Library News

2 MT. MORRIS TIMES MT. MORRIS TIMES Fidlar elected bishop MO RRIS BE AT oglecountynews.com ShawLocal.com OFFICE 113-115 Peoria Ave. of Nor thern Illinois Synod of ELCA MT. Dixon, IL 61021 A former interim pastor of St. James Lutheran Church in rural Forreston has Mt. Morris Times / ShawLocal.com • Friday, Jul 8, 2022 SUBSCRIPTIONS $39 in Ogle County, and $52 outside Ogle County. Singlecopy price is $1 To subscribe, make a payment or discuss your delivery, call 1-866-979-1053 Monday-Friday or send an e-mail to subscriptions@ oglecountynews.com. You also can subscribe online by going to oglecountynews.com and clicking on Subscribe. CLASSIFIED SALES 815-220-6942 apicco@shawmedia.com OBITUARIES 815-632-2534 phartman@shawmedia.com Deadline for obituaries is been elected bishop of the Northern Illinois Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). The Rev. Stacie Fidlar of Rock Island was elected June 18 to serve a six-year term as bishop during the synod assembly which met online June 5 and 12 and then in person at Augustana College in Rock Island on June 17-18. Fidlar was elected on the fifth ballot with 219 votes to 111 votes for the Rev. Dr. Janet Hunt, pastor of First Lutheran Church in DeKalb. A total of 166 votes was needed for election. She is the first woman bishop in the history of the synod. The bishop-elect has served as pastor of St. John’s Lutheran Church in Rock Island since 1999. She served as pastor of Our Savior’s Lutheran Church in Seneca from 19952 p.m. Tuesday for Friday’s 1999 and as interim pastor of St. James edition Lutheran Church in Forreston in 1995. Fidlar earned her bachelor’s degree in SEND NEWS religion with Asian studies concentration news@oglecountynews.com from Augustana College in Rock Island in 1991 and her master’s degree in divinity from Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago in 1995.

She completed the Shalem Institute Group Leaders Program in 2002 and participates in ongoing continuing education with foci on leadership, spirituality and foundation management.

Fidlar will take office Sept. 1 and her installation is scheduled for Oct. 8 at Trinity Lutheran Church in Rockford. Presiding Bishop Elizabeth Eaton will officiate the installation.

Retiring Bishop Jeffrey Clements has served as bishop of the Northern Illinois Synod since 2016.

Publisher Jennifer Heintzelman 815-632-2502 jheintzelman@shawmedia.com

General Manager Earleen Hinton 815-632-2591 ehinton@shawmedia.com

News Alexa Zoellner 815-632-2590 azoellner@shawmedia.com

Advertising Sales Alexandria Shields 815-632-2502 ashields@shawmedia.com

Mt. Morris Times, Ogle County News and oglecountynews.com are a division of Shaw Media. Ogle County Newspapers also prints the Mt. MorrisTimes , OregonRepublicanReporter, and Polo’s Tri-CountyPress .

The MT. MORRIS TIMES (USPS No. 365-440) is published weekly by B.F. Shaw Printing Co., Shaw Media. Periodical postage paid at Mt. Morris, Illinois. POSTMASTER Send address changes to MT. MORRIS TIMES, P.O. Box 8, Oregon, IL 61061. Phone 815-732-6166, ext. 2516.

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MT. MORRIS LIBRARY

Summer Reading Program

This week will be ‘Bee’ week! We start off Monday with a special program on Bees! We will have a take-n-make bee craft and a story time on Wednesday! Stop by and join the ‘BEE’tastic fun! Let’s keep the summer reading going by “Reading Beyond the Beaten Path” at your local library! Don’t forget to keep reading and reach those goals!

Special Program: Give Bees a Chance!

Monday July 11, 11 a.m.

Buzz in Monday, July 11 at 11am to hear all about Bees! Ms. Melinda from the University of Illinois Extension will be bringing in her awesome stories, crafts, and snacks to share while teaching us the importance of bees! This program is geared toward any elementary age student.

Lego Club!

