(618) Hometown Magazine June 2020

(618) MAGAZINE HOMETOWN JUNE 2020

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from the

EDITOR

EDITOR Andrea Howe ahowe@mtcarmelregister.com

CREATIVE DIRECTOR Maegan Saalwaechter

It’s June — and June 14 is Flag Day. I don’t think there’s a more beautiful sight than Edwards County VFW Post 8222’s Avenue of Flags at the courthouse square in Albion. A glimpse of the flags on the south lawn is our cover photo for this issue of 618 Hometown Magazine.

You won’t see the display in June. The Avenue of Flags goes up (weather permitting) on the Saturday before Memorial Day and the Saturday before Veterans Day. It’s a lot of work, and I’ve witnessed the community materialize out of nowhere to help VFW members with the display.

There’s a lot of weather watching involved in the process. If rain’s in the forecast, everyone hurries to get them safely stored away before the rain hits.

My husband, one of the members of Post 8222 who unfurls, then respectfully stores those flags away twice a year, tells me 379 flags are a part of the display. While the view from afar is breathtaking, a walk along the avenue of flags is more poignant to me. Each flagpole is labeled with the name of a veteran. Those flags are the burial flags presented to families of deceased veterans. Families donate the flags and the poles to the organization.

When I see that beautiful display, I get a mental image of 379 veterans (including two gener-

ations of my husband’s family) standing in the place where their flag is displayed. That really takes my breath away.

It’s worth your time to take a drive to Albion to view and walk along the avenue next Veterans Day or Memorial Day. Inside this issue, Evan Merrill tells the story of a Mount Carmel college student paying for school with her summer Sno Shack business, and Mona Warrick is back with a story about Grayville native jewelry artist Lisa Glover Yates. I enjoyed learning about Mark Rogers, teacher and mentor to young musicians, and share that story with you. Erin Zinzilieta-Pennington’s got a layer cake lesson for you, too!

We’re thrilled to be able to share these stories with you, and we hope you’ll support the businesses which support this magazine in advertising. Please support them!

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OU R Y E S I T VER D ION T A I D O E T T T NEX WAN E H T SH? N A I B S A S E W BUSIN ALONG THE OF LIFE

CA

Y A D O T S U LL

CONTRIBUTORS Evan Merrill Mona Warrick Erin Zinzilieta-Pennington

TO ADVERTISE Courtney Shuttle courtney@pdclarion.com 812-220-4861

CONNECT WITH US Find us on Facebook @618HometownMagazine P.O. Box 550 Mt. Carmel IL 62863 618-263-1005

Andrea Howe Editor

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mentoring

MUSICIANS

It’s about the music, yes.

But mainly, it’s about mentoring young people through music.

Mark and LeAnn Rogers, Carmi’s 2019 Citizens of the Year, foster that confidence through a guitar pick and microphone for dozens of young musicians in the area.

Their students, “The Appetizers,” perform at community functions across the region when they’re not taking lessons and rehearsing in the Rogers’ garage-turned-music room.

“The Appetizers” and the husband-wife duo “Order Up” are on hiatus until COVID-19 pandemic precautions are lifted, but they’re ready to start pickin’ and singin’ again.

Mark has taught students for about eight years, offering lessons four nights a week in the family garage studio. Amid COVID-19 restrictions, those lessons are on hold, but he’s planning on spending more time teaching. “I really miss ‘em,” he said. He recently lost his oilfield job, and with an uncertain job market in his 60s, he hopes to take on more students as soon as he can.

Before he taught students, he taught himself. His love of music goes back to a picture of a guitar in the Sears catalog. “I started playing in third grade,” he said. “I saw a guitar in the Sears catalog that I really wanted and Mom told me that if I got my grades up to a C average, I could have it.

“That one time I did!” he laughed. “I’ve been playing ever since.”

He started a rock band in sixth grade, but members eventually went their separate ways. He moved to Carmi during his freshman year in high school, then went to college, and played on his own.

