OPINION: Make 2014 a year to be proud of: Page A4 NEWS: 2013 year in review, part two: Page A2
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INSIDE NEWS
Elvis sings to residents. See page B2
FRIENDS & NEIGHBORS
Carter turning 5. See page A5
SCHOOL
Sled club visit kindergartners. See page B1
SPORTS
JANUARY 1, 2014
JOURNAL VOL. 12, NO. 1 - 75¢
County website coming along, may debut in about a month By ROBERT LyONS Jersey County Journal The debut of an all encompassing Jersey County website may be only a month away. A prototype of the site is already available to members of the county board’s special projects committee. The committee’s chairman, Mary Kirbach, said the information that has been submitted for inclusion by the various county offices has been loaded on to the prototype. “I’m sure it will be changing as we go, and certainly we’ll tweak things as we find other information that we’d like to add or change,” Kirbach said.
Website plans have been in the works since at least late-2012, but were progressing at a slower-than-expected rate, according to Linda Davidson, the county’s geographical information system tech, who was recruited to help develop the site. “It’s been a little slow trying to gather all of the information that we want to put on there, but things have been moving along,” Davidson said. The code administrator, treasurer and county board are a few of the county offices planning to maintain a presence on the site. Other office holders, such as the sheriff, state’s attorney, circuit clerk and county clerk, already have their own websites. Those pre-existing sites will be
Tree of Lights still striving to reach goal By ROBERT LyONS Jersey County Journal The holiday season passed by without the lights reaching the top of the giant Christmas tree in front of Jersey State Bank. The Salvation Army’s Tree of Lights campaign in Jersey County is around $5,000 away from meeting its goal for the season. But, Salvation Army service unit chairman Richard Lott said the nationwide campaign will continue until Jan. 15, giving nearly two more weeks to reach the targeted $40,000 mark. “We usually pretty much end ours up by Christmas. This is only the third time since I’ve been involved in that we haven’t made the goal by Christmas,” Lott said. “Last year, we were at almost $42,000 by now.” As of Monday afternoon, the annual campaign had raised $34,800, $5,200 less than it had been aiming for. “It could be the economy or it could be other charities that are also doing their campaigns right now,” Lott said, noting nobody is losing when multiple charitable organizations are fulfilling their missions. Nearly 60 percent of the money raised by the Tree of Lights campaign came through donations to the kettles outside local businesses throughout the holiday season, according to Lott, with the rest coming by way of mailin donations. He said the kettle efforts
linked to the county’s main site, according to Davidson. Both Davidson and Kirbach agree the county’s site will be welcomed by county residents. Information such as hours and services will be easily accessible, and various forms from county offices will be available for download. “They will have that stuff available to them before they even come in,” Davidson said. The county has been working with Riverbender.com since mid-August 2013. Davidson said once information is submitted by an office holder, it is loaded onto the test site very quickly. According to both sources’ accounts, Riverbender.com has been easy to
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work with and is producing a quality product that is very user-friendly. Kirbach said a representative of Riverbender is in regular contact with the committee to ensure the project is developing smoothly. “We’ve been very pleased with them,” Kirbach said. “They were very competitive in their pricing and we’ve had excellent service.” Kirbach said the website has the potential to save residents quite a bit of time when dealing with the county. “It will also help the employees by cutting back on phone calls and that kind of thing,” Kirbach said. “It should be a win-win for everybody.”
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included 576 hours of bell ringing time, donated by organizations and individuals. “If that wasn’t all there, we wouldn’t have a program,” he said. One bell ringer in particular helped garner higher than average donations, Lott said. On Monday, Dec. 23, U.S.
“We usually pretty much end ours up by Christmas. This is only the third time since I’ve been involved in that we haven’t made the goal by Christmas. Last year, we were at almost $42,000 by now.”
Richard Lott Salvation Army service unit chairman Representative Rodney Davis asked to ring the bell at Walmart. Lott said he assumed Davis was taking advantage of a publicity opportunity, but realized the congressman’s presence may bring more attention to the Salvation Army’s cause. “When he got there, I thought he (See, Goal, a2)
Birds second at Carrollton. See page C10
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Andy Christian, left, holds a rope taut while Michael Booth positions himself for the final cut to bring the tree down Monday morning on State Street in Jerseyville. The two men work for Wright Tree Service, which has been working in town for the past few months to remove powerline obstructions.
