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Happy Sesquicentennial, Traer!

Community marks 150 years with Taylor Park bash

Children of all ages look up and around in both wonder and excitement as paper confetti streams down from above in Taylor Park last Saturday afternoon just after 1:50 p.m. in celebration of Traer’s 150th birthday. PHOTO BY SOREN M. PETERSON
Traer Sesquicentennial Committee member Michelle Podhajsky, left, improvises lighting what proved to be some very tricky candles on the town’s birthday cake while Lane Svoboda provides the honorary blowing out last Saturday in Taylor Park to kick off the Big Birthday Bash festivities. PHOTO BY SOREN M. PETERSON
Traer Mayor Pete Holden smiles while standing next to his town’s 150th birthday cake in Taylor Park on Saturday. After the novelty cake’s sparkler candles were finally lit and extinguished, free chocolate sheet cake (not pictured) complete with white frosting and colorful sprinkles was served to all who desired a slice. PHOTO BY RUBY F. MCALLISTER
Members of the North Tama Pep Band and Alumni Players under the direction of teacher Channing Halstead (back row, third from left, playing trumpet) perform shortly after noon last Saturday as part of Traer’s Sesquicentennial celebration in Taylor Park. The band played several upbeat songs including the North Tama fight song to help kick off the day’s Big Birthday Bash festivities. PHOTO BY RUBY F. MCALLISTER
Participants in the Neon Color Run get the day started by tossing powder into the air just prior to the run’s start. PHOTO COURTESY OF TRISH KENNEDY
PHOTO BY SOREN M. PETERSON
A young runner makes his way up Linn Street during the North Tama Spanish Club’s Neon Color Run Saturday morning. PHOTO BY SOREN M. PETERSON
A pair of young runners make their way down the street covered in colorful powder during the Neon Color Run sponsored by the North Tama Spanish Club last Saturday morning. PHOTO BY SOREN M. PETERSON
Johnathan Cochran grins and bears it while being doused with powder during the North Tama Spanish Club’s Neon Color Run Saturday morning. PHOTO BY SOREN M. PETERSON
Johnathan Cochran smiles and laughs while being doused with colored powder by members of the North Tama Spanish Club during the group’s Neon Color Run. PHOTO BY SOREN M. PETERSON
Traer’s Big Birthday Bash Master of Ceremonies Keith Kennedy pictured last Saturday in Taylor Park. PHOTO BY SOREN M. PETERSON
Members of the Kubik-Finch American Legion Post 142 kick off Traer’s Big Birthday Bash festivities with a ceremony that included reciting the Pledge of Allegiance and singing the National Anthem on Saturday in Taylor Park. PHOTO BY SOREN M. PETERSON
Traer Sesquicentennial Committee member Michelle Podhajsky, left, and Shannon Svoboda, right, smile while working to light the town’s sparkler birthday candles last Saturday in Taylor Park. Shannon’s son Lane Svoboda, center, looks on in delight. PHOTO BY SOREN M. PETERSON
Under the watchful eye of their caregiver Mary Boldt, right, youngsters enjoy free birthday cake in the Taylor Park Shelter House in honor of Traer’s Sesqucentennial. PHOTO BY RUBY F. MCALLISTER
A member of the Traer Sesquicentennial Committee passes out free birthday cake from the Taylor Park Shelter House as part of Traer’s Big Birthday Bash. PHOTO BY RUBY F. MCALLISTER
Cousins Oaklee Garwood, left, and Brynn Roth, both age 2, say “Cheese!” for the camera in the Taylor Park Shelter House as they enjoy slices of free birthday cake. Both girls also participated in the North Tama Spanish Club’s Neon Fun Run earlier that day which was oragnized by Brynn’s mother Kami Roth (not pictured), the district’s Spanish teacher. PHOTO BY RUBY F. MCALLISTER
High school flutists (l-r) Briar Blake, Ava Monat, and Emily Hulme perform as part of the North Tama Pep Band and Alumni Players Saturday morning near the Taylor Park gazebo. PHOTO BY RUBY F. MCALLISTER
Members of the North Tama Pep Band and Alumni Players perform Saturday morning in Taylor Park. The band featured mostly junior high/high school students alongside a small but mighty group of alumni players. PHOTO BY RUBY F. MCALLISTER
PHOTO BY RUBY F. MCALLISTER
North Tama band director Channing Halstead, right, performs on the trumpet alongside both students and alumni players last Saturday morning in Taylor Park. Halstead traveled back from Des Moines early Saturday morning — where her daughter was playing in a softball tournament — to lead the North Tama Pep Band and Alumni Players as part of the Sesquicentennial festivities. PHOTO BY RUBY F. MCALLISTER