Rogers played professionally with country band in Missouri, and Kansas, and returned to Carmi at the request of old friend Tony Gott. “He put Leftovers together,” he said. “I was in Kansas and he called when the band for Corn Day, which was one of his biggest nights of the year, fell apart.”

“I’m kind of retired from that,” he said of classic rock band gigs. “Now I’m devoting time to teaching and kind of paying it back. Music provided a lot of good things for us,” he said. “We got to meet a lot of neat people

Garage band builds youth confidence WRITER: ANDREA HOWE

and go places, and it kind of helped pay some of the bills.”

He’s mainly self-taught, by ear. And a pen. While he doesn’t read music, he writes songs.

“He’s written hundreds of songs,” said LeAnn, who performs with Mark in the duo “Order Up.” “We do a lot of them. He’s written some gospel songs. There’s always a story behind all of them. It’s a gift.”

She said one of his songs got radio play and did well, but he doesn’t like the recording process. ”Whether you record or not, people have heard them,” Mark said. “One of my biggest thrills is just to sing one of my songs during a trail ride.”

LeAnn said her husband tells beginner guitarists when they reach a point he can’t show them anymore, and encourages them to keep playing on their own. “A lot of them that we’ve seen are just naturals at it,” she said.

The rest is about building confidence. “We’ve had kids who come out here who were painfully shy. I was too, as a kid,” he said. “I couldn’t look anybody in the eye, and music brought me out of that….A couple of them who were like that, now get out and belt out songs in front of hundreds of people,” he said.

“We’re Christians,” said Mark. “We tell everybody, the first time, ‘We’re

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going to talk to your kids about Jesus,” he said. When they’re not teaching music to children, they’re volunteering in the nursery at their church. “We just love kids,” he said.

The Appetizers normally play at nursing homes twice a month, and perform at venues ranging from fundraisers to festivals all across the area.

“Once they do it the first time, they’re hooked,” he said.

“He encourages them to sing into the microphone,” said LeAnn. “Once they get comfortable with that, they want more.”

Rogers said students learn at their own pace. Sometimes they choose a song they want to learn. Other times, he picks a song and if they like it, they all work on it. “There’s a young girl from Norris City (Jerra Barton), she’s one of the finest singers I’ve ever heard,” he said. “She’s really gonna be good.

She loves to play and sing.” He said student Payton Dale has a record and performed at the Johnny Cash farm.. In this area, Dale has performed solo in Mount Carmel and other communities.

The kids aren’t the only students in the garage studio. LeAnn taught herself to play bass guitar, and performs with Mark in “Order Up,” formed in a nod to Gott, the local restaurant owner who shouted, “Order Up!” every time a dish was ready.

“She never really played an instrument,” Mark said. “A student was working on a song and she said ‘That song needs a bass on it, so I bought a cheap bass and an amp. She learned to play the bass.”

“Order Up!” normally plays at Gottz’s in Carmi on Friday nights. ”When we play at Gottz’s, we have shaker eggs for rhythm and we give them to the little kids who show up, and they get up and play along with us,” said LeAnn. Often, Order Up invites the Appetizers to perform with them at the restaurant. “There are at least one or two students every week,” she said.

The Gottz’s gig “just ended up being a neat deal,” she said. “We play for tip buckets. We work cheap,” she laughed. When The Appetizers play with them, Mark and LeAnn split the tips up. “When we get paid, they get paid,” she said.

“Order Up!” also performs at campgrounds, including Rest Up in Grayville, and were scheduled (prior to the pandemic) to perform at the amphitheatre in Mount Carmel in June. They mainly play country and gospel music, with a big variety of Everly Brothers and other harmony music.

When they’re not performing or teaching, they’re enjoying the music of their youngest son, Kasey Lee Rogers, who lives in Marion. “He plays an upright bass with a rockabilly band,” said Mark. “He plays all over the world.

He started out playing mandolin in a bluegrass band.”

During the state-mandated stay-at-home order, their son has performed in the Marion Civic Theater’s Empty Seat Concert Series.

