Outlook: The Road Ahead - LEARN

OUTLOOK 2010

The Road Ahead

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SUNDAY, MARCH 28, 2010 DECATUR, ILLINOIS

Maroa-Forsyth gets aschool library /7

Developing responsiblecitizens/Page 18

Lake Land quadruplesspace in Pana/Page 14

Donations alreadyadd up to $48,000

By TONY REIDH&R Staff Writer

MOWEAQUA — Everybodyis learning some valuable les-sons as Moweaqua pushesahead with ambitious plans tobuild a $55,000 veterans memo-rial, the first in the village’s157-year history.

Lesson one is that, even inthe tail end of one of thesharpest recessions since theGreat Depression, people willfind money to support some-thing that appeals to the heart.

Donations for the projecthave poured in, and a fundrais-

ing cam-paign thatbegan inearnest inAugustalreadyhas mar-shaledmore than$48,000.The villagecommitteeleading theproject ispushingahead likea highcommandorchestrat-ing a fast-movingmilitaryoperation:Building isscheduled

to begin in May and be over inabout three months while thefundraising operation mops upthe last few dollars needed tomeet the bill.

Planning is under way for asuitable opening ceremonyfull of pomp and circum-stance that is set to go aheadNov. 11, Veterans Day. “That’sthe target, and we want itdone by then,” committeemember Barbara Jostes said.

Former Moweaqua MayorEvelyn “Bootsie” Lowe gotthe ball rolling in Februarywhen a Vietnam veteran, hishands disfigured by AgentOrange, asked her if shewould look into the possibility

of creating a memorial tohonor all veterans.

Lowe, touched by the man’srequest, began gathering herforces. The committee shehelped create included long-time village residents shecould trust to get the job done:Carl Stiner, 71, and his wife,Mary Ann, 69; Shirley Allen,79; and Jostes, 80. They wereably assisted by Lee Coffman,82, and 84-year-old Hubert Cox.

It turns out that Allen makesa mean noodle, and she woundup cooking for nearly 400 din-ers at a fundraising dinner inNovember in one of only twomajor campaigns needed toround up dollars. The rest hascome in through ad hoc dona-tions. “We’ve got gifts of $500from those I would neverexpect to get $500 from,” Lowesaid. “People really think thisis a good thing we’re doing.”

The memorial will honor vil-lage veterans who served theirnation in uniform from thetime of the War of 1812, theearliest traced Moweaqua vet-eran, through to the present.Some 1,600 names have beengathered, all neatly catalogedby Cox, who discovered thenewfangled wonder of comput-er databases and proved to bea natural at data compilationafter being shown the ropes bya grandson.

“It was a monumental task,but Hubert said, ‘I could do it,’and he has,” Jostes said.

He was supported by Coff-man and others who harvestedtheir prodigious collectivememories to trace living andgone Moweaqua residentsthrough families now scatteredcoast to coast.

“I was talking to a guy inFlorida, and, two days later, hecalled and said he was going todonate $1,000,” Coffman said.“And he did.”

What all that money is buy-ing is a memorial situated inMoweaqua’s Living MemorialTree Park that will take theform of a walled, landscapedarea 72 feet long and 37 feetwide. It will be crowned at oneend by a 30-inch diameterCanadian mahogany graniteglobe resting on a graniteplinth that will make it morethan 5 feet tall.

Leading up to it will be aseries of chevron-angled pathsapproaching six individualmemorial stones engravedwith the names of veteranswho served in different timeperiods. The committee nowhopes the next lesson to belearned from the impressivememorial will be the passing

on of an enduring sense ofgratitude. They want onlookersto be impressed by the nameschiseled there and the willing-ness of men and women, pastand present, to step into a uni-form and serve their country,at home or abroad.

“It’s about kids coming andbeing able to see their grand-

pa’s name on the granite,”Lowe said.

“Yes, it is,” Jostes said.“They will be able to see theirrelative has really done some-thing; that they have given avery valuable service, and wenow recognize that.”

[email protected]|421-7977

12 OUTLOOK SUNDAY, MARCH 28, 2010 DECATUR, ILLINOIS www.herald-review.com

Commodores raise fundsto improve Sunnyside Park

By LEROY BRIDGESH&R Staff Writer

DECATUR — If you improve it, theywill come.

That’s the hope for the DecaturCommodores.

The traveling baseball organizationstarted intense fundraising justmonths ago to upgrade the facilities atSunnyside Park. The goal is to improvethe scoreboard, outfield fence, bleach-

ers and sound sys-tem, among otherthings, to make it amore enticing tour-nament location.

“Sunnyside is anice place; we justneed to update thefacilities,” saidKevin Koslofski,who coaches the18-U Commodoresteam. “Time takesits toll on every-thing.”

Koslofski, who played 14 years pro-fessionally, noted the fundraisingeffort is in its infant stages, and that’swhy the organization produced a CDpresentation. On the CD, players andcoaches give a glimpse into the pro-gram and talk about areas of the parkthat would benefit from upgrades. Thepresentation idea came from Koslofs-ki’s boss, Chris Behnke of Behnke &Co.

“He’s got a big heart for Decaturand kids, so it’s a natural fit for him tohelp us,” Koslofski said about Behnke.

The Commodores understand theeconomy has put a damper on a lot ofgift giving, but the interest from somecorporations has been good. Koslofskiestimated the cost to completelyupgrade the facilities as between$300,000 and $400,000.

“Now might not be a good time toask anyone for money, but we have hadsome gifts given specifically,” Koslofs-ki said. “Over time, who knows? If thisvideo and news strikes the right per-son, it could do something.”

The Commodores, who are in theirsecond year, are hosting their firsttournament from June 10 to 13. TheSunnyside Invitational Tournament isbringing talent from Chicago, KansasCity and St. Louis and is sponsored byBehnke & Co.

If the fundraising goal is met, collegecoaches and professional scouts wouldhave more reasons to pencil Decaturinto their itinerary and see Decatur-

area baseball players in action at tour-naments such as this one.

