Calling all St. Louis-area kids! The Missouri History Museum wants to hear from you about local history stories and pictures that have impacted you and your family.

If your local story and pictures are good enough, you might even get the images included in the museum's own collection of local historical material.

The museum in Forest Park has launched a "History Happened Here" feature on its Flickr website.

Angie Dietz is the digital assets archivist at the MHM. She's been working to increase the ease of public access of the museum's resources. She also wants you and others to offer their own views of history.

She said, "The Missouri History Museum welcomes all Young Saint Louis.com readers and their families. We're so excited that you've found the History Happened Here! St. Louis Stories group site.

"Now, we need your help. Here are some ways you can contribute:

"Thanks for your help. Remember, you can make history by posting to History Happened Here! St. Louis stories.

"If you have any questions, please contact us at akd@mohistory.org."

The History Happened Here! is at www.flickr.com/groups/historyhappenedhere/ The main museum site on Flickr is at www.flickr.com/photos/mohistory.

Ms. Dietz recently wrote an article for the museum's online magazine, Voices. It explained how the museum is moving into the interactive age.

She stressed how availability of museum pictorial assets has been broadened by the switch to digital technology, especially when it comes to pictures and illustrations.

"MHM is currently undertaking initiatives that allow us to share digitized images more broadly than ever before," she said. The digitized photos have been added to the museum's own website (www.mohistory.com).

But, she said the museum "needs to reach out and communicate where the public is."

One of these new communication venues is Flickr, a photo and video-sharing site established in 2004. She said Flickr now has over 2 million members and 3 billion images.

Earlier this year, MHM joined many other institutions to set up Flickr accounts.

The museum now is expanding its Flickr account to invite both young and older Missouri and Illinois residents to help add to the historical resources.

Hence the History Happened Here! feature that focuses on the exchange of photos. This is where young kids can offer contributions of history they know about.

For instance, one recent contribution to "History Happened Here" was from a resident who posted a 1933 picture of a former St. Louis "soup kitchen" that helped feed local residents during the Great Depression.

The picture showed a host of adults and kids posed in front of the Holy Ghost Full Gospel Mission. The resident said his great grandparents operated the kitchen.

(To view it, go to http://www.flickr.com/photos/rodinal1/2184063939/.)

(From this page, you also link to a number of other groupings of pictures, including Historic and Old Photos, Views: 2000, Antique Photographs, Fading America and History Happens Here! St. Louis stories.)

Ms. Dietz urges kids to take some time to look at the different aspects of the History Happened Here! account on Flickr. She said you'll probably find something you like and also figure out how to use the material in your own ways.

She also urged each person to consider becoming a Flickr account member so you can interact with the content. For instance, each of the pictures posted has a place for members of give their reactions.

But, of special interest is that having a Flickr account membership allows you to post your own special views of your St. Louis history.

Ms. Dietz said establishing your own account is simple. Just go to Flickr and click on Create Your Account. You then set up a Yahoo ID by looking for the Sign Up link.

"Once you have your ID, enter it along with your password and you're on your way," she said.

As a part of its effort to make itself more accessible to the public, the MHM also has accounts with Facebook, YouTube and Twitter. These are all interactive websites that allow people to not only look up information but also participate.

Ms. Dietz also said you can offer your personal historic story and pictures to inclusion in the museum's archives.

She said she can explain this process. Call her at (314) 746-4599.

Ten-year-old Nathan Rainge of O'Fallon, IL, hopes to be entered in six track and field events at the National Junior Disability Championships this month.

But, he and other teammates from the DASA Dynamites won't have to travel far to compete. That's because the 2009 national tournament will be held in St. Louis.

A 5th grader at Hinchcliffe School in O'Fallon, Nathan took part in a last-minute qualifying tournament in St. Peters, MO, last month.

He said he earlier had qualified for the 100 and 400 meter runs as well as in the javelin, discus and shot-put in field events. But, he wanted also to qualify in the 800-meter race, which is his favorite.

For Nathan, competing in track events means pushing himself around the track in a special racing wheelchair. That's because he suffers from spinal cord disgenisis, a birth defect that affects his lower body and legs.

But, that didn't mean he didn't want to compete in sports. And the St. Louis area is a good sports venue for kids with physical disabilities.

The Dynamites team holds twice a week practices for track and field and once a week practices for swimmers.

In addition, there is a special ball field in the Chesterfield Valley that is built for kids with disabilities. The facility was built with help from foundations of former Cardinals' catcher Mike Matheny and current star Albert Pujols.

That ball field event has special balls that emit sounds so even blind kids can enjoy baseball and softball.

