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E-Newsletter - June 13, 2008
Welding
Equipment May Have Sparked Fire At New Waterloo High School An early morning fire that damaged the roof of the new Waterloo High School building is not expected to delay next year’s planned opening date of the new facility, said Superintendent Jim Helton. The preliminary investigation suggests the fire may have sparked in an area where welding work took place Thursday afternoon, according to Waterloo Fire Chief Mark Yeager. “Workers had been welding and cutting around an air condition unit yesterday,” Yeager said. “They didn’t notice anything out of the ordinary when they left work at 4:30 p.m.” S.M. Wilson & Co. is the management firm handling the construction of the new high school. Yeager said he believes an ember may have smoldered overnight and the fire spread when the wind picked up this morning. “We were able to quickly knock out the fire because there are not a lot of flammable materials up on the roof,” Yeager said. Waterloo’s Deputy Police Chief Mike Douglas, who called in the initial report of the fire as he was patrolling the area, received high praise from Helton.
“I am very
thankful Douglas spotted the fire before it was able to cause any major damage,”
Helton said. Speed Zone To Be Enforced On Bluff Road In an attempt to slow down vehicles traveling on Bluff Road at the construction site at Hanover Road, the county will lower the speed limit until construction is completed. “Cars have been flying through that area and, for the safety of our crews, we need to slow down traffic,” said County Engineer Ron Polka. The speed limit will be set at 45 mph and speed indicators will be used to get drivers attention. “We ask everyone to have a little patience in the area,” Polka said. “There will be big trucks and other construction vehicles at work there for a little while.” The Monroe County Highway Department is in the process of straightening out a section of Bluff Road at Hanover Road between Columbia and Valmeyer. The goal is to have the project completed by the end of the year, but that is largely dependent on the weather.
The Alzheimer's Association’s “In the Moment” support group will meet Thursday, June 26, at Oak Hill in Waterloo. The meeting is from 7 to 9 p.m. in the Arbor Court Activity Center. The evening will address maintaining a positive attitude in daily living. For further information, call Julia at 618-939-3488, ext. 1248.
MASC’s
Performances Of Woody Allen Play Begin This Weekend by Judy Brinkmann The Monroe Actors State Company’s production of the Woody Allen play “Don’t Drink The Water” begins its two-week run this weekend. The play opens on Friday, June 13, with additional performances on June 14, 15, 20, 21 and 22. Show times are 7:30 p.m. on Friday and Saturday evenings and 2:30 p.m. on Sunday afternoons. After taking too many photos of a military installation in an eastern European communist country, Walter Hollander, played by MASC veteran John Campbell, and his family are labeled as spies and must seek asylum in the American Embassy. Trying to figure out how to get out of the country and back home, the family finds out their goose is cooked when a bumbling son-of-a-diplomat is their best hope for a rescue. Life in 1966 has all gone downhill for Hollander. His plight is the central topic of the play, which is chocked-full of other comical characters, including a priest played by Jeff Clinebell whose personal passion is performing mediocre magic tricks for anyone he can get to watch. Cameo appearances will be made by Waterloo Mayor and First Lady Tom and Pat Smith, Valmeyer Mayor and First Lady Howard and Ellen Heavner, Sue Sweet, Judi Horrell and George Obernagel. Advance tickets may be purchased with cash or check at the Courthouse Café in Waterloo and at Bon Vivant in Columbia during regular business hours. Reserve tickets are available by calling 618-939-SHOW or online at www.masctheatre.org. Auditions for “Nunsense,” MASC’s September musical, are Sunday and Monday, June 15 and 16, at 7 p.m., at the Capitol Theater.
Low voltage at an AmerenIP substation in Dupo is believed to have been the cause of yesterday’s power outage in Waterloo, reports Tim Birk, Waterloo’s director of public utilities.
U.S. Congressman Jerry Costello (D-IL) is keeping a close eye on the potential for flooding of area rivers. He will receive updates twice a day from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers until the possibility of flooding passes, according to a Costello representative. The Mississippi River is expected to reach 39 feet in St. Louis, which is nine feet over the flood stage, by June 20, according to Gene Henckler, the local director of the Illinois Emergency Management Agency. As of 1 p.m. today, the current level was 32.7 feet.
Retiring Valmeyer High School music teacher Marcia Braswell is busy cleaning out her office and said has found a lot of programs from past musicals. Anyone interested in them, please contact her at the school before June 27.
