SVM Small Town Living East - Winter 2023

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inside Publisher/Ad Director Jennifer Heintzelman Magazine editor & Page design Rusty Schrader For Advertising Contact Jill Reyna at 815-631-8774 or jreyna@saukvalley.com Published by Sauk Valley Media 113 S. Peoria Ave., Dixon, IL 61021 815-284-2222 Have a story idea for Small Town Living?

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Small Town

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Amboy Clippers turn last year’s defeat into this year’s victory, bringing home their first state championship trophy in nearly 40 years

PAGE 14

CONTENTS CONT’D ON PAGE 5

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inside 6

30

24

If walls could talk, they’d have some good things to say about the Ashton couple who’ve been in the business of painting them — along with ceilings and siding and a host of other projects — for nearly 40 years.

It took the pluck of the Irish to bring St. Flannen Catholic Church to Harmon and it’s taken the dedication and devotion of congregations through the years to keep it part of their close-knit community.

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If walls could talk, they’d have some good things to say about the Ashton couple who’ve been in the business of painting them — along with ceilings and siding and a host of other projects — for nearly 40 years 6 | A Shaw Media Publication | Small Town Living East | Winter 2023

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CODY CUTTER/CCU

Since 1986, John and Angel you want to see an adverhave been dipping their brushtisement for John and Angel es in countless gallons of paint Martinez’s services, just drive and rolled their rollers up and around town. down exteriors and interiors Chances are you’ll see some of their of homes, farms and busiwork. The house across the street, the businesses throughout the area. ness up the block, the farm down the road a Whether you’re looking to piece — the couple has had a hand in helping a turn the drab dynamic, lot of them look their best. put on a fresh coat, or John and Angel have owned Ashton Paint Serjust make the white vice for nearly 40 years, and during that time, they’ve bright again, Ashton brushed up quite a few places around town.

Paint Service is at “We’ll drive to a job, and it’ll be amazing how we’ll drive by your service. places and go, ‘We painted there,’ and ‘We painted there,’” John said. “It gets to be where there’s a lot because we’ve been in business COLORS cont’d to page 8 for so long.”

TTER@SHAWMEDIA. COM

John and Angel Martinez, along with their grandson Silas, have had a hand painting plenty of homes and businesses throughout the area. John and Angel started Ashton Paint Service in 1986, and Silas is the third generation of the family to help out at jobs.

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COLORS cont’d from page 7

CODY CUTTER/CCUTTER@SHAWMEDIA.COM

John Martinez didn’t always plan to start a painting business, but he’s glad that’s the way things worked out. "It just kind of evolved," he said. "People have liked our work, and we like the people. That's what's the best thing for us is that we're people persons, exchanging stories and finding out their stories sometimes."

The business has become a marriage of talent, determination, and love — a job they love doing together.

Their experiences, travels, and on-the-job challenges have helped build a strong marriage and a life for their family. It’s also helped instill a strong work ethic in both their children and grandchildren.

Their son Mason has helped out during the summers, and his 13-yearold son Silas helps Grandpa and Grandma with most of the prep work on the job — setting up tarps, taping off edges, and taking off all those light switch and outlet covers.

COLORS cont’d to page 9

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COLORS cont’d from page 8 “He’s really done a great job,” Angel said. “He’s like our right-hand man.”

John’s journey to professional painting began back in the late ’70s, while he was in high school, when he learned the tricks of the trade from fellow Ashton painter Tom White. That led to a brief time painting apartment complexes in Kentucky before he moved back to Ashton to start a family with Angel.

Painting wasn’t always part of the couple’s life. During their first years together, John worked briefly at Crest Foods in town before working at Woods in Oregon. When Woods laid off much of its staff in the mid-1980s, Martinez was one of the casualties, which forced him to consider his next option. That’s when he decided to pick up the paint brush again and start a small business that would get him through temporarily until full-time work came his way.

As it turned out, temporary turned into long-term, and 40 years later, he’s still picking up the brush.

In addition to residential work , Ashton Paint Service also does commercial projects, such as this job at Alfano's Pizzeria and Italian restaurant in Rochelle.

SUBMITTED PHOTO

COLORS cont’d to page 10

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COLORS cont’d from page 9 “I figured that I’d do that until I figured out what I really wanted to do, and I guess I’m still trying to figure out what I want to do,” John said with a laugh.

“It just kind of evolved. People have liked our work, and we like the people.

That’s what’s the best thing for us is: that we’re people persons, exchanging stories and finding out their stories sometimes.”

As John’s paint business grew, he knew he’d need to start looking for some help, and he didn’t have to look far.

His partner in life became his partner in business, and he and Angel were off and painting. Angel didn’t have much experience painting before she met John, but came to enjoy working with him after taking on a few projects with him.

“I tried it and I liked it,” Angel said. “You either hate it or have to love it. Painting is very detailed, and it’s a lot of work. I enjoy it. I love to see the difference from when it started to the final view.”

