Russell Blood Drive

The Russell Blood Drive will be held Thursday, May 19 from 3-7pm at the Russell Community Center, sponsored by the Russell Community Club.  This has been changed due o the building being used by someone else.  Call Deb at 203-0681 or a member of the Community Club with questions.  If you don't have time or know what their schedule is going to be , you can stop in and be worked into the schedule.

Russell Cleanup Day - May 14

The annual Russell Cleanup Day this year will be held on May 14th from 8am to noon.  Dumpsters will be located on West Shaw St.  The cost will be $10 per car or pickup load.  Tires 17" and smaller will be accepted at $5 each.  The City clerk will be there to collect fees and make out receipts.  For large appliances (such as TV's, refrigerators, microwaves, computers, dehumidifiers that use Freon, washers/dryers, copiers, fax machines, etc.) the charge will be $15 per item.  You must come to the City Hall to list the large appliances you wish to dispose of and pay the fee  for those items before May 14.  It will be the individuals responsibility to bring those large appliances to the pickup site.  Direct questions to City Hall 8am - noon, Monday-Friday, 641-535-2494.

Wayside Garden Club will Hold Annual Flower Sale

The Russell Wayside Garden Club will hold it's annual Flower Sale on April 30 (same day as the City wide Garage Sale) starting at 9:00am in front of the Russell Museum/Library.  Be sue to get your spring flowers at this great sale.  This is the only fund raiser the garden club hosts.  The proceeds are used to help promote Russell activities such as Yard of the Month and the Christmas Decoration Awards. 

Russell City Wide Garage Sale

The city wide garage sale will be on Saturday, April 30 from 8-12.  Call Roberta 535-4191 to get your name on the map.  The Museum has space available in the new addition for $5 a table (bring your own table/display.)  The Museum is also accepting donations for their garage/bake sale (proceeds to go towards finishing touches on the inside). 

Russell Firemen Ham Supper

On April 9 from 4:30 - 7p.m. at the Russell Community Building, the Russell Firemen will be holding their annual Ham Supper.  This is a great chance to help out our local fire department by supporting them in this fund raiser.  Without these volunteers our town would be vulnerable to fire and safety.  They are here for us, now it is our turn to be there for them.

The Russell Fire Department is appreciative of the support given to them by the entire community recently at their annual ham supper.  They are much more able to carry out their responsibilities with the support of the community.

Russell News Committee Meeting at the Museum

On April 26th, at 4:30pm the Russell News Committee will hold a meeting at the Museum/Library.  Anyone is welcome to attend and present any news items to the committee.

Faith United Methodist Church

Church Lent and Easter Activities:

A Good Friday service  will be held on 4/22 at 7:00p.m.  We will have our Palm Sunday service on 4/17 and Easter service on 4/24 at the regular 10:30a.m. time.

Easter Church Activities for the Russell Baptist Church

First Baptist Church will hold it's Easter Breakfast from 9:30 to 10:30am Easter Sunday.  The public is invited.  Morning Service "The King is Coming" will begin at 10:45am.  Join us for a great time of celebrating the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

Free Income Tax Preparation

March 19th, from 9:00am to 4:00pm, free income tax preparation will be offered at the Russell Museum.  Your income must be $48,362 or less and E-Filing must be done.  There are only 14 time slots available, so hurry and take advantage of this free service.  Call 774-3226 for an appointment.  This program is sponsored in part by the Russell Horizons, the LCHS Volunteer Program and the IA State Extension Program.

SHARE Sign-up

March 1, from 1-4pm SHARE will hold it's March sign-up at the Russell Historical Society Museum/Library building.  Pick up for these items will be March 19.  Purchase one, all or any combination.  Best value package is $22.  Grocery Package is $12.  Meat Only Package is $12.  Chicken Cordon Bleu is $14.50.  Steak Package is $16.50.  Choice Item to be purchased along with any of the other packages. 

Spring Flower Sale

With all the melting snow and a little warmer weather, our thoughts are turning toward possibly having an early spring.  Wouldn't that be nice.  Maybe the groundhog was right.  Anyway, the Russell Historical Society is holding a March Flower Sale at the museum.  Stop and see the brochure or call Marilyn at 535-2402 to see the selection and help a worthy cause.  The flowers you order will be delivered to your home.

