Scenes from the Strawberry Festival

Top 10 Moment

NOTEBOOK

• Shelby Senior Services' free Travel Show, previewing trips for the 2024 season, is set for Thursday, Aug. 10, 6:30 p.m. at Senior Services, 2120 Intelliplex Dr., Suite 101. Call 317-398-0127 to reserve a seat.
• STATE NEWS: From July 2021 to July 2022, Johnson County’s population rose by 1,364, pushing the county’s total population to 165,782. Johnson County once again placed among the state’s top five numerical gainers, placing 5th based on annual change with a 2.5% increase over the one-year period. Hamilton, Hendricks, Allen and Clark counties grew faster, according to data from the U.S. Census Bureau. Whiteland was among the fastest-growing communities in the state in 2022. The town grew by 8.6% to 5,152. (Daily Journal of Johnson County)

This Day in Shelby County History

2018: Triton Central sophomore golfer Jackson Seagrave advanced to regional action, the only competitor from Shelby County to do so.

2013: Linda Warnecke retired as principal of Triton Central Elementary School, where she had started in 1990 as a first-grade teacher. A 1973 graduate of Ball State University, Warnecke had started her career at Waldron Elementary.

2008: Carol Browning, who had passed away in April from cancer, was honored at the Relay for Life event held at Benesse Oncology Center. "She was the strongest and most determined person that I have ever known," her husband, Ron, told The Shelbyville News. "If she set her mind to something, then it was done."

2003: Bill and Mary Johnson opened Old Windmill Bed & Breakfast at 253 W. Bassett Road. The inn was a farmhouse built in the late 1800s by the Bassett family and later known as the Alford homestead.

1998: Waldron's Matt Pavey and Morriston's Randy Davis earned trips to the state track finals.

1993: Shelbyville High School National Honor Society inductees were Matt Blackburn, Jason Brandt, Emily Bray, Kim Gardner, Eric Haehl, Mike Hancock, Beth Harding, John Koch, Scott Kreider, Andrew Michel, Erik Miller, Tracy McNulty, Kenichi Nichimura, Roger Owens, Michelle Pennington, Sara Peters, Heidi Phares, Carrie Richardson, Shelley Robertson, Angela Scott, Misty Starr Smith, Leigh Tindall and Genie Tong.

1988: As the library celebrated its 85th anniversary, director Margaret Hamilton said the original Carnegie structure and 1966 addition were no longer adequate to house the collection. "We are at a point where for every book we order, we have to throw one away," she told the board.

Loper Elementary end-of-year awards included those to students earning all A's all year: Craig Sethman, Erin Rees, Sarah Morin and Laura Rutherford. Kyle Linville and Leslie Lux won All Sports Awards.

1983: Two Shelbyville school track records fell at IHSAA state championship qualifications. Michele Bush gained four seconds on her 800 meters competition, lowering her school mark for the second time. The school's 1,600-meter relay team of Bush, Shelly Caplinger, Ruth Fordham and Robbie Nuthak clipped four seconds off their own school record, as well.

1978: The underdog Golden Bears won the baseball sectional with victories over Connersville and Rushville. Major plays were made by Russ Riggen, Jeff Grimme and Mike Blackburn.

A newspaper photo showed Brian Harding, 8, proudly displaying a box of popcorn that Boys' Club baseball teams would be selling. They were hoping to sell 5,200 boxes at $1.50 per box, with proceeds underwriting the baseball program.

1973: Becky Bishopp was elected president of Tri Kappa sorority. Other officers named were Mrs. Gould, Mrs. Brunner, Mrs. Williams and Mrs. Butler.

The Shelbyville school board accepted the resignations of Melinda Ashby (special education at Triangle School), Ronald Paul (SHS social studies), Larry Hoffman (SHS social studies) Mrs. Land (Coulston) and Harold Hickman (JHS social studies). The board approved the transfer of Marian Nigh from Major to Coulston. The board also approved hiring Marjorie Matney to direct the Charles Major Education Center, Michael Goetz as swim coach, Dale Hummel as wrestling coach and industiral arts teacher, David Young (JHS), Karen Smith (kindergarten), Mollie Swanson (Pearson), Marianne Lockman (Addison) and Douglas Warnecke (Addison).

1968: The Shelbyville school board granted a military leave for George Sheehan, JHS English teacher and Air Force reservist called to active duty with a tactical airlift group. The board approved hiring Homer "Bud" Wertz Jr. (Hendricks), Ronald Cole (SHS math), Anne Juarez (JHS English), Darlene McCaughey (JHS English), Jo Ann Potts (JHS girls guidance), Beverly Goodrich (Pearson), Molly Swanson (Loper) and Joan Duvall (Hendricks). Cole, a former Paul Cross Award winner, would succeed Mrs. Thurston.

