Planning and Zoning Duties Assigned to Assessor’s Office

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•January 19, 2022•
by Crystal Reed
NP Writer

The County Board discussed the filling and/or assignment of planning and zoning duties and responsibilities. The Supervisor of Assessments office gave the board handouts last board meeting, and Chief County Assessment Officer Lori Barringer said they may take over these responsibilities without additional staff or salary. The other option is that the board could post a full-time job and get someone dedicated to doing the planning and zoning.
Lauren Sesko, the ESDA director, has been filling in as interim personnel in that office.
A motion was made to have Sesko continue in ESDA as well as do some GIS work for the county while planning and zoning responsibilities will be moved to the assessor’s office with the transition completed by or before February 14. The motion was approved with Tyler Graven voting no. Read More

Sullivan Residents Tie for First in Writing and Photography Contest

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Photo by Crystal Reed
Nate Hunter, Natalee Hunter and Rebecca Lawson stand near one of the trees in Wyman Park that inspired their writing contest entry “The Trees.”

•January 19, 2022•
by Crystal Reed
NP Writer

Recently, a Sullivan High School student, her father and a retired Sullivan High School teacher received the news that they had tied for first place in the 2021 Rachel Carson Intergenerational Sense of Wonder/Sense of the Wild Contest. The team, which includes Natalee Hunter, Nate Hunter and Becky Lawson, won in the “essay with photograph” category in the Sense of Wonder theme.
The essay was written by Natalee and Lawson while the photograph was taken by Nate. The entry which is titled “The Trees” was written about the trees located near the Boy Scout cabin in Wyman Park. According to Lawson, the whole contest connects the love and sense for nature between generations.
Lawson said that the editing process was fascinating. “We discussed what we would write about and blended the two essays together,” she said. A proud moment for her was in the judges’ comments. A phrase that Natalee had written was used. “For them to select that phrase was magical,” Lawson said. Read More

Sullivan Township Precincts redrawn

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•January 12, 2022•
New Voter Identification cards will be mailed to all registered voters in Sullivan Township in mid-January. The Voters Precinct and Polling Location will be in red on these cards. It is very important that Sullivan Township voters review the new Voter ID card to make sure they go to the correct Precinct and Poll Location on Election Day. Reminder: The date for the General Primary Election is June 28, 2022.
The Moultrie County Board passed a Resolution to Re-establish Voting Precinct Lines in Sullivan Township at their July 15, 2021 Board meeting. As a result of that meeting, Sullivan Township precinct sizes now range from 459 to 609 registered voters. Read More

City Council Split on Establishment of Chief of Staff Position

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•January 12, 2022•
by Crystal Reed
NP Writer

The Sullivan City Council had a split vote on whether to establish the position of chief of staff for the city of Sullivan. The vote taken was 2-2. Commissioner Doug Booker was absent. “I’ve changed my position on it,” Commissioner Mike Fowler said. “It’s too much like the city administrator.”
Commissioner Abbey Sherwood announced that the city would be taking bids for a UTV utility vehicle. Bids will be received until 5 p.m., February 14, and should be submitted by mail. Commissioner Chuck Woodworth said the crew is working on installing bigger Nextgrid meters. Read More

ALAH Cheerleader performs at VRBO Citrus Bowl

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Layna Kapp is pictured.

•January 12, 2022•
by Crystal Reed
NP Writer

Layna Kapp, an ALAH High School senior from Lovington, performed at the VRBO Citrus Bowl in Orlando, Florida on January 1. The game between Iowa and Kentucky was played at Camping World Stadium.
Kapp said that her cheer coach set up a home camp through the Universal Cheer Association. During the camp, tryouts were held and three girls qualified to perform at the bowl game. Kapp was the only one able to travel to Orlando to perform. Read More

Local Agencies report Call Counts for 2021

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Call counts have come in from fire, police and ambulance departments in our local area. Some towns have seen an increase in calls while others have not.

•January 12, 2022•
by Crystal Reed
NP Writer

Our local fire departments, ambulance services and police departments work hard to keep citizens safe, and in case of emergency, extinguish fires, respond to car accidents and other life happenings. They work long hours, and at times, their plans for the day will change at a moment’s notice. Agencies in Windsor, Findlay, Arthur, Bethany, Sullivan and Lovington were contacted for their call counts in 2020 and 2021.
The Sullivan Police Department received 2,030 calls in 2020 and 1,930 in 2021. Sullivan Fire Department separates their call counts by ambulance transport and fire and rescue calls which include things such as fires, motor vehicle accidents and lift assists. They calculate by fiscal year which ends on June 30. Read More

Bethany Fire Protection District Members Retire

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Jim McMahan has retired from Bethany Fire Protection District. He is pictured with the truck that was purchased when he served as Fire Chief.

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Troy Yokley recently retired from Bethany Fire Protection District. He was known as the department “chef.”

•January 5, 2022•
by Crystal Reed
NP Writer

Bethany Fire Protection District

recently recognized three of their members who are retiring from the department, Jim McMahan, Tom Rucker and Troy Yokley.
McMahan came to the department in 1997. He served with the department for many years before holding the position of fire chief in the years 2013 through 2017. Over the years, the district has had countless cleanup days where the bays and trucks get cleaned, and nine times out of 10 he was there. After retiring as fire chief, he opted to stay on as a volunteer. He retired at the end of 2020 but returned in 2021 when response numbers were down and something as simple as a driver was needed.

Photo furnished
Tom Rucker recently retired from the Bethany Fire Protection District. After retiring as Fire Chief he came back as a volunteer.

Tom Rucker came to the department in 1988. He joined the department and continued his education in EMS and became an EMT. Rucker has advanced through the ranks of the department from FF/EMT, Fire Lieutenant, Fire Captain, Assistant Fire Chief and then Fire Chief from 2018 to 2019. He then retired from the position but didn’t want to retire from the department. Rucker has seen all but one of the department’s vehicles purchased and was on the committee for most of the apparatus currently in service.
Troy Yokley came to Bethany Fire in 2014. He was the department “chef.” When the department would have fundraisers that involved burgers, that was Yokley’s pride and joy. A couple months after he joined the fire department, his daughter tragically passed away in an accident. Troy and his wife Ella created the Chalyssa Yokley Foundation whereby a gift is presented to the firefighter and EMT of the year within the department.[/s2If]

Jim Warren retires after 32+ years

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Jim Warren retires after 32+ years
Jim Warren retired at the end of 2021 after 32+ years in the car business. A retirement reception was held on Thursday, December 23, 2021 on his 67th birthday. Warren said that he met a lot of people over the years. His retirement plans include traveling and enjoying time with his eight grandchildren. He is pictured with his wife Kim Warren.

Dr. Mauck Retires from Kaskaskia Valley Animal Hospital

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Veterinarian Dr. Gregory Mauck retired from Kaskaskia Valley Animal Hospital on December 30, 2021. In retirement he plans to pursue a master’s degree in Medieval History and Historical Linguistics.

•January 5, 2022•
by Crystal Reed
NP Writer

Dr. Gregory Mauck has retired from Kaskaskia Valley Animal Hospital as of December 30, 2021. An open house at the clinic was held that day to celebrate his retirement.
Mauck is a 1979 graduate of Sullivan High School. He then moved on to the University of Illinois and graduated in 1986 with a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree. He graduated with high honors and was ranked third in his class. Mauck was named a U of I Bronze Tablet Scholar and inducted into the Phi Zeta Honorary Society of Veterinary Medicine. After practicing in Indiana for one year, he founded the Kaskaskia Valley Animal Hospital in Sullivan in May 1987. Read More