-year-old boy, who wondered out of a local laundry mat while his mother was washing clothes. Town Marshal Ray Sherrill recruited volunteers from the Cimarron Steakhouse, local seed companies, and even youngsters. Use of a private plane was offered, but was not needed. The toddler was found inside a nearby home where he had crawled in through a rear entrance. The home was unoccupied, as its residents were on vacation.
• Tipton fireman Alan Jones was assisted by Jack Boes in fighting a stubborn wood pile blaze on a rural Tipton County farm owned by Joe Stocker. The fire had ignited after a nearby trash fire spread. Jefferson Township Volunteers were assisted by Cicero Township in extinguishing the blaze. No damage to adjacent farm buildings was reported.
• Three were injured, including a five year old boy, in a crash on U.S. 31 at its intersection with County Road 550 North. Linda Taylor, of Sharpsville, complained of a neck injury after her vehicle was struck in the rear by William Himes of Indianapolis. Larry Taylor, 5, sustained bruises whereas Himes suffered some lacerations.
• While final tabulations are still being calculated, the recent “Swim for the Heart” marathon fundraiser is expecting to bring in over $2,000 to the Heart Association. The swimathon lasted for eight hours, with more than 58 swimmers participating.
• Nearly 500 camping units are expected to pull into their assigned lots at the Tipton County 4-H Fairgrounds this weekend to form “Good Sam City,” in celebration of the Indiana Good Sam Club’s Fifth Annual Memorial Weekend Samboree. Although Tipton is without a Good Sam chapter, the city was selected for the gathering due to its central location. The event is expected to draw more than 1,000 people to the area.
• Tipton resident Becky Denham, 900 block of Main Street, wrote in to the Tribune editor to express thanks for an increase in “Our Readers Write” articles. Denham said while she appreciates local news coverage, she really enjoys the letters because it lets her know how people feel. “What we feel and think is important,” she wrote. “By keeping quiet, we have made ourselves a minority.”
• 173 seniors will be a part of the graduating class of 1975 at Tipton High School. Co-valedictorians are Jonathon Charles Stroup and Steven Edward Melochie, both of Tipton. Salutatorian is Jeff Maurice Fetig, of Elwood.
• The Tipton Community School Corporation’s Board of Education heard a proposal of the formation of a parent and citizens steering committee for each school. If approved, the committee would meet with each school principal three times a semester to discuss problems that arise.
• May is National Bicycle Month, and this year is the 100th anniversary of the bicycle’s invention.
1965
• A jailbreak, pulled off without the knowledge of the sheriff’s office, brought temporary freedom to Roger Hefner, an inmate of the Tipton County Jail who had recently been returned from Kentucky on a charge of breaking, entering, and theft. Hefner reportedly slipped through a 10”x20” food door of the main cell, where he was incarcerated with seven others. He then made is way to the kitchen, before exiting through the front lobby door. He was later captured at the home of a woman in Tipton.
• 36 students are set to graduate from Windfall High School.
• A Tipton couple were one of 53 winners in a national contest held by T-V Doctor. Mr. and Mrs. Clarence McClard won a Sylvania Color T-V Stereo Home Theatre.
• Cleanup, paint up, and fix up time is here! The Tipton Tribune, in cooperation with the Tipton County Chamber of Commerce, urges all citizens of Tipton to “get in on the act” between now and June 5. This is the first city-wide cleanup effort in several years, the Tribune reported.
• This week, 160 Boy Scouts from Hobbs, East Union, Sharpsville, Tipton, and Windfall will gather for their Spring Camporee. The theme will be “Daniel Boon Pioneer Camporee.”
• Tipton Chief of Police Pratt was warm in his praise of the manner in which the youngsters who attended the prom conducted themselves in regards to traffic regulations. Pratt said, “I believe the teenagers we had to send on their way, were not those who attended the prom, but others who might have been seeking to rev it up a bit, taking advantage of the occasion.”
