2006
Columbus attorneys John Pushor and Ben Bush were honored by Bartholomew County Bar Association for their more than 50 years of practicing law.
1991
Student members of Amnesty Inter-national conducted a demonstration and candlelight vigil at Columbus City Hall for political prisoners around the world.
1966
Flooding of White River, hazardous driving conditions and a forecast for between 1 and 2 inches of snow were predicted following five days of rain.
Staff Reports
An analysis of the structural fire protection delivery system for the Columbus Fire Department has resulted in an improved public protection classification rating for the community. The rating improved from Class 4 to Class 3.
The Columbus Fire Department participated in an Insurance Service Organization (ISO)/Public Protection Classification (PPC) field survey. ISO evaluated three major areas during its visit to Columbus: emergency communications, fire department and water supply.
ISO collects information about municipal fire protection efforts in communities throughout the United States. In each of the communities, ISO analyzes the relevant data and assigns a Public Protection Classification, from 1 to 10. Class 1 generally represents superior property fire protection, and Class 10 indicates that the area’s fire suppression program does not meet ISO’s minimum criteria.
Columbus Fire Department’s PCC rating improvement placed the department in the top 10 percent of fire departments nationwide, and the top 4 percent of fire departments statewide.
“Achieving this benchmark was a collaborative effort by the Columbus City Utilities, Bartholomew County Emergency Operations Center and the Columbus Fire Department,” Columbus Fire Chief Mike Compton said. “What the rating really reflects is the city’s dedication toward public safety.”
A large number of U.S. insurers of homes and business property use ISO’s Public Protection Classifications in calculating premiums. In general, the price of fire insurance in a community with a good PPC is substantially lower than in a community with a poor PPC, assuming all other factors are equal.
The current ISO Class 3 rating took effect Dec. 1.
American Legion Post 24 in Columbus and the Taylorsville crime watch group helped donate toys to the Columbus Firemen’s Cheer Fund by working with the Dollar General stores in Taylorsville and Edinburgh.
Donors either bought toys at the stores or brought in donations. The toys were delivered to the United Way of Bartholomew County for distribution.
The toy drive will continue through late December, with additional donations going toward next year’s distribution, said William Tapscott, of the Taylorsville crime watch group.
Deck the hall with bells of holly, and be sure and go see the latest production at the Brown County Playhouse. “Believe” is a live music variety show, and its final showings are this weekend and next weekend.
The holiday show provides enchanting songs, laughter and wonderful and talented entertainers resplendent in holiday costumes the likes of which would be the envy of Broadway. I was absolutely bowled over with the lively, electrifying and exciting evening of live entertainment by these very professional performers.
Show times are 7:30 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, and 2 p.m. Sundays.
The cast includes:
Rhett Thomas: He has performed nationally and internationally in 13 countries, and settled in Branson, Missouri, for a prolonged stay in a number of shows. His credits include television, cruise lines, corporate events and benefits, and he runs a company that produces shows across the country. Thomas now makes his home in Columbus.
Pam Dixon: Her Broadway and national tours include numerous plays along with many film and TV credits. Originally from Indiana, she attended the IU Jacob’s School of Music where she appeared in several operas and musicals. She is a former member of Indiana University Singing Hoosiers.
Russell Moss: The all-around entertainer has many credits to his name, including owner of the Boggstown Cabaret, and has produced three shows at the Brown County Playhouse since 2013.
Amy Christine Johnson: The professional singer and arts educator has appeared in numerous operas and works with a children’s theater camp in Nashville.
Toni Ham Tolliver: The Brown County native’s career spans the world of music and entertainment, having performed with Doc Severinsen, Buddy Hackett and Leslie Uggams, and in several IU theater productions. She currently performs monthly at The Connoisseur Room in Indianapolis.
J. Kevin Butler: The performer and dancer is a highly respected clinician, adjudicator and choral director with the IU Singing Hoosiers, musical director for the Chicago Children’s Choir, artistic director for the Indianapolis Men’s Chorus and works with numerous high schools in Indiana as choral director. He currently is director of music for the First United Methodist Church of Columbus.
Fun trip
I took a fascinating tour of the Bear Wallow Distillery, located on Old State Road 46 in Gnaw Bone, and learned quite a bit about whiskey and the distillery. The tour provided quite an education, and included a sampling of six of the production offerings — something for those who have a strong constitution for such.Best of all was the maple syrup that is aged in the bourbon bottles for a period of time — a very tasty addition to your pancakes and waffles.