Lego night on Thursday, July 15, from 6-6:45 pm. Bring a friend and build some fun with Lego bricks! All Children and parents are invited. Children under 8 need to bring a parent with them.

Adult Book Club

The July book is The Paris Library by Janet Skeslien Charles. Everyone is welcome to join this book club group! Copies of the book are available at the library. This group will meet in-person at the library on Monday, July 25 at 3:30 p.m.

Display Case Showings

Stop in to see our new display for July! Disney is

Photo provided by Jeff Schlesinger and Sarah Wilson The Rev. Stacie Fidlar of Rock Island was elected June 18 to serve a six-year term.

Sarah Reckmeyer to be guest conductor for Kable Band Concert on July 15

The guest conductor for the Kable Band Concert Band on July 13 will be Sarah Reckmeyer.

Reckmeyer grew up in Mt. Morris and is a graduate of Mt. Morris High School. After graduating from Illinois State University she went on to be the music educator and band director of Ottawa High School until her recent retirement.

Her parents are Carol Reckmeyer and the late Warren Reckmeyer.

The July 15 concert lineup includes a Dixieland band number, a Duke Ellington piece, marches and a specially commissioned piece, “Civil War Roundtable.”

Elvis fans won’t want to miss a medley of Elvis tunes commemorating 45 years since Elvis’ death.

The concert will begin at 7:30 p.m. at the Warren Reckmeyer Bandshell in downtown Mt. Morris.

“Benches are available or bring your lawn chair,” said Sylvia Saunders, band member.

the theme with memorabilia on display from a local patron, Liz Garncarz! Check out her collection of all things Disney and Disney World! “See You Real Soon!” We are always looking for collectors or artists who are willing to share their treasures in our display cases. If you are interested, please call, 815-734-4927.

Newspapers Available

We will now be receiving the Dixon Telegraph daily! We receive the Ogle County Life, Sauk Valley, and Mt. Morris Times. If you want to keep up with the local news-stop on by!

Explore More Illinois

Explore More Illinois is a cultural pass program that provides discounts at museums, visual and performing arts centers, park districts, and more around the state. Use Explore More Illinois to find fun and educational places to go on a free afternoon or for a little getaway. Explore More Illinois is easy to use with your library card. Visit the library’s website to browse attractions. You can find the information on our website, www. mtmorris-il.org under the resources page.

Rock River Center

The Rock River Center has a representative in our library the second Thursday of every month. Services provided by Rock River Center are designed to enable older and disabled persons to remain independent, thereby avoiding costly long-term care. No appointment necessary but, if you want to make an appointment with the Rock River Center you may call 815-732-3252.

Adult Programming

We are trying to get back into the swing of offering monthly programs for adults. We would love to hear from you. Do evenings or weekends work better? Do you have any program ideas? Do you have a program you would like to share? Contact Mary Cheatwood at the library through email at mmlib@mtmorris-il.org or call 815-7344927.

Curbside Service is available

We want to remind everyone that you still have the option of having your materials delivered to your vehicle. If you have holds waiting for you, call us to tell us you are on your way, and we will bring them out to your vehicle when you arrive. Call us if you need more information.

Additional Services Offered

We make copies (25¢ per black and white page). We fax ($2 for the first page and 50¢ each additional page). We can scan a document and send it to email ($2 per document). You can use a computer without a library card for $1. Resume software is available on our computers. Come visit us and let us help you!

By ALEXA ZOELLNER azoellner@shawmedia.com

Two mature trees on the north side of the old Ogle County Courthouse campus were removed Tuesday for safety reasons, according to a county official.

“They are a liability. They’re dying,” Ogle County Board Vice Chairperson Patrica Nordman said at the June 21 county board meeting. “Part of the stewardship that we’re going to be building upon, we’ll be trying to look at Illinois trees that are native to Illinois. We’ll be looking at putting new trees up.

“They also will be doing trimming of the canopies because we have quite a few dead areas up there also,” she added. “So just an FYI. We’re not trying to kill the trees. We just want to maintain safety.”

