Official Paper of Parkersburg, Aplington, New Hartford, Aplington-Parkersburg Schools, and Butler County
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clipse
NEWS - REVIEW
WEDNESDAY June 1, 2016 18 pages 144th Year • No. 22
$1
www.parkersburgeclipse.com
Long-time A-P teachers saying final goodbyes
INSIDE Falcons, Wolverines open diamond season
Briefly. Human trafficking program to be held June 1 in Parkersburg
PARKERSBURG — Human trafficking and Internet crimes against children are a problem everywhere, including Butler County. What is human trafficking? What are Internet crimes against children? Is my child safe using the Internet? For answers to those and other questions, attend a free community information meeting presented by Mike Ferjak, an investigator from the Iowa attorney general’s office assigned to the Department of Criminal Investigation (DCI) task force investigating these crimes. The program will be presented at the Aplington-Parkersburg High School auditorium beginning at 6:30 p.m. The program is supported by the City of Parkersburg, Parkersburg Police Department, City of Aplington, Aplington Police Department, Parkersburg Chamber of Commerce, Aplington Community Club, Parkersburg Ministerial Association, Aplington Ministerial Association, New Directions Counseling Service and Butler County CERT.
Aplington AmVets to host luncheon
APLINGTON — The Aplington AmVets will host a community luncheon Saturday, June 4 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Aplington Historical Society to host pie/ ice cream fundraiser
APLINGTON — The Aplington Historical Society will host a pie and ice cream fundraiser Sunday, June 4 from 2 to 4 p.m. at the historical building on Main Street.
Aplington-Parkersburg Preschool sign-up underway
Sign up new for the 2016-17 Aplington-Parkersburg Preschool classes. Please complete the basic sign-up form available on the district website: www.a-pcsd.net.
By JOHN JENSEN Eclipse News-Review APLINGTON-PARKERSBURG — Thursday will come with mixed emotions at Aplington-Parkersburg schools. Most students will be excited about their summer vacations while many teachers will be sad to see students they have become close to over the past nine-plus months move on to the next grade level. For a few teachers, however, Thursday’s final day of school will be more than just the final day with a specific group of students ... it will be their final day as a teacher. Long-time Aplington Elementary resource teacher Fayth Walton and veteran High School English teacher Nina Schmitz are two of those, as is long-time para-educator Brenda Hutton.. Schmitz’ career began at BGM and at the Iowa State Juvenile Home in Toledo. After a year of substitute teaching while living in Waterloo she said she and her husband wanted to take their family to a smaller community. A long-term substitute job at Aplington-Parkersburg led to her current full-time position. “I feel like I’ve done almost anything that’s possible to do connected to English in a high school,” Schmitz said of her time at A-P. “It’s been enjoyable. The students really make it worth coming. Sometimes some of them are not in that good a mood but then you have the ones that are and the next day it might flip and be the other ones.” Schmitz said she has enjoyed working in the high school because she gets a whole new group each class period. “That’s totally different than elementary,” she said. “I don’t think I could ever teach elementary.”
Left, para-educator Brenda Hutton (left) and resource teacher Fayth Walton have worked together at Aplington Elementary for the several years. Nina Schmitz (above) has been with the high school English Department for 22 years. (Courtesy photos)
Schmitz said one of the secrets to her success as an English teacher has been taking what students are working with and attempting to apply it with students’ interests. “I have a student right now who knows everything you would want to know about cars. So once in awhile we go to that student and say ‘How does this apply to cars?’ And I think that helps because kids want to know how, when you’re reading something from the 1800s, this applies to them.” Schmitz’ position has been far more than teaching literature. For many years she directed the school’s drama department and she has
By JOHN JENSEN Eclipse News-Review PARKERSBURG — There is nothing more difficult than losing a loved one ... except possibly being the person who led that person when they lost their life. Cpt. Justin Foote of the National Guard’s 133rd Infantry Regiment talked about that pain during an emotional Memorial Day message at the Parkersburg Veterans’ Building Monday. Foote, a Waverly native, served as leader of the platoon that Specialist Donnie Nichols was in when an improvised explosive devise (IED) detonated under the vehicle he was driving leading to his death. Foote spoke of the mission that day, to shadow an engineer’s platoon as it cleared a route and eradicate the route of IEDs. “It seemed like any other See MEMORIAL DAY page 3
PARKERSBURG — The Parkersburg Sons of The American Legion Squadron No. 285 are currently selling raffle tickets for a pair of long guns. SAL members will be selling raffle tickets until the drawing, which will be during the Show and Shine Car Show at the American Legion Hall Aug. 21 during Parkersburg Fun Days.
