Case International Harvest Plant -- April 29, 2010

OLLI traveled to nearby Woodford County for a private tour of the Case International Harvester plant in Goodfield, Illinois.

During our tour, learned how the facility, founded in 1961 by a local farmer, now produces the “Cadillac” of tillage equipment.

Case International Harvester is a world leader in the agricultural and construction equipment business, employing 31,500 people worldwide with a network of 11,300 dealers in 170 countries.

The Goodfield facility’s product offerings include vertical tillage units, disk rippers, and disk harrows.

OLLI thanks Kari Schmidt and the staff at Case IH for making us feel welcome during our visit. (We love our hats, too!)

For more information about the facility, please visit the Case IH website.

Civil War Tour, Day 2 -- April 28, 2010

Our day began with breakfast at our hotel and an hour’s drive to New Concord, Ohio, the birthplace of Senator (and hero astronaut) John Glenn. We saw a short film about the Glenn family and then toured the home. This site is very special for two reasons: first…because local actors re-enact parts of daily life during WWII; and second…because our hosts opened the home for us when they are usually closed.

During our tour, we “met” John Glenns’s mother, Clara, who explained the difficulties of life when food, fuel, and other necessities were rationed. She showed us her milk bottles, the sign for the ice man, and the coupons that she used to buy gasoline. Clara also asked how we ever accumulated enough gasoline coupons to drive our large charter coach!

The cozy home, which had been purchased through the Sears catalog, has four bedrooms, a kitchen, living room, dining room, and one bathroom. Munsinger University, which is located in New Concord, had no residence halls for students in the early days, so many area families, the Glenns included, rented rooms to students. “Clara Glenn” is very proud of her son and showed us many treasured photos of him.

During our visit to New Concord, we learned that the town sent 70% of its young men to fight against slavery in the Civil War.

After our delightful tour of the John and Annie Glenn home, we drove east along The National Road (Route 40) to historic Cambridge, Ohio, and enjoyed a scrumptious buffet lunch at Theo’s. Of course, the pies were the most popular item!

For the afternoon, we continued east along Interstate 70 through Ohio, a corner of West Virginia, and into Pennsylvania toward Harrisburg. After checking in at the Radisson Hotel just west of Harrisburg, we ate at an award-winning restaurant, the Firehouse. The building, formerly a fire station, was full of interesting artifacts and news clippings from the early days of firefighting.

After our dinner, we returned to the hotel for a good night's rest before starting the next adventure.

The Civil War Tour, Day 1 -- April 27, 2010

Our adventure began at the United Presbyterian Church very early on Tuesday, April 21. Thirty-seven happy travelers (some a wee bit sleepy!) boarded our charter coach for the drive to Dayton, Ohio and our first destination.

Upon arrival at the National Museum of the United States Air Force, our guide stepped on the coach to tell us about the highlights of the site. We had a quick lunch and then took off to explore the three hangars that house the exhibits. From examples of the earliest attempts at flight to some of the more sophisticated fighter planes from WWII, we were able to see the progression of the development of flight. One section of the museum is devoted to comedian Bob Hope, who entertained generations of troops.

Several of our group members left the main museum to tour the hangar of presidential planes, including Franklin Roosevelt, Harry Truman (The Independence), Dwight Eisenhower (Columbine), and the first Air Force One (used for Kennedy, Johnson, Nixon, Ford, Carter, and George H.W. Bush). One building holds many types of experimental planes that were developed to test theories of flight. After two hours of exploration, we traveled to Columbus, Ohio for dinner at the Schmidt Haus in German Village. Everyone enjoyed the brick streets, the quaint old buildings, and a delicious German buffet before retiring for the night in Pickerington, Ohio.

A Day in St. Louis -- Friday, April 23, 2010

Terese Bolla, expert on St. Louis' hidden gems (and wife of our Interim Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs) was our guide as we spent a day exploring some of the city’s fascinating sites.

The day began with a private tour of the Cathedral Basilica of St. Louis, best known for its large mosaic installation and burial crypts. The Cathedral was designated a basilica by Pope John Paul II on April 4, 1997.

Next, we took private tours of the Museum of Contemporary Religious Art (MOCRA), and the Samuel Cupples House and Gallery, both located on the campus of St. Louis University.

MOCRA is the world's first interfaith museum of contemporary art that engages religious and spiritual themes. The current exhibition, Good Friday, includes works by over 30 artists of diverse backgrounds who have used the events of the day of Jesus’ death as inspiration for their own reflections on such themes as faith, suffering, loss, compassion, and unconditional love. Cupples House, a historic 42-room, castle-like mansion, is a rare example of Richardsonian Romanesque architecture in St. Louis and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Following a drive through the neighborhoods of Lafayette Square and Soulard, we dined at the fabulous Soulard's Restaurant and Bar. OLLI thanks Dan Badock and his staff for a warm welcome and wonderful food!

OLLI ended the day with a tour of the Old Historical Courthouse, and tram ride to the top of the St. Louis Arch.

For more information about the sites we toured, please visit these websites:

Cathedral Basilica of St. Louis

MOCRA

Samuel Cupples House

Soulard's Restaurant

Old Historical Courthouse and St. Louis Arch