Serving the Forreston area since 1865
FORRESTON Journal March 31, 2016 Volume 153, Number 49 - $1.00
Solid Start
On the Trail
Island Concerns
Girls track team starts season Tuesday with win over West Carroll. B1
A father and daughter start hiking the Appalachian Trail. B1
Rock River island owner voices safety concerns to Oregon City Council A7
Heath Dept. budget pinch
Easter Egg Hunt
By Vinde Wells vwells@oglecounty news.com The Ogle County Health Department is definitely feeling the pinch caused by the failure of Illinois lawmakers to agree on a budget for the current fiscal year. “Without a doubt we’re feeling the effect of the budget impasse,” Ogle County Health Department Administrator Cindy Bauling said Monday. Local state certified health departments receive funding for public health though the Local Health Protection Grant (LHPG). None of this funding has been paid to local health departments since the start of the state fiscal year last July when the 2015-16 fiscal year began. According to the department’s annual report, that amounted to nearly $80,000 in the 2014-15 fiscal year, almost 10 percent of its total revenues. Other state funding has been significantly reduced as well. Especially hard hit was funding for the Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) Nutritional Program, which served nearly 3,200 last year. “It’s ironic that the services for the care of the most vulnerable aren’t being funded,” Bauling said. The situation became crucial a few months ago. “December became our tipping point,” Bauling said. “In January we made changes so we could pay our bills.” Those changes included unpaid furloughs for Bauling and two other staff members, as well as a resignation and three retirements. Those taking one-week furloughs along with Bauling included Joanie Padilla, Director Health Education and Emergency Preparedness, and Paul Harmon, Director of Environmental Health. Deb Cicogna, Director of Clinical Services, stepped down in January to take another job. The three staff members who retired will not be replaced. “That was a tremendous loss of knowledge and expertise,” Bauling said. The remaining staff of about a dozen people have been cross-training and assuming additional duties, she said. In addition, Bauling herself is planning to step down when her current contract ends in May. Applicants are being sought to fill her post.
Gwen Pals, 1, isn’t quite sure what to do as her grandpa Randy Pals points her toward an Easter egg March 26 at the German Valley Lions Club egg hunt at Ben Miller Park. Photo by Vinde Wells
Four-year-old Asher Shurtleff is on the run to find eggs March 26 at the German Valley Lions Easter Egg Hunt at Ben Miller Park. Photo by Vinde Wells
New dealers offer wares at antique show By Vinde Wells vwells@oglecounty news.com
the show was moved to the first weekend of April. The show offers quality antiques from the early 1800s through the retro era of the 1950s and includes all areas of collecting — furniture, glass, china, pottery, toys, primitives, textiles, jewelry, dolls, silver, decorator items, and more.
The Oregon Woman’s Club, a member of the General Federation of Women’s Clubs, sponsors this show as a major fund raising event and uses the proceeds to help fund various community projects and charities. As in past years, the show will be held at the Blackhawk Center sports arena, located
on the Oregon public school campus. The facility offers ample parking, handicapped accessibility and a large display and sales area for the dealers. The food concession will be provided by the Chana United Methodist Ladies.
The menu will include homemade chicken and noodles, a selection of sandwiches, chips, beverages, and various desserts. Mary Lou’s Crystal Repair, Joliet, will be on hand both days to repair
A first-time dealer will bring a new genre of collectibles to the Oregon Woman’s Club’s 66th annual antique show this weekend. “One of our new dealers Turn to A3 from the Chicago area is bringing Civil War memorabilia. That’s something we haven’t had before,” said show organizer Ron Bry. “I’m really excited about that.” Northern Illinois’ longest running show will be held on Saturday, April 2 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday, April 3 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Blackhawk Center,1101 W. Jefferson St., Oregon. Of the more than 50 dealers coming to the show, three will be there for the first time. Another new dealer, also from the Chicago area, will offer American art pottery, and the third, from Missouri, is bringing early American art glass and art pottery. Bry said he is especially pleased with the new booths because with the change of date this year, four previous dealers dropped out of the show due to schedule conflicts. “We changed the date because of Easter,” he said. Usually the show is held Show manager Ron Bry, right, visits with vendors Bob and Marsha Hudson, Lapel, Indiana, at last year’s Oregon the last weekend in March, Turn to A3 but with Easter falling then, Woman’s Club’s Antique Show. Photo by Vinde Wells
In This Week’s Edition...
Church Bells, A5 Classifieds, B5-B10 Entertainment, A6 Fines, B4 Marriage Licenses, A4
Oregon Police, B2 Pine Creek News, A3 Public Voice, A7 Property Transfers, B4 Sheriff’s Arrests, B3
Social News, A4 Sports, B1, B2 State’s Attorney, B3 Weather, A3
Published every Thursday by Ogle County Newspapers, a division of Shaw Media • www.oglecountynews.com
Deaths, B4 Kent H. Ross Julia Aiken