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Personalities

Johnnie Adams

- Aug. 2, 1951

   Johnnie Adams of Bellwood on Monday received a birthday present - something that will make his daily work much easier.
   Now to a strong, healthy man, Johnnie's twice-daily task of hauling mail from post office to depot and back to post office would take little effort, but to him it is quite a chore.
   Johnnie received an injury early in life that left his leg and feet not too good. It is real labor for him to walk very far, especially pushing an old iron-wheeled cart full of mail bags. His handicap, however, didn't stop him from taking the mail- hauling job when the opportunity arose last October. He is always there early in the morning and in the evening to make the trip for the mail. Although the hand cart was old and pushed hard, he covered the three-block stretch without a complaint.
   But last Monday morning events in Johnnie Adams' life took a change. When he arrived as usual at the Bellwood Post Office to load his cart with mail and start for the depot, he found, instead of the old hard-pushing vehicle, a new rubber- tired, brightly painted push cart, with the words "U. S. Mail" painted in silver on each side of the box.
   And where did it come from? Well, Johnnie has lots of friends in Bellwood, and July 22 was his birthday. That adds up to this: The village marshal, Harry West, and the Co-op Filling Station attendant, Alfred Hoshor, decided to do something to make Johnnie's work easier. They had a conference with more of Johnnie's friends, Ebert and Chris Kamenske, Garland Mais, Clyde Creathbaum, O. J. Selzer, Henry Sheldon, Matt Supencheck, Fred Mansfield and Jim Moyer. These men started contributing materials, labor and cash for the new cart. For the two wheels they found some off a motorcycle. They put on rubber tires, built the box and frame, painted the wheels silver, the box red, and tied it in front of the post office.
   Johnnie says it pushes so easy "I have to hold back. I can even go down the sidewalks with this one."


Thomas J. Anderson

October 25, 1945

Shortly after the close of the war, when the announcement came to the world of the effects of the atomic bomb, which was instrumental in effecting a quick conclusion to hostilities, it was found that Lt. Thomas J. Anderson, 28, son of Mr. and Mrs. T. L. Anderson, had a hand in the great scientific work.
   Having graduated from the college of engineering of the University of Nebraska in 1939, Anderson was inducted into the Army in April 1943. Sent to Orange Grove, New Jersey, for training, he later studied at Harvard University, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and at Palm Beach, Florida. At the conclusion of his schooling, he was sent back to the Massachusetts school to become an instructor in radar.
   After V. E. Day, when the Institute was dispensed with for Army use, Lt. Anderson was called to Washington, D. C. and interviewed at the Pentagon building by General Groves. Following a thorough investigation he was ordered to proceed to Santa Fe, New Mexico, stopping enroute to pay a surprise visit to his parents.
   Mr. and Mrs. Anderson did not learn until after V. J. Day, that their son was employed at the Manhattan Engineering Project at Los Alamos, New Mexico, which was the proving grounds for the atomic bomb.
   On V. J. Day, Lt. Anderson was in Albuquerque, New

Mexico, purchasing supplies for his trip overseas, to deliver the third atomic bomb F. 0. B. Tokyo. This fact alone is evidence that the young man from Bellwood had a major part in this great discovery which holds the attention of all countries of the world.
   Mrs. Evelyn Anderson, wife of Lt. Anderson, was accepted as a co-worker at the Manhattan Project and was permitted to join her husband and work with him in the same office.



