Owners of the theater were past retirement age and feared the business they worked so many years to build would be closing. But to the rescue came John Bain, Sr. of Albia. He agreed to buy the business and continue furnishing live entertainment there.
Interviewed on Albia radio this week, John said they planned to be open April – Oct. and have the same house band on Saturday nights. However, they plan to add Friday and Sunday programs. John Jr. will book a variety of music on Friday, Sunday afternoon will feature Gospel music, and Sunday evening will specialize in the Blue Grass sound.
Ticket prices will be the same. Adults are admitted for $10 each, kids 5-12 are $4 tickets each, and toddlers under 5 are admitted free. A concession stand will be available for snacks during the shows.
One change will be that John Jr. will install a new sound system which is a specialty of his and should be good. They would like to do some remodeling to improve the building but will wait until fall to begin that project.
The tentative opening night will be the third Saturday of April. John Jr. will manage the theater and we wish him and his father well in their new enterprise. Go check it out for good live music and good family fun!
Smokey Smith Died This Week
If you go back to the blog entry of April 22, 2012, you will see the story I wrote featuring Smokey. He was well known in country music circles and in Nashville. He had performed, been a radio disc jockey, and been a music promoter and country show organizer. He brought shows to Lovilia years ago at the hopping Ponderosa Club. He was close enough to Johnny Cash to be invited to June and John’s funerals. This was described in his book which is a fascinating read that I recommend to any country music fan.
Former Resident, Ruth Dunkin, dies in Missouri
Ruth Elizabeth Dunkin, age 86, died Feb.5,2014 in Columbia, Missouri. Her parents were Joseph Wallace and Ada(Evans) Manley and she was born to them in Albia on April 19, 1927.
She and Robert Dale Dunkin were married Nov. 22, 1942 and celebrated 37 years together before he died in Feb. 1979. They lived on a farm near Lovilia and she worked many years as a cook for the school. She and Dale had two children, Kevin (Judy) Dunkin of Columbia and Karen (deceased). Kevin has five children and five grandchildren.
Funeral was Sat. Feb. 8th at Albia and burial is at Woodlawn Cemetery in Lovilia.
Lee Robinson of Rural Lovilia Dies
Lee Edward Robinson died Feb.7, 2014 under hospice care. He was 86 years old.
His parents were James and Hazel (Noe) Robinson to whom he was born March 8, 1927.
He and Georgia Harrison exchanged wedding vows Oct. 23, 1948 at the Little Brown Church in Nashua, Iowa.
His career included farming, truck driving and as a factory supervisor.
He is survived by his wife, Georgia of Lovilia; son Terry of Lovilia; and his daughter Carolyn of Fairfield, Iowa. He also has five grandchildren and six great grandchildren.
Funeral services will be at the funeral home at Lovilia Wednesday, Feb. 12 and burial will follow at Woodlawn Cemetery, Lovilia.
St. Peter’s women hold a guest day Feb. 13thThe women are holding a guest day and have invited several Monroe County churches to send guests for lunch and fellowship. Following the luncheon, Judy Anderson, is our special guest speaker.
She is a volunteer at the Des Moines homeless shelter and has done so for many years from its conception. She will explain the services provided at the shelter and about the people helped there as well as how we could help them if we choose to. Please RSVP if you plan to come by calling Susan Beary, 946-7952 or emailing: susanbearyrdh@hotmail.com.
Michael Spieler Appointed to Monroe County Hospital and Clinic’s Board of Directors
Tim Shehan left the board when he moved to another community and the board appointed Michael as his replacement. He is Vice President and Sr. loan officer at Peoples State Bank in Albia, Iowa.
He moved to Lovilia in July 2013 with his wife, Kay, and two children,Kaitlyn and Karter. It is nice to have him represent us on the board and wish him well in his service to the community.
Jim Beary Elected to FSA County Committee
Jim Beary who farms west of Lovilia was elected to represent these townships: Cedar, Guilford, Jackson, Union, and Wayne in Monroe County. The committee represents Monroe and Appanoose counties The committee is a contact between the local level and USDA. We wish you well in serving the farm community.
Plastic bags and balloons can Kill
These seem like harmless objects but can kill birds and farm livestock. Farmer, Donna Kromray, recently wrote in the Albia Newspaper about calves who choked and required a veterinarian to place a tube in the animals throat to push down the obstruction. She recounted three different such incidents. Had she not been doing chores and saw the animals struggling they most likely would have died.
Also, biologists from around the world have found dead birds and on autopsy found their gut full of bits of plastic trash that choked them or caused an intestinal blockage that killed them.
So to save farmers vet bills and dead animals as well as save wildlife, make sure you recycle all plastic bags and that if you see one in the yard or road ditch to pick them up and dispose in the garbage. Or better yet, don’t accept plastic at stores, take your own cloth shopping bags. Also, don’t release helium or any balloons to see them fly high because when they come down birds or animals ingest them and die.
This is simple and something we can all do to protect animals and be sure to teach your kids this safety tip too.!