CELEBRATION Bicentennial planners seek writers to reminisce about Columbiana

Organizers plan to publish selected writings.
COLUMBIANA -- In anticipation of Columbiana's 2005 bicentennial celebration, bicentennial planners are in search of stories.
Karen Kotrba, a Columbiana High School graduate and an instructor at Kent State University's East Liverpool campus, is planning a series of writing workshops at the Columbiana Public Library.
Kotrba is looking for current and former residents to write about past and present days in Columbiana, which residents have dubbed "The Biggest Little Town in Ohio.
Some will remember the soda fountain at Churchfield's Drugstore, shopping at Kurtz's Five and Ten or skyscraper cones from Isaly's, Kotrba said.
The workshop series is "Write Where You Are: Columbianians Reminisce About the Biggest Little Town in Ohio." Workshops will be from 6:30 to 8 p.m. Wednesdays, Sept. 22 to Oct. 27.
Published writings
Organizers plan to publish selected workshop writings, Kotrba said.
"One of my fondest memories of Columbiana is when several of us saw The Beatles movie "A Hard Day's Night" at the Manos Theater," Kotrba said. "We dearly wanted to scream. We had seen teenage girls on TV shriek with frenzy at Beatles concerts, but we weren't sure it would be acceptable in the movie theater. So one of us asked the manager permission. Once he gave his OK, we screamed through the entire film and missed most of the dialogue. I think the fact that we asked permission says a lot about how we were raised in Columbiana."
Besides the topic "Columbiana Then," other workshop topics include "How We Live Now," "My Family's History in Columbiana," "Landmarks" and "What I See When I Look at Columbiana."
For more information call the library at (330) 482-5509.