[DEC. 14, 2000]  Yesterday evening a Lincoln officer had a dangerous encounter with the driver of an ATV.

At 11:20 p.m. last night, the Lincoln Police Department received a complaint about an individual who was driving a four-wheeler and disturbing the peace. Cpl. Kerns, Officer Rawlins and Officer Short found the driver at the corner of Tremont and Sangamon. Kerns asked the driver to turn off the vehicle, but instead the driver started to flee. Kerns lunged for the driver’s overalls but missed and caught hold of the rear grill or bumper. The driver dragged Kerns for about half of a block before Kerns could let go of the vehicle. Kerns is OK.

The police officers followed the tracks which the four-wheeler had made to a residence on the 300 block of North Elm Street. They saw the ATV parked in the garage. When the officers questioned the occupants of the residence, they lied about having and riding the four-wheeler. Three males were arrested for obstruction of justice because of their lying: an 18-year-old Lincolnite, a 22-year-old Lincolnite and an 18-year-old from Kenney. A 23-year-old male from Lincoln was arrested for aggravated battery and reckless conduct and was served 10 citations for running stop signs. All four suspects are still in custody, and the 23-year-old is awaiting a court appearance.

[Jean Ann Carnley]

[DEC. 14, 2000]  You’ve heard it, or said it or at least thought it: "What a pity. With a little guidance he/she could have been so much more!"

    We could say times have changed since the day that families lived close to one another and lent support and strength to each other. No longer is extended family available for most families to help care for and foster the guidance of children. With this loss of unity also goes the loss of less tangible family strengths. This would be a true statement.

However, there are numerous examples throughout history that there have always been individuals who have given themselves to the guidance of youth, as is evidenced by the word mentor.

Merriam-Webster dictionary defines mentor as:
1 capitalized: a friend of Odysseus entrusted with the education of Odysseus' son Telemachus
2 a : a trusted counselor or guide b : TUTOR, COACH
- men·tor·ship /-"ship/ noun

To say we need this influence on our youth today is as much or more than ever true.

[Jan Youngquist]

Part 1

The Lincoln Area YMCA’s mentoring program is in its third year. The mentoring program is designed "to match adults who are good role models with children who are in need of one-on-one time with a mentor." Mentors build relationships with their students by meeting for at least 30 minutes per week.

The mentoring program was originally suggested by Bridget Miller as a part of the goals of the 21^st Century Community Learning Center Project. Miller modeled Lincoln’s program after a program in Quincy. At the beginning, the mentoring program served students at Northwest and Washington-Monroe schools only, because they already had after-school programs. Now, all of the elementary schools and the junior high participate in the mentoring program.

Sarah Farris is the program’s director. She is in charge of recruiting and training mentors, matching mentors with students, and coordinating the YMCA’s monthly mentoring social events. Sarah believes that the mentoring program is "going very well." Recently she trained seven new mentors and matched 11 mentors with 11 students. She still has a few unmatched mentors and students but is confident that they will soon be able to be paired.

The YMCA has tried writing letters and running news advertisements to recruit new mentors, but most mentors come by word of mouth. Farris says that the best recruiters so far have been YMCA board members and individuals who are already mentors. Whenever Farris gets a list of four to six prospects, she schedules a training session. She usually has four or five training sessions per year, each session being two hours. The training focuses on child abuse, abuse prevention and the characteristics of a good mentor. Each mentor’s name is run through the Illinois Child Abuse and Neglect Tracking System.

[to top of second column in this section]

Any child may be mentored. There are no requirements, positive or negative. Either parents or teachers may recommend a child to the YMCA. For students to be admitted to the program, they only need a signed permission form from their parents.

Farris uses questions on the mentor application to help her match mentors to students based on their common interests. Her goal is to match the gender of mentor and student, but that is not always possible because the mentor male-to-female ratio is not the same as the student male-to-female ratio. Often, time availability is the main issue that Farris uses to pair mentors and students.

The Y only requires mentors and students to meet for a half hour per week but strongly encourages both of them to attend monthly social events at the YMCA. During these social events, such as bowling, chili and game night, and skating parties, mentors and students relax and have fun with each other and with other mentor-student pairs. The YMCA is limited to doing activities in town because they do not have a bus to transport the students.

The Y asks mentors to commit to mentoring their students for a year. The longest mentoring relationship so far is 14 months. Presently, three groups have been meeting for 14 months.

(To be continued — In future postings, Lincoln Daily News will introduce you to some of the mentors in Lincoln.)

[Jean Ann Carnley]

[DEC. 13, 2000]  Watch out! The city and county roads are slick. Remember to leave plenty of time for travel and plenty of room in between cars. Signal and slow down early.

If you have to travel outside of the county, call the Illinois Department of Transportation’s toll-free number to check on road conditions, 1-800-452-4368.

In the city of Lincoln, the salt trucks are out on the main roads. According to Lincoln Police Department’s assistant chief, there is not as much ice as the other day, but the roads are still slippery and becoming more hazardous. The Street and Alley Department said that later today plow trucks will replace the salt trucks.

The Logan County Highway Department put salt and cinders on Monday’s ice, which helped reduce the amount of ice on the roads, but they are still slick. The County Highway Department said that presently there is not enough snow to plow, but they will soon be sending their plow trucks out on county roads with salt and cinders. They advise drivers not to make any sudden movements. Quick stops and turns will almost certainly cause a driver to lose control of his vehicle.

