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4 Let’s Whoop it up!
Want to know how to whoop it up at a Rock Falls couple’s new business? All you have to do is axe.
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There’s no place like home, but you don’t need to tap your shoes together to get back to it — just Tap into a Corner of your mind and find the inspiration to write songs from the heart, which is what a former Rock Falls resident did.
Caring is sharing
The people who run a Sterling donation center don’t believe you should put a price on kindness, and the countless people they’ve helped through the years couldn’t agree more.
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Illinois, Sterling ... Partners
Everyone in law enforcement needs a partner they can depend on, and the Illinois State Police has one in Sterling.
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Thinking outside the Fox
The new owners of Sterling bar put their own stamp on the business by taking lovers of libations on a trip around the world.
hen people try to come up with a business plan, they’ll throw ideas at a wall to see what sticks.
For Josh and Meaghan Coward, throwing things at a wall was their business plan — and what they threw were axes. And they stuck.
The Rock Falls couple behind one of Sterling’s newest business have opened their doors to people who want to get a handle on an activity that’s been growing in popularity in recent years: Axe throwing.
Whoop Your Axe opened Oct. 1 in a suite at Lee Wayne Plaza on East Lincolnway, and the cutting edge business has been welcoming people who want to try their hand at the leisure sport where players throw an axe at a target on a wood board — the closer to the bullseye, the better the score; and if you hit either of the smaller blue targets on the board, it’s worth even more.
As axe throwing has grown in popularity, more businesses have opened to meet the demand, and governing bodies for tournaments have been established around the world.
“Our ultimate goal is to make people smile and laugh when they leave,” Josh said. “I’m pretty confident in saying that 99.9 percent of the people we see like it, and we’ve seen many repeat throwers already just because they had so much fun.”
It doesn’t take long to pick up the basics of throwing — about 10-15 minutes — but the more you practice the better you’ll get. There’s coordination, stance, throwing, determining the right release point. After an hour, you should have a better grip on it.
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Cody Cutter Sauk Valley MediaWho’s going to be the first to hit 21? Competitors can keep track with scoreboards at each lane. Digital timers keep track of throwing sessions, which are charged by the hour.
“Once they’ve figured it out, they’re having fun for the rest of the hour,” Josh said. “It’s a lot like throwing darts: As long as you keep everything nice and straight, you’re good. It’s more adjusting to it being a two-pound axe instead of a two-ounce dart.”
The approximately 4,000 square feet facility has four single throwing lanes, one double-lane for those who enjoy competing against one another, and a party room with a private double lane. Those who just want to watch, or are waiting their turn, can grab a drink and watch TV at the bar, or play some of the arcade games near the throwing lanes. Even if you’re not playing, it’s hard not to get caught up in the excitement, as hoots and hollers can be heard from players.
Ax throwing brings out excitement in everyone, Meaghan said.
“It’s our goal that they get at least one throw stuck to the board before they leave,” Meaghan said. “There’s excitement not just when they stick a bullseye, but just the axe on the board. That’s what gets me excited, when they’re happy and seeing them enjoy themselves.”
A few years ago, Josh and Meaghan were heading to Florida to visit one of his cousins when they spotted an axe-throwing trailer rolling down
the highway next to them.
“We were on the Interstate and we saw a mobile trailer,” Josh said. “I asked my cousin what it was, and he said they were all over down there. He thought it was a great idea.”
The couple tossed their first axes when they got to Florida and they were hooked.
Josh, a former athlete at Rock Falls High School, got the hang of it pretty quickly, but it took Meaghan a little longer to catch on, but once she did it was game on as she gave Josh a run for his money.
“We’re really competitive,” Meaghan said. “We liked the competitiveness of axe throwing, and that’s what sparked our interest.”
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Josh and Meaghan decided to bring axe throwing back home and bought a trailer to set up their own axe whooping on wheels. They set up at county fairs and parties, and it didn’t take long before they were getting more and more calls.
“I think people were excited and thought it was fun,” Meaghan said. “It was something different that they never tried before. That’s what we get here, too; people will get a little nervous at first because they are axes and they are sharp, but once they start throwing and know that they’ll stick on the board, they get excited.”
Business continued to pick up — “We went around to fairs, birthday parties, rehearsal dinners and weddings,” Josh said — and it wasn’t long before they set their sites on a new target: a brick-andmortar business.
“Everyone really liked it, and said we should have a storefront because it will have more people,” Josh said, and they have.
Customers have been dropping by, businesses have rented out the party
room for parties and retreats — there were even hatchets for the holidays: about 40 Christmas parties scheduled between Thanksgiving and Christmas.
