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Planit Taste, D1
WEDNESDAY, MAY 22, 2013
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Graduates cherish their memories Local&Region, B1
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County Board OKs Hill’s nominee Ferguson appointed to Mental Health Board; other move pulled from agenda By KEVIN P. CRAVER kcraver@shawmedia.com WOODSTOCK – The McHenry County Board granted Chairwoman Tina Hill one of her two requests regarding the embattled Mental Health Board. Members voted Tuesday
evening, 16-8, to appoint Cathy Ferguson, selected by Hill outside the committee process, to fill a vacancy on the Mental Health Board. But Hill, citing negative publicity, pulled from the agenda her request for a vote to replace a member of the committee in charge of filling it.
Hill wanted to remove board veteran Sandra Fay Salgado, R-McHenry, from the Public Health and Human Services Committee, alleging that her job as human resources director for an agency that receives Mental Health Board funding constituted a conflict of interest.
But Hill’s choice to replace Salgado – Robert Martens Sr. – had raised questions because he is the retired head of a collapsed social service agency that was closely aligned with the Mental Health Board, which spent almost $1.8 million in an unsuccessful bid to save it.
“No one was feeling particularly comfortable with the switch of Sandy Salgado and Bob Martens right now,” Hill said before the meeting. “Timing is everything, and the perception was that this was tied to [the] Cathy Ferguson [appointment], and that couldn’t be further from the truth.”
NATIONAL FOSTER CARE MONTH
Providing a safe haven for kids
Critics have alleged in recent years that the Mental Health Board has become a bureaucracy that spends too much of its property-tax revenue on administration and overhead that it should instead disburse to agencies
See NOMINEE, page A5
Tips for tornado safety offered By JIM DALLKE jdallke@shawmedia.com
Photos by Lathan Goumas – lgoumas@shawmedia.com
Annie Detwiler, 11, shoots a basketball Monday as she plays a game of H-O-R-S-E with her older sister, Grace (far left), 13, and her parents, Mark and Kate, at the family’s home in Woodstock. The Detwilers have five children, a son Ben, 14 , and two foster children – a boy, 4, and a girl, 1. Mark and Kate have begun the process to officially adopt both of their foster children, who are half-siblings. BELOW: Kate Detwiler plays with her youngest foster child, a 1-year-old girl.
Temporary or not, foster families fill a need By SHAWN SHINNEMAN sshinneman@shawmedia.com For the Jensens, life as foster parents is hectic but rewarding. Dan and Connie Jensen of Algonquin had been discussing fostering children since their own kids – now 21, 19 and 17 – were little. When someone spoke about it at a church event Connie attended, they decided the time was right. That was six years ago. Since then, they’ve fostered toddlers and teenagers. Some move on after three weeks.
Others have stayed as long as four years. Two weeks ago, they welcomed a pair of sisters, ages 3 and 4. “It’s been a little bit of a revolving door,” Dan Jensen said. May is National Foster Care Month, aimed at bringing awareness to the more than 400,000 children in the foster care system in the United States. In Illinois, the Department of Child and Family Services takes protective custody of about 4,400 children a year,
See SAFETY, page A5
Read more • Helmeted rescue workers raced Tuesday to complete the search for survivors and the dead. PAGE A4 • Teachers credited for saving students at Briarwood Elementary in Moore, Okla. PAGE A4
See FOSTER, page A5
LOCALLY SPEAKING Drew Becker, 14, of McHenry
BULL VALLEY
McHENRY
SEX ASSAULT BENCH TRIAL CONCLUDES
10 LARGE ASH TREES REMOVED FROM PARK
The bench trial for a one-time youth mentor accused of sexually abusing a young boy concluded during its second day, but a McHenry County judge won’t announce the verdict until next week. Leonard Puccini, 53, of Bull Valley, is charged with aggravated criminal sexual assault, a Class 2 felony. For more,
About 10 large trees infected with emerald ash borer recently were removed from Veterans Memorial Park, a deputy city administrator said. The trees were the only remaining ash trees in the park, Deputy City Administrator Bill Hobson said. The area where the trees stood has been sodded and temporarily roped off. For more, see page B1.
see page B1.
Lathan Goumas – lgoumas@shawmedia.com
On the heels of Monday’s disastrous tornado that killed dozens and injured more than 100 people in Oklahoma, McHenry County officials gave tips for area residents to be better prepared when disaster strikes. David Christensen, McHenry County emergency management director, said residents need to have a plan in place and be ready to act fast. When a tornado warning is issued, residents may have only 10 minutes or less to take shelter before the storm arrives. “We are particularly susceptible to tornadoes,” Christensen said. “We have a history of them, and there is always the possibility that one could strike.” Christensen said the best tool to prepare for a tornado is a hazard radio, which will provide weather updates when the conditions are right for a tornado. Once a tornado warning has been issued, residents should take shelter in a basement or in an interior room, such as the bathroom. “The plumbing that’s in the bathroom adds more structure and strength,” Christensen said. “The walls are closer in and provide more support.”
McHENRY: Epic Cycle and Fitness moves to newly renovated space. Business, E1
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72 53 Complete forecast on A8
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