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BE AT oglecountynews.com ShawLocal.com 2 MT. MORRIS TIMES MT. MORRIS TIMES 15-yea REGIONAL NEWS r-old Sterling boy w ith loaded g un MO RRIS OFFICE 1113-115 Peoria Ave. Dixon, IL 61021 arrested at Pet unia Festival MT. (815) 732-6166 Fax: (815) 28 ext. 2592 4-2078 BY KATHLEEN A. SCHULTZ Mt. Morris Times / oglecountynews.com • Friday, Jul 9, 2021 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday-Friday 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 815-632-2520 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 2 p.m. Tuesday for Friday’s edition SEND NEWS news@oglecountynews.com kschultz@shawmedia.com A 15-year-old Sterling boy was arrested Sunday night with a loaded handgun after police received “a credible threat of an ‘active shooter’ on the Peoria Avenue Bridge during the fireworks,” they said in a news release early Monday morning. T h e i n f o r m a t i o n w a s r e c e i v ed around 9 p.m. from a group of juveniles who said the boy “flashed” the revolver, Lt. Brad Sibley said. They gave a description of the teen, who was found a short time later. In the chaos of the initial investigation, there was some talk that there might be other armed subjects, Sibley said. Police cleared the bridge of all spectators “out of an abundance of caution,“ the release said. “We decided if we clear the bridge, they’re going to know that we know, so maybe that will deter them from doing anything,” Sibley said. ABOVE: from the DIxon as Squad cars park carnival Sunday officer search fo at across night in r In the end, though, no other sus- suspects. A 15-year-old Sterling Publisher pects were found, and police believe boy was arrested with a loaded Jennifer Heintzelman 815-632-2502 jheintzelman@shawmedia.com General Manager Earleen Hinton 815-632-2591 the boy was the only one involved, Sibley said. By law, he must have a hearing within 48 hours, and because July 5 was a holiday, Monday did not count. The Lee County Sheriff’s Departhandgun after police received credible threat of an ‘active shooter’ on the Peoria Avenue Bridge during the fireworks. LEFT: Upon hearing about the “a ehinton@shawmedia.com ment and the Illinois State Police were gun-related incident, Dixon artist called in to assist. and activist Mark Stach took to the News 815-632-2591 ehinton@shawmedia.com Advertising Sales A n y o n e w i t h i n f o r m a t i o n i s encouraged to call Dixon Police at 815288-4411 or Lee/Ogle Crimestoppers at 888-228-4488. Callers do not have to corner to call for peace. needs to stop,” he said, sick of this.” “This “I’m just so Patty Bridgeman leave their names and could be eligi815-632-2555 ble for a reward of up to $1,000. Alex T. Paschal/apaschal@shawmedia.com pbridgeman@ 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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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 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.
Alexa Zoellner
LOCAL NEWS
Let Freedom Ring Festival marks Independence Day
BY ALEXA ZOELLNER azoellner@shawmedia.com
Mt. Morris Village President Phil Labash has watched July 4 fireworks in Mt. Morris for more than 30 years.
This year was the best show yet, he said.
It’s a comment Let Freedom Ring Committee Chairperson Tiffany West said she’s been hearing a lot.
They hired a new company this year — Spectrum Pyrotechnics — and was told that, next year, there will be “more time to put on a better show,” West said.
“So I’m looking forward to next year’s already,” she said.
More than 800 people attended the festival’s kickoff on July 2, West said, noting that the great weather helped.
The 2020 and 2021 kings and queens were crowned June 30. Kelsi Morris and Brady Schwartz took the 2020 c r o w n s a n d K a t e l y n B o w e r s a n d Emmett Peterson claimed the 2021 royalty rights. Bostyn Millard was chosen Little Miss.
Friday events included the Jonas Fultz Memorial Car Cruise that turned into more of a car show, as participants wanted to stay and listen to the music, according to West. Other events were a craft fair, silent auction and bake sale, Encore! Mt. Morris’ art show and more.
