True North

•October 8, 2025•

by Janet Roney

When I was a child, on clear, cloudless nights, my father and I often went on walks to see the stars. It was before farms had all-night security lights, so it was dark as pitch down below, but above us, the magnificent, infinite canopy of the sparkling Milky Way filled the heavens. How beautiful! How amazing! How humbling!

To the south, there was Orion, the hunter, followed by his two dogs, Canis Major and Minor. Almost above us were the Pleiades, the seven sisters, riding on the shoulder of Taurus the Bull. In the north was the Big Dipper pointing to the Little Dipper and the North Star, the most important star for travelers to find their true path since the beginning of human history.

2015

There is more to Habitat for Humanity in Sullivan than building homes, even though they are nearing the completion of the 26th house in Moultrie County. While Habitat Care-A-Vanners from all over the country spend two-week stints volunteering labor on the latest home, Sullivan has gone above and beyond most communities by providing a place for volunteers to park their campers and daily meals coordinated by the Sullivan Area Ministerial Alliance.

Sullivan FFA placed second in the Sullivan Soils Invitational contest, missing first by one point. Austin Schmohe, Jon Gavinq, Brodie Scribner, Bryce King, Hailie Britton, and Devan Tull all qualified for the Sectional Championship. With all of the budget cuts experienced by the County Soil and Water Conservation District, the Moultrie County soils contest had to be cancelled this year.