The Press-Dispatch
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A-4 Wednesday, Januar y 13, 2021 The Press-Dispatch REVIEW Continued from page 1 the other a level 4 felony. He is accused of killing Sharon on Thursday, July 17. Police found her body at the bottom the basement stairs on July 20 after Fox called police and asked them to do a welfare check on Sha- ron, because her son had not heard from her. During a series of inter- views and search warrants, police learned Fox knew Sha- ron was dead days before re- porting it to the police. He al- so said he had been at her residence days before and saw her in the house. Police also used cellphone tracking data to determine he was there late on Thurs- day night. • Pike County reported 75 cases in one week from September 28 to Monday, October 5, for a total of 224. There were 98 actives cas- es and four deaths so far. Al- so, there was an outbreak of COVID cases at Amber Man- or nursing home. • Voter turnout was heavy, as 130 people voted on the first day of early voting. • Quinlan Teague placed fourth in the Pocket Athletic Conference meet in a time of 19:51.98. The Lady Chargers were unable to field five run- ners due to COVID. • Pike Central eighth grader Xavery Weisman won the middle school cross country girls' race with a re- cord time of 10 :34.24. • Blane Barnett placed ninth overall in the middle school PAC cross country meet, earning All-PAC hon- ors. • U.S. Secretary of Com- merce Wilbur Ross trav- eled to Petersburg to pres- ent the City will a $4.2 mil- lion grant to help with the improvements to the water treatment plant and distri- bution system. • A local COVID testing site opened on the Moose Lodge parking lot in Peters- burg. The death toll in Pike County climbed to eight and total positives for COVID went to 292. A full blown out- break at Amber Manor con- tinued, as 50 residents and 51 employees tested positive for COVID. • Robin Boyd and Crys- tal Breeding drove to Wash- ington, D.C., to take part in a prayer march, sponsored by Franklin Graham. "It was awesome to be a part of it, to be there in front of the Lin- coln Memorial, where there were that many people pray- ing for the same thing," said Breeding. • Pike County Schools went to a "hybrid plan" on Tuesday, October 13. It called for half the students to attend on Monday and Tues- day, then do virtual learn- ing on Thursday and Friday, with the schools to be san- itized on Wednesday. Then the other half the students to do virtual learning on Mon- day and Tuesday and attend class on Thursday and Fri- day. The hybrid plan was to continue through Novem- ber 6. • Pike Central's girls' cross country team placed four in the South Knox Sec- tional, which advanced them to the regional. Quin- lan Teague placed fourth, Anna Whitehead was 11th, Libby Stone was 23rd, Char- lotte Dudenhoeffer was 29th, Jenna Meyer 31st and Laney Johnson was 37th for Pike Central. • Fire destroyed a house trailer in Winslow that was owned by Chris Heiple the morning after a couple had been evicted. It was report- ed at 4:53 a.m. and Town Marshal Steve Nelson said when he arrived, it was ful- ly engulfed. The fire was be- ing investigated by the Indi- ana State Fire Marshal. • COVID deaths jumped to 13 in Pike County, most re- lated to the outbreak in Am- ber Manor. The total number of positive cases went to 319. • Rachael Heuring, co-ower of Pike Publish- ing, the parent company of The Press-Dispatch died of COVID. She was the wife of long-time publisher Frank Heuring. • Pike Central's Erika Vinnedge was named to the second team All-PAC in vol- leyball. Kenzie Powell was honorable mention. • Three Pike Central girls advanced individually to the cross country semi- state. Quinlan Teague placed ninth in a time of 20 :04, se- nior Libby Stone placed 19th in 20 :33 and Anna White- head placed 22nd in 20 :45. • Pike Central boys' soc- cer team finished the season 12-6 overall and 7-4 in the conference. Senior Connor Young and sophomore Joey Ridao, both forwards, were both named second team All-PAC. Senior wing Gar- rett Boyd and sophomore goal keeper Peyton Howald were named honorable men- tion. • Crews began remov- ing the Charger Bridge over Prides Creek on Cherry St. in Petersburg. The bridge has been closed to all vehi- cle and foot traffic for sever- al years. An historic bridge, known as the Iron Bridge, over the Patoka River near Survant is being replaced. Plans call for the Iron Bridge to be rehabbed then moved to Petersburg to replace the Charger bridge. The Iron Bridge will only be open to foot traffic. • More than 2,600 votes