CROWN POINT â Neither inclement weather nor a pandemic stopped city residents giving Roland âBubâ Wise a very public sendoff Saturday.
Mourners stood outside in a blustery rain along the funeral procession route, which drove past the fire station where he was chief 17 years, the courthouse square and the Lake County Fairgrounds, where he served many years as fair board president and grandstands superintendent.
More than a dozen, holding signs celebrating Wise as a âHero,â stood beside two aerial ladder trucks supporting a large American flag the procession passed under on its way for burial at St. Mary Catholic Cemetery.
âHe was a wonderful man and this is a tremendous tribute and support for his family,â said Brad Hendrickson, a mourner who joined others at the Lake County Fairgrounds.Â
Former fire chief Roland Bub Wise remembered as a real Crown Pointian
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Former Crown Point fire chief remembered for legacy of 61 years of service
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Dale Bowman
The pandemic will break the Chicago tradition of attending outdoor shows in winter. In the Chicago Boat Show, that tradition goes back 90 years.
I think the break, at least for the months of January and February, is the only sane response. Frankly, it will probably take months longer.
When I checked with a show salesman with decades of experience on status of various shows, he messaged, “Any show organizer that is still planning a show is clearly consumed by greed.”
Or in denial of the deadliness of the pandemic in the United States.
On the good side, creative thinkers are reconsidering their options for attending or doing shows. After the pandemic, there will be changes. I even think the concept of show going with thousands packing enclosed buildings may be rethought.