Kiwanis International President Foisythe,
Small Town Newsman, Got Ink-Stained' At 14
By MILTON LOMASK
In Tiik Kiwanis Magazine
One summer morning in 1917, a
fourteen ? year - old high school
freshman looked out the window
of his home ? and saw tragedy.
A block and a half away, the
Pennsylvania Railroad's crack
Cleveland Flyer, c h a r gi n g
through Conway, Pennsylvania
on its daily run, had smashed in
to a wreck derrick set up in the
aftermath of another, less sferi
ous accident. During the previous
months the boy had sold some
items of local Interest to the Dally
Timee of nearby Beaver, Penn
sylvania, and already the churn
of the presses was in his blood.
Within the next half hour he had
talked to the city editor of the
Daily Times and the offices of
the Associated Press. That even
ing, newspapers the country over
carried a story of the railroad
catastrophe under a by line fami
liar to Kiwanians and likely to
become more so in the year ahead
? the by-line of Donald T. For
sythe.
Thfe new president of Kiwanis
International, elected by more
than 3800 delegates fn New York
City's Madison Square Garden
last June, entered the field of
journalism qarly enough to buy
his first long pants with profes
sional learnings. He cannot, in
fact, remember a time when
newspapering, publishing and
printing were not his major voca
tional interests. Today he is sole
owner of the Journal Printing
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? ! ? Luther Bennett
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FARM BUREAU MUTUAL
AUTOMOBllf 'N<URANCf (0.
COIUMBUS OHIO"
Company of Carthage, Illinois,
publisher of the county's sixty
five-year-old weekly newspaper,
the Hancock Count y Journal, and
commercial printer of "cfvery
thing", as Don puts it, "from
shipping tags to 400-page books."
Like all veterans of the type
writer, Don knows the tricks of
newsgathering, and during our
chats he was inclined to ketep an
amused eye on the reporter's busy
pencil.
"Have a heart," he said once.
"I know you want to make the
most of these simple facts, but
pleaste don't put lights around my
hame. I haven't earned them."
This statement seems overly
modest, for Don has held every
elective office in the organization,
including thle vice- presidency and,
last year, the treasurershlp. Since
1926 he has been unusually active
in every phase of the work of an
unusually active local club. In
1946 it was at his urging and. on
the basis of his spade-work that
the Illinois - Eastern Iowa Dis
trict set up Klwanls' Hard of
Hearing Foundation to: 1) dis
seminate much - needed informa
tion about this widespread diffi
culty; and 2) sponsor hearing
tests for children In the public
schools.
So thoroughly did the founda
tion do its work, so completely
were its jobs of enlightenment
and testing taken up all over the
country, that after five years the
foundation itself could be dissolv
ed, althoiigh the project is still
carried on by the underprivileged
children committees in the dis
trict.
Looking back over years of In
ternational Council - going, Don
dredgtes up a pleasant memory ? ?
one, no doubt, many okltimers
wf j share. "In the old days," he
8,. , "'one of the- nice things a
bout Council meetings was that
my name begins with 'F.' That
put me next to Roe Fulkerson.
Roe had been attending sessions
since way back, and sometimes,
while someone was talking on the
platform, he'd lean over and whis
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" 'Look, Don, I'm getting rest
less. Tell me a good story.'
"You know, thert* was some
thing so compelling about that
fellow that I'd do it every time.
I'd tell him a good story, and
every time I got to the point, dog
gone it, Roe would guffaw. I don't
mean laugh. I mean guffawf I
used to feel sorry for whoever
was speaking, but It makes a de- 1
lightful recollection now."
Those who have visited the ar
ea or traveled through it know
that the Beaver River Valley of
Pennsylvania is one of the busiest
centers of industrial production
in thfe country. There, in the little
Borough of Conway on the banks
Of the Ohio above Pittsburg, Don
Forsythe was bom on Memorial
Day, 1903. His father worked in
the Pennsylvania Railway yards
and In time was to become fore
man of the car department in
charge of the overhaul and re
pair of rolling stock. Prior to his
death, Don's father was an hono
rary member of Klwanis.
At the end of Don's sophomore
year in high school, the family
moved to nearby Rochester at the
junction of the Ohio and Beaver
Rivers. After his prompt cover
age- of the Conway railroad tra
gedy, Don's services as a reporter
were in demand. For two sum
mers he worked full time on the
Beaver Daily Times. '
One summer, as he puts ft, "I
decided to find out how the other
half worked, and you know I fell
Into such a varitety of jobs that I
came very near doing it." That
summer Don painted boxcars,
helped repair rolling stock in the
machine shop and lugged and
heaved and pushed and swept in
the big storerooms of the Penn
sylvania Railroad.
In 1920 he tentered Thiel, a co
educational liberal arts college
sponsored by the Lutheran
Church at Greenville, Pennsylva
nia. At Thiel, Don helped earn
his way working for the Green
ville Evening Record and for two
years was editor of the Thielen
sion, the college weekly. He liked
athletics, too, and is still one of
Thiel's few-and-far-between four
ltetter men. He got his A.B. in
1924. Not long after Don's gradu
ation, one of his Thiel professors
buttonholed him.
