Serving the Forreston area since 1865
FORRESTON Journal April 13, 2017 Volume 154, Number 51 - $1.00
Track Competition
Easter Events
Harp Concert
The Forreston-Polo track team competed at the annual Gebhardt-Worley meet on Saturday. B1
Three egg hunts are planned for area kids on April 15. A3
Trinity Lutheran Church will host a trio of harpists on April 30. A4
Some school districts have unfilled seats By Vinde Wells vwells@oglecounty news.com Two area school boards came away from the April 4 Consolidated Election with positions left unfilled.
In Oregon, six seats were open but only four of those were on the ballot. Michael Guzman, Corey Buck, Stephanie Haugh, and Brian Wills, all current board members, ran unopposed and were elected to four-year terms. However, two unexpired
two-year terms were not open in time to be listed on the ballot. The school board will appoint individuals to fill those terms and is accepting applications through Friday, April 14 at the district office, 206 S. 10th St., Oregon.
Guzman received 1,091 votes, Buck 1,076, Haugh 1,039, and Wills 1,028. In the Forrestville Valley School District, four candidates ran for three four-term terms, but no one ran for a two-year unexpired term. William Braker, a
retired teacher, was the top vote-getter with 425. Also elected were Robert DeVries with 415 votes and Joel Ludwig with 401. Jeff Becker was defeated with 277 votes. In the Polo district, all candidates ran unopposed. Justin Brown and David
Bucher garnered 658 and 644 votes respectively and were elected to two-year unexpired terms. Elected to four-year terms were Matt Mekeel with 697 votes, V. Robert Cassens with 684, and Kellie O’Leary Call with 610.
April 4 election turnout was poor By Zach Arbogast zarbogast@oglecounty news.com
Easter Hams Forreston Lions Club members Sally Koch and Shirley Green hold two of the Easter hams the club was selling last week at R&S Builders. Photo by Vinde Wells
ComEd begins smart meter installation By Vinde Wells vwells@oglecounty news.com White ComEd vans emblazoned with the words “Smart Meter Installer” swarmed into Oregon and Mt. Morris early this week to begin giving customers new electric meters. Several installers were in each community getting down to the business of replacing old meters with new high tech devices. Mt. Morris Village Clerk Paula Diehl said the installer showed up at her house first thing Tuesday morning. “It only took him a couple of minutes and my electricity flashed for about five seconds,” she said. Mt. Morris, Oregon, Polo, and Forreston officials received notification last month that the installations would begin in April. Work in Oregon began on Monday, and Forreston village buildings already have their smart meters. According to ComEd’s website, employees will install approximately 4 million smart meters in all homes and businesses across northern Illinois by the end
of 2018. More than 2.5 million have already been installed. Smart meters are digital, electric meters that wirelessly provide secure, two-way communication between the meter and ComEd and also allow customers access to more information about their usage, according to the website. The new digital meters will eliminate the need for meter readers. A flier from ComEd said that residents and business owners will receive information in their bills and in mailings, first about the new meters, and then as the installation approaches, an approximate date and what happens when the meter is installed. A recorded phone message will be sent a week before the installation. “Sorry we missed you” door hangers will be left if the crew was unable to install the new meter, especially for those whose meters are inside. “Meter installed” door hangers will be left where the installation was ComEd employee April Lobrillo prepares to install a smart meter Tuesday morning at a home at the corner accomplished. Turn to A2 of Clark and Hitt Streets in Mt. Morris. Photo by Vinde Wells
In This Week’s Edition...
Church News, A5 Classifieds, B6-B10 Entertainment, A6 Fines, B5 Marriage Licenses, A4
Public Voice, A7 Property Transfers, B5 Sheriff’s Arrests, B3 School Menus, A2 Social News, A4
Although citizens are always encouraged to “speak with their vote” come election time, not many chose to April 4. Ogle County has 33,480 registered voters, but across 52 precincts, only 7,362 people cast votes to shape their local governments at the Consolidated Election. That accounts for 21.99 percent of the county, compared to 72.79 in November’s presidential election. What accounts for the enormous difference? Ogle County Clerk Laura Cook thinks people underestimate the importance of their local government. “It’s easy to blame it on a presidential election being more popular, but when it comes down to it, I think people feel the smaller, local elections don’t affect them as much,” said Cook. “I disagree; if anything, they are extremely important.”
Frontrunners for turnout were Buffalo with 39.63 percent, Rockvale with 37.05, Pine Rock worth 36.01, White Rock with 35.42, Leaf River with 35.12, Lynnville with 31.46, and Lafayette with 30.97. The lowest turnout was for Oregon-Nashua, with an 8.09 percent voter turnout. Early voting counts were down as well, showing only 400 early voters, compared to 2,600 in November. Cook commented how proud she was of the local election judges, and her staff at the office. “Everything was completed and in shortly after 9 p.m., which is lightning fast,” said Cook. “It’s all thanks to the local elections judges and staff here, who put in such a long day and still found the energy to get everything finished quickly.” Races on the April 4 ballot included cities and villages, townships, school districts, community college districts, library districts, fire prevention districts, park districts, and a forest preserve district.
Stillman junior honored Friday By Zach Arbogast zarbogast@oglecounty news.com A Stillman Valley High School junior was honored on April 7 for success on and off the athletic field. Surrounded by peers, teachers, U.S. Army representatives, and a hall of famer, Jared Van Vleet was recognized as a finalist for the U.S. Army-Pro Football Hall of Fame Award for Excellence. The award is aimed at student-athletes across the country, and is open to all sophomore, junior, and seniors. While studentsathletes are nominated from schools all over the U.S., only 25 are selected as finalists. Van Vleet was introduced by 2014 hall of fame inductee Aeneas Williams, an eighttime Pro Bowl player who played 10 seasons for the Arizona Cardinals and four seasons for the St. Louis Rams.
Sports, B1, B2 State’s Attorney, B5 Weather, A3 Zoning, B4
Van Vleet was nominated by teachers and counselors, and when he was given the paperwork to complete, he actually sat on it for a few days. “I wanted to think everything over, do my research, and make sure everything was legitimate,” said Van Vleet. “After a couple of days, I filled the forms out, and the rest is history.” He says that being recognized is a humbling experience, but he felt confident filling out the paperwork that he had a good chance of being selected. “Jared is an amazing student in every facet; he leads by example,” said Principal Leslie Showers. Van Vleet has wrestled and played football every year for the Cardinals, playing right halfback and corner and wrestling at the 126 weight class, placing second at the 2017 IHSA Turn to A2
Deaths, B4 Viola M. “Totsie” Dykema, Kenneth E. Shipman
Published every Thursday by Ogle County Newspapers, a division of Shaw Media • www.oglecountynews.com