(If you'd like to know more about the upcoming disability tournament, you can visit www.DASAsports.org. That site also has action clips from last year's meet.)

Eleven-year-old Ashley Foley is blind but she's qualified for the nationals in four track events and three field events.

When she runs track, she runs with a "guide" who makes sure she stays in her proper running lane. Assisting Ashley in the last-minute qualifying was teenager Alex Behlmann, who is linked to Ashley by a wrist cord while they are running.

Ashley is qualified for nationals in the 100, 200, 400 and 800 meter races and the long jump, shot-put and javelin.

But, the 5th grader said her goal was to run in the World Para-Olympics in London.

That meet will be run in conjunction with the next Olympic Games.

One of the other national qualifiers is 16-year-old Lauren Iffrig of St. Peters, MO. The junior at Fort Zumwalt East High School will be competing in both track and field and in swimming.

When she competes in the 100 and 200 meter running events, she'll be using a new "race runner" machine. Unlike many wheelchairs, a "race runner" rides more like a tall tricycle and Lauren uses her legs for power.

Lauren said the "race runner isn't very comfortable but it allows me to compete."

She's also competing in four swim events during the nationals. Those are the 50 and 100 meter back stroke, the 100 meter freestyle and the 50 meter breaststroke.

Because she's competing in both track and field and swimming, Lauren's practice schedule is expanded. She takes part in the Tuesday and Thursday track and field practices at the Lutheran High School track in St. Peters.

She swims at the nearby St. Peters RecPlex facilities.

The St. Peters RecPlex is going to be the site for the national swimming events this month. The track and field events will be held at St. Charles West High School.

Asked about a future goal for her athletic efforts, Lauren said, "I want to do the 50-meter swim in under a minute." Asked about how far she has to do, she said she was within 5 seconds but "that's still a long ways to go."

Lauren suffers from a disease like cerebral palsy but which hasn't been fully diagnosed. Her mother said, "They just call it 'cerebral palsy lite.'"

Lauren said she wants to go to college and study to be wildlife veterinary technician. She added, "I really like big cats such as lions and tigers."

Many of the local athletes have competed in the nationals in previous years.

Seventeen-year-old Tyler Pickett of St. Paul, MO, said he started competing in the nationals in 2000. That year, it was in New Haven, CT. Last year, it was in Oklahoma City, OK.

This year, Tyler has qualified for four track events and the discus. His track distances are the 100, 200, 400 and 800 meters.

The Fort Zumwalt High School senior said he takes part in the Tuesday and Thursday track practices. He said, "I also practice at home."

Both Tyler and Nathan Rainge also are members of the St. Louis Rolling Rams. That's the area's wheelchair basketball team.

Tyler said he wants to try the St. Louis Wheelchair Marathon event. "A friend and I want to try that," he said. The marathon involves the competitors pushing their wheelchairs over 26 miles.

He said, for the longer distances, he'll use a different wheelchair. He described it as a "hand crank" machine that involves using a different form of propulsion.

Tyler said his favorite athlete is Lance Armstrong, the multiple winner of the Tour de France bike race.

"I like him because he likes to try new things and he gets as much out of himself as possible," he said.

Fourteen-year-old Jonathan Romanko became a cadet in the Missouri Civil Air Patrol as soon as he turned 12. He thought that would give him a head start on his goal of becoming a pilot in the U.S. Air Force.

The home-schooled 9th grader from St. Peters, MO, was among the several cadets who staffed the CAP Open House last month at the St. Charles Municipal Airport. The open house was to explain what the Missouri CAP does to support U.S. Air Force.

The Missouri Wing of the Civil Air Patrol is one of 52 wings of the U.S. Air Force Auxiliary. There are currently over 1,000 members of the Missouri wing, including 400 young cadets, from 12 to 21 years of age.

The Missouri CAP wing is headquartered at Whiteman Air Force Base in Knob Noster, MO. However, the Illinois CAP also has several units in the metro St. Louis area.

(If you have an interest in aviation and want to know more about the Civil Air Patrol, you can go to the national website at www.gocivilairpatrol.com.

(By clicking on CAP Teens icon in the upper right of the home page, you can learn about opportunities for kids. For a listing of area CAP units in and around St. Louis in both Missouri and Illinois, you can click on the location indicator at the bottom of the page.)

Jonathan has been in the CAP for two years, having joined in July, 2007.

"I want to make a career of flying and I'll probably go into the Air Force first. I'd like to be able to go to college at the Air Force Academy in Colorado," he said.

Seventeen-year-old David Daubach of Wentzville, MO, is another cadet who went into the CAP at age 12.

