Serving Ogle County since 1851
OREGON Republican Reporter
August 3, 2017 Volume 167, Number 35 - $1.00
Tumbling Along
It’s Fair Time!
Triathlons
A Mt. Morris youth has success in his newfound sport — tumbling. B1
The Ogle Fair starts this week with plenty of family fun. A2
The weather was perfect for the Oregon Park District’s triathlons on July 29. B1
VOP, Center re-open after flash flood
911 Hero
Five-year-old recognized for helping mom
By Vinde Wells vwells@oglecounty news.com
By Zach Arbogast zarbogast@oglecounty news.com A five-year-old honoree at Oregon’s National Night Out proves that heroes can come in any size. On June 28 at approximately 5:44 p.m., one day before her fifth birthday, little Jaylee Armstrong successfully got emergency responders to her mother in need. Jaylee was at home in Adeline with her siblings, two-year-old Ashton and three-month-old Brantley, when mother Christina O’Brien suffered a seizure and fell unconscious. Quick to act, Jaylee knew just what to do: she called 911, reaching telecommunicator Jennifer Hoffman, who talked Jaylee through giving her the color of the house and finding the home address on a piece of mail. “She did great!” said Hoffman. “Honestly, the biggest impression she left on me was how ‘momma proud’ I was; I just wanted to find her and take her out for ice cream!” When responders arrived, O’Brien was conscious again, and Jaylee was feeding Brantley. For her quick response and calm handling of the situation, Jaylee was recognized as an official 911 hero. Turn to B2
Ogle County 911 Board Chairman Richard Mott and 911 Coordinator Sandy Beitel give Jaylee Armstrong a certificate and medal for being named a 911 Hero during National Night Out on Tuesday. Photo by Earleen Hinton
Nash Halfman, age 2, of Oregon, checks out the inside of the Ogle County Sheriff Department’s Hummer under the watchful eye of his dad, Michael, an Ogle County deputy, during National Night Out. Photo by Earleen Hinton
Community-minded volunteers are making all the difference to a local agency that is trying to return to normal after major flooding almost two weeks ago. “I really appreciate the impact the volunteers and community have made,” Brion Brooks, executive director of the Village of Progress in Oregon, said on Tuesday. “Without them it would take us a lot longer to get this done.” The “this” he was referring to is tearing out drywall, insulation, and carpets, checking over equipment, and cleaning, cleaning, cleaning. A foot of water was inside the facility that provides services and programs for developmentally disabled adults after 6-8 inches of rain fell in a few hours July 2122. Brooks said three-fourths of the 28,000 square-foot building just off Pines Road was damaged. The water ruined not only drywall and carpets, but also furniture, equipment, and the products consumers make for various contractors. Only two small portions of the building were spared the worst of it, and those are already being utilized to get back up and running, he said. As of Monday, a workshop re-opened for production and a few consumers returned to work in one of the areas that
wasn’t badly flooded. “All the floors have been cleaned, the carpet has been torn out, and the equipment has been taken out to be sanitized,” Brooks said. “We hope within a few days time we can be back in operations and fulfilling our mission.” During the last week, VOP staff members have gone to Oregon’s two residential facilities to provide services for consumers there. “We went to them instead of them coming to us,” Brooks said. Getting completely back to normal will take time, however. The kitchen had to be gutted and will be totally remodeled. The offices were also on the casualty list. “It may be a month until we are back in our administrative offices,” Brooks said. VOP carries flood insurance, and Brooks said a portion of the loss will be covered. Two blocks to the east, residents of the Oregon Living & Rehabilitation Center, 811 S. 10th St., were able to return July 26 after the flooding forced them to evacuate four days earlier. “Our residents and staff were very happy to be back home,” said Jen Stark, Director of Communications for Momentum Healthcare, which owns the facility. “It was only from Saturday until Wednesday, but it felt like forever for our residents.” With the water from the Turn to A2
Projects diverse, ingenious at fair Junked items are turned into artworks By Vinde Wells vwells@oglecounty news.com Garage sales and scrap piles proved to be a treasure trove for an Oregon teen creating a project for the Junior Open Show at the Ogle County Fair. Johnathan Prose, 18, was all checked in at the exhibit building at the fairgrounds Saturday, waiting for a judge to take a look at his hawk sculpture made from discarded metal tools, parts, and pieces. The hawk, with its wings spread wide, has a propane tank for a body and the cap from an oxygen tank for a head. The wings are hand saw
blades, with pieces of metal shelf dividers and lawn mower blades for feathers. The exhaust pipe legs end in talons made from garden cultivators. Leaf rakes form the tail feathers, and its eyes are parts of a small wrench. “I got the materials at garage sales and scrap piles at my grandma’s house,” he said. “I usually start with an idea and then I dig through the scrap and find the parts I want to use.” Prose said he had already made owls and turtles, and when he graduated from Oregon High School this year he decided to create the Hawk mascot. “I wanted to make something that represented that,” said Prose, who plans to attend Kishwaukee College, Malta, this fall to study engineering. The hawk took about 10 Johnathan Prose, Oregon, poses with the metal hawk he made and entered in the junior show at the Ogle County Turn to A10 Fair on Saturday. Photo by Earleen Hinton
In This Week’s Edition...
Church News, A5 Classifieds, B6-B10 Entertainment, A6 Fines, B4 Library News, A3
Marriage Licenses, A4 Oregon Police,B3 Public Voice, A7 Property Transfers, B4
Sheriff’s Arrests, B3 Social News, A4 Sports, B1, B2 State’s Attorney, B4
Death, B5 Robert C. Schmidt
Published every Thursday by Ogle County Newspapers, a division of Shaw Media • www.oglecountynews.com