One job led to another in town, and word of their work would eventually spread throughout Lee County and into Rochelle, where they’ve worked on several large homes, including Queen Annes. They’ve also managed to marry their talents with their appreciation of history, becoming lifelong members of the Franklin Grove Historical Society, where they’ve donated their time to painting the historic buildings at Chaplin Creek Historic Village.

COLORS cont’d to page 12

The Martinezes have an appreciation for the past.

The couple are members of Franklin Grove Historical Society and have donated their time for painting projects, including buildings at Chaplin Creek Historic Village in Franklin Grove (above and at left). They’ve also done window trim work at the H.I. Lincoln Building in Franklin Grove (below), home of the Lincoln Highway Headquarters.

PHOTOS: CODY CUTTER/CCUTTER@SHAWMEDIA.COM

10 | A Shaw Media Publication | Small Town Living East | Winter 2023

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COLORS cont’d from page 10 Word of mouth eventually reached the “Fox Cities” area of Batavia, Geneva and St. Charles, where they’ve done work on historic sites such as Bellevue Place, a former rest home and sanitarium for women (Mary Todd Lincoln once was a resident during her widowed years after Abraham Lincoln’s assassination in 1865), and prairie-style homes in the area.

John and Angel are proud of their work and their association with notable neighborhoods, but they’re just as proud of working on places back home.

“With us, we’re more about quality than quantity,” John said. “We don’t advertise anywhere except for the lettering on my bucket truck, which I don’t take to every job. Most of our work has been word of mouth for all of these years.”

It’s a reputation that not only helps attract customers, but gives the couple decades of experience that they can bring to every job site.

“We know colors,” Angel said. “People will ask us when we go in their house what we think what color something should be. We’ve done it for so many years that we can just walk in and tell them that we could change it to a certain color because it would show off your [decor], your kitchen or countertops, flooring, whatever. They like when it pops a little bit.”

Homes aren’t the only place where people have put their trust in John — they’ve put it in their hometown too, voting him into office as Ashton’s village president, a role he served from 200913. He’s also donated his time to paint work at City Hall during his term.

No job is too big, too small — or too tall — for Ashton Paint Service. One of the projects they undertook was doing some touch-up work on the Ogle County Courthouse.

SUBMITTED PHOTO

COLORS cont’d to page 13

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12 | A Shaw Media Publication | Small Town Living East | Winter 2023

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COLORS cont’d from page 12 Nearly 40 years after John decided to brush up on painting again, the projects just keep coming, and the couple just keep painting.

“Sometimes it’s feast or famine,” John said.

“Sometimes it gets super busy, and then it slows in the winter right around the holidays. We’ve been pretty lucky that even with the commercial stuff going Need a painter? on, we’ve been able Can do! to stay busy enough Call Ashton Paint Service over the winter.” at 815-453-2369 to The satisfied arrange a job or for more customers he’s built information. up through the years would likely say that keeping busy is more than just a brush stroke of luck, though.

They’d say it’s the couple’s commitment to a job well done that keeps them busy — and that’s the kind of word of mouth that paints a pretty rosy picture for the their business. n Cody Cutter can be reached at 815-632-2532 or ccutter@shawmedia.com.

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By C

tter S ody Cu

y Media auk Valle

fter the Amboy Clippers had the wind knocked out of their sails at last season’s Illinois 8-Man Football Association state championship game, their coach had some words of advice: If you want to know what it feels like to win, don’t forget what it feels like to lose one.

The Clippers didn’t forget.

After losing the state championship game last year, The Clippers — a cooperative team consisting of students from Amboy, LaMoille and Ohio high schools — made it their mission to win that championship, and left little doubt during the 2023 season that they would accomplish that mission. They strung together 12 wins in a row before returning to the state championship game on Nov. 17 at Monmouth College, where they burst open the doors to take that championship for win No. 13, a 74-22 victory over the Ridgewood co-op of Cambridge and AlWood high schools.

Once the new season kicked off, the Clippers left little doubt that they were determined to avoid a repeat of last season. They exploded for a 68-6 lead at halftime of the championship game, which ended with the team hoisting its first state football championship trophy since 1984.

The championship win capped a season that was eagerly followed by fans throughout Lee and northern Bureau counties, where the team spirit spread: Signs and banners dotted lawns and businesses, watch parties at homes and taverns were organized, fans flocked to games. The Clippers’ fan section at April Zorn Memorial Stadium for the title game in Monmouth was packed with people who made the two-hour trip to witness history in the making.

CLIPPERS cont’d to page 16

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Amboy’s Landon Whelchel points to fans after scoring against Ridgewood during the I8FA championship Nov. 17, at Monmouth College

CLIPPERS cont’d from page 15 Led by head coach Scott Payne, a 1997 Amboy High graduate who played under the program’s previous coach, Gary Jones, the Clippers became the fifth I8FA state champion since its tournament began in 2018. Most high school football teams undergo the process of replacing graduating seniors from the starting lineup during the off season. Not the Clippers, who returned nearly everyone who started games on both offense and defense.

“I’m happy for this group of seniors,” Payne said.

