Forum Flashbacks: June 11-June 17

FORUM FILE PHOTO
Tony Mollus (back) and his son Jake, from St. Joseph, take part in the KNIM Big Fish Contest this weekend at Nodaway Lake. Contestants from all over the area fished all night in an attempt to earn one of the prizes. Mollus said he participates in 12 to 15 different tournaments each year.

25 years ago

• After hearing a report by the Over/Under Committee appointed by the Maryville City Council to study underage drinking, council members voted 4-1 last night to limit admittance to Maryville’s taverns to those 19 years of age or older.
  The council directed City Attorney David Baird to draft an ordinance for consideration by the council at a future meeting. The council hopes to have the ordinance in place when school starts in late August.
  The motion was made by Councilwoman Bridget Brown and followed a motion by Councilman Robert Huffman to set the minimum age to 21.
  Huffman’s motion died for lack of a second.
  “I just can’t see why we are telling these kids that you can drink at 19 years of age when the state of Missouri says it’s 21,” Huffman said. “You and I both know why we are going into a bar — to have a beer. It is cut and dry, pure and simple.”
  Brown, who previously supported an ordinance that would have made the minimum age 21, said the recommendation of the Over/Under Committee helped her to change her mind.
• Northwest Missouri Talk
  Excerpts from the book, “How to Talk Northwest Missouri Talk: A Sampling of Rural Language in Northwest Missouri,” benefiting the Nodaway County Sesquicentennial Celebration.
  Idiom
  1. “She got a lemon in the garden of love where they said only peaches grew.”
  2. “There may be snow on the roof, but the fire is still in the furnace.”
  3. “His elevator goes to the top floor, but the door won’t open.”
  Translation
  1. “She chose a poor husband.”
  2. “Old people still have a passion for life.”
  3. “He does not express his ideas.”

15 years ago

• A massive search is under way at Mozingo Lake for a 17-year-old boater feared drowned.
  Authorities say Chris Dreier, 17, was one of four people on a boat that capsized on the lake due to inclement weather and the wake of another boat.
  According to Maryville Public Safety Director Keith Wood, two people stayed with the boat after it capsized and were later rescued. Dreier and his 16-year-old cousin swam for shore.
  “They were partway to the shore and the 17-year-old told his cousin, ‘I don’t think I can make it anymore,’ and he went under, and that’s the last they saw of him.”

5 years ago

• The sound of smooth jazz and the smell of sizzling hotdogs and hamburgers filled West Fourth Street on Monday evening beneath the gateway arch of the newly completed streetscape linking downtown Maryville with the main entrance to Northwest Missouri State University.
  At least 400 people, many of them families with young children, turned out for a “block party” celebrating completion of the $1.9 million project, which took three years to plan and more than a year to finish.
  As heavy clouds and the threat of rain gave way to bits of scattered blue sky, university President John Jasinski and City Manager Greg McDanel both addressed the large crowd.
• In just a few short months, Orval Heywood will turn 95 years old, but that hasn’t stopped him from being involved with golf at Mozingo Lake Recreation Park. Friday, the Maryville Host Lions held their annual golf tournament, which also honors Heywood’s contributions to the community.
  Heywood was not able to compete in this year’s event, but he was still able to hang around and reminisce with old friends. While sitting in the upstairs lounge at the golf course, Heywood talked about his fondest memories of golfing at Mozingo Lake, including playing nine-holes in a couple feet of snow.
  “It’s my form of recreation and it’s my only form of recreation I can get,” Heywood said. “When I got started with it (golf), I could barely stay away from it. I would play 18 or even 27 holes, it would just depend on how I was feeling.”
  Last year, Heywood made a $60,000 contribution to the Watson 9 Golf Course, which should be ready to open later this summer depending on the weather.