I moved to Bluffton when I was 11 years old with my family. Dad had bought what used to be Gratz's Shoe Store. We lived in Swanton, Ohio, prior to that. [As an aside, underneath one of the windows in what used to be Bazzy's Shoes is one of those old machines that would X-ray your foot.]
Christine Purves began climbing trees as a child growing up in Berne, Ind., first in her grandfather's back yard where a huge elm "branched out with perfect places to sit and view the area surrounding it."
Later, when her parents bought their first home, a big mulberry tree proved to be the perfect place for Purves to escape to sit and read, "all the while being very careful not to go back into the house full of mulberry stains."
It will be a Bluffton parade-watcher's dream on Saturday.
This year's Blaze of Lights parade on Saturday, Nov. 28, will be one of the largest ever to travel Bluffton's Main Street, according to Junior Weihrauch, parade chairperson.
Over 60 are registered. That translates to a 40+ minute parade.
Say hello to Sam McFarland as he shares his recent art work with Icon viewers. Sam, the son of Tracy and John McFarland, is a pre-kindergarten student at the Bluffton Child Development Center.
The staff, agents and board of the Mennonite Mutual Aid Society celebrated its holiday dinner on Nov. 11. Standing from left, Bethany Theis, Mark Lichtle, Keith Brauen, Joe Saltzman, Richard Jordan, Del Gratz and Jane Weaver.
Seated from left, Dawn King, Karen Warnecke, Larry Crates, Lawrence Matthews, Fred Steiner and Paul King. Absent: Jon Diller.