“We want to try and create a venuehere in Decatur that will attract collegerecruiters and professional scouts,”

Koslofski said. “This is our first tourna-ment, and it will help raise awarenessout there and make it a communityevent with a high level of talent.”

The upgrades to Sunnyside Park also

would benefit Millikin University base-ball. It’s the Big Blue’s home field, andthe improvements could help coachJosh Manning in the recruitingprocess.

“Facilities have a huge impact onwhat school an athlete chooses,” saidManning, who’s working with theCommodores on the project. “If wecan improve what we have, it will nodoubt help us.”

Koslofski helped start the Com-modores two years ago to helpDecatur’s best baseball players getrecognized on the diamond. Last sum-mer, the Commodores played about 50games against other traveling teamsin Central Illinois and took part intournaments on college campuses.

Last year, Koslofski had two players(Evan West and Jordan Manney)begin the summer without collegebaseball plans. Before August, theyhad places to play.

“Our organization is unique,”Koslofski said. “We have a great net-work of contacts from the lowest levelof college to the highest and someprofessional levels.

“We’re trying to get some attentionto downstate.”


Putting Decatur on baseball map

MORE

INFO

For more infor-mation on theDecatur Com-modores or theirfundraising efforts,call Kevin Koslofs-ki at 454-3230 orTerry Etnier at855-1984.

Herald & Review photos/Stephen Haas

The Decatur Commodores hope to fix up Sunnyside Park’s Lou Renner Field, including such items as these dented bleachers.

The Commodores, a traveling baseball team, hope to raise between $300,000 and$400,000 to fix up Lou Renner Field, including installing a new scoreboard, fence,sound system and bleachers.

Moweaqua to breakground on memorial

For the Herald & Review/Katy Hunt

Carl Stiner, Barbara Jostes, Evelyn Lowe and Shirley Allen show plans for the Moweaqua’s first veter-ans memorial in the Moweaqua Living Tree Park.

TO GIVE

To donate to thememorial fund,send a check to680 E. 2700 NorthRoad, Box 27,Moweaqua, IL,62550. Graniteblocks with per-sonalized engrav-ings that will bepart of the memo-rial are available indifferent sizes thatcost $100 or $500.For more informa-tion, call Evelyn“Bootsie” Lowe at768-3423 or Bar-bara Jostes at768-4637.

The Road

AheadCITY: AltamontCOUNTY: EffinghamPOPULATION: 2,283MAYOR: Larry TaylorATTRACTIONS: Dr. Wright

House, Ben Winter Muse-um, Alwerdt’s Gardens,Altamont Living Museum,Ballard Nature Center, Eff-ingham County Fair, IllinoisHigh School Rodeo StateFinals, Mill Road Thresher-man’s Association Steam,Gas & Threshing Show,Schuetzenfest.

HIGHWAYS: Interstate 70,U.S. 40, Illinois 128.

HISTORY: An early pioneerof the area was GriffinTipsword, who lived amongthe Kickapoo Indians.

The area was settled byGerman immigrants by wayof Pennsylvania and Ohio.

The name Altamont,meaning “high mound,” waschosen because of the ele-vation or “mound” that liesto the northwest.

ON THE WEB: www.altamontil.net.

n o n

VILLAGE: StewardsonCOUNTY: ShelbyPOPULATION: 747MAJOR HIGHWAY: Illinois 32

n o n

VILLAGE: StrasburgCOUNTY: ShelbyPOPULATION: 582MAJOR HIGHWAY: Illinois 32ATTRACTION: Hidden

Springs State Forest.

n o n

CITY: ShelbyvilleCOUNTY: ShelbyPOPULATION: 4,971MAYOR: John DissINDUSTRY: International

Paper Inc., P&H Mfg., Shel-by Tool & Die, IHI TurboAmerica Co.

ATTRACTIONS: Lake Shel-byville, Forest Park.

MAJOR HIGHWAYS: Illinois16, Illinois 128.

HISTORY: Early settlersdeveloped the area withhelp from the KickapooIndians. The city of Shel-byville was founded in 1827.Its name was chosen tocommemorate Isaac Shelby,a Revolutionary War gener-al. Abraham Lincoln was afrequent visitor to Shel-byville while riding his cir-cuit. The city became hostfor Lincoln’s debates forcivil liberties againstAnthony Thornton.

ON THE WEB: www.lakeshelbyville.com.

n o n

CITY: SullivanCOUNTY: MoultriePOPULATION: 4,323MAYOR: Ann ShortATTRACTIONS: Little Theatre-

On the Square, Lake Shel-byville.

MAJOR HIGHWAYS: Illinois32, Illinois 121.

HISTORY: Sullivan is namedafter Revolutionary WarGen. John Sullivan.

The city serves as thenorth gateway to Lake Shel-byville and marks the westedge of Central Illinois’large Amish settlement.

Abraham Lincoln tra-versed the county as a cir-cuit-riding lawyer and triedmany cases in one of thecounty’s first courthouses.The present courthouse, thecounty’s third, is listed onthe National Register ofHistoric Places.

ON THE WEB: www.sullivanchamber.com, www.moultrieonline.com.

2710 N. Water St., Decatur, IL 62526

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Lake Land quadruples space at Pana facility

By TONY REIDH&R Staff Writer

PANA — The patient wasn’tdead, but he wasn’t well, either.

Lying there with his mouthopen, lips pulled back frompristine white teeth, he firstsounded like he was throwingup and then switched tolabored breathing from froth-corrupted lungs.

“He also coughs, he moansand he screams, too, althoughthe screaming is not too loud,”said instructor and registered

nurseMariaNohren.“And hedoes haveniceteeth.”

Thesophisti-cated elec-tronicdummy, alltucked upin a regu-

lation hospital bed, is one ofthe many teaching aids at LakeLand College’s Western RegionCenter in Pana. The centerbrings college courses withinreach of people who live farfrom Lake Land’s Mattoonhome base, and the licensedpractical nurse course is one ofthe center’s most popular offer-ings.