Col. J. D. Bell

   J. Donald Bell was born in the old family home west of Bellwood. He received his elementary and secondary schooling in the Bellwood school, except for three years the family was in Long Beach, Calif. As Bellwood had only 11 grades at that time he took his last year at the David City High School. He attended the University of Nebraska and received his B.S. degree.
   Col. Bell's military career began in 1920 when he enrolled in the Junior ROTC at Long Beach High School. He completed three more years in the ROTC at the University of Nebraska and was commissioned a second lieutenant in the Army Reserve.
   In 1938 he was called to active duty to command a large CCC motor pool at Lewiston, Ida., and later to command companies at Hermiston, Ore., Pierce, Ida., and St. Maries, Ida.
   In 1941 he was ordered to Fort Warren, near Cheyenne, Wyo., where he commanded a training company and later commanded Company B of the Officers Candidate School. He was promoted to the rank of Major while serving at Vancouver Barracks, Wash., in 1943 as a training officer and was then given command of the 614th Battalion at Camp Adair, Corvallis, Ore. In August of 1943 the battalion headquarters and four companies were transported by rail and ship to Oran, Algeria and a month later to Tunisia. In addition to his duties as a commander he also served as executive officer to the Quartermaster, Eastern Base Section in Bizerte, Tunisia.
   In the summer of 1944 the battalion headquarters was shipped to Naples, Italy, then by ship convoy to Toulon, France, and then overland to Marseille, France, where the headquarters served as part of a depot complex until it was deactivated upon cessation of hostilities in Europe in 1945. In December 1945 Major Bell returned by troopship to Camp Miles Standish, Mass., then by troop train to Fort McArthur, Calif., where he was discharged as a Lieutenant Colonel, a rank he had achieved a few months earlier.
   In June 1946 the War Department offered him a regular army commission, which he accepted. He was then assigned to the Training Division of the Office of the Quartermaster General in Washington, D.C. In September 1947 he was assigned to the student detachment of the Command and General Staff College in Fort Leavenworth, Kans., for a 10- month course, in which he specialized in logistics. In the summer of 1948 he was transferred to the Quartermaster School in Fort Lee, Va., as an instructor. While still a member of the faculty he was given seven weeks leave of absence to attend the Parachute and Glider School at Fort Benning, Ga. Upon being graduated he returned to Fort Lee and in September was promoted to the rank of Colonel. Immediately he was transferred to Fort Devons, Mass., to take command of a training center consisting of Reserve and National Guard units that had been called to active duty. Upon being brought up to strength with draftees the units went into training for the Korean conflict.
   The following June, Col. Bell was assigned to the

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Eighteenth Airborne Corps at Fort Bragg, N.C. In July 1952 he was ordered to Headquarters Eighth United States Army in Seoul, Korea, where he was appointed Army Quartermaster on the staff of General Van Fleet and later of General Maxwell Taylor.
   In December 1953 he returned to the states and was appointed G-3 Operations and Training Officer of the Quartermaster Training Command with headquarters at Fort Lee, Va. Later that year he was transferred to historic Fort Monroe, Va., and appointed Quartermaster to the Chief Army Field Forces, which later became the Continental Army Command. In May 1957 he was ordered to Headquarters U.S. Seventh Army in Stuttgart, Germany, to serve as Army Quartermaster. In July 1960 he was retired from active duty and placed on the retired list.

   While Quartermaster of the Eighth Army in Korea in 1952- 53 he was assisted by a highly qualified staff of officers and enlisted men. In recognition of the efforts of Col. Bell and his staff in support of the conflict, General Maxwell D. Taylor awarded him the Legion of Merit. Also in support of the British Commonwealth Division in Korea, Queen Elizabeth appointed him an Honorary Commander in the Military Division of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire.

   The Eighth Army quartermaster organization also supported the Korean Army with clothing and equipment. In appreciation President Syngman Rhee of Korea awarded Col. Bell with the Military Order of Merit Ulchi with Silver Star. In 1960 at headquarters U.S. Army Europe in Heidelberg General Bruce Clark awarded him the first oak leaf cluster to the Legion of Merit in recognition of his services in revitalizing quartermaster service in the Seventh Army.
   Since his retirement Col. Bell and his wife, Jacquelin, have been living in Heidelberg, Germany.