Among Saturday’s offerings was the 19th Annual Lois Nelson Memorial Walk, kids’ water fights, a watermelon eating contest and a kiddie parade.
On Sunday, Mt. Morris firefighters served more than 1,000 people breakfast, West said. Melissa Nicholson hosted the patriotic program, and there was a “nice line-up” for ringing the official Illinois Freedom Bell—a Fourth of July ritual.
Earleen Hinton/Shaw Media ABOVE LEFT: Uncle Sam and a rider on a decorated horse were part of the Jordan Creek Farms entry at the 2021 Let Freedom Ring Parade on July 4. ABOVE RIGHT: Olivia Bethel, 3, of Mt. Morris, reacts as she and Fire Cadet Barret Gruenberg are sprayed at the Kids’ Water Fights.
See LFR FESTIVAL, Page 4
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POLO NEWS
Work starts on parks concession stand, restrooms
BY ALEXA ZOELLNER azoellner@shawmedia.com
Construction is underway on a new concession stand and restroom facility at Polo Community Park.
It’s an amenity park-goers have missed, said Elizabeth Grogan, Polo pool manager. The structure will serve not only pool-goers, but other park visitors, such as those attending softball and baseball games, she said.
“They (the public) are really excited to see that it’s getting built,” Grogan said. “I know I got a lot of questions in the beginning of the (pool) season asking when it was going to be built.”
The hope is that the new concession stand and restrooms will be open and functioning by early August, Polo Park Board President Larry Loomis said. Construction began two weeks ago, with Busser Builders, of Polo, at the helm, he said.
The old structure — which housed the park’s concession stand and bathroom — was removed in March 2020 after a 2019 Ogle County Health Department inspection found it did not meet health and safety standards, Loomis said.
Among the improvements called for are commercial refrigeration and preparation equipment, diaper-changing stations, electric hand dryers and soap dispensers.
Estimates for the total project cost initially were between $30,000 and $35,000. When Busser Builders took over, the planned structure was reduced in size by about one-third, thereby cutting some costs, Loomis said.
“We can save money (by building a smaller structure), and that’ll get us closer to what we have donated, but we’re not going to have enough,” Loomis said. He added that the new concession stand and bathrooms will still be larger than the old building.
By March 16, 2020, more than $22,800 was raised for the project, according to Polo City Council meeting minutes.
As of Friday, Loomis cited total donations at “slightly over $20,000” with a $1,000 donation having come in recently.
“People, they care about their community. They come forth with the donations,” Loomis said. “That’s what makes our community a nice place to live your life.”
Polo’s pool opened in 1968 and is one of few remaining outdoor public swimming pools in northern Illinois. It is the only one in Ogle County.
In 2019, the pool alone served 11,071 patrons, Loomis said. He wasn’t sure exactly how many people used the nearby shelter houses, but estimated an additional 3,000- to 4,000 people.
The concession stand will offer the expected food, such as candy, chips and drinks, Grogan said, add-
See WORK BEGINS, Page 5
Photo supplied Construction of the Polo Pool concession stand and bathroom building started on June 28 with excavation of the foundation followed by pouring of the cement. On July 1 cement cinder blocks were laid and mortared.
Earleen Hinton/Shaw Media ABOVE LEFT: Melissa Nicholson walks alongside Trinity Lutheran Church’s parade entry in the Let Freedom Ring Parade on July 4. ABOVE RIGHT: Gretchen Nelson of Mt. Morris pushes a stroller as Natalie and Lauren Drozd ride along during the 19th Annual Lois Nelson Memorial Walk in Mt. Morris on July 3. Following along are Austin and Benson Grugel of Stillman Valley.
• LFR FESTIVAL
Continued from Page 3
There were 35 parade entries , not as many as usual, but understandable given all the other area festivals having parades the same day, West said.
The royalty choice float winner was Jordan Creek Farms with their decorated horses, ponies, and riders, while the most patriotic entry went to Blackhawk Crossing 4-H Club. The best overall parade entry was Trinity Lutheran Church’s float.
