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Show WASATCH COUNTY COURIER September 7, 1999. . Dickory Dock; ; They Know Dance Up On The Clock A Profile of Midway’s Most Your Neighbor Underrated Performers | By Jean Croasmun, Courier staff Al and Monica Kohler. Conributing Writers Sometimes a-wonderful neighbor is even a relative. Sometimes it takes — later in life to discover this person for what they really are. Earl J. Kohler is just that kind of person. ad was born Aug. here in Midway. Fred and ‘Kohler. Earl 9, 1916 right He is the son of Lucetta, (Aunt Settie) After a very short courtship married Heber City. Marie Fraughton of They had three won- derful children in the path that have followed of their mother and father in caring for their fellowmen. Much could be written about -their accomplishments. _ Their children are Bryan, Jim, and Linda Kohler Densley. dance at Midway’s Town Hall. Not the politicians. Not the town leaders. Not — even the tax-paying residents. = group of movements little wooden keep Hall’s glockenspiel. figures Just a whose time in the Town 3 - Midway’s glockenspiel has been a town feature for over a decade. Tour busses stop for pictures. People drive up. from told the dese Boosters what he hd said a to Recon one a the yes immediately,” says : Bard: years. During his administration as mayor, the Natural gas came to Midway.. Also. the rebuilding of the culinary water systems, the first garbage pick- -up in the county which Roper, then the head of UVSC's engineering department. oversaw the was free, and the Ist improvement of the Town Hall which: included mechanical-side of the project. His son, a contractor, modified the old window restrooms. Anderson. ee “Then what a glockenspiel I og to tell them was.” Boosters at the time, prior to adopting UVSC built: the nedchantienn that runs 1 % their off a modified garage door opener. Bavarian theme, the town of Leavenworth, financially was:on the decline. About the only business making any, money was a highly popular ! Swiss restaurant on the outskirts of — the valley to see it. Post office patrons - town. “They thought that if they developed’ a Swiss theme through the rest. of listen to its tune. It’s the focal point of Midway’s Swiss theme. Even if it is. ‘nomically viable again,” says Anderson. the town, Leavenworth could be eco- German. And it worked. A glockenspiel is a traditional German So cuckoo clock with dancing people and animals replacing the traditional bird Boosters how Leavenworth had econom- when Bein told the Midiey in Midway’s Town Hall to make room for the glockenspiel. With the mechan- | © ical side taken care of, the Boosters set : their sights on the. characters. Anderson onc Erle Young, a local Tee ‘They TE | Earl is a veteran of World War II, and was Midway City mayor for 14 _ be | INC ae a es Look for the e ) 1 — non- stop. | Earl “spent 18” an Wasatch as Supt. ° | Mountain: State — Park. Previous to this he was a contractor, building- homes i | “Every hour’on ieee runs nearly | and. several public buildings. Asa result: of this, one of Earl’s favorite hobbies is woodwork- Midway artist at the time, to build the ig figures for the glockenspiel. “We. went - __ing, along with gardening and stimee ically turned itself around, the idea of - to Wallsburg,” ‘says Anderson, to: look--| ‘ulating his mind through cross-word © and bells and songs replacing the chirp. ~ turning Midway into a Bavarian Village ~ for wood at the woodworking shop. _ puzzles. (building. vocabulary), and Midway’s glockenspiel isn’t quite so tra-. - became quite appealing. Then someone | When Anderson and Young got there, being up on:current events (an avid ditional. It houses five dancing Swiss, a_ mentioned a glockenspiel. That sound- 3 they found a veritable treasure trove of | reader). But .its . _ ed even better. few pets and recorded music. | junk wood. Spherical pieces became the |». purpose is well served. “Oni ‘friendship has grown over r the. figures’ heads. Spindly pieces were used But where does one find a glockenspiel? According to Fran Anderson, Executive | That became Anderson’s quest. He and ‘last decade. Early this spring when for arms. “We literally pieced together Director of the Heber Valley Chamber Just like the figures,” says Anderson. _ his. wife visited Leavenworth to see the we found the entering Midway sign - of Commerce, no one could have ever the rest of the project. . town’s glockenspiel, but it wasn’t workhad fallen and been destroyed, it conceived of the weird series of events ing-the clock shop owner across the But watching the figures dance around __ was Earl who.came to the rescue and that had to occur for Midway to finally street was in a fight with the powers at “rebuilt the ‘ sign. This stimulated the get their glockenspiel. It sounded like a ~ city. hall. But Anderson did find the " every hour, on the ‘hour, one would need to refurbish all three signs. never know. great idea at the time, back in the midglockenspiel’s maker — a colorful char‘What fun-we had gluing and clamp- ~ 1980s; the glockenspiel would be anothacter akin’ to<“Boc” in Back to the Now Lawrence Elliott runs the glockening the signs back together, replacer means_of expressing Midway’s Swiss Future. Anderson asked him if he would spiel’s show. “It’s just a garage door theme, another way to bring in more ing parts that were destroyed and make a glockenspiel for Midway, and the.» opener that moves back and forth tourism dollars.- And by all accounts, repainting. Along with this, Earl glockenspiel maker said yes. But nothinstead of up and down,” says Elliott. Midway’s glockenspiel should have car~ rode in the bucket of the backhoe to ing happened. The music is programmed. The dancers ried with it a $25,000 price tag. But put the signs on the poles. are computer-driven, ) too. And even So Anderson asked the glockenspiel Midway got their glockenspiel for a after a decade, people stop in front of ‘maker again, and again the glockenspiel yodel, or at least a song. Even at the age of 83, Earl continMidway’s town hall to watch the figures maker said yes, and still nothing hapues to work and share his talents The Midway Boosters were and still are pened. Finally, Anderson got tired of — dance and turn and sing on the hour. with his beloved Midway. He is just at the heart of the glockenspiel; they got. asking the glockenspiel maker to make _ Any problems? Of course, says Elliott, “One of those people. One in a miltHe clock and dancers up and running Midway’s glockenspiel and he took mat“but people wouldn’t really notice. “I lion, a very special person!” back in 1988. The project started when ters into his own hands. thought about throwing in some counone of the boosters, Dr. Steve Brown, ‘Midway is blessed to have Earl try,” says Elliott, indicating that it might “I went to UVSC’s engineering departtook a trip to a Bavarian village in _ Kohler, who continues to contribute be fun to change the music for Swiss ment to see if they wanted to take Leavenworth, Washington and was and support his community! Days. But that, people might notice. Midway’s glockenspiel on as a project. quite impressed: So much so that he i Si Regardless i what the hands say, during Swiss Days, Midway’s glockenspiel singing Swiss and coca critters to normally appear on cee hour. | Earl also has 15 grandchil- dren and 4 great-grandchildren. |