Opinion - The Lessons Annie Taught Us

The lessons Annie taught us

That’s My Opinion

By Bob Robinson

I owe two people a huge apology, Greenville High School senior Paul Reitz and Darke County Commissioner Terry Haworth.

Reitz made an excellent presentation to Darke County Youth in Politics a week ago yesterday and Haworth made a similarly excellent presentation to the Darke County TEA Patriots two days earlier.

Both were deserving of special stories to be posted on my blog, but they haven’t been written yet. No excuse… simply not enough hours in the day.

Now the timeliness has expired. I’ll eventually write them (I hope), but they won’t end up the way I’d originally planned. In the meantime, news and events don’t wait for me.

Something I should have remembered from my days at The Advocate. And, as I have done all my life, I’ve been caught once again “biting off more than I can chew.”

Tony MacKenzie of The Advocate has already published a story on the presentation Reitz made. It was in the Wednesday issue. It was well done and worth your time to read if you haven’t done so already.

Senior Scribe Beverly Hughes will also have a story soon in the Early Bird… she asked some excellent questions, so I’m looking forward to seeing her “take” on the presentation.

It’s the end of July and Annie Oakley Days are once again upon us. While Darke County can boast year around celebrations and festivals second to none, the two I most look forward to are Annie Oakley Days and the Great Darke County Fair.

Annie will be “150 years old” next August. We may have lost her physical presence – in 1926 – but she left us with a variety of gifts that, hopefully, we will never lose.

She was a national icon, both while she was alive and long after her death, with movies, plays and even a television series or two. She will live in the minds of many for generations to come.

But there was something about her that did not get the “play” it deserved… it was her strength of character and her ability to take a God-given gift to achieve her version of the American Dream.

Sadly, few people are able to overcome poverty and brutal circumstances as a child to turn their lives into success stories, much less make a mark on the history of this country. Annie did.

That would have been reason enough to celebrate her as Darke County’s favorite daughter… but she did even more for the generations that followed. She devoted many of the years of her life fighting for the rights of women in a variety of areas. It is believed she personally taught nearly 15,000 women how to use a gun, not only as a form of physical and mental exercise but for self-defense.

This will be a great weekend – despite the anticipated heat wave – to get into the spirit of Annie and her times.

There will be sidewalk bargains throughout South Broadway, including at the world-famous KitchenAid Appliances. Visitors will find even more bargains at the fairgrounds, along with a variety of activities and performances for good, old-fashioned entertainment.

Make sure you toss a few balls to dunk your favorite (or not-quite-favorite) local community leader, proceeds going to a variety of charities.

And don’t forget to join in at this year’s “Melerdrama” at the Youth Building. Performances are scheduled throughout the weekend.

If you haven’t taken the Annie Oakley tour, you need to do so. And you can find out all you ever wanted to know about the life and times of Annie at Greenville’s famous Garst Museum on North Broadway.

Saturday has some events that I hope you will find interesting.

At 9:30, a bunch of “macho” guys and I will be walking from the City Building on the circle to Annie Oakley Park. We will be in “pink,” supporting efforts to fight Breast Cancer and assist those who are dealing with it. All donations stay in Darke County.

A few minutes later Greenville High School’s Key Club will be taking its first parade ride from Garst Museum to the fairgrounds.

You will also see Ruby Jo Walls, Miss Annie Oakley 2010, in the parade. If you get a chance, say “hi” and congratulate her on her accomplishment.

And if your schedule permits, I’d love to see you at Annie Oakley Park at 4 p.m. The Darke County TEA Patriots will be holding a rally, and I will be one of the speakers.

Find out what today’s “Patriots” have in common with yesterday’s “Heroes.”

Leave your preconceived notions at home for an hour or two. Try to forget what the media has said about TEA Patriots across the country. Open up your minds; get the other side of what the movement is about.

You might find out that we are asking you to remember the lessons that Annie taught us more than a century ago.

That’s my opinion. What’s yours?

Bob Robinson is the retired editor of The Daily Advocate, Greenville, Ohio. If you wish to receive a daily notification of his comments, opinions and reports, send your email address to: opinionsbybob@gmail.com. Feel free to express your views.