"Don," he said, "how would
you like to take Horace Greeley's
advice?"
"It all depends," said Don, "on
what the Far West has to offer."
"This is the Near West," said
the professor. "Carthage, Illinois.
A newspaper publisher out there,
Mr. John P. Beckman (who was
a Kiwanian, by the way) is look
1 ing for a managing editor."
"He's found one," said Don.
It was January of 1926 when
Don arrived in Carthage. "That
first day," he says, "the placte
| gave me a permanent feeling."
half
^ ? And productive labor is supported by many other
dance of power, water, raw material* . . all form*
. ? stabilised tax itructure . . . aawiwi to
major markets . . . year 'round mild climate
. . . atimclktiuf recreational and cultural
opportunities. Additional data and current am#4|w
plant rite availabilities will be promptly sup- Jr
plied by
- NORTH CAROLINA'S *4-A MANPOWER
EXCELS AS
PRODUCTIVE LABOR
The all-importan* question in the minds of every industry, about the ?
supply and character of manpower, is mtisfyingly answered by these *4-A
qualities of North Carolina's labor resources? both men and women: %
WESTERN ELECTRICS EXPERIENCE ?
*2? ABLE (and dependable !)? Niittve-bora,
intelligent and well-schooled, with natural
resourcefulness and a high level of ability;
vigorous people who are accustomed to work
ing wholeheartedly, to sharing responsibilities
*4? ADAPTABLE? Possessing an unusually
high degree of "trainability", quickly fcupple
men ting original abilities with new skills for
specific jobs, eager to learn through training ,
courses provided by the community, State
or industry.
?1? ABUNDANT? Tenth in the nation in pop
ulation, with substantial annual increases. Of
the present total labor force? more .than
1,500.000, with 987,000- in non-agricultural
employment? a growing supply is being freed
for industry through the rapid mechanization
of farming.
*3? AGREEABLE? Willing to cooperate in
any equitable experiment for obtaining
ihcreased productivity; open-minded about
new methods and more efficient machines;
appreciative of fair treatment, with an excel
lent record of management relations.
? V ' ?*" tMT* fun figuring out your munit from the Orient
IX thte ptea?a*t Httle letter puzzle. It the number of
fr **?*! r?ur *nt ?*??* U 5 or leu, aubtract from T. If mor*
I tetter* In your ftr?t nimi, subtract from IS. Now take thU
Wf? ?M and your key tetter In the word ORIENT at the top of
this puzale. Then, tti.rt-.ur at the upper left corner, check each one
of your large key Utter* aa It appear* from left to right. Below the
ar* 1* a i ?
key letter* I
code mtuaie for you.
O R T E E INERON RI
? p d n e e n w h o e l a
E O R T I N OT I BENN
* f 1 1 n saydooad
NIENOTOR ETINI
n o a g d eoyyrnsy
Obviously it did. Within a week, ,
Don Forsythe had become a mem- '
ber of the KiWanis Club of Car- i
thage.
Most of the important things,
that have happened to Don began j
to happen early. He was a junior
in Rochester, Pennsylvaina High
School when he first saw "a beau
tiful young lady with goiden
hair. Her name was Katherine j
Marshall. On June 26, 1929 she [
changed it to Mrs. Donald T For
sythe. . "
The Forsythes have one son
seventeen-year-old James. This;
| fall Jim plans to enter Northwes
I tern University. It won't bn the
I Forsythe's first tr ?cn Worth- i
western. Some yc.^rs back, while
, Don was serving as president of
| the Illinois Press Association, he
accepted an invitation to become
I A member of the Northwestern j
chapter of Sigma Delta Chi the
national professional journalism1
fraternity. Although young Jim
has attended no less than three)
international Kiwanis conven
Hons, he had to miss the impor- j
tant one this summer. Like fath- 1
er, like son, he was putting his I
vacation to good use ? shoveling
gravel on a highway construction
crew.
In Carthage, the Forsythes live
in a 110-yiear-old white brick Colo- 1
nial that once figured in a novel J
by Harriet Gilchrist Wood and!
stands on an intersection former
ly known as "Gospel Four Cor
ners." The Forsythes bought the!
| house in 1939, kept the shell --
j f?r Charm," says Mrs. Forsythe
| ?and renovated the interior for
comfort.
_When Don talks about Carth
labe, he is inclined to get a little
J lyrical. His conversation is stud
ded with references to "stately
elms and sweeping lawns"; to the
ancient stone Jail where in 1846
an angry mob killed the Mormons
I Joseph and Hyrum Smith and
j which now is a Mormon shrine
and a monument to the futlity of
violence; to the courthouse in the
square, with its peaceful and
beautiful park and with the lively
streets of the business district all
around.
Delegates at the New York City
convention were impressed with
the fact that Don was obviously
looking forward to the year ahead
?long years In the Kiwanis har
ness had not rubbed off any of
his enthusiasm. To this reporter
he spoke at length about what is
to be a major emphasis of the
forthcoming program: the en
couragement ot more teaching of
Americanism in the schools.
