Library News

2 MT. MORRIS TIMES MT. MORRIS TIMES MT. MO RRIS BE AT oglecountynews.com ShawLocal.com OFFICE 113-115 Peoria Ave. Dixon, IL 61021 815-732-6166, ext. 2592 Mt. Morris Times / ShawLocal.com • Friday, Sep 23, 2022 SUBSCRIPTIONS $39 in Ogle County, and $52 outside Ogle County. Single-copy price is $1 To subscribe, make a payment or discuss your delivery, call 815-732-6166, ext. 2518, from 7:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. Monday-Friday or send an email to subscriptions@ oglecountynews.com. You also can subscribe online by going to oglecountynews.com and clicking on Subscribe. CLASSIFIED SALES classified@shawlocal.com HELP WANTED employment@shawlocal.com LEGAL NOTICES sauklegals@shawlocal.com Loaves & Fish Food Pantry announces fall schedule Loaves & Fish Food Pantry, 409 W. Brayton Road, Mt. Morris, is open every first and third Thursday from 4:30 to 7 p.m. and second and fourth Mondays from 2 to 4:30 p.m.

OBITUARIES

saukobits@shawlocal.com Deadline for obituaries is 2 p.m. Tuesday for Friday’s edition

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news@oglecountynews.com 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

Jennifer Heintzelman

815-632-2502 jheintzelman@shawmedia.com Mt. Morris Times, Ogle County News and oglecountynews.com are a division of Shaw Media. Ogle County Newspapers also prints the Mt. Morris Times, Oregon Republican Reporter and Polo’s Tri-County Press. 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. All rights reserved. Copyright 2022

The pantry also will be open Saturday, Sept. 24, and Saturday, Oct. 15, from 10:30 to 11:30 a.m.

For weekday distributions, neighbors can come into the pantry and select food or receive pre-packed boxes curbside.

Saturday distributions will be curbside, pre-packed boxes only. All distributions of food

BRIEF

include shelf-stable items, milk, eggs, frozen meat products and garden produce when available.

Anyone experiencing food insecurity is eligible to receive food. No proof of residency or income is ever required.

For more information, call or text 815-613-8776 and leave a message.

By MICHAEL CICCHETTI Mt. Morris Police Chief

The Mt. Morris Police Department would like to take this opportunity to inform citizens on how to prevent becoming the victim of a phone or internet scam. Our village, as well as surrounding jurisdictions, has seen an increase in reports of different types of scams.

Here are a few tips to remember: • Do not take calls from unknown numbers. • Never pay with a gift card or wiring money. (Remember, legitimate organizations do not ask for gift cards.) • Do not share any personal information. • Local, state and federal law enforcement agencies do not call to inform you of a

Chief offers phone, internet scam prevention tips warrant or for financial obligations. • Do not exit your residence to speak to a solicitor. If you question the legitimacy of a phone call, email, social media message or doorto-door solicitor, please call the Mt. Morris Police Department at 815-734-4132. If it is an emergency, please call 911. Best wishes and stay well.

Thank You

We would like to thank all of our wonderful patron who donated to the Summer Reading Program jar! Through your donations we raised $201.50 to help out with the programs we hosted throughout the summer! We LOVE our patrons!

The Giving Pump

Stop by Shell to help support Children’s Programming at the Mount Morris Library. Our local gas station has generously chosen to donate a portion of the proceeds from their Giving Pump toward our library. This pump will be wrapped and available through October, just look for the purple Giving Pump signs on pump 1 or 2! We would like to thank Shell for their support of community programming! Thank You!

Book Sale Starts Sept. 24

Our annual book sale will start on Sept. 24. All sales will be by donation. Nothing will be priced. We would like to thank the high school for sending students to help with the heavy lifting in preparation for the sale.

Story Time

Juicy, red, crunchy, sweet, green, delicious, and great! Join us as we enjoy some books about APPLES! We will read books and make a craft to take home this Wednesday, Sept. 28. Stop by for a bushel of fun! Stop by any Wednesday with your little ones to enjoy stories and a craft at the Mount Morris Library!

