Champion News

Champions were dusting and polishing their thimbles to use for rain gauges when Sunday’s showers netted them almost half an inch of the wonderful stuff. Miss B. Denlow’s old dad had been having to haul water to keep his mud puddle filled up to ward off visitors at Wolf Pen Hollow. When he is not doing that, he is reading “Early Settlers of Douglas County Missouri.” He had been wanting to read it for several years and finally was able to get a copy from Amazon. $32.50 for the 307 pages and well worth the money for helping the good man to stay in out of the heat and pass the time educating himself and his young ones as to their forbearers. The book was written by Bessie Janet Woods Selleck and published in 1974. Not much information concerning the author pops up on the internet. Perhaps the undisputed checkers champion, Sharon Sanders, of the Douglas County Museum and Historical Society can provide some good information about her for inquiring Champions.

Civic minded individuals make up a small number of citizens in any community. Ruby Hicks Proctor’s sons, Lyman and Frank, are a couple of those. They were out on Wednesday and Thursday at the Hicks Cemetery with weed eaters, nippers, and rakes to keep demarked the resting place of many local old timers, distant relatives of any number of current locals. The cemetery is also known as the Hicks, Hutchison, Proctor Cemetery, according to The General, another community activist, who showed up to help he said, “…after the hard work was done.” Victor Hugo may be his inspiration: “A man is not idle because he is absorbed in thought. There is visible and invisible labor. To contemplate is to toil. To think is to do.” That may beg the question: “What does he think he is doing?”

Sophia Loren responded to the inquiry about how she stays so young and vital at age 87. “Maintain good posture and don’t make those ‘old people’ noises when you get up.” That put several Old Champions apologizing to Sophia regularly as they struggled up from their chairs and sofas. Then, a friend relayed the information given her by a physical therapist who said that it is good to grunt and to make those noises that help you get up. It adds vigor to your actions and helps to clear your throat. This information has changed the tone of at least one Champion residence. Imagine the concept of entertaining disparate points of view over a simple action. Imagine learning that something you thought was right was not as right as you thought it was. It is sort of like politics where “by smooth talk and flattery they deceive the hearts of the naïve.” (Romans 16:18) Also, there is the matter of fighting a culture war rather than a class war. That is where the advisor to the king says, “You don’t have to fight them. Just convince the pitchfork people that the torch people want to take their pitchforks away.”

The Reading Room in the Historic Emporium in Downtown Champion is an excellent spot to enjoy a game of checkers and to learn about current events and local history from the interesting reading material available there. Likely as not, there will be a loitering old timer, some descendant of early settlers, who can spin an intriguing yard long yarn about the old days. Come sit a spell out on the wide veranda where you can meet good neighbors and soak up some of the beauty of Champion—Looking on the Bright Side!

 

Monkey Business

Deward Henson’s granddaughter, Jenny, had her birthday on July 8th. Skyline Students Lily Trujillo and Sumer Parman had the 10th for their big day. The 19th will be the big day for Ethan Alexander and Zee Heffern up in Springfield. Skyliners, Zoe Georges, Ronnie Trammel, Joseph Hastings and Jaci Borders celebrate on the 22nd, 23rd, 24th, and 27th. Reba Bishop, long time Champion friend will enjoy her day on the 28th. Karen Ross used to be our Champion mail carrier, and now she is delivering on another route. Hopefully, she will find some birthday cards in mailboxes on the 29th, her special day. That is also the birthday of Cheyenne McIntosh, Skyline’s talented music teacher.

56th Annual Vanzant Picnic

Friday night of the 56th Annual Vanzant Picnic was a meltdown scorcher, causing some to worry for the health and safety of those Eastern Douglas County Volunteer Firefighters and others out directing traffic and doing the hard work that makes an important event like this come off so well. The effort was still significant on Saturday, but the weather was wonderful, perfect timing for a delightful brief reprieve from the oppressive heat of recent days and of days to come, according to prognosticators. The cloudy sky and temperatures in the 80s were the reward for having endured, and, at the same time, reminders of what our days may be like again someday, surely. On Sunday morning, Jody Blackburn said it perfectly: “Last night marked the close of the 56th annual Vanzant Community Picnic! There was lots of laughter, even a few tears (happy ones). Families and friends reunited was a beautiful sight to behold. There was evidence of community and teamwork last night (for the help in closing and cleaning up) …so from volunteers to visitors…THANK YOU.” Then she goes on to suggest that it would be a great idea to do it all over again next year. Some almost rock-and-roll, lots of great bluegrass, some genuine country and sweet gospel music filled the air and had picnic attendees delighted that this part of the country has so much musical talent. It also has a lot of hard working, good-hearted people who know that it is a genuine blessing to be a part of these many overlapping communities coming together in fun and fellowship all these many years. It was another peaceful, pleasant affair—not a dog fight or a fist fight all night.

Experienced, successful gardeners let an Old Champion know that, most likely, the trouble she is having with her tomatoes this year is because over-watering. The complaint was that it was more than just blossom end rot, it was whole tomato rot. She will cut back on her watering and use that time for study. Already she has learned that it is easier to recover from dehydration than from drowning. Now, to the beans: The plants are healthy and vigorous, but the blooms are sparse and underdeveloped. There are no beans. Those same experts attribute this to the unusual heat. Perhaps,if earnest gardeners can keep the plants healthy until the weather cools down, there will be beans. The black eyed peas are going gang busters, however, and the prettiest corn patch in the neighborhood is at Valery and Ronnie Thompson’s place. Get some good gardening advice or just do some afternoon lollygagging in the cool of the Historic Emporium down on the wide, wild, wooly banks of Auld Fox Creek. Champion—Looking on the Bright Side!