Bluegrass Roots

Roger Huron of Pleasant sits in the back of the music hall before being called up to play in the fiddling contest at the Neavill's Grove Old Settlers Meeting on Friday, August 25. (©Ken Ritchie/The Madison Courier)

Before taking the stage, Roger Huron of Pleasant (right) plays banjo accompaniment for Rod Fiske of Greensburg (left). Huron and Fiske played together like old friends even though they had never met each other before. (©Ken Ritchie/The Madison Courier)

Bluegrass musician Roger Huron's passion for music started early in life. By the age of 4, whenever his family would return home from church he would run straight to the piano in the living room. "I'd hunt and peck out the songs I'd heard in church," Huron said. He then pantomimed playing a keyboard and sang out "Jesus...loves...me...this...I...know."

But Huron said that in order to tell his story; you have to start with his mother. "She saw the natural ability in me early on and always encouraged me to play," Huron said.

Huron's mother, Mildred, had always played piano in the Huron home and came from a musical family. She let him start taking piano lessons at age 12. However, he could quickly tell that there were other instruments that he would be more suited for.

When Mildred let her son expand his lessons at age 14, he went to Rising Sun musician Clara Eggleston, who taught him the fundamentals of guitar and fiddle playing. He took his lessons and went on to play in a series of rock and country bands in the 1960s.

Huron said by the end of the '60s he had grown tired of playing electric guitar with all the extra gear that he would have to haul around in order to play his music. "I stopped electric and became more of a purist," Huron said.

With a renewed interest in bluegrass and mountain music, Huron took up the fiddle again and also began playing the banjo.

"I played some really bad fiddle for a long time," Huron said, "until I figured out to follow with the tune and keep that bow down on the strings."

In 1971 Huron played in his first fiddling contest at the Versailles Pumpkin Show. It was at that contest that he met Fiddlin' Dick Wilson. "He was mountain through and through," Huron said about the man who would become his musical inspiration.

As the years have passed, Huron has been able to play with some of the best local bluegrass talents. "It's a common interest that brings us together," Huron said. "You don't meet many strangers in these circles."

Mike Summers, who played banjo accompaniment for Huron at the Neavill's Grove Old Settlers Meeting fiddling contest Friday, said the years have been good to Huron's music. "I haven't played with him in 20 years," said Summers after they got off stage. "He's come along real well."

Huron's mother died recently after a long illness. "I used to sit at her bedside and play for hours on end," Huron said. "She always encouraged my playing, and I'll always remember her for that."

He said he still plays for her when he picks up the fiddle or banjo, whether on stage or at home. (Story - ©Ken Ritchie/The Madison Courier)

I See the Light

Electrician Larry Bowmer of Greenfield stands in a bucket truck high above the intersection of Walnut and Main Streets to install a new LED traffic signal light on Monday, August 28. Bowmer is working with a crew from the Indianapolis based James H. Drew Corporation to replace the traffic signals on Main Street from Walnut to Cragmont Streets and at the intersection of 3rd and Jefferson Streets. Bowmer says the LED lights are longer lasting, more energy efficient and brighter than the traditional incandescent lights. The amber lights in the center of the signals will still be incandescent for the time being because the state has not approved an amber LED yet. In addition to the different lights, the housing for the signals is made of a plastic material that weighs less and is more resilient to weathering than the traditional metal housings. The crews have replaced the pedestrian crosswalk signals as well. The new signals have an expected life span of 15 to 20 years. (©Ken Ritchie/The Madison Courier)

Electrician Larry Bowmer of Greenfield stands in a bucket truck high above the intersection of Walnut and Main Streets to install a new LED traffic signal light on Monday, August 28. (©Ken Ritchie/The Madison Courier)

This is Only a Drill

Eva Eades sits inside and watches the Jennings County Hazardous Materials Team set up a decontamination area during a mock accident near her house in Canaan on Saturday, August 12. (©Ken Ritchie/The Madison Courier)

A "victim" is pinned between a tank of Anhydrous Ammonia and a car as "poison gas" spills out over the scene during a mock accident in Canaan on Saturday, August 12. (©Ken Ritchie/The Madison Courier)

Brian Basham of the Canaan Volunteer Fire Department carries a "victim" away from an accident and the "poison gas" of a compromised tank of Anhydrous Ammonia during a mock accident on Saturday, August 12. (©Ken Ritchie/The Madison Courier)

Residents can rest assured that if a hazardous- material spill occurred in the rural town of Canaan, rescue personnel would be ready to handle it. That was the conclusion reached Saturday after a mock wreck between a car and a truck towing a tank of anhydrous ammonia was staged on the outskirts of town.

