By Sue Moore
Ken Evensen was honored at the January Vicksburg village council meeting for his 11 years of volunteering as the leader of the Thursday Guys who have built the new general store and Doris Lee Sweet Shop from the ground up. His crew of merry men, arrive every Thursday morning, summer and winter, to take up their assignments that Evensen has ready for them. Part of his deal is to provide the coffee and perhaps doughnuts that propels the group until lunch time.
Ken Schippers, Vicksburg’s village manager, had this to say: “Hey Thursday guys, put down the hammers and nails, shut off the saws and turn off the rest of the power tools and let’s take time to salute one of your own. Ken Evensen, Mr. Thursday Guy. I would like to take time to thank Ken for all his work over the last 11 plus years at the Historic Village.
“From the old garage to the sweet shop, the old Brady Township Hall, he was there to keep things moving. He has done too many projects to list in this short message. My hat’s off to you, Ken. You will be missed. People like you are hard to find. I’m just glad we had the chance to cross paths.”
Evensen is retiring and handing over the reins to a committee of guys that are headed by Jim Bird, who has been a volunteer with the Thursday Guys for the last five years. His wife, Lee, has also been a mainstay in the office of the Historical Society while her husband has been working with the hammer and nails. She too is retiring after many years of heading up the data entry work at the office. “They have been a great team, and we will miss both of them,” Ted Vliek, president of the Historical Society board, said.