“They were freshmen during my first year as head coach, the first group I got to coach all four years. Our No. 1 word was ‘finish.’ Finish what you guys started. They did that, and I think they played the perfect first half of football. They played phenomenal, and I’m so happy for all of these guys.”

In Illinois high school football, only nine teams get to win their final games as champions — eight teams in the Illinois High School Association’s 11-man game, as well as the I8FA champion — and end their seasons with memories of a mission accomplished.

For their part in leading the Clippers to championship success, some of their players were honored with accolades from fellow coaches around the state.

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CLIPPERS cont’d from page 16 Clippers seniors Troy Anderson, Brennan Blaine, Trey Payne, Ian Sundberg and Landon Whelchel were named All-Division First Team players; senior Landon Montavon, juniors Eddie Jones and Quinn Leffelman, and sophomore Cody Winn were named on the Second Team. Blaine, Leffelman and Montavon were named to the First Team on the I8FA All-State roster, while Whelchel made Second Team.

Whelchel was the Clippers’ chief ball carrier throughout the season. He amassed nearly 2,000 rushing yards on the year and scored 25 touchdowns, with the final three scores coming in the state title game.

Leffelman collected just under 1,000 rushing yards while scoring 18 times. Blaine tallied just under 1,000 receiving yards off of passes from Jones at quarterback, and their connections resulted in 16 touchdowns on the year.

The Clippers celebrate their championship win against Ridgewood in the I8FA championship Nov. 17, at Monmouth College.

CLIPPERS cont’d to page 18

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CLIPPERS cont’d from page 17 On defense, Blaine and Whelchel each led the Clippers with around 100 net tackles; Blaine also had 20 tackles for loss of yardage and nearly 20 quarterback sacks in leading his team in both stats. Leffelman, Whelchel and senior Austin Heath also collected more than 10 tackles for a loss of yards.

“After ending last year with a sour taste in our mouths on this field, and being able to come back here with a ‘W’ this time, it feels amazing,” Whelchel said after the championship game. “You can’t really explain it. Something like this hasn’t been done in almost 40 years. It’s the best feeling in the world.” nnn

The “glory days” of Amboy’s history playing the 11-man game were undoubtedly the period between 1979 and 1986 under the late hall of fame coach Don Wyzgowski. During that period, the Clippers had six unbeaten regular seasons, secondplace state finishes in 1979 and 1980, and won the Illinois High School Association Class 2A championship in 1984.

The Clippers played the traditional 11-man football format up until 2019, when declining participation numbers prompted them to switch to the 8-man game, which was being reintroduced to Illinois high schools after a decades-long absence. The 8-man game has its differences from the traditional 11-man setup. The two most notable of which are two fewer linemen and one less skill player behind them, and a 40-yard-wide field — slightly smaller than a typical setup.

CLIPPERS cont’d to page 19

18 | A Shaw Media Publication | Small Town Living East | Winter 2023

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CLIPPERS cont’d from page 18

Clipper pride was on full display in the days leading up to the championship game. Signs of support popped up throughout Amboy, LaMoille, Ohio and Sublette.

Moving to 8-man helped rekindle high-schoolers’ interest in going out for the team.

It also motivated those who had played the game for years to get better in hopes of racking up wins, something that was hard to come by when competing against much stronger teams in the Northwest Upstate Illini Conference. In 2022, success finally came the Clippers’ way: they finished 7-2 in the regular season and won the North No. 2 Division championship with a 5-0 record. In the state championship game that year against West Central High School of Biggsville, however, the Clippers fell behind to the Heat’s powerful backfield trio of ball carriers early and couldn’t catch up in a 44-36 loss in Monmouth.

The disappointment of being just one win away from a championship served as motivation to go after it the next year, especially with most of the Clippers’ starters from that season coming back.

“It’s amazing,” Trey Payne said.

“It was crazy. I wasn’t expecting how we started it. It’s a great win for us and our program. After the day we lost here, we started working hard in the weight room from June all the way to now, and it’s shown.” nnn

It didn’t take long before the Clippers took care of that one: They raced out to a 40-0 halftime lead, winning 46-0. In leads of 40 points or greater, the second half of play is done with a running clock with rare stoppages, something that happened in 10 of the team’s 13 victories.

CLIPPERS cont’d to page 20 PHOTOS: CODY CUTTER/CCUTTER@SHAWMEDIA.COM

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CLIPPERS cont’d from page 19 Despite the decisive victory, the Clippers still felt they could have played better, Whelchel told the Dixon Telegraph after that game.

“They [Unity] are a good team and all, but we should have been better than what we were,” Whelchel said.

“Next week we want to try and play better starting off and come out more energetic.”

Which is just what they did.

In Week 2, the points kept coming in a road game at River Ridge, one that ended in an 80-8 Clippers win. The following week was another road game, this time in the east-central Illinois town of Martinsville, and once again it wasn’t even close: The Clippers won 60-8.