Some 14 students in this par-ticular Pana class are abouthalfway through their yearlongstudies and get to ply theirgrowing skills on the ever-illdummy along with plenty ofhands-on education in real-lifehospital wards and nursinghomes.

“Perhaps the hardest thingto teach is critical thinking,”said Nohren, a nurse for 11years who works in a hospitaland surgery center. “Studentshave to learn how to think criti-cal-think, to apply their knowl-edge and use it.”

First, however, they have toget the knowledge, and that is alot easier when the learningcenter isn’t a wearying drivefrom home. Nursing studentLisa Young, 39, lives in Shel-byville and said she can reachPana in 20 minutes, a big plusduring Central Illinois wintersand times of rising gas prices.“Economically, coming herereally benefits me,” saidYoung, 39.

She’s also finding her shortdrive in pursuit of educationafter raising children ages 20and 17 is making her some-thing of a family role model. “Ithink it’s been an inspiration tomy kids to see me do this,” shesaid. “Just the fact that I amwilling to put forth the effort todo something I have alwayswanted to do.”

The Pana community hadlong wanted the WesternRegion Center and gone toextraordinary lengths tosecure it. College classes werefirst held in Pana High Schoolbut moved to the original

Western Region Center in 2006when it opened inside a for-mer Casey’s store buildingthat was donated to the com-munity by the company.

A major redevelopment andexpansion, completed in thefall, was spearheaded by thePana School District withFirst National Bank of Panacontributing $100,000 to theproject. The expansionquadrupled the space to sevenclassrooms and 8,000 squarefeet, and the school districtnow rents the expanded build-ing to Lake Land, whichoffers courses in everythingfrom history to computing,math, psychology and various

career and technical studies.Cindy Emerick, coordinator

of the Western Region Center,said there are even highschool students who hit thebooks at the facility during thesummer to get a jumpstart oncollege courses. In a typicalacademic year, some 600 stu-dents use the classrooms insome way, and classes start at8 a.m. and continue until 9:45p.m. four hectic days a week.

“The Pana community want-ed this place really bad,” saidEmerick. “They wanted it real-ly bad, and they want more:They are looking forward to theday, and so is the school dis-trict, when they can build aneven bigger building. Thedemand is definitely out there.”

A lot of it is fueled by stu-dents such as Pana’s 48-year-old Mark Denton. After risingto middle management in amanufacturing company onlyto get laid off, he’s gone backto school to study networkadministration as he charts anew course to a career thatwill most likely involve com-puter programming.

Ironically, he had started tak-ing computer courses 30 yearsago when he graduated highschool but left to take one of thethen plentiful manufacturingjobs. “I could kick myself todayfor having done that,” he said.

But now he’s rebooting hislife in a convenient classroomsituated three blocks from his

home and is determined todownload a new future for him-self. “You’ve got to have a mar-ketable skill,” he explained.“I’ve learned that much.”


Meridian studentsrestart newspaper,but this time on Web

By ANNIE GETSINGERH&R Staff Writer

MACON — For the first timein five years, students at Merid-ian High School have a newspa-per, but Meridian’s journalismclass has taken its innovativenews outlet one step ahead ofmost local schools by ditchingthe hard copies and opting toproduce The Hawk’s Eye, anonline-only news Web site.

The paper, which went live atwww.thehawkseye.net, features

stories, multimedia content,photos, an advice column andother content generated by theschool’s journalism students.

Jackson Riggen, 18, a seniorat the school and a staff reporterfor the paper, said a guidancecounselor told him and severalother students that a journalismclass would be offered.

Seniors Riggen, MirandaCurry, 17, Renee Boyd, 18, SarahGandy, 17, and others made upthe newspaper’s first staff.

“The big challenge was wedidn’t really know what to do,like we didn’t know what direc-tion to go with the paper,”Riggen said of the print versusonline dilemma the class faced.

“We had to basically start

the whole entire process upfresh,” said Boyd, who servedas the paper’s first editor-in-chief. “We chose the Webbecause it was cheaper.”

“We didn’t want people tojust throw it away and find allour hard work lying in the hall-ways,” Curry said.

The students said someadvantages of the Web formatinclude the abilities to monitorreadership, add content everyday, receive immediate feed-back and produce stories witha variety of multimedia compo-nents. Since the site’s launch,readership has increased,Riggen said.

NEWS/PAGE 16


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Reading the news online


Elizebeth Gille and Tyler Henderson produce an ad for a local business for the school’s Web-based newspaper, as part of Meridian’s journalism class taught by Shelia Moore.

Moving the classes closer to the students

Nohren sets vital signs on a teaching manikin as Doreen Aidoo,Tonya Sarvar and Lisa Young practice for certification.

Mark Denton, who is studying network administration, decided to pursue a new career, and the Panaclass site offered him an opportunity to learn in his hometown.

Herald & Review photos/Kelly J. Huff

Maria Nohren, Lake Land College Western Region Center nursing instructor and registered nurse, works with student Sarah Rardinon her RN curriculum at the center in Pana.

MORE

INFO

To find outmore about theWestern RegionCenter and LakeLand College, call562-5000 or go tolakeland.cc.il.us

The Road

Ahead

Only God really knows whatthe future holds for any of us. Forthose who choose to believe inJesus Christ who was born of theVirgin Mary and chose to die onthe cross for our sins then roseagain on the third day so that wewho are so undeserving could askfor forgiveness and receive salva-tion through the blood of JesusChrist; I know there is eternity inheaven with our loving fatherGod because he tells us this in hisholy word, the Bible.

Over the past 51 years, I havecome to find that God’s word istruth, and the truth sets us free. Ihave tried living my life for selfand the ways of this world, and Ihave tried living for God, but inspite of becoming “saved” 25years ago, I must admit that Ihave struggled in my “walk withGod” at times and living my lifeas a Christian due to feelings ofinsecurity, inadequacy andunworthiness, too. I still sawmyself as the person I was“before Christ,” therefore, I couldnot truly believe I was now whoGod says I am “in Christ” ... anew creation, holy, loved,redeemed, forgiven and set freefrom sin.