were cast in Pike County pri- or to election day. • About 120 vehicles par- ticipated in a pro-Trump pa- rade around Pike County on Sunday, Oct. 25. • Pike County had 44 new cases of COVID-19 the last week of October for a total of 363 cases and 18 deaths. NOVEMBER • Jacob Smith, 24, and his wife, Thema "Susie" Smith, 37, both of 7301 N. State Road 57, Petersburg, were charged with arson after the trailer they rented from Chris Heiple was destroyed by fire early the next morn- ing after they moved out. • Washington Township in Pike County was designat- ed as being in attainment of the U.S. Environmental Pro- tection Agency's air quality standard for sulfur dioxide. The City of Petersburg opened bids for the first phase of a nearly $10 million total rehab project for the Pe- tersburg wastewater treat- ment plant. The first phase bids came in between $2.77 million and $ 3.8 million. • A woodburner fire in the basement of a home owned by Barry and Can- dice Parker put itself out. Daniel Shelton, of the Pato- ka Fire Department, said the fire burned up a support post and melted a PVC water line. The water from the damaged waterline put out the fire. • Cup Creek Baptist Church pastor Phillip Jeff Crowe died of COVID. • All incumbents won back their seats in local elec- tions, with a new treasur- er and coroner joining the county ranks. Dennis Bishop (R), Todd Meadors (D), and Greg Wil- lis (R) won county coun- cil seats. Chris Satterfield and Steve Potter won school board seats #4 and #5. Lana Griffith (R) won county clerk. Susan Brittain (R) won county treasurer. Ray Brooks (R) won county coroner. • Four fires broke out in the county within a single week, claiming a rural home, a pickup truck, a chicken coop and a large tree. • David Kennedy, 54, of Mitchell, was sentenced for a level 5 felony charge of theft over $50,000. Kenne- dy was accused of abscond- ing with a Pike County cou- ple's $79,000 down payment for a new basement and truss package. • Lady Charger basket- ball won against Evansville Reitz 52-39 in their season opener, with senior Mallory Hickey leading scoring with 16 points. • As of November 17, COVID cases in Pike Coun- ty climbed to 464, with a pos- itivity rate of 12.5 percent, near the border for a "red" restriction rating. • The old iron bridge at Survant over the Patoka Riv- er was transported to Pike County to replace the old Charger Bridge as a pedes- trian bridge. • Pike Central Middle School performed "High School Musical, Jr." for their winter performance. • Petersburg awarded a $2.772 million wastewater plant bid to Graves Plumb- ing of Switz City for phase one of construction, which includes an equalization la- goon and headworks. • Parents and local health professionals brought con- cerns to the school board about the Pike County School Corporation's COVID safety measures. • The Winslow Town Council approved an ordi- nance to charge new tap fees for users connecting to the Winslow waterworks sys- tem. • The Pike Central Ath- letic Department switched to digital mobile-only ticketing for home basketball games. • The Lady Chargers hoop squad lost 37-44 to Boonville. • Mike Mallory, 56, of Winslow, was mauled to death by a group of pit bulls in his own home. • A grass fire damaged a rural home about five miles west of Petersburg. Investi- gators said the fire was like- ly started by a discarded cig- arette. • The Pike County School Board voted to cancel final exams for the first semes- ter, and moved to bid out an $ 800,000 pool repair and im- provement project. • The Lady Chargers won on the basketball court at se- nior night, besting Wood Me- morial 52-39 with a 20 -point blitz after trailing at the half. Kenzie Powell led the charge with 13 points on the night. DECEMBER • As of December 1, COVID cases in Pike Coun- ty climbed to 552, and two more people died from the disease. • The Elmer Buchta Technology Center by the I-69 exit was scheduled to open in January 2021, a small delay from the original tar- get of December 15, 2020, which was set before the COVID pandemic started. Ground was broken for the project in December 2019. • County highway super- intendent Roger Ham retired after 44 years with the de- partment. He was original- ly hired in by Eldon Thomp- son as a mechanic in Janu- ary 1977. • The Lady Charger bas- ketball team won against Tell City 60 -28 in an away game. Kenzie Powell and Brailey Mills led scoring with 17 and 13 points each. • The boys' basketball team lost 42-53 against the North Posey Vikings. • As of December 9, Pike County went into the "red" alert category, the highest alert