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Washington Evening Journal
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Mt. Union lives on in North Village
A rich history of Mt. Union volunteerism continues alongside fresh recruits in the North Village
MT. PLEASANT — While Midwest Old Threshers is held in Mt. Pleasant, the Winfield and Mt. Union Communities make their presence well-known throughout the five day celebration, especially in the North Village.
This village is home to many buildings originally from Mt. Union, such as the barbershop, and while the town of Mt. Union is no longer incorporated in Henry County, the people of the area nearby Winfield keep their community alive with their volunteerism in the North Village.
A trio of Winfield-Mt. Union supporters were spotted at the Millstream Soda tent in the North Village Friday afternoon raising funds for the Mt. Union Boosters. Josh Farley, Terry Reynolds, and Eric Strothman return to the beverage tent every year thanks to volunteer hours provided by their employer Tenneco.
Reynolds said it only made sense for him to continue the tradition to not only sling sodas in the North Village, but also support the Winfield-Mt. Union Community by raising funds for the Mt. Union Boosters with one of their only major fundraising campaigns. According to Reynolds, the boosters use these funds to support community events like the weenie roast each fall and Easter egg hunts in the spring. They also fund scholarships for Winfield-Mt. Union students.
Serving the visitors to the Old Threshers grounds and his community is something Reynolds says he learned early thanks to his parents making it a tradition to visit and volunteer at Old Threshers from starting when he was just about seven years old.
“This is all my old stamping grounds,” Reynolds said. “I grew up here. My parents where part of this. I have always been a part of this.”
Reynolds recalls the North Village looking a little different when he was a kid, though. He remembers the soda tent was not always around, but the General Store used to burst at the seams with goodies.
“The store was loaded,” Reynolds said. “I mean, we had a huge candy counter, we had beef jerky. I mean, they had all kinds of items for sale.”
The Golden Slipper Saloon is also traditionally home to many volunteers from the Winfield-Mt. Union area. According to the Golden Slipper Saloon Coordinator Julie Van Tiger, when the saloon group originally started volunteers had to be from Mt. Union to participate.
Van Tiger has a rich history with the Golden Slipper Saloon like many others serving in the North Village. She says she grew up in the village and remembers the current building being built in the mid-60s.
“My parents where with us when they built this building and they started singing after that,” she said.
In 2000 Van Tiger took over as the coordinator at the Golden Slipper Saloon and she expressed gratitude for all the volunteers whether they’ve been around for decades or are just now stepping into their roles.
Matt and Kenny McCallister are longtime saloon volunteers from Mt. Union. According to coordinator Julie Van Tiger, the father and son McCallister duo began volunteering in the saloon 30 years ago in 1994.
“I just want to thank you so much,” Van Tiger told the McCallister men. “It’s like a family reunion and I just want to thank you both.”
While she has unending gratitude for the McCallister men, Van Tiger says one of her favorite parts of her job is working with the girls that dance on the Golden Slipper stage.
“I am so proud of the girls,” she said.
Matt and Kenny McCallister might know every song that the saloon performs by heart after their many years of service, but Van Tiger doesn’t mind teaching new volunteers the songs and dances, even if she has to venture out from the original fold of the Mt. Union community to fill her stage and provide family-friendly entertainment throughout Old Threshers in the North Village.
Comments: AnnaMarie.Kruse@southeastiowaunion.com