I have learned that it is achoice though, so now I choose tobelieve God and his truth of who Iam and that the future holds iseternity in heaven for me with myloving heavenly Father.

I hope to see you there as well!Bev Damery

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By COURTNEY WESTLAKEFor the Herald & Review

TAYLORVILLE — During atime when many financialinstitutions are struggling,Palmer Bank in Taylorville isexperiencing growth and prof-itability.

The bank’s growth has beenso great that it soon will moveto a new and bigger facility.

Palmer Bank will be mov-ing to the corner of Websterand Park streets, in the park-ing lot in front of Jensen’sHome Furnishings. The bankbroke ground for a new build-ing in late November, and thefacility officially will open inJune.

Plans for expansion beganto be discussed at the bankabout five years ago, saidJames Hahn, chief executiveofficer of the bank.

“In the small facility we’reat, we have a lack of storage,and we don’t have room toadd additional people,” Hahnsaid. “We’ve experienced agreat deal of growth the lastfive years, and it’s reallytaken off the last two.”

The suggestion for PalmerBank to build on its new loca-tion came from Jerry Jensen,owner of Jensen’s Home Fur-nishings.

“I’m a fan of that bank, andJim is a friend of mine from along time back,” Jensen said.“We have an enormous amountof property here, so this justreally worked for both of us.”

The plans for the relocationand purchase of the parkinglot were approved at a Julymeeting of the Taylorville

City Council.Hahn said the project

would have been completedsooner, but the bank began tocoordinate with expansionplans from the city and Tay-lorville Memorial Hospital.

When the new location’sconstruction is complete,Palmer Bank will be donatingpart of its current location onWebster Street to the city,which will extend WilsonStreet through to TaylorvilleMemorial Hospital.

“That will allow them tohave a straight shot to thehospital, whereas before, theambulances had to gothrough residential areas or aschool zone, so this will makeit much nicer,” Hahn said.

The bank’s current locationalso is challenging for bankcustomers because the exit ison a busy road, Hahn said.The new facility will offermultiple entrances and exitsfor customers.

“Convenience is impor-tant,” he said.

And the best feature of thenew facility?

“Space,” Hahn said with alaugh. “Right now, in one ofthe office corners of our loanofficers, our Christmas tree isstored. We won’t know how to

handle the extra storage.”While the current building

is 5,000 square feet, the newfacility will be 7,500 squarefeet on the ground level withan additional 7,500 square feetin the finished basement.

The bank’s new facility willalso have geothermal heatingand cooling and additionaloffices for staff members,which will help to ensure abetter working environmentand more privacy for staff,Hahn said. Palmer Bankemploys 16 full-time staff andtwo part time.

“We’re not building a TajMahal, but it’s something thatwe feel our customers willfeel comfortable cominginto,” Hahn said. “It will be anice facility for them to takecare of their financial needs.”

Jensen said he believes thebank’s presence at the inter-section will enhance the area.

“This is a popular corneranyway, and I think it will dogood things for this area, aswell as great things for thetown,” he said. “We’re veryhappy they’re going to be outhere. It’s just a plus for ourbusiness and our town. Whenit’s finished, this is going tobe one pretty corner.”

[email protected]

By VALERIE WELLSH&R Staff Writer

DECATUR — There’s a trick to pettinga hedgehog.

“It looked like it would be all prickly,”said Melissa Lynch, whose two childrenGrace, 5, and Cian, 3, attended ScovillChildren’s Zoo’s Animal Crackers pro-gram. “They showed them how to pet it,and I was thinking, ‘Can you really pet ahedgehog?’ ”

You sure can, and it’s only one of theanimals the zoo uses in Animal Crackers.

Assistant zoo director Ken Frye saidAnimal Crackers is a way for childrenwho love the zoo animals to stay con-

nected to them during the wintermonths, when weather precludes visitsto the zoo.

Children from 3 to 5 can visit once amonth for activities, including a craftproject, a story and meeting some of theanimals up close and personal.

“Usually, whatever the theme of theprogram is, they’ll meet a critter fromthat theme,” Frye said. “If it’s a deserttheme, they might meet a lizard. If it’s‘soft and cuddly,’ they might meet achinchilla.”

All the animals come from the mobilezoo program that visits schools, sothey’re used to being handled by small

humans, and zoo employees stay close byto assist and to hold the animals.

Lynch’s children love the program,and her daughter will be turning 6 soon,so she won’t be able to continue.

“It was really neat,” Lynch said. “Bothmy kids enjoyed it.”

Themes are kept deliberately vague,Frye said, so that several animals will fitthe theme, in case one of the staff hadplanned to use wakesup grumpy or sick.“Beaks and Tweaks,”one popular theme, isobviously birds with-out saying what kindof bird, and “Downon the Farm” couldbe anything.

“It kind of startsthem off on learningabout animals andtheir environmentand getting them tolearn not to be afraidof different types ofanimals like snakesand lizards,” Fryesaid.

“It’s a fun kind of activity that parentsand their kids can do together, and it’snot that long of a class. It’s a nice timefor parent and child to be involved in theactivity together and the animal themesmake for a fun Saturday outing,” sheadded.

The program runs year round, andparticipants can attend as often or asseldom as fits their schedule.

Each session lasts about 45 minutesand includes a snack of — what else? —animal crackers.



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Children gather around a leopard tortoise during an Animal Crackers session at Scovill Zoo, led by director Dave Webster. Attending theclass are Corinn Wiegard, Wray Vallier, Phoenix Walters, Jeri Walters, Callia Meyer, Anton Meyer, Lennox Colwell and Jack Wollen.

Critter closeness

Scovill Zoo director Dave Webster holds out Gabbie, a ring neck dove, for Anton and CalliaMeyen to touch during a program at the zoo.