Russell Community Club

The Russell Community Club wants to let everyone know how it came into existence.  When the Russell Lions Club disbanded, members and others of the community wanted to keep the tradition going of helping the community be a proud place to live.  Following in the footsteps of the Lions, the purpose of the organization is to support and promote our community.  At this time we have 3 main projects that we sponsor each year.  The projects are the Fall Festival, held on the 3rd Saturday of September each year; the senior Citizen's Christmas Dinner, held on the first Saturday in December each year; and Christmas in the Park, which always follows on one of the Saturday evenings in December.

This past year members have been working at the Russell Athletic Fields.  Electricity and water hook-ups, for 30 campers, have been completed.  Our plans are to have the camping facilities up and going this spring.  Other events, such as a Music Festival, and sports activities are also in the planning stages.  If you have ideas of other activities that could be held either at the Athletic Fields or around town, please let us know.  We are always willing to listen to any ideas.  

As far as becoming a member, the only requirement we have is that you must be at least 18 years of age.  Even if you're not 18 years old, you can still have great ideas.  You are always welcome to come and share them with us.  Because of liability issues there will be some activities you would not be able to participate in.

Our regular meetings are held the 4th Thursday of each month.  Watch the newspaper for the time and the place of these meetings.  We would love to see all of our members every meeting, but we understand that in today's busy world that is not a reality.  If you would like to become a member, but can only make 1 or 2 meetings a year that is fine.  We just want to get as many people involved as possible.  More people mean more ideas.

The last meeting held on January 27, 6 visitors were present and they all joined the group.  At the meeting it was brought to our attention that it is not common knowledge how you can become a member, or even what exactly the Community Club does.  Hopefully the above information has answered any questions. 

If you have any other questions, ideas or would like to become a member, please contact Deb Mason (203-0681),  Pastor Russ Harris, (535-2601), Mike Beaty (535-2585) or Dolores Carroll.  Our next meeting will be held on February 24th.

Russell Fire Department Texas Hold'em Tournament

On Saturday, February 19 at 7:00pm, the Russell Fire Department will hold it's annual Texas Hold'em Tournament at the Russell Community Center.  A chili supper will be held prior to the tournament at 6:00pm (free-will donation).  This is always a fun event and the donations go to a worthy cause.

Hey, Kids of Russell

Russell Community Club is inviting you to attend  "A Night Out for the Kids" at the Russell Community Center on Monday, February 14 (Valentine's Day) at 7 pm.  Kids from kindergarten to age 16 are welcome.   The movie "Hollywood Chihuahua 1 or II" will be shown.  Pop and popcorn will be furnished.  Parents may come and see what we are offering the children.

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Several people attended the showing of this movie and enjoyed the movie and the popcorn, chips, pop and bottled water.  The refreshments were provided free of charge by the Russell Community Club.  If you would be interested in a weekly children's/youth activity sponsored by the Community Club or have ideas for other activities, please contact by phone or e-mail Deb Mason 203-0681 or mason3@iowatelecom.net or Russell Harris 203-3912 or rharris873@aol.com.

St. Patrick's Day Celebration in Russell!

An Irish breakfast will be servied in the Southside's Dining Room from 9a.m. to 12p.m.  The parade will be held at noon on March 12.  There is plenty of space to sit or stand along the parade line on Shaw Street, from the bank up to Prairie St.  Everyone is invited to join us as a participant or spectator. Then after 5p.m. a Corned Beef and Cabbage meal will be served.  If you have questions you can call Dolores at 535-4421.  (It is not unusual to have snow on this day, so don't be surprised).

Chicken/Beef and Noodle Dinner Fundraiser

On Sunday, March 13, from 11:30am - 1:30pm, the Russell Historical Society will hold a Chicken/Beef and Noodle Dinner at the Russell Community Center.  This is a fund raiser to help raise money to finish the inside of the new addition to the Museum/Library.

If you have missed the past dinners, here is a chance to taste the excellent meals this group produces.  And the price is right, just a free will donation.

SOUP SUPPER

Beef Stew, Chili, Chicken noodle, Potato soup -- all good comfort foods this time of year, right?  So come join us at the Russell Community Center (Russell, Iowa, of course) on Friday January 28, 2011.  Serving will begin at 5:00 P.M. and continue until 7:00 P.M., or until we run out of soup, whichever comes first.  Takeout will be available but you will need to provide your own to go container; because we don't have any.  As usual supper will be on a free-will offering basis.  In addition to the soups, we will have crackers, relishes, coffee, hot tea, and desserts.  As an extra added attraction there will be corn bread (hopefully, warm from the oven) also available to go with your soup. 

