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More Important News
The Milledgeville Men’s Club Donates to School Libraries
Illinois Sheriff’s Association Announces ScholarshipsThe Illinois Sheriff’s Association announces that it will be awarding over $53,000 in college scholarships throughout the State of Illinois to students wishing to pursue higher education during the 2012-2013 academic year. The scholarships are to be applied to tuition, book and fees only. The student must be enrolled full time at a certified institution of higher learning within the State of Illinois. There will be no restriction on any applicant by reason of race, age, creed, color, sex or national origin. The only limitations are as follows: - Applicants must be permanent Illinois residents - Scholarships must be utilized at institutions of higher learning within the State of Illinois - Students must be enrolled as a full time student during the 2012-2013 school year (excluding summer session) Applications are now available online at: www.ilsheriff.org. Students must complete the applications, answer the essay question and return all documentation to the Sheriff’s Office in their permanent county of residence by March 12, 2012 (must be postmarked by this date). For more information, please contact your local Sheriff’s Office, high school advising center or college financial aid office. Savanna Moose To CelebrateThe Savanna Moose Lodge will be celebrating its 100th birthday next September. The centennial celebration will include special activities, dinners, VIP visitors, music, and fun. To raise money for these special events, the Savanna Moose is having a Spaghetti Dinner this Saturday, January 28th from 5:00 - 8:00 p.m. Member Joe Granata will be preparing the spaghetti meal, and everyone is welcome. Following the dinner, DJ Red McDaniel will provide music for listening, dancing, and karaoke. Come down to the Savanna Moose this Saturday for an evening of great food, music, and fun. In the ServiceAir Force Airman Brittney R. Reiland graduated from basic military training at Lackland Air Force Base, San Antonio, Texas. The airman completed an intensive, eight-week program that included training in military discipline and studies, Air Force core values, physical fitness, and basic warfare principles and skills. Airmen who complete basic training earn four credits toward an associate in applied science degree through the Community College of the Air Force. Reiland is the daughter of John Reiland of Last Frontier Circle, Eielson Air Force Base, Alaska, and granddaughter of Ronald Reiland of Becker Road, Savanna, Ill. She is a 2010 graduate of Ben Eielson High School, Eielson Air Force Base. CC Haiti Mission Project Fund RaisersCharlie’s II - January 2012Carroll County Haiti Mission Project’s eleventh annual music fund-raiser will be held at Charlie’s II in Mt. Carroll on Saturday, Jan. 28. “The L.R. Band” from Peoria will begin playing at 7 p.m. and the event features music, food and other activities. CCHMP members plan to make the group’s 33rd trip to the Juampas region of the Caribbean island February 15-21. CCHMP teams travel to Haiti three times each year. Teams are limited to 12 people and team members pay their own airfare and travel expenses, for food and potable water while in Haiti , departure tax, immunizations and passports. The group’s projects include continued work on its medical/dental clinic, support of several schools, sponsorship of schoolchildren and vaccination, water purification and dental health programs. All donated money goes to the group’s projects; there are no administrative costs. Prior to a team leaving for Haiti, funds are sent to purchase construction materials, food and water. Luncheon February 12The group will also have a luncheon at 11:30 a.m. on Sunday, Feb. 12 at the Mount Carroll United Methodist Church. The public is invited to both events. Spring Trivia Night Apri 14Also, CCHMP’s annual spring trivia night is set for Saturday, April 14 at Manny’s Pizza in Savanna; more information will be available as the event gets closer. For more information on CCHMP, please visit the group’s website at http://cchmp.tripod.com. Economic, Environmental Sustainability Efforts Get Support From HCC TrusteesThe year’s first Highland Community College Board of Trustees meeting produced unanimous votes on three proposals aimed at bringing economic growth and “green” initiatives to the HCC District through cooperative efforts with other colleges, local communities and businesses. The Stephenson County Shared Vision and Community Strategic plan, also known as the Prospering Together initiative, was endorsed by Trustees. The Board pledged its support for the action plan summary targeting areas of improvement within key sectors, such as economic development and workforce development. The College will provide in-kind donations through leadership and small business