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There’s more to it than just aiming and throwing; there’s a way to mix some fun in, too, with target-based games. Rules are outlined in a book at each lane. League play is in the works: They plan to run 8 weeks on Wednesday evenings from 6 to 9 p.m. Additional news will be posted on Whoop Your Axe’s website and Facebook page.
Want the axe throwing experience to come to you? No problem. Even through the storefront keeps Josh and Meaghan busy, they continue to rent out the trailer, which has been popular at birthday and private parties, weddings, fundraisers and corporate events.
Customers must sign a waiver before participating and be at least 10 years old. Those ages
10 to 15 must be accompanied by a parent, and ages 16 to 17 can throw without a parent as long as a waiver is signed by one.
Sessions at the store run $20 per person per hour. The party room can be rented for a minimum of 2 hours for $250, and $150 for each additional hour; and if you would like to rent out the entire facility, contact Josh or Meaghan.
The mobile unit runs $400 for a 2-hour minimum and $150 for each additional hour. It’s also available for the whole day for $1,250. There’s a $1 per-mile charge for reservations more than 30 miles away.
WHOOP cont’d to pp. 10 & 11
“I’ve had two people say that this is the most fun they’ve had in two years because of COVID,” Josh said. “That was really cool to hear. Then with the business parties that we’ve had: Some have said they normally have Christmas parties but they’re boring and this
was one of the best Christmas parties they’ve had. It’s satisfying for us that we’ve been hitting the community and helping people enjoy the stuff.”
Throwing axes at targets is something most people haven’t done, but more and more are doing it, and Josh and Meghan are happy to bring another entertainment option to the Twin Cities.
“COVID kind of got us all trapped inside, and this is allowing people in the community to enjoy our community instead of traveling an hour to go do something,” Josh said. n
o matter how much we grow, we never forget our roots. Joe Ryan is no different — except that his stories come with a backing track.
Ryan is originally from Rock Falls, but today he’s the frontman — swapping a Y for an I in his professional name — for Joe Rian and the A.M. Drinkers, a Chicago-based band that blends folk rock and alternative country music, and mixes in some Twin City inspiration now and then.
In a journey that’s taken him from the Twin Cities to the Windy City, with stops in the Quad Cities and out west along the way, Ryan has honed his craft through the years, but it’s a trip down memory lane where he’s found inspiration for some of his music lately: songs from the heartland — and the heart.
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“Johnny drove a Ford truck down at the mill. When he’d get off he’d drink his fill. He drove all day and he drove all night. Criss crossing the county line. Everything will be alright when he gets home, home tonight ...”
“He threw a football back in high school. Broke his leg now he’s working for the mill. Sometimes he thinks about those days. Criss crossing the ol’ highway. Everything will be alright when he gets home, home tonight ...”
“Johnny saved his money. He’s gonna buy a house some day. Johnny saved some money for a rainy, rainy day.”
“Picks up his girl after his shift. She gets dolled up they hit the strip. Records play their favorite song. And they just scream and dance along. Everything will be alright when he gets home, home tonight ...”
“Mill shut down now he’s hit hard times. He’s at the unemployment line. Looking for work never been so hard. He just wishes he could drive his Ford. And everything will be alright when he gets home, home tonight ...”
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Ryan’s catalog includes numbers that reference family stories, old haunts and Twin Cities staples.
“Corner Tap” tells the story of his parents’ luck and love at the longtime Rock Falls tavern that it takes its name from, and “Joe Bristol” forges tragedy and steel into a song about losing a life to a livelihood.
“I feel like I’m finally writing the best material ever,” he said. Today, he’s got a band, a tour schedule, social media exposure and a pair of publicists; his work has made it onto albums and online streaming platforms, and he’s finally making good money with his music — a far cry from about 15 years ago when he has busking on Windy City streets with a guitar and a bucket for money.
“I feel like now, all of a sudden, I have a little bit of funding behind me so I can get it heard,” Ryan said. “It’s an amazing time to be alive.”
Ryan, 55, was adopted by Joe and Patricia Ryan as a newborn and lived with his parents and adopted sister, Jacquie, in Rock Falls. The elder Joe was a tool-and-die maker at Northwestern Steel and Wire and his father, also named Joe, was one of the first workers at RB&W when it started up in 1902. Patricia worked at the A&P Grocery store and later drove a school bus for KAL Bus Lines.
Ryan comes back home every once in a while, he said,
and the memories of growing up in a rural neighborhood south of Montmorency School, near the Hennepin Feeder Canal are still fresh — fishing, swimming, trail riding on motorcycles, grabbing a bite with friends at the Friendship House in Rock Falls or Parkway in Sterling.