For now, Rogers will be happy to perform again with his students. A bigger dream is to have an outdoor performance venue in Carmi, either downtown or at Burrell Woods, similar to the venues in Mount Carmel, Grayville and Crossville. “We’d like to get something going,” he said.

PHOTOS COURTESY OF: LEANN AND MARK ROGERS AND THE APPETIZERS

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SENIOR CHAT: LIVING THROUGH COVID-19

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We are a community in Mt. Carmel, IL that welcomes the use of Medicaid should financial resources become low. Let our highly trained staff see to the housekeeping, maintenance, and cooking. Our residents enjoy the confidence of having nursing services and discreet personal assistance available whenever needed.

6 (618) HOMETOWN MAGAZINE JUNE 2020

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PHOTO COUTESY OF: ACORN ESTATES, VILLAS OF HOLLYBROOK, WABASH CHRISTIAN VILLAGE AND CARMI MANOR SOCIAL MEDIA PAGES

Our June Senior Chat visit with 618 neighbors in local facilities wasn’t possible in the midst of COVID-19 pandemic precautions, but residents and staff are so creative in finding ways for residents to stay in touch with their communities. Residents at Acorn Estates and The Villas of Hollybrook, Wabash Christian Village in Carmi and Carmi Manor shared photos with the public via social media, ranging from through-the-window visits to staff prayers or a TNA class celebration. We share a few of those images with you, and we’ll be making in-person visits when it’s safe to do so!

WRITER: ANDREA HOWE

Oakview Nursing and Rehabilitation is Oakview Nursing & Rehabilitation a Medicare/Medicaid certified facility 1320 West 9th Street, Mt. Carmel, IL • 618.263.4337 in Mt. Carmel, IL. The facility is warm, inviting, and homelike. Families and visitors will notice how the residents spend time playing bingo, participating in activities and attending social events held in our large dining hall. Oakview has several private rooms and is as comfortable as it is friendly.

Learning about layer cakes WRITER: ERIN PENNINGTON As a child I was greatly amazed by layer cakes. They seemed like pure perfection to me. Now that I am an adult. I have even more respect for layer cakes and so will you, if you ever try to make one.

The February 2016, 50th Anniversary issue of Southern Living pays homage to layer cakes and our fascination with them.

According to the magazine, “Southerners have had a long-standing love affair with layer cakes. We bake them for birthdays and christenings, mount them on heirloom cake

tried and true recipe, is cream cheese frosting. It calls for powdered sugar, 8 ounces of cream cheese, butter and just enough milk to make it spread. It’s important to have a good hand mixer or stand mixer for maximum loft. Never, ever, pour the milk in all at once, or you may just have frosting soup.

Yes, I’ve made that mistake too. “A little at a time” is the mantra.

When icing a cake, you can buy a big fancy spreader or you can just use a cheap rubber ended spatula. The rubber makes it

stands in honor of anniversaries and holiday homecomings, and immortalize them in great works of fiction. Few desserts are more impressive on a buffet.”Layer cakes command attention and attract affection.

Like most little girls, I dreamed of the day when I would grow up and make my own layer cake masterpiece. After all, how hard could it be?

Let me just tell you what I learned.

First of all, “Grandma cake pans” that have been passed down through generations are the best. As a new bride, if you run out to Wal-Mart and buy the dark, non-stick pans, you are setting yourself up for failure.

Dark bottom pans with Teflon coating may not stick, but they cook too quickly and will burn the cake, or worse, the outside will be brown and the middle will be raw. Yuck.

Aluminum pans work the best. I like my Granny’s pans that have the lever attached so you can get the cake out. You can hardly find those anymore.

While my Mother taught me how to grease and flour a pan (referred to in a recipe as a prepared pan), skip this step, do yourself a favor and buy the pan spray Baker’s Joy. This product has flour in it and will guarantee an even finished cake that doesn’t stick. I’ll never grease and flour a pan again.

