The Press-Dispatch
Issue link: https://www.ifoldsflip.com/i/1451562
NEWS TIPS Phone: ���������������������812-354-8500 Email ����� editor@pressdispatch�net INSIDE Local ����������������� A1-6 Sports �����������������B1-6 East Gibson������������B3 Obituaries ���������������B4 History �������������������B5 Home Life ������������C1-6 School �������������������� C3 Opinion ������������� C4-5 Church �������������� D1-3 Classifieds ���������� D4-6 Legals ����������������� D5-6 USPS 604-34012 $1.00 24 PAGES Four SECTIoNS oNE INSErT PETErSBurG, IN 47567-0068 Morton leads Chargers to victory at Tecumseh Swimmers take second spot in Evansville SPORTS B1 SPORTS B1 WEdNESdAy, FEBruAry 16, 2022 PIKE PUBLISHING VoLuME 152, NuMBEr 7 By Andy Heuring Pike County Schools eliminated quaran- tines for non-COVID positive students and discussed financing and building a $ 6.5 mil- lion third gym at Pike Central during their meeting on Tuesday, February 8. The board voted 4-0 to approve modifica- tions to their COVID policy. School board member David Waltz was not present. Board president Steve Potter started a 30 -minute discussion by saying, "'I'd like to propose a change here. Based on what this state is doing, I would like to continue the dis- cussion before we put in motion form, I would like to continue just the contact tracing so that we alert the parents that their child has been in close contact, but I would like to do away School ends COVID quarantines; discusses adding new gymnasium See REPAIRS on page 2 See ROUND-UP on page 2 Pancakes a hit with kids during 4-H Round-up By Sherri Sebella More than 200 pancakes were made, flipped and devoured, during Saturday's Pike County 4-H Round-up at Hornady Park. The Pike County Purdue Extension Office offered a free pancake breakfast for those interested in joining 4-H or for those with questions, to find out what they needed to know in order to have the most successful fair season yet. "We had 51 people come through so far this morning," Judy Gumbel, 4-H volunteer said. The 4-H scholarship programs are in- credible. This program is very much a fami- ly-involvement community." In partnership with the Indiana 4-H Foun- dation, the Indiana 4-H Youth Develop- ment Program annually awards more than $125,000 in scholarships to 4-H members to pursue post-secondary education. Scholarships are awarded to recognize youth participating in Indiana's 4-H Youth De- velopment Program on their achievements and life skill development resulting from their participation in a variety of 4-H experiences. The Pancake Round-Up is an event the Pike County 4-H Council hosts each year to en- courage enrollment in 4-H and to be active within the community. "It was great to see so many brand new and returning families Libby Stone, Miss Pike County, 2021, helps Cayden Kessen, Josh Kessen and Samuel Kessen with building blocks during the Pike County Purdue Extension Pancake Round-Up. "I had a lot, a lot, a lot of pancakes," Cayden said with a big grin. WES '50s twist contestant Winslow Elementary pupil Ryleigh Gard twists away in her blue poodle skirt at Winslow Elementary's Twist Contest. Ryleigh is a pupil in Brittany Scherer's third grade class. The annual event took place on Friday, Feb. 11. See additional pho- tos on page A-4. Pike County Community Foundation continues to 'pay it forward' By Sherri Sebella Cindy Gaskins, Volunteer Director for the Pike County Community Foundation has spent the last 23 years doing her part to ful- fill the mission of the Community Foundation by spending countless hours overseeing the Foundation's day-to-day projects. The Com- munity Foundation is a charitable resource devoted to the local community. They help people make meaningful gifts that improve life in Pike County today and for generations to come. "In 1998, members of the Pike County Chamber of Commerce read that the Lilly Endowment was doing a matching grant and wanted communities involved," Gaskins said. "We didn't think we could survive without be- ing part of the Community Foundation Alli- ance, which is made up of nine counties in Southwest Indiana. They take care of all the payroll, paperwork, they help us with grants, and make sure people meet the criteria for grants." "We are too small to be our own, so we ben- efit from being a part of this. We can ask ques- tions of other counties, which helps us great- ly. I knew nothing about a community foun- dation, but it sounded like a good idea and 23 years later, it is one of the best things in Pike County. We have done some amazing things for the community." With approximately 15 members on the Board of Directors, it is their belief that com- munity is more than a geographic locale; that it is an idea that exists in the minds of people sharing common goals and concerns. Based on that belief, the Community Foundation grant-making seeks to develop a shared vi- sion of building a sense of community. The Community Foundation administers separate scholarship funds established by in- dividuals, families, corporations, and organi- zations to assist local students in pursuit of ad- vanced education. "We currently have 25 scholarships avail- able and 26 scholarships will become avail- able in 2023," Gaskins said. "The implemen- tation grant that we received from Lilly En- dowment for full board giving participation, during Gift VII, was used to benefit the Pike County School Career and Technical Educa- tion ("CTE") Program." According to Gaskins, in 2007 the adviso- ry board, at that time, established the Pike County Grassroots Fund. "The idea behind this fund was to enlist 1,000 donors to give $100 dollars a year for ten years," Gaskins said. "If we were successful, we would have created a $1 million unrestricted fund, $100 at a time. We fell short of $1 million, but it is now worth more than $500,000 and still regu- larly receives donations. We did not meet our goal, but do believe it was a successful effort." Some of this year's grant projects included money to help the Spurgeon/Monroe Town- ship Volunteer Fire Department purchase First Responder prep for the firemen, a new Winslow council facing costly repairs, equipment replacements By Sherri Sebella Winslow Town Council members met Mon- day to discuss future projects they want to see started in the town, and received reports var- ious departments such as Parks, Police, Ani- mal Control and Highway. Parks Department board member Alex- is Rusch spoke to the board about needing $20,000 for upgrades to the T-ball baseball field. "We were asked to put together a wish list for the parks and we need to redo the T- ball field. We have quotes of approximately $20,000," Rusch said. "The field is in pretty bad shape. Nothing was winterized for the bathrooms, so we have burst pipes and no running water for them. We won't be able to host things with only one working bathroom and we would like to be able to host tournaments here in Winslow. With the condition things are in right now, we just can't do it. T-ball is where we have the most kids play- ing in Winslow. We need to redo all of the field fencing and remove and haul away ev- erything." Councilman Dick Brewster showed his shock as he responded to Rusch. "It will cost $20,000? " Brewster questioned Rusch. "Could we come up with some money from the auc- tion funds? " Debbie Lamb, Town Council member told Brewster that,"Yes, we could come up with some money." "Can this be done in phases? " Josh Popp, Council President, asked. "Can we split the $20,000 over three years possibly? I'd like to see a quote for the bathroom first. We could do the T-ball field in phases and check what grants are available." "We have a second person coming in for an- other quote, because we thought it was a little high, too," Rusch responded. "Either way it is being done, whether you pay for it or not, but if you can help, that would be great. We are going to be having games there." Popp said he was looking forward to getting some more quotes for the project and that he was sure the town could work something out. Rusch told the board that the Winslow Park District was also looking for old pictures of sports teams. Public Works Superintendent Torrez Ba- ham gave his report for the town and brought See FOUNDATION on page 2 See SCHOOL on page 3