Seeing history
The "flying boxcar" has landed….on its display site.
This past week, Atterbury-Bakalar Air Museum volunteers, with the help of numerous professionals, completed a two-day move of the museum’s C-119 aircraft to its new home near the Columbus Municipal Airport.
The 40,000-pound plane, now located just south of the McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom II aircraft at the museum, was purchased in 2019 and transported in pieces from Greybull, Wyoming, to the airport last year.
Over the last several months, the plane has been reassembled in a restoration hangar at the airport. Fully assembled, the aircraft is 86 feet long with a 110-foot wingspan and is 27 feet tall at the tail.
The planes are of particular significance to Columbus, as 36 C-119s were stationed at Bakalar Air Force Base from 1957 to 1969.
Thanks to the work, and vision, of a few volunteers, a significant piece of our local history will be enjoyed for years to come.
Honoring our vets
After a year when almost every Memorial Day service was canceled, Bartholomew County has a slew of events planned for the 2021 holiday.
The first in Columbus, on May 31, will be held at 9 a.m. on the walkway of the Robert N. Stewart Bridge, the second starts at 10 a.m. at Garland Brook Cemetery, and the third is at 11 a.m. next to the Bartholomew County Memorial for Veterans downtown.
The most significant change this year will take place during the 11 a.m. service, as organizers have added a balloon release. As each name of a local veteran who has died over the last year is read, a helium-filled balloon will be released in the veteran’s honor.
In Hope, American Legion Post 229 will continue to hold its annual services. The yearly pilgrimage will start at 8:30 a.m. at Sharon Cemetery before traveling to seven more locations; concluding at the Hope Moravian Cemetery Veteran Memorial.
We encourage all to participate in at least one service this Memorial Day. It’s the least we can do for those that gave the ultimate sacrifice.
Keeping it clean
Ethnic Expo 2021 will prove a little greener than past events.
Local recycling officials plan to use a grant from the Indiana Department of Environmental Management’s Community Recycling program to support recycling at all four weekends of this year’s festivities.
In past years, the city has tried to increase recycling from the event, but because of contamination most if not all of the waste still ended up in the landfill. This year’s expo will span across four different weekends, kicking-off on June 19, due to COVID-19.
Each year, Ethnic Expo draws more than 30,000 people from across the state. It is projected that 1,400 to 3,200 pounds of materials will be diverted from the landfill thanks to the new recycling effort.
Kudos to all those that made the grant possible, as well as the volunteers that are planning to sign up and help keep Columbus clean.