The drill brought together the Canaan Volunteer Fire Department, the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office dispatch office, the Madison Township Hazardous Materials Team, the Jennings County Hazardous Materials Team, the King's Daughters' Hospital EMS, and the North Vernon-based PMI Air Medical helicopter unit.

"There was excellent communication between all the teams," said Mike Stackhouse of the Madison Township Hazardous Materials Team after the drill. "Leadership was good from all the chiefs. Everybody knew what to do and where to lead their people."

The scenario had a car wrecked into a tank of anhydrous ammonia that was being towed onto the road near a farm on the curve of a road. A dummy representing the most seriously injured person was pinned between the car and the chemical tank. Smoke flares were set out along the road to simulate the leaking gas from the tank.

Canaan Volunteer Fire Department Chief Curt Schrock said his department's job was to move onto the scene with the proper gear and get the victims away from the continuing danger. "Everything went well," Schrock said. "We took care of the initial response and HAZMAT moved in to do their job of decontaminating the victims and our crew, then taking care of the spill."

Eva Eades watched the scene unfold from a comfortable seat just inside the storm door at the back of her home. Eades said she enjoyed the show, saying it was the most excitement that she has seen in the 50 years that she had lived in her home.

As the victims were moved upwind from the flow of "poison gas," the rescuers rated the injuries and called for a rescue helicopter for the most seriously injured victim. Before the stretchers could be taken away by ambulances or by helicopter, the patients had to be taken through decontamination lines that were set up by a Hazardous Materials Team from Jennings County. From that point on they could be taken for treatment as any other injured patient would be.

This major, interdepartmental drill is conducted in different areas of the county each year. It is done in addition to drills and training conducted on a regular basis by individual departments.

"We've had real situations like this before," Stackhouse said. "And we'll be ready for the next one." (Story - ©Ken Ritchie/The Madison Courier)

Walking Across the U.S.

Stuart Hamilton (right) of Herne Bay, England, and Dave Toolan of Redditch, England, walk down US 421 toward Madison on Thursday, August 31. The two are walking across America from the East to the West coasts. (©Ken Ritchie/The Madison Courier)

There are a lot of ways to see a foreign country. Some travelers take trips to the famous scenic views and landmarks seen in the movies or on postcards.

When Stuart Hamilton of Herne Bay, England, and Dave Toolan of Redditch, England, came to America, they decided to forgo the usual tourist route. Instead, they embarked on a pedestrian adventure that is taking them through the heart of the country.

Basing their route on the American Discovery Trail with several planned side trips along the way, the two have traveled from Cape Henloppen in Delaware to Madison.

Moving through the states of Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia, Ohio and Kentucky, Hamilton and Toolan said they have met with people who span the gamut of political, religious, social and economic backgrounds.

"People have been gracious wherever we've been," Hamilton said. "We've stayed in a variety of places."

More than just sightseeing, the two are walking with a purpose. Hamilton's goal is to "get to the bottom of the American psyche." A researcher and librarian by trade, Hamilton is on a quest to discover the feelings and thoughts of Americans in the post-Sept. 11 world. He wants to find out their view of Europe and figure out what the Americans' self-image is in relation to their country's standing in the world and in relation to their fellow Americans.

So far, he said, he has witnessed an abundance of goodwill from the people they have met, but nearly every person or group has expressed an underlying fear of the future and the world outside of their communities.

Hamilton is also gauging the political climate of the country away from the poll numbers and target audiences that the foreign community usually hears about when America is discussed.

"I would say people we have met are split about 60-40, with liberals in the majority," Hamilton said. "Of course, we aren't even half way through yet. Everything could change as we move west."

Unlike for Hamilton, this trip does not mark Toolan's first sojourn into the States. He lived in Knoxville, Tenn., for a short time in the mid-1990s. And while Hamilton's reasons for the trip are more academic, Toolan is here to expound on his creative ventures.