With a 186-16 scoring advantage over its first three opponents, the Clippers took a break from playing in Week 4: their scheduled opponent, Quest Charter Academy of Peoria, forfeited due to illnesses. The following week proved to be a much bigger challenge for the Clippers than in their first three weeks, as they traveled to Cambridge to take on the team they would eventually face in the state championship, Ridgewood.

The game was close, but The Clippers still managed a win, 48-42, and survived another challenge the following week at Milledgeville, downing the Missiles 32-20.

“This is huge after last week, where we had a close game with Ridgewood, where it shouldn’t have been that close,” Whelchel told the Telegraph after the Milledgeville win. “It was a good wake-up call, so we came out this week stronger than ever in a big, big game with a big win — a big wake-up call for the whole state, and it let them know who’s here.”

As it turned out, the Milledgeville game proved to be the Clippers’ last major challenge of the season. The next six weeks — three to finish the regular season and three in the playoffs — saw the Clippers outscore their opponents 326-37, sailing full speed ahead through Ashton-Franklin Center, Orangeville, Hiawatha, Flanagan-Cornell/Woodland, and two-time 8-man state champion Polo twice. The second win over Polo sent the Clippers back to the same venue that was scene of the previous year’s heartbreak, Monmouth College, to face the same team they played in Week 5, Ridgewood.

CLIPPERS cont’d to page 21

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CLIPPERS cont’d from page 20 Playing the same team twice has both its advantages and challenges. Blaine and Coach Payne shared with the Telegraph their thoughts on their final challenge a couple of days before game day: “We’ve had a good season so far,” Blaine said. “It’s definitely the best football season we’ve ever played as a team, but we’re far from satisfied. We made it to this point last year and we came up short, but now we’ve just got to not let hype get to us and not psyche ourselves out. It’ll just be like any game, but just our final game. It’ll be a great finish to this season.”

“It’s never easier when you play the same team twice in one year,” Payne said. “Ridgewood’s a very good football team. They run the ball real well, and are a real well-coached football team. Pat Elder is a great football coach, and I’m sure they’re going to have a couple of things up their sleeve for us.”

As it turned out, there weren’t many tricks up their sleeve.

The Clippers needed only two plays and 35 seconds to rack up the first points in the game, as Whelchel scored a 59-yard touchdown on the first offensive play for a quick 6-0 lead that soon turned into 8-0 after a Jones-to-Blaine two-point conversion pass. Ridgewood’s ensuing kickoff return was fumbled away and recovered by the Clippers at the Spartans’ 29-yard line, setting up a quick drive that saw Leffelman score three plays later from 24 yards out to put the Clippers up 14-0.

Ridgewood’s next drive saw them fumble the ball away once more, and another Jones-to-Blaine passing connection put the Clippers up 22-0. Only 2 minutes, 15 seconds had ticked away from the game clock during all of that. Another 2 minutes passed, and the Clippers went up 30-0 after another passing strike from Jones to Blaine; the Clippers got the ball on that possession after Heath blocked a punt at the same spot it fumbled their previous possession away — its own 29.

CLIPPERS cont’d to page 22

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CLIPPERS cont’d from page 21 Whelchel added a 60-yard touchdown late in the first quarter, one that ended with the Clippers up 38-0. He marched in another score early in the second quarter to expand the lead, Blaine later scored a rushing touchdown later in the quarter, and junior linebacker Brayden Klein ran in an interception return for the third touchdown of the quarter and a 60-0 lead — just 17 minutes, 32 seconds of football had been played up to that point.

“We wanted to come out on top right at the start, and it just helped us get through the whole game,” he said. “All of the run work and making the play-action passing work, it was just a really good game.”

Ridgewood would score three times in the rest of the game, while the Clippers struck paydirt only once more, with a 19-yard score from Josh McKendry.

“We set the tone right away,” Jones said. “We got our A-game on and just didn’t stop from there. We were just full throttle the whole time. Everything was working out. We were hitting our keys, our o-line was killing everybody, and we were just having a great game. It was one of our best games that we played.”

It was a much better feeling than the disappointment a year ago.

“We just had to put that into our play and use that to our advantage,” Leffelman said. “We had to put that

feeling into every play. All of that aggression, all of that sadness, came out, and it was pretty awesome.” nnn

“It was fun, it was exciting, and we just had to stick to the game plan and focus,” Flanagan said. “This win means a lot to us; there’s three communities to us, and it’s just one big community. We come together and destroy the competition.”

About a third of the Clippers’ roster comes from either LaMoille or Ohio, schools that haven’t had football teams of their own since the 1980s.

One first-place trophy already sat in the Amboy High School trophy case for years, and now this year’s title gives it some company. However, at LaMoille and Ohio, a state champion athlete had never roamed their halls during school until November. Aside from last year’s runner-up football finish, the closest any LaMoille athlete had been to a state championship was three track and field athletes who each finished in third place in their respective events. Ohio had a second-place boys basketball team in 1986.