Zoo’s Animal Crackers program gives kids a hands-on learning opportunity

MORE

INFO

For more infor-mation aboutScovill Zoo’s Ani-mal Crackers pro-gram, call 421-7435 or [email protected].

n o n

Opening Dayat Scovill Zoo isFriday, April 2.

Bank sees its move as great for Taylorville

For the Herald & Review/Courtney Westlake

Palmer Bank executives tour the construction of its new bankingfacility.

ABOUT THE BANK

Palmer Bank was founded in 1912 in Palmer. The current loca-tion in Taylorville was constructed in 1991 and became the bank’sheadquarters in 1992. The Taylorville branch is Palmer Bank’sonly branch.

n o n

To contact Palmer Bank, visit www.palmerbank.com or call 287-2265.

NEWSContinued from Page 14

“It’s pretty much some-thing fresh every day,” Currysaid. “You can get on there,and there’s at least one newstory.”

The students said theythink the newspaper is goodfor the entire local communi-ty, and the Web site has agreater potential for reachthan most hard copieswould.

“In middle school, we hadsomething, but that wasn’teven really like a newspa-per,” Riggen said. “It wasjust like a newsletter withfacts.”

“It’s a completely differentwriting style than whatwe’ve learned in generalEnglish classes,” Gandy saidof the journalistic format.

Some students are plan-ning on careers in journal-ism.

“I think this class is reallygood for students who wantto do journalistic writing, sowe need support from thecommunity to keep this classgoing,” Riggen said.

English teacher SheilaMoore, who oversees thejournalism class, said theidea for a Web-based news-paper came to her after shegot online to look for Meridi-an’s options in publishingthe paper. So far, she’s seennothing like her students’site in the local area.

“All of the other schoolswe’ve seen have been inother states,” Moore said.

In addition to being inno-vative and teaching the stu-dents a variety of new mediaskills, the site has saved theschool money. After an ini-tial fee, there has been virtu-ally no cost.

“From there, the studentssold advertising, and nowthey’re able to totally sustainthemselves,” Moore said,adding that her class hasbrought in enough money topay the site’s annual fee andspring for some extras.

The Meridian journalismstudents are hoping to learnabout and execute video pro-duction next, and they’re notfar behind other award-win-ning schools in their journal-istic endeavors.

“They’ve done an amazingjob,” Moore said.


THE NET

n State resources for highschool journalists via theAmerican Society of Newspa-per Editors: www.hsj.org

n Illinois Journalism Educa-tion Association: www.ijea.net

n Illinois State High SchoolPress Association: media.illinois.edu/ishspa/index.html

n Southern Illinois SchoolPress Association: web.mac.com/lbielong/iWeb/SISPA/SISPA.html


Eric Hurelbrink, history teacher and coach at Meridian High School,volunteers to be interviewed by senior Katlyn Crowder as part ofher journalism class assignment for the school’s online newspaper.

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By CHRIS LUSVARDIH&R Staff Writer

FORSYTH — Those walking intothe new Maroa-Forsyth GradeSchool can hardly miss the library.

It’s located straight ahead insidethe main doors of the building,which is in its first year of occupan-cy.

The location of the library was noaccident, Principal Rennie Cluversaid.

“It is and can be and will be thefocal point of learning,” Cluver said.“It’s an educational facility thateveryone can use in different ways.That’s why it’s in the center.”

Having a library in the schoolisn’t something the district’s stu-dents have always been able toenjoy. The old grade school buildingdidn’t have one, so in previousyears, students had to walk down thestreet to the Forsyth Public Library.

The old school did have a set ofaccelerated reading books, whichwere incorporated into the newlibrary as its collection is built.

“We could have had absolutely nobooks,” librarian Ginger Reynoldssaid. “I’m working with the teachersto help them with whatever they’redoing in the classroom.”

Third-grader Sierra Weilke enjoysknowing she will be able to visit thelibrary as planned.

“When it’s raining, you don’t haveto miss,” Sierra said.

Teachers can send students downin the afternoon and a steadystream usually find their way toreturn books and look for new oneswith the help of Reynolds and par-ent volunteers.

Building the library’s collection ofbooks is still a work in progress.Funding comes from grants, includ-ing one from the Maroa/ForsythSchool District Foundation, whichReynolds said will make it so thecollection can be added to for thenext three years.

Reynolds would like to add morenonfiction books to the library.

“A lot of kids enjoy reading non-fiction,” Reynolds said. “When theyget what they want, they’re reallyexcited to pick something new whenthey’re finished. It makes it sothey’re reading something all thetime. I try to make it so coming tothe library isn’t boring.”

Cluver said money for the librarycan be added into the school’s year-ly budget, and donations from par-ents help, too. Book fairs have beenheld, boosting the numbers, he said.

“You try to exhaust all the meanspossible,” Cluver said. “At the bookfairs, parents can buy for thelibrary, as well as at home use.”

Books are still checked out by theold-fashioned card and pocket sys-

tem. It can be a time-consumingprocess to keep track of all thebooks that way.

Reynolds and parent volunteersoften spend much of their time inthe afternoons sorting through the

pile of problem books, only to startthe process all over again the nextday.

“It’s just the time getting us intothe digital age,” Reynolds said. “It’snot a reality right now. It’s gettingthere. We’re getting close.”

The school has the technology totrack books electronically, but get-ting that system fully set up willtake time.

“We’re working to get everythingelectronic,” Cluver said. “We’ve gotthat available. We’ve just got to fin-ish all the bar codes and then we’llbe up and running.”

All the work is geared towardhelping the students find books toread and enjoy. It pays off as stu-

dents such as third-grader JacobSmith come in.

“It’s always nice coming to thelibrary,” Jacob said. “I’ve alwaysbeen happy with the books.”

Jacob enjoys not having to draghis bag down the street to go pickout a new book. He often asks forhelp in making the right selectionfor reading, whether it’s a mystery,adventure or another type of bookby various authors.