See you Friday night!

And don't forget the SHARE signup at the museum on Tuesday from 1-4:00 p.m.   That's Tuesday, January 25.

SHARE Sign up Tuesday, January 25

SHARE sign up will be on Tuesday January 25th at the Russell Historical Society Museum/Library building on Prairie Street in Russell.  Hours are 1:00pm to 5:00pm.  Pick up will be Saturday, February 19.

Russell Community Club

Thursday, January 27, the Russell Community Club will hold it's monthly meeting at the Russell Community Center at 6:30pm.  A light supper will be provided.  The public is invited to come and check out the organization.

On the agenda for this meeting:  Looking into the possibilities of providing activities for the kids of Russell and the surrounding area.  If you have children or grandchildren, come and help us get something started.

We'll have an update on our tax-exempt status.  We are working toward being an independent community organization for the betterment of Russell.

Do you have any ideas for the community?  Bring them to the meeting.  Present them to the group.  Maybe we can help you get them implemented.  All ideas are welcome.

The work continues on the ball fields. Mike Beaty and Lowell Sims and others have done a lot of work already, so we can have camping and a music festival.

If you haven't noticed, the old Russell Historical Website has been discontinued and this new blog has taken its place.  In the right hand column of this blog, you will notice other pages you can visit.  These include Russell Obituaries, Russell People, Russell School Children and a Russell Histories page.  There are links to other blogs and websites, a calendar of events is in the left column.  Place this blog in your favorites and you can access it quickly to keep updated on Russell news.

Russell Visitors Brochure

Someone brought it to our attention that the Horizon Club, not The Russell Community Club, produced the beautiful visitors brochure for Russell.   Thank you Judy Pierce for putting your time and effort into this.  I apologize for the mistake.  If you haven't seen it, pick one up at the Last Chance Convenience Store.  That's where I got mine.  Wendy Nickell's daughter "Nickell Designs" put it together and printed it.  She is a graphics designer and she did a wonderful job with this brochure.  See for yourself.

Beautiful Morning In Russell, Iowa

Woke up this morning to this beautiful sight outside my front door.  Didn't last very long so thought I better get a picture while I could.  I know most of you don't miss the winters in Southern Iowa, but maybe you can enjoy this picture.

Outside Christmas Decoration Awards

There weren't as many decorated homes in Russell this year or not everyone had their lights turned on when I was out doing the judging.  The ones I did see were very pretty and that made it hard to decide on a winner.  Blue lights and white lights seemed to be the most popular; although many used the old traditional multicolored lights.  

Congratulations, Duane and Cindy Bedford, you are the 2010 Russell Wayside Garden Club winners of the Best Outside Christmas Decorations.  Their home sits back off the main streets in Russell, but it is worth finding.  It is a block south of the Russell School building.

Be sure to drive through town and enjoy all the pretty decorations.  Marilyn and Butch Evans have a beautiful display all in blue lights.  Also take a look at the home at 515 W. Stanton; very pretty with all white lights.  And of course Ron Hoover's home on W. Ames St. is beautiful, as it always is every year. 

The History Book

We had hoped to have the Russell History Book ready for publication and sale in time for Christmas gifts.  Ever hear the phrase "bit off more than we could chew?"  That's not exactly the whole story but it is part of it. 
First, one of our volunteers has had to drop out due to family health issues.
Second, one of our contributors has also offered to contact a publisher and determine if the book could be published in hardback form and at what cost if possible.  He hasn't gotten back to us on that as yet. We'd really, really like to be able to offer it to you in hardback if we can do so at a reasonable price.  Copies of the book will also be sent to the Family History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah; to the Allen County Public Library in Ft. Wayne, Indiana; and to the Mid-Continent Public Library in Independence, Missouri, for inclusion in their genealogy collections. 
So, you have more time to get a story or stories in to us to include in the book.  Our new goal for publication and sale is going to be May 1, 2011.
Snail mail any stories and/or pictures to Russell Historical Society, P.O. Box 412, Russell, Iowa, 50238.  Or e-mail them to us at rihs106@yahoo.com.

