Vol. 109, No. 3 News from the Heart of Amish Country Wednesday, January 21, 2015 Serving Eastern Moultrie, Western Douglas, and Southern Piatt Counties School board tours Lovington Grade School, enters into contract to resurface HS track By ROGER W. BONHAM Managing Editor The January 14 meeting of the Arthur Community Unit 305 Board of Education was held at Lovington Grade School. Prior to the meeting, board members toured areas of the building where asbestos materials were replaced during the summer. Superintendent Kenny Schwengel reported he is continuing to work with Grunloh to resolve a problem with floor tiles in the new junior high wing at Arthur Grade School. Board members directed the superintendent to continue pursuing student interest in the “LakeLand Academy” program proposed by LakeLand College. The program allows high school students to enroll in a college vocational course, such as auto mechanics, and receive college credit and credit towards high school graduation. Principal Buck Condill feels five to eight students might be interested in the program although results of a quick survey indicated lower interest. It has been seven years since the all-weather track at Wilson Field was resurfaced. It is time again. The board authorized paying Midwest Tracks $44,000 to resurface the track. Superintendent Schwengel said the expense can be paid over two years. Sales tax money will be used to pay for the expense. “It has to be done,” commented Jake Kamm. “It’s used by the community as well as the school. A lot of people go out there to walk, even people from Lovington.” Resurfacing will begin in July after the fireworks. The board authorized relocating the “Rajah” sign in a stone that formerly was located at the site of AtwoodHammond High School to the property known as the “Pea Patch.” The property was given to the Village of Atwood and will be used as a small park. The sign will be located at the entrance to the park. The board authorized hiring J.D. Graham to be head soccer coach at the high school and Zach Freed and Kendall Huffman to be co-directors of the school play, also at the high school. Arthur Grade School Principal’s Report Kindergarten pre-registration will be held February 3-5 during regular school hours in the grade school office. Pre-school screening will be February 17-19 at First Baptist Church. Parents may register their 3- to 5-year-old children at the same time they come in for kindergarten pre-registration. Police Chief Mike Goodman will begin the Drug Abuse Resistance Education (DARE) program in February. The DARE class is for sixth graders. He will conduct an informational meeting with parents at 6 p.m. on January 26 in the grade school cafeteria. Students are less than half way towards meeting their reading goal of 50,000 books. They read 22,846 books through first semester. They need 27,514. Atwood-Hammond Grade School Principal’s Report The drama team, coach (Continued on Page 14) County Fair Queen Pageant held over the weekend at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Springfield. Meyer is the 18-yearold daughter of Dan and 1.00 Arthur, Illinois 61911 News Briefs Woman’s Club scholarship applications available PERFORMANCE HALL GOING UP. Graber Building employees work on constructing the exterior walls of the new Penn Station building on East Progress Street in Arthur. The facility will be the new home of the Gunny Sack Revue. Photo courtesy of Bob Doan. Fourth Annual Outdoor Expo to feature vendors, exotic animals By KENT A. STOCK Staff Writer The Fourth Annual Central Illinois Outdoor Expo will be held Friday and Saturday, February 13 and 14. The venue for the show will be the Otto Center located on County Line Road onequarter mile south of downtown Arthur. The Fourth Annual Expo will have a full list of vendors ranging from hunting, fishing, archery, and taxidermy to hiking, camping, boating, bird calls, lures, generators, and chainsaws as well as information on conservation of our natural resources. The list of vendors has grown each year and 2015 is no exception with over 70 coming to exhibit at the show. If you and your family like to spend time in the great outdoors, the Outdoor Expo will be a great way to preview all the latest equipment and information to help you do just that. Seminars will be held both days of the event by area outdoor experts. Jim Crowley, North American fishing expert, will be in Saturday for one of his entertaining and informative seminars. Dave Shadow, champion fisherman and popular outdoors writer, will be on hand both days to talk about hunting, fishing, and the great outdoor opportunities we have here in central Illinois. Seminars on deer hunting and management by Real World Whitetails of Casey, sponsored by Kitchen Seeds, will be open to Expo attendees as will talks by experts from the Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR). Also on hand will be experienced dog handlers from The Quail Shed to talk about training and upland game hunting. Miss Moultrie-Douglas Maria Meyer named Third Runner-Up in state pageant Maria Meyer, 2014 Miss Moultrie-Douglas County Fair Queen, was Third Runner-Up after being named one of the Top 15 finalists during the 2015 Miss Illinois $ Dena Meyer of Tuscola. She is a senior at Tuscola High School. Miss Richland County Sadie Gassmann was crowned 2015 Miss Illinois The 56th Miss Illinois County Fair Queen Pageant was held as part of the annual convention of the Illinois Association of Agricultural Fairs at the Crowne Plaza in