The Greentown Grapevine – 1998-07, 05:07

              or GREEFtNrRomNE E
B%, sEs
The Greentown
Volume 5, Issue 7 " a paper for the people" July 1998
book had been published. Souvenir
June 1998 promised to bring a " once in items had been ordered and many had
a lifetime" event as plans unfolded for been sold. The early events of
the 150th birthday of the town of reenactment of the recording of the
Greentown. Plans had been underway original plat ( April 14), Toll Road Day
for three years. Parts of the ( May30), performanceof" Greentown
Sesquicentennial had already Once Upon a Time" ( June 5 & 6), and
materialized. The 160 page history the dedication of a marker noting the
presence of the Miami Indians in the
area ( June 10) had taken place and all discouraged most visitors from coming
were considered great successes. to either the Festival or the
Many more events and exhibits were Sesquicentennial. Rains on one or more
planned to coincide with the 29th of the Glass Festival days had been
Annual Greentown Glass Festival, June more common than not, so all were
1 1 - 13, with two events scheduled for checking weather reports and hoping for
June 14. Rain came on June 11 and goodnews for Friday and Saturday. An Uninvited Guest Came
Then the evening of the 1 lth, as a
crowd was gathering in the Eastern
Auxiliary Gym for the announcement of
the Sesquicentennial Senior Queen and
the selection of the Glass Festival
Queen, earlier reports of " tornado
watch" turned to " tornado warning."
People were directed to a hallway and
received periodic reports of the
formation and direction of a tomado.
The words, " It is headed toward
Greentown" brought back memories to
those who had experienced the 1965
Palm Sunday tornado.
As was learned later, the most
concentrated damage was to Taylor
High School and to four housing areas
in Greentown, M o l l , Holiday and
Avalon Drive neighborhood, Willow
Glen and The Meadows. Fortunately,
there were no serious injuries.
Some coincidences were immediately
noted: The tomado followed closely the
path of the 1965 one, beginning a little
more to the south and leaving town on a
more northerly route than before, but
some of the same homes were damaged
in both 1965 and 1998. Both storms
fell on the 11th day. As the 1965
tornado is usually referred to as the
" Pahq Sunday tornado", this one will
undoubtedly be remembered as the
" Sesquicentennial tomado." Let's hope
and pray that it is a " once in a lifetime"
for us all.
The Spinofi Was Far- reaching and Ongoing
The Sesquicentennial Committee set
out to remind people, young and old, of
their unique heritage in this spot on
earth and to look forward to the future.
The various elements ofthe celebration
promised to provide many memories, as
the Centennial dd for those who were in
Greentown in 1948. Who could have
guessed that forces of nature would
Participation was great!
When the core committee of four first
began meeting and planning an event
for Greentown to commemorate the
150th anniversary of the platting of the
town, several dreams were offered.
One was a high percentage of
participation in the activities. That was
an elusive goal for a time. Even though
the call was put out for volunteers, only
a few responded. But as the plans
unfolded and the time drew nearer to the
June celebration, it was evident that
this was going to be truly a community
event, the like of which had not been
seen for some time in Greentown.
The schools' participation was
heartening. Several teachers
in- the sesquicentennial theme
into their lessons. Renda Hurst created
a wonderful web page about the
sesquicentennial. ,
leave much more to remember?
A tornado caused Greentown to make
national news, a path always more open
when tragedy comes than when simple
hard work is rewardc& Even though
much cleanup has been done, it will be
awhile before homes are rebuilt. And
even longer for trees to reestablish
themselves or be replaced.
Individuals came forward with
photographs, newspapers, etc.
Organizations made the
sesquicentennial the theme of the year
or arranged to have a meeting devoted to
the topic. School and class reunions
reminded former students of the
significance of this year. Floats were
made for the Glass Festival parade with
a sesquicentennial theme.
Multi- townshir, involvement.
Part of the success must be credited to
the early decision of the Executive
committee to include all three
townships in the school district as well
as the corporate limits of the Town in all
aspects of the event. It is a given that
the school is a utuf4lng force in the area.
Living within the town limits is not
necessary for people to say they are
fiom " GreentoWn." This inclusion was
a welcoming move to those in the
townships. It also opened the door for
more exhibits and more volunteers.
There are many mixed emotions
connected to the weekend of June 1 1-
14. Most of the planned events of the
Sesquicentennial, Glass Festival and
Antique Show went on and provided
enjoyment for those attending. The
beard contest, and the parade brought
smiles to many faces. There was also
the shock at the devastation of the
storm, the overwhelming appreciation
for the great numbers of people,
professionals and volunteers, who
helped, and the aggravation at the
sightseers. There were many hugs and
tears. On the whole, the tornado has
given eastern Howard County residents
a shared experience which will be a part
of them for the rest oftheir lives.
. .