1963: Paul Meloy, 68, died of an apparent heart attack while he was at the local Elks Lodge. Meloy owned a photo equipment firm at 214 S. Harrison St. For 35 years, he had been in the theatre business as an owner and operator of the Strand and former Alhambra theatres.

1958: The Shelbyville Rotary Club visited Fuller Farms on N. State Road 9. Paul Keffaber, manager of the farms, led the tour. Club members ate dinner at the Fountaintown Methodist Church following their tour and view of the 100 Golden Guernsey cows on the farm.

1953: A newspaper ad featured the new Terri Lee and Jerri Lee dolls on the 2nd floor of the J.G. DePrez Co., along with sand boxes, which "keep children contented."

City Council approved the employment of Maud Bennett at Esther Roberson to work at the Booker T. Washington recreation center.

1948: Newspaper photos showed early summer photos of the two city parks. "Here a representative group whirls a merry-go-round at the Kennedy Park so fast that the camera almost didn't 'stop' the action, with the boys registering the expected boredom and the girls screaming appropriately," a caption read. Another photo showed Jerry Worrell getting a drink from the pump with the assistance of his aunt, Mary Jo Surber. Also, Louise Cramer was shown going down the slide at Kennedy Park.

1943: Local Boy Scouts collected and bundled old automobile license plates for repurposing for the 1944 plates. Residents were asked to turn in old plates at filling stations or at the city garage on Jackson St.

1938: New officers were installed at the Shelbyville Eagles Lodge, including Earl Neu, Robert Reed, Ed Miles, R.E. Higgins, William Schoolcraft, Roy Bird and Lowell Fix. Gus Bansbach, retiring president, was in charge of the installation.

1933: Shelby County supplied its full quota of 39 young men for the Civilian Conservation Corps, known as the "reforestation army." The men were headed to Fort Knox, Ken. for conditioning drills.

1928: The Indiana Bell Telephone Company bought the property owned by Samuel Gardner and Harry Query, at Broadway and Tompkins. The property would be used for an office and exchange building to be constructed. The brick residence on the site was expected to be demolished. That two-story home had been the residence of John Shelk for more than 50 years.

1923: "Approximately 400 people from all parts of the county came together in neighborly fashion on the lawn of the country home of Mr. and Mrs. W.V. Fox Sunday afternoon to take part in the exercises of unveiling the marker which marks the spot of the first white settler of Shelby County," The Republican reported. R.W. Harrison, president of the Shelby County Historical Society, presided over the program recognizing the James Wilson settlement. Wilson had arrived here via the Whetzel trail.

OBITUARIES

Cheryl J. Howell, 78, left this world for her heavenly home on Tuesday, May 30, 2023 in Pacific Mo., after a short and sudden illness. She was born February 3, 1945 in Shelbyville, Ind., to Donald R. Miller and Francis (Tucker) Miller Leffler.

In her early years she worked in farming with her father and loved to ride horses. Cheryl graduated from Triton Central High School in 1963. She married her former husband George Howell Sr. in 1966 and became a military wife. She attended Baptist Bible College in Springfield, Mo. as well as Asbury College in Wilmore, Ky. Cheryl earned a degree in Occupational Therapy from IUPUI in 1993 and a diploma in Pastoral Studies in 1996 from World Harvest Bible College in Columbus, Ohio. She worked as an assistant teacher and bus driver for Triton Central School district. She also worked as a cashier and store manager, and as an occupational therapy assistant. Cheryl moved to Pacific, Mo. in 2002 before retiring in 2005. During retirement she spent most of her time tending to her flowers and garden, which quickly became her favorite hobby outside of spending time with her grandchildren.

Cheryl is survived by her mother, Francis (Tucker) Miller Leffler; sons, George Grimm-Howell (wife, Elizabeth), Donald Howell (husband, Tony Loy-Howell); grandchildren, George Owen Grimm-Howell, Meredith Grimm-Howell; sisters, Donnareita Haley, Gwendolyn Kirk, Marjorie Dailey (husband, Bruce), Melody Bedwell (husband, Kenneth); and sister-in-law, Lourdes Lorenz-Miller. She is preceded in death by her father and sister Mary Frances “Franny” Lorenz-Miller.

Visitation will be from 10 a.m. to noon, Saturday, June 3, 2023, at Murphy-Parks Funeral Services, 703 S. Harrison Street, Shelbyville, Ind. 46176. Funeral Services will follow at noon at the funeral home with Rev. Daniel Jepsen officiating. Funeral Directors Greg Parks, Sheila Parks, Stuart Parks, and Darin Schutt are honored to serve Cheryl’s family. Online condolences may be shared at www.murphyparks.com.