“It was a really great way to grow up,” said Ryan, a 1986 graduate of Newman Central Catholic High School. “It was a really great town. Everyone’s dad made a good living. I thought it was a wonderful place. I’ve often thought of going back. I love the country and stuff. My wife, she’s a city girl, and will be like, ‘What do we do?’ Yeah, I get it. I still wouldn’t mind having a little place there or something.”
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Today, Ryan lives in Chicago with his wife, Sheila, and their two young children. His current band, The A.M. Drinkers, recently completed a winter residency at the Blue Island Beer Company in suburban Blue Island, and will spend the weekend of March 25 and 26 back in his old stomping grounds with a pair of concerts. They’re scheduled to perform for a crowd of up to 2,000 ticket holders at the Green River Riders Association’s 19th Annual Spring Bash and opening of its new clubhouse in Yeowardsville on Saturday the 25th, and the next day they’ll swing by for a gig at the Corner Tap — after all, how could they not perform at the local watering hole that Ryan tapped into for inspiration for one of his songs?
“Corner Tap” is about how Joe and Patricia got to know one another, with the help of some “lucky charms” and “lucky stars,” as Ryan sings. The song opens with the line, “I’ve seen you down at the Corner Tap each and every night,” and refrains with “we could stumble together out of the Corner Tap tonight.” The promo art for the song, which was released in October, features a photo of Ryan’s parents shortly after they got married. Both of his parents have since passed, but a pair of aunts, Shirley Ryan and Joan Tillie Adams, still live in the area.
“I’ve seen you down at the Corner Tap each and every night. I sure would like to get to know you, but I’m really kind of shy. Maybe if I have a lucky charm, I could rub it real right. We could stumble together out of the Corner Tap tonight.”
“You look so sad ‘cause you lost yourself very deep inside. How could a pretty girl like yourself be treated so unkind? Maybe if I had a lucky star, I could throw it through the sky. We could stumble together out of the Corner Tap tonight.”
“You don’t even know my name, I could be a creeper in disguise. We could stumble together out of the Corner Tap tonight.”
“I took a chance and I bought you a drink, you smiled and said hello. I wanted to say Hi a bunch of times, but I really didn’t know. Maybe we could go to that little place, sit down and get a bite. We could stumble together out of the Corner Tap tonight.”
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“My dad met my mom there, supposedly,” Ryan said. “I remember when I was a kid he stuttered terribly, but after a while he didn’t have it at all anymore. He met my mom when he was throwing a guy out of the side door of the Corner Tap. It got me thinking, how does a shy guy with a stutter meet a girl? It must be hard.”
Another new song, “Jim Bristol,” tells the story of the risks of working at the former Northwestern Steel and Wire mill. Bristol is actually Jim Naughton, the father of a friend of Ryan’s who died in an accident at the mill in 1995.
“Jim was like one of those coolest dads, always happy, always positive when he came home, and a company man,” Ryan said.
But one day, “He just didn’t come home. That [stuff] happens at the mill.”
Family and his hometown found a home in other songs Ryan wrote for his most recent album, “Switchyard Sessions.”
Rock Falls is name-checked in “Highway” — “Topped up in Rock Falls, I’ll put the pedal down. Twenty-four more miles, and I’ll be laying down.”
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“November Night” tells the story about the time Ryan’s parents were saving money for their children’s Christmas presents: “Mama drove a school bus 80 miles a day, to bring us presents on Christmas Day. Daddy got dirty down at the mill, working overtime so we can get our fill.”
“Johnny” references moments in Ryan’s high school life and what his friends have been up to since graduating. The song’s namesake is a composite of many people, Ryan said.
“You work all day and then get your girl on a Saturday night, get some records and dance and drink your woes away, until you go back to the job,” Ryan said.
Finding inspiration in his own story has been a process of evolution for Ryan.
After a year studying art and playing sports at St. Ambrose University in Davenport, Iowa, Ryan moved to Arizona and found himself working at a machine shop. He hadn’t given much thought about a music career when he participated in a call-in promotion for a radio station one day in 1989. He won a Doobie Brothers CD after that first phone call, but also won the promotion’s grand prize: a trip to the The Fire Meets the Fury Tour with Stevie Ray Vaughan and Jeff Beck in Los Angeles.
In addition to concert tickets, Ryan also got to meet a “who’s who” of musicians, including headliners Eddie Van Halen, Bonnie Raitt and David Bowie. Also in the prize package was a Stratocaster guitar signed by Vaughan and Beck. That guitar would help kickstart his musical journey.
