Champion News

Skyline School Guitar Class
Eighth grade Skyline students Braxton Mayberry, Cryslynn Johnson, Caleb Harden, Joseph Hastings, Jaycee Hall, Juniper Wiley, and Jacob Brixey stand
beside their teacher, Cheyenne McIntosh, celebrating the arrival of a new guitar. It is a good Gibson, donated by Bob Berry, and shown here embraced by
Juniper Wiley. Cheyenne says she is proud of the progress of her students. Contact her if you have guitars or string sets to share. Music training leads to
success in all academic studies and helps the community keep its happy foot patting.

Bingo! Skyline School had a bingo game Saturday night, the 16th. Look for reports of that fun next week. Our neighbors to the south celebrate the 16th of September as “El Grito,” commemorating Mexico’s independence in 1810, from centuries of Spain’s colonial rule. Terri Ryan, retired Skyline School kindergarten teacher, and her beautiful little granddaughter, Selena, enjoyed the Hispanic Carnival in Kansas City. Kansas City’s Patrick Mahomes celebrated his 28th birthday down in Florida with a victory over the Jacksonville Jaguars on the 17th. The 18th is the birthday of Champion Donald Krider up in Peoria. His younger brother, Harley, just attended his 60th high school reunion in Ava. He and Barbara, also of Peoria, are always welcome visitors. Barbara is making good progress, getting to know her new knee. We remember Louise Hutcheson on her birthday on September 21st. She passed away in 2018. She had worked at Emerson and had been a cook at the Skyline School and was always very active in the Skyline VFD Auxiliary. She liked fishing, cooking, and gospel singing. Her favorite song was “What a Day That Will Be.”

Lee’s Bees’ Honey just won the “Best Tasting” award in Lee Richardson’s bee group, though Lee said there was one he liked even better. Lee and Edie of L and E Organic Farm were back in Champion visiting on Friday. They came with treats—honey, Edie’s pain relieving salve and a Super-Power tonic. Good conversation over a lovely lunch passed a couple of pleasant hours. They are a hardworking couple doing good in many ways. They are active with the Wright County Extension. Edie is a gifted herbalist and enjoys teaching classes in the Master Gardener program. In addition to being a beekeeper, Lee is a luthier. He was pleased to learn about Cheyenne McIntosh’s guitar classes at the Skyline School. He says he has a little Ovation to share and will be pleased to share his repair skills.

Tim Tamburino of the Midwest Bluegrass Directory tells us that the Laura Ingalls Wilder Fiddle Off is now a National Certified contest with The Nation Oldtime Fiddlers Contest and Festival in Weiser, ID. Tim keeps track of all the bluegrass happenings in this part of the country. If you have a jam, a festival, or a show to list, call him at (573)368-8365. We have seen him and Sarah at the Vanzant Jam in the past and last year at the Pioneer Heritage Festival of the Ozarks. We will hope to see them there again this year. That splendid event is coming up on the 29th and 30th of this month (next Friday and Saturday!) at the Fox Trotters Showgrounds. Hopefully, Brian Thompson will be there again with his pedal scroll saw writing our names in wooden letters. Those heritage skills demonstrations and exhibits inform us of our past and may well serve us in the future. Costume and baked goods contests, bingo, food, and family fun along with live bands, open jam sessions, Friday night square dancing and youth talent shows—all this happening just a mile north of Ava from 10 am to 6 pm both days. See you there!

Particularly as we age, there are plenty of things about which we can complain. One of them recently has been the excruciatingly slow BrightSpeed internet, which some are just calling B.S. On the bright side, however, those contractors working for White River Connect, powered by White River Valley Electric Cooperative, are out stringing cable on the poles and one of these days Champions can connect easily with family and friends all over the place. Perhaps that will happen as early as in the spring. When something good happens, we rejoice. We are grateful for that big infrastructure bill.

We can say goodbye to summer on the 23rd. On the 29th, we will be singing “Shine on Harvest Moon.” Moderating weather, thank goodness, helps to make more accessible and more enjoyable the many harvest festivals and heritage festivals that occur this time of the year. Pantries fill up as gardens are winding down. Squirrels go up and down walnut trees stowing their own winter’s food supply. We are never short of gratitude in Champion—Looking on the Bright Side!