Cookbook Club

Join us as we reconvene The Cookbook Club! This is a delicious club where a different cookbook is chosen each month, you stop by to choose your recipe, then bring the dish to pass at our next meeting! This month we are using “Five Ingredient Recipes” by Philia Kelnhofer! Stop by to choose your recipe and join us on Tuesday, Oct. 4 at 6 p.m. at The Senior Center for an exciting meal!

Lego Club

Our next Lego night on Thursday, Oct. 20, from 6-6:45 p.m. 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 October book is “The Narrowboat Summer” by Anne Youngson. 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, Oct. 24 at 3:30 p.m.

Display Case Showings

Stop in to see our new display for September! Local artist, Rhonda Cheek, will showcase her personal art creations. They are beautiful pieces of artwork that will make you appreciate and contemplate the beauty! Many of Rhonda’s pieces are available for purchase! Stop by to admire these beautiful pieces of artwork! 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.

Explore More Illinois-Elgin Symphony Orchestra Offer

Explore More Illinois, RAILS’ online cultural and recreational pass program for Illinois libraries, welcomes its newest attraction, Elgin Symphony Orchestra in Elgin! Since its founding in 1950, the organization has developed a reputation for artistic excellence, innovative programming, and a deep commitment to the social advocacy and economic development of the diverse communi-

MT. MORRIS LIBRARY

ties that it serves.

Elgin Symphony Orchestra is offering 50% Off Red Section Seating (Up to Two Tickets). Explore More Illinois users can access and reserve passes from any of our attractions on their participating library’s website.

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

There will be no representative at the library for the months of October and November. Please call the Rock River center at 815-732-3252 to make an appointment during this time. Thank you

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.

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

Nearly 1,000 people flocked to the Nachusa Grasslands on Saturday for the return of Autumn on the Prairie.

“The day went very smoothly,” said Bill Kleiman, Nachusa Grasslands project director. “The weather was excellent – sunny and warm, but not hot.”

Nachusa Grasslands is a 4,000-acre preserve consisting of large remnant prairie, woodlands and wetlands being reconnected through habitat restoration, according to the conservancy’s website. It creates “one of the largest and most biologically diverse grasslands in Illinois.”

Autumn on the Prairie drew about 930 visitors and recruited 70 volunteers, Kleiman said.

“That’s pretty high for us,” he said. “We might have had 1,200 five years ago when we first got bison, but getting near 1,000 is a pretty solid number.”

Visitors filled five wagons on rides to look for bison, Kleiman said.

“Frequently, the bison were very close by and people were visibly excited to see them up close,” he said. “We also had hiking tours every half-hour and most of those were full all day long, too.”

There wasn’t really anything new at this year’s event, but they’re always making adjustments to improve Autumn on the Prairie based on feedback, Kleiman said.

Alex T. Paschal - apaschal@shawmedia.com ABOVE: Visitors check out the bison herd at the Nachusa Grasslands’ annual Autumn on the Prairie. LEFT: A male bison stands guard in the prairie during Autumn on the Prairie on Saturday. The event also offered hikes (below) and educational displays and wagon tours on the prairie to see the bison herd.

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20 E. Stephenson Street Historic Downtown Freeport 815-235-4911 • ritewayfreeport.com Monday through Friday 9am-5pm Saturday 9am-4pm

Visit 4 local businesses north of Mt. Morris

The third annual Back Roads Market is Saturday, Sept. 24, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Participants can spend the day traveling the countryside amid corn fields while making four stops along the way, each featuring a variety of items to purchase.

This year’s stops are: • Hough’s Maple Lane Farms, 3788 North Mount Morris Road, in Mt. Morr i s . S a t i s f y y o u r m a p l e c r a v i n g s , choosing from syrup, cinnamon rolls and candies. Also find some local honey, fresh varieties of garlic, popcorn, dog treats, mums, plants, gourds, pumpkins and old finds. • BerryView Orchard, 7504 West Midtown Road. A variety of juicy apples, aronia berries, a farm store filled with treats, locally made Simple Comforts Candles, Lynnie’s Kitchen goodies, Nelson Farms Meats and much more. Grab an aronia berry lemonade slushie and the best fresh cider doughnuts. Food concessions at this location will be gourmet grilled cheese served by Jen’s Artisan Breads. • “Funky Junk” and more, 6410 West Grove Road. Vendors here will have vintage goods, refurbished furniture, retro items, primitives, relics, collectibles, junky jack-o’-lanterns and more. Grab some yummy baked goods from Bobbi’s County Catering. Food concessions at this location will be served by Sunset Golf Club.

