The Press-Dispatch
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Local ����������� A1-8 Anniversaries � A4 Sports ��������� B1-4 History ����������� B5 Shopping ���� B6-7 Opinion ������� B8-9 Classifieds B10-11 T'giving Meal B12 Church �������C1-11 Obituaries ������� C7 East Gibson � C8-9 School ����������C10 WHAT'S INSIDE: Phone: ���������������������812-354-8500 Fax: ��������������������������812-354-2014 E-Mail ����editor@pressdispatch�net NEWS TIPS: PIKE PUBLISHING Wednesday, November 20, 2019 Volume 149 Number 48 Phone 812-354-8500 Petersburg, IN 47567-0068 (USPS 604-34012) $ 1 Three sections 30 pages Four inserts See SCHOOL on page 2 See HONORED on page 2 See EVENTS on page 2 Petersburg dog park reaches funding goal By Dennis Marshall Petersburg is one step closer to getting a dog park after reaching its crowdsourcing goal of $5,000. This park idea was given to last year's class of Leadership Pike County from a Petersburg citizen who is a dog lover and al- ways hoped for a safe space for dogs in the county to run and play. Thanks to the generous donation of land from Carl and Brenda Ben- ner, the park is to be named Ben- ner Bark Park. The City of Petersburg now owns the lot and has agreed to take it on for maintenance and mowing. Organizers applied for a crowd- sourcing grant with the Indiana Housing and Community Devel- opment Authority (IHCDA). The purpose of the crowdsourc- ing campaign was to raise half of the funds with the help of the com- munity and if the goal was met, the IHCDA would match that goal to give the full amount needed. "We set our goal of $5,000 and reached it, very quickly, from some extremely generous dona- tions from members of the com- munity," Holly Schutter-Pfieffer said. "We are currently finishing up the paperwork with the state and once the funds are dispersed to the parks account, we will have one year to complete the building of the park." The plan is to break ground next spring once the ground thaws and to hopefully have the park open by the start of summer. To access the park, county res- idents only need to show proof of vaccination and heart worm pre- vention to the city (specific per- son and place will be decided at a later time) and fill out a member application. "Once those two things are completed, we plan to have a key card or FOB that each mem- ber will use to unlock the gate," Schutter-Pfieffer said. "This gives us the ability to keep out unvacci- nated dogs and to rescind mem- bership to any dog and owner that is not following the rules agreed upon in the member application." Anyone interested in helping or donating is encouraged to reach out to the Benner Bark Park on Facebook. "We have a group of volunteers from our Leadership Pike County class that have volunteered to get it off the ground this year, but the more passionate people we have involved, the better," Schutter- Pfieffer said. Nearly 75 years after his death at Bataan, a Velpen resident was honored with a military plaque on Veterans Day 2019. Marvin Stroud died at the age of 16 in Manila on July 19, 1942. He died of starvation in the Jap- anese prison camp just weeks af- ter surviving the Bataan Death March. On Veterans Day, former Indi- ana State Trooper Gordon Hoch- meister and several members of his and Stroud's extended fami- ly gathered at Arnold Cemetery in northeastern Pike County. As the rain came down and began to turn to snow, the Hochmeisters honored Stroud's service and life with a memorial service around the plaque placed near his moth- er's grave. It is something Hochmeister has worked to get for years, and with the help of Pike County Vet- erans Service Office Tom Dooley, the plaque arrived just days before Veterans Day. Stroud was born in 1925, but his parents were caught in the dark times of the Great Depres- sion. "Families were decimated, destroyed in many cases by the inability of the 'breadwinners' to feed their family. Such was the case of the Strouds," wrote Hoch- meister about Marvin's parents. Adding to the financial strain was the loss of a child two months af- ter its birth. When Marvin's par- ents parted ways, Marvin's moth- er and two of his siblings moved in with his aunt and her family, Hel- en and Henry Jones, of Velpen. A third sibling went to an orphan- age. Henry Jones worked for South- ern Railway. It was not the end of troubles for Marvin. His mother died in 1932, when he was just 6 years old. Henry and Helen continued to raise Marvin and a younger sis- ter, along with their five children: Earl, Maurice, Edna (Hochmeis- ter), Iona (Ruston) and Billy. Gordon said Marvin and Billy were near the same age and be- came "inseparable friends." At the age of 16, Billy contracted pneu- monia and died. Marvin was hit hard by the death of Billy. It got even worse for the Jones family. Velpen resident honored 75 years after his death By Andy Heuring Christmas activities are ap- proaching quickly. The first Sat- urday in December in Winslow and Petersburg will be a big one for Christmas activities. WINSLOW The Christmas parade is set for 10 a.m., with line-up beginning at 9 a.m. It starts at the Winslow Fire Department and proceeds to Main St., then goes north to the Winslow Little League park. Winter