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St. Elmo News

ANNOUNCEMENTS
Thursday, Feb. 16
• University of Illinois Soil and Water Management Seminar, 9 a.m.-2 p.m., Effingham County Extension Office.
• Vit-Em-In Sunday school class potluck, noon, First United Methodist Church Fellowship Hall.
• The St. Elmo post-prom committee will have a fundraiser from 5-8 p.m. at Culver’s in Effingham.
• Friendship Quilt Club, 7 p.m., St. Elmo Public Library.
Saturday, Feb. 18
• The St. Elmo post-prom committee will have a bake sale from 7 a.m.-noon at Mary Ann’s Restaurant. Donations of baked goods are needed; they should be covered and labeled.
Monday, Feb. 20
• The annual meeting of Historical Vandalia Inc. will be held at 6:30 p.m. at the Fayette County Museum in Vandalia. Annual reports will be given, and board directors will be elected. After the annual meeting, the board will reorganize.
Tuesday, Feb. 21
• The St. Elmo Board of Education, 7:30 p.m., unit office.
Thursday, Feb. 23
• Exxon/Mobil Annuitants, noon, Vandalia Ponderosa.
• The St. Elmo Unit of Home and Community Education, 1:30 p. m., St. Elmo Public Library.
St. Elmo Women’s Civic Club
At the St. Elmo Women’s Civic Club meeting held the evening of Feb. 2 at the St. Elmo Public Library, 56 packages were wrapped to be taken to Friendship Manor for the residents for Valentine’s Day. Each package included several wrapped small items – small notebook, hand cream, bookmark, automatic pencil and two pieces of wrapped candy.
President Pat Porter opened the meeting with all giving the club collect and the pledge of allegiance.  
After the business meeting closed, refreshments of peanut butter pie, sweetheart brownies, candies, nuts, coffee and punch were served by the hostesses, Peggy Stolte and Noma Moore. The group then started making the Valentine packages.
In addition to Porter, Rhodes, Stolte and Moore, there were present Susan Belden, Karen Denning, Norma Engeljohn, Shannon Engeljohn, Sheila Himes, Debbie Hough, Libby Kessel, Mary Myers and Ann Rowland. Also present was Shannon Engeljohn’s 3-month-old son, Dawson.
The March 1 meeting will be held at the St. Elmo Public Library at 7 p.m., and the program will be “Miss Daisy,” given by Michelle Weaver.
Rhodes-Side Gleanings
On the afternoon of Jan. 31, visitors in my home were Leon and Janie Gibbons of Greenville, Ky., and their son, Rev. Mark Gibbons, also of Kentucky. They were in Illinois to attend the funeral of an area relative of Leon.
The Gibbonses also have a daughter and another son, who also is a Methodist minister.
Leon and I graduated in the 1947 class and Janie graduated in 1945, so we had many memories to share. Leon and I graduated 65 years ago, and I am going to invite the living class members and spouses to come to my home on Saturday afternoon, May 25, so we can celebrate. The St. Elmo Alumni Banquet will be that evening.
The Gibbonses had just been here a short time when my phone rang, and it was Alta Hamilton of Houston, Texas.
She and her husband, Marvin, lived in St. Elmo in the 1950s, and it had been years since I had talked to her.
Their oldest child, a daughter, is two months older than my son, Steve. We exchanged e-mail addresses.
The Gibbonses and I share email, but I had not seen them for several years.
The last day in January was very interesting!
February is starting out very differently. I am writing this on Feb. 5, a beautiful, warm (almost 50 degrees) sunshiny day!
Since Ground Hog Day on Feb. 2 was very, very foggy. and he could not see his shadow in Fayette County, maybe we will continue to have good weather and won’t have six weeks of bad weather. Who knows?
Friendly Neighbors
A variety of dishes provided a potluck dinner on Feb. 7 for the Friendly Neighbors gathering at the Phillips Building. Rosemary Owen and Betty Wright of St. Elmo and Cora Miley of Beecher City provided Valentine articles to decorate the tables.
Others present were Marybelle Ledbetter of Brownstown, Ina Abendroth, Bob and Joan Owen, Irene Reed, Marjorie Sarver and R. W. and Mary Smith of St. Elmo, Miley’s sister-in-law, Dora Miley of Beecher City and Cora’s granddaughter, Sasha Curry, and great-grandson, Peyton Curry of St. Elmo.
Ledbetter told about what happened in 1922, the year she was born – wages, what was paid for a home, a car, bread, etc. Her 90th birthday is this month. Mary Smith read a humorous article, and Abendroth provided a humorous article that was read by Cora.
