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SEE HONOR ROLLS ON PAGES B4-5 Inside This Week: Opinion ................A2 Obits .................... A3 Retro ....................A4
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Church .................A5 Bus Dir .................A8 Jump ....................A9
General ............. A11 Sports ............B1, B2 Court News . B8-9, 11
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Tuesday, January 26, 2021
Volume 141 Edition 4
Baker finishes 30-year stint as CEO
By Lynda Baker Bruce Baker opened the January 2021 meeting of the Poseyville Town in what would be his last duty as President of the Council. Baker, who has served on the Council for 33 years (30 as President), expressed his pleasure in serving in such capacity, but he felt that it was time for him to step aside, citing health issues. He indicated that he would complete his remaining three years on the Council, which would give him an opportunity to share all that he has learned over the years with the new members. Baker then nominated Mike Baehl to serve as President of the Council, which motion was unanimously approved. Baehl thanked Baker for his service and shared that he had only recently discovered the time and effort the position involved. “I am learning something new every day,” he said.
Bruce Baker There was a discussion regarding Phase III Covid Grants, which
grants may be used for emotional and/ or mental health services, expanded childcare services, WIFI hotspots, rent and utilities for low income households, food banks, and other situations impacted by the pandemic; however, a 50 percent low-moderate income level would be necessary to qualify for such services. Assistance for small businesses will again be made available under similar guidelines, for up to $10,000. This time, however, the business owner must complete the employee income portion of the application. The Council agreed to apply for $200,000 in this phase. If approved, Poseyville small businesses may apply to receive these funds, as may small businesses within two miles of town limits. Competition for the town
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New Harmony to benefit from grant
Roger Anderson, with Elpers Construction, works on the front of the Owen Block building in New Harmony, shoring up the surface for a new paint job this week. Photo by Dave Pearce
By Trisha L. Lopez The New Harmony Town Council voted for current president Alvin Blaylock to remain at the helm in 2021 and named department heads and committee appointments during its January meeting on Tuesday. The following council members were named department heads and back ups (listed second) for each department: Roger Wade and Tom Williams, gas; Blaylock and Wade, water; Wade and Gary Watson, sewage; Blaylock and Virginia Alsop, fire; Watson and Wade, police; Alsop and Watson, parks; Williams and Blaylock, cemetery; Alsop and Williams, street; Alsop and Watson, trails; and Williams and Alsop, solid waste. The council made the following appointments: Erin Bauer, town attorney; Allen Hatch and Tony Treadway,
Area Plan Commission; Sarah Murphy, park board; and Blaylock, Posey County Economic Development Partnership. Council members also voted to continue meeting at 8:30 a.m. on the third Tuesday of each month. The council voted to appropriate $23,102.95 from the motor vehicle highway fund, the motor vehicle highway restricted fund and the economic development income tax fund to meet the required 25 percent commitment for a Community Crossings Grant to work on Main Street from Park Avenue to the south boundary of town, Steammill Street from Arthur to West Street, East Street from South Street to Park Avenue and Murphy Street from
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Front line worker Amber Grabert is BPW Woman of Year
By Lois Mittino Gray “My mouth almost hit the floor. I was so surprised. Holy Moly. I am completely blown away. I never in my wildest dreams thought I would win this award, but I did,” Amber Grabert gushed with excitement. Grabert was named the Mount Vernon Chapter of Business and Professional Women’s 2021 “Woman of the Year” in a complete surprise, pulled off by family and club members on Thursday, January 14. She is employed as a registered nurse at Ascension-Saint Vincent. “That night started out routine. I came home from work and helped my daughter with some homework, and helped with dinner. My husband was already in his sleeping pants and he told me to go to my BPW meeting at the Elks Club with no worries. After I left, he changed clothes, grabbed the kids, and met my mom and sister at the Elks Club. I had my back to the door and did not see them come in. The club members hid them all in the other room, until the announcement. They came out smiling and I was stunned,” she recalled. “He kept the secret so well.” The delighted winner was nominated by fellow club member, Jeanne Wehr. She received a beautiful plaque, complete with Jeanne’s framed letter, presented by Club President Kathryn Coleman. This was followed by a