Members of the North Tama Pep Band and Alumni Players including (l-r) Case Monat, Class of 2008 graduate Mackenzie Raubs, Max Monat, and Izzy Hallett keep the music flying during the band’s performance Saturday in Taylor Park. PHOTO BY RUBY F. MCALLISTER
Bob Vokoun performs on the bass drum as a member of the North Tama Alumni Players last Saturday in Taylor Park. PHOTO BY RUBY F. MCALLISTER
PHOTO BY RUBY F. MCALLISTER
PHOTO BY RUBY F. MCALLISTER
PHOTO BY RUBY F. MCALLISTER
A pair of members from Ripley United Church of Christ smile while churning ice cream outside the church as part of Traer’s Big Birthday Bash celebration Saturday afternoon. The church, which is located west of Taylor Park, held a homemade ice cream and pie social alongside a quilt sale from noon to 8 p.m. PHOTO BY RUBY F. MCALLISTER
Quilt blocks from one of two ‘Opperman Quilts'' on display at Ripley United Church of Christ during Traer’s Big Birthday Bash. The quilts were made by members of the church and given to its longest serving pastor Reverend Robert Opperman upon his retirement in 1985. Both quilts were on loan to the church from the Traer Historical Museum. PHOTO BY RUBY F. MCALLISTER
PHOTO BY RUBY F. MCALLISTER
PHOTO BY RUBY F. MCALLISTER
PHOTO BY RUBY F. MCALLISTER
PHOTO BY RUBY F. MCALLISTER
Handmade quilts line the sanctuary pews of Ripley United Church of Christ last Saturday as part of Traer’s Sesquicentennial celebrations. In the basement of the church a homemade pie and ice cream social took place in tandem with the quilt display and sale. PHOTO BY RUBY F. MCALLISTER
PHOTO BY RUBY F. MCALLISTER
Jim Kucera of Elkhorn, Nebraska plays the accordion under the Taylor Park gazebo as he leads the Jim Kucera Band in an upbeat polka last Saturday afternoon in Traer. It had been 30 years since Kucera and his band played in Traer at the annual Czech Festival – now the Winding Stairs Festival – held in August. PHOTO BY SOREN M. PETERSON
Traer resident, North Tama High School graduate, and Sons of the American Legion historian Kennan Seda dances a polka on Saturday in Taylor Park. PHOTO BY SOREN M. PETERSON
Traer Municipal Utilities’ boom lift rises above the crowd in Taylor Park at 1:50 p.m. last Saturday as part of a surprise event which proved to be a massive confetti and candy drop in honor of Traer’s 150th birthday. PHOTO BY SOREN M. PETERSON
Confetti shoots out of a canon and falls through the air from Traer Municipal Utilities’ boom lift last Saturday in Taylor Park. PHOTO BY SOREN M. PETERSON
Children scramble for candy and prizes as confetti continues to fall around them last Saturday in Taylor Park just after 1:50 p.m. PHOTO BY SOREN M. PETERSON
PHOTO BY RUBY F. MCALLISTER
A young boy, center, grins with glee after scoring a stuffed toy monkey from the Traer’s Big Birthday Bash candy and prize drop held at 1:50 p.m. in Taylor Park. PHOTO BY SOREN M. PETERSON
Under the direction of Pastor Mark Keefer, left, Traer residents living ‘west of Hwy 63’ line up for what was slated to be a “photo-op only” tug-of-war competition in Taylor Park last Saturday afternoon. The east side participants – who were stationed on a downward slope – ended up winning the competition when someone unexpectedly yelled ‘Go!’ PHOTO BY SOREN M. PETERSON
PHOTO BY RUBY F. MCALLISTER
Under the direction of Pastor Mark Keefer, right, Traer residents living ‘east of Hwy 63’ including Michelle Podhajsky (second from right) line up for what was slated to be a “photo-op only” tug-of-war competition in Taylor Park last Saturday afternoon. The east side participants stationed on a downward slope ended up winning the competition when someone unexpectedly yelled ‘Go!’ PHOTO BY SOREN M. PETERSON
The Junkyard Bar’s front window lit up on Saturday evening during the Traer’s Big Birthday Bash celebrations. Due to the rainy weather much of the day, the planned Taylor Park beer garden festvities were moved from the park to the downtown bar where 150th commemorative Czech Pilsner (pictured) brewed by Millstream Brewery for The Junkyard was served to both Czech and non-Czech drinkers alike. PHOTO BY RUBY F. MCALLISTER

TRAER – Traer’s Big Birthday Bash is now one for the (history) books following the daylong event held last Saturday in Taylor Park in honor of the town’s Sesquicentennial year.