CLIPPERS cont’d to page 23

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CLIPPERS cont’d from page 22 “This is amazing for us because this is our very first state championship that we’re bring back to our town,” said Sundberg, of LaMoille. “It feels amazing. We worked our butts off from June all the way to now. I love all these guys.”

“To come off of last year, and losing in this exact same game, it feels a whole lot better now to be a state champion. We came out and showed them who we are as a team,” senior lineman Vincent Zembrzuski of Ohio said. “We had a ton of people here from Ohio. All three towns showed up. We love to have the support here, and it was great.”

Coach Payne is happy to see contributions all around the trio of schools.

“It’s a great thing,” he said. “All three communities have really come together well. To see kids from each community contribute so much to this football team, it’s a great thing to see. It’s a close group of kids, even though Amboy, LaMoille and Ohio are about 10 miles apart from each other. It’s great when you can get kids from other towns who come here and contribute the way the LaMoille and Ohio kids have. We wouldn’t be where we’re at without them.”

The championship game win over Ridgewood

set a couple of records for Illinois state title games, regardless of the 8- or 11-man variety: The 74 points they scored were four better than the previous record set in the 2011 IHSA Class 5A title game by Montini Catholic of Lombard against Joliet Catholic. The 52-point margin of victory also set a new high, two more than East St. Louis’ 50-point gap set in last year’s 6A title game against Prairie Ridge of Crystal Lake.

Seeing his players bounce back after last season’s disappointing loss to West Central is something Coach Payne will remember most about his team.

“At the end of the game last year, they all came up to me and said how they were feeling and that they never wanted to feel that way again,” Payne said. “I said that there was only one thing we can do about it: Let’s get back to work and get ready for next year, and I told them to remember this feeling next year when we’re running, lifting and when you guys are tired and don’t want to do anything else, remember this feeling. And they did.

All summer long, they did it.

“They’re a great group of kids and never once complained about anything; they did whatever we asked and it feels so good.”n Cody Cutter can be reached at 815-632-2532 or ccutter@shawmedia.com.

Kreider Services’ 2023-2024 “This Little Light of Mine” Annual Appeal is just around the corner. And speaking of corners, once again, the tree on the corner of Galena Avenue and River Road will get a little brighter each week... with a little help from our friends beginning this November.

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hen La Fiesta celebrated its 20th anniversary in 2021, the owners of the Mexican restaurant and bar in downtown Sublette had T-shirts made that said: “Fiesta like there is no mañana.”

It’s no wonder why they’d want to party like there’s no tomorrow. They had a lot to celebrate: a community that embraced their business, great customers who keep coming back for more, and two decades of success.

Two years later, the family behind La Fiesta still has a lot to celebrate.

La Fiesta has been bringing a taste of Mexico to downtown Sublette since 2001, and owners Ana and Hector Gutierrez have welcomed customers from both near and far who stop by for a bite or to whet their whistle at the By only Mexican-style resCody Cutter taurant and bar between Sauk Valley Dixon and Mendota, and Media Ana has come to enjoy the company of her customers.

“We’ve been here 22 years, and I really enjoy my customers and everything they say about our food and everything else, including our margaritas,” Ana said. “We really

enjoy our customers, and we’ve had some loyal customers who have come for a long time.”

The Gutierrezes hail from California, where Hector worked in several kitchens. They came to Sublette nearly 30 years ago to be close to family, and worked at The Lodge restaurant in downtown Sublette for a few years. They bought The Lodge in 2001 and turned it into La Fiesta, bringing not just familiar Mexican fare such as tacos and enchiladas to town, but also dishes such as a chile relleno omelette for breakfast, and chimichangas and shrimp scampis, to name just a few from their extensive menu.

Hector and his brother Tito are in charge of a busy kitchen that’s a treat for the senses. The tantalizing aroma of genuine Mexican dishes fills the air, and the sounds of sizzling fajita skillets can be heard.

LA FIESTA cont’d to page 26

PHOTO, FACING PAGE: Ana Gutierrez and her husband, Hector, have seen a lot of smiling faces come through their doors in the 20-plus years they’ve been serving customers at La Fiesta, their restaurant in downtown Sublette. “We’ve been here 22 years, and I really enjoy my customers and everything they say about our food and everything else, including our margaritas,” she said.

CODY CUTTER/CCUTTER@SHAWMEDIA.COM

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What’s on the menu?

Start things off with some complimentary tortilla chips, then dig in to the arroz con pollo and shrimp plate (below) — with pepper slices and topped with a cheese sauce — or The Tampico Trio (top): beef, chicken and cheese enchiladas, each dressed with a different sauce and served with beans and rice.

And wash it all down with a pickle-flavored margarita.

LA FIESTA cont’d from page 25 The secret to their long-time success? Simple: Make customers feel welcome, and make them what they want. Ana enjoys meeting the customers when they come in, and Hector enjoys making the food they come to enjoy. It’s a system that’s worked for more than 20 years.

“My husband has always been a chef,” Ana said. “He really enjoys the kitchen and cooking. I’ll be out here working the bar and the front counter, and he’ll be working in the kitchen. He really enjoys cooking. We got our own thing going. I like to be out here.”