Valmeyer Mid-Summer Celebration and Baseball Classic The 2008 Valmeyer Mid-Summer Celebration and Baseball Classic will be July 3 through July 6 at Borsch Park in old Valmeyer. The event will kick off Thursday, July 3, with music by the Fountain Creek Band from 8:30 p.m. to 12:30 a.m. Festivities on Friday, July 4, begin at 9 a.m. with the first baseball game. There will be a washers tournament at 1 p.m. The cost is $10 per two-person team, and interested parties can contact Jim at 935-2736 for more information or to sign up. July 4 will wrap up with a “colossal fireworks” display at dusk, then music by Aftershock from 8: 30 p.m. to 12:30 a.m. There will be more baseball on Saturday, July 5, beginning at 9 a.m. There will also be a volleyball tournament at 10 a.m. The cost is $60 per team, and in those interested can call Kris at 458-7771 for more information or to sigh up. The parade will be Saturday at 5 a.m. Floats and other entries are still being accepted, and Alex will provide more information at 458-4546. The evening will wrap up with music by Millennium from 8:30 p.m. to 12:30 a.m. The baseball classic will conclude Sunday, July 6, with the first game at 10 a.m. and the championship game at approximately 3 p.m. Local organizations will operate food stands as part of their fundraising efforts. The Lions Club will sell hamburgers, hot dogs, French fries and lemonade. Pork Producers will offer brats and butterfly pork chops. The Optimists will sell chicken strips, funnel cakes, Gatorade and bottled water. The Knights of Columbus will have fish and chips and the Valmeyer Youth Sports Association will offer soda and snow cones. To get to Borsch Park, take Route 156 west down the bluff to old Valmeyer.
The SS. Peter and Paul Church of Waterloo Summer Picnic is Friday and Saturday, June 13 and 14. Friday’s food offerings include fish plates and hamburgers. Saturday’s specialty is the family-style chicken dinner. There will be a quilt bingo and musical entertainment both evenings. New to the picnic this year are Saturday evening magic shows. Performances are at 6 and 7:30 p.m. Rumors are also circulating that Waterloo Mayor Tom Smith will make an appearance in the dunking booth on Friday, from 4 to 4:30 p.m. Waterloo Automotive will provide free shuttle rides on Saturday only, to and from their parking lot at 622 N. Market in Waterloo. The bus will run every 30 minutes from 3 p.m. to 8 p.m.
Listen For
Those Tornado Warnings, But Stay Alert For Lightning Strikes Weather watches and warnings are a daily occurrence in Monroe County lately and tornadoes in particular are getting a lot of talk these days. But one weather phenomenon that often gets overlooked, and kills more Americans annually than tornadoes, is lightning. Lightning is associated with thunderstorms, but the storm does not need to be in the immediate area for there to be the danger of a lightning strike. A rule of thumb is that if you can hear thunder, even if you can’t see the lightning, you are close enough to be struck by it. As we approach July, the most dangerous month for lightning fatalities, here is some advice on what to do when faced with the danger of lightning or a severe thunderstorm:
Lightning Facts:
Remember, weather alerts are not issued for lightning, and lightning can strike without a severe thunderstorm’s presence. So stay alert out there. For even more information on lightning and other weather, check out these websites: http://www.weather.com/encyclopedia/?from=footer or http://sky-fire.tv/index.cgi/lightning.html
The Fountain Creek Band will play June 14, from 8:30 p.m. to 12:30 a.m., at the Water Street Bar and Grill in Evansville.
Local rock band Father Jack will play Saturday, June 21, at Gallagher’s, marking guitarist Jim Whelan’s debut with the band.
Upcoming Red Cross Blood Drives June 17 from 2 p.m. to 7 p.m. at Turner Hall in Columbia June 19 from 2:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. at the Hecker Community Center
Calendar of Events:
Friday Waterloo VFW Fish Fry and Bingo
Saturday SPPS Picnic
Sunday
The Lighter Side Of Beverage Merger Talks… (Ed-itor’s Note: Not one part of the following story can be proven or confirmed.) While everyone in St. Louis is discussing the impact of a merger in the beer brewing business, a local bottler is reported to be making a move of their own. There are rumors circulating in downtown Waterloo watering holes that legendary soft-drink conglomerate Bode’s Sode’s is planning on making a bid for the beverage industry leader Coca-Cola. Company spokesman Kenny Bode was interviewed this morning while he was on his morning stroll in downtown Waterloo. “I can neither confirm nor deny an offer has been made. All I will say is that I am trying to establish some negotiations,” Bode said. Although idle for more than 20 years, Bode said his family’s company is ready to expand. He believes the orange, grape and red drinks he used to make taste as good, if not better, than any Coke today. Bode’s Sode’s was a Waterloo-based bottler of soda from 1959 until they sold the business to Dix Lenhardt in the late 1980s. “It was then known as Dix’s Mixes,” Bode added. Bode said he has been saving his spare change in the bank, where it has been earning interest. “I have also parlayed some funds from scratch-off lottery tickets,” Bode said, although he would not disclose how much he planned to offer Coca-Cola. Bode said he believes representatives from the Atlanta-based corporation are heading to the Midwest for the negotiations. A meeting is scheduled this weekend Randy’s RR Bar in downtown Waterloo. “If they don’t accept my offer I might plan a hostile takeover with the backing of some of the Randy’s regulars,” Bode said. Representatives of Coca-Cola could not be reached for comment. Updates on the negotiations will appear in the next edition of the paper.
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