Council of Catholic Women
The prayer to Lady of Good Council and the pledge of allegiance opened the meeting of the Council of Catholic Women held the evening of Feb. 7 in St. Mary’s Catholic Church Parish Hall.
Present were Karen Denning, Lucille Koeberlein, Mary Myers, Pat Porter and Ann Rowland, all of St. Elmo, and Lavonne Kramer and Carol Rine of Brownstown.
They voted to donate to the St. Elmo and Brownstown school prom funds.
Cherry delight, cookies, Valentine candies and nuts were served by Rowland and Myers from a decorated Valentine table.
District Library Board
The St. Elmo Public Library District Board that met the evening of Feb. 9 at the St. Elmo Public Library heard reports from each of the district libraries after the approval of minutes of the Jan. 12 meeting and the paying of the bills.
Ginny Wilbur reported that the Brownstown Branch Library’s reading club has 10 members and is on their third book, and Tanea  Rickets is planning an after-school activity.
Plans are being made for having a jewelry making class in March, lasagna gardening in April and a trip to Shaw’s Botanical Gardens in May.
The Friends of the Library have purchased a movable sign and are going to purchase a printer for the library.
They also are going to shampoo the carpet in the spring.
Several patrons have expressed interest in computer classes, and those are to be started as soon as possible.
Joan Evans reported that the printer at the Beecher City Branch Library was not working properly.
The library is planning a crocheting class.
An after-school craft day will be held on Feb. 16. She said there was a floodlight out. The library also has a list for computer classes, which will be started as soon as possible.
Billie Enlow reported that the St. Elmo Public Library was working on the genealogy section and would start keeping an obituary file.
She talked about the OverDrive system  for e-readers which is by population, and it would cost the St. Elmo Public Library $3,000 per year if they want this system. St. Elmo had Head Start and an after-school craft day the past week. Several people have come for instruction for e-filing taxes and computer classes to work on a GED.
Computer classes are continuing for the Digital Divide grant. The Penny Sevens grant for summer literary has been submitted.
The board voted to update their employment applications. Rod Crawford was added as a second FOIA officer.
Use of Netflix, etc., at the library was discussed at length, but was tabled until the March meeting. Tony Koberlein will see about getting some needed electrical work done at the Beecher City Branch Library.
Instead of meeting on the second Thursday night in March, the board voted to move the March meeting to Tuesday, Feb. 13, at 7 p.m.
Lunch Bunch
The Lunch Bunch had a good attendance at the noon meal on Feb. 9 at Mary Ann’s Restaurant. Those attending were Janet Funneman and a friend, Alice Pruemer, both of Teutopolis, Pat Porter of Farina and Karen Denning, and Arlin and Lillian Grobengeiser Mary Harris, Mark and Jennie Ann Heischmidt, MaryEllen Lovett and Sue Stites, all of St. Elmo.
Any high school graduate and friends are welcome to attend the monthly Lunch Bunch meeting – they eat and visit and very seldom have a business meeting. They hope the attendance keeps improving each month.
Boy Scout Sunday
Boy Scout Sunday was observed during the morning worship at First United Methodist Church on Feb. 12.
The fellowship hall of the church is the meeting place for Cub Scout Pack #444, and the meetings are Tuesday evenings.
After the Rev. John Eisfelder gave announcements, organist Kathy Spitler opened with the prelude.
This was followed by the Scouts’ presentation of colors. Tayten Walker carried the flag to the front and all in the congregation, including family members of the Scouts, gave the pledge of allegiance.
The opening hymn was “American the Beautiful.”
For the tithes and offerings, Scouts Clay Miller, Tayten Walker, Nick Warner and Jacob Stork served as ushers.
Other scouts present for the service were D. J. Barr, Keith Booher, Derrick Moore, Ephan Moore, Jimmie Logue and Nate Miller.
Scout leaders are Chris Moore, Kim Logue, Mindy Miller and Tamara Polanin.
For the special, the chancel choir sang.
During the Sunday school hour, the children’s Sunday school department gave out bags of mini-cookies and chocolate candies to all of the adults, and the bag said on the front “Happy Valentine’s Day” and “Do not open until Feb. 14.”
At the church board meeting held after the worship service, Andra Carson reported that 14 high school youth and two adults already have registered for the Fire Up Conference, which will be held at Troy United Methodist Church on Feb. 24-25 and the overnight stay will be at Fairview Heights.
 

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