Jacob is looking forward to havingmore books from which to choose.

“It’s really good we got a newone,” Jacob said. “We always learnsomething from coming here.”


www.herald-review.com SUNDAY, MARCH 28, 2010 DECATUR, ILLINOIS OUTLOOK 17

Lydia Moon pulls out a book to check out.


Third-grader Rishiraj Taylor gets comfortable while choosing a book in the Maroa-Forsyth Grade School Library. BELOW: Books are labeled with different reading level tags.

Library at lastWith a new school building, Maroa-Forsyth

Grade School gets its own library

First-grader Ben Kennedy shows classmate Jack Applebee the bookon police cars he found to read.

Ginger Reynolds, the school’s librarian, works with students to findbooks appropriate to their reading level.

Haruko Komoto, a parent helper in the school’s library, helps MaazBashir find and check out a book.

ENJOY ING THE NEW SCHOOL

The new Maroa/Forsyth GradeSchool, 641 E. Shafer St. in Forsyth,opened to students in August. It replacedthe location at 137 S. Grant St., a spaceinto which Decatur Christian Schoolmoved.

It has taken much of the year to makeeveryone comfortable in the building andestablish a routine, Principal Rennie Clu-

ver said.“The newness still really hasn’t worn

off,” Cluver said. “It’s getting to becomemore like home for the kids.”

Cluver said the kids seem to adjust alot better than the adults.

“They enjoy all the things that it offersthem,” Cluver said. “It takes some timefor that to happen.”

Reasonable Serviceteaches children, do newthings — and have fun

By CHRIS LUSVARDIH&R Staff Writer

DECATUR — Travontaye Claypoolhas had fun the last few years learn-ing about the outdoors through vari-ous trips to canoe, hike, explorecaves and camp.

But first Claypool, a freshman atMacArthur High School, and otherBoy Scouts who meet on Saturdaysat Reasonable Service had to learnhow to swim. Reasonable Service isat 321 E. Leafland Ave. in the King-dom Come Ministries building.

“I didn’t know nothing,” Claypoolsaid. “I was afraid to get in thewater.”

Having the Scouts pass swimmingtests after lessons at the GreaterDecatur Y pool has allowed the pro-gram to offer a wider range of trips,said Michael Scherer, a volunteerleader of the group. A lot of the chil-dren wouldn’t otherwise have suchopportunities, Scherer said.

“They’re able to do things they’venever done before,” Scherer said.“We’re always pushing to do newactivities and provide opportunitiesfor them. We get these children atthis age and teach life skills so theyhave them by the time they get tohigh school and college.”

The goal is to develop the childreninto responsible citizens, Scherersaid.

“You have to come every week toreally know what is going on,” saidMacArthur freshman IsaiahGilliam. “I look forward to it.”

A group of Girl Scouts, rangingfrom kindergarten to sixth grade,also meets each Saturday to learnmany things, teacher Kim Tuckersaid.

“It’s more than just coming hereto do a fun activity,” Tucker said.“It’s a positive environment. Theycan get a break from the outsideworld.”

In January, Tucker talked to thegirls about such health topics asH1N1 influenza. February wasdevoted to history. In March, theywere going to get into eating welland exercising, Tucker said.

Shayveon Gaines, a fifth-grader atParsons School, has enjoyed thefield trips, learning and meetingfriends, some of whom she knowsfrom either school or church. Itgives her something to do.

“I have nothing else to do,”Gaines said. “I’d be at home.”

When the children get into middleand high school, Reasonable Serviceoffers them a chance to participatein Generation Impact, which pro-vides them with activities through-out the year.

“We want them to have fun, butwe also want them to learn skills,”said Tayisha Nelson, ReasonableService director.

MacArthur junior Desiree Neal

enjoys writing for the program’s

magazine. She wants to have her

own advice column.“With Generation Impact, it gives

us more of an incentive,” said Neal,who wants to be a lawyer. “It’ssomething I like to do. I’m able to bewith my friends and have fun learn-ing lessons.”

Each month, a group from Gener-ation Impact visits Lincoln Manorresidents, Nelson said. The visitsprovide value for both age groups,Nelson said.

“Some of the elderly don’t havefamily who come visit,” Nelson said.“When the youth give back, they cansee their situation is not as bad asthey might think.”

William Hood, who participated inthe program before graduating fromhigh school last year, had a friendwho would always beat him incheckers during the visits.

“It keeps them young,” Hood said.

“They got a kick out of us beingthere. Most of them seemed happy.When we come, it really brightenedup their day.”

Kyle Lovett has enjoyed volunteer-ing to help the Generation Impactyouth.

“I can be a positive influence tolet them know somebody cares,”Lovett said. “They really need some-body to work with and have some-body to talk to. It’s good for me tosee them open up a lot more.”

In addition to the programs thatmeet Saturdays, Reasonable Serviceoffers tutoring, ACT prep, field tripsand fine arts programming includ-ing music lessons.

Nelson said more activities areoffered throughout the week duringthe summer, including a work pro-gram, to give the children more to do.


www.herald-review.com18 OUTLOOK SUNDAY MARCH 28, 2010 DECATUR, ILLINOIS


Michael Scherer hands out frisbees to Cub Scout Troop 32 at Reasonable Service. The group often spends part of their sessions learning life skills. TOP: CharityBeasley works on sketching out some wording on a poster for Generation Impact. The members were working on several posters dealing with health andsocial issues.

Members of Generation Impact look over the art supplies they are using for a posterproject.

Scherer works with Cub Scouts on making a chair seat as part of a first aidlesson.

Reasonable Service has a number of classes that teach life skills to youth. Themembers of Generation Impact go through announcements before starting a project.

VOLUNTEER ING

In addition to youth activity programs,Reasonable Service offers a food pantryand clothing room.

Both are open from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.Saturdays.

Some of the volunteers help outbecause of previous experience being inneed.

“I help because just a few months agoI was in a situation where I needed help,”said Janetta Reed, who runs the foodpantry. “I know how it feels.”

