SPECIAL EVENT
FORRESTON BEAT
oglecountynews.com ShawLocal.com
Forreston Journal / oglecountynews.com • Friday, Jul 9, 2021
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Oregon Republican Reporter, and Polo’s Tri-County Press.
The FORRESTON JOURNAL (USPS No. 205-520) is published weekly by B.F. Shaw Printing Co., Shaw Media. Periodical postage paid at Forreston, Illinois. POSTMASTER Send address changes to FORRESTON JOURNAL, P.O. Box 237, Forreston, IL 61030. Phone 815-732-6166, ext. 2516. All rights reserved. Copyright 2021
German Valley Days return Saturday, July 17
German Valley Days returns this month with “A Day In The Valley”, set for Saturday, July 17 in at Ben Miller Park in German Valley. Festivities will begin at 6:30 a.m. with a pancake breakfast and 5K & Kids Fun Run at 8 a.m. Activities for youngsters will include a pig scramble, coloring contest, kiddie tractor pull, petting zoo, Nerf Blaster Wars, and games. Also planned are a tractor show, Art In the Park, silent auction, and Around the Park Basketball Shooting Contest. The German Valley Historical Museum will be open 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. and 3 p.m. – 6 p.m. The parade will step off at 2 p.m. followed by a bags tournament, entertainment by Grass Attack Bluegrass Band( 3-5 p.m.), a pork chop barbecue set to begin at 3:30 p.m., the Little Miss & Mister Pageant (5:30 - 6:30 p.m.), a Forreston High School Variety Show 7-8:30 p.m., and raffle winners announced at 8:30 p.m. The day will conclude with fireworks over Lake Baalton. Food will be available including a Summer Rec Ice Cream Booth. Activities will take place in the Ben Miller Park or along Church Street. For information, go to www.germanvalleydays.com or call 815 362-3671. Schedule of Events Tentative Schedule - exact times have not been determined 6:30-10 a.m. Pancake Breakfast (at Fire Station, sponsored by Silver Creek Reformed Church ACTS Ministries)
8 a.m. Run The Valley 5K & Kids’ Fun Run (Entry fee $20/$25, Ben Miller Park, registration 7-7:45) 9 a.m. Antique Tractor Show (until parade start) - Sponsored by German Valley Golden Eagles 4-H Club 9 a.m. Coloring Contest (until 4 p.m., winners announced 6-6:30 p.m. on stage) 9:30 a.m. Pig Scramble ($5 entry fee/ child) 10 a.m. - 2 p.m. and 3-6 p.m. German Valley Historical Society Museum open 10:30 a.m. Kiddie Tractor Pull , Petting Zoo 11 a.m. Around the World Basketball Contest (Ben Miller Park, entry fee $10/ team of three) 12 p.m. Antique Tractor Games Contest, Art In The Park (for all ages, $5 entry, limited to 40 people, Ben Miller Park shelter house) 2 p.m. Parade 3 p.m. Nerf Blaster Wars on the ball diamond 3 p.m. Cornhole Bag Toss ($20 entry fee/ team of two) - Sponsored by Alcohol Party Catering, Inc, German Valley 3 p.m. Grass Attack (on stage, Ben Miller Park) 3 p.m. Kids’ Games at Park 3:30-7:30 p.m. Pork Chop Dinner, German Valley Fire Department Station 5:30 p.m. German Valley Little Miss/Mister Contest (on stage, Ben Miller Park) 7 p.m. Forreston High School Variety Show (on stage, Ben Miller Park) 8:30 p.m. Raffle winners announced (on stage, Ben Miller Park) 9:15 p.m. Fireworks over Lake Baalton (Rain date Sunday July 18)
LOCAL NEWS
Logan Miller, 16, is pictured with his Boy Scout Eagle Project, a conveyor system to help move food into the German Valley Food Pantry.
Eagle Scout helps pantry
Logan Miller’s Eagle Scout Project was adapting a conveyor system to help move food into the German Valley Food Pantry on days that shipments are received and to assist pantry patrons safely navigate the stairway out of the building with their items. Logan, 16, has been active in Scouting since he was a third grader. He is a member of Forreston Boy Scout Troop #781. He is the son of Dan & Lisa Miller of German Valley. The German Valley Food Pantry serves the German Valley/Ridott Fire Protection District.
BUSINESS NEWS Alexa Zoellner joins newspaper staff
Alexa Zoellner has joined the staff of Ogle County Newspapers, a division of Shaw Media. Zoellner, 30, is a native of Cary, Illinois, but is looking forward to learning more about Ogle County and its residents as she becomes one of them. She is familiar with the Rock River, which runs through Fort Atkinson, Wisconsin, where she previously worked at the Daily Jefferson County Union as a staff reporter. Her bylines also can be found in the Traverse City Record-Eagle, based in Traverse City, Michigan. One of her Daily Union articles, “Good Samaritan risks high waters to save drowning goat”, won an honorable mention in Division B in the 2018
Wisconsin Newspaper Association Better Newspaper Contest. The story was about a goat that fell off a small island in the Rock River and had to be rescued. The accompanying video Zoellner shot of the rescue Alexa Zoellner has, to date, garnered more than 19,000 views on the Daily Union’s Facebook page. Zoellner also won first place for investigative reporting, Division C, in the 2016 WNA Better Newspaper Contest for her series, “Heroin: Consuming Resources.” The series examined how the heroin epidemic was impacting the budgets
and resources of some of Jefferson County’s largest departments. She earned a bachelor’s degree in journalism from Western Illinois University, graduating at the top of her class and with honors. Zoellner has minors in photographic media and engineering technology. “We welcome Alexa to our Shaw Media team and look forward to her enthusiasm and coverage-style for all of our publications,” said General Manager Earleen Hinton. Zoellner replaces Jeff Helfrich who took a position in May with the Rochelle News Leader. She can be reached at 815-632-2590 or by email: azoellner@shawmedia.com. Her Twitter and Facebook handles are @alexazoellner91.
