Serving the Mt. Morris area since 1967
MT.Times MORRIS July 10, 2014 Volume 47, Number 19 - $1.00
Opening Soon
Trail Days
At the Band Shell
Sinnissippi Centers will move to a brand new Oregon building later this month. B4
The fifth and final Oregon Trail Days will be held July 19-20. A9
Jim Kanas, Randy Sabien & Co. perform July 11. The Kable Concert Band takes the stage July 18.
Crowds filled LFR festival By Vinde Wells Editor
A larger than normal crowd turned out to enjoy Mt. Morris’ Let Freedom Ring festival in perfect summer weather. “We did really well. The weather was beautiful, and all the events were well-attended,� said LFR Committee Chairman Mark Lewis. After a soggy, cold start July 2 for the annual queen coronation and Little Miss Firecracker pageant, the skies cleared and the mercury soared to a comfy 80 daytime degrees for the rest of the fourday festival. Lewis said Monday that an exact count was not yet available, but estimated that 5,000 to 8,000 people attended
the event. “The fireworks and parade as always were the biggest draws,� he said. He said the crowds at both events appeared to be bigger than usual, and the collections taken at the fireworks were larger than last year’s. He praised the group of dedicated volunteers who make up the LFR Committee and others who helped out throughout the festival. “Without them and the community we couldn’t do this,� Lewis said. “This is a really great community.� He said planning has already begun for the 2015 festival, and he urged the community to get involved. “The more volunteers we have the more we can do,� he said.
Soggy night did not deter the fun Vandesand was crowed queen By Vinde Wells Editor Mother Nature didn’t exactly cooperate July 2 for the Let Freedom Ring festival’s opening activities. “We were all soaked but we had fun. We made the best of it,� said 2014 LFR Queen Kristin Vandesand, who was crowned during a steady rain. With temperatures in the low 60s and cloudy skies, the seven contestants in the Little Miss Firecracker Contest wore jackets over their fancy red, white and blue dresses. Despite the damp chill, they were high spirits as they came on stage to be introduced, answer questions, and show off their talents. Last year’s Little Miss Firecracker Alexa Ellison was all smiles and hugs as she crowned her twin sister MiKaila as the contest winner. First runner-up was Peyton
LFR Queen Kristin Vandesand
“We were all soaked but we had fun—� Kristin Vandesand LFR Queen Boyd. A mist had begun to fall just as the Let Freedom Ring Queen pageant got off to a start. By the time the girls, all dressed in formals, were being escorted to the band shell stage it had turned into a drizzle and then downright steady rain. The weather cut short the traditional queen pageant with its candidate interviews and impromptu questions. Local radio personality Sam Ramirez announced the girls as they walked to the stage, and moved right to the awards as soon as all eight were seated. “The rain really speeded up the coronation,� said Miranda Burke, one of the pageant coordinators. “The girls were wet and cold.� Vandesand was crowned Mt. Morris’ 60th Fourth of July Queen, with Samantha Miller chosen as LFR Princess. Members of the Royal Court were Abigail Baker, Beth Obendorf, Kelsey Pudlas, Sarah Scott, Soledad Silva, and Lexie Walker. Miller was the essay contest winner; the cutest baby contest was won by Obendorf, and Pudlas was the talent winner. The girls stepped off the stage for photos in a cold rain as their high heels sank into the soggy lawn. But they never stopped smiling. “We had a really great group of girls and they did a great job,� Burke said. All eight will be seniors at Oregon High School this fall.
In This Week’s Edition...
Repair team is ready Black Hawk needs fixing By Vinde Wells Editor Fundraising continues while the team of experts ready to repair the wellknown Black Hawk statue waits for the go-ahead from two state agencies. Frank Rausa, Sterling, who is spear-heading the effort to repair the 103-yearold concrete statue, said the project team has not yet received approval of a plan submitted to the Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) and Illinois Historic Preservation Agency (IHPA). “We haven’t heard from the state yet. They’re reviewing it [the plan],� Rausa said Monday. He said the IDNR’s approval is required because the statue, which overlooks the Rock River from a high Four-year-old Hayden Bartimus, Mt. Morris, was decked out in her Fourth of July bluff at Lowden State Park, is colors as she watched the parade at the Let Freedom Ring festival on July 4 with her mom Staci. Photo by Earleen Hinton
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Work required to maintain freedom By Chris Johnson Reporter America’s birthday was celebrated July 4 during a patriotic program on the historic Mt. Morris downtown campus. Retired Colonel Chris Miller, U.S. Army, who has friends and family in Mt. Morris, was the guest speaker for the event. “Usually at these event, the protocol is to say nice things about the dignitaries, but I am going to break protocol today,� said Miller. “Today is not about very important people, elected officials and dignitaries.� He said the day is about the American people. “The farmer, mechanic, truck drivers, waiters, police, fireman, soldiers, and troops,� he said. “It is about all of us —all of you that make this country work.� He said Mt. Morris is home of the Illinois Freedom Bell and that by ringing the bell at 1 p.m. the community will honor the words of a founding father, John Adams. “Yesterday I flew into Chicago from the desert Southwest,� said Miller. “From my 33,000 foot vantage point I was able to surveyed the fertile vastness of America’s heartland. This is the heartland, the corn belt, the breadbasket.� Seeing the country from the air gave Miller time to think and reflect. “It dawned on me that each field took a tremendous
Church News, A5 Classifieds, B7-B12 Entertainment, A6 Fines, B3
Retired Colonel Chris Miller, U.S. Army talks about freedom during the annual Patriotic Program July 4 in Mt. Morris. Photo by Chris Johnson
amount of work to feed or nation and the world,� he said.�You can’t just throw down some seeds and expect a bumper crop.� Miller went on to explain how farming and independence can be related. “To me there is a direct correlation between farming and American independence,� he said. “Two-hundredthirty-eight years ago, 56 of our forefathers planted the seeds of liberty by signing the declaration of independence. The signing was only the seed. From that day forward
Library News, A3 Marriage Licenses, A4 Oregon Police, B4 Property Transfers, B5
it was up to us to work the fields of freedom.� The community can work to continue this document, Miller said. “My first point is this. Like a field of corn that must be renewed, our freedoms must be renewed and cared for,� said Miller. “Vote, be involved in your community, and be aware. When you say those politicians in Ogle County, Washington D.C., remember the words of Lincoln and Jefferson that this is a government ‘of the people, by the people, and for
Sheriff’s Arrests, B4 Social News, A4 State’s Attorney, B5 Zoning Permits, B6
the people.’ And guess what, you are the people,� His second point was to seek knowledge and truth. “Ask questions of your elected officials and hold them accountable,� Miller said. “If they won’t listen, make them listen with your vote.� Anyone can make a difference in the community and the world, he said. “A few years back a neighbor of yours down in Dixon helped end the Cold Turn to A2
Deaths, B2 Lois A. I. Bishop, Donald L. Conklin, Jack E. Dollmeyer, Forrest M. Harris, Douglas A. Pettigrew, Micheal E. Zell
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