Continuing their tradition of offering family fun for everyone, the Altoona Youth Hockey Association will host their annual fundraising event on Sunday, December 7 at 7:00 p.m. at Altoona Hobbs Sports Center. This year, however, will feature a border battle between National Hockey League alumni and other “celebrity” players.

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   Spread out on Nancy Dotson’s kitchen table was a colorful array of knitted mittens, doilies, and blankets. On the floor sat plastic bags full of raw, sheared wool. Between these extremes lay the skilled hands of Dotson, Char Lynum, and Dianne Read-Jackson, Altoona residents and members of the Clear Water Fiber Guild.

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   The Indianhead Model Railroad Club held its seventh annual railroad show this past weekend in Eau Claire’s Regis High School gymnasium. Organizing the event was club president Andrew Doney, an Altoona resident, volunteer firefighter, and railroad fanatic in more ways than one.

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   For Altoona resident Rob Mattison, making movies is more than just a hobby; it is a family affair. Continuing the tradition, Mattison and family are once again planning for the 48-Hour Video Project, a regional competition in which film crews have 48 hours to make a one- to 10-minute movie that follows this year’s theme of “Fables, Folklores, and Fairytales.”

   On Wednesday, August 27, the Altoona Children’s Council will hold its annual Back-to-School Ice Cream Social at 10th Street Park from 5:30 – 7:00 p.m. This will be the 15th year that the council has hosted the event.

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Altoona resident Kurt Hanke competed in the first annual United States Bowling Congress Midwest Kickoff Classic Bowling Tournament on August 15, 16, and 17.

   From Friday, August 15 to Sunday, August 17, people from as far away as North Dakota and Nebraska traveled to Wagner’s Lanes in Eau Claire for the United States Bowling Congress Midwest Kickoff Classic Bowling Tournament. Among the 51 registered participants was Altoona resident and longtime bowler Kurt Hanke.

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   It may not be Woodstock or Lollapalooza, but Altoona’s very own upcoming music festival aims to make up in family-friendly atmosphere what it lacks in celebrity appeal.

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Gibson’s of Menomonie won the Upper Division of the Cinder City Days softball tournament, held at Cinder City Park from Friday, June 6 to Sunday, June 8.

   Human pyramids will once again decorate Lake Altoona this summer as participants from all over the Chippewa Valley, many from Altoona, begin performing with the Ski Sprites. Shows begin Sunday, June 8 and continue through summer every Sunday and Wednesday.

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Altoona resident Sean Szydel is not afraid to admit his lack of athletic skills. “I knew at a very young age (that) I was not athletic,” he said. Six summers with the National Youth Sports Program (NYSP), however, allowed Szydel to participate in sports he might otherwise never have joined.

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