July 1, 2009
Miss Bell goes to Washington... Our own Tiffanie Bell's journey began when she created a beautiful batik. This rare art media is a very old process using muslin cloth and wax. She entered her creation in Rep. Aaron Schock's District Art Show in Peoria. She not only placed in the top 10 but took home "Best of Show".
The Washington DC Congressional Art Show seemed totally out of reach for Tiffanie when she received her invitation to a reception where all the winning art creations from each congressional district was to be announced and displayed. To be honored in our Nation's Capital is a once in a lifetime opportunity and thanks to a close family friend Tiffanie flew to Washington to be welcomed by Rep. Schock himself, to see her winning art creation introduced/displayed at the Congressional Art Show, seeing her creating placed on display in the Cannon Tunnel which links Capital Hill and The House, to stand on the steps of our Nation's Capital with our local representative in Washington, and did I mention sitting in Rep. Schock's personal chair at his desk. :-) Congratulations Tiff, you are a great young lady and your talent is now obvious to all of America.
July 2, 2009
Great ramps... The new Park District ramps are going to be fabulous when they are completed. Recent work has really allowed them to take shape. Now if the river will just help out by getting back to more normal levels the new ramps can be completed.
July 3, 2009
Illinois Celebrates Mr. Lincoln's 200th Birthday...In a year long celebration of our nations most loved President, one of the highlights of this historic year is marked in a two day massive Springfield event called "The Capital City Bicentennial Celebration". July 3rd & 4th will combine three of Springfield's most popular summer events into this huge holiday party. The Bicentennial event combines three successful Springfield summer events, Taste of Downtown, Springfield Jaycees Capital City Celebration, and the Secretary of State’s Ice Cream Social as the anchors for this two-day festival encompassing several blocks of downtown. Partners, including the Lincoln Home National Historic Site, the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency, the Illinois State Museum, Lincoln Land Community College, the Old State Capitol and the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum have joined forces with these three events to combine traditional Springfield 21st century celebrations with authentic period entertainment and activities representative of a Lincoln-era festival.
The Bicentennial Celebration opens Friday, July 3rd at 5:00pm with a procession from Lincoln Home National Historic Site to the Old State Capitol lead by Abraham and Mary Lincoln in a horse-drawn carriage and serenaded by Lincoln’s Own - 10th Illinois Volunteer Regiment Band at the Old State Capitol. Friday evening continues with a variety of musical performances on the Americana Music Stage, located in the “Taste of Downtown” area on Fifth Street near Washington and the Bicentennial Stage on 6th and Adams. The Springfield Jaycees will also offer a great line up of entertainment throughout the evening at the 5th & Capital Bicentennial Stage. The other stages will feature period musical performances during the early evening. The capstone for the evening will be a patriotic laser show at the Old State Capitol.
For more information on this huge family celebration please use the following links: Downtown Springfield , Taste of Springfield , The Capital City Bicentennial Celebration , and Event Schedule .
July 4, 2009
Havana's new hotel opens...Lindsay and Brock Richardson has opened The Havana Pet Cabana at 310 W. Dearborn. Havana naturally was native Brock's choice location to start their business. Lindsay had lived in Havana for two years with her husband and two Standard Poodles Isabel Rose (4) and Jasmine Mariah (2). She worked at the Prairie Ridge Veterinary Clinic as the dog groomer and Animal care specialist during that time which lead her to where she is today!
This is a very unique concept which I am sure will really catch on. Yes, there are even private suites for their guests! Each suite has an elevated bed or two, toy bin, personal 24 hour maid service, room service, and of course their own human to play with them anytime they want! During the day visitors can go into the "lounge room" and watch animal planet or the movie of the day on a big comfortable sofa while getting their "popcorn" treat!
To learn more about The Havana Cabana click the following link: http://www.havanapetcabana.com/index.htm
July 5, 2009
Sea to shining sea...From Havana, Central Illinois, and yes, all across America from sea to shining sea, at one point over the weekend the skies lit up as part of the celebration marking the anniversary of America's Independence. There is nothing I can say that has not been said about the 4th of July so I will just wish all of you a happy and safe 4th and share with you one of the great treasures of our American history, please click the following link: America . Also, I would like to again share the story of Harry Lintz with you from July 4, 2008, The One Armed Carpenter.
July 6, 2009
Emiquon...gets more beautiful and alive each time you drive by. So very much more than just water on top of all that farm ground which we have known all our lives. Emiquon is a turn of the clock backward, way back to the times when it was once was the jewel of the Illinois River, nurturing diverse and abundant communities of native plants and animals in the complex system of backwater wetlands and lakes of the early 1900's. Hundreds of nearby archeological sites, including Native American villages and ceremonial and burial mounds, are a quiet testimony to the abundant natural resources that supported more than 500 generations of civilization in this area. As space here permits we will take a closer look at this developing natural wonder as it is the largest floodplain restoration project in the country outside the Florida Everglades, meanwhile learn more about Emiquon by clicking this link: The Nature Conservancy .