“I thought the festival went really well,” Labash said. “It seemed like there was a crowd uptown (the whole time). And I appreciate the efforts in pulling all this together — especially with COVID, it was somewhat of a shortened timeline.”
Early on, committee members tried to plan for this year’s festival. “If we’re able to do it, we’re going to go ahead and try to do as much as we can,” West said.
As guidelines and regulations were put in place, organizers were able to plan a bit more, though the inability to do as many fundraisers during the preceding year did have some impact, West said.
“We have big plans to continue our fundraising, because we definitely liked our fireworks this year,” West said.
One part of the plan? Raffling off rights to “lighting” the first firework of 2022. That said, there’s no actual matches involved.
“They have a switchboard, so all you have to do is flip the switch,” West said.
ing that there was talk of including popcorn, hot dogs and nachos in the menu.
Grogan said she will be the one running the concession stand. Two high school girls originally were hired to work the stand, she said. But, because construction timing was uncertain, Grogan instead had them get certified as lifeguards.
“I have a lot of experience in managing food and stuff like that,” said Grogan, who ran a kitchen at Stronghold Camp Retreat Center in Oregon for three years. “This is definitely not like a camp where I fed over 50 campers every day.”
Similar updates also are needed at Millard Deuth Westside Park’s concession stand and restroom, Loomis said. That project also is expected to cost around $30,000 to $35,000.
“That’s still up in the air,” Loomis said. “We’re going to have to do something.”
Originally, the changes were required to be completed by 2021, but the city was able to get a variance to operate it this year, he said. The main problem there is the restroom, which requires a diaper-changing station and doors to open certain ways so as to be handicap accessible, among other things, Loomis explained.
“That may not sound like much, but it requires structural changes,” he said. “We’re going to have to add on (to the building).”
TO DONATE
Donations to the projects can be made to the City of Polo Park Fund and dropped off at Polo City Hall, Loomis said. The address is: 115 S. Franklin Ave., Polo, IL 61064.
“If there’s any more citizens out there that want to help us pay for the construction and remodeling, we appreciate any amount,” he said.
POLO CITY COUNCIL Inter im police chief appointed
BY ALEXA ZOELLNER azoellner@shawmedia.com
Polo Police Chief Tim Rockwood’s resignation was accepted by city council members Tuesday evening.
Rockwood stepped down for “personal reasons,” Mayor Doug Knapp said after Tuesday’s council meeting.
“We let him (Rockwood) on as police chief when he had only two years of time, so it was kind of asking a lot of him,” he said.
Sgt. Troy Randall was appointed as interim police chief, Knapp said.
“I can tell you that Officer Rockwood will be deeply missed,” Randall said Wednesday morning. “I’ve worked with him for the past three- or four years now. He’s done a lot of service.”
Randall said he has served as a police officer in various capacities since 1998, including as chief in Shannon and Hanover. He has been with the Polo Police Department for seven years, and is looking to make the move to chief “a permanent change,” he said.
According to the minutes of a June 28 Special City Council meeting, Rockwood expressed interest in working in the city’s Parks Department.
Council members “voiced their concerns about making a position for Tim Rockwood for him to stay with the City of Polo. They do not feel it is fair to push other employees out to create a position to keep Tim Rockwood,” the minutes read.
That stance remained solid on Tuesday, Knapp said.
“We are basically not wanting to open a position that would take jobs of others,” he said. “That’s our stance on that.”
Randall will be paid $29 an hour as interim police chief, according to the June 28 minutes.
Rockwood was unable to be reached for comment before deadline.
In other action, Polo Water and Sewer Department employee Brenden Kane’s resignation also was accepted.
“We thanked him for his time,” Knapp said. “He just got a job offer he couldn’t refuse.”
Justin Grobe, who currently serves as Ward 1 alderperson, has been approved to replace Kane, said Knapp.
Grobe, in the June 28 meeting, said he wants to step down as alderperson at the end of July and start working for the city Aug. 2.
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