A hybrid musician, photographer, videographer and writer, Toolan is documenting the trip in still and moving images, and absorbing the personalities along the way for inspiration. "I don't know where the documentary will lead. I'm just shooting it all as I go," Toolan said.

Another aspect of the trip that the travelers are enjoying is the diversity of drinking establishments they have encountered. The first question Hamilton had during an interview in China on Thursday was which bars they two should visit while in Madison. "You meet a lot of very interesting people in the bars," Hamilton said. Toolan added that he was interested in the various local musicians in each new town.

Traveling 15 to 20 miles a day, Hamilton and Toolan have walked 850 miles since starting their journey June 3. They plan to make it to Kansas before taking a break in November. They will return to England until the weather warms again in 2007. Then they will return to Kansas to take up the route again and walk to Point Reyes in California.

The expedition is being recorded at the Web site walkingthestates.com, which the two update when they can get to a library with Internet access. They will make their next update at the Madison-Jefferson County Public Library today. (Story - ©Ken Ritchie/The Madison Courier)

Red Bleachers

Francisco Pintor, of the Waco, Texas based Sturdy Steel Company, applies a coat of paint over weld marks on the bleachers that are being built at the Madison Consolidated High School track and football field on Wednesday, August 30. (©Ken Ritchie/The Madison Courier)

When stories don’t get done on time and you need a feature shot to fill the page in a hurry, a set of red bleachers make a easy save. Thank God for colorful wild art.

Neavill's Grove Old Settlers Meeting

Visitors to the Neavill's Grove Old Settlers Meeting sit under a shelter building and partake of a spaghetti dinner before the fiddling contest starts on Friday, August 25. (©Ken Ritchie/The Madison Courier)

Gary Dearing of Hanover gives his grandson Dexter Guth, 2, of Bedford, Kentucky a chance to sit behind the wheel of the different antique tractors on display at the Neavill's Grove Old Settlers Meeting on Friday, August 25. (©Ken Ritchie/The Madison Courier)

Allie Summers, 17, (left) and Sara Byard, 15, both of north Vernon, practice and chat before the junior section of the fiddling contest at the Neavill's Grove Old Settlers Meeting on Friday, August 25. (©Ken Ritchie/The Madison Courier)

Moving On, Saying Goodbye

Carole Stoner, Director of Nursing at The Waters of Clifty Falls nursing home, shares stories with 8-year resident Pearl Morgan, 101. Stoner will retire in September after a 30-year career at The Waters of Clifty Falls. (©Ken Ritchie/The Madison Courier)
Stoner fields phone calls at one of the nurses' stations while checking on charts on Thursday, August 17. (©Ken Ritchie/The Madison Courier)
Stoner fills out charts at one of the nurses' stations. Stoner says the higher amount of paperwork necessary for her residents is one of the more noticeable differences she has seen in her 30 years in nursing. (©Ken Ritchie/The Madison Courier)

When Carole Stoner was a youngster, her best friend's mother was a nurse. As she grew older and began looking for a profession, nursing sounded like a good route to go. "It must have been the right decision," Stoner said. "Because it became my life."

Stoner's career, of which the last 30 years have been spent at The Waters of Clifty Falls, will come to an end next month. After retiring, she plans to spend more time with her husband working on their farm, refurbishing a home that they own in downtown Madison and visiting with her grandchildren.

Still, Stoner said, "I'm going to miss the whole thing. The residents and the staff have become an extended part of my family."

Stoner started at The Waters of Clifty Falls in 1976. She worked as a part-time nurse for five years before becoming a fulltime member of the staff in 1981. She was promoted to her current position as director of nursing 15 years ago.

In addition to leading the staff of 22 nurses and 43 nurses assistants at the center, Stoner guides the students from Ivy Tech Community College's School of Nursing, who get hands-on training at The Waters of Clifty Falls.

"All of our nurses that are here and those that have moved on will tell you that Carole Stoner is the person responsible for their success," said Donna Jones, CEO and administrator of The Waters of Clifty Falls.

"It is extremely difficult to fill Carole's shoes," Jones said. "I have depended on Carole for so long. It will be a hard transition for myself and the staff."

As Stoner releases the reins on the nursing department, she said that as long as future nurses remember to have patience, compassion and to put the residents before themselves, the center will continue to have a reputation for great care.