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Col. J. D. Bell

Carroll Beringer

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Carroll Beringer

   I would suppose that, had I had the misfortune of being born and reared in a big city like Chicago or New York, there would have been no invitation for a review of my career in professional baseball. Perhaps this is just one more advantage of life in a small town.
   My first recollection of any real interest in baseball was when I was about five years old. Bellwood was fielding a very competitive team in the Mid-State League. My heroes at that time were not Ruth, Gehrig, Hornsby, or Hubbell, but the Hillers, Kamenskes, Janiceks, Kirchners, and Kreizingers. Sundays meant church and the results of the baseball game and I'm not sure it was always in that order.
   Of course, my folks were my number 1 fans and inspiration. They always seemed to find the pennies to keep me supplied with a new baseball, or at least black tape to repair the old one.
   There was no organized leagues for kids like today, so my first real competition was American Legion baseball in Columbus. From there it was a contract with the Brooklyn Dodgers organization and a career that spanned 33 years - 14 years as a pitcher in the minor leagues - two years for a hitch in the army, and 17 years as a coach at the big league level.
   The years presented some great thrills - the '63 World Series sweep of the Yankees and the great '65 Series against the Minnesota Twins that went the full seven games. Just being at the ball park and rubbing elbows with great stars like Koufax, Drysdale, Wells, and Roseboro, and later Schmidt, Luzinski, Bowa, and Carlton, was very stimulating.
   Walt Alston, the quiet, patient, wise skipper of the Dodgers is a good friend and taught me you need not be loud

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to be effective. Another person who had an effect on my sports career was Msgr. Cooper. He taught me the importance of being able to bounce back after defeat. When you spend so many years in competitive sports, this really became a valuable lesson.
   The minuses of the baseball life became more apparent as my career moved toward its inevitable end. My two oldest girls were grown and I looked back on my life with them and realized I had spent too little time with them, so I decided to get out and devote more time to my youngest daughter, Karen, and my lovely wife, Jimmie. Her tolerance to a life of travel and separation made the entire thing happen.
   So - now my personal "high" is spending my summers on a farm near Bellwood and my winters in Fort Worth, Texas.

   Thanks, Bellwood, for being a great place to start and return to.

   Happy Birthday Bellwood!





In Memory of
Mamie and O. A. Brandenburgh

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O. A. and Mamie Brandenburgh

   The Village of Bellwood was the recipient of an endowment of $10,000 for the purpose of constructing an auditorium within the village. A building was erected for that amount, with the Village giving the necessary funds to finish the project.

The Jaycees and Mrs. Jaycees donated their labor and time to finish the building.
   The Community Hall shall be available for all non-subersive [sic] lodges and organizations to use, regardless of race, color or creed.
   The Brandenburghs also bequeathed $5,000 to the Village of Bellwood for the purpose of constructing a grandstand at the ball park. A concrete structure was made.
   The athletic program of our town has been most appreciative of the improvement to our ball park. The many ball tournaments and nightly games during the season are living proof that all ages are enjoying the thoughtfulness of Mamie and Ike.
   The Methodist Church was given $48,000 and the Bellwood Cemetery Association and St. Peter's and St. Mary's Catholic Cemetery each received $14,471.


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Bellwood Community Hall


Ken Dolezal

   You remember the young farmer west of Bellwood, or maybe the battered dark green pickup he drove. Do you remember 1965, when he left for the University, or 1970 when he went to India as an International Farm Youth Exchangee? I remember many of you helped me learn social and manual skills which are still useful. Growing up with you was a good experience.
   Life is full of the adventure of human experiences. Family adventures are as exciting in other lands as they are at home. Learning to cook, halter-break a 4-H calf, or trying to plow with oxen that don't understand English, are all adventures. My first elephant ride made me feel like the Maharaja of India, and it was almost as exciting as the first time I drove Louie Mick's brand new John Deere 60, with a 12 volt starter and all that advanced technology.
   The next 6 months in 9 village homes, I helped with rice, loading manure, wheat, coffee picking, milking cows and water buffaloes, and some hoeing, spading, garden tilling, and motor repair. As the villagers gradually switch from animal power to gasoline, they try to keep their friendliness and hospitality. In the old days, when traveling, they had "room for one more" on their quarter-ton camel or two passenger donkey, or ox cart. It reminded me of walking home from country school, when the neighbors would stop to ask if we "wanted a ride" along the graveled road. It showed me that the farther you get from home, the more familiar things you find along the way.
   The Hindu culture of India is very receptive of foreigners. They had foreign rulers for many centuries, without losing their customs and traditions. In fact, they are the ones who made tea drinkers out of the British ... which

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