Serving the Forreston area since 1865
FORRESTON Journal December 11, 2014 Volume 152, Number 33 - $1.00
Season Preview
Tournaments
Missing Files
The Polo-Forreston wrestling team has the talent to grow throughout the season. B1
Annual holiday tournaments start in Polo and Forreston A12, B2
Sheriff’s department files relating to the Ogle County Tow Fund are missing A8
Children visited with Santa Claus By Chris Johnson Reporter A line of children were waiting as patiently as they could Friday night to visit with Santa at the Forreston Library. As the clock ticked down to six, the anticipation to see Santa grew. Right at 6 p.m., the doors were opened and the children came in to see Santa. Santa invited the children onto his lap where he quietly asked “What would you like for Christmas?” As the children were saying what they wanted Santa would compliment their choices. Before allowing the children to leave, Santa asked if they were good this year. He gave each of them small bags with presents and
Naughty or Nice?
Man is charged after fleeing from police
It is Santa’s job to determine who has been naughty and who has been nice this year. The children visiting Santa Dec. 5 were determined to be nice. Above, seven-yearold Caroline Bawinkel, right, tells Santa what she wants for Christmas while her sister Lucie, age 4, waits for her turn to talk to Santa at the Forreston Public Library Dec. 5. At right , Eight-yearold Lacey Politsch visits with Santa. Photos by Chris Johnson
By Vinde Wells Editor
Statue is protected for winter By Vinde Wells Editor Oregon’s most wellknown landmark is finally all wrapped up and ready for whatever Old Man Winter has to offer. Looking almost like a giant Christmas present minus the bow, the Black Hawk Statue is completely covered with dark green plastic mesh that will protect it from snow and ice until repairs can begin in the spring. Project conservator Dr. Andrzej Dajnowski and his crew first built scaffold completely around the 50foot concrete landmark in late November, then put a wooden roof over the top, and finally enclosed it all with the protective mesh late last week. Created by sculptor Lorado Taft in 1910 as a tribute to all Native Americans, the statue draws thousands of visitors each year. It was unveiled and dedicated in 1911. Dajnowski is heading up a team that will return in the spring to repair the damage done to the statue by time and weather. Testing and evaluations done in the last year and a half showed that three areas of the statue are in dire need
sent them on their way. Santa’s visit in Forreston is special for those who attend because of the traditional look he brings to the festivities. He cares about all of the children and makes sure they feel good. One child who was crying before seeing Santa, immediately stopped crying as soon as Santa started talking to him. To learn what children in Ogle County are asking Santa for Christmas pick up a copy of next week’s edition. There will be a special section, “Letters to Santa” that includes letters written by pre-K through third grade students from several elementary schools. This is a good way for parents to know what the children are interested in.
of repairs. The critical areas are the folded arms of the statue, especially the elbows and underneath the arms; the middle of the robe; and the vertical fold in the robe from armpit to toe. The areas are spalled, meaning chunks of concrete have already fallen out, and delineated, meaning areas of concrete are loose and ready to fall. Dajnowski and experts from Thornton Tomasetti, Chicago, an architectural firm that provides engineering design, investigation, and analysis services to clients worldwide, took numerous samples to determine the exact mixture of concrete and other materials needed to rebuild the damaged areas. Once the restoration is completed, a re-dedication ceremony will be held. The Friends of the Black Hawk Statue, headed up by Frank and Cherron Rausa, Sterling, began working more than five years ago to secure a plan and the funds to have the statue repaired. The plan was approved by the Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) and the Illinois Historic
No this is not the world’s biggest Christmas present. It is a wrapped piece of history. Visitors traveling through Oregon will be unable to see Lorado Taft’s Black Hawk statue now that a protective wrap has surrounded the sculpture and scaffolding. Restoration efforts to repair the statue will be completed next year on the 103-yearTurn to A2 old concrete sculpture. Photo by Chris Johnson
In This Week’s Edition...
Business Brief, B4 Church News, A5 Classifieds, B9-B14 Entertainment, A11 Fines, B7
Forreston Police, A3 Marriage Licenses, A4 Oregon Police, B4 Public Voice, A10 Property Transfers, B4
A 20-year-old Polo man was charged with reckless driving Monday evening after he fled from a routine traffic stop in Polo earlier in the day and ended up in a Dixon shopping mall. The man was taken to the Ogle County Jail after he was released from KSB Hospital, Dixon, at 8:21 p.m. Polo Police Chief Dennis Christen said Tuesday morning. After being taken into custody at 3:11 p.m. by Lee County deputies at Tractor Supply, 1810 S. Galena Ave., the man was transported to the hospital for a suicide evaluation, Christen said. The situation began early Monday afternoon when Christen attempted to stop the car the man was driving for speeding and reckless driving. Instead of stopping, Christen said the man drove out of town. Christen said he lost sight of the car due to the fog and excessive speed, but a motorist reported seeing the car south of town. According to a police report released by Christen, the car was clocked doing 68 mph in a 35 mph zone in Polo and also passed one car on the right at an intersection and another on the left with traffic approaching head-on. The report said the man was apparently upset and had made suicidal threats. He was believed to be in possession of one or more knives. The man posted Facebook messages indicating he was disappointed that the Polo Police would not give pursuit because he was trying to get them to chase him so that
Sheriff’s Arrests, B4 Social News, A4 Sports, A12, B1, B2 State’s Attorney, B4 Zoning, B7
Published every Thursday by Ogle County Newspapers, a division of Shaw Media • www.oglecountynews.com
he could crash his car into a pole. The man returned to Polo and continued to drive recklessly at high speeds and disobeyed several stop signs, the report said. An attempt to spike his tires was thwarted when he backed away from the stop sticks. “We tried to get close to him but he wouldn’t let us,” Christen said. “It was never a pursuit. At one point the man abandoned his car on the Joseph Stengel Trail south of Judson Road and went on foot to Ill. 26 south of the Polo Animal Hospital. Because a passerby reported he had an open knife in his hand, police advised the veterinary clinic to lock its doors. Police could not locate the man, but another passerby reported he had returned to his car. Police had removed the keys but the man started the car with a screwdriver. The man then drove north on the bike trail to Judson Road where he went east. He was later reported to be driving south on Lowell Park Road toward Dixon. Several police agencies, including the Ogle County Sheriff’s Department, Lee County Sheriff’s Department, and Dixon Police Department, were involved in the call and in monitoring the man’s whereabouts. Dixon police officers followed the car after receiving a radio call from Polo Police about wanting to do a welfare check on the driver, said Dixon Police Chief Danny Langloss. Turn to A2
Deaths, B3 Charles E. Diehl, Nadine M. Ross