Tragedy struck not too long after the concert, however, when his mother died suddenly after the family Christmas dinner. After a brief stay back home, he set his sights on Chicago — “where the action is,” he said — and landed a job at Buddy Guy’s Legends near Grant Park.
As fate would have it, Buddy Guy’s was where Vaughan was scheduled to perform
next after a concert at the Alpine Valley Music Theater in East Troy, Wisconsin, on Aug. 27, 1990. Ryan attended that concert and heard the news of Vaughan’s death in a plane crash shortly after it took off from East Troy.
“Sometimes I wonder what kind of songwriter I would be if I weren’t a guitar player. It’s one of those forks in the road,” Ryan said. “It may have been totally different and I would have been more into indie rock — which I was into before I won that guitar.”
Ryan bounced around from job to job in the next 20 years, and busked on the streets when he could, before using music as a means of recovering from hard times during the 2008 financial recession. He had to sell his prized Stratocaster to make ends meet, but eventually rebounded and started a family with Sheila.
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Ryan continued to work on his craft in Chicago, and it was there that he came up with a collection of songs to record with his group at the time, The Additives. By the time they put out their second album, he learned the value of not just storytelling, but telling stories “from the heart,” he said, writing “about what you know.”
“The minute you stop writing about what you know, it comes through in your music and it’s not believable. If you write what you really know about, it’s completely genuine and people identify with it. They see the truth in it. I just kind of made the switch as I was writing the ‘Switchyard’ record.”
“Switchyard Sessions” was put together during two short periods in a five-year span. He had initially shelved the project and became more interested in collecting vintage motorcycles. However, as his children were growing up, he saw music as another way to connect with them, and give them a sign pointing to their own memory lane. His wife plays the piano at church, and their children play as well.
“These little kids aren’t going to understand how rad this 1978 vintage racing motorcycle is, but they sure will understand music,” Ryan said. “I wanted to kick it in gear, leave the motorcycles behind and finish the second half of
this record, and let me leave behind a plethora of music and interviews and whatnot for the kids that they can appreciate and always come back to.” His hometown roots aren’t the only ones he’s returned to in recent years. Ryan is also busking again — but instead of staking out a place on the street to play, he has his own places on social media platforms, such as Twitter and Discord, where people can hear him play live. Ryan is active on the Twitter Spaces live platform many nights right around midnight. Instead of busking for cash and coins on the streets, online listeners can buy his music as NFTs (non-fungible tokens) — a system similar to cryptocurrency that has become popular in recent years.
While earning money playing is great, Ryan said being on social media brings not only his music to a larger audience, but a piece of his hometown too.
“It’s crazy that I’m busking on my phone now for a living,” Ryan said, adding that it’s not that far removed from busking on the streets. “It’s the same exact thing. It’s not for everyone and it’s extremely hard work, but the good thing is that I can do this, still be with my family and not have to be on the road a lot. I can play to nearly 2,000 people [online] by jumping into a [Twitter] space [platform], saying ‘Hi,” play a song and jump into another space after a while, and I can build a decent following.”
His blend of folk rock and alternate country can be simplified as “tavern music,” he said, a term inspired from feedback he’s received on social media.
“Every time I’ve played for the past year, I always hear people feel like, ‘I’m in some sort of smokey bar and having a glass of whiskey when I hear you singing,’” Ryan said. “It’s like being in this old little tavern — I don’t know how many people have told me that.”
After a lifetime of twists and turns, Ryan sees his music career only getting better. Who knows where the trip may take him, but two things are for sure: He won’t forget where he came from, or how it helped him get to where he is. Rock Falls may be his first home, but the stage is his second one.
“I’m always working some sort of a gig, because it’s a great creative release,” Ryan said. “You can feel the energy off of people. If you can quiet a room full of people, or light up a room with a performance, it’s really gratifying. All of your worries go away after a few songs in, you’re getting sweaty, and you’re not thinking about anything else. It’s an amazing release, and that’s probably why I just keep doing it.” n
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may be better to give than to receive, but there’s a place in Sterling that does both.
If The Caring Center didn’t receive donations from people, it wouldn’t be able to give as much back to the community as it has — and it’s given back a lot.
The Caring Center offers people who need a helping hand a selection of clothes, dishes, toys, jewelry, home decor and more most of it for free, though there are limits on certain items, and donations are requested for larger items.
The center is supported by donations from the community and a staff of volunteers — about 20 — who sort and stock and take care of customers.
General manager Irene Nusbaum has been with store for 12 years, and in that time she’s seen what The Caring Center can do for people, from being there in a person’s time of need to giving them a much-needed smile when they find what they need.