Lucas County Businesses Donate Toward Building Expansion

Wanda Liddell and Larry Davis

These pictures and the articles (by Bill Howes) appeared in the Chariton Leader on December 14, 2010

$1,000 check donation to the Russell Historical Society

Earlier this fall, the Chariton Arts and Recreation Board, which is the board for the Vision II Theater, made a $1,000 donation to the Russell Historical Society to go towards the building expansion of the Russell Historical Society Museum.  Presenting the check on the right is Chariton Arts and Recreation Board member, Larry Davis, and accepting on the left is Wanda Liddell, the president of the Russell Historical Society Board of Directors.

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Bancorp Foundation Makes Donation 

to the Russell Historical Society 

 

The U.S. Bancorp Foundation made a $500 donation to the Russell Historical Society on December 10.  The money donated will be used towards the Russell Historical Society Museum's building expansion.

Wanda Liddell and Bob Stump

Chariton US Bank Branch Manager, Bob Stump, presented the check on behalf of U.S. Bancorp Foundation to Wanda Liddell, the President of the Russell Historical Society Board of Directors.

For the expansion, a new 30 ft. x 70 ft. building has been built, which will be the Russell Historical Museum.  The new building is attached to the existing building, which will house the Russell Library.  The existing building is 30 ft. x 50 ft.

Liddell said that so far $5,000 has been raised for the new museum building from fundraisers and grants.  The Russell Historical Society has held a lot of fundraisers to raise the money they have so far.  "We'll probably have a lot more fundraisers over the next year.  We'll also try to have a new membership drive," Liddell said. 

The outside portion of the new building is done.  The inside walls and ceiling still need to be sprayed and painted and Liddell said that they have close to 3,000 items that need to be displayed.  "We have a lot of display items, but we need mounts and cases to display them on and in," she said.

The new museum will house different sections including a school section, music section, and military section.  There will also be a quilting frame set up for a quilting display.

One item that will be displayed is a full-sized 1936 tractor.  Another item is the Russell Oil original horse drawn tank wagon.

Come and Dine - Spaghetti Supper December 9

 We're going to have a free-will offering spaghetti supper Thursday evening, December 9, 2010. It will be held at the Russell Community Center from 5:30-7:30 PM. The menu is spaghetti, relish plates (on the tables), garlic bread, ice tea, coffee, and desserts. Don't cook for yourselves that night-let us do it for you!

 Well, the spaghetti dinner was a big hit.  People came and went all evening.  Some stayed longer than others because they were enjoying visiting with their neighbors.  The food was delicious and I saw lots of people going back for seconds.  Good job, RIHS volunteers!!  This is a great way to raise money to help pay off the mortgage on the new addition.

Russell Seniors Holiday Dinner

The Russell Community Club outdid themselves for another year here in Russell.  A wonderful Holiday meal was once again served to about 60 seniors of this community.

It was a very chilly evening, but nothing like last year.  There was no snow and ice on the ground this year.  We were all thankful for that.  As we entered the Community Center, the warmth from inside was very welcome.  

We gathered around beautifully decorated tables decorated for the Christmas Season.  Friends began seeing friends and enjoyed visiting and getting into the Holiday spirit.  The hum in the room began to get louder as more and more people arrived for this once a year gathering, which has been going on for many, many years.  Some of these friends have not seen each other since last year's dinner.  Once you have attended one of these dinners, you make sure never to miss another one.  

The food was absolutely delicious and there was plenty to go around and even enough for those who wanted seconds.  The cooks have to be complimented on their wonderful cooking.  Juicy turkey, green beans, sweet potatoes, mashed potatoes, very unique dressing, a delicious gravy, rolls and a strawberry gelatin salad.  For dessert they served us a huge piece of pumpkin pie.  There went the diets.

Tony Irving sang some very original Christmas songs and asked all of us to join in.  At times, while singing, the voices were louder as we remembered the words.  The Night Before Christmas words were very different, but very true.  In the song, he even had a visit from Santa as he was sliding down off his roof while putting up the Christmas lights.

After the singing was over a very special visit from Santa Claus was enjoyed by all.  Santa stopped to visit with each and everyone of us and gave us our Christmas gift.  This part of the evening was really lots of fun as Santa joked and kidded with us as he/she traveled through the room.

