History Comes Alive: Odon Guitar & James L. Stephens

Posted on Friday, May 11, 2018 by Tim

Photo of Columbia CemeteryOn Monday, May 28 from 1-4 p.m. the Friends of the Historic Columbia Cemetery will be hosting their second annual History Comes Alive event to teach attendees about notable citizens buried in this historic cemetery. Seven different “famous” former residents of Columbia will be represented by various talented actors  in period dress who will explain why they were important to local history. The actors are being directed by Chris Campbell, executive Director of the Boone County History and Culture Center. Monica McMurry of Stephens College Theatre Department is in charge of costumes. You will be guided to each of their graves to experience these brief monologues.

In a previous post we talked about Victor Barth and John Lange, Sr., and in this installment we will discuss Brigadier General Odon Guitar and James L. Stephens. Continue reading “History Comes Alive: Odon Guitar & James L. Stephens”

History Comes Alive: Victor Barth & John Lange, Sr.

Posted on Friday, May 4, 2018 by Tim

Columbia Cemetery in fallHave Memorial Day plans? Mark your calendar to spend time with us as some old faces of Columbia come to life at the Columbia Cemetery. On Monday, May 28, the Friends of the Historic Columbia Cemetery will be hosting their second annual History Comes Alive tour of notable people buried in the cemetery. This free event will have local actors portraying the lives of seven of the citizens who helped make Columbia the community it is.

Last year’s event was very successful — many enjoyed the sunshine while re-enactors explained their lives and what they did to become a “notable” in their lifetimes. This year should be just as great! Below are highlights of just a couple of the citizens being featured. Continue reading “History Comes Alive: Victor Barth & John Lange, Sr.”

The Orphan Train Comes to Central Missouri

Posted on Wednesday, March 21, 2018 by Tim

The first reference I heard to orphan trains was when my dad and I were at the New Hope Baptist Church Cemetery located southeast of Centralia, and he said, “That guy buried there came on the orphan train.” Dad was head deacon of the church at that time, and he knew most of the people who were buried in the small church’s cemetery. I later found out Charlie Rose came to the area on the orphan train, lived with a local family and later married a local girl, Maggie Mayes. His brother Donald Rose — also an orphan form New York — was sent to a family in the Rolla area. Both brothers settled around Mexico, MO for a while, and Donald married Maggie’s sister Janie. Though Donald would later die near St. Louis just months after his wife Janie, both couples were buried in this little church cemetery outside Centralia.

Flyer for home for children on orphan trains

Fourteen children came to the area from the Children’s Aid Society on June 10, 1910 in hopes they would find a new home. Ranging in ages from 4 months old to 14 years old, 11 of them went home with families in the area. I have been able to locate either the names of the children or the names of the families that took in these children, and I’ve also discovered a total of 25 orphans who came to northern Boone or western Audrain counties to live with new foster families homes. A partial list is provided below.

The library will be hosting several programs this spring highlighting the orphan train experience. Phillip Lancaster and Alison Moore will be performing a multimedia program combining live music and storytelling along with interviews of survivors: Continue reading “The Orphan Train Comes to Central Missouri”

Previous Docs From True/False 2018 Directors

Posted on Friday, March 2, 2018 by Decimal Diver

True/False header

We’ve compiled a list of previous documentaries available at DBRL from the directors who are presenting films at this year’s True/False Film Fest.

Bart Layton
True/False 2018 film: “American Animals
Past film as director: “The Imposter

Jason Kohn
True/False 2018 film: “Love Means Zero
Past film as director: “Manda BalaContinue reading “Previous Docs From True/False 2018 Directors”

Breaking the Seal: Accessing Adoptee Birth Certificates

Posted on Wednesday, December 20, 2017 by Tim

Adoption spelled with Scrabble tilesIf you are an adoptee born in Missouri, access to a copy of your original birth certificate will now be available to you! As of January 2, 2018, a new law in Missouri will allow those 18 and older access to a copy of their original birth certificate without the need for a court order. To help celebrate this milestone event, G’s Adoption Registry is having a special event to kick off the new law. Continue reading “Breaking the Seal: Accessing Adoptee Birth Certificates”

Giving Tuesday

Posted on Monday, November 20, 2017 by Ida

When my son was five, we gave him an allowance of 50 cents per week. Usually, he took his two quarters and put them in his Thomas the Tank Engine bank with all of the other coins he’d been given during his short life. There was never anything he wanted to buy. But one day when we were taking our cat to the vet, my son insisted on carrying his life savings along with him, stating he had something important to do with it. He remembered from a previous visit that our vet’s office kept a donation box in the waiting room to collect funds for a local animal shelter. He gave all of his money to help the homeless animals.