development education, including the exploration of a hospitality training program. “Through this vote in support of Prospering Together’s shared vision, Trustees recognize Highland’s key role in helping to improve the economic health and vitality of the region,” said Highland President Joe Kanosky, emphasizing benefits realized as a result of this collaboration will affect all residents in Highland’s district. Furthering its pledge to improve the region’s sustainability, the Board approved Highland’s participation the Illinois Green Economy Network (IGEN). In conjunction with 16 community colleges, Highland was the recipient of an IGEN grant in September of 2011 and was designated as an adult transition center in order to expedite training in green industries for trade-affected workers and veterans. Additionally, Highland’s wind turbine technician training materials will be shared to help provide the network’s 48 community college campuses with up-to-date curriculum and online modules. “By serving as an IGEN transition center, qualifying area residents will be able to take advantage of some real assistance to retool their skills and apply them in the growing green economy industry,” said Dean of Business and Technology Scott Anderson. “IGEN officials recognized Highland’s leadership in the field of wind turbine technician training by designating us as a training hub in this area.” Board members also heard a presentation by Charles Brettell of Energy Asset Advisors regarding a tax abatement request for the construction and operation of a DeBruce Grain, Inc., storage facility in Jo Daviess County. The structure, capable of storing six million bushels, would be part of the Freeport Stephenson County Enterprise Zone, requiring the support of various taxing bodies. The Board approved the abatement during the regular session. The agreement spans just over eight years with significant revenue anticipated upon its fruition. Additionally, increased tax revenue will be earned due to a reclassification of the building site from agricultural to manufacturing. “The Board gave this request for abatement a thorough and critical examination and concluded that the project has strong potential overall benefit for the region,” said Kanosky. “Our Board’s policy states that Trustees will look favorably upon proposed tax abatements when it can be shown that the abatement can provide significant economic benefit to the District.” In other action items, Trustees approved the regular Board of Trustees meeting schedule through April 2013, a revised salary range placement for the Workstation/Network Client Analyst position, and full-time faculty seniority lists. Farm Service Agency Adopting GovDeliveryIn the near future, due to budget constraints, the Carroll County Farms Service Agency (FSA) Office will no longer be sending out printed newsletters, according to Alan Flikkema chairman of the Carroll County Farm Service Agency (FSA) Office. The USDA Farms Service Agency offices are moving toward a paperless operation providing FSA newsletters electronically. Flikkema said, “Producers are asked to enroll in the new GovDelivery system which will provide notices, newsletters and electronic reminders by email instead of a hard copy through the mail. If you have a valid email address you will be able to receive FSA newsletters and other information. According to Flikkema, when Carroll County producers visit the County Office to sign up for 2012 DCP and ACRE program, which begins January 23, 2012, producers will be asked to complete form AD-2047 “Customer Data Worksheet” providing us your email address. This office considers your email address personally identifiable information (PII) and WILL NOT share your email address with anyone!!” FSA, like many other organizations, is trying to work smarter and be more efficient. Moving to electronic notifications via email to help conserve resources and save taxpayer dollars. However, County Committee ballots will continue to be mailed to all eligible producers. Producers can now subscribe to receive free e-mail updates by going to http://www.fsa.usda.gov/subscribe. ‘The Power of Art’ Discussion at Odell LibraryThe Odell Public Library will host former MJHS art instructor, Ned J Nesti, Jr, on Tuesday, February 7th and Wednesday, February 8th for a lively art history discussion on “The Power of Art.” Both sessions begin at 6:30pm in the library meeting room at 307 S. Madison St., Morrison, Illinois. There is no cost; however, participants must register at the library or by telephone, 815-772-7323. Based on the BBC series “The Power of Art” by Simon Schama, Mr. Nesti will compare and contrast two artists featured in the series that have a diametrically opposite style of art: Caravaggio (1571-1610) and Rothko (1903-1970). When asked why he selected these two artists, Nesti replied, “I want participants to see both styles of art and realize the value of