Springfield January 16-18. Pictured are Meredith Timmons, 4th Runner-Up (Clinton County); Maggie Schlindwein, 2nd Runner-Up (Henry County); 2015 Miss Illinois County Fair Queen Sadie Gassmann (Richland County); Brianna Klein, 1st Runner-Up (Morgan County) and Maria Meyer, 3rd Runner-Up (Moultrie-Douglas). Back row are Summer Robins the 2014 Miss Illinois County Fair Queen (Montgomery County) and Ron Meyer, president of the IAAF. Photo was submitted. County Fair Queen; Miss Morgan County Brianna Klein was First Runner-Up; Miss Henry County Maggie Schlindwein took Second Runner-Up; Miss MoultrieDouglas Maria Meyer was Third Runner-Up; and Miss Clinton County Meredith Timmons was named Fourth Runner-Up. Other Top 15 finalists included Miss Montgomery County Shayla Grosenheider, Miss Stark County Emily Pasker, Miss Schuyler County Melissa Ervin; Miss Marion County Morgan Belcher, Miss Okawville County Kelsey Zapp, Miss Iroquois County Brittany Fischer, Miss Vermillion County Amie Harvey; Miss Clay County Tia Rinehart, Miss Coles County Lacey Solomon, and Miss Perry County Melaina Harsy. Non-finalist awards winners included FarmerCity/Dewitt County Lauren Skarupa (Communication Skills); Pana-Tri County Abigail Burgener (Personal Interview); Marshall-Putnam County Elizabeth Rice (Beauty and Physique), and Jersey County Lauren Knight (Stage Presence). The Ruby Crum award went to Miss Perry County Melaina Harsy. Sponsors and organizers are excited about the return of exotic animals from Maple Lane Wildlife Farms from Topeka, Indiana. They will again have live animal displays, which this year will feature new animals such as a bull elk, grizzly bear, two alligators, ring-tailed lemurs, squirrel monkeys, blue macaw, and an exotic species of sheep called the Aoudad which is native to North Africa. The popular white tiger will return as well. The exhibit is a great addition to this family friendly event. Each day there will be numerous giveaways as well as door prizes supplied by event vendors and others. Millrich Custom Graphics will be on hand selling souvenir T-shirts for the Expo, and food will be available on site at the exhibition. On Friday and Saturday both, there will be a grand prize drawing for a $250 Cabela’s gift card. “We still have a few spots open for exhibitors,” according to one of the event organizers, James Aikman. You can obtain more information on the event sponsored by the Arthur Association of Commerce by visiting www.arthuroutdoorexpo. com, or you can call Millrich Outdoors at (217) 543-3848. Central Illinois Outdoor Expo will open at noon on Friday, February 13, and continue until 8 p.m. that evening. Saturday, February 14, the hours for the exposition are 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. There is a $5 admission fee for adults. Kids 12 years old and younger are admitted free of charge. UMC youth to sell subs for the ‘Big Game” Arthur United Methodist Church youth will once again be selling sub sandwiches for the Big Game on Sunday, Feb. 1! The sandwiches are made on La Gondola bread and are made of ham, turkey, and cheese. Subs are $6 each. Please see one of the youth group members, call the church at 543-3159, or send e-mail to aumchurch@ consolidated.net to place your order. Pickup time is 1 p.m. on February 1. Please pay for your order at the time of pickup. Funds raised go toward special mission trips and summer camps. Thank you for your support! Arthur Woman’s Club will award educational scholarships for Arthur Lovington Atwood Hammond students. Any interested graduating senior or continuing education student may pick up an application at the high school guidance counselor’s office. Applications must be completed and returned to the counselor no later than Wednesday, April 1, 2015. Anyone with questions about the scholarship or application process should call Tish Farris at 543-2146 or Woman’s Club Scholarship Committee chair Cheryl Hilgenberg at 543-3272. Scholarship winners will be notified in May. Sunnyside to host guest speaker Jan. 28 Sunnyside Mennonite Church in Chesterville will host a presentation by Deaniel Yoder from Ransom Ministries at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, January 28. Everyone is welcome to attend. For more information about the speaker, contact Loyd Gingerich at (217) 273-0751. Ransom Ministries is located in Chiang Mai, Thailand. The goal of Ransom Ministries is to bring pleasure to God by rescuing women at risk or in prostitution in the red light district of Chiang Mai. Come out and hear how God is working on the other side of the world in the lives of women who are hurting. EMTs to host annual chili supper Feb. 7 Arthur EMTs will sponsor their 10th annual Chili Supper on Saturday, February 7, at the firehouse on Route 133 West. Serving begins at 4 p.m. and continues until 8. The evening includes a live auction beginning at 5 p.m. It features items donated by area merchants. Menu includes all you can eat chili, peanut butter and cheese spread sandwiches, drinks, and homemade desserts. Proceeds will be used for training purposes to allow the emergency responders to provide high quality service to the community. Anyone having questions concerning the chili supper and auction should contact Stephani Poe, event chairperson. Mackville Mackville, a bluegrass group from Atwood, will sing at Arcola First Church of the Nazarene at 5:30 p.m. on Sunday, January 25. The church is located at 418 East Madison in Arcola.
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