Helping book coverIt’s a fundamental part of human nature to want to help those in need. That’s not just the view through my rose-colored glasses. There’s been research on the subject. Stefan Klein gathers and discusses much of this research in his book, “Survival of the Nicest.” He makes a case for altruism as the key to the survival of the human race. “The Giving Way to Happiness” by Jenny Santi shows that the act of giving has as many benefits for the giver as for the recipient. And Edgar Schein examines how to make sure efforts to help have the intended effect in his book “Helping: How to Offer, Give and Receive Help.” Continue reading “Giving Tuesday”

NaNoWriMO: Halfway Point Malaise?

Posted on Wednesday, November 15, 2017 by Eric

NaNoWriMo Badge

We are in the middle of NaNoWriMo, which means if you’re participating in this intense creative exercise you should have half of a new modern classic written. It probably has a rich sense of place, complex characters that the readers will love despite their flaws, romance, suspense, melancholy, hopefully a little karate and reading it will be a transformative experience. Or maybe the weight of these expectations has left you paralyzed.

If you’re stuck, I can relate. I’ve struggled with this blog post for a long time. At first I thought it would be funny to start a blog post about inspiration and writer’s block with jokes about how I couldn’t write it because of my writer’s block. Ha. After pages of hilarious riffing on that theme I realized it was trite and deleted everything. Back to the drawing board. Back to the blank screen. The screen stayed blank. For what seemed like hours I stared and the screen stared back. Then I thought I heard a voice coming from the screen. That was it! Someone discovers they have a talking computer screen and a beautiful friendship develops. No, a spicy romance. No, a professional rivalry. But what is the screen’s name? It has to have a name … Continue reading “NaNoWriMO: Halfway Point Malaise?”

Poverty Simulation

Posted on Monday, July 17, 2017 by Katherine

“As long as poverty, injustice and gross inequality exist in our world, none of us can truly rest.”                   — Nelson Mandela

Are you interested in learning about the realities of poverty in our community?

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the poverty rate in 2015 was 13.5% or 43.1 million people, which is a decrease of only 1.2% since 2014. Missouri currently has an estimated poverty rate of 15.6% or approximately 943,000 people living in poverty (American Fact Finder). In Columbia, that number is estimated at a shocking 24.4%, meaning that more than 28,000 people in Columbia are living below the poverty line (American Fact Finder).

Continue reading “Poverty Simulation”

Author Jim Butcher in Columbia

Posted on Monday, April 24, 2017 by Dana

Photos of Jim Butcher, and book covers

Jim Butcher, a Missouri author most known for The Dresden Files, is coming to Columbia.

Hell’s bells.

Well, I know what I’m doing on April 28.

The Dresden Files is an urban fantasy series that features Harry Dresden, private detective and Chicago’s only consulting wizard. The books are a delightful mix of hard-boiled crime drama and fantasy. These are the gritty Chicago streets … there just happen to be reanimated dinosaurs, too. If you’re looking to get started, the first book is Storm Front. Continue reading “Author Jim Butcher in Columbia”

Salman Rushdie, Welcome to the Unbound Book Festival!

Posted on Friday, April 21, 2017 by Reading Addict

Salman Rushdie will be the keynote speaker for the Unbound Book Festival this year. He has won more awards and accolades than I can even begin to list including the Booker Prize for his second book, “Midnight’s Children.”

I have read several books by Rushdie and I have several more on my “to read” list, and while I have enjoyed them all, the book that really struck me was his autobiography, “Joseph Anton: A Memoir.” ”Joseph Anton” chronicles the aftermath and fallout from one of his novels.  Continue reading “Salman Rushdie, Welcome to the Unbound Book Festival!”