NO SURPRISE......AT ALL

     Its not a big surprise to many.......but it may be to you.
     Among others, the entire BHS class of 1964 is going ga-ga over the news, via facebook and email, AND none of them seem completely surprised, even though many of them have "moved on." In fact, many are adding to the superlatives their old hometown is receiving.
     Here's the story: An outfit called Realtor.com annually issues a report on the Top Ten Affordable Small Towns in the USA Where You'd Actually Like to Live. The 2019 edition has been issued and is Boone, Iowa in the Top Ten? Pshaw.......we are NUMBER ONE IN THE ENTIRE NATION.
     According to the cover story by Lance Lambert (the Kornerman is curious if he's ever been to Boone in person), small town America is making a big comeback due to great affordability and a simpler way of life.
     He cites several reasons for that thought.....home prices are more reasonable, crime is lower, public schools are "decent," and "you might actually know the first and last names of your neighbors. Then, too, there are "extras" that may add to those positives.
     More specifically, Lambert points to the fact that Boone's median home cost is $134,500 with a median house income of $57,906 and two bedroom apartments that can be rented for $600 a month.
     Tacked on as "extras" are the Pufferbilly activities and a close proximity to Ames, which is beneficial to Boone in many ways. Even some of those '64 classmates added to the list......."how about the Boone Valley Brewery, skiing at Seven Oaks, the Boone and Scenic Valley Railroad, the Mamie Eisenhower birthplace, Ledges State Park and the general beauty of the central Iowa area."
     Lambert says 500 locales in the nation were studied before the final ten were announced.
     After BOONE, NUMBER ONE came Van Wert, OH; Decatur, IN; McPherson, KS; Los Alamos, NM; Austin, MN; Williston, ND; Mexico,MO; Merrill, WS and Andrews, TX in that order.
     We ALL knew it after all.........didn't we?
     P.S. In 2018, Logansport, IN. was number one and Spencer, IA number 10.
K-----K
      Old bud, Bernie Lewiston, who worked with the old Kornerman at KWBG those many years ago filled in some blanks regarding another K-dub alum, Fred Lark, we've wondered about.
     Bernie wrote, "Freddie and I graduated from Iowa State University on the same day in May of 1966. At the time, I was finishing school, was doing the 6-9 AM shift on KASI in Ames, and we were living in University Village, north of the campus. Freddie, his wife, and daughter lived in Pammel Court, just north of the campus. About once a week, Freddie and his daughter would walk up to our place for a visit in the late afternoon, and then I would drive them home. His radio stations are  in Lewistown, not Lewiston, MT. He was in Ogden last year for the 60th high school class reunion, but I didn't get to see him. I did visit with him on the phone. He's the same old Freddie. According to a website, he is now living in Arizona."
     Larry Adams, BHS-65, added the fact that Fred purchased KXLO-AM in Lewistown in 1972, took possession in 1973 as President/General Manager. In 1975, he created KLCM-FM. He started his broadcast career at KWBG in 1958 with the "Listen to the Lark" show and the "Morning Country Boy Farm Show." He pursued his radio career in Colorado, Nebraska and Wyoming before settling in Montana. In addition to his radio work, he operated a management consultant service and was an experienced private pilot. In 2007, Fred's wife, Lynnette, joined the radio family as part of the sales/marketing team.
K-----K
     Woe is me. I forgot one anniversary and want to forget another.
     I forgot to mention in the Wednesday edition that it was March 6, 2010, when we started the Korner blog online. Of course the first real Korner started in the winter of 1962 and appeared weekly in the Boone News Republican.
     The other "forget"? It comes up Monday, March 18 and its either 48 or 84. Can't remember which.
K-----K
     BOONE CONNECTED DEATHS: Leatrice Jane Olson Orr, 93, Neenah, WS.. Her parents were Joubert and Dorothy Olson. BHS-44. Married Bill Orr, BHS-46, in 1952. Worked as a telephone operator for Northwestern Bell in Boone prior to 1965 retirement. The couple moved to Arizona for several years. Survivors include two daughters, three sisters and a brother..........Gary Wallace, 76, Ogden. Married Judith Heckert in 1965. Lived in Center Point and Oskaloosa before moving to Ogden to  work for Price Construction. Then became Ogden's Street Superintendent until retirement in 2006. Later, worked at Don Williams campground and for Pete Bergstrom until 2017. Survivors include his wife, Judy, and brother, Craig, both of Ogden and his mother, Leah Wallace, and sister, Debbie Wallace, of Boone. Two daughters also survive..........Marcia Beaman, 65, Boone. BHS-72. Homemaker. Her mother, Leola Howe, son, Kris, and sister-in-law, Mary Beth Howe, all of Boone survive. One daughter also survives........Marian Miller, 91, rural Madrid. Married Donald Miller in 1963. Lived in  Washington state, Huxley, Boone and Madrid. Worked at a grocery store and later, owned and operated the Viking Villa Lounge and Restaurant in Huxley. A son, Ron Miller, of Madrid and a daughter survive........Evelyn Ingram, 78, Boone. Married Ernest Ingram in 1957. Worked at Bourns in Ames for 17 years and was a house cleaner. Retired in 2006. Three sons and two daughters survive including Brian, Linda and Kim, all of Boone. A sister also survives.
K-----K
     Worldwide Korner headquarters headquarters are located at 928 South Jackson, Boone, Iowa 50036-4932. Phone number is 515-432-1530. To email your stories/memories/comment....
kelleyskorner1@gmail.com.