Xavier Hall brings his children to helpso they can see what it’s like.

“It’s a really good learning experi-ence,” Hall said. “They see it from a dif-ferent angle. One day they’ll grow up andpass the same values to their children.”

For more information on how to getinvolved, call 330-8321.

Developing responsible citizens

Everyone can becalled ‘coach’atThanksgiving dinner

By VALERIE WELLSH&R Staff Writer

ARGENTA — Coachingmust be in the blood.

Mary Cothern is varsityvolleyball coach at PanaHigh School. Her brother,Martin Stupek, is softballcoach at Argenta-OreanaHigh School. Her otherbrother, Al Stupek, is headvarsity football coach atPana. Her husband, RogerCothern, is junior varsityvolleyball coach at Pana.And her son, Greg Cothern,is varsity volleyball coach atArgenta-Oreana.

And both schools’ colorsare orange and blue.

It all started with MaryCothern who, her brothershasten to point out, is theeldest. She is a graduate ofPana and started teachingthere in 1978. She begancoaching in 1980 and hascoached volleyball, track,basketball, youth baseballand soccer.

“I played high schoolsports and went to collegeand played sports and grewup in our neighborhood kindof being a tomboy and play-ing sports with my brothers,”she said.

Al Stupek started coachingat 16, though he’s a bankerby profession and, he said,the only grandparent amonghis siblings. Two years ago,the varsity football coachposition opened up at Panaand it was a good fit, so hetook it.

“I think, as Mary said, sheenjoys being around the ath-letes and teaching them, andI think that’s the thing thatdrives me to coaching,” hesaid. “Just being around thekids and trying to teachthem and make better peopleout of them.”

With a 23-year career asexecutive vice president ofFirst National Bank of Pana,he’s also coached just aboutevery sport, but he playedfootball in college, and it’shis favorite. He’s also quitesuccessful. His 2009 teamadvanced to the quarterfinals of the Class 3A stateplayoffs for the first time inthe school’s history.

“It’s probably your bestlife-lesson sport there is,” hesaid. “You’re going to getknocked down. It’s just likelife. You’re going to getknocked down in life, but youhave to keep getting back up.You’re not going to win everybattle, but you might win thewar, which is the key to life.”

Martin Stupek, an informa-tion technology manager forState Farm in Bloomington,has coached softball forabout 14 years. Both hisdaughters play. One is a sen-ior at Benedictine University,and the other is a freshmanat Argenta-Oreana HighSchool.

He’s already looking aheadto the empty nest.

“(Coaching) is a goodopportunity to keep meinvolved in the game and letme occupy my time whenthey leave,” he said.

Retired from his job asPana’s chief of police since2008, Roger Cothern coachedLittle League with his wifewhen their sons were grow-ing up. He jokes that he hadno choice because whenMary used to come homeand talk about her team, shegot tired of listening to hisadvice.

“She finally said, ‘Comeon, buddy, and see what youcan do,’ ” he said. “I enjoy it.A lot of people don’t realizehow skilled you have to be toplay volleyball. I love kids,

and I don’t have any girls.I’ve got six brothers and twosons and this is kind of away for a couple of months, Ican have girls for a while.”

For Greg Cothern, with hisparents and uncles all lead-ing the way, he has amplerole models for his owncoaching career.

“I always compare myselfto my mom and her pro-gram,” he said. “My life les-son in coaching is you can’tcompare yourself to every-body. You have to do yourown and make your own pathand look at little victoriesalong the way. Just recently,I’ve been able to see whatmy goals are and not com-pare them to everybodyelse.”

His elders are the kind ofcoach he wants to be, hesaid.

“One of the main reasonsI’m in teaching is for mymom,” Greg Cothern said. “Ilike being around athletesand seeing them grow. Oneof the unique things aboutcoaching junior high is I seethem in sixth grade, andthen I get to see them in highschool and how they finish.”

Argenta-Oreana and Panasometimes play each other,but that doesn’t create awk-ward family dinners, they allagree. The players all knoweach other, and that helps,too. It’s a rivalry, but a veryfriendly one.

“We keep being related toeach other separate, and it’sour teams against eachother,” Mary Cothern said.

When their teams aren’tplaying each other, they go toeach other’s games, RogerCothern said.

“The thing that I like is,my kids I have in high schoolknow them, and I know theirkids and it seems more like across-team unity,” GregCothern said. “It just seemslike we have a big close-knitgroup.”

Only Greg’s brother Mikedodged the coaching urge.Instead, he followed anotherfamily tradition.

“He’s a banker,” like hisuncle, Al Stupek, Greg said.