Room temperature — “Room temperature ingredients incorporate more evenly than cold, trapping air and giving rise to tender cake layers.” My personal advice is to find

easy to spread. I always do the sides first and work my way up to the top. I don’t know if this is the correct way, but that’s how I do it. When you get to the top, scoop out big mounds of frosting on top of the cake and then, with the spatula, start spreading.

If you made enough frosting, you can dig slightly into it, causing curly-cues and peaks that will dry to perfection.

Viola! The cake is finished. For added embellishment, nuts, grated chocolate, or candy can be sprinkled on top.

My favorite recipe is Hummingbird Cake.

It is my Dad’s favorite cake that I make. It is three tall layers of dense cake with crushed pineapple and pecans in it. The frosting is cream cheese with pecan chips. It is lovely and delicious. When my cake turns out beautiful, my Dad’s face lights up and he says, “Oooh! Sissy, I believe I’ll have me some of that!” Then he will say with complete sarcasm, “That’s terrible stuff” and I know my job is done.

My last bit of advice: Layer cakes are special; they require time and attention and should be made for the people you love the most, because they are worth it. My favorite recipe book is “Southern Cakes: Sweet and Irresistible Recipes for Everyday Celebrations”, by Nancy McDermott, published in 2007. My Hummingbird Cake recipe is in there. The book can be purchased at Cracker Barrel, Barnes and Noble, or Amazon, for roughly $16.

someone with farm fresh eggs. Brown fresh eggs offer the best loft in a cake. Always follow the directions to the exact specifications, or you may have a mess on your hands. Bake according to directions, a toothpick can be inserted in the center of the cake for “doneness.” If the pick comes out “gummy with batter” it needs to cook longer.

Now we are getting somewhere. Let the cakes cool before turning over the pans. If you don’t do this, the cake will fall apart.

After the cakes have completely cooled, decide what you will be serving the cake on, and place the bottom layer in the center of the plate, cake stand, etc. You cannot move a finished cake without destroying something, so think ahead. Never ever ice a warm cake.

My impatience has gotten the best of me on numerous occasions and I made a disaster out of a perfectly good dessert. If you don’t wait, the cake will crumb in your frosting and all your efforts will be ruined.

Assemble the layers. Bottom layer with icing or filling, second layer, with frosting or filling and top layer. When making frosting, it is usually best to make a double batch. Recipes are often not generous enough, and end up in skimpy proportions.

If you are making meringue, that is an art form all its own, so read up on the best way to prepare.

Now, back to the frosting…my favorite

ERIN ZINZILIETA-PENNINGTON is a 2010 graduate of McKendree University and a 1994 graduate of Eastern Illinois University. She possesses a Master’s Degree in Educational Leadership and a Bachelor’s Degree in Secondary Education English. She has been an educator since 1994.

8 (618) HOMETOWN MAGAZINE JUNE 2020

Entrepreneur invests graduation gifts as seed money for Sno Shack PHOTO COURTESY: KYLIE APPLEBEY

WRITER: EVAN MERRILL Craving some cooling treats once the weather’s warmed up and life returns to normal? Look no further than one of the mainstays for events in the area and a steady sight at the Mount Carmel City Pool, the Sno Shack.

The Sno Shack’s roots date back to 2018, when Kylie Applebey, a recent graduate of Mount Carmel High School, saw a sno cone place in Destin, Florida while on vacation with her family. Applebey was fascinated by the operation and inquired into specifics for the shop from the owner.

“I got ahold of the owner and he showed me everything he used, from the equipment to the flavoring, and what his process was,” Applebey recalled. “When we got back home, Mom and I got on the website and looked into it even more, and then I decided this is something I really wanted to do.”

When she returned home to Mount Carmel from Destin, the entrepreneurial interest continued to build, to the point where Applebey spent her graduation money on the machine necessary for a sno cone shop.

Accompanied by her mother, Kristi and her father Lee, Applebey first opened Sno Shack to the public at Ag Days in 2018. Since then, she’s brought the small shop to locations across Southern Illinois, pools festi-

vals and celebrations alike to rave reviews.

