Hilltopper Tour of the Amana Colonies

On October 22-24th I had an enjoyable trip with the Hilltoppers group from First Baptist Church in Affton. Their pastor Dana Burris and his wife Sandy put together two trips a year. This trip was to West Branch, Amana, and Gladbrook, Iowa.

We had good food, good fun and fellowship, and the sun even came out for the last day.

Some of the places and sites we visited were:

Bethany Lutheran Church in West Branch for a delicious meal of Swedish meatballs and to enjoy their beautiful stain glass windows.

We then went around the block to have a guided tour of the Herbert Hoover museum. While he is most often remembered and blamed for the Great Depression we learned that he had many great accomplishments before, during and after his presidency. One of the passengers commented that he should have been awarded a Nobel Peace Prize for all of his humanitarian efforts.

That evening we enjoyed the one man presentation "Grant Wood: Prairie Rebel" at the Old Creamery Theatre Company. Grant Wood is most noted for his painting "American Gothic."

The next day we traveled to Gladbrook, Iowa to see the matchstick creations of local artist Patrick Acton and have lunch at the community center.

That afternoon we returned to the Amana colonies to visit the shops, have supper at the Ox Yoke Inn and attend the performance of "From the Homefront" at the Iowa Theatre Artists Company.

The next day we enjoyed the sun while we shopped at the Tanger Outlet Mall in the morning and then visited a few more Amana sites before we returned to the St. Louis area.

It was an excellent trip with gracious hosts. You can look me up on Facebook to see all the photos and additional comments. You may also want to look up: www.matchstickmarvels.com.

Springfield Trips

My travels last week took me back to Springfield, Illinois where I was born and later lived for 10 years with my wife and four kids. Since most of my trips were starting in Springfield, I stayed with longtime friends Jim and Linda Hill. I enjoyed having the chance to get caught up with them and to be back in familiar surroundings. Lutheran High School allowed me to park the bus there each evening. The week of beautiful weather made the short morning and evening strolls enjoyable walks. It was nice to reminisce about my kids' growing up years. Our oldest three children attended Lutheran High and took part in choirs, bands, track, dramas and many other activities.

During the week I was one of the shuttle drivers for Memorial Health System's "Great Patient Experience Retreat;" visited area markets with one of the UIS field trips; took students from the Illinois School for the Deaf home to drop off points between Litchfield and Marion, Illinois; and ended the week taking baseball fans from the Oak Terrace Resort in Pana to the Cards vs. Cubs game at Busch Stadium.

On the UIS trip we were guided by Dr. Deanna Glosser on a tour of the Sysco Plant in Lincoln; Veenstra's Vegetables and Heck's Harvest near Rochester; and the Farmer's Market at the State Fairgrounds in Springfield. The purpose of the tour was to show how local organic vegetables and fruit are being promoted through Sysco and Community Supported Agriculture (CSA's) Dr. Glosser related that one of the success stories was shared by a mother whose child had been on a potato dig during a school field trip. The next day she wanted to go to the farmer's market to buy some of the potatoes that she had helped to harvest. Her mother said it was the first time her daughter had ever eaten a potato in other than French fry form.

At the Farmer's Market I ran into one of the regular bus escorts for the Illinois School for the Deaf. Cheryl Brown and her daughter Lillie were helping a friend sell different varieties of Kettle Corn. I couldn't resist buying a bag of cheddar kettle corn. It took a lot of willpower to get half the bag home to my family. Just a few steps further down I met a friend, Terri Cameron, from our former congregation, Trinity Lutheran. She was helping an organization sell gourd ghosts. (They also double as bird houses during the off season.) I couldn't help buying such a useful item. With all of my purchases throughout the week I still returned home wealthier in experiences.

I was glad that I didn't have to drive the bus through this walking tunnel on the State Fairgrounds. It would not have been a good thing to "see the light at the end of the tunnel."

Two of the youngest passengers on the bus prove that it is never too late to get an early start on your education.

Boyd Healthcare Trip to the Ballpark

I had an enjoyable trip to the Cards vs. Brewers game on September 2nd. My passengers were the employees and friends of Boyd Hospital in Carrollton, Illinois. It was a beautiful night for their annual outing. The Cardinals won 10-3!

Our seats were in Big Mac Land so we each received a nice BML carry bag with a Big Mac coupon and a BML Cardinals license plate frame.

It was nice to be included at the game as well as receiving a generous tip.

The walking tour down Market Street was also enjoyable. (I parked the bus at Union Station.) I included those photos as well so my passengers will have the full bus driver's view.

The little red sign in the corner of the window says, "Go Cards!"

Wiles Group Float Trip

The beautiful bluffs of Missouri provided the perfect backdrop for the Wiles Group float trip. Each year these Granite City neighbors get together for a family float trip on the first Saturday in August.

Last year, due to rising fuel costs, they decided to take a Cavallo Tour bus rather than drive their personal vehicles. It was my good fortune to be assigned to the trip. What an honor to be requested as their driver again this year! They even allowed me to bring my wife Gwen along. Their generous tip more than covered the cost of our canoe rental. It is hard to believe I get paid for this job!

The first photos show the short bus and wagon ride from the rental office to the launching point.

As we loaded the canoes, kayaks and rafts we gathered under the bridge since a light rain had begun.

Then we were off down the river. Although the rain turned into a downpour for the first couple miles of the trip it didn't dampen any spirits.

Water cannons that were brought along to soak fellow boaters were also used to siphon water out of the canoes.

Even the bus driver's duct tape failed to stop the falling rain. But as the sun peeked in and out we had a chance to beach the boats, have lunch, and wade and swim. For the last 2/3 of the 10 mile float we had beautiful weather.

Thank you to Lisa Reeves for coordinating the trip. I hope to have the opportunity to join the group again next year. I have my calendar marked!