Monday, Oct. 15, 2018 | Indiana Daily Student | idsnews.com
IDS ‘Mine has been a great life’
City adds evening liaison By Emily Isaacman
IU football legend George Taliaferro died last week at 91. His legacy extends beyond IU’s campus and the Bloomington community.
By Dylan Wallace dswallac@iu.edu | @Dwall_1
To whom much is given, much is required. It’s a paraphrase of a saying from the Bible in Luke 12:48, which states, “For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required: and to whom men have committed much, of him they will ask the more.” It was one of many sayings of the late, great George Taliaferro, a college football hall of fame inductee who helped integrate IU and the Bloomington community. Taliaferro died Oct. 8 at the age of 91. Donna Taliaferro, one of George’s four daughters, said that saying resonates with her the most after the passing of her father. “I found out that that’s who he was,” she said. “He gave so much. Not only to us, but to everybody that he encountered.” *** The story of Taliaferro is not one to go unnoticed in the history books. Taliaferro, a native of Gary, Indiana, came to IU in 1945 to play SEE TALIAFERRO, PAGE 5 PHOTO COURTESY OF THE IU ARCHIVES
George Taliaferro as a Hoosier in 1945. The All-American and Hall of Famer was the first African-American to be drafted into the NFL.
eisaacma@iu.edu | @emilyisaacman
A new face will soon patrol downtown Bloomington at night. The person will not be law enforcement, but a familiar presence connecting students, residents, visitors and businesses to resources during bustling nighttime hours, said Yael Ksander, communications director for the Office of the Mayor. The after-hours ambassador, approved last week in the 2019 budget, will be a liaison between late-night businesses and city hall. Ksander said he or she will roam from Indiana Avenue to College Avenue, and from Kirkwood Avenue to about Seventh Street. A large part of Bloomington’s economic and cultural activity takes place after hours, Ksander said, when city hall is closed. “This is going to be their friend at city hall, who just happens to be on their timeline,” Ksander said. The ambassador will ideally reduce interaction between law enforcement and people who aren’t committing crimes at night, said Beverly Calender-Anderson, director of the Community and Family Resources Department. “A lot of times, people just need help,” Calender-Anderson said. The person could provide directions for visitors or call an Uber for a drunk student. He or she could call Centerstone for someone who has overdosed or Middle Way House for a victim of domestic or sexual violence. If the ambassador saw illegal activity, he or she would have a contact from Bloomington Police Department at the ready. People will not necessarily seek the ambassador’s help directly. Business owners could call when they see someone in need of assistance, Calender-Anderson said. The position is gaining steam in cities across the country and abroad, with titles like “night mayor” and “nighttime ambassador.” Amsterdam, Netherlands, introduced the role in 2014. London, England, established a “night czar” in 2016. The District of Columbia posted a hiring notice for a night mayor in the past couple weeks. Bloomington’s Safety, Civility and Justice task force recommended a similar position in its list of 32 ideas to improve safety downtown. Hiring for the after-hours ambassador in Bloomington will take place between January and March. There will be no fiscal effect from the addition, as the role with replace the current health project coordinator. While the ambassador falls under the broad category of public safety, the prospective ambassador does not need to have a background in law enforcement. In fact, Calender-Anderson said many people who fill these roles have experience with business or social work.
Crosstown Barber Shop closes doors after 60 years By Alex Hardgrave ahardgra@iu.edu | @a_hardgrave
A place full of history — that is how owner Frank Meadows describes the recently closed Crosstown Barber Shop. The barbershop opened in 1952 at Crosstown Shopping Center on 10th Street and remained there until it closed a few month ago due to an IU renovation project. “It wasn’t just, if you need a haircut walk through my door,” Meadows said. “If you need to know where a hardware store is, walk in and I’ll tell you a great place to go. If you want to know a beautiful place to hike in the forest, walk in my door and I'll tell you where to go.” Meadows, 55, worked there for almost 32 years, starting as just a barber. Later, he took over the operation. He said he became a barber because he likes interacting with people. Over the years, he said parents have come in and thanked him for how he helped their children while they were at IU. Crosstown closing down did not come as a surprise to Meadows. “I knew it was going to happen a long time ago, it was just a matter of when,” he said. That did not make leaving any easier for him. “It was very odd locking the door the last time,” he said. “After that many years, it was just weird knowing that was the last time I was locking the doors and walking away.” Earlier this year, he was unable
to work because of a shoulder surgery. During that time he put a sign up telling people to go to Bill’s Barber Shop on South College Avenue because he said he knew the owner, Marilyn McGinnis, did good work. Since closing Crosstown, he started working at Bill’s Barber Shop. “Once I came over and met her, it was a done deal,” he said. “She's a wonderful woman. We just combined two barbershops and two clientele.” McGinnis told him that none of her clients were students but that has since changed. Now, there have been days when there are more IU students in the shop than townspeople, he said. McGinnis said she was lucky to get Meadows and his co-worker, Angela Calabrese, to move to Bill’s Barber Shop. Before that, she said they were planning on cutting back the hours they were open. "It changed everything," she said. Meadows said he will miss the history the shop had. “Well known, quasi-famous people that came in there, we had all their pictures and all their autographs on the wall," Meadows said. "Everyone really liked it.” Meadows said the photos and memorabilia that used to adorn the walls of the shop are all at his home except for two pictures, which now sit inside Bill’s Berber Shop. One is of a bobcat that lives in a cave behind his house. The other is a photo of IU President Michael McRobbie cutting his hair. McRobbie cut Meadows hair for a Locks of
TY VINSON | IDS
Frank Meadows stands outside Bill's Barber Shop on Oct. 12. Meadows has been cutting Hoosiers' hair for more than 30 years, including that of IU President Michael McRobbie.
Love campaign 10 years ago. Meadows said he has been cutting McRobbie’s hair for over 20 years. The photos show two things he loves — the outdoors and being a barber. He said one thing he loved about cutting hair was all the different people he would meet. “It was almost like going to school everyday,” he said. “There was always someone to learn from.” One of his past clients was alumnus Kevin Beckner. Beckner said he liked that he never knew
what conversation he would have while he was there. Beckner said one conversation sticks out in his memory. “We were talking about various things and he pulls out a book of all these pictures of caves that he has,” he said. “He walked me through all the different caves in southern Indiana, some of which he’d been through himself.” Beckner said Crosstown had a classic barbershop feel and the colorful history of the location was apparent .
“I thought that was a very cool snapshot into IU history, that the same barbershop had been there for so long and served so many different generations,” he said. Beckner said he was sad to hear the barbershop was closing — he came back time after time because they always did a great job. “You always imagine that your alma mater is just exactly the same as you left it,” he said. “It’s a little sad to hear that it’s closing just because its been there for so long and it’s been a mainstay on IU campus.”