The Press-Dispatch
Issue link: http://www.ifoldsflip.com/i/1058732
The Press-Dispatch Wednesday, December 5, 2018 A-3 LOCAL Call: 812-354-8500 Email: news@pressdispatch.net or bring in a hard copy: 820 E. Poplar Street, Petersburg NEWS BRIEFS Blood Drive at Amber Manor Dec. 19 The American Red Cross has an urgent need for blood and platelet donors to give now to ensure blood is available for medical treatments and emer- gencies during the hol- iday season. They will be col- lecting blood at Am- ber Manor Care Cen- ter, 801 E. Illinois St. Petersburg on Dec. 19 from 2-6 p.m. READER GUIDE Subscriptions: Change of address: subscribers changing addresses will please give old address as well as new one along with phone number. We cannot guarantee prompt change unless this is done. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to The Press-Dispatch., P.O. Box 68, Petersburg, IN 47567- 0068 or e-mail to subscribe@ pressdispatch.net. Subscription rates: One year: $31 for Pike County and all 475/476 zip codes; $34 in the state of Indiana; $51 elsewhere in the USA. Paid in advance. Subscriptions taken after noon on Friday will not receive a paper until the second edition after their subscription date. About us: Andrew G. Heuring and John B. Heuring, Publishers Andrew G. Heuring, Editor John B. Heuring, Adv. Mgr. Eric Gogel, Production Mgr. Monica Sinclair, Office Mgr. Cindy Petty, Adv. Sales Pam Lemond, Adv. Sales Matt Haycraft, Adv. Designer • • • Published every Wednesday by the Pike County Publishing Co. Phone: 812-354-8500 820 E. Poplar St., P.O. Box 68, Petersburg, IN 47567-0068 • • • Entered in the Post Office in Petersburg, Indiana for transmission through the mails as Periodical Mail, postage paid at Petersburg, Indiana – published weekly. (USPS 205-620) Contact us: Phone: .......... 812-354-8500 Fax: ............... 812-354-2014 E-mail: Andy Heuring, Editor editor@pressdispatch.net Advertising ads@pressdispatch.net General News news@pressdispatch.net Sports sports@pressdispatch.net Subscription Services subscribe@pressdispatch. net TV Cabinets Appliances Bar Stools Mattresses Jewelry Armoires Bookcases Bean Bags Curios Lamps Floorcoverings 650 Division Road, Jasper HOME COMFORT CENTER ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ✓ ✓ ✓ ✓ ✓ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ✓ ✓ ✓ ✓ ✓ •FURNITURE •FLOORCOVERING •HEATING/COOLING CHECK LIST Shop Our NEW Website! www.englertshomecomfortcenters.com TV Cabinets Appliances Bar Stools Mattresses Jewelry Armoires Bookcases Bean Bags Curios Lamps Floorcoverings 650 Division Road, Jasper HOME COMFORT CENTER ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ✓ ✓ ✓ ✓ ✓ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ✓ ✓ ✓ ✓ ✓ •FURNITURE •FLOORCOVERING •HEATING/COOLING CHECK LIST Shop Our NEW Website! www.englertshomecomfortcenters.com 812-482-2246 Mon., Tues., Thurs. 9-5:30; Wed. & Fri. 9-7; Sat. 9-3; Sun. Noon-3 Contact me to find out how you can make a donation to TRI-CAP and get half of it back! Susan 812-482-2233 ext. 102 susan@tri-cap.net www.tri-cap.net TRI-CAP's health, housing and education services change lives, empower families and improve communities. By Alden Heuring "The Alpha Delphian Chapter is an organization of women of culture, public interest and enterprise. At a regular meeting in 1922, the response to roll call, 'Pike County is one of two coun- ties in the state of Indiana without a library,' aroused great interest and consider- able discussion, with the re- sult that it was unanimous- ly decided that Pike Coun- ty should no longer remain in that disgraceful catego- ry" (Pike County librarian Margaret Jean, "History of Petersburg Public Library," 1932). The rest is history, and this past week, the Pike County Barrett Memorial Public Library celebrated its 95th birthday. This cel- ebration comes as current library director Stephanie Rawlins is working towards an $ 800,000 expansion for the library building, and Rawlins shared her plans for the library's future at the event last Thursday night. "What will we need 10 years from now? " Rawlins said. Her plan for the library expansion adds 3,200 feet, and the new library floor plan would include a gene- alogy room, reading lounge, study room, computer room, meeting room, communi- ty office, children's activi- ty room, family room, and, of course, book sections for adults, teens and children. "We're going to do it with money we have in reserve," Rawlins said. "I will be ask- ing for the council to let us have funds in our rainy day fund, general operating in- vestments and library im- provement funds... Once they release those funds, we'll be able to get started, and I hope to put this out for bids by January." If the expansion plan goes through, it will be the third major upgrade to the Pike County Library's Pe- tersburg branch since it all started in the courthouse basement in 1922. It still bears the "Barrett Memori- al" name from Edith Barrett, who donated her estate so the library could move from the courthouse to its own building. Then, in 2012, the library moved up the hill to its current location, and the Pike County Historical Soci- ety moved into the building on the Barrett estate. It's been a 95 -year road of growth for the library, and Mayor R.C. Klipsch said he's excited to see where it goes next. "I remember thinking (back in 2012 during the move from the Barrett es- tate), 'What's going to hap- pen to the libraries? ' With technology the way it is, are people going to go get a book and read a book? We're not going to do that! In the future, we're going to be do- ing everything high-tech and electronic... So unfor- tunately, it's just going to be something that doesn't en- dure," Klipsch said. "But li- braries are not going by the wayside. When you think about all this place offers, there's still such a need for it: all the technologies and programs and resources you have here. It's just like the little story hour I used to go to when I was five, but it's so much more now, and it's just a wonderful thing." PIKE COUNTY LIBRARY TURNS 95 Pike County library director Stephanie Rawlins speaks at the Pike County Library 95th Birthday Cel- ebration. Courtney Froehle and Ann Sutton look through a book of historical clippings about the Pike County Library. Froehle said she works at the library on Saturdays, and lives in the old Barrett house that was moved to Bell Hill when Edith Barrett donated her land for the library to use, so she was looking for photos of the house before it moved. Petersburg Mayor R.C. Klipsch speaks at the Pike County Li- brary 95th Birthday Celebration. Topping off the tree City of Petersburg employee Alan Tegemeyer prepares to place the star on top of a Christmas tree located just off the intersection of Main and Seventh streets, next to the Santa House, on Friday, Nov. 30. The tree, which was donated by Mark Goodpasture, was officially lit up by Mayor R.C. Klipsch on Saturday, Dec. 1. Ed Cahill photo