each.” Caravaggio was one of the greatest Baroque realistic religious painters. “His genius was his ability to combine hyper-realism and dramatic theatrical composition to control the viewer’s emotional response. In addition, he was the first artist to use light to control where the viewer looked. His paintings were used by the Catholic Church to sell religion and ward off the threat of the Protestant Reformation,” said Nesti. Rothko was the opposite of Caravaggio. “Stylistically he was as not a realistic painter, but one of the first American abstract expressionist painter to use space, shape and color in an abstract way to control the viewer’s feelings.” stated Nesti. Nesti hopes participants see similarities between the two artists even though they are stylistically very different. Simon Schama, the British art history professor and writer who wrote the series “The Power of Art,” stated, “The video scenes you see will drop you into a different place, an unforgiving drama where the artists managed, against all odds to astound!” Ned Nesti has a unique and entertaining method of making art history come alive. “This will not be a dry, dull lecture about dusty art, but an exciting, uninhibited, and captivating discussion that will make you be glad you were there,” said Anne Frame, program coordinator for the Odell Library. Mark the date on your calendar to participate in this opportunity to learn. Region 1 & 3 Transportation Committees Meeting NoticeThe Human Services Transportation Plan (HSTP) - Region 1 - Transportation Committee (Boone, Carroll, Jo Daviess, Stephenson, and Winnebago Counties) will be held on Thursday, January 26, 2012 from 10 AM to 12 PM at the Senior Resources Center located at 1237 West Galena Ave. in Freeport. This meeting is open to the public. The HSTP - Region 3 - Transportation Committee (Bureau, DeKalb, Grundy, Kendall, LaSalle, Lee, Ogle, and Putnam Counties) will be held on Friday, January 27, 2012 from 10 AM to 12 PM at the Mendota Civic Center located at 1901 Tom Merwin Drive in Mendota. This meeting is open to the public. The Human Services Transportation Plan (HSTP) is federally mandated as a part of Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient, Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU). HSTP is a unified, comprehensive strategy for delivery of services that identify the transportation needs of the general public. It helps determine the strategies for meeting these needs and prioritizes the services. The Illinois Department of Transportation has formed agreements with Regional Planning agencies throughout the State for the purpose of preparing and implementing the plan. NCICG is the agency that has prepared the plan and will continue to update the plan for Region 1 (Boone, Carroll, JoDaviess, Stephenson, and Winnebago Counties) and Region 3 (Bureau, DeKalb, Grundy, Kendall, LaSalle, Lee, Ogle, and Putnam Counties). More information about NCICG is available at www.ncicg.org or contact Jacob Matsen at (815) 433-5830. Efforts to Control the Mississippi Created Long-Lasting Agricultural DamageWhen the water in the Mississippi River rose to 58 feet with a forecast of 60 feet or higher in May 2011, the emergency plan to naturally or intentionally breach the levees, established over 80 years prior, was put in motion. The flood of 1937 did top the frontline levee and water passed into and through the New Madrid Floodway, but being floodfree since then caused area landowners to oppose the plan being put into action. “After a delay due to a legal appeal from area landowners, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers was finally given permission by the U.S. Supreme Court to open the floodway, but by that time, the Mississippi River was 4 feet higher than planned for,” Olson said. “The initial additional force and depth of floodwater caused more damage to buildings and more deep land scouring than was predicted. The strong current and sweep of water through the Birds Point, Missouri, breach created deep gullies in 133,000 acres of Missouri farmland, displaced tons of soil, and damaged irrigation equipment, farms, and homes.” Olson has followed the drama of the deliberate flooding closely and believes it will create long-lasting, if not permanent, agricultural damage to hundreds of acres of land. The rushing water gouged large deep gullies on parcels of land adjacent to the blown levees and on some distant fields. The land was also covered with a thick sand deposit and in some areas adjacent to where new crater lakes were formed. “Reclamation efforts by the Corps of Engineers included patching the frontline and fuse plugs levees with the sand, and topsoil was trucked in,” Olson said. “The former 60.5 feet fuse plug and the 62.5 feet front line levee was rebuilt, raising it initially to 51 feet and then, after input from local farmers, to 55 feet. Proper drainage in the area has been restored, but the unanticipated fields with large and deep gullies located five miles from the levee breaches will not be repaired very easily.” Olson believes that even if the fields of gullies are reclaimed, the soils are likely to have lower productivity. “The resulting land surface will have less soil aggregation, less organic carbon, and be more sloping, making it difficult to farm the land,” he said. “Some of this lost cropland could be restored as wetlands and wildlife habitat adjacent to the patched levees.” The Impacts of 2011 induced levee breaches on agricultural lands of Mississippi River Valley, coauthored by Lois Wright Morton, is published in the Jan.