ELNORA — Twenty five years ago there was a group of men with a passion and zeal for antique farm equipment, who thought that it would be a fine idea to have a local event to showcase the equipment used in an earlier time by our forefathers. These men became the first board of directors of the White River Valley Antique Association. They were Dennis Kutch, Jim Ravellette, Cledus Stites, Ben Chestnut, Vincent Hastings, Gene Horning and Pete Riggins. Many charter members will tell you that they became members by the persistence of these men in their zeal to raise money for the first show, by selling charter memberships to friends and family for $25 each.

Many directors have come and gone over the past 25 years, but the spirit of the zeal of these first directors continues even today through the hard work of the more than 700 members of the current association.

“It takes a lot of people and a lot of hard work to put on this show,” said 75-year-old Don Ferguson, who became a charter member by the constant pestering of his cousin, Pete Riggins. “That first year my wife and I were just spectators,” said Don.

But that soon changed, and he even served as president of the association for five years. He now operates the molasses making demonstration at the show. But, he, along with many other members, are concerned about the lack of younger people becoming involved in the show.

Ferguson went on to say that he and his 85-year-old sorghum squeezer, Harry Ellis of Loogootee, “would be thrilled to teach someone younger how to make the molasses this very year, and let them run it next year!”

Judging by how spry these two act, there must be something very special about making molasses. But they must be sharing the molasses, because that seems to be the condition of everyone on the show grounds these day.

Around Labor Day the show grounds start to become a beehive of activity, in preparation for the show that starts the Thursday after Labor Day. On this Labor Day, Lisa Shafer was putting her labors into painting the one room school house.

“It’s a great organization”, she said. “Great fellowship and great people, and there is plenty for everybody to do”, she continued.

That same day, 75-year-old Melvin Paulus, was also busy preparing for the show. Melvin was President of the association for almost a decade.

“I fired my first steam engine when I was 11 years old”, he reminisced.

Melvin and his family operate a stand that makes apple butter at the show. Meanwhile, his granddaughter, Hannah Miller, was helping his wife, Gladys, spruce up the place by applying mulch in front of the general store. Miller said, “We make sweetened and unsweetened apple butter, the sweetened is my favorite, though.”

Across from where the Paulus family were setting up the apple butter stand a group of men were tuning up the saw mill that will be busy sawing logs showcasing the power of an antique steam engine that runs Hank Swartzentruber’s sawmill.

Melvin was later joined by Carl ‘Shorty’ Stites, as they transported a very heavy, 150 HP, antique Buckeye brand diesel engine to its site for the show. Carl is the son of the late Cledus Stites, one of the charter directors of the show. On their way they passed Bill Summers of Plainville and Tom Burnette of Wheatland who were busy staking out a location to display their antique farm tractors.

The one thing that has made this show so successful, and has kept it growing year after year, is the emphasis and acceptance of individual initiative. If a member has a new idea for a demonstration, and the initiative to see it through, then it can become reality. That is why almost every year there is something new on the grounds. And just maybe it is this same philosophy that we can proudly say has made our own county so great and successful. This individual initiative combined with the zeal and spirit of committed and passionate men and women. And hopefully someone will take Don and Harry, the molasses makers, up on their gracious offer of passing along a skill of our forefathers. Judging by those at work this day at the show grounds, it seems to be a sure fire way to stay young in spirit and heart. Let us all be so fortunate.