Forum Flashbacks: May 13-19

FORUM FILE PHOTO
15 years ago – Mentos: the volcano maker – The Eugene Field Elementary School SACC Science Club, sponsored by fourth-grade instructor Shelly Green, received a lesson in physics Thursday afternoon as they experimented with two-liter bottles of soda pop and Mentos candy. The after school participants have been studying chemical reactions with Green. It was thought that the ensuing eruption was the result of the reaction between the carbon dioxide in the carbonated drinks and the gum ingredient in the candy.

25 years ago

• After deeming the ordinance an emergency ordinance, which means, both readings can be held in a single session, the Maryville City Council voted 3-1 last night to make it a municipal offense to swing a golf club or to hit golf balls in city parks.
  The ordinance was drafted under the recommendation of (the) Maryville Park and Recreation Department.
  In April, the Park Board recommended the ordinance be drafted due to the dangerous aspect of golf balls being shot out when crews are mowing.
  City Manager David Angerer said there are two local driving ranges which charge nominal fees for the hitting of golf balls.
  Mayor Pro Tem Bridget Brown, who presided over the meeting, voted against the ordinance.
• Broken windows, shattered windshields, flooded basements, dented siding and dimpled cars were all a part of the aftermath of a relatively short thunderstorm which pounded the city yesterday afternoon.
  Glass repair shops and insurance agents had almost no time between calls as the phones rang nearly continuously throughout the afternoon with insurance claims and requests for repairs.
  “You just hang up the phone and it rings again,” Mark Thomsen, Jackson Insurance agent, said. “There’s a ton of auto and home claims.”
  Dave Weigel, Shelter Insurance agent said the claims of damage to vehicles, siding, roofs and windows were staggering. He added he had been in the insurance business for 15 years and had never seen that amount of damage for the area before.
  Mick Henry, Nodaway County Glass and Mirror owner, said the amount of work he will do in the next few days is comparable only to a storm in July of 1994.

15 years ago

• Have immigration raids on Julio’s Restaurants in St. Joseph and Cedar Falls, Iowa, made an impact on the business in Maryville?
  Nobody’s saying anything yet, but the restaurant on South Main Street is closed. A sign posted on the door Monday afternoon stated that the restaurant was closed but the bar open, though the door was locked.
  John Jarrett, a part owner in the restaurant and CEO of Breadeaux Pizza, based in St. Joseph, said through a representative Monday afternoon that he’s not yet ready to discuss the store’s status. Jarrett’s representative said, though, that he intends to have enough information soon.
  Immigration officials arrested nine employees at the St. Joseph Julio’s last week, and the Iowa restaurant was raided on April 27. Twelve people were arrested in that incident, according to information from KQTV in St. Joseph.
  News reports indicate co-owner Julio Zapala-Urbina has been charged with hiring and harboring illegal immigrants.

5 years ago

• Maryville has another jewel for its crown.
  The Watson 9, a nine-hole, hybrid golf course primarily designed to enhance the learning experience for young and beginning golfers, was officially unveiled Saturday at Mozingo Lake Recreation Park.
  Legendary professional golfer and Watson 9 course designer Tom Watson was on hand throughout the day to participate in the ceremonies, which included the unveiling of a statue in his likeness near the tee box of the first hole and the first official round of golf played on the instructional course.
  For at least a couple of aspiring young golfers, it will be a day they will never forget.
  Alayna Pargas, 8-year-old daughter of Greg and Janis Pargas, and Connor Blackford, 10-year-old son of Nate and Andrea Blackford, were chosen to play along with Watson, and former University of Missouri standout Ryan Zech, who has family ties to Maryville.
• The weather may not feel much like it, but the summer swimming season is almost here at the Maryville Aquatic Center pool, which was partially filled Monday with about a quarter-million gallons of water piped from the city’s main storage tower located on the other side of town at the terminus of West Edwards Street.
  Filling the 450,000-gallon swimming pool is an annual rite, but it was done a little differently this year. Since the interior of the water tower is to be painted this summer and has to be emptied anyway, Public Works crewmembers simply dumped as much of the tower’s contents as possible into the pool using a conveniently located fire plug and a 6-inch fire hose.
  Recreation Coordinator Shelly Hersh, who runs the pool for Maryville Parks & Recreation, said the process lasted more than four hours, which compares to the two and a half days it usually takes to fill the entire pool using a two-inch feeder line.