Elk Mound installs ball field signs in memory of Lions Club members
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ELK MOUND MEMORIAL BALL FIELDS — Scott Johnson (on left), president of the Elk Mound Lions Club, presented new signs for the ball fields at the village park to Terry Stamm, village president, on May 16. Stamm also is a charter member of the Elk Mound Lions. —photo submitted
by LeAnn R. Ralph
ELK MOUND — Three ball fields at the Elk Mound Lions Club Park that have been named in memory of Lions Club members who worked tirelessly to build the ball fields have new matching signs.
Lions Club president Scott Johnson presented the signs to Terry Stamm, Elk Mound village president, last month.
The signs have now been put up at the ball fields, Stamm said, on a recent visit to the Colfax Messenger office.
The ball fields are named “Verl Carlstrom Memorial Field,” “Julian O. Rhude and Rodney K. Rhude Memorial Field,” and “Manville Price Memorial Field.”
The Lions Club charter was in January of 1977, and in January of 2017, the club celebrated its 40th anniversary.
Stamm was a charter member of the Elk Mound Lions Club and was elected as the first president. He started out in Elk Mound as the police chief and then later on worked most of his career as the Director of Public Works.
Stamm was elected as village president in the April election.
Carlstrom also was a charter member of the Elk Mound Lions Club.
He died December 28, 2018, at the age of 77.
Carlstrom served in the United States Navy and spent many years selling real estate in the Eau Claire area.
The Colfax Messenger published a story about the Elk Mound Lions Club celebrating the organization’s 40th anniversary in 2017, and at the time, Carlstrom said he vividly remembered that the Elk Mound Lions Club charter night “drew quite a crowd.”
Julian O. Rhude, a charter member of the Lions Club as well, died in 1987 at the age of 46.
Julian’s brother, Rodney K. Rhude, died in November of 2020 at the age of 74.
Rodney graduated from Elk Mound High School in 1964, and after he and his wife, Beverly, were married, they took over the family farm until he restarted his father’s construction company.
During the 2017 interview, Rhude recalled that there were 37 members at charter night for the Elk Mound Lions Club.
Rhude also recalled the Elk Mound Lions Club fish fries and the pancake breakfasts.
“The people of the village, from the area, really, have supported us so well. People from Colfax also used to come for the fish fries,” Rhude said in 2017.
The Elk Mound Lions Club’s first project was a warming shelter for the skating rink, which later on became the “beer wagon” for other events.
Park
The biggest accomplishment, and the one that is perhaps now the most visible in the community, is the Elk Mound Lions Club Park/Village Park.
Every summer, hundreds of Little League players and their family members use the park for Little League games and tournaments.
Before the park was started, Lions Club members went to the Elk Mound Village Board and asked for a commitment from the village if the Lions Club would commit resources and manpower to get the park going.
The village purchased the property, and the Lions Club built the pavilion and the ball fields.
In addition to the fish fries, pancake breakfasts and the horse pulls — and the park — the Lions Club also used to put up street decorations for Christmas, and in the early days, swept the streets in Elk Mound by hand each spring to raise money for the organization.
The Lions Club has collected used glasses and frames that are distributed in the United States and foreign countries where eyeglasses are needed and has supported the Wisconsin Lions Camp at Rosholt, which provides a free-of-charge camping experience for children and adults with disabilities from Wisconsin who are blind or visually impaired, deaf or hard of hearing, and children with cognitive disabilities, autism or diabetes.
Leader Dogs for the Blind is another Lions Clubs program supported by the Elk Mound Lions Club, and the Lions have done vision screening at Mound View Elementary, too,
Manny Price
The Manville Price Memorial Field was first named in 2010.
The Lions Club presented new signs so that all the signs match, Stamm said.
The Colfax Messenger interviewed Manny and Myrna Price in 2010.
Manny Price died at the age of 95 in April of 2013. Myrna Price died in April of 2017 at the age of 95.
Manny grew up in the Knapp, Boyceville and Colfax area and served in World War II.
Myrna Price grew up in the Twin Valley and Running Valley area north of Colfax and graduated from Colfax High School in 1941.
The Prices farmed near Elk Mound for many years before retiring to Elk Mound in 1980. They owned the Laundromat and beauty shop for quite some time, which is the building where the Elk Mound library and community center are now located.
Manny recalled the village purchasing the land and the Elk Mound Lions Club members who worked to develop it.
Here is part of his story from the August of 2010 Colfax Messenger:
“A bunch of us went out there and looked at this land that became available. The village bought it. That was the beginning [of the village park].
“I enjoyed every minute of it. We were fortunate we had a mason and bricklayers and carpenters. We had cooks and KPs and guys who weren’t afraid to get their fingers dirty, and everything seemed to fall into place. I never in my wildest dreams figured they’d put my name on the fence down there. I feel pretty good about that. We had our Price family reunion out there last weekend (mid-August).
“Before we started the park, we had thought about making a village square where the Bremer Bank is, but that didn’t appeal to the guys. I’m glad we got that park out there. It was my job for about 20 years to keep the park up, to mow it and keep it up.
“When I used to work out there at the park, a car would pull in, and it would be a lady with two or three kids, and she’d get out of the car and turn the kids loose.
“Over the years, we were so fortunate. The only accident (out at the park) I know of was when that guy lost his finger in a horse pull. He was lucky he lost only one finger, probably, because when those horses know it’s time to pull, they go. It maybe wasn’t all so much fun out there.
“We have to give Julian Rude an awful lot of credit. His name is on the other fence. He was really pushing to get that thing rolling. We have to give him a lot of credit. But, it’s like I told (Myrna) — now my name will be on something else besides my tombstone.”
Club officers
In addition to Scott Johnson as president of the Elk Mound Lions Club and Terry Stamm as a two-year director, other officers in the organization include Mike Brunner (first vice president), Bruce Knutson (second vice president), Brenda Johnson (secretary), Steve Dieter (treasurer), Gary Oas (Lion Tamer); Jacki Brunner (Tail Twister), Gene Erdman (two year director), Dean Brockmeier and Kathy Knopp (one year director), Bruce Knutson (club service chair), Wendy Erdman (club marketing chair), Terry Stamm (club safety officer) and Gary Oas (immediate past president).
The Board of Directors meets the second Thursday of the month at 6:30 p.m.
The regular Lions Club meeting is the fourth Thursday, with a social time at 6 p.m. and dinner followed by a meeting at 6:30 p.m.
The Elk Mound Lions Club meets from October to May at Independence State Bank in Elk Mound, 401 University Street.
From June through September, the Elk Mound Lions Club meets at the Elk Mound Village Park, S405 Holly Avenue in Elk Mound.