Many thanks to our wonderful Russell Community Club who make Russell such a great place to live.

Russell History Book

    A Russell History Book is in the making.  Volunteers have been working very hard to put this book into publication.

    Requests have been made to you for memories and stories about family, businesses, school memories in and surrounding Russell, including all of Washington Township.  Many pages have been put together already and the book is gradually beginning to come together.   These requests have appeared in newspapers, in the Copy Plus flyer and anywhere else we have been able to think of.  We are hoping this Blog will help reach out to residents that have left the Russell area.  If you have any other ideas where we can reach out to, please let us know.

    Our goal is to have the book ready by Christmas.  A few questions need to be answered by you, the ones who will read and cherish these memories.

1.    Would you like it to be a comb-bound book (which we can do right here in our building)?  This would be the least expensive way to go.

2.    Would you be willing to pay $25 more for a hard-bound book that we can do locally?

3.    A professionally printed book that would come with a pre-publication price that would be paid up front, is another suggestion.  Does this sound like what you would want?  With this kind of publication, the price would be higher if the book is purchased after publication.  A publisher has not been contacted yet, so a price is unknown, but it will be much higher than the other two suggestions.

    The submissions need not be confined to Russell - remember the working title includes "Our Neighbors."  That includes Washington Township and the country schools that ended up in the Russell School District. 

      How many pages should there be in the book?  Well, in order to let everyone that is interested be able to submit there story, we would appreciate it if you could limit it to one and a half pages, single-spaced typing.  We realize some stories can not be told in one and a half pages, so don't worry if yours runs a little longer.  An entire family history, of many pages, would not be feasible.  Summarize the all-the-way-back stuff or split it into separate stories about different ancestors.  Pictures with your stories are welcome.  It will make the book more personal for you and for the others who will be reading it.  3 pictures would be a suggested amount.  The story we're doing about the Russell School already has more than 3 in it and we can't insist you limit the number if we are not doing the same. 

      You can send your articles by regular mail or by e-mail.  Whichever is easiest for  you.  Our e-mail address is  (rihs106@yahoo.com).  The post office address is  P O Box 414  Russell, IA  50238.  E-mail helps prevent errors because the material is transferred to the book page with fewer errors.

      Deadline?  It appears the word is just starting to get around and we want to give it plenty of time.  The original deadline of November 1, 2010 has passed, but you can contact us through the addresses listed at the bottom of this page to see if a late entry would be accepted.

      Let us know what questions or concerns you have.  Please!

Update on Craft Show

Because we are still working on finishing the interior of the new wing, the craft show has been moved to the Community Center. The hours are still 9:00 AM - 3:00 PM.

Just Notes

Progress is being made on the new wing. Heaters are in, dry wall is going up, insulation will soon be in. There is light at the end of the tunnel!!

Membership letters will be coming out this month--probably around the end of the month. Your dues make it possible for us to keep the building open, keep the library and museum current, and allow us to serve you. In case we don't say it often enough: YOU ALL ARE THE GREATEST ! ! !

We received our renewal notice from our web-host and have cancelled their service as of December 4, 2010. Go Daddy has been a good host and we have no complaints about the service they have provided. We just made the decision that using a blog would save us money we need elsewhere.

Our first-ever craft show will be held on Saturday, November 13 from 9:00 AM - 3:00 PM. at the museum. We actually still have space at this point for additional crafters or vendors. If you are interested in selling your crafts, Tupperware, Avon, Watkins, Mia Bella, etc., call Mary at 641-535-4253 or 641-203-4079 to reserve your space. A 12x12' space is being rented for $20 ($25 if you want electricity). We have scrapbookers, jewelry, crafts, art by Meg Prange, chocolates, and cookies, cookies, and more cookies available. Hope to see you here.

Dance, Dance, Dance

There is still time for you to join the dance lessons Ed Sellers and Mary Ann Wells are teaching. Their first class was last Sunday, the 24th. There are seven more classes. They will be reviewing last Sundays two-step class this coming Sunday and then will finish out the classes with swing, waltz, and polka lessons. Classes are held on Sunday evenings at the Russell Community Center from 7:00-9:00 p.m. The cost is $50.00 per couple and you need to bring your own partner. Call Ed Sellers at 641-535-4013 if you would like to take the classes.