• Vintage Chicks and Feeds, 700 Illinois Route 72, Leaf River. Browse through this quaint store filled with vintage wares, soaps, lotion, local honey, antiques, barn goods and so much more.

There are no admission fees.

Earleen Hinton/Shaw Media BerryView Orchard and Hough’s Maple Lane Farms are two of the stops on the Back Roads Market scheduled for Saturday, Sept. 24.

Polo f ire distr ict receives $16,000 g rant f rom count y

The Polo Fire Protection District recently was awarded a grant through an Ogle County Community Grant program as part of the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, which made grant funds available to communities and entities who were adversely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

In its grant application, the Polo Fire Protection District indicated to the Ogle County Board its intent to purchase a Stryker power load system for its primary ambulance.

“Such a power load system allows the ambulance cot to be fully supported throughout the loading and unloading processes, rather than relying on the strength of EMS personnel alone. This boosts both EMS operator and patient safety. Additionally, the system helps decrease the need for extra manpower, which is often necessary when loading and unloading bariatric patients,” said Denise Clothier, a Polo EMT in a news release. “Overall, the addition of the power load system is expected to reduce caregiver injuries, improve job performance and satisfaction for the EMS staff and provide increased service to patients in Polo and the surrounding community.”

“Upon review of the application made by the Polo Fire Protection District, the Ogle County Board agreed to grant an award to Polo Fire to pay onehalf of the total cost of the Stryker power load system, which is $32,010,” Clothier said.

The Ogle County grant award provides the Polo Fire Protection District with the sum of $16,000 toward the purchase and installation of the Stryker system. The remaining one-half of the cost will be paid directly by the Polo Fire Protection District.

On Aug. 15, Ogle County Board member Susie Corbitt attended the Polo Fire Protection District monthly board meeting to present a check in the sum of $16,000 to the Polo Fire and Polo Ambulance District Board members.

B o a r d m em b e r s p r e s e n t w e r e Dustin Finkle, President, Charlie Clothier, Treasurer, John Hopkins, Secretary, Lon Feary, Trustee and Ken Yingling, Trustee. Also present were Chief Jim Ports, Paramedic April Rivers, Paramedic Sabrina Stock and EMT Denise Clothier.

Photo provided Pictured, left to right, are EMT Denise Clothier, Paramedic April Rivers, Polo Fire Board Secretary John Hopkins, Paramedic Sabrina Stock, Polo Fire Board Trustee Ken Yingling, Ogle County Board Member Susie Corbitt, Polo Fire Chief Jim Ports, Polo Fire Board President Dustin Finkle, Polo Fire Board Treasurer Charlie Clothier and Polo Fire Board Trustee Lon Feary.

ELECTION NEWS

Petitions for Polo’s April 4, 2023, consolidated election available now

Sydney Bartelt, Polo City Clerk, is notifying the citizens of Polo that petitions may be picked up and circulated for the April 4, 2023, consolidated election, starting Sept. 20, at City Hall, 115 S. Franklin Avenue.

Filing dates for candidates for the consolidated election are from Dec. 12 through Dec. 19. Offices to be elected are Alderman for Ward I, Ward II and Ward III, all for a four-year term, and Alderman Ward II for a two-year term.

Petitions may be picked up at City Hall, Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to noon and 1 to 5 p.m. For additional information, call 815- 946-3514.

Ogle petition packets also available

Ogle County Clerk Laura J. Cook announced that petition packets for the consolidated election on April 4, 2023, will be available Sept. 20 on the Ogle County website.

Petition packets may be accessed at www.oglecounty.org. See 2023 ELECTION, Page 7