As Stoner made her rounds through the common areas of The Waters of Clifty Falls on Thursday, she made a special point to visit residents Mary Belle Tingle, 91, and Pearl Morgan, 101. Tingle has been a resident for 19 years and Morgan has been there since 1998. "The residents will be hard to say goodbye to, especially the ones who have been here a long time," Stoner said. "You become attached."

While retirement was a big decision to make, Stoner said at some point change is good and you have to move on.

"My staff does a wonderful job with the residents," Stoner said. "I know that once I leave the quality care will continue." (Story - ©Ken Ritchie/The Madison Courier)

A Subject Bending Backwards for the Photographer

Madison native Daniel Rysak will be living out of a suitcase soon as he takes on the role of Gad in the traveling Broadway production of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. He will be on tour for nine months before returning to New York, where he hopes to then get a role in a Broadway production. (Staff photo by Ken Ritchie)

I’ve had several “How’d you do that?” E-mails when this photo was posted on my Sports Shooter Page. So I’m just cutting the explanation out of the responses I sent for this blog post.

I also got several questions about Photoshoping. For the record, I adjusted the color balance, contrast and dodged/burned. As far as Rysak in the case - that was all shot traditionally.


I had the idea for a long time but had no good reason to use it. Then I got a call to shoot this actor who was about to hit the road for 9 months and I thought it would be a perfect time for the traveling shot I had in mind.

So, I went to one of our local antique malls and bought the suitcase for $10. I used a saw at home to cut a hole in the bottom and took it to the actor's mom's house.

My original plan was to have him sit cross-legged and put the suitcase around him that way. I would then have to pull the comforter up around the case in order to make it look flush.

I was lucky though, to have a very limber subject.
Instead of sitting up, he layed face down and then arched backward into the case. I had his feet covered with pillows just in case they showed, but at the angle I was at you can't see his legs or feet anyway.

Whenever I am sent out to do a portrait, I try to liven it up somehow. Always looking for a way to tell the story, and making it visually compelling enough to grab the reader's attention. It all depends on how willing the subject is to play along. I was lucky this time.

Your Story Layouts

As the summer comes to a close, the Your Story series will soon be over. I’m posting a few of them that I have done to show you what the final printed product looked like. I had to learn layout to put these together but I think I did okay.

Your Story Betty Tipton

Betty Tipton walks out of the Springdale Cemetery during one of her regular walks in downtown Madison. Tipton began a journey into the genealogy of her family after finding familiar names on grave markers in the cemetery. (©Ken Ritchie/The Madison Courier)

The morning sun cuts through the trees to cast spotlights on the monuments at Springdale Cemetery. During her daily walks, Betty Tipton looks at the names etched into stones throughout the memorial park. A recent discovery that ties her bloodline to the names on the stones ignited a passion in Tipton to investigate her Madison roots.

Tipton, a Chicago native, said she fell in love with Madison on a weekend trip in 1992. She decided to move here after retirement in 2004.

An ardent walker, Tipton started a daily route that included Main Street, the riverfront and other common downtown points of interest. Before long she found herself doing more talking with other pedestrians than walking and decided to look for a new path.

She found the quiet and solitude she was looking for at Springdale Cemetery, which is tucked away at the end of West Fifth Street and has fewer walkers than Main Street or the riverfront.

Tipton said she had an overwhelming feeling of connection to the cemetery upon her first visit, a connection that would only grow stronger as time passed.

She began to read the hundreds of names in the cemetery, some with dates on the stones that lead back to the times of the Civil and Revolutionary wars. She said would try to imagine the kind role the people had in the history of the city.

One day Tipton's sister, Sharon Crain, phoned to inform her that their aunt's home had burned down. The fire consumed all of the aunt's possessions, including her copies of the family history. Tipton had her own copies of some of the family tree and agreed to make duplicates for their aunt.

As she began digging through her copies, Tipton began to see a familiar thread. The Ross, Bachman, Trow, Custer and Jameson names that were in so many branches of her family's tree, were also names that stood out to Tipton during her walks through Springdale.

Tipton could not believe it was more than a coincidence. Her family had never spoken to her about ties to Madison, even after she decided to move here.