"I hope," he said, "wte can find
ways of helping one particular
group.- I mean the youngsters
fourteen to eighteen. That's a
tough period for kids now. Just
around the corner for the boys is
the draft, and just around the
corner for the girls, of coursle, is
the uncertainty and heartache
which that entails. Kiwanis
should be ready to help any good
program ? cultural, educational
or recreational ? that will show
these young people that though
It takes a little longer to get to
them now, the opportunities are
still here."
Shortly after Don became a
citizen of Carthage, Dr. Harvey
Hoover, then president of Carth
age College, paid him a visit
"Mr. Forsythe," he said, "how
would you like to come out to the
college and/ as an avocation,
start * little journalism depart
ment for us?"
"1 wouldn't mind starting one,"
said Don. ;
. "Fine. You get it "going this
year, and next year we'll bring in
a full-time Instructor to take ov
er."
Don got It started. Every now
and then he'd ask Dr. Hoover
when he intend?d to bring in that
full-tlma Instructor, and Dr. Hoo
ver always assured him it would
be "any day now."
Nine years passed before "any
day now" arrived. But, looking
bade, Don says he rteally didn't
care. He enjoyed those nine years
and felt proud to see many of his
students go out into the profes
sion and make a name for them
selves. For the past ten years Don
has also been a trustee of Carth
age College and fo serving his
fifth year as secretary of the
board.
That's the new president of Ki
wanis International. What's a llt
tte more service along the way
for the man from Carthage? Don
puts It this way:
"The thing I like best about a
small town is that it keeps you
on your toes. In a little place like
Carthage, you're ju?t naturally
expected to do something in re
turn for the space you oceupy."
LETTER
TO THE EDITOR
THANK YOU.
With this letter comes our sin
cere thanks for the help you were
able to give the babies of our So
ciety during our recent Christinas
Fund Drive for $50,000.
Friends from all over the state
sent in contributions amounting
to $44,210 during December and
January, and now, other volun
tary gifts have put us "over the
top" financially speaking for the
presient. While contributions from
individuals were smaller in gen
eral this year, there were more
l people giving to the Society as
evidence of their interest in our
cause of helping little babies to
find good homes. The fact that we
reached more people this year we
attribute in part to the newspa
pers and radio stations of North
Carolina who cooperated so will
ingly in telling the public about
our Society.
We hope you will be able to aid
us in the coming months so we
can do a year-round lob of infor
ming your community about good
adoption practices. Our task at
hand is building public opinion
to protect all of North Carolina's
homeless children which we can
Stream Pollution
Talks Set March 18
RALEIGH A general session
?n the "Legal Aspects of Si roam '
pollution" has been arranged for
the Southern Municipal and In
dustrial Waste Conference to be
held at North Carolina State Col
lege March 1S-19, Dr. Nelsou L.
Nemerow, conference chairman,
said today.
VV. V. Bolich, professor in the
Duke University Law School, will
begin the panel with a discussion
of "Common Law Relating to Wa
ter Usages."
An open forum discussion will i
follow with Gen. J R. Townsend, i
city manager of Greensboro, as
moderator. Panel members will
include C. V. Jones, of Durham,
A.'H. Wieters, Washington, D. C.,
C. E. Geuther, Wilmington, Del.,
and Frank Gibson, Charlottes,
viile, Va. .
Dr. Nemerow stated that since |
the first public hearing on stream
classification of the Yadkin River
Basin will be held soon, the legal
aspects to be discussed at the |
conference "should be of signifi
cance to the people of North Car
olina." . '
only do with your help, and the
help of newspapers and radio sta
tions in North Carolina.
Sincerely yours,
Gertrude Walton Atkins
ToRditvt
C?*666
Feel Brighter
T omorrow!
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Tlw Look of Tomorrow
It in ?vory '54 BUICK Today
With compUuly n#w "yoart-away" ttyllno
? k?yno??d by tS? dr*am-car doilcn of tho
porvoromlc ?w?*pbock windihUtd,
The car pictured here is the W ' Buiok
Special 2-door, 6-passenger Sedan ?
and it's tomorrow in every line and curve
and feature ? even to the years-from-now
design of that broadly arched new
windshield.
The price shown here is the price of this
glamorous automobile, ready to roll? the
local delivered price.
Now ? just put this car and this price
against anything on the automotive hori
zon today, and you'll know why it's literal
truth when we say, "Buick, the beautiful
buy."
It gives you more style modernity, more
visibility, more distinction! and more
advanced features than other cars in this
Buick's prioe range.
But even more important ? it gives you
more room and power, more ride comfort
for only
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and steadiness, and more solidity of struc
ture than other cars at its price.
Gome in and check that? in this big, bold
beauty of a Buick that delivers to you for
just a few dollars more than the so-called
"low-pricc three."
We'll gladly seat you at the wheel and let
this sensational automobile tell its own
?tory. Can you make it this week?
WHFN IITTH AUTOMOBILES AM BUUT BUtCK Will BUILD THIM
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Ihe beautiful buy
MILTON BERLf STA*$ fO? UJICK
th? Bulck terl* Show Tu?,doy f r ' i?i