Serving the Mt. Morris area since 1967
MT.Times MORRIS June 2, 2016 Volume 49, Number 14 - $1.00
Lady Cards Fall
State Medal
At the Band Shell
Stillman Valley’s Lady Cardinals fall 9-8 to Rockridge in supersectional action. B3
OHS’ 4x400 meter relay team finishes third at the state meet. B1
Lyle Grobe & the Rhythm Ramblers start off the Friday night concerts June 3. A2
Veterans honored at 150th Memorial Day
Teenage driver on probation By Vinde Wells vwells@oglecounty news.com
By Vinde Wells vwells@oglecountynews.com Vietnam veteran Doug Wean reminded his listeners Monday of the importance of honoring those who have given their lives fighting for their country. “Sacrifice means nothing without remembrance,” he told the large crowd gathered for the Memorial Day service on Kable Square in downtown Mt. Morris. “Historically this is an important day,” Wean said. “Since the day the British at Lexington killed our first American soldier in battle, Robert Monroe on April 19, 1775, to last month when Staff Sgt. Matthew McClintock was killed in action in Afghanistan, it is the day we remember over 1.2 million Americans who have sacrificed their lives for us in war from 1776 to 2016.” A hospital corpsman during the Vietnam War, Wean earned the Silver Star and Purple Heart for his service and is one of the most highly decorated enlisted men from that conflict. He went on the recount Mt. Morris’ 150 years of annually remembering the sacrifices of its soldiers beginning with the first decoration day celebration held in May of 1866. It all began, he said, with the community’s Civil War veterans founding their organization in March of 1865. They named it the Lt. James M. Smith Post 720 of the Grand Army of the Republic after the Mt. Morris soldier who had joined Company H
The Mt. Morris American Legion Honor Guard listens Monday as the names of deceased veterans are read at the Memorial Day service. Pictured left to right are: Dave Saunders, Stan Burke, Lenny Wells, Jim Francis, Lou “Skip” Finch, Otis Hudson, and Rebecca Lawson. Standing behind them is Steve Noonkesser. Photo by Vinde Wells
of the Rock River Rifles, part of the Illinois Regiment. Smith died on Jan. 1, 1863 leading a charge against a Confederate outpost. “Today in Mt. Morris and across America, we share in the 150th anniversary of Memorial Day,” Wean said. “They would have met here, on the old college campus; there would be that camaraderie that courses through combat veterans from every war. “There would be those memories of the comrades they lost: 204,074 in their war. And we remember the 53,513 killed in World War I, the 293,121 in World War II, the 33,939 in the Korean War, the 57,786 in the Vietnam War, and the 6,865 killed in action during the Persian Gulf War, the Iraq War, the Afghanistan War, and the Islamic State Campaign begun in 2015. “Today we think of our Civil War veterans here in Mt. Morris, who began this celebration of memories 150 years ago right here where
Doug Wean takes a wreath honoring veterans to the Memorial Fountain Monday during the Memorial Day service. Photo by Vinde Wells
you are sitting, where Presidents Abraham Lincoln and Ronald Reagan walked.” Following Wean’s speech, the crowd moved to the Memorial Fountain for the reading of the names
of deceased veterans from World War II to the present. The ceremony concluded with a 21-gun salute by the Mt. Morris American Legion Honor Guard and “Taps.”
The Stillman Valley teenager charged in a crash that killed two people last September pleaded guilty last week to two counts of reckless homicide. Ogle County State’s Attorney Eric Morrow said Alison Seiler, now 18, was sentenced May 26 to probation with numerous conditions until her 21st birthday in October of 2018. The investigation showed that Seiler, then 17, was speeding last Sept. 4 when she failed to stop for a stop sign at the intersection of Big Mound Road and Ill. 251 near Davis Junction. Andy Conderman, 64, Amboy, and Emily Fleming, 17, Stillman Valley, died in the ensuing crash. Seiler was charged as a juvenile in February with two counts of reckless homicide and two counts of aggravated reckless driving. Two counts were dismissed as part of a plea agreement. Morrow said the conditions of the probation sentence include counseling; 200 hours of community service work,at least 40 of which must be related to education against reckless or impaired driving; not operating a motor vehicle; attending college or seeking and maintaining employment, and apologies to the victims’ families. “I think it’s a fair resolution to the case,” Morrow said. “She has already apologized to the families. We consulted Turn to A3
Village board OKs cutting tree By Vinde Wells vwells@oglecounty news.com The Mt. Morris Village Board agreed May 24 to allow a property owner to remove a large soft maple tree because it is intertwined with electrical wires. The board approved an agreement with Tony Kurzac for a tree on the parkway, which is village property, in front of 102 W. Main St.
Kurzac recently purchased the property and is remodeling the house on it. He asked the village board May 10 to split the cost of removing the tree. However, trustee Tim Harvey said no money was budgeted for the project. Kurzac said a utility pole is next to the large tree, and he is concerned a storm could cause the tree to fall, taking the wires with it. The agreement approved
May 24 gives Kurzac permission to have the tree cut at his own cost with the village grinding the stump and planting two trees to replace it. Harvey said he is reluctant to remove a healthy tree, but shares Kurzac’s concern about the potential hazard. Trustee Jeff Pennington questioned if the village will be responsible if the utilities or something else is damaged while the tree is
being removed. Village attorney Rob LeSage said the agreement should include a clause indemnifying the village. In a related matter, village president Dan Elsasser said ComEd and the National Arbor Day Foundation will donate 100 trees of five different species to the village. The saplings will be two to four feet tall when they arrive.
Hydrant contest put on hold for now By Vinde Wells vwells@oglecounty news.com A contest to dress-up fire hydrants in time for the Let Freedom Ring Festival has been put on hold at least temporarily. The Mt. Morris Village The Mt. Morris Village Board gave property owner Tony Board postponed giving its Kurzac permission to remove this large soft maple tree approval to the project May in front of 102 W. Main St. because the utility pole and 24 for further study. electric wires are too close to it. Photo by Vinde Wells Diane Palmer, who is
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handling publicity for the contest, sent out a press release in early May announcing Paint-AHydrant. Individuals and organizations were invited to begin painting as soon as they register. The contest offers monetary prizes for the top three fire hydrants. However, trustee Jeff Pennington, who is also chairman of the Water and
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Sewer Committee, voiced safety concerns and asked the board to delay giving its approval. “Looking at the pictures, I think this is very innovative and creative,” he said. “However, this affects fire protection.” Mt. Morris’ approximately 200 fire hydrants are owned by the village. Pennington recommended painting the hydrants red
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again after the festival is over, and offered to pay for that paint from his department budget. “Some of the hydrants in town need painting anyway,” he said. “This would be a good time to do that.” Trustee Jon Murray voiced another concern. “There’s always a risk that someone won’t keep it
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