On August 21st at 2 p.m. The Champaign County Historical Society will present William C. Hunter (better known as “Chomp”), a lifelong resident of Mechanicsburg, in an impromptu session as he tells stories about his unique life, work, and travels.
Chomp, 82, had the privilege of serving as an aide, driver, and ranch manager for another county son, William B. Saxbe, during his tenure as U.S. Senator from Ohio, U.S. Attorney General, and Ambassador to India from 1968 – 1976.
During his time with Saxbe, and later, on his own, Chomp traveled around the globe three times. Not knowing a stranger, his greatest joy was consistently wandering “off the beaten path” to 
meet local residents. This was rewarding for him

Here’s the scoop – the Historical Society is holding an old fashion ice cream social on July 24 from 2-5 pm on the lawn of the Museum.  Don’t miss this opportunity to relax under the trees and enjoy your favorite ice cream concoction. A variety of flavors and toppings will be offered along with your choice of cake or pie. There is no entry fee, just pay when you order your favorite sweet!
 
To ensure a successful event, help from the membership is needed.  We need help with set up and tear down of the tables and the popup tents. Also, volunteers to serve the “sweets” and direct parking. For the bakers in the group, we invite you to donate a cake! Let’s get those mixing bowls out and stir up a “taste of heaven”!
  
We will order pies from Stephens Orchard and will accept donations of $12.00/pie if you would like to sponsor a pie.  All donations are greatly appreciated!
 
Please contact event chairman, Sandy Gonzalez (937-408-4195) with any questions and to volunteer – we need your help! This is a fundraiser for the CCHS, spread the word!
  
Celebrate National Ice Cream Month the old fashion way – visiting friends under the shade trees while enjoying an ice cold treat on a lazy summer day!   
 
 See you July 24!

On June 12, 2022 at 2 p.m. Paul Kari will be presenting a program on his time in the military including the time he spent in the Hanoi Hilton during the Vietnam Conflict. The program will be at the Champaign County Historical Society (CCHS), 809 E. Lawn Ave., Urbana.
Paul Anthony Kari born on November 25, 1935, in Akron, Ohio. He graduated from Ohio State University in 1958. He entered pilot training at Bainbridge, GA., and was first in his class at all four training bases. He was initially assigned to fly the F-100 at Ramstein AB, Germany. While there, he was selected to represent the United States in the first NATO Gunnery meet individually winning the “TOP GUN” trophy for the USA.
In 1964, he flew the F-4C out of MacDill AFB, FL. He qualified expert in all phases f conventional and nuclear delivery in just two missions. He entered the Vietnam conflict on April 4, 1965 and was the first USAF F-4 to fly in combat. On his 69th mission, June 20, 1965, he was shot down 

The Champaign County Historical Society will host artist Michael Major for a presentation at 2 p.m. on Sunday, March 6. His presentation will be based on a book that he is completing for his family titled An Artist’s Memories about his career of creating drawings, paintings and sculpture. He will show pictures from the book of the artwork and explain how drawing is the foundation for painting and sculpture.

Major has completed over 200 bronze sculptures including large public monuments and small limited edition castings. Those monuments include life-size and larger than life monuments of public figures such as Simon Kenton,William Tecumseh Sherman, Abraham Lincoln, George Rogers Clark, Mother Alfred Moes (founder of the Mayo Clinic) and many more.

On January 16, 2022, at 2 p.m. Sgt. Shawn Schmidt will present a program on identifying drugs. There will be a PowerPoint slide show with photographs to help people identify different types of drugs and drug paraphernalia. He will also go over the effects drugs could have on someone and common signs of drug usage. He also will bring many items / paraphernalia that have been seized.

Click here to see more Upcoming Events and Programs at the Museum.

Nancy Patzer: A Light In The Sky
At the Urbana Aviation Museum on Sunday, July 25 at 2 p.m., Nancy Patzer will present a program on Warren Grimes, a member of the National Aviation Hall of Fame.

Grimes, the inventor of the familiar red, green and white navigation lights still found on the wing tips and tails of modern aircraft, made his home in Urbana, Ohio and created an internationally-known company, Grimes Manufacturing. As businessman and community leader, Grimes provided jobs for thousands of local workers and built the Grimes Field airport on the north side of town.

From his humble beginnings in an orphanage near Dayton, and as a day worker at Ford Motor Company, Grimes had the grit and ambition, not to mention ingenuity, to live the American Dream. Grimes served as mayor of Urbana and chairman of the State of Ohio Aviation Board. This “Father of the Aircraft Lighting Industry” built airplane lighting that helped the U.S. and Allied Forces win World War II.

Grimes Manufacturing is now part of Honeywell International’s Aerospace Division. Mr. Grimes passed away in 1975. In an effort to celebrate Grimes and his legacy, Mike Major, visual artist and sculptor, published a book on Grimes at Main Graphics, his design shop in downtown Urbana. With the help of writer Nancy Patzer, who grew up in Urbana and has written historical non-fiction throughout her writing career, the book is called “A Light in the Sky: A Biography of Warren G. Grimes and the History of Aviation Lighting.”

Patzer, a 1983 graduate of Urbana High School, currently resides in Columbus, Ohio. She has written a number of articles on Ohio history. She owns a marketing communications company, providing consulting services to the residential housing and healthcare industries. Patzer also dabbles in fiction and has twice received the Thurber Treat Award for Humorous Fiction by the Thurber House Literary Center.

1950 National Plowing Contest
On Sunday, Aug. 15 at 2 p.m. at the Champaign County Historical Museum at 809 East Lawn Avenue, there will be a program on the 1950 National Plowing Contest that was held in Champaign County. There will be several presenters talking about their memories of this event. The presenters will include: Howard Brust discussing the history of this event, members of the Dean Wilson family relating how the publicity from their father’s success affected their family, Sue Evans Berkemeier covering the conservation project connected with the event, and finally, Sarah Finch will introduce Shirley “Payne” Prosser who was crowned the Queen of the Furrow of Champaign County in 1950.

A third is Buzz Jackson, who has been a collector since 1969 with a specialty in military items, known as “militaria.” He became interested in military items during the centennial of the Civil War, and has since become an expert on artifacts from all U.S. wars. Jackson has appeared on WGBH Television’s “Antiques Road Show” and brings that level of expertise to the Champaign County Antique Appraisal Fair. He looks forward to helping you learn what your prized possession is worth.

The fourth appraiser is actually a team of auctioneers from Springfield – Perry Conley and Charlie Ferris. The two are with the Conley Auction Service and specialize in all forms of antiques and real estate. They will be our “generalist” appraisers. Both are natives of Clark County and have been in the auction trade for a combined 40 years. Conley and Ferris are well known among Champaign County’s antique and collectible dealers and have volunteered their time due to the persuasiveness of our local dealers.