Wonderland, set up in a Christmas scene, is sponsored by the Winslow Lions Club and is set for 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Satur- day, December 7. Coat Wrap The Second Coat Wrap is scheduled for Saturday, Decem- ber 7 in Winslow. Last year, they put out 85 winter coats of all siz- es and types on light poles and traffic signs in Winslow. Anyone in need of a coat was able to look over the coats and take one. Debra Lamb, of Petersburg, said anyone wanting to donate a coat can do so by dropping them off at The Corner Book Shoppe, located at the corner of Lafayette and Main sts., across the street from the Post Office. Lamb said the organizer wishes to stay anonymous, but the Book Shoppe will get the coats to the organizer. Mouse House The Mouse House, sponsored by the Winslow Beautification Committee, will be at the Naza- rene Church Fellowship Hall from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday De- cember 7. The Mouse House has items priced from $1 to $10 for kids to purchase inexpensive gifts for friends and family. PETERSBURG The Petersburg Christmas pa- rade is set for 4 p.m. It will start on Walnut St., near the courthouse, and go to Main St., then south to lower Main St. Petersburg Mayor R.C. Klipsch said there are several other events being planned to coincide with the parade. Anyone wanting to partic- ipate in the parade can register by calling City Hall at 812-354-8511. Prizes of $100, $50 and $25 will be given to the top three units in the parade. Entry in the parade is free. Also, there will be space on Eighth St. for food vendors for a fee of $20. Those not needing electricity are free. Hollywalk The Petersburg Hollywalk event, sponsored by Petersburg Downtown Association is sched- uled for Saturday, December 14. It will feature free carriage rides from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Santa will be in his house at the corner of Seventh and Main sts. There will be a storyteller for children and several merchants will be having open houses and other promotions. Several of the merchants will have a card you pick up from any participating merchants and then School board closes school for RED for ED Action Day; approves two projects By Dennis Marshall The Pike County School Board approved two big projects at the Tuesday, Nov. 12 meeting. The board approved updating the lighting in the Pike Central parking lots with LED fixtures and to improve the security of the exterior of Petersburg and Win- slow Elementary. "I'm pleased that we are mov- ing forward on this project," Pike Central Superintendent Suzanne Blake said. "The LED lights are more energy efficient, but will al- so provide better lighting of our facilities." The board unanimously ap- proved the LED lightning proj- ect through Hawkins Bailey for $47,232.50 with a 10 -year warran- ty. The upgrades will also qualify for utility rebates through the dis- trict's current utility company at an estimate of $7,000 to $ 9,000. The board anticipates the up- grades to pay for themselves in savings on their utility bills over the next decade. The board also approved $ 933,081 for exterior security upgrades at the district's two el- ementary schools. The board also approved the recommendation of Blake to close on Tuesday, Nov. 19, so that any- one who wished to attend the Or- ganization Day of the state legis- lature could do so. Pike County Schools will now be in session on Friday, Feb. 14, 2020. IN OTHER NEWS The board also: •Accepted donations from Indi- anapolis Power and Light ($195) towards Pike Central High School 2019 -20 calendar magnets; James and Cynthia Gaskins ($250) for the Pike Central Band Program; Ripco Ltd. ($500) and Vinson and Phillips Farms ($100) for the middle school robotics club; two $ 800 grant from the Gas- kins Family Fund for Pike Coun- ty to be used for a laptop for the middle school swim team and in- struments or other needs for the middle school and high school bands; three donations from the Pike County Community Founda- tion; $ 3,000 for the middle school robotics club through the David Detar Corn Trust; $ 365.96 for the high school interactive me- dia class through Friends of Pike County Fund; and $2,075 for the Pike Central band through the Friends of Pike County Fund for the purchase of a bass clarinet. •Discussed Pike County School Corporations Title 1 Family Night on Oct. 29. It was Pike Central's largest family night, with 92 peo- ple in attendance to learn more about the Title 1 program, enjoy storyteller Susan Fowler and re- ceive free prizes donated by gen- erous community members. Do- nations were made by Wal-Mart, Christmas events scheduled for December THANKSGIVING RECIPES 2019 MEALS IN Monica's MINUTES SEE PAGE B-12 Christmas lights go up in Petersburg Petersburg employee Alan Tegmeyer hangs Christmas lights along Main St. on Monday af- ternoon. After hanging a set he would check to see they turned on. The Petersburg and Win- slow Christmas parades are set for Saturday, December 7. WES spell bowl team practice Neil Norris, a Winslow Elementary School fifth grader, concentrates as he takes a practice test for the spell bowl at a practice last week. See more pictures of the team practicing on page A-7.