The Press-Dispatch
Issue link: https://www.ifoldsflip.com/i/976608
The Press-Dispatch Front Wednesday, May 2, 2018 A- 3 COLEMAN VOTE PIKE CO. SHERIFF "Always do the right thing." Paid for by Frank Coleman for Sheriff Push #47 Republican Ballot Scraper Heath DEMOCRAT FOR COUNTY COMMISSIONER ■ Bring businesses and jobs to the I-69 corridor to keep our younger generation here at home ■ Keep tax rates low PAID FOR BY CANDIDATE H H H H V O T E H H H H Vote Jim Johns for Council WARNING! This is a political ad and may cause concern for your money. Your taxes are up again as they have been for the last several years. This year is no different, the county rate went up, as well as the township, school district, librar y and special district. Your 9-1-1 phone tax doubled and your home phone tax went up 10 percent, and the council used it to give a 25 percent raise. Your auto tax- es went up to help with road repair, the council used the money to give raises. Your assessment on your home site was raised $400 by the assessor. Your county income taxes went up to fund the Public Safety budget, which is mostly EMS ser- vices. Would you rather put your money in the bank or give it to the Council to spend? Stop wasteful spending! PAID FOR BY JIM JOHNS FOR COUNCIL COLOR ME GREEN R U N / W A L K Purdue University Cooperative Extension Service is an equal access/equal opportunity institution For more information, contact the Pike County Purdue Extension: 812-354-6838 Who: Anyone who wants to have fun running/walking! What: 4-H Color Run/Walk When: Saturday, May 5 at 9 a.m. EDT (Registration begins at 8:30 a.m.) Why: Support 4-H and Healthy Living in Pike County! Where: Hornady Park Registration: $10 per participant (first registrants get a free t-shirt, while supplies last) Proceeds support 4-H programming. Jo i n us fo r the P i ke Coun ty 4 -H C o l o r R un ! regraded to a natural land- form. Cleared timber will be chipped and utilized as a soil amendment to lessen the ef- fects of drought on vegeta- tion at the site and aid in col- onization of the soil by mi- croorganisms, fungi, insects and animals." Construction began Feb- ruary 1, 2018, and the target completion is mid-Septem- ber 2018. It covers a 36 -acre area. She wrote the purpose and benefit of the project are to: "Eliminate health and safety hazards to the public, including highwalls and ac- id water from the abandoned surface mine. Eliminate openings and subsidence in the abandoned underground mine. Enhance wildlife hab- itat and productivity." The winning bid from five different contractors was $1.248 million from Jerry Aigner Construction, of Boonville. Some locals are not happy with the project. "They are going in and clear cutting what used to be spoils and was good deer, squirrel and turkey hunt- ing. There aren't that ma- ny places left to hunt," said Phil Sisk. "They are cutting all the trees and filling in the pit," added Sisk, who said the pit had been there since he first moved to the area 40 years ago. Alan Nelson, who has lived all his life in the ar- ea, said, "The reason I got is they took all the high- walls, so no kids will fall off of them. I'm 75 and I don't know of anyone who has fall- en off of them." "They have taken it away from us. They haven't made it better. They made it worse," said Nelson. "I can't see a terrapin and take him out of the road. If I do, I'm in violation. So they are going in there and cut- ting down all the trees and digging all of this up. How many terrapins do you think they killed tearing all of this up," said Nelson. Sisk, along the same nar- rative, said, "It was a habitat for animals." He said a few years ago, they (DNR) quit mowing the road back to the boat ramp at Whitney Pit. "They said it was screwing up the habitat for small ani- mals. But what the heck is this doing to their habitat? " Sisk said he feels like the Native American in the old commercial shedding a tear as he sees people litter- ing. "I look at it ( Whitney Pit project) and just want to cry. It is just awful. It is a re- al disappointment." "I just retired and was hoping to be able to hunt and fish, but they are ruining it for me," said Sisk. WHITNEY Continued from page 1 By Andy Heuring This Sunday, Charles Bax- ter IV will be in the pulpit at the First Baptist Church in Petersburg just like he has been for nearly every Sun- day since August 1997. But it will probably be the last time, at least the last time on a regular basis, he will preach there. Baxter, now 67 years old, is retiring from being a full-time pastor. When Baxter arrived in Petersburg, the First Bap- tist Church at the corner of Eighth and Poplar Sts. av- eraged about 65 people a week. In about three years, that number had grown to more than 200 people. The church that had been remodeled on- ly a few years prior to Bax- ter's arrival had been out- grown. "By 2000, we had to ex- pand the walls out in the sanctuary and then we had to add 60 more chairs," said Baxter. In the mid-2000s, that number peaked at more than 250. Baxter said he challenged his church if they had 250 people on a given Sunday, he would preach from the roof. "I told my wife (Nan- cy) they can't do that, but I want to give them some- thing to work for." They met his challenge, and Baxter climbed up on the roof and preached his Sunday morning sermon. The second time, he chal- lenged them to get more than 250 people and said he would put his wife in a wheelbarrow and push her down Main St. "She put a paper bag over her head. That was the most humili- ating thing I have ever do- ne. But churches like to be challenged. If you don't chal- lenge them, they have noth- ing to work for," said Baxter. He said the thing he is most proud of is, "The num- ber of people who came to Christ. The people whose lives were dramatically changed. The youth we af- fected. He said his wife and their daughter, Tammy Gra- ham, were the youth lead- ers. "We impressed on kids to get Christ in the home and their lives," said Baxter. "I was shocked about the number of young couples who were coming here to find out what is going on. I give credit to the young leaders, who gave so much of their time. They work all day and then they come here and help. It was a team ef- fort," said Baxter. He said he was also proud that, despite all of the expan- sion and growth, which