Stepping Down Page 2
Holiday Sides Page 7
Art Class Page 8
Free complimentary copy November 7, 2014 • Volume 2, No. 6
www.raytowneagle.com • 75¢
Korean War Vets From Raytown Make Honor Flight By Diane Krizek Editor Thanks for the nudging of their granddaughters, John Atkins and Karl Welch were part of the October 7, 2014, honor flight to Washington, D.C. where they were able to visit all the memorials dedicated to honor their service thanks to the Honor Flight of Kansas City. Karl’s granddaughter, Jessica Abernathy, signed him up for the flight with her as his escort. Jessica was excited about the trip because her employer, Veterans United Home Loans in Columbia, Missouri, had sponsored a flight. Karl was in the Marine Corps. when he was engaged to serve in the Korean War or the “Forgotten War” in 1950. “When I came home from the war, I got off the ship in San Diego with my seabag on my shoulder and a flight bag in my other hand and was greeted by a Red Cross lady at the bottom of the gangplank who offered me a doughnut which I couldn’t hold while they pushed to get us all on the bus,” recalls Karl. “It didn’t bother me much because I just wanted to get on with my life
and not look back.” John’s trip was motivated by his granddaughter, Elizabeth Atkins, who lives in Virginia Beach. She met him in D.C. as his escort and Theresa Parks, an author in Kansas City who was born in Korea, escorted him on the flight. John Atkins had been in the National Guard in Oklahoma City when they were activated to go to Korea as the U.S. Army. “The Koreans were so impoverished and the sight of us Americans gave them hope. We gave the Korean kids candy and Theresa who was 9 years-old then remembered that. She threw Hershey candies to us on the honor flight,” laughed John. “When I came home, people asked me where I’d been. That hurt,” said John. “There was not much publicity because Truman never declared it as war so it would pass Congress.” Not surprising, Karl and John were absolutely shocked when they were greeted at the Reagan National Airport with a brass band and hundreds, maybe thousands, of people that included former U.S Senator, Bob Dole who greets every flight.
All the veterans were assigned to buses with three police escorts each that navigated them through the city to see all the memorials. John
recalls the bus driver telling them nobody was going to stop them from getting to their destinations. They saw the Lincoln, Jefferson and
the Viet Nam, WW II Korean War Veterans memorials plus all the mil-
Continued on page 5
John Atkins and grandaughter, Elizabeth Atkins
Karl Welch and granddaughter Jessica Abernathy
Left to right John Atkins, Bob Dole and Therese Parks
Marks Metal Art Opens In Raytown By Diane Krizek Editor For those who didn’t attend the Raytown Arts & Music Fest at Kenagy Park on September 27, 2014, you not only missed Brewer and Shipley’s performance, you missed the stunning sculptures and jewelry
by Mark Moore of Marks Metal Art. “I was so excited about being at the Raytown Arts Fest this year and
getting people’s reactions to my work,” said Mark. “I also had a display this past weekend at the 36th Annual Gem, Mineral, and Jewelry Show at the KCI Expo Center.” The seeds of Marks Metal Art began while working in construction for 36 years. Mark began collecting and studying minerals and stones that grew into a passion that would compel him to hike the remote areas of the country looking for buried treasure. As his knowledge in mineralogy grew, he also became interested in working with metals. He took a class at Longview Community College to learn machine and tool & die processes and progressed into working metal lathes. The downturn in the economy forced him to reconsider his options so he decided to follow his passion in metals and minerals and turn his hobby into a business. “I bought a torch, took a class making silver jewelry and created
my first pendant. I enjoyed making jewelry. I was already turning stones with a Diamond Pacific so my collection of minerals and stones could be used in my jewelry,” said Mark. While prospecting for gold in Arizona, he studied the Navajo and Zuni style of silversmithing but he would develop his own distinct style. He began experimenting with mixing metals: brass with copper,
copper with aluminum and stainless steel which led to a desire to create something larger. Mark’s artwork started with insect sculptures, like the majestic Dragon Fly, that are designed by hand from his imagination without the aid of computer design software. These sculptures are cut from 14 gauge sheets of copper and 10 gauge sheets of brass, accented with semi-precious stones and pol-
ished to a brilliant shine. His designs now include various sizes of the magnificent descending eagle constructed primarily from brass and aluminum and also accented with semi-precious stones. “Low brass or 80/20 when polished looks like gold. I use 301 stainless steel with chromium but stainless is unforgiving and takes
Continued on page 5