Thursday, October 21, 1999
Paw, kids caught being nice
BY KAREN SAMPLES
The Cincinnati Enquirer
Jake Stammer is one lucky kid. Instead of plastic toys that break or quickly get boring, he has a grandpa with tools.
So far, Marvin Phelps has turned a riding lawnmower into a working train and caboose, he has made two jungle gyms out of discarded wood, and has refurbished a go-cart that any 10-year-old would love.
As it happens, Jake is only 2. It'll be awhile before he can reach the pedals.
“Do you get the feeling I'm really proud of that boy?” Grandpa asks.
A custom sandblaster, Mr. Phelps lives on a country spread in Boone County. He has three hobbies: restoring old cars, turning junk into treasures and doting on his only grandson.
“I want to give him something so that, if anything happened to me, he would have one item that says, "My paw made this for me.'”
Looks as if Jake will have a couple items like that.
His grandpa keeps a prize-winning '55 Chevrolet in the garage. For Jake, Mr. Phelps made a replica out of a child-sized pedal car. At shows, the two of them wear matching Chevrolet jackets.
Mr. Phelps came across the riding mower at a garage sale. Someone already had turned it into a train, but it wasn't working.
He added new seats, a new motor, fresh paint and a loudspeaker that makes train sounds. He put a light on the front and turned a flower pot into a chimney.
He and Jake ride around the property in this contraption. Of course, Mr. Phelps couldn't disguise the motor — from the sound of it, he appears to be cutting the grass with a train.
Jake doesn't seem to mind. He's got one heckuva paw.
DAMSEL IN DISTRESS: First the second-grader dropped her lunch tray, which was embarrassing enough. Then she found herself surrounded by seventh-grade boys.
They scooped up the mashed potatoes and rushed to mop the floor. The sec ond-grader was a mite intimidated, but Principal Faye Smith couldn't be more pleased.
Like many of its public counterparts, St. Mary School in Alexandria has started a “caught you being good” program. Unlike public schools, however, St. Mary can offer a powerful incentive: The chance for kids to get out of uniform for a day.
A few weeks ago, seventh-graders Tyler Watson and Chris Kloeker won the honor for their rescue of the second-grader.
Fifth-grader Abagaile Buechel recently got to wear street clothes for enthusiastically participating in Mass.
Out of the entire fifth grade, she was the only student wearing a Hard Rock Cafe T-shirt, Old Navy jeans and an Arizona Jeans sweat shirt.
The program is definitely working, Abagaile says.
“I've seen a lot of improvement in kids being good.”
SOUND OFF: Dan Hiltz of Fort Mitchell says I made too much of teen-age fashion in a recent column. Students who wear Doc Martens, listen to punk music and have multiple piercings aren't expressing their individuality as much as choosing a subculture, he says. They aren't any more “soulful” than classmates wearing Structure or American Eagle khakis.
“Their "style,' as you call it, might not make them likely candidates to go on a shooting spree, but it also doesn't make them likely candidates to be on the honor roll, participate in service projects, run for student government or earn college scholarships,” he writes.
• A dozen people called to support celebratory cannons at Ryle High School after I mentioned one man's crusade against them.
The lone dissenter was Kevin Matthews of Independence, who lamented what he considered the school's lack of concern for a neighbor.
“A crowd of cheering fans, like white noise or New Age music, has a wonderfully calming effect, like a soothing hand massage. Conversely, a cannon smacks and punches you with that same hand. Really, all a person has to do is ask themselves: Would I want to live next to a pile driver or a waterfall? C'mon ... the answer is simple.”
ITEMS WANTED: Call or e-mail me with your tips about people and places in Northern Kentucky.
Karen Samples is Kentucky columnist for the Enquirer. Her column appears Thursdays and Sundays. She can be reached at 578-5584, or by e-mail at ksamples@enquirer.com.
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