Tipton chose to clear things up with a trip to the cemetery office where she could look through the burial ledgers and compare the names. To her surprise, everything began falling into place like pieces of a puzzle. The names from the stones and dates of birth and death were lining up exactly. "I thought, 'Oh my God! What was my family doing here?'" Tipton said.

Tipton said the discovery sparked a passion in her that changed her original outlook completely. "I was always interested in family history," said Tipton. "As long as someone else was doing the work."

Now that she is doing the work, Tipton has found a valuable resource in the Madison - Jefferson County Public Library.

She has used the library's genealogy section to trace her family back into the early days of Madison's history. She has found family connections to a local hub and spoke factory, a flour mill, a tannery, a brick company and a brewery. She has also found ancestors that were Masons, members of the board at National Bank, volunteers at the No. 1 Fire Company, and three Revolutionary War soldiers.

"It's been a roller coaster ride," said Tipton on the journey she has taken. She added that with each new discovery, she is led in a new direction into her family's history.

Now when Tipton reads through the volumes of papers at the library or walks through the streets of Madison she feels that she is really walking in the footsteps of her ancestors.

"This is my daily life. This is what I do now," said Tipton. "I hope it never ends."
(Story-©Ken Ritchie/The Madison Courier)

Why I Shouldn’t Complain About the Weight of My Camera Gear

Tommy Wingham celebrated his 75th birthday at the gym. With friends and family cheering him on at Fit For The King in Madison, Wingham dead-lifted 500-pounds - setting a new record for a person his age. Wingham says he started weight lifting in his 50's in order to heal from a back injury. His original goal was to lift 300-pounds. He says that once he reached that benchmark, he just kept going. At 65-years-old, Wingham lifted 600-pounds, setting his first record for his age and he continued to set the record for his age each year. Wingham says he will stop lifting now and change his focus to art. (©Ken Ritchie/The Madison Courier)

He’ll Make You a Star

Mark Goebel puts together a 3-foot tall rusted metal barn star while sitting under a clear blue sky outside the Something Simple store on Main Street in Madison on Tuesday, August 15. "I've put together over a hundred of these things in the last couple of years," says Goebel. His wife, Lucy Dattilo owns the store and puts him to work with assembly projects whenever there is a run on the stars at the store. (©Ken Ritchie/The Madison Courier)

Wreck on Hanging Rock

Patrolman Jonathan Simpson of the Madison Police Department looks on as a wrecker moves into place to tow away a Lincoln Town Car that was struck head-on by a Chevrolet Jimmy in front of the falls on Hanging Rock Hill on Thursday, August 10. According to Simpson, the driver of the Town Car was taken to King’s Daughters’ Hospital for minor injuries and the three occupants of the Jimmy were not injured. (©Ken Ritchie/The Madison Courier)

Looking for Friends on the 1st Day of School

"I'll be fine as soon as Vanessa gets here," says fifth grader Jasmine Beach, 10, as she looks for her friend on the first morning of school at Cartmell Elementary on Thursday, August 10. Jasmine was escorted to her to her first morning back after summer break by her mom, Jessica Burke and brother Craig Beach, 5, who helped her with her locker and books before her classes began. (©Ken Ritchie/The Madison Courier)

Moving Back to Lydia

Randy Wehner loads teaching materials into the back of a pickup truck outside of Eggleston Elementary School on Monday, August 14. Wehner, husband of Reading 1st Coach Donna Wehner, was one of many family members of Lydia Middleton staff and faculty that were enlisted to help move the contents of Eggleston back to Lydia Middleton on Monday. The students and teachers of Lydia Middleton Elementary School walked from their campus at Lydia to their temporary home at Eggleston Elementary nearly three and a quarter years ago. Now that the renovations and additions are complete, the staff and faculty of Lydia are preparing for the new school year. (©Ken Ritchie/The Madison Courier)

A line of workers made up of teachers, school board staff, family volunteers and work release personnel from the Madison Department of Corrections formed a human chain to move supplies up to the top floor of the newly renovated Lydia Middleton Elementary School on Monday, August 14. (©Ken Ritchie/The Madison Courier)

Lunch Lady

Wanda Spurgeon, the former head cook at Southwestern High School, has been named the new Food Director of Southwestern Schools. (©2006-Ken Ritchie/Madison Courier)

I’m including this outtake from the portrait shoot. I usually try to shoot at least two or three variations on a portrait assignment. That way, if one seems too hokey or something else is not right, I can fall back on something else. I love shooting portraits when it isn’t an everyday thing. While documenting everyday life is our normal job, portraits and illustrations allow us the most control in a situation. Instead of only having control of lens choice and sometimes lighting, portraits allow us to be more concept-driven. We can interview the person and then take a cue from their personality, job and environment to illustrate a story in fun and interesting ways.

