The Colfax Main Street Business Improvement Committee will be soon be conducting business surveys. Businesses will either be interviewed in person or will receive a survey via postal mail. The purpose of the business surveys is to gather market data and set further direction for Colfax Main Street. Individual appointments will be made during June and July to complete the interviews. Additional area businesses will be surveyed by mail. If your business is not contacted by July 20th, please contact David Mast at 674-4033 or mastdlsa@yahoo.com.

Don’t miss out on local produce, baked goods, and other products each week at this year’s farmer’s market in Mineral Springs Park. The Farmer’s Market began June 1 and will run through September 7. It will be held each Wednesday from 4-6:30 p.m.

For questions about the Colfax Farmer’s Market or to become a vendor, contact Mary Moore at 515-571-9982 or Nancy Woody at 515-401-7464.

The Jasper County Fair Queen was crowned on Saturday, June 18th, 2011 at Music in the park in Colfax. Amanda Knight, daughter of Troy and Caren Knight of Monroe, will represent Jasper County at upcoming community events and the 2011 Jasper County Fair, and will also go on to compete in the Iowa State Fair Queen Contest in August.

Amanda is a member of the Community Heights and Alliances Church and youth group, World Changers 4-H Club, Jasper County Council, and runs Cross Country. Amanda stays active in her community by decorating for Festival of Trees, volunteering at Pizza Ranch to benefit flood victims, a cancer victim and other charities, and volunteering for VBS at her Church. Amanda has been involved in street cleaning, works part time at Pizza Ranch and at the Iowa Speed Way. Amanda’s future plans are to complete her high school education by home schooling and attending classes at Newton High School and attend Faith Baptist College in Ankeny.

Who will be the 2011 Jasper County Fair Queen? On Saturday, June 18th at Music in the Park in Colfax, the 2011 Jasper County Fair Queen will be crowned by the Jasper County Fair Board. This is a change from years past as the coronation is now the only public portion of the pageant.

Not only will the Jasper County Fair Board be crowning the 2011 Fair Queen, but they will also be having a fundraiser dinner to support their efforts as they continue to rebuild after the Floods of 2010. They will be selling hamburgers, hotdogs, chips, desserts and beverages starting at 6 PM. The Fair Board is hoping for a great turnout as there are still many expenses to make this year’s fair a success.

The entertainment for the evening will be a Jasper County favorite - the 8 Track Band! The 8 Track Band is one of the largest rock and roll bands in the Midwest calling Newton, Iowa their home. The 8 Track Band spans many genres and generations as they sing a variety of tunes including “These Boots are Made for Walkin”, “Walk Like an Egyptian”, “Unchained Melody”, “Play that Funky Music”, “Sheila” and many, many more. Please visit the www.8trackband.com for more information.

Don’t forget to mark your calendars for the Jasper County Fair 2011, July 15-21 in Colfax and also for the final Colfax Music in the Park performance on Sunday, July 17 with Bob Dorr and the Blue Band.

This is the 6th year that Colfax has hosted free performances at Anspach Stage in Women’s Club Park located at 12 East Division Street. All concerts start at 7 PM. Be sure to bring your blankets and lawnchairs. Treats and refreshments (alcoholic and non-alcoholic) will be available to purchase. No coolers will be allowed.

For more information: visit the Colfax Main Street web site at www.colfaxmainstreet.com; contact the Colfax Main Street office at 515.674.9071; email colfaxmainstreet@gmail.com; or find us on Facebook at “Colfax Main Street”.

This year marks the 100th anniversary of the Colfax Alumni Banquet. The community has kicked it up a notch to celebrate. Here are the highlights for the weekend:

FRIDAY
Meet and Greet Classic Car Night: Scoop the loop with your old buddies and end up at Mineral Springs Park with Colfax Alum Jerry Bell and his DJ Services. Festivities at Mineral Springs park will run from 7-11 PM.

SATURDAY
Golf Tournament: Bring your golf clubs to the Colfax Country Club for a 9AM shotgun start. Cost is $80 per team with a four person team. All proceeds go to the Colfax Country Club. To register, call the Colfax Country Club at 515.674.3776.

Alumni Banquet: The 100th Annual Alumni Banquet will start promptly at 6:30 PM at the Colfax-Mingo High School Cafetorium. Cost is $15.00 per person which includes dinner and alumni dues. For more information contact Monica Guy Hysell at 515.490.7653.

Music in the Park: Featuring the Swing Crew!! You are invited to come to Colfax free Music in the Park on Saturday, May 28th to watch The Swing Crew perform at Anspach Stage in Women’s Club Park located on 13 East Division Street. The Swing Crew is an interactive, acoustic band where fun is the bottom line. The show features a wide variety of music, audience participation, jokes, stunts, and cornball humor. They play music such as rock, country, pop, swing, and “island beat”. Their tastes range from Garth Brooks to Van Morrison, Jimmy Buffet to The Clash. They are all for pleasing the audience so if you want to hear something in particular just ask them! The quality of the music and craziness of their antics will keep you entertained throughout the show!

MONDAY
Memorial Day Services: Memorial Day Services will be conducted by the Colfax AMVETS Post and the Colfax American Legion Post on Monday, May 30th at 10 AM at the Colfax Cemetery. Following the ceremony there will be a procession to the Skunk River where a second ceremony will be conducted. After the second ceremony, there will be a flag retirement ceremony at the Manatts parking
lot.