in- cluded purchasing adjacent lots and a house to use for parking, and a Family Life Center, the church isn't in debt. "I didn't want to leave and the church be in debt." Baxter said, "I think a pas- tor is lying if he says 'I have never had disappointment where I pastored.' Because we are all human and we are all going to make mistakes and assumptions." He said, especially in a small town, a pastor can get caught in cross conversations. "Some- thing can start here as a very small thing and some- one tells someone else, and by the time it gets over here, it is horrible. Sometimes one simple thing can become a catastrophe." Baxter said a disappoint- ment to him is losing youth when they grow up and go off to college. "It heart- breaks me to see your youth growing up and leaving. They don't have mom and dad encouraging them any- more." He said they had a huge number of people get bap- tized and saved. "As I look back, I would like to have seen even more people get baptized and come to Christ." Baxter said he thinks ma- ny churches are losing their vision. "Where there is no vision, the people will per- ish. People are losing their vision. If a church doesn't have vision, it isn't going to go any place." Even though Baxter is Charles Baxter IV and a third generation pastor, it isn't something he grew up knowing he would do. "We God makes up his mind, it will happen," said Baxter. He said he didn't want to be- come a pastor. "Everyone of us Baxters who were called into ministry didn't want to do it. My dad fought it. I re- ally fought it and my son put his fist down and said 'abso- lutely no.' And here I am coming to end of a pastor- ing position. I never thought I would be churchless," said Baxter. While he may be a man without a permanent pulpit, he won't be without a pulpit to fill. "I'm not stopping my ministry." Baxter is going to be an in- terim pastor for churches in the area who need fill-in pas- tors. He explained there are 120 First Baptist Churches in this district. When a pas- tor moves, the church goes through a selection process. During that time, they need an interim. Baxter expects to stay busy helping fill emp- ty pulpits. "When you have been a pastor for 40 years, you have done the same thing each week. I go in a room on Saturday night from 7 to 11 p.m. to work on the next day's sermon. I don't know what I would do without that," said Baxter. He said he will also fill in if needed in churches other than First Baptist churches. "We all worship the same Lord." He added he hopes to be able to spend more time with his grandchildren. "A lot of people have come into this room and have cried and laughed over the years," said Baxter from his office that had empty shelves and stacks of boxes filled with all the books and items that used to line those shelves. "Only regret I have (about retiring) is my mother will be living here (in Peters- burg) and I'm going to be in Washington. I'm deter- mined I'm going to come several times a week to see her," said Baxter. "I have had my moments, but I'm at peace. As the Apostle Paul said, 'I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith'" (2 Timothy 4:7). Dr. Baxter retires after 20+ years as First Baptist minister publican side, Jeffrey Davis II and former Indiana State Trooper Frank Coleman, Jr., who also is a former mayor of Petersburg, are seeking the nomination. (See pro- files on page A-9.) Two Democrats, Heath Scraper and Steve Vian, are seeking the Democrat- ic nomination for Commis- sioner District 2, a seat now held by Brian Davis. Davis is not seeking re-election. The winner will face former Republican Commissioner Mark Flint. (See profiles of this race on page A-8) The Republicans have races in two County Coun- cil districts. In District 2, for- mer Petersburg Mayor Jon Craig, L AN Construction sale and marketing manager Charles Lemond and real es- tate agent Shawn McGillem are running for the nomina- tion. No Democrat filed for the position. (See profiles of this race on page A-9) In District 3, Republican incumbent Max Elliott is be- ing challenged by Jim Johns. (Profiles of this race were in last week's issue.) On the state level, the Dis- trict 63 State Representa- tive position has two Demo- crats running for their par- ty's nomination. They are Joseph Lannan, of Loogoo- tee, and Dennis Tedrow, of Jasper. The winner will face incumbent Shane Lindauer, of Jasper. Lindauer was ap- pointed by a party caucus to replace Mike Braun, who re- signed his position to devote more time to his run for the U.S. Senate. In District 64, there are three Republicans seek- ing the nomination. They are Matt Hostettler, of Fort Branch, who is the son of former Eighth District Con- gressman John Hostet- tler, Princeton dentist Ken Beckerman and Vander- burgh County Commission- er Bruce Ungetheim. No Democrat has filed. At the federal level, the In- diana U.S. Senate seat held by Democrat Joe Donnelly is on the ballot this year. Three Republicans are vying for the nomination to challenge Donnelly. They are Jasper businessman Mike Braun, Indiana Sixth District Con- gressman Luke Messer and Fourth District Congress- man Todd Rokita. Eighth District Congress- man Larry Bucshon is being challenged in the Republi- can primary by Dr. Richard Moss, of Jasper, and Rachael Covington, who resides in Tokyo, Japan. The winner will face Democrat William Tanoos, of Terre Haute. ELECTION Continued from page 1 The National Day of Prayer celebration in Pike County is scheduled for noon, Thursday, May 3 at the Pike County Courthouse rotunda. The event is spon- sored by the Pike County Ministerial Fellowship. It was established in 1952 by then President Harry Tru- man as a time for the Unit- ed States to pray together at one time. This year's celebration will start with the Pike Cen- tral Swing Choir singing the National Anthem in the ro- tunda. The event will feature numerous pastors from the area leading various prayers and will last about 20 min- utes. Rev. Charles Baxter IV stands next to a mound of boxes as he cleans out his office at First Baptist Church in Petersburg. Baxter's last Sunday will be May 6. He is retiring after pastoring there since August of 1997. National Day of Prayer service to be Thursday at Court House SUBSCRIBE TODAY! We're not afraid to shed some light on the truth. 812-354-8500