Seven Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA) volunteers gathered at the Bartholomew County Courthouse recently to be sworn in.
The new volunteers are: Audrey Ogle, Jeffry Ludlow, Deanna Railing, Susan Rust, Alicia Copeland-Utt, LuAnn Davis and Christopher Sparks.
They had completed a 36-hour training curriculum, and prepared to step into their roles as advocates for area victims of child abuse and neglect.
CASA volunteers serve as the eyes and ears of the court, making recommendations about what is in the best interest of the children they serve, and give those children a voice during their time in the child protection system.
The seven volunteers sworn in represent the latest of more than 100 CASA volunteers supervised by Advocates for Children in Bartholomew, Decatur, and Jennings counties. By October of this year, the agency had already served 737 children in the region, a 24 percent increase over the same period in 2015.
However, 300 abused and neglected children remain on the waiting list in need of advocates.
With those children in mind, the agency is currently preparing the next training session, scheduled to begin in January. Individuals interested in learning more about joining the session and becoming a CASA volunteer can visit the website, apowerfulvoice.org, or call the office at 877-604-9402.
It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas. During the holiday season the Bartholomew County Recycling Center at 720 S. Mapleton St., Columbus, will accept wrapping paper, Christmas lights and live Christmas trees from Dec. 27 through Jan. 14.
Some restrictions apply:
Wrapping paper: No ribbons, bows or foil/shiny paper
Christmas lights: Strand lighting only
Christmas trees: Live trees only with lights, decorations and stands removed. (Bring trees to the yard waste site adjacent to the Recycling Center.)
Holiday closings
The Bartholomew County Landfill will close at 1 p.m. Dec. 24. The landfill will be closed Dec. 26 in observance of Christmas, and Jan. 2 in observance of New Year’s Day.The recycling center will be closed Dec. 24 and 26 in observance of Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day will be observed Dec. 31 and Jan. 2.
The Bartholomew County Solid Waste Management Office will be closed Dec. 23 and 26 in observance of Christmas. New Year’s Day will be observed Dec. 30 and Jan. 2.
Go green
Here are some tips on how to go “green” and be more environmentally friendly this holiday season:Use low-energy LED lights. This could save you up to 80 percent in energy costs.
Use natural materials found around your home for decorating: evergreen prunings and pine cones.
Recycle old electronics.
Donate gently-used clothing and toys after they have been replaced by new gifts.
Reuse gift boxes from other occasions for gift wrapping.
Wrap your gifts in reused material such as newspaper or fabric pieces.
Think useful. Give unique gifts that will be utilized by the recipient versus giving a gift someone may never really use.
Give gift cards. Less packaging and the recipient is sure to get exactly what they want.
Use cloth napkins and hardware versus disposable items to generate less waste.
Have a healthy, sustainable holiday.
This year, my wife and I had a low-key Thanksgiving … just the two of us. We’ll have the whole gang at Christmas, so we didn’t mind celebrating Thanksgiving by ourselves.
It was nice not having to cook a big dinner or clean up afterward. Instead, Brenda made chicken and noodles, and we watched the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, the National Dog Show and the Detroit Lions vs. Minnesota Vikings NFL game.
While I love football and the occasional parade, the dog show is always my Thanksgiving favorite. I love dogs, and I get a kick out of seeing all the different breeds, from the tiny Yorkshire terrier to the giant Great Dane.
Brenda and I have been talking about getting a dog. It’s been more than nine years since we said goodbye to our faithful friend, Augie, and I miss having a dog.
We have two cats we’re crazy about, but it would be nice to once again have a pet that seems to actually be happy that we are alive.
When I used to say “come here, boy” to Augie, he would run and jump in my lap. When I say “come here, boy” to our cat, Sheldon, he pretends that he didn’t hear me and starts to take yet another of his 15 daily baths. That’s a lot of baths for a cat that’s awake maybe five hours a day.
If I say “come here, Stella” to Sheldon’s neurotic sister, she just stares at me. If I make a move toward her, she turns and runs away.
As the saying goes, dogs have masters; cats have staff.
Part of the enjoyment of watching the dog show is hearing about all the different breeds, especially the ones that were bred for specific purposes. The announcers also talk a bit about what the different breeds need in a happy home.
So this year, Brenda and I paid special attention, trying to figure out what breed might best fit our lifestyle.