He also wants a career in the military but he's planning on joining in the U.S. Army. In fact, the senior at Wentzille's Holt High School is getting all his paperwork completed so he can enlist as soon as he graduates from high school.

He said he plans to enlist at first for a 4- or 6-year term. "Then, I'll probably make the military my career," he said.

He said he'd like to either be a medic or a military policeman.

The local cadets say they meet once a week at the Missouri National Guard armory in St. Peters for training.

Sixteen-year-old Jeremy Leyden of St. Charles said the 3-hour training sessions include military drills, then studies on possible CAP missions and "character development."

Since Jeremy has been in the CAP only four months, his work at the St. Charles airport open house was his first unit mission.

The local CAP units are trained in a variety of services in support of local, state and federal agencies. Among possible missions include helping with flood relief, searching for downed aircraft and other emergencies.

For instance, 17-year-old Coty Ruether of Washington, MO, was assigned last summer to help fight the flooding at Old Monroe, MO. His CAP unit was on duty for two weeks to try to prevent damage from flood waters.

Coty is now a chief master sergeant in the St. Charles Composite Squadron of the CAP.

He's not only a non-commissioned office (NCO) in his unit but has undergone honor guard training. That involved attending a training academy in Washington, D.C.

"I was the second cadet from Missouri to have attended that academy," he said.

He said the honor guard academy was his favorite CAP experience.

"I was in a unit with cadets from all over the country. There were two cadets from Puerto Rico and we were all mixed together and became a family," he said.

Coty said he plans to go to college at Central Missouri State University at Warrensburg, MO. He plans to major in aviation with a bachelor's degree in flying. Warrensburg is close to Whiteman AFB, where the Air Force stations many of its B-1 stealth bombers.

He said he will look on any actual flight experience he gets with his CAP duty "as a bonus."

Cadets can go along on CAP flights and, if everything is clear, can be given the opportunity to control the plane while in flight.

Although the Missouri CAP has six of its own planes, and can activate a larger fleet of private aircraft, Coty said he hasn't flow yet. "As an officer, I've let others fly first," he said.

In addition to weekly training with their home units, the cadets also get chances to attend a variety of training weekend sessions.

For instance, Jonathan Romanko will be attending a flight-simulation program this summer at the University of Missouri-Columbia. During that workshop, the cadets will get a chance to do fighter pilot maneuvers on a computer simulator.

One of the other workshops includes training in "beacon searches" that simulate the search for a downed aircraft. When a plane goes down, a beacon signal automatically goes off to allow rescue teams to pinpoint the location of the downed plane.

Both cadets David Daubach and Coty Ruether said they enjoyed the marching drills that are stressed in cadet classes. They said they appreciated the sense of belonging that you get from marching as a coordinated group.

Coty said he also appreciated the instruction on how to avoid use of drugs.

Twelve-year-old Olivia Martin has participated in and excelled at a wide variety of school, church and community activities. But, what she wants to do when she grows up is to build machinery.

Olivia was a 6th grader at the City Academy School in St. Louis when she was picked as one of the 2009 Gateway Young Achievers of the Year. She was selected for her outstanding school work and outside activities.

When the 2009-10 school year starts this fall, she'll be a 7th grader at MICD School. She plans to go there through high school.

(Young Saint Louis.com has followed the Gateway Young Achievers program for several years. Each May, YSL.com publishes the names of the year's winners.

(Then, in following months, we write profiles of the elementary and middle school winners. The first 2009 profile was last month. To read it, click here. We will have additional profiles each of the remaining months in 2009.)

Olivia and the other 2009 Gateway Young Achievers received a $1,000 savings bond in recognition of their accomplishments in school, in church and in extra-curricular activities.

Olivia's mother, Kendra Neely-Martin, has worked hard to make sure her daughter gets experience in an especially wide range of useful programs and activities. Olivia has excelled in a number of them.

She said, "I'm busy pretty much every weekend."

But, she seems to thrive on both the amount and variety of the activities.

The extra-curricular interests range from cultural activities such as etiquette and dance lessons to hard-learning programs such as science and math camps.

Olivia has decided she's most interested in activities that allow her to build things. "I like math and science and I like to draw. I want to go into engineering or architecture."

As a career, "I'd like to build useful machinery."

And she isn't worried about getting her hands dirty to do the job.

A number of the science camps she's taken part in involve dissection of animals and fish. One of her favorites was her work in earning a Florissant Valley Community College science certificate.

In completing 11 different classes, she did a variety of experiments, including dissecting sharks, pigs and squid.

She said the shark dissection included opening up the stomach to find out about the animal's diet. She said, "The shark had a lot of stones in its stomach."