Week of Dec. 23-31 1) Missing woman’s body found near Joe Page Bridge 2) New Illinois laws have local impact 3) 2014 may be banner year for eagle viewing 4) Lady Panthers 3-1 within MVC 5) Three wrestlers place in top-five
2014 may be a banner year for bald eagle viewing
INDEX Court . . . . . . . . . . . . . . D4 News . . . . . . . . .A2, A3, B2, B3 Obituaries. . . . . . . . . . C2 Editorial . . . . . . . . . . . . A4 Our Town . . . . . . . . . . A6 Public Notice . . . . D1, D4 Sports. . . . . . . . . . . . . . C6 OBITUARIES:
ANTOINE, CRAFTON, FITZGIBBONS, GOLIKE, MCCALEB, SANDERS, WEED.
jerseycountyjournal .com
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A female bobcat was taken to TreeHouse Wildlife Center in Dow to recuperate after being hit by a car. The bobcat is being called Freeburg, in reference to the location it was found.
TreeHouse receives another injured bobcat By ROBERT LyONS Jersey County Journal Amidst the tweets, screeches and cries of the birds at Dow’s TreeHouse Wildlife Center, visitors might hear the caterwauling or mild roar of a big cat. For the second time in less than two
years the TreeHouse Wildlife Center is nursing a bobcat back to health. Like Belle, the bobcat before her, the most most recent bobcat was hit by a car and suffered head trauma, according to Rachael Heaton, senior intern and assistant education director of TreeHouse. The newest bobcat (See, bobcat, a2)
By ROBERT LyONS Jersey County Journal The early winter’s bitter cold temperatures have made the region more welcoming for some annual visitors. Scott Isringhausen, urban fishing coordinator and former Pere Marquette site interpreter, said he believes this will be a great winter for bald eagle viewing. “It got so cold so early and we got ice, it just pushed the eagles into the area earlier. The potential is there to be a great year,” Isringhausen said. “I think this could be one of the best we’ve had in the last several years, to be honest with you. It’s setting up like that.” The state park’s Bald Eagle Days programs resume Jan. 3, with six dates in the first month of the year. There will be 11 days of the program in February and two more in March. The program, led by Isringhausen, teaches participants about bald eagles while embarking on a viewing tour of the birds in their natural habitat. The bi-state region is the second largest home of wintering bald eagles in the United States, behind only an area encompassing northern California and southern Oregon. Alaska has the largest bald eagle population in the nation. “The eagles that we’re seeing here are primarily coming from northern C
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Minnesota, northern Wisconsin and Canada,” Isringhausen said. He said the giant birds, with wingspans up to seven-and-a-half feet, draw visitors to the area from all across the United States. Local residents, how-
“I think this could be one of the best we’ve had in the last several years, to be honest with you. It’s setting up like that.”
Scott Isringhausen Former Pere Marquette State Park site interpreter ever, don’t have far to travel to get a glimpse of the magnificent creatures. “People don’t realize how fortunate we are, this truly being the second best place in the lower 48 states,” Isringhausen said. “To have the bald eagle here in its natural habitat and setting, we truly are blessed.” He said the Riverbend area receives a shot in the arm from the tourism industry that picks up with the arrival of the eagles. He said there have been studies done which give an average of how much each visitor spends at local
• Visit tworiversoutdoors.com for a list of Bald Eagle Days at Pere Marquette State Park, as well as other eagle events around the area.
businesses. “I don’t know a dollar number, but the economic impact is great,” he said. In 2013, Isringhausen became the Illinois Department of Natural Resources urban fishing coordinator for southern Illinois. But, he said IDNR hasn’t filled his position as Pere Marquette’s site interpreter, so he had the opportunity to lead the Bald Eagle Days program once again. “At the very least, I want to be involved in training that person [hired as site interpreter],” Isringhausen, who has been with Pere Marquette since the inception of Bald Eagle Days, said. “But, I like it and am real excited about doing them again this year.” All programs begin at 8:30 a.m. and reservations are required. Because of Isringhausen’s role as urban fish coordinator, the ewagle programs will only be offered on weekdays. For more information, contact Pere Marquette State Park at (618) 786-3323. Isringhausen said the park is hoping to have its live eagle cam up and running soon, also. Since 2011 a live video feed from a nearby eagles’ nest has been broadcast onto a screen in the Pere Marquette visitor’s center.