July 7, 2009
The Redneck Fishing Tournament... takes place once
again this year in Bath. The festivities all begin on Friday with the first
fishing heat beginning at 1:00 pm and from then on through Saturday around
midnight all bets are off and it's a fun redneck weekend. The shot above is
from last year's tournament and the world famous "Team Depends". For a full
schedule of this weekends event
CLICK HERE
and scroll down the page. AND to see the rest of the photos from last year
just
CLICK
THIS LINK .
July 8, 2009
July 9, 2009
The Havana Park District
This community is lucky to have such a committed
and motivated Park District and I feel that a greater public awareness of
their efforts, goals, and accomplishments is long over-due
July 10, 2009
July
11, 2009
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July 14, 2009
July 15, 2009
July 16, 2009
July 17, 2009
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July 21, 2009
July 22, 2009
Chestnut Health Systems in partnership with a group of Mason County residents is implementing a 9-month campaign starting this week about how alcohol affects teens’ developing brains. The campaign was created specifically for Mason County, by Mason County residents, and as of right now will only be implemented in Mason County. The residents working with Chestnut Health Systems want others in Mason County to know that alcohol affects areas of developing brains that are responsible for learning and decision-making, and underage drinking increases the risk of becoming an alcoholic. Adults and teenagers from each area of the county, from Manito and Havana to Mason City, had a voice in the creation of this campaign.
The first objective of the campaign in July and August is simply to inform the public that human brains are not fully developed before age 21, and alcohol can have a negative affect on the development. About every 2 or 3 months, additional information about alcohol and brain development will be released through the campaign. For more information on this Mason County campaign, you can contact Jason Blanchette from Chestnut Health Systems at 309-451-7794, toll free at 877-440-5585, or jblanchette@chestnut.org You can learn more about teenage brain development at http://www.drugfree.org/teenbrain
July 23, 2009
Michelle Trimpe was selected Miss Mason County for 2009 on Tuesday evening at the Mason County Fair. Also shown in Tim Oest's photo at right is Queen candidate Lacey Harp of Mason City and 2008 Fair Queen, Donieka Burris of Mason City. Michelle is the daughter of Rick and Tammy Trimpe of Havana, and Lacey is the daughter of Rob and Kelley Harp of Mason City.
July 24, 2009
Tommy Hackman was selected as the first recipient of a combined effort to raise money to aid Mason County cancer victims. The 7th year of this event is Saturday, July 25th and is now known as the Tommy Hackman Lawnmower Benefit Run. Each year a different recipient has been chosen as the benefactor in this effort to help the individuals or their families cope with the high cost of fighting this horrible disease. This year Courtney Thoms of Mason City will benefit from this effort on Saturday to help in her fight against cancer. Registration begins at 10 am and the group will leave Riverfront Park at 11 am. For more information contact Carrie Hackman at 309-543-4190.
July 25, 2009
ISU Ski Team traveled to Havana to do a show on Friday, July 24th to officially kick off the weekend festivities. As they do their warm-up runs above earlier in the afternoon you knew it was going to be a great show. Saturday the thunder boats take over the river for two days of their very popular racing. Hit the RiverFront, you will enjoy it.
July 26, 2009
The Havana Boat Races are taking place as I type this and if you are near Havana you can certainly hear them. You have plenty of time to make it to RiverFront Park today and early evening to catch the action from 3:00 till 7:00. The racing continues tomorrow on Sunday at Noon till 4.
July 27, 2009
The 2009 Havana Boat Races have wrapped up for the second year running. Once again Mark Friedrich and everyone involved has done a great job bringing an event like this to town. From my point of view, the Sunday afternoon crowd was a good one on just a fantastic day. The racing was just as it should be: fast, loud, and exciting. I hope to see these guys back again next year.
July 28, 2009
Downtown Main Street is now much more accessible for citizens with disabilities. Both the North and South sides of the streets will have ramps like this one on the South side of Main Street just south or Orange.
July 29, 2009
Rain drops on a patch of clover caught my eye as showers were in the area on Tuesday. The summer has seen plenty of rain this year, and a short drive in any direction provides some great looking crops of just about every type. The wild flowers along the highways and country roads are very beautiful, it's a great time to see mother nature at her best.
July 30, 2009
Beautiful weather to be a bird sailing over Havana, Illinois...so why not?
July 31, 2009
Files are growing. Since this feature began in June it has really been popular with all the visitors. Thanks to all of you who have written, emailed, and called urging me to continue this daily feature. I am sure that most of you realize that some days do present a challenge especially in a small town like Havana, but the answer is definitely YES, it will continue for a long time. I am keep them posted as monthly archives from this Shot of the Day Main Page . I have also created a page where you can view the original large photographs. This page does not include the text but they say a picture is worth a thousand words anyway. Click the link to view those large images http://tedconnolly.smugmug.com/gallery/8962609_7QNGY . I will add photos to this page regularly.