The couple always welcomes a steady stream of customers, but there’s one day when they really pack them in: Taco Tuesday.

LA FIESTA cont’d to page 28

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Tito Gutierrez grills chicken at La Fiesta in Sublette. Tito and his brother Hector have become familiar sights in the kitchen in the 20-plus years that the restaurant has served up its menu of Mexican and American food. Hector “really enjoys the kitchen and cooking,” says wife Ana.

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CODY CUT TER/CCUTTER@SHA WMEDIA .COM

Through the years, as La Fiesta celebrates another year in business, the Gutierrezes have had shirts made up to celebrate another milestone at their restaurant.

LA FIESTA cont’d from page 26 “Taco Tuesday is famous everywhere,” Ana said. “Before we moved from California, my brother owned two restaurants there and they were known for their Taco Tuesdays. And here, Taco Tuesday is a popular day. Most of our business comes in the summer, especially with the campers around here, but it can be winter and we’ll still be busy.

Taco Tuesday is a hit here with us. Come here on a Tuesday, and it’ll be full.”

Among the taco-lovers who look forward to Tuesday are ones from nearby campgrounds Woodhaven Lakes and Mendota Hills, who not only bring their appetite with them on Tuesdays, but end up bringing in more customers, as they take word of La Fiesta back to friends and neighbors at their full-time homes.

The event has become so popular that customers recognize Ana outside the restaurant. She ran into one youngster at church who he saw Ana and told his mom: ‘Hey Mom … It’s Taco Tuesday!’”

Appetizers such as nachos and quesadillas also are on the menu, as well as taco salads and burritos and enchiladas. For those who aren’t into Mexican fare, LaFiesta has north-of-the-border items, too, including hamburgers, ribeye steaks, club sandwiches, and pancakes and egg platters. There’s also a kids menu, with both Mexican and American dishes, including Mickey Mouse pancakes.

LA FIESTA cont’d to page 29

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La Fiesta, 107 W. Main St. in Sublette, is open 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Tuesday and Thursday through Saturday. Find it on Facebook or call 815-849-9224 for more information.

CODY CUTTER/CCUTTER@SHAWMEDIA.COM

Hosting a party? La Fiesta’s banquet room can hold up to 45 people.

LA FIESTA cont’d from page 28 While you’re waiting to order, you can enjoy some complimentary tortilla chips and salsa, with an option to include cheesy queso sauce.

As for the bar, a full beer and liquor selection is offered, but the margaritas are most popular; there’s even a pickle variety that’s become a big seller.

No matter what you’re is hungry for, there’s sure to be something on La Fiesta’s menu that will fit the bill.

“Being here 22 years says a lot,” Ana said. “They like our food, they like our drinks, we have great customers.” n Cody Cutter can be reached at 815-632-2532 or ccutter@shawmedia.com.

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uring harvest season, the whirling sound of grain elevators in Harmon gets drowned out around 8:30 a.m. each Sunday with church bells in the key of A. It’s a sound that’s heralded the start of Mass at St. Flannen Catholic Church for 125 years.

Around 25 parishioners attend Sunday Mass these days, which is a far cry from the many who attended when St. Flannen Parish was organized on Oct. 5, 1898, but the group is no less dedicated to their humble house of The Lord — a house that’s truly one of a kind. They are unique among other Catholics in that they are members in the only St. Flannen church in the nation, one that bears the name of a seventh-century Irish bishop.

The membership, some from families who’ve been attending the church for generations, also observed a historical milestone this year: its quasquicentennial.

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This stained glass window in the rear wall of St. Flannen's narthex depicts St. Cecilia, the patron saint of music, playing an organ. It’s one of several such windows that adorn the church; for more, turn to page 34.

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ST. FLANNEN cont’d from page 31 As for the next benchmark year, it’s 150th anniversary, only time will tell whether the church will be around to celebrate — but for now, the faithful still flock to St. Flannen, their home for spiritual guidance and camaraderie.

The Rev. John Gow has been St. Flannen’s pastor since June 2022; he previously was parochial administrator since October 2020. Gow also serves as pastor of St. Patrick in Amboy and St. Mary in Walton.

Among St. Flannen’s parishioners is one who used to be on the other end of the chancel for several years: The Rev. Richard Kramer served as pastor from 1978 to 1992, and still lives in town more than a decade after retiring as a full-time minister throughout the Rockford Diocese.

Of all of Kramer’s stops throughout his 50-plus years of service, Harmon and St. Flannen remain special to him as it represented his longest continuous tenure.

CODY CUTTER/CCUTTER@SHAWMEDIA.COM

The current St. Flannen Catholic Church in Harmon was built in 1912 after a fire destroyed the original building the previous year. It’s altar has undergone several changes since its building had its first services.

“In many ways, these were my Camelot years,” Kramer, 83, said. “I was just 38 when I came here and I was 52 when I left. That’s a big chunk, the filet mignon of a person’s life.”

