Waterville Celebrates Fourth With Wacky Wheels, Fireworks
BY KAREN BERGER — MIRROR REPORTER
“We love parades,” smiled Becky Bethel, as she prepared to toss candy towards the few children who were not riding in the third annual Wacky Wheels Parade.
Becky and her husband Matt were following their sons Ben, 4, and Luke, 2, who were on their Big Wheels, bringing up the rear of the procession.
On bikes, scooters, wagons, tractors and wagons were streamers, flags, ribbons and signs – anything red, white and blue.
Children in the Mill Creek Farms subdivision were invited to participate in the July 4 morning parade by organizer Wendy Serafin.
“When I was growing up in Wisconsin, my parents owned a grocery store and always put on a bike and buggy parade,” she explained. “When we moved here, I was surprised there wasn’t a parade on July Fourth.”
So she organized one.
Her husband Kris placed speakers blaring patriotic music on the back of his decorated pickup truck and followed neighbor David Miethaner, dressed as Uncle Sam, through the neighborhood.
Nearly 100 children followed, streamers and flags flowing in the morning breeze.
Joseph Serafin proudly displayed his Wisconsin heritage with a cheesehead hat, along with a “Go Packers” sign on his tractor.
Mike Turney and his 10-year-old son Eric drove a 1969 Plymouth GTX, one of the few vehicles in the parade.
Jesse Podiak decided to ride his scooter so he could be near the front of the parade.
“When I was little, I decorated my bike,” Jesse said. “But I like to be at the front of the parade.”
Following them on scooters were Morgan Tansel, Ellie Mruzek and Sydney Yeager.
Although the parade participants didn’t get any of the Bethels’ goodies, their final destination was a tent filled with donuts, candy, chips and drinks.
The parade was just the start of a fun-filled Fourth of July that included live music and fireworks in Waterville’s Prairie Trail Park.
Area Children Have Fun With Food
During Monclova Education Program
BY KAREN BERGER — MIRROR REPORTER
Jack Baumgartner’s egg was jammed inside a roll of toilet paper. Samantha Glowacki had hers wrapped in princess-decorated foil. Alexis Carson had suspended her egg into red Jell-o inside a cut-off water bottle.
Each of the nine children participating in the Fun With Food camp June 20 at Monclova Community Center learned exactly which materials worked to keep an egg intact during the drop from the top of the slide at Monclova Primary School.
Bubble wrap, cotton balls, paper towels and boxes were among the favorite materials.
All but one of the eggs survived the drop. Only the egg in a Chinese takeout carton – dropped twice – had a slight crack.
The week-long program, run by Elaine Sneider’s Adventures in Education, included daily experiments, cooking, crafts and creating a cookbook.
Adventures in Education also offers camps in theater and music, and with themes such as Magic School Bus and American Girls. For more information go to www.adventures-in-education.net.
Jake Bogdan Of Waterville Achieves Eagle Scout Rank
On June 8, 16-year-old Jake Bogdan of Boy Scout Troop 101 in Waterville received the rank of Eagle – the highest rank in scouting.
The ceremony took place at his family’s church, Community of Christ Lutheran Church in Whitehouse, and was attended by more than 100 family members, friends and fellow scouts.
Jake began his scouting career as a Tiger Cub with Pack 101 as a first-grader. In 2003, after crossing over to Boy Scouts, he served as senior patrol leader, scribe and den chief. In 2006, he was elected to the Order of the Arrow.
Bogdan, along with many of his troop members, made several high adventure trips, which included visiting Zaleski State Forest in Ohio; Isle Royale National Park, an island in Lake Superior off the coast of the Upper Peninsula of Michigan; and completing an 85-mile backpacking trek at the Philmont Scout Ranch in New Mexico.
One of the requirements for achieving the rank of Eagle is the completion of a significant service project. Bogdan’s Eagle project included designing and constructing a retaining wall for a parking lot/activity area for Zeigler Habilitation Homes, a nonprofit corporation serving the needs of mentally handicapped individuals in Toledo.
Bogdan completed his sophomore year at Anthony Wayne High School, where he maintains a 4.0 grade point average and plays for the varsity hockey team.
These are a few articles that ran in The Mirror Newspaper.
To see what else you've been missing . . .