“The event went really well and we got some great reviews from our customers,” Kylie Applebey stated. “Each year, we try to add new flavors to the list!”

Proceeds from the Sno Shack go to improving her business, as well as helping offset her costs of schooling, as she’s a student at Southern Illinois University-Carbondale, where she’s majoring in Radiation Therapy.

Applebey hopes to continue business as usual once the current shelter-in-place conditions end across the state. To stay up to date with the Sno Shack, follow the business Facebook page (https://www.facebook. com/MTCSnoShack/) or Instagram pages, where she’ll be unveiling this season’s flavors. To bring Sno Shack to an event near you, call 618-2404162, or message the Facebook page.

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originals FROM THE

OVEN

WRITER: MONA L. WARRICK

It has been said, “if you do something you love, you’ll never work a day in your life.” This holds true for Lisa and Patrick Yates, purveyors of PL Yates Jewelry. While both have day jobs, the Carmi couple works together in this jewelry venture..

Creating jewelry comes naturally for Lisa, who is known for her great sense of style. She can pair a plain t-shirt with cut-off jeans and look perfectly put together. “A long time ago, I heard you only get one chance to make a first impression, and that’s stuck with me,” said Lisa. “That’s the truth! Who doesn’t like to feel good about how they look? You can add a neat necklace to that t-shirt and there you go!”

Lisa’s inspiration, for the business, came from the movie Castaway. “The angel wings! Remember Tom Hanks’ character wanted to deliver the package he had saved the entire time he was on that island? There were angel wings on the package. I’ve never forgotten that, the one thing he wanted to deliver ended up being a life changer for him,” said Lisa. “I wanted to make something.

I wanted to make jewelry, but it had to be something I would wear myself. Every piece we make is one-of-a-kind.

I never duplicate pieces. I can make it similar, but not exact.”

PL Yates Jewelry began in February 2019. “I started dabbling with different materials and made my first bronze metal piece in April,” said Lisa. “I was so excited!

I made a video for Patrick, because he was at work when the piece came out of the oven. I just realized I made another reference to Castaway! Remember when Hanks’ character makes fire after all his attempts? That’s what I said to Patrick in my video, I MADE metal!’

After many attempts, Lisa came up with her own formula. “It wasn’t as easy as I make it sound.. I Googled and YouTubed how to use ‘the oven’ correctly. At first, I was so stumped, and then it clicked. It was quite the learning process!”

Bronze and copper are Lisa’s favorite materials. “I work with copper, but my comfort zone is bronze metal.

I’ve been experimenting with some new copper and actually mixing some clay around.” She uses mostly brown leather for the cuffs, but does have some other colors, “I don’t wander off the classic color wheel very often.”

Lisa has always had a love for jewelry. “I have always worn jewelry. Of course, I am from the neon decade of the 80s, so some jewelry from that era isn’t considered classic,” she said. “I shake my head when I look back on some of those choices, but the jewelry fascination has always been there.”

Many of PL Yates’ designs can be described as bohemian and earthy, while others give a nod to the celestial.

“I feel we all have guardian angels watching over us.

One of my favorite quotes is ‘your hardest times often lead to the greatest moments of your life. Keep the faith.’

Our designs featuring the cross and angel wings are to remind us of that.”

The PL Yates line features pieces that emit a hippie/ music festival vibe. Lisa says these designs come directly from her “comfort zone.” Not one to dress up often, Lisa

10 (618) HOMETOWN MAGAZINE JUNE 2020

said, “Adding a leather cuff and a necklace to my white shirt? Yes! And, my guitar cuffs are probably some of my favorite pieces. I love music.

While some people read to get away from it all, I listen to music. I can’t play guitar, but I love making the guitar cuffs. They are more difficult to make, but they make me smile. My peace signs are just that… they

He created a studio, in our basement, and built cabinets and shelves.

One of my favorite gifts from him is my rivet press! Isn’t that what all the ladies want?”