Memorial Day Picnic: Please join the local churches and the Lions Club for the 2nd Annual Memorial Day Celebration on Monday, May 30th at 11:30 AM (immediately following the Memorial Day Service) at Mineral Springs Park in Colfax. This event will help support the Veterans Memorial Beautification Project at the cemetery and the replacement of the soccer and little league equipment for our youth. This free-will donation celebration will include hamburgers, hotdogs, baked beans, potato salad, dessert and drink as well as entertainment by the band M2J with Cory Routh. Be sure and bring your lawn chairs and blankets. Contact Karen Routh at 515.865.7079 or Kim Beard at 515.333.3333 with any questions.

Great specials are blooming all over Colfax to get you ready for summer. No summer would be complete without a pass to the pool. There are lots of options for you to cool down for one day, the entire summer, or somewhere in between!

Just looking for one day at the pool?
Admission per day:
$4.25 adults
$3.00 ages 4-17
Kids 4 and under are free

Or a whole season of fun?
Family pass with up to 5 members: $85.00
($5.00 for each additional family member)
Single pass $50.00

Or maybe somewhere in between?
The pool offers a 10 day punch card
$35.00 adult
$25.00 children 4-17

Want to look your best after hitting up the pool? Hair Gallery will be running a half price wax with any chemical service through the end of May. Then June 1st look for discounted liters on shampoo and conditioner for the entire month.

Do you have any specials or services that you would like to promote for your business? Please e-mail them to colfaxmainstreet@gmail.com. This FREE advertising is available for all participating Main Street contributors.

You are invited to come to Colfax free Music in the Park on Saturday, May 28th to watch The Swing Crew perform at Anspach Stage in Women’s Club Park located on 13 East Division Street.

The Swing Crew is an interactive, acoustic band where fun is the bottom line. The show features a wide variety of music, audience participation, jokes, stunts, and cornball humor. They play music such as rock, country, pop, swing, and “island beat”. Their tastes range from Garth Brooks to Van Morrison, Jimmy Buffet to The Clash. They are all for pleasing the audience so if you want to hear something in particular just ask them! The quality of the music and craziness of their antics will keep you entertained throughout the show!

Upcoming concerts are Saturday, June 18th with 8 Track Band and Sunday, July 17th with Bob Dorr & The Blue Band.

This is the 6th year that Colfax has hosted free performances at Anspach Stage in Women’s Club Park. All concerts start at 7 PM. Be sure to bring your blankets and lawn chairs. Treats and refreshments (alcoholic and non-alcoholic) will be available to purchase. No coolers will be allowed. For more information visit the Colfax Main Street web site, www.colfaxmainstreet.com , or contact the Colfax Main Street office at 515.674.9071 or
colfaxmainstreet@gmail.com.

Elena Dunblazier has been a wonderful addition to our Colfax Main Street family. She began her work with us in 2010 as an intern, helping Julia in the Main Street office with various tasks and events. She then joined the Promotions Committee and hasn’t stopped since! Elena has devoted countless hours helping plan, organize and execute events for the community of Colfax. Elena has a passion that is infectious to others. She is continuing to brain storm and research new ideas and/or events for the betterment of everyone one that resides here. She truly wants to help revitalize the town she loves so much. Along with her many achievements with Colfax Main Street, she is also a devoted mother of 3 teenagers, works as a Front Desk Agent at the Comfort Inn and has just graduated from DMACC with a degree in Marketing. We are very proud of Elena’s achievements and feel truly blessed she has chosen to volunteer with Colfax Main Street. Thank you Elena for all that you have done and will continue to do!

On Saturday May 7, 2011, 52 volunteers from the Colfax community showed up with brooms and some volunteers came with leaf blowers, weed eaters, wheel barrows, buckets, shovels and other items to help with the clean up. It helped that the sun decided to show up too. Volunteers and generous donations from local businesses made the day a great success. Of course some may argue that the best part of the day was not the sunshine or the satisfaction of a job well done, but the food. Georgioz provided pizza for lunch, and Caseys donated 6 dozen donuts and beverages.

Colfax now welcomes residents and visitors with fresh planters on our street corners; overflowing with beautiful plants provided by Reeds Greenhouse at a fraction of the cost. You will also notice new trash cans which were recently purchased with the help of a grant from the Jasper Community Foundation.

A walk around downtown will also lend itself to tidy alleys, streets and sidewalks. Volunteers rolled up their sleeves, put on gloves and grabbed some trash bags to remove at least five truckloads of debris from the downtown area. This amount does not include the countless loads with the skid loader and back hoe that were hauled away. A special thank you to Dickerson Mechanical who provided 8 staff members, use of two skid loaders, backhoe, truck and trailer and MidAmerican Energy for gloves and trash bags. Teen Challenge of the Midlands also provided 8 volunteers and equipment.

Other businesses that participated and helped clean that day: First State Bank of Colfax (Mike Biedenfeld, Beth Biedenfeld, Bobbi Bowen), Hair Gallery (Danae Edwards, Darla Edwards, Don Edwards), Dickerson Mechanical (Kathy Dickerson, George Dickerson and six others), Kern Law Office (Brian Kern), Re-Max Town and County (Phil Webb), Webb Storage (Nancy Webb), Comfort Inn (Jennifer Headington), Cross Building (Doug Cross), Cyrus and Tamera Rustin. Not only did they clean up their own property, but lent a helping hand to clean neighboring properties downtown.

Special thanks to the Design Committee: Amy Engle, Christina Webb, Karen Russell and Joe Dvorak for pulling everything together. Thanks to the property owners for cooperating and thanks to the City of Colfax for having the spring clean up day simultaneously. The added convenience to haul trash and debris away was immeasurable.

Thank you to all who attend this year’s clean up, hope to see you next year!