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Call for reservations (260) 749-5396 | www.rackandhelens.com 525 Broadway St., New Haven, IN 46774 See our ad on pg. 3
September 16, 2016
Daily updates at INfortwayne.com
Serving New Haven & East Allen County
In the wake of the tornado Families thank helpers, try to get back to normal By Garth Snow gsnow@kpcmedia.com
Paul and Nettie Rekeweg see the remains of their farm buildings and implements strewn across the cornfield to the east. John and Donna Rekeweg see the acres of twisted and smashed corn to the west and north. They survived the Aug. 24 tornado that thundered on past Woodburn and into Ohio. Then the cleanup began. Recovery will be yet another chapter. Yet cousins Paul and John agree that it could have been worse. “It’s amazing how all the timing was just perfect,” said John, who farms the combined 260 acres along Doerman Road. Paul had been working in a corner of the chicken house and was just finishing there when the storm hit. “I just finished up and it started raining harder,” he said. “And then about that time this whole area was just full
FILE PHOTO BY RAY STEUP
Apple dumplings are the star attraction at a Johnny Appleseed Festival food booth. Vendors also serve up barbecued chicken, caramel corn, deep-fried onions, marinated pork chops, ham and beans and many other 19th-century style foods.
COURTESY PHOTO BY MIRANDA DILLER
Broken trees surround the damaged home of Paul and Nettie Rekeweg after an Aug. 24 tornado smashed buildings and crops north of Woodburn.
of debris. It looked like in the fall when you get one of those whirlwinds and the dust goes up. That’s what it looked like. And about that time I saw the metal coming off the roof. “Another 10 minutes and I’d have finished there
and I was gonna come in here and work on my mixer,” he said beneath the roughly patched roof of another shed. “I’d have been right here. The whole roof was off. And it might have sucked me right out of here.”
John’s son, James, usually works on that same farm. “James was out at Arcola wrapping hay, so he wasn’t home,” John said. But Paul and Nettie’s house took the harder hit. Fortunately, John said, his See BACK, Page A12
Find 1800s favorites at Johnny Appleseed By Rod King
For Times Community Publications
Promoters of the 42nd annual Johnny Appleseed Festival are gearing up for more than 300,000 visitors during the two-day event, Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 17 and 18, at Johnny Appleseed/Archer Park off Coliseum Boulevard. Vendors from more
than 42 states will present about 200 booths. Hours are 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Saturday and 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Sunday. Visitors to the event will find that everything is centered on celebrating the pioneer spirit of John Chapman (AKA Johnny Appleseed) who spent See APPLE, Page A10
Visitors flock to admire railroad history’s future By Rod King
For Times Community Publications
Good!
ACTIVITIES ON THE FARM:
PHOTO BY ROD KING
Visitors to the Fort Wayne Railroad Historical Society’s seventh annual open house queue up for caboose rides. They also toured the inside of two vintage passenger cars.
GET DETAILS
For more photos of the railroad museum open house, visit infortwayne.com/step-back-time. For the latest update on plans for Headwaters Junction, visit fortwaynerailroad.org.
4 th Annual Kuehnert Dairy Fall Festival
giving the public an opportunity to experience the daily operations of a working dairy farm as well as providing a variety of fall entertainment for all ages to enjoy.
• 5-acre Corn Maze • Hayrides • Milk Truck Express • Fire Pits • Straw Mountain • Farm Tours • Corn Pit Play Area • Pumpkin Painting • Moo-Go Round • Educational Activities • Tether Ball • Cornhole Games • Daily Children’s • Tile Swing • Robotic Milking Facility Activities • Holy Cow Football Viewing Room Enjoy delicious dairy snacks featuring soft-serve ice cream, grilled cheese sandwiches and ice cold milk. Even enjoy a hotdog and smores while sitting around a bonfire only feet away from the cows. NEW ACTIVITIES: Milkman Hamster Wheel Races, Corn Maze Scavenger Hunt, SPOOKLEY Kiddie Maze
SPECIAL EVENTS: September 24th - Opening Day Activities with Superhero special appearances. October 1st- Spookley The Square Pumpkin Day. October 8th - Little Fairies at the Dairy Day. Special Story-reading event at 2 pm. October 15th - Cowboys & Cowgirls: Down on the Farm. Special Story-reading event at 2 pm. Superhero FIND in the Corn Maze from 4 pm-6 pm. October 22nd - Kiss the Cow: Special Story-reading event at 2 pm. Superhero FIND in the Corn Maze from 4 pm-6 pm.
Join us for
OPENING DAY on Sat., Sept. 24th!
Flashlights at Night
Bring your flashlight and go through the corn maze in the dark! Friday & Saturday nights until 10 p.m.
Open for all weekends through Sunday Oct. 23, 2016.
HOURS: Fridays 6-10pm • Saturdays 10am-10pm • Sundays Noon-5pm School field trips, group tours, and private party events are also available.
Follow us on FACEBOOK Intstagram & Twitter for updates!
Times Community Publications/INfortwayne.com
See TRAIN, Page A6
Kuehnert Dairy Farm is hosting its
POWER UP WITH MILK It does a Superhero
3306 Independence Drive, Fort Wayne, IN 46808
Long lines of kids, parents and grandparents snaked across the driveway and along the tracks at the Fort Wayne Railroad Historical Society property. For three days, visitors took caboose rides and peeked into the cab of restored Engine No. 765 at the fourth annual open house at the Edgerton Road museum east of New Haven. The traffic filled the parking spaces within the grounds and along the road for a quarter of a mile east and west of the entrance. According to society vice president and spokesperson Kelly Lynch, “this simply emphasizes the fact that there is still a great deal
6532 West Cook Road, Fort Wayne, IN 46818
260-417-1918
www.kuehnertdairy.com