4 Local 4 • Local • Saturday, September 7, 2013
Bureau County Republican • bcrnews.com
Helping friend through crisis By Donna Barker dbarker@bcrnews.com
PRINCETON — Friends of Pam Mansnerus have set up a benefit banking account to help with expenses as Mansnerus battles cancer. Mansnerus was diagnosed three years ago with non-small cell lung carcinoma, a disease that took the lives of her mother, an aunt, and two years ago, her brother. She has also been hit with metastatic spinal cord and brain tumors. Friends Kristi Warren and Diane Temple have established the Pam Mansnerus Benefit Account at Heartland Bank and Trust in Princeton. Warren and Temple will oversee the account to help make sure essential needs are met for the family. Warren said she and Temple had worked with Mansnerus for more than 20 years at Perry Memorial Hospital. “We felt in our hearts that we needed to help a friend, so we set up this account,” Warren said. “After more than 20 years working together, you become like family.” Temple agreed, saying she had worked with Mansnerus on a daily basis. The past three years have been hard as Mansnerus worked around her treatments, first part-time for a short time before working her way back up to fulltime and then taking disability about a year ago. “It was basically from the heart of working with Pam all these years that Kristy and I got together and decided this account is what we wanted to do,” Temple said. As she has watched Mansnerus go through the past three years, Temple said she has learned yet again that you need to live your life the best you can and to not let the little things get to you because they don’t matter than much. Life is short, and every day is to be
Scam From Page 1 mailbox. If someone does receive an email allegedly from the Postal Service, they should not open it unless it represents a trusted source. However, if someone does open
appreciated, Temple said. On Wednesday, Steve Mansnerus said his wife is a remarkable and strong woman who has been through a lot, with different drugs, radiation and treatment. Her chemotherapy doctor said Pam has rewritten some of the books on how things will go with certain drugs, and her case will be used in future studies, Steve said. His wife was hospitalized most recently one week ago at Perry Memorial and then transferred on Labor Day to Colonial Hall Healthcare & Rehabilitation Center in Princeton, where she remains, Steve said. Through everything, she has received wonderful care from the hospitals and Colonial Hall, doctors and staff, he said. The Mansneruses have been married 32 years and have three grown children, who are also strong as they go through this with their parents, Steve said. “It’s an amazing experience to see your kids grow up and then come to take care of you,” Steve said. About three weeks ago, Pam changed her mind about a very important decision in her life, Steve said. After years of not wanting to be an organ donor, she decided that, when the time comes, she wants to donate her entire body for cancer research, Steve said. Looking back on these past three years, Steve said this is a journey they have faced together as a couple. The doctors caught his wife’s cancer early, and they’ve had three years together, for which they are grateful. But this week has been a tough one, Steve said, not knowing how much time his wife has left, another hour, a couple more days, another week. “It’s been a long journey, but I hope she goes quickly because I don’t want her to suffer,” Steve said. Comment on this story at www. bcrnews.com.
up a scam email, they should change their password, Mattingly said. Scam artists use not just the U.S. Postal Service, but also Fed Ex and also UPS, Mattingly added. For more information about an alleged delivery or to report a spam
email, people can contact their local post office, call 1-800-ASK-USPS or email spam@uspis.gov. Comment on this story at www.bcrnews.com.
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Walnut From Page 1 sewage plant mechanicals and structures have a life span of 25 years. He commended the village on their diligence with the maintenance and upkeep of their system to keep it in operation for almost 50 years. The proposed plan calls for the addition of fine screening, adding a flow meter, replacement of all of the mechanicals within the package plant, construction of a new building for the package plant, replacement of blowers that were installed in 1965, and the addition of some OSHA required safety rails. The project will include several phases. The first phase is the planning phase which includes the current activity and the first submission of the preliminary plan to the Environmental Protection Agency. Once approval of the preliminary plan is received, that phase will be complete. The second phase will be the application phase which includes the bidding process, loan application and receiving of permits. This phase will also include an authorizing ordinance passed by the village board and submission of necessary forms. The final phase, the construction phase, would begin in July 2014 with completion scheduled for June 2015. Hansen said there
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will be no interruption in service to the customers. There will be an increase in the amount of customers’ bills of approximately $17 per month. The village board will need to make decisions about the time frame for the payment increase and whether the increase is done incrementally or in one step. Hansen and the board will be present for the public meeting on Sept. 16. In other business, Dena Wilt, chairperson of the board of trustees of the Walnut United Methodist Church, presented a letter to the board requesting the village provide snow removal for the handicap parking the church is currently paving. In 2010 it was discovered during a surveying process that 8 inches of the fire station was sitting on property owned by the church. Because of this 8 inches, the church deeded 7 feet to the village, and then the village had clear title to the fire department building. In exchange for the deeding of this property, the church would like for the village to provide snow removal for their handicapped parking. The church will be responsible for all maintenance of this handicapped area and will be liable for any injuries that would occur on the property. After discussion by the board, Trustee Lee Sarver made a motion to provide snow removal, and this motion was passed by the board. The motion included
the stipulation the village would not be liable for damages or injuries, and the snow removal would be done with the time constraints of providing the clearing of the village streets as a first priority. Also, Walnut Village President Dennis Grobe discussed with the board a change requested in the legal description of the Hanson property being sold by the village. This property has been published for sale by sealed bid. A request had been received by Grobe that an additional 25 feet owned by the village be added to the property for sale. This 25 feet will make this property square rather than an odd shape. An ordinance for the change was proposed and passed by the board. A new three-week publishing period for the sale will be done and new bids for the property will be opened by the board on Oct. 7. In a final note, Nita VonHolten, village treasurer, reported the new backhoe ordered by the village has been received and payment has been made. The treasurer’s report presented to the board reflected the payment for the backhoe. The next village board meeting is at 7 p.m. on Sept. 16 with the public meeting for the sewage plant improvements at 6:30 p.m. on that same date. Both meeting will be held at the village meeting room. Comment on this story at www.bcrnews.com.
HOMESTEAD FESTIVAL
HHH Sunday Events - September 14th, 2013 HHH
FLEA MARKET - Bureau County Fairgrounds, 8am-2pm Admission $1.00 JAzz WoRship sERvicE - St. Matthew’s Lutheran Church, 10:30am. 3rd AnnuAL BBQ RiB cooK-oFF - Central Bank, 317 S. Main St. 6am-4pm • Judging 3:30pm
33rd AnnuAL cAR shoW - Beautiful Downtown Princeton Registration 8am - Noon • Judging from Noon - 1:30pm • Trophies 3:00pm BETA siGMA phi ARTs & cRAFTs shoW - Courthouse lawn, 10am-4pm chiLDREn’s TRAcToR puLL - Soldiers and Sailors Park. Noon-2:30pm Ages 4-12. Registration will be at
Noon with the pull starting at 12:30pm. Our goal will be to have the event finished by 2:30pm
pETTinG zoo - Soldiers and Sailors Park. Noon-3pm. hoMEsTEAD TALEnT shoWcAsE - Prairie Arts Center. 2pm. hoMEsTEAD FEsTivAL 50/50 RAFFLE DRAWinG - The Homestead Festival Committee will gather at 3:30pm in downtown Princeton at the speakers booth of the car show to announce the winner of the 50/50 Split the Pot Raffle!
For schedule of events & more go to: www.homesteadfestival.com