Marsha Dowling of the Health Department recommends drivers keep blankets, two candles, wood matches and a tin can in their car. The candles and blankets can keep stranded motorists warm in a car for at least an hour. The candles can also melt snow in a tin can for drinking water. The Sheriff’s Department reminds motorists to take along their cell phone, if they own one.

[Jean Ann Carnley]

[DEC. 13, 2000]  The local Looking for Lincoln exhibit, site of a ribbon-cutting on Saturday, Dec. 9, is in the form of a storyboard. It stands on the location where Abraham Lincoln is purported to have christened the city with the juice of a watermelon. The site is just beside the railroad tracks at Broadway and Chicago streets on the lawn of the Restaurant at the Depot. The sign sports a print by the late Lloyd Ostendorf, a local artist, and tells the story of the city christening as recalled by the Stevens boy. Included on the sign is the Looking for Lincoln exhibit signature trait, a raised emblem for children to collect rubbings. Lincoln’s symbol is a watermelon.

The Looking for Lincoln project in Lincoln is administrated by Main Street Lincoln under the leadership of Wendy Bell. In addition, many local people interested in the historic and business development of Lincoln have been working (volunteering) all year to bring Lincoln into the Heritage Tourism loop through the Looking for Lincoln project. Lincoln owes a debt of gratitude to these many fine people who have and will continue to work selflessly all year long.

[click here for photos]

[Jan Youngquist]

[DEC. 12, 2000]  Mrs. Stamm's first grade class from Zion Lutheran School decorated trees and sang carols at the Cracker Barrel this morning. The 18 students made ornaments for the tree at school. Following decorating and caroling, the students were treated to Mickey Mouse pancakes and a tour of the kitchen and gift store.

Cracker Barrel reports all of the 160 gift commitment cards have been taken off the Angel Tree. Gifts will be bought and wrapped for needy boys and girls up to age 10 in Logan County.

[Mrs. Stamm's first grade class from Zion Lutheran School decorated trees and sang carols at the Cracker Barrel this morning.]

[DEC. 11, 2000]  Two businesses in Lincoln were robbed over the weekend. There are no leads, and the police do not know yet if the incidents were related.

The first burglary occurred early Saturday morning, before 5:12 a.m. Someone broke a window to gain entry to the Knights of Columbus on 217 N. Limit. Approximately $900 in cash and two cash registers were stolen.

The second burglary occurred early on Sunday, between 3 and 3:44 a.m. Again, someone broke a window, this time to gain entry to Haji’s Bar and Grill on 203 Madigan Drive. About $300 in cash and one cash register were stolen.

[DEC. 11, 2000]  Congratulations to all the folks who each won $50 in Atlanta Bucks at this year's Atlanta Aglow Big Bucks drawing on Friday, Dec. 8. Winners included Sandy Sympson, Andy Glass, Cheryl Renfrow, Joe Daugherty, Annabelle Kieszling, Annie Newcomb, Marge Dyer, Shelby Batterton, Marge

Blankenship, Virginia Kindred, Bea Glass, Becky Horrom, Toni Hawkins, Karen Sherman, Tim O'Donnell, Mary Smith, Laura O'Donnell, Dave Klockhenga, Elsie Donnan and Margaurite Warrick. A total of $1,000 in Atlanta Bucks was awarded.

Thanks to all the Atlanta merchants who participated in Atlanta Aglow 2000, including Alberts’ Bonnie Brae Nursery, Gilbert’s True Value Hardware, Turner Oil Company, Atlanta Bowling Alley, NAPA Auto Parts, Johnson Real Estate, East Lincoln Grain, Dick Lane Insurance, McLane Antenna Service, Hoblit Seed Company, Hamblin's Grocery, C-Aire Lounge, Terry's Floral Productions, Hair It Is, Sherman's Pharmacy, Atlanta National Bank, Johnson's Lumber, Schmidt-Marcotte Implement, Modernette Beauty Shop, John's Barber Shop, Chubby's Bar & Grill, North Greens Golf Course, Parks Construction, Lazy Row Orchard, Mrs. Noble's Tupperware, and Daugherty & Crane. Atlanta is fortunate to have so many fine merchants. The A-team encourages everyone to shop in Atlanta.

[DEC. 9, 2000]  ^"Christmas at the Museum" is the theme during the 2000 Christmas season at the Lincoln College Museum.

Visitors to the museum during this period will observe how the décor of Christmas has been integrated with the various collections on exhibit. For the convenience of visitors, Lincoln College Museum has extended its hours Dec. 18 through Dec. 22 and will be open from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. The museum will observe the following holiday hours: Dec. 23-26, closed to observe the Christmas holiday; Dec. 27-29, open 9 a.m. - 4 p.m.; Dec. 30-Jan. 7, closed for the New Year’s holiday. The Lincoln College Museum will return to regular hours on Monday, Jan. 8.

The museum’s extended visiting hours will allow friends and relatives who are visiting in Logan County during the holidays an opportunity to visit one of the nation’s outstanding museums which houses artifacts and documents related to the nation’s 16^th president and the period in which Abraham Lincoln lived. Lincoln College Museum contains hundreds of items that confirm the economic, political and social development of Logan County.

[OCT. 10, 2000]  The office of the city clerk in Lincoln will be open for filing petitions for nomination for the Feb. 27, 2001, consolidated primary election, with petitions accepted from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on the following dates: Dec. 11, 12, 13, 14, 15 and 18.

Petitions will be accepted for the following city offices:

• Mayor
• City treasurer
• City clerk
• Alderman Ward 1
• Alderman Ward 2
• Alderman Ward 3
• Alderman Ward 4

• Alderman Ward 5

[Juanita Josserand, city clerk]

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