More Briefs on Page 3
Opinion ........................page 4 Aplington News ..........page 5 Church News...............page 9 Classifieds.......... pages 12-14 Sports .................pages 16, 18
me,” she said. “I just think I see things in the students that other people, maybe, don’t see. I love it.” Her teaching career began in Greece teaching English as a foreign language to Greek students and adults. She said the skills she learned while teaching overseas have translated well to the special education classroom. “I found that me skills teaching English as a foreign language and living in another culture for three years helped me to understand where the kids I was teaching ... now there’s a big push to learn about poverty and the culture of poverty and I kind of had a head start having
Foote delivers powerful Memorial Day message
Sons of Legion selling raffle tickets for guns
In this week’s issue
taught the publications class that includes production of the school yearbook and stories for the Eclipse News-Review. Walton’s career began in special education with the AEA. She worked in Dike for 10 years before coming to A-P, where she worked at the high school before moving to the elementary in Aplington. Hutton’s career began as a long-term substitute teacher. She and Walton have been working together for the past seven or eight years. Walton said she got into special education by accident, working with behaviorally challenged students. “That was a really good fit for
Above-right, members of the Aplington AmVets Honor Guard fire a volley during the 21-gun salute that opened the Memorial Day ceremony at Pleasantview Cemetery. Above, Master Sgt. Thomas Heckman, the new Butler County Director of Veteran’s Affairs, addresses the crowd in Aplington. Right, Capt. Justin Foote of the National Guard’s 133rd Infantry Regiment addresses the Memorial Day service in Parkersburg, which was moved into the Veteran’s Building due to a passing thundershower. (John Jensen/Eclipse News-Review photos)
lived in another culture that I could no not necessarily look through my middle class eyes and make judgments. I could see something different.” Hutton said the needs of the students drew her into special education teaching. “It really touched me that I could sit down with somebody and work one-on-one or in a small group,” she said. “Everybody learns differently.” See RETIREES page 3
Congressman Steve King facing rare primary battle
By JOHN JENSEN Eclipse News-Review PARKERSBURG — Fourth District United States Congressman Steve King (R, Kiron) faces something rare next week ... a primary fight. King, who is seeking his eighth term, will face Rick Bertram in the primary next Tuesday. It is the first primary fight King has faced as a seated incumbent. King said when Bertram announced his candidacy in March there was a promise at the time of a well-funded campaign to unseat him. In an exclusive interview with the Eclipse-News Review during a media tour Friday, King said Bertram’s announcement pushed his campaign into motion. “I thank my campaign manager, my campaign chair, all of the endorsements that are out there, they have been able to close the gate on my opponent,” King said. “Each one of these places where a beachhead could get started. It feels pretty good today. I can’t identify a single issue where my opponent has objected to or a single vote in my time in office. His argument is that he’s more likable and I say ‘That could be, the voters will decide that,’ but I’ve never heard anybody that ran on the ticket of being less likable than their opponent so I don’t think there’s a lot of substance. What else do you have? I’m still waiting for the ‘What else do you have.’” State Representative Pat Grassley (R, New Hartford) accompanied King on the media tour, noting that both he and his grandfather, Sen. Charles Grassley, have endorsed King. See KING page 3