Serving the Forreston area since 1865
FORRESTON Journal July 16, 2015 Volume 153, Number 12 - $1.00
Outdoor Theater
Butterflies
K-9 Center
The PACT will perform “The Rules of Comedy” outdoors July 17-19. A6
An annual butterfly festival will be held near Forreston July 25. A10
A Dixon animal shelter is working to raise funds for a K-9 Enrichment Center A7
Demo complete on county land Old restaurant removed for a parking lot By Chris Johnson cxjohnson@oglecounty news.com
At the Park Three-year-old Jonathan Bawinkel looks out the window of the wooden train July 10 at Forreston Memorial Park. His grandmother brought to the park to play. Photo by Vinde Wells
Volunteers install Habitat home roof By Vinde Wells vwells@oglecounty news.com In a race against Mother Nature July 11, Mt. Morris firefighters won with time to spare. With dark skies and rain predicted, several members of the fire department volunteered to put the roof on Habitat for Humanity of Ogle County’s (HFHOC) 11th home, which is being built at 408 W. Front St. in Mt. Morris. The group of volunteers started their project early and finished by mid-morning. “We had enough time to do the roof and eat lunch before the rain came,” said Fire Chief Rob Hough. The roof wasn’t the only work being done to the new house on Saturday morning. Inside, volunteers worked on the plumbing. HFHOC chose Elias
and Betty Sotelo and their daughters Maya and Kiana as the recipients of the house, the second built in Mt. Morris. Ground was broken April 26, and crews of volunteers and family members are on hand every weekend getting the house up and ready. Since it was founded 12 years ago, HFHOC has completed 10 houses. So far, HFHOC volunteers have built two homes in Forreston, both of which have been sold, one in Byron, four in Polo, two in Oregon, and one in Mt. Morris. Habitat for Humanity International is an ecumenical Christian ministry, comprised of volunteers, that welcomes to all people dedicated to eliminating poverty housing. Since its founding in 1976, Habitat has built more than 200,000 houses in nearly 100 countries, providing simple,
A building that originally was a gas station and more recently a BBQ restaurant, was razed July 10 in downtown Oregon. The Ogle County Highway Department was on site at 501 W. Washington St. to demolish the building at the corner of Fifth and Washington Streets. “I am extremely excited with the progress on this project,” said Ogle County Board member Don Griffin, who is coordinating the project through the Long Range Planning Committee. “This is a good project for the county and the city.” When completed the property will be graded and paved as a county parking lot. Additional expansion of the parking lot is in the county’s long range plan. Griffin said the house to the south of the property will
be demolished in the future. In December of 2013, the county board approved buying the house at 102 S. Fifth St. from Scott and Barb Spoor for $99,500. At that time the board entered into a three-year lease with attorney Robert Lowe, who has his office there. The Washington Street property will provide additional parking for the Judicial Center and festivals and events in Oregon, Griffin said. The final demolition of the building was competed Friday. Griffin said the parking lot on that site will be completed in time for the annual Autumn on Parade festival, scheduled for Oct. 3-4. The first phase of the project was to remove the former Jackass BBQ building from 501 W. Washington St. and add parking spaces. This included the removal of underground tanks, left from the gas station, that were discovered on the property. The board approved a resolution in June to accept a Turn to A2
Car show will be held Aug. 1
Mt. Morris firefighters volunteered their time July 11 to put a roof on the Habitat for Humanity house under construction at 408 W. Front St., Mt. Morris. Pictured above are Rob Hough, Brandon Spandet, Brandon Mead, and Steve Foss. Photo by Vinde Wells
decent and affordable shelter for more than a million people. Future homeowners help build their homes and then
buy them through affordable, no-profit mortgages; their payments go into a Fund for Turn to A2
The Forreston American Legion Family will sponsor its seventh annual car show as part of the yearly Sauerkraut Day on Saturday, Aug. 1 from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Memorial Park. More than 150 cars and motorcycles are expected during the daylong show. Dash plaques will be given to the first 75 entries and door prizes will be given out during the day. Sauerkraut dinners will be served from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Music will be provided by 3D Sound. For information about car
entries, call Bret Schemel, American Legion Riders, at 815-238-0713. Bouncy Rides, sponsored by Forreston Area Business Association, will be offered on Aug. 1 along with a petting zoo, craft and vendor show, and Lions Club cheese sale, all at Memorial Park from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. A community church service will be held on Sunday, Aug. 2 at 9:30 a.m. at Memorial Park. A community breakfast will be held at the Fire Department from 8 a.m. to noon.
Alumni game is Saturday By Chris Johnson cxjohnson@oglecounty news.com Athletes from around the area will gather in Milledgeville this Saturday night for a showdown between Polo and Milledgeville in an alumni football game. The Polo team is made up of athletes that graduated from Polo, Forreston, and Freeport Aquin. Chad Linboom, Polo class of 2000, hit the field Sunday afternoon to practice with the team. A couple Forreston athletes were invited to join the Polo alumni team for the game He was throwing long against Milledgeville. Here, Evan Watz kicks a field goal in practice Sunday afternoon. passes back and forth with Photo by Chris Johnson
In This Week’s Edition...
Church News, A5 Classifieds, B7-B10 College News, A4 Entertainment, A6 Fines, B6
Marriage Licenses, A4 Oregon Police, B6 Public Voice, A8 Property Transfers, B3 Sheriff’s Arrests, B3
Social News, A4 Sports, B1, B2 State’s Attorney, B3 Weather, A3
Aquin’s Dominic DeMichele to warm up before the practice began. It was clear from watching practice that everyone was there to have a good time and strap some pads on to play a football game for bragging rights. The game is made possible through Alumni Football USA. “We organize alumni football games across the country to raise money for their schools,” said Alumni Football USA State Director Chuck Hulke. “The games are about having a good time. It is a blast for the players, and I see the guys wanting to
get back on the field and play football.” Hulke said the important thing for these alumni games is player safety. Before they could take the field, Hulke insisted the athletes received a reminder of the rules for the game. “We can only rush four right?” asked Linboom. “Linebackers can not blitz and the defensive line has to be in a 3 or 4 point stance,” said Hulke. “The referees will tell you to stay off the knees. We all have jobs and lives.” Another safety rule is to only block wide receivers Turn to B1
Deaths, A7, B5
Walter J. Bernhard, Jesse A. Gigous, Mary K. Head, William E. Jones, Everett R. Kested, Juanita M. Lawton, Leo G. Piper, Michael J. Robinson, Donald N. Sherrick, LaMoine A. Stukenberg, Donald E. White
Published every Thursday by Ogle County Newspapers, a division of Shaw Media • www.oglecountynews.com