Some shooters do a lot of wonderful lighting tricks in their portraits. See John Lehmann’s site for a series of great examples. I would do more with light if I could, but with one strobe and a cord that allows me to shoot with the flash up to three feet away from the camera, I have to focus more on content than graphic lighting.

This outtake is from the first portrait idea I had for Spurgeon, where I pre-focused the lens and stuck the camera at the bottom of a very large pot in the elementary school kitchen. I then let her know what kind of expression I was looking for, which she played along with very well. With only a rough idea of what the framing would be in the image, I did not realize I was in this shot. Anyway, I thought it was funny, most people don’t see what a goober I am while trying to make subjects comfortable in a portrait shoot.

Church is not a Building

Communion bread and juice containers are set out on a folding table near a podium as Rev. Mark Roseberry delivers a sermon on forgiveness to his parishioners from the First Christian Church of Hanover on Sunday, July 30. The congregation had to meet at the community building at Hanover Park because vandals heavily damaged their church earlier in the week. (©2006-Ken Ritchie/Madison Courier)

Nancy Moore of Lexington, (from left) Bailey Hatton, 5, of Deputy, and his father Michael and brother Dannie, 7, sing "I'll Fly Away" together with the rest of their congregation at the beginning of the First Christian Church of Hanover's service on Sunday, July 30. The church was forced to find an alternate place to hold their service after vandals caused extensive damage to their church building on Wednesday. (©2006-Ken Ritchie/Madison Courier)

Parishioners of the First Christian Church of Hanover sing the song "Alleluia" at the beginning of their service on Sunday, July 30. (©2006-Ken Ritchie/Madison Courier)

Band Camp

Members of the Southwestern High School Marching Band begin the morning on their second week of Band Camp by running two laps around their practice lot behind the school on Monday, July 31. (Staff photo by Ken Ritchie)

Trumpeter Joseph Potter (left) stands ready for guidance from his drum major as the Southwestern High School Marching Band starts their second week of band camp on Monday, July 31. A group of instruments (right) are set on the ground as the members of the Southwestern High School Marching Band do. As the day got hotter, the band carried jugs of water instead of their instruments for a portion of the late morning practice to make it easier to take drink breaks. (©2006-Ken Ritchie/Madison Courier)

Southwestern High School Marching Band members Amanda Thurnall (left) and Elizabeth Miller joke around during a break at band. (©2006-Ken Ritchie/Madison Courier)

Officer Misconduct Hearing

Mayor Ann Deatherage looks on as Carrollton Police Officer Mike Andrews demonstrates the different ways officers are taught to handle their weapons during altercations. Officer Andrews was the subject of a hearing on Monday, July 24, at which Mayor Deatherage was to decide whether Andrews would be dismissed from the police department for allegations of misconduct. **The mayor decided the next day to remove Officer Andrews from the department, which he is now appealing.** (©2006-Ken Ritchie/Madison Courier)

Mother Duck’s One Bright Child

A family of ducks swims along the edge of the Ohio River in Madison on Friday, July 28. (©2006-Ken Ritchie/Madison Courier)

A New Reason to Mourn

Joella Snell begins to weep after learning that a family member buried in Grandview Memorial Gardens is in an area that does not have the drainage necessary to keep water out of her loved one's casket. Snell was one of more than 60 people that turned out for a public meeting at Grandview Memorial Gardens on Saturday, July 29. The meeting was called by Keith Mefford who said he wanted to clarify several points of contention about the ownership of the cemetery as well as the status of prepaid accounts for future burials and the release of money that is necessary in order to execute the prepaid burials as they are needed. Several attendees at the meeting brought up the drainage issue. Mefford stated that in order to correct the problem, a family representative for each plot would have to be found, and they would then have to agree to let their loved one be exhumed in order for the drainage system to be installed. He said the process would be near impossible. (©2006-Ken Ritchie/Madison Courier)