Keep on rolling: Batavian raises funds for Cougars fan's wheelchair

What are friends for other than to help one with a flat tire?

This flat tire happened to be on the wheelchair of Barb Mabbs, a Riverain Point resident in Batavia who does the videotaping for BATV during the Batavia Library's "Books Between Bites" program.

Of course, that isn't all she does, as her friends claim she is quite mobile in her wheelchair.

But Sue Wauer, also of Batavia, and one of Barb's friends and a fellow season-ticket holder for the Kane County Cougars, noticed how worn out the wheels on the wheelchair had become, including one flat tire about two months ago.

Wauer started a mini-fundraiser for a new wheelchair, starting with other Cougars season-ticket holders and then church members, library board members and other friends.

As of last week, Wauer's efforts had netted $2,325, so it is almost certain the needed $2,400 for a new chair was about to happen.

"This is not to solicit money; this is just to share the good news and tell about the generous giving spirit of so many others," said Wauer, in sharing her story.

"Barb knows how many have contributed, as the money goes directly to her and she keeps track of the total," Wauer said. "We were blessed to accomplish our goal.

"Look for Barb in the near future to be sporting a new 'yellow ride,'" Wauer said.

Elburn's great event:

Fresh out of college in the late 1970s with a journalism degree fueled by the urge to uncover the next Watergate scandal, I took my first job as a reporter covering Elburn and other area villages.

Some interesting twists and turns with the school boards and townships were on the horizon, but the next Watergate wasn't about to unfold. So, one of my first assignments out of the gate was one I continue to boast about to this day: I was assigned to cover the Elburn Days festival.

And as it turns out, it was the best thing that could have happened. I learned more about the area and its people by hanging out at this wonderful community event for three days than I would have if I had lived here for years.

If you haven't experienced Elburn Days yet, today is the last day for this year's version. Take the kids out for an enjoyable day of rides and games in Lions Park, listen to music and try some of the fresh baked goods and other food available.

A 'sleepy' fundraiser:

When you have young kids involved in sports, music or Scouting, you generally end up helping them sell stuff to raise money for the organization.

That "stuff" could be popcorn, candy, magazines, cookies, Christmas wreaths, cheesecakes and any other number of goodies.

But how about a new mattress? As in brand new, with a full factory warranty? It's certainly a different concept.

The Batavia Music Buffs are conducting a mattress fundraiser for the second year in a row, this time at 10 a.m. Saturday, Aug. 27, at the high school cafeteria.

Event organizers say the mattresses are brand-name and priced at 50 percent off the retail value.

Lots of peanut butter:

Wouldn't it be interesting if someone kept a tally of how many specific types of sandwiches you have eaten in your lifetime?

The Kane County Farmer newspaper this month included interesting factoids about the various types of sandwiches that Americans love.

One of my favorites, the peanut butter and jelly sandwich, essentially helped keep Americans fed during the Great Depression because of its good nutrition and low cost, the report said.

It could have also said that it kept Dave Heun alive in college, since I pretty much lived on that sandwich and tomato soup during those years.

As such, I had to chuckle at the other report note, stating the average American will have eaten 1,500 peanut butter and jelly sandwiches by high school graduation, or age 18.

I probably ate that many just in my college years, and have had at least one or two a week ever since. And I surely would have been on the high end of that 1,500 estimate if anyone kept track from when solid foods first entered my mouth until age 18.

A new trend?

For the second time in less than a month, I received a handwritten letter from a reader. This time, Mary Sharp of Geneva sent a note telling me, among other things, about a great chocolate cake recipe from Penny Kazmier that appeared in the Daily Herald last February.

She said she made that cake and took it to the physical therapy employees at the Delnor Hospital Wellness Center, where she was undergoing some therapy.

It was all the rage, as a chocolate cake should be.

"They loved it," Sharp wrote. And she's certain I would as well, considering how often I express a fondness for all things chocolate and "cakey."

Thanks for taking the time to write and mail me a letter, Mary. It's always nice to communicate in this time-tested way.

dheun@sbcglobal.net