2019 Tower of Fame winner Charlie Porter, president of Medicap Pharmacies
It was a picture perfect weekend for the 40th annual Bell Tower Festival in Jefferson.
The three-day event kicked off on Friday night with the opening ceremonies and the Bell Tower of Fame Award winner Charlie Porter. The 1965 Jefferson High School graduate and one of the men that started what is now called Medicap Pharmacy, Porter gave him and his wife Pat a nod when he told Raccoon Valley Radio what winning the Bell Tower of Fame Award meant for him.
“Well for me it’s like coming home. I mean (my wife) Pat and I have always thought of ourselves as Jefferson being our hometown. So to come back to our hometown and to get an award like this is awesome, I mean it’s the best.”
Then Saturday brought a full day of activities including the Jefferson Rotary-sponsored parade, where the Drill and Dance Corp of Des Moines, the Isiserettes, not only performed in the parade, but they also gave an extended performance on the Lincoln Way Stage. Rotarian Sam Harding said Jefferson Fareway won the commercial parade category, the Jefferson-Scranton High School Class of 1999 won the non-commercial and Home State Bank won thematic entry. Another result was in the Jefferson Parks and Recreation 3-on-3 Basketball Tournament in which there was a 5-peat champion. The winners included: Keith Van Beek, Cody Smith, Chris Nelson and Scott Weber, who each won a new basketball from the sponsor American Athletic Incorporated.
Bell Tower Festival Chair Pete Russell called the festival a success.
“I think it’s gone positively a success. We’ve had a great response of our parade, it was wonderful everybody loved it. They loved the entertainment we had and they were so excited to see the Isiserettes back this year. So I think we’ve had a successful year.”
Otis, Brooklynn Millerand Kaycee Pittman; and (back, from left) Tommy Bates, Bailey Miller, Lily Olson,
Zoey Bowers and Hanna Mummert. Photo courtesy of Tori Riley
As for the Bill Riley Talent Search, the winner of the Sprout Division for the 2-12 year-olds was 10-year-old pianist/vocalist Norah Otis of Urbandale and the Senior Division for the 13-21 year-olds was vocalist Tommy Bates of Bayard. Both qualified to compete at the Iowa State Fair in August. The other results were in the Sprout Division that finished second was 11-year-old Brooklyn Miller of Gowrie and third place went to 11-year-old Kaycee Pittman of Jefferson. Fourteen-year-old Zoey Bowers and 13-year-old Lily Olson of Harlan received second place in the Senior Division, while 13-year-old Hanna Mummert of Cherokee placed third.
To see pictures from the festival, check out our Facebook page.