Scott County Times
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WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 14, 2019
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Times NEWS Meet the Bluffs Picnic candadites! See page A2
Imitating a firefighter. See page A3 IDPH warns of potential vaping hazards. See page A4
WINCHESTER, IL 62694
Bluffs Picnic and Burgoo this weekend By BETH ZUMWALT Scott County Times Bluffs is opening its doors this weekend and asking everyone to come enjoy, burgoo, a parade, games and rides, a car show, entertainment and pageants. The day starts with kettle service for burgoo at 7 a.m. The car show starts at 9 and will last until 2 p.m. The parade starts at 10. Staging will begin at 9 a.m. First, second and third place cash prizes will be awarded. The theme is “Coming Home.� Following the parade, at 11 a.m. the carnival rides will start and the games will begin. Riders can ride until 8 p.m. Some of the games will be at Muntman Park. A scavenger hunt will be at Freeman Hills Park,from 12:30 until 1:30 and another will be at Muntman Park from 1 to 2 p.m.
Pageant contestants will be on stage at 1 p.m. answering questions. Crownings will begin at 5. See page 2 for pictures of contestants. Bowl service for the burgoo will be from noon to 2 and there will be live entertainment all afternoon. Face painting will start at 1 and go until 4 and contests will begin at 3 on the library side. Contests include, but are not limited too: a dog show, a pie making contest, one for kids, one for adults. Entertainment throughout the day will include: the Junior High cheerleaders at 1 p.m., Camree Coats at 1:30, Braedon Buhlig from 3 to 3:30, Erin Carmean from 3:30 to 4, Branson Keener, from 4 to 4:30 and Cole Howard from 4:30 to 5. Following the pageant crownings, River City Opry will be on stage from 7-9 p.m. The raffle drawings will be held at 9 pm.
She answers the call By BETH ZUMWALT Scott County Times As in most small communities, there is always someone who will look at a project and say that needs to be done. Regarding the Bluffs Picnic, Maryon Shaw is the one. “The couple that has always done it had a lot going on this summer, their son is getting married and some other things,� Shaw said. “I was asked to take over. I didn’t want to see it not happen.� The picnic starts Saturday morning and Shaw and her committee have a full day of events planned. “We have few new and different things and a few traditional things,� Shaw said. “We will have a play area
West Central Junior High Boys Baseball. See page A6
WEEKEND WEATHER FRIDAY, AUG. 16
83 68 Low
SATURDAY, AUG. 17
88 70 Low
SUNDAY, AUG. 18
89 69 High
Low
Scott County Times
&KXUFK $ /RFDOV $ 0DUNHWSODFH $ 1HZV $ $ $ 5HDO (VWDWH $ 6SRUWV $ Š 2019
Scott County Times Obituaries listed in this issue: Stice
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for ages five and under and a bounce house and carnival rides.� Shaw said she has worked hard to admire vendors and her efforts have been successful. “We have the West Central Cougar Cheerleader selling apple nachos, the Bluffs Student Council is having a bake sale and we have two food trucks coming.� Linda Sapp, village president, said Sapp and her committee have done a wonderful job putting the day together. “It used to be just an afternoon event,� Sapp said. “Now it’s going to be all day There is a lot of new stuff going on to keep people entertained and having fun. We are lucky to have people willing to keep the hometown tradition going.�
Commissioners approve fundraiser for Scott County Dog Rescue
West Central Junior High Girls Softball. See page A6
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VOLUME NO. 152 NUMBER 33
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Junior high teachers Jayme Davis, left, and Kalli Fuhler add a welcome sign to the entryway of Winchester Grade School. Teachers are reporting to the school today, Wednesday Aug. 14. Classes begin for students on Friday. Principal Andy Stumpf said the pre-K through eighth grade facility housed 437 students last year and is expecting an increase in enrollment this school year.
By JULIE BOREN Scott County Times Scott County is about to get a brush with royalty. Following approval by Scott County Commissioners, a Queen of Hearts raffle has been approved as a fundraiser for the Scott County Dog Rescue. Action came at the Aug. 12 commissioners meeting with affirmative votes from all three board members – Robert Schafer, Weldon Fearneyhough and Dan Hatcher. Authorization for the game of chance was handled by the board under the county’s ordinance governing raffles. Chairman Schafer said the county had been approached several weeks ago about the possibility of approving the game. The contest involves players buying tickets in hopes of matching the location of the Queen of Hearts among all the cards in the deck. The board vote allows the game to continue in Scott through Feb. 22, 2020. In other action, the commissioners: Q Approved Ben Coon for a three-year term on the Big Swan Drainage and Levee District, based on petition by landowners in the district. The term begins next month. Q Learned that the patient census at the Scott County Nursing Home stands at 43 and that a new CNA has recently been hired. Q As a formality, approved the 2020 Public Housing Authority Plan for Scott County. Q Paid bills and were informed by Chairman Schafer that no transfer of funds was necessary. (See, FUNDRAISER, A2)
Bluffs starts process for new water tower By BETH ZUMWALT Scott CountyTimes The Bluffs village board met Aug. 7 and voted to start the process for a new water tower. Jamie Heaton of Benton and Associates, the village’s engineer, said his company would assist with a facility plan and work with the village to obtain information the EPA will need. “We will get a design and the proper permits and planning at the same time,� Heaton said. Heaton said financing might be easier to obtain now than it has been in the past, since the federal government is placing a priority on infrastructure. If the plans and permits are approved by the end of 2019, no easy task according to Heaton, it is possible funding could be obtained and the project started next fall. Estimated cost of the project is $1,300,000 including non-construction costs such as the facility plan, design engineering and permits, legal costs, etc. A grant would be 60/40. That is less than what the village had been quoted a few months ago, when the split between the government and the village would be 75/25. Heaton pointed out the pros and cons of a USDA Rural Development Loan and a loan from the EPA. “You will qualify for a low interest rate because of the number of households at or below the poverty,� Heaton said. The village was adamant that the project not include a rate hike for the customer. ‘We own about $6,000 on a loan. “That’s two payments of $3,000 each,� Sapp said. “We can use that to make monthly payments and (See, WATER TOWER, A2)
BAM BAM
Beth Zumwalt/Scott County Times
Stretching the power of his John Deere tractor, John Scott Boeler of Girard made a full pull Saturday night at the David Lashmett Memorial Tractor Pull at the fairgrounds in Winchester. Last year the event was five categories and this year was expanded to seven.
Major disaster declaration still uncertain State given until Sept. 3 on request By JARAD JARMON Scott County Times The state received an extension to submit a request to the federal government for a major disaster declaration related to severe storms and flooding that devastated the area earlier this year. For Scott County and others, that means an expectedly longer delay on seeing federal disaster relief funding, a reality that puts local government into a little bit more of a bind financially, said Gene Breden, Emergency Services Disaster Agency coordinator in Calhoun. Local government has been using local funds to handle recovery from the damages in the area with an expectation that exter-
“In some parts of the state, floodwaters remain an impediment not only to residents but also to emergency managers and first responders,�
Alicia Tate-Nadeau Acting Director of the Illinois Emergency Management Agency nal funds will, in relatively short time, come in to pay for these flood-related costs. “Local governments pay until they can’t pay anymore,� Breden said of the interim period before relief funds flow in. This extension is a sign they will likely be waiting for a while longer. Currently, representatives
from the Illinois Emergency Management Agency (IEMA) and the the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) are conducting damage audits across the state in the 36 counties designated as state disaster areas, a time consuming but necessary one to get federal relief. (See, DECLARATION, A2)