No matter what kind of dog we end up getting, it will be a rescue dog, and therefore most likely a mutt of some kind. Still, even with a mixed-breed dog, you can often identify at least one of the breeds in the mix.
Our ideal dog would be low maintenance. When the announcer says “this dog needs to run” we say “next!” Some of the long-haired breeds are beautiful all dolled up for the show ring, but we can’t spare eight hours a day to brush a dog. We also don’t want a dog that needs to be professionally groomed.
And we don’t really need a working breed. For example, a dog bred to stick its head into holes and pull out rats would probably be bored at our house. Sounds like a dog prone to pulling things out of the trash can.
By the time the Thanksgiving dog show was over, Brenda and I had a pretty good idea of the traits our ideal dog would possess. First, it would have no desire to run, take walks or even go outside unless absolutely necessary.
If it could learn to use the toilet, so much the better.
Our ideal dog would think Brenda and I were the best things since rawhide chew bones. Whenever we’d come home, it would be thrilled to see us, even if we’ve been gone only a few minutes.
When we say “come here,” it will not only hear us, it will actually come to us. It will lie on our laps and lick our faces. And it will get along with Sheldon and Stella, and they will be thrilled that the new arrival has largely taken the humans off their paws.
Who knows, maybe the cats would even get jealous and start sitting on our laps and acknowledging our presence when we come home instead of just running to their food bowls.
Yeah, right.
Good idea
The creation of a not-for-profit foundation to generate funding for future Bartholomew County park improvements is smart thinking.
The Bartholomew County Parks Foundation will use the Heritage Fund _ The Community Foundation of Bartholomew County to serve as the fiscal agent and manage gifts and donations. The fund will allow donors to select areas of interest, such as Projects, Youth Scholarships and Endowment Fund.
Such as setup has benefited the city of Columbus for decades, and the new foundation will be a benefit in providing funding for the improvement and maintenance of county parks that bring joy to many residents.
Among the dozen parks under the county’s purview are Anderson Falls, a favorite of nature enthusiasts; Dunn Stadium, which hosts many sporting events; and Owens Bend park, known as a fishing spot.
The county’s parks have great potential but also have an enormous need for improvements. With county funds pinched, the foundation can play a big part in enhancing the quality of life throughout the county.
Residents should use the Bartholomew County Parks Foundation as a vehicle for supporting the community assets with financial donations, to ensure that the parks can fully provide users with the enjoyment they desire.
Tremendous assistance
Kudos to those who organized and volunteered to help at three free community Thanksgiving meals.
More than 1,600 people were served this year at three sites:
America and Roby Anderson Community Center, 275 meals on Nov. 19.
First Christian Church, 594 meals on Nov. 24.
Columbus Baptist Church, 747 meals on Nov. 24.
The efforts of organizers and volunteers made a positive impact in many people’s lives.
Successful project
Columbus North student Maddy Neal organized a Thanksgiving Day 5K/10K race to benefit the Love Chapel food pantry in Columbus. Her senior-project goal was to raise $10,000 and bring in 2,500 cans of food for Love Chapel.
Mission accomplished. Neal said the race had more than 500 participants, raised more than $14,000 after expenses and generated donations of more than 3,300 cans of food.
Neal’s project was a worthwhile idea to help those who struggle to put food on the table. Neal and those who participated in the event and donated canned food are to be commended for their contributions.
Sept. 11, 2001. The very mention of that date sends chills down the spine of all Hoosiers, indeed all Americans, who lived through it.
It was the day that terrorists from the Middle East turned commercial aircraft into weapons of mass destruction, killing nearly 3,000 people in the World Trade Center, the Pentagon and on board four hijacked planes.
“It was the first shot in the global war on terrorism,” reflects Teri Maude, the widow of one of nine Hoosiers who died that day.
Her husband was Lt. Gen. Timothy Maude, the highest-ranking general officer to be killed in hostile action since World War II.
Tim Maude was an Indianapolis native who enlisted in the military while a student at Marian University in Indianapolis. After serving in Vietnam in 1967 and 1968 and earning a Bronze Star, he opted for a career with the Army. He never looked back. Along the way, he fell in love with a fellow Marian student, Teri Campbell, and they married and had two daughters.
When American Airlines Flight 77 slammed into the Pentagon, Maude was in a meeting with contractors discussing the military’s survivor-benefit program. Teri, a civilian Army employee, was at a conference in San Diego where she watched the events unfold on TV.
