WE'RE DOOMED??

     "Things will never be the same".........and they shouldn't be.
     Time passes and yes, things do change. Some for the better and......
     I, the Kornerman, assumes you're still not driving that real "old" Chevy or wearing that leisure suit, The outhouse is gone and the hair's not as thick but....
     The point is.....yes, we're all disapointed that our Boone Iowa "downtown" is missing those clothing and shoe stores and the JCP's and Sears outlets, drug stores and the Coney Island's BUT have you driven around town lately? All is not lost.
     New projects have emerged, some stores have relocated and have you ever seen as much new construction, houses and otherwise, as we saw this Spring/Summer?
     And, in this edition, I'm going to tell you about two of the biggest and best "new" opportunities for optimism for our community......one for certain and the other a "maybe."
     (1) Our Des Moines Area Community College Boone Campus is like a "city within a city" and aren't we happy to have it?
     This ever expanding asset will be "at it again" in the coming months.
     Plans are well underway for a 28,500 square foot "Enhanced Recreation" facility on campus. Plans are for breaking ground in April, 2020, and have the $6 1/2 million project open by the Spring of 2021.
     The DMACC Board of Directors is seeking $750,000 in private support but will cover the remainder of the cost.
     The facility will provide numerous fitness opportunities, athletic training rooms and indoor practice facilities for sports teams and its hoped that it will draw various youth camps for such activities as basketball and volleyball tournaments. All good for this community, right?
     Who would have thunk it? Boone Junior College began in 1927 and after homes on the third floor of Boone High School and as part of an old Franklin elementary building, a final move was made to the current 23 acre plot and inclusion as part of DMACC in September of 1967.
     As a result, the Boone community has received an influx of 2,500 students each semester, 45 full-time faculty positions, 25 adjunct positions, 75 other full-time employees and the only one of DMACC's campuses offering eight NJCAA Division II sports programs.
     The Kornerman cannot conclude this history without mention of the importance of a strong Boone presence through the years on the nine-member DMACC Board of Directors. At the beginning, late attorney Lloyd Courter, BHS-53, was a board member who exhibited great influence in guiding the board to a Boone destination when it could have, very well, landed elsewhere.
     After Courter, the late Dr. Wayne Rouse followed up with several years of "making sure" the Boone campus was well respected and given full backing. In the most recent years, Fred Greiner, a former Boone businessman, has taken the reins to assure that the Boone Campus continues to receive strong and expanding support.
     This triumvirate deserves the communities profound "thanks." Without their dedication to this community and Boone Campus, DMACC certainly could have found a much different location.
     (2) The "maybe" is the possibility of a newly constructed $8 million Boone Recreation Center to, somewhat, at least, replace the loss of a long-time Boone resident......the YM and previously YWCA.
     Meetings are being held, a committee has been formed and even a possible location on current city property has been discussed.
     The committee's conceptual presentation shows a pool with rental space for parties and private events, a kid's wading pool, an exercise/fitness room, a full-sized gymnasium with walking track, a Yoga/aerobics center, a rentable banquet/community space, locker rooms and a small resource room.
     Currently, this project is a "dream" but serious study is taking place on a regular basis and its hoped that the new year will provide some clear-cut answers.
K-----K
     BOONE CONNECTED DEATHS: Jennifer Baldwin Gilpin, 51, Ogden/Boone. Was adopted by Dr. Bernard and Joyce Baldwin at the age of 9 and moved to Boone. BHS-87. Was an Air Force vet. Married Samuel Gilpin and moved back to Boone. Moved to Ogden in 2007. Survivors include two daughters, her mother, and four sisters, including Anne Baldwin of Boone........Sheryl Disbrowe, 75, Boone. Grand Comm HS grad. Worked at several area nursing homes. Survivors include two daughters, a son, a sister and her brother, Lance Larson, of Boone........Vanita Pearl McCambridge, 104, Boone. Born in Boone. BHS-33. Married Loran McCambridge in 1937 and he passed away in 1952. Worked at Boyd's Dairy for 25 years, prior to retirement in 1980. Survivors include a son, Michael of Boone, and two daughters, including Glenda Camelin of Boone. A sister also survives.......Constance Larrew, 75, Boone. Born in Boone. Married Antonio Silva and they were divorced in 1984. Worked 20 years at K-Mart and 20 years at Walmart. Survivors include two sons, a daughter, Cindy Holmes of Boone, three brothers, a sister, a half-sister and her step-mother..........Elizabeth Botos Thornburg, 76. Was a legal secretary. Married John Thornburg and they farmed near Ogden. John passed away in 2011. Two daughters survive........Harriett Henry, 93, Des Moines.Was born in Boxholm in 1926.........Barbara Johnson Carlson, 76, Spring Lake Park, MN. BHS-61. Was a city council member for 22 years and a member of the city planning and zoning committee prior to that. Had also been a paraprofessional at Park Terrace Elementary school. Three children and her husband, Gary Carlson, survive.
K-----K
     Worldwide Korner headquarters are located at 928 South Jackson, Boone, Iowa 50036-4932. Phone number is 515-432-1530. To email your stories/memories/comments.....
kelleyskorner1@gmail.com.