While Kramer’s Camelot isn’t his original home court, he’s spent more than half his life here, and he’s become St. Flannen’s go-to resource for parishioners seeking information on the church’s history, or even when Gow needs help throughout his circuit of churches.

Many of his fellow churchgoers, along with those who attended his sermons through the years, have had families living here for generations, going as far back as Harmon’s founding in 1854. The town’s first settlers were Irish, several of whom came to America after the potato famine of the mid-1800s, and it’s that Irish heritage that gave the town’s Catholic church and parish its name.

“This land was all open land in the 1840s and ’50s,” Kramer said. “The Irish dug the ditch that is now the Green River; they came here during the potato famine to eventually turn this into farmland.”

The first 27 years of Catholic services in Harmon, starting in 1871, were done at a church not named after anyone. Prior to that, local Catholics would travel to Dixon to attend church, but growth would soon come to Harmon with the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy railroad’s plans for a branch through Harmon, along the line from Shabbona to Sterling, a move that brought businesses closer to local residents, and eventually their own church.

Still, Harmon’s Catholic church remained part of St. Patrick Parish in Dixon, which oversaw its administration. As Harmon continued to grow and become less dependent on guidance from Dixon, its own parish was estabGow lished in 1898 with the Rev. D.E. McGrath as its first resident (full-time) pastor of its church.

When deciding who they would honor with the church’s name, the local congregation looked to their roots, naming the church after a holy figure from their homeland — though they didn’t earn an A on their spelling test; more like an E for effort.

Flannán mac Toirrdelbaig was a seventh-century Irish Abbot, and later Bishop, of Killaloe in central Ireland who was said to have performed many miracles during his service for the Catholic Church.

When the parishioners decided to name their church after him, they mistakenly swapped the second A in his name with an E. Even after the error was discovered, the name didn’t change. The Rockford Diocese’s first published history book in 1923 spelled the church’s name as “Flannan,” but its most recent history publication, in 2008, has it as “Flannen.”

ST. FLANNEN cont’d to page 33

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ST. FLANNEN cont’d from page 32

The Statue of the Pieta of the Sorrowful Mother at St. Flannen Church in Harmon was installed and dedicated in February 1947 to honor the lives of two World War II soldiers — Lt. William Vaessen and Pfc. John C. Miller — parishioners who died while serving.

CODY CUTTER/CCUTTER@SHAWMEDIA.COM

Though several Catholic churches and institutions in Ireland bear his name, Harmon’s is the only one in the U.S. “He was known for saying prayers while standing in the ocean,” Kramer said. “St. Flannan is much loved. I’ve been to Ireland and I kept checking him out: There was St. Flannan College, St. Flannan School, St. Flannan Village, just a ton of St. Flannans. The people who settled Harmon knew a lot about him, but to name it St. Flann[e]n is pretty specific.”

The church was originally located on the empty lot behind the current building. A rectory was built next door in 1898.

Holy Cross Cemetery was established by the church in 1901, located about a halfmile west of town on Sterling Road.

Heating church buildings around the turn of the 20th century was no easy task, and could even be dangerous.

Kramer heard stories from longtime parishioners during his early years of service at St. Flannen of the disaster that burned down both the church building and rectory on Christmas Day in 1911, not long after Mass.

“I got the story from a lot of the oldtimers here who are now long gone.

When I came here, even people in their 90s and 100s were parishioners here.

They remembered it. They had put in a new wood- (and) coal-burning furnace in

the basement of the steeple. [The Rev. Thomas] Smith was told — and as they say, you can’t tell an Irishman much — by the furnace man, ‘Whatever you do, just have a modest fire; don’t have a roaring blaze in here because it wasn’t quite finished in terms of being installed, but it should be enough to take the chill off the church.’

“Smith said, ‘We’re going to have heat in the church.’ Well, they did and it set fire to the steeple.”

The wreckage of the burnt church and rectory was buried on site, but old timbers and bricks were dug up during Kramer’s tenure as pastor when a new septic tank was installed.

The church set out to rebuild at once. Smith was pastor before the fire, and he was replaced by the Rev. Patrick McKeown, who was tasked with the rebuilding.

A new cornerstone was laid on Sept. 4, 1912, by Bishop Peter J. Muldoon, and the new building was completed on April 1, 1913. A formal dedication ceremony took place more than a year later on May 26, 1914, with hundreds of attendees and

Holy Cross Cemetery, established in 1907, is located one-half mile west of Harmon on Sterling Road. It is the cemetery affiliated with St. Flannen Catholic Church. This statue of Jesus Christ on the cross stands in the center of the cemetery’s cul-de-sac. The words “Consummatum Est” are on the base of the statue, Latin for “It is finished,” words that Christ uttered from the cross.

about 25 visiting priests, according to the Sterling Daily Gazette. Muldoon gave the dedication sermon.

The years just before the Great Depression saw both disappointment and prosperity: Another fire, this time contained to the church’s sachistry, resulted in a remodel in 1928; but the acquisition of a school bus in 1929 connected Catholic children in town with the opportunity to be educated at St. Mary School in Sterling.

