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St. Elmo News

ANNOUNCEMENTS
Thursday, January 28
• ExxonMobil Annuitants, noon, Vandalia Ponderosa.
Sunday, January 31
• SNL youth group, 6 p.m., First United Methodist Church parsonage.
• Detour youth, 6 p.m., First Church of God S.H.E.D.
• Amp’d high school youth, 6 p.m., St. Elmo Christian Church.
• Youth Night Breakthru, 6:30 p.m., Freedom Reigns in Christ Church.
Tuesday, February 2
• Friendly Neighbors, noon, Mary Ann’s Restaurant.
• Council of Catholic Women, 7 p.m., St. Mary’s Catholic Church Parish Hall.
Wednesday, February 3
• Wright’s Corner Unit of Home and Community Education, 1 p.m., Loudon Town House.
• Reverb Youth 56, 5:30-6:30 p.m.; Reverb Youth 78 6:45-8 p.m., First Church of God S.H.E.D.
• St. Elmo City Council, 6 p.m., St. Elmo City Hall.
Thursday, February 4
• St. Elmo Business Association, noon, Mary Ann’s Restaurant.
• Wheatland Unit of Home and Community Education, 1:30 p.m., Mary Ann’s Restaurant.
• St. Elmo Women’s Civic Club, 7 p.m., St. Elmo Public Library.
Legion Fundraiser
American Legion Post 420 will have a fundraiser every three months for building expenses and costs of operation. The first one will be a soup supper on Saturday, Feb. 6, from 3-7 p.m., at the Legion Home at 403 E. Ninth St. in St. Elmo.
Chili, vegetable soup and potato soup will be served with dessert. The price of the dinner is a free-will donation.
Anyone who would like to donate a dessert can call 267-5519.
Historical Vandalia Inc.
Because of the very cold weather, the Historical Vandalia Inc. board meeting scheduled for the evening of Jan. 18 in the Fayette County Museum was canceled.
The annual meeting of Historical Vandalia Inc. will be held on Monday, Feb. 15, at 6:30 p.m., in the Fayette County Museum, Vandalia, weather permitting.
Avena Township Park Board
The Avena Township Park Board met for the third time this month the evening of Jan.19 in the St. Elmo Community Park Centennial Building, with the following board members present: President Greg Haslett, Daryl Calvert, Jimmy Caraway and Janice Russell.
Also present was a guest, J.D. Russell, and Dan Hood, who has been hired to do work inside the Centennial Building.
The main business was going over plans with Hood. Also discussed was the plan to purchase new playground equipment for the park.
It is to be used by the young and the older visitors to the park, but the necessary equipment still has not been found.
For several weeks, the Feller Oil Field Service truck has been at the pavilion that is to be taken down. Possibly the frozen ground now will get the job accomplished.
The next meeting of the Avena Township Board will be at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, Jan. 26, in the Centennial Building.
The board will review the progress of the work on the kitchen and may make a decision on the counter tops that will be put in.
Former Resident Obituary
Leora Corley, age 80, of Scottsdale, Ariz., died the morning of Jan 21. She was born and raised in St. Elmo by Ray and Maude Buzzard and was a 1953 graduate of St. Elmo High School.
She married Jack Corley in 1955, and a few years ago, he preceded her in death. Included in her survivors are a sister and brother-in-law, Louella and Leonard Rubin of St. Peter.
Unit 21 Extension Council
Unit 21 Extension Council is composed of four counties – Clay, Effingham, Fayette and Jasper. Four from each county are members of the council that meets quarterly in the U of I Extension Office at Effingham. Present at the meeting held the evening of Jan. 21 were Unit 21 U of I employees, – County Extension Director Carl Baker, County Educator Director Ken Larimore, 4-H /Youth Educator Tabitha Welch, Extension Program Coordinator Anthony Pitcherd and county representativesTom Haarmann and Marilyn Schaefer of Effingham County; Kevin Payne, Anna Jean Rhodes and Kyra Willenborg of Fayette County; Sheila Bergbower, Mark Hartrich and Donna Richards of Jasper County.
Baker opened the meeting with a welcome and introductions.
After the approval of the Oct. 22 minutes, the budget financial report was discussed.
Larimore reported on Local Government Information Education Network, the Regional Effingham Business Incubator Network ERIN that covers Effingham and Jasper counties, Workforce Development, Economic Development Programming, East Central Illinois Development Corporation, Jasper County Unit I CEO Class, Jasper Economic Development Inc., Farm Appreciation Seminar and special outreach – developing adult budgeting curriculum for men’s shelter and Clay County probation office.
Welch reported she attended the National Association of Extension 4-H agents conference Oct. 25-29 in Portland, Ore.
She told that all four counties had good achievement programs in the fall. Altamont High School had an etiquette luncheon on Nov. 12 for 33 high school seniors, and Jasper County had an After-School Adventure on Nov. 12 for making pumpkin cookies and about 25 participated.
She said 80 high school seniors and 24 volunteers went to the Mid-State Special Ed Services senior conference (Welcome to the Real World) held in Litchfield Nov. 13.
The annual Extension conference was held Nov. 18-19 in Champaign, and expansion and review committee meetings were held Dec. 1 in Effingham County, Dec. 3 in Jasper County, Dec. 7 in Fayette County and Dec. 10 in Clay County.
Jasper County’s After-School Adventure was Dec. 3 and about 25 youth participated in the Joy Christmas Craft.
Ag Appreciation Tours – the first tour was Jan. 14 at Hilltop Maple Syrup in Farina; Pancake Lunch and Cumberland Trail Greenhouse in St. Elmo, with 28 participants. The second tour will be Feb 16 at Hartrich Meats Inc., Jeff Ochs Cattle, Hartrich’s lunch and West Liberty FS Drones.
The 4-H all-team meeting was held Jan. 19-20 in Champaign. The 4-H Food Smart Families had teen training Dec. 3 for three teen teachers, and will have 4-H Smart Families program Feb. 1, 3, 5, 8 and 10.
The 4-H Leader/Volunteer Training: Michelle Cummings, Training Wheels, April 15 for leaders in Clay, Effingham, Fayette and Jasper counties; county trainings this spring for positive youth development and leader resources; unit-wide leader conference to expand on other topics (i.e., Cloverbuds, Awards Recognition, how to make meetings fun, parli pro, etc.)
Youth pork quality training is in March and April for Clay and Jasper counties. “Welcome to the Real World” at the Newton High School is April 14 and at Vandalia High School on April 22.
Date for Fayette County High School Girls Self Esteem will be announced later.
The next Unit 21 Extension Council meeting will be at 7 p.m. on Thursday, March 31, in the U of I Extension Office at Effingham.

 

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