A crew from Timberman Tree Service in Rochelle cut down the trees Tuesday morning and ground their stumps.

Nordman posted this news release Tuesday:

Ogle County Courthouse Lawn Tree Forestry, Oregon

The beautiful courthouse located in Oregon, IL, needs attention on the north side. The two large trees located either side of the Veteran’s Memorial are very old. Those trees have served the county well but need to be removed for safety. The trees will be removed July 5, as well as additional canopy work will be done.

This fall watch for reforestation and planting of the Illinois State Tree the White Oak.

Thank you for understanding and patience in advance.

Earleen Hinton/Shaw Media Two large mature trees, located on the north side of the Ogle County Courthouse Square, were cut down Tuesday. A county official said the trees needed to be removed for safety reasons.

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L et Freedom Ring marks 59 years of family f un

By ALEXA ZOELLNER azoellner@shawmedia.com

Let Freedom Ring’s 59th year went well, despite a monsoon-like downpour on Ronald Reagan’s reappearance.

“It was a great turnout most of the weekend,” LFR Committee Chairperson Tiffany West said.

L e t F r e e d o m R i n g i s M t . M o r r i s ’ annual Independence Day festival. This year’s event took place Wednesday, June 29, and Friday through Monday, July 1-4.

The Little Miss and Mister Firecracker contest drew six entrants, with the winners declared on June 29. John Murphy, 4, was crowned Little Mister, and Ahniya Wheeler, 5, earned the title of Little Miss.

More than 1,000 people attended the Friday night concert, West said. Saturday was a bit slower, but still good, she said.

Friday was the night LFR committee members were selling root beer floats, which ended up presenting an interesting challenge. Committee members ran out of root beer and ice cream a few times, forcing them to go on grocery runs.

“We served about 200 root beer floats that night,” West said.

Sunday drew the largest ever number of entries – 35 children – to the Kiddie Parade, and although a heavy rain on Monday chased away a few people following the Patriotic Program, they were able to start the Grand Parade only a few minutes late, she said.

“It looked like it was a great turnout for the Patriotic Program,” West said. “The weather, I believe, did impact the bell ringing right after the Patriotic Program.” (Story on page 5)

The downpour cleared up in time for organizers to make the call around 1:30 p.m. that the parade would start just after 2 p.m., she said.

“Once we made that call, everybody was great and joined in and got ready to do their part in the parade,” West said. “It worked out great. I do feel that we didn’t have as many turn out for the parade because of the weather. Normally, the streets are lined, and for the most part it was, but there were patches here and there where there weren’t people.”

That rain shower was the biggest challenge, she said.

On Monday evening, Jeff Warren was selected as the 50/50 raffle winner, and Dawn Hale’s ticket was picked, signaling she would be the one to set off the fireworks show.

July 4, 2023, lands on a Tuesday, which will present its own challenges, West said.

Still, she’s looking forward to it.

“I always look forward to the parade and fireworks,” West said. “Just everybody getting together and having a good time.”

Earleen Hinton/Shaw Media ABOVE: 2021 Let Freedom Ring Queen Katelyn Bowers rides with this year’s Little Miss and Mister ahead of the Oregon school band during the Let Freedom Ring Grand Parade in Mt. Morris on July 4. LOWER LEFT: The Let Freedom Ring parade marshal was Carol Reckmeyer. She was driven by Jan Dietrich. LOWER RIGHT: The Bramm family of Mt. Morris was at full attention as they watched the Let Freedom Ring Grand Parade on July 4 in Mt. Morris. Pictured are Nate, Ellen, Charlotte, 2, Annabelle, 5, and Bramm, their golden doodle.

Alexa Zoellner/Shaw Media ABOVE LEFT: Immanuel Arellano, 15, of Mt. Morris, competes in the Let Freedom Ring watermelon eating contest July 2 in Mt. Morris. Immanuel won the teen division. ABOVE RIGHT: Grey O’Louke, 7, of Oregon, dances to The StingRays musical performance on the Mt. Morris campus July 1. The event was part of the village’s annual Let Freedom Ring festival.