February 9, 2009
CHAMPION—February 9, 2009
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      The further downhill a person goes from Champion the more clearly he remembers the view from that beautiful place. Why anyone chooses to leave is a mystery, but life is mysterious and people go wandering for any number of reasons. A temporary absence is the best kind and the Homeward Trail is the best one to travel.
      A letter from Eva Phillips Henson says: “We have snow, ice,sleet and 17 degrees. When [a Champion cousin] wrote that Lonnie Lowell Krider passed away, it brought back memories of the Champion School. Lonnie was a good singer and always in our Christmas programs. Our teachers would begin in October planning who would do what. When Kenneth, my brother, [Hovie] was in the first grade, he had a poem. ‘On Christmas morning I get up so early, I beat all the other folks. Pa says every morning should be Christmas, but that’s just one of his jokes.’ In 6th grade I recited ‘The Night Before Christmas’ and never missed a word. I was Proud! We all were so proud of our program and our parents were pleased. Then ‘Santy Claws’ would come. It would be a rotund ‘plump’ man and the kids would not know him. One year no ‘rotund’ man was available, so Ed Henson played ‘Santy.’ He was tall and skinny with no padding. We all knew who that ‘Santy’ was. Then the little sacks of hard candy would be passed out, and our program was over or another year. Some of my teachers were Vivian Robertson, Doris Giles, Edgie Tate, Opal Powell. While I was there, no man ever taught school at Champion. Just thought I’d pass on some history, back in the 40’s and 50’s. Have a good winter, Eva Henson Phillips.”
      An e-mail came to the Champion box from Cindy Peterson. “Lonnie was a wonderful person who was our high school counselor. I never knew anyone who did not like Lonnie.
      “Nothing more has been said about the lightning strike that may have happened at the Champion School (or some place nearby) except a comment made by Mark Twain to the effect that choosing exactly the right word might be the difference between a lightning bug and lightning!
      News reaches other parts of the world that the ice and snow have melted and things are windy and about to get stormy in Champion. It is also reported that the seed orders are beginning to arrive in the mail. Not too far South already vegetable plants are beginning to become available and a little farther South yet, the Boggy Creek Farm is harvesting many winter vegetables. The farm is about six densely planted acres surrounded by a big noisy city. On Saturdays and Wednesdays city dwellers flock to the farm to buy organically grown broccoli, cabbage, kale, lettuce, spinach, chard, turnips, beets and green onions among other things. The produce is more expensive than the regular supermarket fare, but it is well worth it to folks who are hungry for good food and the feel of country life. City children enjoy feeding the Boggy Creek chickens and it is a good educational experience for them. Some of them already know The Chicken Song: “C–that’s the way to begin. H–that’s the next letter in. C-H-I-C-K-E-N That is the way to spell Chicken.” There are many versions of The Chicken Song some say ‘C–is for the cluck, cluck. K–is for the kackle, kackle.” Uncle Al, The Lonesome Plowboy used to play the Chicken Reel on the French harp and a person might start looking for eggs! The Chicken Song is a good one for any musical repertoire. Over at the Plant Place in Norwood, Linda frequently has some wonderful brown eggs for sale. She is getting things ready for Champion gardeners to get a good start on growing some wonderful food. It won’t be long now!
      In addition to some interesting and pertinent information about the coming electrical rate changes in April, the Rural Missouri monthly paper had a nice mention of the Skyline Area Volunteer Fire Department Chili Supper coming up on the 28th of February. The Ladies Auxiliary is having meetings and making arrangements for musical entertainment as well as that great chili, the ham and beans, the chicken and noodles, and all those scrumptious donated pies that come in the door with the membership of the Fire Department. This event marks the end of winter’s gloom and is the sure cure for the cabin fever. There will still be some dark and damp days before full-blown Spring sets in, but Champions are happy for rain and not interested in complaining about the weather! One of those Auxiliary members is making a Southern trip and will be down near the Mexican border gathering up some nice surprises for the Silent Auction that will take place at the Chili Supper. Tickets are being sold for the drawing for beautiful queen size quilt from one end of the country to the other. One of the great sights on the way was an enormous wind farm just North of Abilene. There are hundreds of windmills generating that clean power. They are huge and graceful against the big, blue Texas sky. Douglas County has a few windmill electricity generators! It is said that Booger County is a “windy” place for a number of reasons.
      No new letters to the Government have shown up in the Champion mail box this week, but Champions are still paying attention to everything that’s going on up there in Washington. One terribly sad report says that in January more active duty U.S. Service Personnel took their own lives than died in combat. When the Veterans of these conflicts come home they should be met with Love, Gratitude, Understanding, and all the Help they need. It is the dear Hope of all Champions.
      It has recently come to the attention of the CEPC [Champion Events Planning Commission] that The General plans to sponsor the First Biennial Great Armadillo Round-Up to culminate in a Festival on the 32nd of March. As he has not as yet cleared the project with the Committee, no real specifics have been learned. He did suggest that entries would be limited to the first one thousand, though ‘dead or alive’ has not been indicated. The General was overheard to say something about ‘the best paint job.’ He is such a rogue element in the community that the details will likely be sketchy up to the very last moment.
      Sketchy details, chicken songs and life mysteries are welcome at Champion Items, Rt. 2, Box 36, Norwood, MO 65717. E-mail dear Hopes and copies of letters to the Gov’ment to Champion News. Look around in the archives at 222.championnews.us just to see what has gone be3fore. Stand around on the porch at Henson’s Store on the North side of the Square just off Lonnie Krider Memorial Drive to see what a beautiful community looks like. Picture post-cards of the dear place are available in limited supply. They have been know to lift the spirits of unfortunates living out in the dreary and dull parts of the world. They bear the motto: Champion–Looking on the Bright Side!