She also took part in the St. Louis Science Center's Family Medical School program. That included classes in labs at the Washington University's Medical School and the SLU Physicians and Mid-American Transplant Services.

At the SLU lab, she took part in a dissection of a lamb's heart during the study of transplant surgery.

She also participated in robotics and aerospace camps at the University of Missouri-Rolla.

In the robotics camp, she said, "We built and programmed robots so they could operate on their own."

Felica A. Ezell from City Academy wrote a sponsoring letter for Olivia. The teacher said, "Olivia expresses a strong interest in math and science. She is intrigued by designs and patterns, biology and solving mathematical equations."

Olivia earned the Dragon Math Award at City Academy. That competition involved solving 60 questions in 30 minutes. She got the highest number of correct answers.

She also was a member of the school's Brain Games Team that competed in a regional competition that tested overall knowledge.

She was involved in such organizations as the Delta Academy, Jack and Jill of America and Sista Keepers. These were especially targeted to African-American kids to help them learn more about their heritage.

For instance, the Delta Academy is run by a black sorority and teaches the kids about black history and such religious events as Kwansaa.

One of the other organizations on Olivia's list was the 4-H Club.

Usually 4-H is associated with rural areas and helps kids get involved in farming. One of the highlights is the showing of the kids' own home-raised livestock at their county fair.

Olivia said she didn't raise any cows or pigs. But, her urban club did get them involved in helping with a community garden project in the city.

Since she's been involved in dozens of different programs and activities, she hasn't continued all of them. But, with her move to MICD, she said she's going to restart some of those in which she has a continuing interest.

For instance, she's going to again join the West African dance activities at COCA in University City. "I'm going to start again this summer and then continue during the school year," she said.

She said she's also going to take part in summer theater classes at COCA.

Olivia has set her educational goals pretty high. She said she'd like to attend college at Princeton or Yale or at Spellman University in Atlanta.

She'd study engineering or architecture. Then, she wants a career that involves actually building things, especially if it's useful machinery.

Tickets for Major League Baseball's All-Star game may not be readily available as the supply is limited. But, that doesn't mean there won't be plenty of baseball-related activities for area kids during the all-star weekend.

The America's Center in downtown St. Louis will be filled for five days with all sorts of activities, displays and interactive games at MLB's All-Star FanFest. Many of the activities are designed for kids.

And, it will be a great place to collect souvenir baseball-related memorabilia.

In addition, there is the All-Star Charity 5K and Fun Runs on Sunday, July 12.

And the All-Star Sunday activities at Busch Stadium include a Futures Game and a Legends and Celebrities softball game. On Monday, there are chances to watch the player workouts and the much ballyhooed Home-run Derby.

(For detailed information about all these events, visit www.allstargame.com.)

On Tuesday, July 14, the St. Louis Cardinals are host to the 2009 All-Star game. This is the first time the mid-summer classic has been here in 43 years.

Back in 1966, the National League beat the American League, 2-1, in 10 innings.

As for this year's game, things haven't changed much for spectators. Tickets are scarce and most fans will be watching on TV or listening on the radio.

But, one big difference for the weekend is the All-Star FanFest. That will fill the America's Center in downtown St. Louis with a wide variety of programming to give kids and their families a taste of the joys of baseball.

The FanFest has 30 different displays, many of them interactive. They allow kids to participate and also to get personalized souvenirs to take home.

Major league baseball often is referred to as a "kids' game played by men."

And the growth of the All-Star Fanfest is major league baseball's acknowledgement that they need to introduce future fans to the game when they are young.

This year's All-Star FanFest activities range from interactive home-run and base-stealing booths to displays from the MLB Hall of Fame in Cooperstown.

There's even a special booth for "Women of the Diamond" that showcases women's pro teams and current "fast-pitch" players. A Negro Leagues booth also is included.

Daily tickets for All-Star FanFest range from $30 to $25. But, tickets are for the whole day and FanFest hours are from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Friday, July 10, and from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m on Saturday, Sunday Monday and Tuesday, July 11-14.

There are ticket packs for families of 4, 5, 6 or 7. Those range from $90 to $150, and allow admission for two adults and 2, 3, 4 or 5 kids.

This Young Saint Louis.com article will describe some of the displays and activities. But, for more information, you also can go to www.allstargame.com.

Here are some of the interactive, participatory activities:

Other booths and displays include:

There will be a autograph booth manned by St. Louis baseball legends.

Also there is a mockup of the All-Star game dugout. It will be a replica of the ones at Busch Stadium for the 2009 All-Star game.