By day’s end, although his remains had not been identified, it was clear to Teri and officials in Washington that Tim was among the victims as were many of their colleagues and friends. “Not only did I suffer personal loss, but my Army family took one hell of a hit that day,” Maude says. “There was a 27 percent casualty rate in Tim’s unit and a 37 percent injury rate.”
Maude was one of four Hoosiers killed in the Pentagon attack. The others were Col. Canfield Boone, Milan; Major Stephen V. Long, Cascade; and Brenda Gibson of Indianapolis, a civilian employee.
In New York City, four Hoosiers who worked in the World Trade Center died when American Airlines Flight 11 and United Airlines Flight 175 hit the North and South Towers. They were: Gary Bright, Muncie; Katie McCloskey, South Bend; Stacy Peak, Tell City and Karen Juday, Elkhart. Eddie Dillard, raised in Gary, was a passenger on Flight 77 en route to California to visit his son when that plane struck the Pentagon.
The fourth plane, United Airlines Flight 43, crashed in Somerset County, Pennsylvania, after passengers and crew learned about the earlier attacks and attempted to retake the plane.
Teri Maude views all the victims as war heroes and says she is glad their sacrifice has been remembered at memorials in Washington, New York, Pennsylvania and cities across the country, including the Maudes’ hometown.
Now living in South Carolina, Maude was in Indianapolis in 2014 to help dedicate a 600-pound slab of Indiana limestone salvaged from the Pentagon’s devastation and included in the city’s 9/11 memorial on Ohio Street. The memorial features two upright beams from the Twin Towers and a pair of granite walls inscribed with remembrances of 9/11. A life-size sculpture of a bald eagle is perched atop one of the beams, its wings outstretched and eyes looking east.
Maude has visited that memorial and the one at the Pentagon on numerous occasions.
“I find these places more a place of reflection than a war monument,” she said. “I get great peace there because it is fulfilling the promise everybody made to each other that day: We will never forget.”
Andrea Neal is an adjunct scholar with the Indiana Policy Review. Contact her at aneal@inpolicy.org.
From: John Vanderbur
Greensburg
I write this letter in response to a recent letter titled “Trump election win not really a mystery,” written by Sherry Grimes and published in The Republic.
As I read this letter, I underlined those segments that I disagreed with. When I was done, I had about 75 percent of the text underlined. Being confined to 500 words, I will refute what I feel are important contentions.
I believe she mentioned the “silent majority” four times. In the November election, the so-called “silent majority” were actually those who voted for Hillary Clinton. She beat him in the popular vote by 2.5 million votes. The “silent majority” was a catch phrase used by President Nixon, and we all know how that presidency ended.
In the following, I will put in quotation marks the verbatim comments from Grimes’ letter, and then I will give a rebuttal of those remarks. (1) “The silent majority knows that it is unconstitutional to force Americans to buy any product, even Obamacare, against their will.” *Better think again, the Supreme Court ruled that Obamacare is legal. The conservative Justice Roberts was the swing vote in that case. (2) “The silent majority is sick and tired of being called racist, homophobic, sexist and anti-immigrant.” *Well, you need only to listen to the racist remarks (Mexicans), sexist comments (some women are fat pigs) and the immigration remarks made by none other than Donald Trump. (3) “We want our First Amendment rights back.” *No one has taken them from you. You have freedom of speech and you may express yourself within the confines of civility and law.
In addition to these, Grimes had a bullet list of five items. She prefaced the bullet list with this remark: “Here are some of the outrageous remarks I have heard from the anti-Trump faction since Nov. 8.” The following are some of the bullet list items:
• “People will die when Obamacare is repealed.” *Prior to Obamacare, some people who had pre-existing conditions could not be insured. As a result, those in the lower and middle levels of income could not afford the medicines that they needed to survive; in short, some of them died. I have no idea how many, but if it was just one, that’s one too many.
• “All illegal immigrants will be sent back to their native countries.” *Again, Trump’s words. Several months before the election, Chuck Todd interviewed Trump. On the subject of immigration, Trump said the following: “We’re going to keep the families together, but they have to go.” When pressed on what he would do if the immigrants in question had nowhere to return to, Trump reiterated, “They have to go.”
I find Ms. Grimes letter as preaching the gospel of untruth, exaggerations and a perpetuation of mistrust and division.
As President Obama once said in a speech: “Well, I say to them tonight, there’s not a liberal America and a conservative America; there’s the United States of America.” I wish that were true.