big bouquet of flowers, a BPW Woman of the Year pin, and plenty of hugs and well-wishes from family and friends. Amber joined the BPW organization six years ago at the invitation of her great-aunt, Janice McGennis Carr. At that time, Carr was helping watch her daughter, Brookelyn, while she worked. “She thought I could use one night off a month to get out and be with other ladies. So I joined and I do enjoy the meetings and outings,” she said. In her letter of nomination, Wehr wrote, “We are so blessed to have our front line workers at our health care facilities putting their personal lives on the back burner to help others in need. They are overwhelmed. Our own BPW has its own front line worker in Amber Grabert.” Nurse Grabert, locally-raised daughter of Rick and Amy Bulla, attended Farmersville Elementary School and was graduated from Mount Vernon High School in 2005. She studied nursing at Ivy Tech and started her career in 2009, when it was still called Saint Mary’s Hospital. She worked three years in the ICU Step Down Unit, until transferring to her current role in 2021 as an Infectious Disease Department nurse. “I just love what I do and wouldn’t change it for the world,” she de-
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Amber Grabert, center, was surrounded by her family who surprised her when she was presented with the BPW Woman of the Year Award. From left: her sister, Krystal Schmidt; her niece, Kaydence Briody; her mother, Amy Bulla; Grabert; her husband, Chris holding Braelyn; and daughter Brookelyn in front. Photo submitted
Making the best of a tough situation
Necessity is mother of invention in COVID crazy year
Emily Sellers
(USPS 439-500)
By Lois Mittino Gray Emily Sellers is in her ‘sophomore year’ as an educator, so she can now compare two years of teaching first grade at Saint Matthew School in Mount Vernon. This year, of course, is very different with COVID-19 restrictions looming in her classroom. “This is really a crazy year, so doing special things is very limited or modified. For example, last year students who met their accelerated reading program goals at the end of a quarter went out to the movies. This year, we had a Pajama Day here at school instead for goal makers. They wore pajamas, ate popcorn and snacks, and watched a Jingle, Jangle movie we streamed,” she explained. Last Tuesday, Sellers’s ten students celebrated one hundred days of being in class with special activities. They
raced each other in math, rolling one die at a time, to see who could be the first to reach 100. They did a number 100 coloring page and took pictures wearing their ‘Happy 100 Day’ hats. Since parents cannot visit these days, Sellers uses an app called Bloom to communicate with parents and send them these photos of class events. “With our small size, it is easier to feel safe here with COVID concerns, since we can spread the kids out more. They are just great about wearing their masks. Being so young, I do have to remind them sometimes to put it on,” she said. Students wear masks when moving in the hallway, at lunch or going to larger rooms, such as music and art. They do not have to wear them at recess. Emily tries to wear her mask most of the day. Since Saint Matthew is a Catholic
school, her students wear masks to attend mass once a week, first thing on Thursday mornings. “They do pretty good sitting still for about forty minutes. They process up to the altar to get a blessing from Fr. Ryan during communion. They really like Fr. Ryan. He’s great with them,” she enthused. Her teaching assignment also involves trading with the kindergarten teacher to teach social studies to the younger students, during the second and fourth quarters. The Kindergarten teacher then teaches Science to Emily’s first graders. “This is a good way for me to get to know the students who will be in my first grade next year,” she observed. The Evansville native is very familiar with Catholic education. She graduated from Mater Dei High School in 2013. She earned an elementary education
degree from the University of Southern Indiana in 2016. “I always knew I wanted to be a teacher from the beginning,” she said. The devoted educator is single and is currently living in an apartment in Evansville, near her home parish of Saint Boniface. On weekends after dealing with the high energy and constant questions of the youngsters, she enjoys reading a good book or watching a movie on Netflix. “I’m more of an indoor person. I occasionally go for a walk. No, I don’t garden or raise plants. I kill flowers,” she told me with a smile. “I do like to spend time with my large family. My mom was one of eight, so I have about 20 cousins and a brother.” Right now, everyone at the school is working together to make an object to
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