There's a special wall that features caps from the 160 teams that make up the minor leagues that support major league baseball.

Two of the fun interactive booths will involve replicas of booths for Live Radio 1 and 2 and the XM Radio, broadcasters of major league games across the world. You'll get a chance to take the mike and make a recording of you as a game announcer.

Jake Pitney lives with his mom and dad near the beach on the Florida Keys. It's 1935 and Jake is 13 years old. Jake is looking for a way to make some money when he gets a chance to work for Sharkey, a fisherman in the town. Jake, along with the rest of the kids, in town had seen Sharkey as a grouch and impossible to like. However, Jake and Sharkey grew to respect and even like each other. Sharkey was different, that was for sure. He lived in an old railroad car and took responsibility for protecting young turtles when they hatched out from eggs on the beach. He had also bought an old mule named Jewel and her dog companion named Ruby. Sharkey and his mischievous animals became a part of Jake's young life.

Jake acquired another new friend when Mara, a girl with waist length silky hair, moved in with her Aunt Edith. Mara was from Pennsylvania and, at the loss of her parents, had been taken in by her aunt. Among her first acquaintances in Florida were Jake along with Sharkey and his pets. Sharkey had taught Jake how to fish well enough to win a fishing contest. Jake, in turn, had decided to teach Mara how to fish. He told the girl from Pennsylvania he would help her turn into a "conch", which is what people from the Florida Keys called themselves.

That summer, along with fishing, the kids lived an adventurous life trying to help Sharkey keep his animals from roaming off and getting into trouble. Jewel and Ruby improved their questionable reputations with the townspeople when the two animals drove off a panther that was threatening Mara and Star, Jake's little sister. Life was reasonably tranquil until hurricane season hit.

Inhabitants of the Keys knew that in a dangerous hurricane, the sea could possibly rise over the homes in the town. The only way to get to safety was on the train that crossed a bridge from the small island to the mainland. Naturally, everyone wanted to stay with their homes until it was obvious that the hurricane would wipe them out if they did not abandon everything at the last minute. When a hurricane threatened, would they make it to safety or would they have waited just a bit too long? You need to read "Blown Away" by Joan Hiatt Harlow to find out if they all made it - Jake and his family, Mara and her Aunt Edith, Sharkey, and, of course, Jewel and Ruby.

A brother and sister just don't seem to be able
to get along with each other

Megin is a seventh grader and Greg is in ninth grade. To each other they are "Megamouth" and "Grosso." Megin keeps a sloppy room and Greg is super organized. Megin is athletic and a good hockey player. Greg is just not much of an athlete. When Greg constantly complains Megin's room will draw cockroaches because of food remnants she leaves in her messy room, Megin catches a large roach away from their house and slips it under his door. Greg refuses to sleep in his room until their father does something or calls an exterminator. Megin finds a long brown hair in her toothbrush and she just knows Greg had to put it there. She badgers her dad to do something about it.

The poor father, who sells appliances at Sears, is at a loss as to how to keep the two siblings from feuding and disrupting family life. There is also a mother and a much younger little brother that has to put up with Greg and Megin's constant bickering. Their feud carries over to school and to activities outside the home. It takes a near tragedy in their lives to finally get the two kids to rethink their treatment of each other.

The book's author is Jerry Spinelli who wrote "Maniac Magee," one of the most popular kids' books. If you like to read about kids engaging in far-out and hilarious behavior, this is one you will enjoy.

A girl who aspires to be a creative writer narrates
the events in her real life

Cassie Baldwin, who is twelve-years-old, has just gone through the separation of her parents. She and her siblings have had to move from a large, comfortable home to a small apartment in a poor section of town. Her mother has had to return to full-time work in order to pay the bills. Her father has moved out-of-state. Cassie, along with her fifteen-year-old sister, Miranda, are responsible for taking care of their younger brother, Jackson, while their mother works long hours. The two sisters need to keep food in the house and prepare meals when their mother is tied up at work. Unfortunately, from Cassie's perspective, Miranda shirks many of her responsibilities and expects Cassie to cover for her.

We hear about the school experiences of the two sisters. Cassie is in middle school and is experiencing troubles especially with her English teacher, Mr. Mullaney. That's supposed to be her best subject, but Cassie isn't sure just what is expected of her. Miranda is in high school and very much into boys and social life. Little Jackson has just started first grade and Cassie thinks he is not learning to read as well as he should be. What can she do to help him?

If you would like to read Cassie's story, you need to read "Just another Day in my Insanely Real Life" by Barbara Dee. You will experience how a bright and witty seventh grader tries to deal with her stressful young life.