level, which includes restriction of public gather- ings to 25 people or fewer. The county went up 100 cas- es in a week to reach 652. • Petersburg and Pike County were awarded a total of $283,000 in paving grants from the Community Cross- roads state grant. • The Pike County Com- missioners voted to request $24,000 for a ventilator and cot for the county EMS de- partment. • Charger boys' swim claimed two second-place finishes in a triangle meet at Boonville. Trent Zimmer- man placed second in the one meter dive, and the 200 free relay team of Isaac Bur- dette, Michael Burkhart, Co- bey McKinney and Draven Readle took second. • Pike Central wrestling lost to Central 36 -37 and Re- itz 36 -41 in a double dual meet. • Lady Charger swim- mers Jillian Bailey, Emma McKinney, Charlotte Duden- hoffer, and Jenna Meyer won their 200 free relay event in a triangle meet against Gibson Southern and Boonville, and Jenna Meyer won the one meter diving, but the girls placed third overall. • The girls' basketball team lost 41-20 against Mt. Vernon. • Boys' basketball lost 53- 42 against Pike Central and 72-47 against Forest Park. • White Stallion Energy, LLC issued a notice of clo- sure, laying off 24 employ- ees total at the Solar Sourc- es office and Charger Mine in Pike County. • A home in Cato burned, but resident Marion Burger and her dog, Roro, made it out alive after Roro woke her up. Burger lost three of her cats in the fire, but two new- born kittens survived. • The Winslow Town Council started negotia- tions with the Patoka Town- ship Fire Department to gain fire protection services for the town. • As of December 15, Pike County COVID cases rose to 721, but the rate of new cases had slowed since peaking in early December. The county remained in the Red Zone alert level. • Lauren Young, of Winslow, won the Lilly Schol- arship Award. She plans to attend Ball State Universi- ty for biology and pre-med- icine, with a goal of becom- ing a dermatologist. • Charger wrestlers re- corded a 34-41 record at the PAC duals. Corey Goep- pner, Jon Cannon, and Isaiah Greer each put up multiple wins at the eight-team meet. • The Lady Chargers won on the courts against the Bosse Bulldogs 62-36 on the road. • The boys' basketball team lost 38 -49 to South- ridge. • Pike Central girls' soccer players won sever- al All-Conference and Aca- demic All-State awards. Lau- ren Young made the All-PAC first team; Kennedy Willis made the All-PAC second team; Keena Young, Kahle Young and Albany Ashley made PAC Honorable Men- tion; Abby Skelton, Hannah Woodford, Grace Brandle, Mallory Hunt, Albany Ash- ley, Alli Holder, and Lauren Young made the Academic All-State team. • Petersburg reported a positive fiscal year and moved $70,000 from various city funds into the Rainy Day fund. • Winslow clerk-treasur- er Stacy McCandless re- signed. • Pike County received information that COVID vaccines could arrive in the county by January 11. • The Pike County Com- missioners approved a proj- ect to digitize transfer and plat book records going back to the beginning of the coun- ty. • The Town of Spurgeon received a $700,000 grant from the Indiana Office of Community and Rural A f- fairs towards a new sewer collection system. • A fire on Christmas Day destroyed the residence of Jason and Darlene Sisk in Petersburg. The family was away from the house when the fire started. • Winslow Town Council and Patoka Township Fire District worked through a proposed contract to pro- vide the town with fire pro- tection in 2021. • As of December 29, Pike County had 895 COVID cases, gaining 85 over the past week. • Parents returned to the school board to ask again for a return to in-person learning, citing the reduced COVID risk among children as compared to other age groups. COVID Continued from page 1 Karan Thacker, AFSP Owner 704 E. Haub Street Haubstadt, IN 47639 THACKER TAX SERVICE 906 Blackfoot Drive Fort Branch, IN 47648 812-615-0071 (offi ce) 812-789-3852 (cell) kthacker01@gmail.com NEWS BRIEFS Pike County Library hosts winter reading challenge From January 1-31, Pike County Public Library will participate in Beanstack's Fourth annual Winter Read- ing Challenge, "Books Like Us," sponsored by Simon and Schuster. The challenge is to read at least 15 books during the month of January and keep track of the reading on the Beanstack site at pikeco.beanstack.org. Thousands of li- braries across the nation will encourage their communi- ties to read a target number of 15 books. Prizes will in- clude book collections and virtual author visits. Ten win- ning libraries will each get a collection of