Amid what seemed to be some of the most persistent rain in the state on Saturday, festivities started about a half-hour before noon with North Tama Spanish Club’s Neon Color Run snaking its way among the residential neighborhoods surrounding Taylor Park. Youngster Reis Berger claimed the run’s title, easily striding up Fifth Street toward the finish well ahead of most everyone else.

Shortly thereafter, Traer’s Kubik-Finch American Legion Post 142 Color Guard officially kicked off the festivities at high noon with a ceremony held next to the park’s gazebo that included reciting the Pledge of Allegiance and the singing of the National Anthem.

After some initial trouble with tricky candles, Traer Sesquicentennial Committee member Michelle Podhajsky lit up the celebration’s novelty blue and orange birthday cake with the help of Shannon Svoboda and his son Lane.

As rain continued to fall off and on, committee members then passed around free chocolate sheet cake up and down the park to members of the public both young and young at heart.

Among those in attendance, former Traer-Star Clipper food editor Marilyn Chizek tucked into a square of cake under the park shelter’s covered porch alongside her friend JoAnn Kopriva. Both deemed the cake to be quite tasty which seemed to make up for the less-than-desirable weather.

Thankfully, a welcome break in the rain took place just before 1 p.m., allowing the North Tama Pep Band and Alumni Players under the direction of North Tama band director Channing Halstead to really get the party started by playing several upbeat songs including the school’s fight song.

The band’s performance was well-received by the many folks gathered on lawn chairs in front of the gazebo.

From 1 to 3 p.m., Jim Kucera of Elkhorn, Nebraska and his group the Jim Kucera Band performed polka after polka for the audience including one particularly well-received piece he sang entirely in Czech.

“How amazing it was to be back in Traer after 30 some years!!” Kucera later posted on Facebook. “Congrats to Traer on a great 150th celebration!!! It was very neat to connect with the late great Franklin Lundak’s daughters. Franklin lived in Traer and had an awesome polka band. He is the one who brought us to Traer all those years ago for their Czech Festival.”

Kucera took a brief pause during his set just ahead of 1:50 p.m. to allow for a surprise ‘in the sky’ to take place. A Traer Municipal Utilities’ bucket truck was then moved into position out front of the gazebo – children were asked to gather near the truck as the boom lift rose above the group.

As anticipation grew, several confetti cannons were fired and colorful paper rained down in abundance from above onto the crowd of youngsters, many shrieking in delight. Candy and trinkets were subsequently dropped from the bucket and both young and young at heart scrambled to secure a piece of birthday bash memorabilia.

Nearby just west of the park at Ripley United Church of Christ, dozens and dozens of colorful handmade quilts were on display — many for sale — in the main sanctuary while a homemade ice cream and pie social took place in tandem in the basement.

As church members churned out container after container of homemade vanilla ice cream on the sidewalk on front, Deacon Annette Knoop provided historical information about both the church and the quilts to members of the public who visited the sanctuary including the backstory on the two Opperman Quilts on display.

Reverend Robert Opperman was Ripley UCC’s longest serving pastor, Knoop said, from 1965 to 1985. Upon his retirement, the congregation gifted him two large handmade quilts with blocks made by individual church families. Both quilts, on loan to the church, were donated to the Traer Historical Museum by Rev. Opperman’s wife upon her death.

Around 3 p.m. the overcast weather finally broke for good and the sun came out to play which in turn caused the heat to crank up. Taylor Park’s stately trees provided welcome shade for those in attendance at the gazebo for all the ‘homegrown’ musical acts which included, among others, Carri Holst, Kevin Wood, Gayle Lundak, Candy Thomas Glasco, and Jenny Hulme.

As the festivities wound down, a tug-of-war took place just after 6 p.m. on the south side of the park between those living east of Hwy 63 and those residing west of the thoroughfare.

Although the activity had been billed as just a photo-op, an errant “Go!” was yelled by someone from the east side and in less than five seconds the west side – positioned at the top of the hill – had been pulled over by those mischievous east-siders.

Traer’s big bash came to an end later in the evening with the showing of the film Space Jam on a giant inflatable screen set up on the northwest side of the park.

Following such a full day of activities – many of which were not even mentioned in this story – Traer’s Big Birthday Bash will be hard to top for those who plan its 175th anniversary celebration set to take place in 2048.

In the words of Traer resident Daron “Jake” Jacobs through a post made on his business’s — the Wind Up Lounge — Facebook page, the Traer Sesquicentennial Committee and all the supporting businesses really “knocked it out of the park” this year.