www.herald-review.com SUNDAY, MARCH 28, 2010 DECATUR, ILLINOIS OUTLOOK 19

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John Barr Barr & Barr Decatur 217.875.5311Bankruptcy: Individual; Bankruptcy & Workout: CommercialJohn L. Barger Craig & Craig Mattoon 217.234.6481Personal Injury Defense: General; Real Estate: Commercial; Real Estate: Residential; Workers’ Compensation DefenseStephen L. Corn Craig & Craig Mattoon 217.234.6481Insurance, Insurance Coverage & Reinsurance; Medical Malpractice Defense; Personal Injury Defense: General; Prof’l Malpractice Defense: Including Legal/Technical/FinancialRobert G. Grierson Craig & Craig Mattoon 217.234.6481Agriculture Law; Banking & Financial Institutions; Closely & Privately Held Business; Real Estate: Residential; Trust, Will & Estate PlanningGregory C. Ray Craig & Craig Mattoon 217.234.6481Personal Injury Defense: General; Workers’ Compensation DefenseGary F. Geisler Geisler Law Offices Decatur 217.423.8081Criminal Defense: Felonies & Misdemeanors; Family Law; Personal Injury: General; Personal Injury: Professional MalpracticePhilip J. Tibbs Geisler Law Offices Decatur 217.423.8081Criminal Defense: Felonies & MisdemeanorsH. Kent Heller Heller Holmes & Associates PC Mattoon 217.235.2700Aviation Law; Personal Injury: General; Personal Injury: Professional MalpracticeBrent D. Holmes Heller Holmes & Associates PC Mattoon 217.235.2700Personal Injury: General; Personal Injury: Professional Malpractice; Workers’ CompensationKent A. Rathbun Kent A Rathbun PC Decatur 217.423.9060Family LawJeffrey D. Richardson Law Office of Jeffrey D Richardson Decatur 217.424.4082Bankruptcy: Individual; Bankruptcy & Workout: Commercial; Commercial LitigationJoseph J. Darflinger Law Office of Joseph J. Darflinger Decatur 217.422.2214Criminal Defense: DUI; Family Law; ADR: FamilyMarilyn B. Resch Resch Siemer Law Office LLC Effingham 217.342.1105Family LawKeith W. Casteel Samuels Miller Schroeder Jackson & Sly LLP Decatur 217.429.4325Agriculture Law; Banking & Financial Institutions; Environmental Law; Real Estate: Commercial; Trust, Will & Estate PlanningJames T. Jackson Samuels Miller Schroeder Jackson & Sly LLP Decatur 217.429.4325Commercial Litigation; Medical Malpractice Defense; Personal Injury Defense: General; School LawJerald E. Jackson Samuels Miller Schroeder Jackson & Sly LLP Decatur 217.429.4325Medical Malpractice Defense; Personal Injury Defense: General; Products Liability DefenseMark E. Jackson Samuels Miller Schroeder Jackson & Sly LLP Decatur 217.429.4325Adoption & Reproductive Technology; Medical Malpractice Defense; Personal Injury Defense: General; Products Liability Defense; Workers’ Compensation DefenseDarrell A. Woolums Samuels Miller Schroeder Jackson & Sly LLP Decatur 217.429.4325Banking & Financial Institutions; Governmental, Municipal, Lobbying & Administrative; Real Estate: Commercial; Trust, Will & Estate PlanningWilliam W. Austin Siemer Austin Fuhr & Totten Effingham 217.342.9291Closely & Privately Held Business; Real Estate: Commercial; Real Estate: ResidentialQ. Anthony Siemer Siemer Austin Fuhr & Totten Effingham 217.342.9291Closely & Privately Held Business; Land Use, Zoning & Condemnation; Real Estate: Commercial; Real Estate: Residential; Trust, Will & Estate PlanningDavid W. Sutterfield Sutterfield Law Offices PC Effingham 217.342.3100Elder Law; Social Security DisabilityWilliam A. Peithmann The Peithmann Law Office Farmer City 309.928.3390Agriculture Law; Real Estate: Commercial; Tax: Business; Tax: Individual; Trust, Will & Estate PlanningDaniel L. Gaumer Winters Featherstun Gaumer Postlewait Stocks & Flynn Decatur 217.429.4453Insurance, Insurance Coverage & Reinsurance; Personal Injury Defense: General; Workers’ Compensation DefenseJerrold H. Stocks Winters Featherstun Gaumer Postlewait Stocks & Flynn Decatur 217.429.4453Insurance, Insurance Coverage & Reinsurance; Personal Injury Defense: General; Products Liability Defense

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Through hours ofresearch, Ken Mayes has amassed more schoolrecords than the IHSA

By LEROY BRIDGESH&R Staff Writer

LINCOLN — For 50 years, Ken Mayeshas been a historian of Illinois HighSchool Association basketball.

The 76-year-old from Lincoln hastraveled all over the state diggingthrough newspapers and files chart-ing win-loss records for more than700 high schools.

The hobby that’s yielded six booksmore than a half-inch thick ofrecords stems from his passion forbasketball. In his high school days,Mayes was a basketball star himselfat Palmyra Northwestern HighSchool.

“In high school, I collected records,and I thought if I could do that, thenI could go big time,” said Mayes, whofrequents Lincoln basketball games.“I’ve got better records than theIHSA.”

He’s not exaggerating.Mayes has more than 100 schools’

complete basketball records, some ofwhich date back to the 19th century.He spends time tracking downrecords on the Internet and by phonemore than five times a week.

Most of the time, he has plenty ofsuccess filling the holes for certainschools and certain years.

“The co-oping is hard to deal with.North Fulton and South Fulton, I getconfused on those. I have to go to theIHSA map, and it shows all theschools and helps me out,” he said.

But with more and more schoolsbecoming co-ops, the task is becom-ing more difficult.

“It’s hard to keep up with it,”Mayes said about schools changingtheir athletic programs. “But I have apretty good collection.”

Many times when schools co-op, therecords are thrown away, consignedto the sidelines for all time, destinedto be forgotten. That’s where Mayes’information becomes valuable for alot people, including the IHSA.

“There are just a lot of littleschools that aren’t around, but I havethe details of their basketball sea-sons,” Mayes said. “This is a passionof mine.”

Mayes said Chicago-area schoolsare especially difficult to keep trackof because of consolidation. That’sone area of the state where his col-lection gets a little thin because ofthe closing and reopening of schools.

“He loves it,” said Mayes’ wife,Gerri. “He puts a lot of time andwork into it. It’s good to keep himbusy.”

With this year’s basketball seasoncoming to a close, Mayes is spendingplenty of his time tracking down 2009-10 records. So, just like any otheryear, his stacks of records will contin-ue to grow.


High school sports enthusiast Ken Mayes has been keeping football and basketball season recorded since 1960.

Outscoring them all

Herald & Review photos/Kelly J. Huff

Ken Mayes, a high school sports enthusiast, looks over the 1934 New Berlin-Loami HighSchool team picture. His collection of sports records is more extensive than that of theIllinois High School Association.

The family thatcoaches together

Herald & Review/Stephen Haas

From left to right, Argenta-Oreana coaches Martin Stupek and GregCothern and Pana coaches Mary Cothern, Roger Cothern and AlStupek are all one family of coaches.

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