Patrick is Lisa’s “go to” when it comes to opinions. “He sees every piece as soon as it comes out of ‘the oven.’ We enjoy going to art

bring me peace. With so much going on in the world these days, I wish people would take more time to slow down and enjoy life.”

Lisa recalls selling her first piece of jewelry. “This story is classic.

We were going to our first show and we had no idea what to expect.

You get all these thoughts in your head… what if the jewelry isn’t good enough to sell, or what if no one likes it,” said Lisa. “There was one piece that I was having second thoughts about. I wasn’t going to take it, but took it anyway. Patrick kept telling me, ‘you never know, someone might really like that one.’ It was the first piece to sell! I remember that show very well. I learned a lot that day. It was interesting that people are often more interested in the process than they are the jewelry.”

The couple loves creating commissioned pieces. They have a website, www.plyatesjewelry.com, they sell their creations on Etsy, and they can be followed on their Instagram account @pl_yatesjewelry.

Enjoying life comes easily for Lisa and Patrick, who celebrated their third anniversary on March 1. ”Everyone has their own love story, but ours sure is awesome! Patrick actually spotted me in a restaurant on a Saturday afternoon. The following Monday, he went to work and was telling one of his coworkers about seeing me. He remembered my personalized license plates,” said Lisa. As fate would have it, the coworker was a mutual friend of Patrick and Lisa. “The rest happened like it was supposed to, we both knew it was meant to be.”

Partners in business, as in life, Lisa said, “I can’t thank Patrick enough for his support with this venture. He has been my biggest fan!

shows and flea markets. It’s always fun setting up for those, meeting new people, and doing new things. It’s exciting to see peoples’ expressions when we tell them how we make our pieces. Most people don’t realize how long it takes to create a piece.” Lisa said she and Patrick enjoy being able to tell the story of their business to others.

A native of Grayville, Lisa said, “I am proud to be from GrayVegas, as one of my friends used to say! I was one of the lucky ones who graduated from the old high school on the hill, where volleyball was The Sport, the Wabash River was where you learned to waterski, and the park was for sledding.” Lisa has fond memories of Grayville, and often visits her parents, Linda and Jim Glover, who still live in the house Lisa grew up in.

Lisa works for Wabash Ohio Valley Special Education District as a preschool screener, and a vision/hearing technician. She said, “I really enjoy working with kids. They make me smile.”

When they aren’t working their day jobs, or making jewelry, the Yates love to travel, often taking their camper on long jaunts. “We pulled it to Mount Rushmore and Yellowstone last May for my 50th birthday. That was by far the most exciting trip we had done at that time. Then, we went the opposite direction and pulled it to Key West over Christmas break. Some say that’s just crazy but we don’t think so at all! We feel blessed to be able to take trips like that while we can.”

Their favorite thing is being by the water, or being on the water. “If we aren’t at home,” said Lisa, “we are probably at our river camp. We are livin’ while we’re alive!”

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Driving Grandpa, and ‘waving’ at Grandma Row 1: Andrew (the little guy on the tricycle, front left) and sister Patsy June Holtzclaw; Row 2: Margaret, Sue, Lloyd “Sonny” and Martin Holtzclaw; Row 3: Wanda, Roy and Max Holtzclaw

WRITER: ANDREA HOWE When I think of Father’s Day, I often think about lessons I learned from my dad. I never forget what felt like the most daunting task Dad ever put before me.

He told me to drive his father to town.

The mission: Take Grandpa Martin Holtzclaw to Kisner’s Pharmacy to get a prescription filled.

It was the summer after I turned 16, bought a 1971 Mustang for $900 on $42 monthly payments, and passed my driving test at the Secretary of State’s Office.

Grandma and Grandpa lived a couple miles away, and he drove to our house, so I didn’t know why he needed someone to take him to town — much less why I would be chosen.

But watching him duck and clutch his hat, then settle into the front bucket seat of the low-slung car made me realize that this was serious business, this driving Grandpa task. I had never been asked to drive anyone anywhere.

I can’t remember anything I said on the eight-mile trip to Carmi.