fifty books from the "Books Like Us" collection. Pike County Public Library to host blood drive The Pike County Public Library will be hosting an American Red Cross Blood Drive on Tuesday, Feb. 23, from 1-6 p.m. at the Petersburg Branch, 1008 E. Maple Street, Petersburg. For more information, call 812-354- 6257 or email ctegmeyer@pikeco.lib.in.us. Applications being accepted for Donna Gentry Memorial Scholarship Daviess County Right to Life announced they are offer- ing a $500 Scholarship in honor of Donna Gentry to a Da- viess or Pike County High School Senior who presents the best essay to the theme "What is happening to America because of abortion? " Donna Gentry leaves a long list of accomplishments, not only in the Right to Life Movement and the Pregnancy Care Center, but also in other community organizations. Donna Gentry, who was the founder of the Pregnancy Care Center touched many lives and by her many accomplish- ments in the pro-life movement. She will long be remem- bered. This Scholarship is one way the local Right to Life Organization would like to see her legacy carried on. This Scholarship is open to all high school seniors in Da- viess and Pike counties, and they must also be a resident of Daviess or Pike County, and will need to verify the col- lege of their choice for the Fall of 2021. Applications must be postmarked no later than Friday, April 9, 2021. Contestants are to research, write, and present an origi- nal pro-life essay developed from the theme: "What is hap- pening to America because of Abortion? " The essay must be at least 500 words in length and not more than 550. Applications are available from your local high school guidance counselor or from the Daviess County Right to Life web site www.daviesscountyrtl.com. When applica- tions are completed they can be mailed to Daviess County Right to Life, P.O. Box 41, Washington, IN 47501. 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: $35 for Pike County and all 475/476 zip codes; $38 in the state of Indiana; $55 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: Andy Heuring and John B. Heuring, Publishers Andy Heuring, Editor John B. Heuring, Adv. Mgr. Eric Gogel, Production Mgr. Monica Sinclair, Office Mgr. Cindy Petty, Adv. Sales Pam Lemond, Adv. Sales Brakston Farrar, 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 Circulation subscribe@pressdispatch.net call 211. Gladish said she under- stands people's frustrations with the long waits to regis- ter, but said she thinks it will get better once the initial rush is over. She said the plan in Indiana is to vaccinate people 80 and older, then those 70 and old- er, then move to those 60 and older. On Tuesday morning, she requested funding from the county council to hire more personnel to help with giving the vaccinations. Pike County was given $40,000 to pay per- sonnel for this. She said they will be adding people to give the vaccines as more vaccines become available, which she hopes is soon. The vaccines are being giv- en at the Pike County Health Department at 907 Walnut St., Petersburg, which is the location of the Old Petersburg Gym. Those with appointments are asked to stay in their ve- hicles until five minutes be- fore their appointments. Gladish said people should not call the Health Depart- ment to schedule an appoint- ment. She said their staff doesn't even have access to the registration system. PIKE'S COVID NUMBERS KEEP CLIMBING The number of new COVID cases in Pike County hit 1,071 this week. The total of new cases from last week to this was 81, with no new deaths. Even though that is about 20 less than two weeks ago and 15 less than last week, the positivity rate for Pike Coun- ty over the last seven days is 18.4, which puts Pike Coun- ty in the red zone. A positivi- ty rate of 15 percent is the line for crossing into the red zone from the orange zone. All but 28 of Indiana's 92 counties are in the red zone. Those 28 are in the orange zone. Statewide, the number of new cases took a spike from January 2, when there were 2,975 new cases. That jumped to 7,241 on January 6 and has since fallen to 3,189 on Janu- ary 11. Deaths statewide remain high, but are slowly trend- ing lower. On December 29, there were 87 deaths record- ed. That fell to 46 on January 3, but then spiked to 87 on Jan- uary 4. It then started falling again to 38 on January 10. There are 26.3 percent of the state ICU beds available and 73 percent of the state ventilators available. Hospitalizations have been falling steadily since a peak of 3,460 on November 30. On January 11, hospitalizations had fallen to 2,515.