“It’s a mission where you help so many people,” Nusbaum said. “You just help so many people. All of us volunteers are so blessed.”
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Irene Nus-
and Brooke Cochran, managers at The Caring Center in downtown Sterling, lead an entirely volunteer staff in making clothes, books, toys, knickknacks household items and more available to people who need a helping hand. “It’s a mission where you help so many people,” Nusbaum said. “You just help so many people. All of us volunteers are so blessed.”
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Clothing takes up much of the floor space, hung on hangers and sorted on racks by men’s and women’s pieces and by sizes — all free of stains and tears. Elsewhere, dishes, toys, jewelry, decor and shoes fill the floor, all in presentable condition as well.
Books of all kinds also find their way in and out of the store, sorted by genres and categories — anything from a baby’s first book to a postgraduate academic textbook.
Assistant manager Brooke Cochran has seen many people browse through the books as if it were a library trip — no due dates here, though.
“They can get unlimited books when they come in because we have so many, they can take about as many as they want,” Cochran said. “They do go out of here. There are people who only come in here specifically to look at the books, and they may take out 20 at a time.”
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The Caring Center is more than happy to give you the clothes off their rack, and they’ve got plenty to give.
Nearby, DVDs, videocassettes, CDs and cassettes can be found, and like the books, there’s no limit on those. There are plenty of puzzles, too.
Donations are accepted when the store is open during mornings and mid-afternoons Monday through Wednesday, and place is literally overflowing with kindness. An off-site warehouse stores what doesn’t fit on the floor and the backroom. Still, enough people come in — and often wait outside until the store opens — to keep items moving and the selection constantly changing.
“They come early,” Nusbaum said. “If you don’t take it when you see it, most likely it will be gone.”
Keeping the store stocked takes a lot of work for the team of dedicated volunteers, and they’re always thinking ahead. Easter items hit the floor as soon as St. Patrick’s Day is over, and preparation for summer stock takes place before the last snow has melted.
Customers can only shop once a week and must sign in before shopping. They then have 30 minutes to go through the store before checking out.
While too much of a good thing can be an issue sometimes, Nusbaum and Cochran have found that most of the customers respect the limits in place, understanding that everyone must play by the rules to help The Caring Center succeed.
“Most of the people are patient and understanding when we tell them they can’t have too many,” Nusbaum said. “They’ll tell us that they’ll give a few dollars for it, or something like that.”
Exceptions have been made when the situation calls for it — losing everything in a house fire, for example.
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When building owners Jim and Sheila Gabler donated The Caring Center’s storefront to the donation center, that meant it had a home it could call its own — but it now also had bills and maintenance it had to take care of, which means any extra help is always appreciated. While most of the items at the store are free, donations are welcome.
A book for the cook, or anyone else for that matter, strollers to take the baby for a walk and shoes to wear on the walk, glassware and goods for the house, puzzles to pass the time and more — The Caring Center has a little bit of everything for people who stop by.
We invite
307 First Ave., Sterling
Monday-Sunday 10am-4pm
“I get a lot of phone calls from the YMCA and a lot of organizations in the community,” Nusbaum said. “[These people] often say they don’t have anything, no bed, no blankets, anything. I’ll tell them to come by Mondays, Tuesdays or Wednesday at 10 o’clock and come back when you want, and I’ll check with them at the checkout counters. They’re very patient when they request something.”
The Caring Center’s mission began about 25 years ago by members of the Science Ridge Mennonite Church north of Sterling. When more space was needed, it moved to West Second Street in Rock Falls for a while before settling into its current location about 10 years ago. The building used to be part of the former Kline’s department store for many years until it closed in the mid-1990s.
When The Caring Center moved in, the building was owned by Jim and Sheila Gabler, who operated the VeriFacts skip tracing business in the former main section of Kline’s. When The Gablers looked to sell the building and move elsewhere in town in 2019, they partitioned off The Caring Center part of the building and donated it to donation center — and while that means having a home they can call their own, it also means paying the bills and maintenance costs. That’s where money from donations helps.
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you to stop by and enjoy a multi-level shopping experience
It’s also where the volunteers come in, because without them The Caring Center couldn’t do what it does. From people behind the scenes on the board of directors to people behind the counter, it takes a lot of work to keep things going — and most of the staff are past retirement age. More volunteers are always welcome, and applications are available at the store.
“These are hard jobs,” Nusbaum said. “You may not think about it, but these are hard jobs when you’re working.”
Luckily, volunteers are up to the task and there’s been enough helping hands to keep things going — and as long as kindness is as plentiful as the supply of items that come through its doors, people who come to The Caring Center will be in good hands for a long time to come. n