-Feb. 2012 issue of the Journal of Soil and Water Conservation. Olson previously reported on the extensive ponding and soil erosion that occurred after the heavy spring rains of 2008 that drowned corn and soybean crops in Illinois, Missouri, and Indiana (published in the Nov.-Dec. 2009 issue of the Journal of Soil and Water Conservation). “Over the last 30 years, many soil and water conservation practices and structures were no longer used, and soil erosion standards were met using conservation tillage and no-till systems,” Olson said. “Most remaining terraces, contour farming, strip cropping, and waterways were effective. But many waterways were filled above capacity and were eroded by fast-moving water or had significant sediment depositions.” At that time, Olson said that fewer soil conservation structures and retention ponds were being built and maintained than in the past, although in Missouri significant acreage of unprotected agricultural lands was converted to fish and wildlife use. Olson recommended potential solutions to reduce the flooding impact on agricultural lands in flat watersheds with poorly drained soils, such as creating temporary water storage structures, changing the crop rotation in the upland to include more forages rather than row crops, converting more of the agricultural land to timberland or grassland that can use or store more water, and building higher and stronger levees that are located farther from the riverbanks to widen the river flow channel. “It would also be logical to accept periodic levee breaks or stop using the floodplain soil for agricultural crop production. Instead the land could be converted to conservation use and restore the periodic water storage function to the natural floodplain.” Olson and his colleagues Mike Reed and Lois Wright Morton contend that strategically placed wetlands, settling basins, nutrient filtering, and levees are effective management for internal control of water and sediment. They point to Sny Island Levee Drainage District as a model for what could be accomplished with additional effort. Their findings were published in the Jul.-Aug. 2011 issue of the Journal of Soil and Water Conservation. “The Sny Island District has developed pioneering ways to reduce local flooding and decrease the sediment and nutrient loads being discharged into the Mississippi River,” Olson said. But Olson adds that more than half of Sny Island’s $2 million annual revenue is spent on fuel costs to run their three pumping stations continuously during periods of high water runoff. “As the price of fuel oil increases, high commodity prices will be needed,” he said. “One way to mitigate this treadmill is to build on the diverse habitat created by wetlands, sediment basin, and levees, and purposefully develop an economic tourism plan to increase the recreational use of this region.” Singers Invited to Participate in ‘Ode to Joy’ PerformanceThe Highland Community College Music Department is pleased to announce that it will be performing the finale to Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9, “Ode to Joy,” at 7 p.m. Sunday, April 15, in the Freeport Masonic Temple. All area vocalists, including high school juniors and seniors, are invited to participate in the weekly Tuesday evening rehearsals leading up to the performance. The first choral rehearsal will be at 7 p.m. Tuesday, January 24, in the Ferguson Fine Arts Building, room FA 10. For more information, please contact Allen Redford, director of fine arts, at allen.redford@highland.edu or 815-599-3568. ‘Bethesda Blaze’ Benefit at Morrison DQBethesda Lutheran Church’s “Relay for Life” team, the “Bethesda Blaze” will be sponsoring a fundraiser at Morrison Dairy Queen on Monday, February 6th. Fifteen percent of all proceeds from purchases made during the hours of five to eight p.m. that evening will be donated to the American Cancer Society. “Blaze” has placed in the top three teams in Whiteside County for the past six years. The team reached “Platinum” status the past two years by collecting over $10,000 each year through a variety of fundraisers. The entire community is invited to come that evening and enjoy some wonderful food while contributing to a great cause.
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