I think it was a pleasant trip. I just remember trying to dodge every chuckhole in the road and watching every oncoming vehicle as if it

might jump out of its lane and force me to hop a ditch.

We arrived in town and pulled into the alley drive-up window of the pharmacy. Grandpa got his prescription and we went straight back home.

Dad was standing at the door of his garage when Grandpa unfolded himself from the Mustang, and I hopped out.

“How did she do?” Dad asked him.

“She’s a pretty good little driver,” Grandpa told him. “But she does drive fast, and she takes her piece out of the middle of the road.”

That oddly pleased me, and I headed back to the house.

Shortly after that time, I was trusted to ferry my brother and sister to high school, before they became licensed drivers and bought their own vehicles. I wasn’t nearly as focused on their safety as I was for Grandpa. In fact, I stopped the car once and booted my brother out during some silly sibling spat. When I arrived home without him, Mom made me go back and get him.

Some 20 years after receiving that first precious cargo assignment, I felt the same hyper-focus when I strapped a baby carrier into the back seat of my car. I had a whole lot more experience driving, but my new Mama Bear hormones had me suspicious of every other driver.

So, when I made a trip out of Carmi on Epworth Road, I came up behind a car poking along, the driver weaving a bit, then braking. The driver made me nervous. I flipped my turn signal on, found an opening and started to pass the car, which drifted toward the back passenger side, where my precious cargo was secured.

I gunned the gas pedal, making an ungracious gesture as I left the driver far in my rearview mirror.

I arrived at my parents’ house and pulled my precious cargo out of the back seat carrier, brought him inside to visit his Papaw and Grandma Pink, then went back to the car to get the diaper bag. As I was pulling the bag out of the car, I looked up to see that crazy driver pulling into the driveway.

Turns out, that crazy driver was my very own Grandma Thelma White. I was mildly mortified.

“I thought that was you waving at me, Andrea Lynn!” she told me as we walked to the house.

I wasn’t about to say a word otherwise.

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(618) HOMETOWN MAGAZINE JUNE 2020 13

ATHLETE spotlight MOUNT CARMEL HIGH SCHOOL SENIOR CADE NEWKIRK A dual-sport athlete, Cade is a four-year varsity starter for the Aces baseball team and a multi-year starter for the Aces football team as well. Newkirk struck out 1.6 batters per inning on the mound in his junior season, totaling 50 Ks on the season. On the gridiron, Newkirk was also the Aces’ leading tackler at linebacker as part of an Aces team that returned to the playoffs for the first time in three seasons, ending with a heartbreaking 23-20 loss to Vandalia in the second round of the IHSA 3A Playoffs. Newkirk will attend Wabash Valley College in the fall, where he’s signed to join the Warriors’ baseball team.

SUBMIT YOUR ATHLETE Athletic directors from Grayville, NCOE, Carmi-White County, Edwards County and Mount Carmel high schools invited to feature an athlete every month in this ongoing (618) Hometown Magazine feature. Send us an email at:

emerrill@mtcarmelregister.com * Compiled by Evan Merrill

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We are a community in Mt. Carmel, IL that welcomes the use of Medicaid should financial resources become low. Let our highly trained staff see to the housekeeping, maintenance, and cooking. Our residents enjoy the confidence of having nursing services and discreet personal assistance available whenever needed.

Oakview Nursing and Rehabilitation is a Medicare/Medicaid certified facility in Mt. Carmel, IL. The facility is warm, inviting, and homelike. Families and visitors will notice how the residents spend time playing bingo, participating in activities and attending social events held in our large dining hall. Oakview has several private rooms and is as comfortable as it is friendly. Oakview also features a Memory Care unit.

REBOUND REHAB TO HOME Our therapy department is here to help you ReBound back to living your best life. We have the people and the tools to get you back to cooking, exercising, spending time with your grandchildren, fishing or any activity that brings you joy. Our communities provide the care, while ReBound provides the tools to get you going. It’s the perfect combination and we’re here when you need us.

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