Tasked to guide St. Flannen through the lean years of the 1930s was the Rev. David Murphy, whose 31 years as pastor is the church’s longest tenure to date. His service lasted from the Depression to the period of the Second Vatican Council of the early 1960s when major changes were made to the Catholic Church. “Vatican II” established several updates and changes in church functions as the world became more secularized, and as overall church attendance declined.

In July 1967, during the Rev. James Lafferty’s tenure, St. Mary Parish in Walton merged into St. Flannen, and he had two churches to serve.

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The exquisite beauty of its stained glass windows are one of the most distinctive features of St. Flannen Church.

“The stained glass windows are just out of sight,” said The Rev. Richard Kramer (left), who was pastor at the church from 1978-92. “They're incredible. The workmanship is absolutely incredible and beyond belief.” Among his favorites is one depicting a pelican piercing its own breast with its beak to feed its young with its own blood, a symbol of Jesus Christ sacrificing himself for man. Some are dedicated are dedicated to former parishioners.

PHOTOS: CODY CUTTER/CCUTTER@SHAWMEDIA.COM

ST. FLANNEN cont’d from page 33 Kramer served in Rockford, DeKalb and Sycamore before coming to St. Flannen in October 1978 as parochial administrator, becoming pastor not long after. During his first few years at St. Flannen, he was influential in promoting communication of the gospel in radio, film and television throughout the Rockford Diocese. Kramer also taught at Newman Central Catholic High School in Sterling throughout most of his tenure at St. Flannen, and was spiritual moderator for the Diocesan Council of Catholic Women for two years.

For nearly 35 years, St. Flannen hosted a corned beef and cabbage dinner in February. Started by parishioners Harold and Kathryn Considine, and Jack and Maryann Pearce in 1979, the dinner once drew thousands at its peak, also serving Irish stew. Having the dinner in February, as opposed to when similar dinners happen close to St. Patrick’s Day in March, was done so that it wouldn’t compete with the others.

Kramer remembers those dinners well. They were discontinued a few years ago as the congregation became smaller.

“We didn’t do the brisket, we did the corned beef round,” Kramer said. “We bought it from Chicago, and it was mailed to us frozen with all of the spices in it. It was one of our main sources of income here. We had rounds of people go through here.”

After leaving St. Flannen, Kramer served at parishes in Rockford, Harvard and Oregon until retiring as a full-time priest in 2011. He continues to do part-time work around the Diocese as needed, including services at St. Mary in Walton, confessions at St. Patrick in Amboy, and he’s scheduled to officiate Christmas Mass at St. Mary in Tampico in December.

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ST. FLANNEN cont’d from page 34 One aspect of the church that Kramer enjoys are the stained glass windows on all four sides of the building. The ones on both sides of the nave, as well as the one at the top of the apse, are dedicated in memory of former parishioners who have made significant contributions to the church; their names are etched at the bottoms of each window.

Bishop Arthur J. O’Neill officiated during a ceremony in 1987 celebrating the 75th anniversary of the current church’s start of construction. O’Neill once suggested to Kramer that he write a book about the stained glass works around the Diocese.

“The stained glass windows are just out of sight,” Kramer said. “They’re incredible. The workmanship is absolutely incredible and beyond belief.”

For the past decade, services at St. Flannen and St. Mary have been conducted by pastors at St. Patrick in Amboy. St. Flannen held a picnic in October at the church to recognize its 125th anniversary under St. Flannen’s name.

The Diocese may consider cost-cutting measures in the coming years, Kramer said, but he hopes St. Flannen doesn’t fall victim to closure. For now, the church is holding its own, and its congregation remains committed to making the church an important part of not just Harmon, but also western Lee County. The church’s weekly budget need of $795 has often been surpassed throughout the year, and some Sunday collections, such as one in midNovember, have nearly doubled the need.

“It’s a real close-knit community,” Kramer said. “They’ve been there for one another and pray for each other. They are proud of their church and proud to bring people here. They were also proud to be buried at Holy Cross Cemetery.

They’re the ones who kept this building up.” n Cody Cutter can be reached at 815-632-2532 or ccutter@shawmedia.com.

LIFE’S BETTER WHEN YOU’RE PROTECTED UNDER OUR ROOF.

St. Flannen Catholic Church, 213 S. Second St. in Harmon, celebrates Mass at 8:30 a.m. every Sunday. Find “Saints Patrick, Mary, and Flannen” on Facebook, go to stpatrickamboy.org, or call 815857-2670 for more information.

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We Are Hiring Join Our Team OPEN POSITIONS EMT • EMT/ Firefighter • Paid-On-Call FF/EMT (training provided by us) We hire/ fill 12-hour shifts, 24-hours shifts. We provide continuing education.

Resumes / info can be sent to

jeffbryant@amboyfire.com

SM-ST2127834

www.amboyfd.com

36 | A Shaw Media Publication | Small Town Living East | Winter 2023

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12/11/2023 3:22:28 PM