The Sauk Centre herald. (Sauk Centre, Stearns County, Minn.) 1886-current, 1928-07-12
EIGHTH DIST. COM.
ELYS TO MEET OF 9TH
Lewis EckenrOde and Grove
Willis Will Come Here By
Plane From Eveleth
RYAN CAB MONOPLANE
Craft Similar to Lindy's New
Ship But Lands on Water
Offer Rides

"The thrill that comes once in a
lifetime"-that's what Louis Eek
enrode and Grove Wills will ex-
perience Monday morning.
When you were a kid did you
ever evision yourself leaving the
old home town, going out into the
world and making good and then
returning home via airplane to be
greeted by a brass band? Maybe
you didn't figure it out just that
way-but that is what is going to
happen to those two Sank Centre
boys-and they will be welcomed
home not only by a brass band but
by several bands, drum corps and
throngs of former townsmen and
buddies.
Well get down to the facts of
the case-here's what is going to
happen that will give these two, at
least, that thrill that comes once
in a lifetime" made famous in
cartoons of the daily press:
Lewis Eckenrode served Uncle
Sam in the Navy during the World
War, afterwards he married
Sank Centre girl (nee Miss Char
lotte Wagner) and established
the Willard battery shop in Eve
leth, Minnesota. Lewis has made
good, not only in the business
world but has also gone a long
way toward the top in the Amer
lean Legion of this state. He is
now Commander of the American
Legion of the Eighth District, De-
partment of Minnesota, and will
fly from his present home at Eve
leth, to his boyhood home of
Sank Centre to attend the conven-
ton of the Sixth District, Amer
lean Legion and Auxiliary, Depart
ment of Minnesota, which will be
held Monday and Tuesday, July
1917. He will make the flight in
a Ryan Cabin Monoplane which is
similar to Col. Charles Lindbergh's
latest personal ship, except that it
is equipped with pontoons and
lands on the water, while "Lindy's"
plane has wheels and comes down
on land.
Grove Wills, for many years
was valued employee of the Sank
Centre Herald, served his country
in the army as a lieutenant. At
the close of the war he started the
Eveleth Clarion, one CT Minneso-
ta's leading weekly newspapers.
He is active in press associations
of TIE state and nation, is past
president of the Northern Mime
sofa Editorial Association and is
an energetic worker in the Amer
ic.n Legion and for everything
thu. will prem te the welfare of
his home city of Eveleth, his
county, district, state and nation.
Grove conceived the idea of ar
ranging for the Eighth DistricS
commanders flight to the Sixth
2 street Legion and Auxiliary Cen
ve1lt. on, and the old home to ~. Uf
course he would not miss ont on
that "thrill" and he declares Sank
Ce.'tra is always one Of the BEST
places to come back to, and en-
joys his visits here, and his many
friends are always glad to wei
co,pe his back.
The other three members Of tie
party of five, will be DUSTY"
RI Goes, World War Ace, and NJ S.
Kingston, co-owne-s Of the plare,
and Doctor Meyers, Public School
physician of the city of Evelth.
All three are Legion men, and
Wills assures US they are all
wonderful fellows: They will be
royalty welcomed to Sank Centre.
While the Wallace family were
attending the Northern Minnesota
Editorial Association outing 1T Du-
luth and Port Arthur, Canada, a
few weeks ago, Grove told Hugh
Wallace of the proposed flight
from Eveleth to Sank Centre as he
knew very we'll that skinny" was
an aviation enthusiast, since he had
been chief airplane inspect r at
the finishing file 4 t'r fighting pi-
lots at the largest aviation instr C.
tim center in the wor,, and WIS
TIC enlisted man in charge Of ex-
rer. mental work on airplanes at
his field when the Armistice was
signed. Willis asked skinny to
get in touch with the Sank Centre
Legionaires and find out if they
would consider such a flight of
value to the Sixth District Con-
vention. Did they receive the
proposition enthusiastic ily?. Well
tell the "cockeyed world" they
dill, Commander Arthur Weisncr.
and Adjutant Henry Sauer, of
Robert James Swift Post, Sank
Centre, George Barnard, World
War reconnaissance and bombing
piiot, Harold Bisnop chairman Of
the Convention entertainment
committee, Tom Clough, conven-
tor publicity man, and Hugh
Wallace have all been active in
arranging the details of properly
welcoming their buddies who are
air travelling messengers of good
will from Northern Minnesota ard
the Eighth District.
The five-passenger Ryan mono
plane has been christenei the
esprit Of st. Louis Cou
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