[FEB. 16, 2000]  Three persistent bicycling enthusiasts, Bert Rawlings, Mark Miller and John Sutton, all of Lincoln, began the movement for Logan County to have what already exists successfully at both ends of Illinois and all over the nation--an interconnected, clean and safe bike/walk trail.

This has been no easy task. "It took many county board meetings just to be taken seriously," explains Bert Rawlings, the spokesperson at last night's meeting. "It takes the support of a governing body to apply for grant money. Logan County is making this possible by working with us for grant money," says Rawlings. He continues saying, "We also have the support of Lincoln City Council and John Sutton has been working with Mayor Ritter and the city engineer."

Working together with other communities, they have proposed two areas of development, a centrally located main trunk and signed routes to nearby communities accessed by county roadways. The old interurban rail corridor, which runs along I-55, constitutes the proposed main trunk for a bike/walk trail. This trunk meets neighboring counties’ trails, Sangamon County to the south and McLean County to the north. Their trails are in various stages of development at this time.

The proposed Logan County portion runs from south of Elkhart to north of Atlanta. This is subdivided into three sections: south of Elkhart, Elkhart to Lincoln, and Lincoln to the north side of Atlanta. CILCO has given a verbal release for use of the section from Madigan State Park to Elkhart. This is the section, which will be developed first.

The main trunk will be built up with rock chips and asphalt. Asphalt makes the best surface for biking. The off-road access will provide safe riding and walking away from high risk motorized traffic. "No motorized vehicles (except motor assisted bicycles) are currently allowed on other state bike trails," a spokesperson for the Department of Natural Resources says.

Guided cycling routes diverting off the main trunkline are being proposed using county roadways and "almost all township roads" according to Rawlings. Initially these routes will be posted with signs directing walkers and bikers into the communities of Middletown, Broadwell, Elkhart, Mount Pulaski, and Chestnut. The communities will be start and stop trailheads. Ideas are flowing as to the benefits the connected communities can reap from such a bike route. "Hungry, thirsty cyclists hit up local businesses—the first thing they hit in town," a Middletown resident reported.

Jay Jessen, an engineering consultant, of Green and Bradford of Springfield, was on hand to explain some of the proposed costs and the processes necessary toward procuring grant funds. The one major cost will be for a bridge crossing Salt Creek just south of Lincoln. The estimated cost is $200,000 dollars. A grant fund is available to cover 80 percent of the cost. The Illinois Department of Natural Resources and the community would have to go 50/50 on the remaining amount. Therefore, approximately $20,000 would need to be raised for the bridge.

Total costs for the trail are not yet estimated, but the same grant is available for all stages of the trail. Communities are raising the funds for signs. Of the $1,000 dollars for signs county wide, only $300 is still needed for signs in the Elkhart area. While some fund raising is necessary, the costs will be nominal compared to the value it brings to the community.

There are already many committed to the protection and upkeep of the routes. The National Mountain Bike Patrol has said they will patrol the routes regularly providing roadside first aid and repairs.

The only concern expressed by anyone has been one of liability. While a serious consideration, it seems to be a nominal risk. At present no trail in Illinois has been held liable yet. The Civil Liabilities Act, however, provides protection.

Support by means of talking, going to community and county board meetings, and the willingness to participate in the planning developments is encouraged by all who are interested in seeing this happen. There is much to be done and something for everyone to do. Someone is needed to promote the Mount Pulaski to Elkhart segment.

[Jan Youngquist]

ALMH Opens Doors

New physical therapy quarters in use

[FEB. 16, 2000]  More than twice as much space, along with plenty of windows, is making treatment more pleasant for both patients and staff at Abraham Lincoln Memorial Hospital’s Rehabilitation Services Department.

The new quarters on the first floor of the hospital’s west wing opened first thing Monday morning, looking fresh and bright with new flooring, furniture and wallpaper. The move from the old quarters in the basement of the hospital was made over the weekend, with many staff members pitching in.

According to Dolan Dalpoas, director of rehabilitation services, the new facility has 6,100 square feet, more than double the 2,600 square feet in the old basement location.

The gymnasium-like room which houses the cardiac rehabilitation department provides plenty of room for patients to ride their stationary bicycles and walk their treadmills. Five treatment rooms offer physical and occupational therapy patients a degree of privacy and comfort not available in the old basement quarters with its curtained cubicles.

Almost every room in the new wing has at least one window, in contrast to the old quarters where, staff members recall, nobody could see what the weather was like from early morning until closing time.

[New physical therapy room at ALMH]

Along with the cardiac rehabilitation and treatment rooms, the new site also has a spacious waiting area, a new and larger staff room, rooms for both the audiologist and speech/language pathologist, a hydrotherapy room with a power lift to help patients in and out of tubs, a pediatric treatment room and a model bathroom and kitchen to help occupational therapy patients who must relearn household living skills.

The kitchen, not yet completed, will be complete with a stove and refrigerator so patients will be able to actually cook meals as part of their rehabilitation.

The new pediatric treatment room, complete with toys, mats and colorful children’s wallpaper will allow children to receive therapy at the hospital for the first time. Previously therapists had no appropriate space and had to go offsite to treat children. The hydrotherapy room also offers plenty of privacy for patients. This equipment had formerly been housed in a corner of the staff room, Dalpoas said.

"With the extra space in the cardiac rehabilitation room, new equipment can be added," said exercise physiologist Jason Anhalt. Another treadmill and a recumbent bicycle are now on order.

The new quarters provide plenty of room for the staff, which includes five physical therapists and six physical therapy assistants, one occupational therapist and one assistant, an audiologist, a speech and language therapist, a wellness coordinator, four members of the cardiac rehabilitation department, the director and the office assistant. The staff serves approximately 50 patients a day.

"This would be a state-of-the-art facility no matter where you went," Dalpoas said. "It is a real achievement for a town this size to have a rehabilitation facility of this quality."

The public can tour the new quarters, along with the new surgery wing, at an open house to be held Sunday, March 26, from 2 to 4 p.m.

[Joan Crabb]

[Dolan Dalpoas showing new equipment at ALMH]

Local History, Story Times Make Library Special

[FEB. 15, 2000]  Lincoln folks like their library. In the recent Capstone Project survey, the Lincoln Public Library received a vote of confidence. The survey asked respondents to indicate which areas of life in Lincoln they were concerned about and which areas they found satisfactory. The library was one of those they liked the best. In fact, 95% of those surveyed agreed that the Lincoln Public Library is tops.

Along with the books, magazines, newspapers, videotapes, computers, meeting rooms and photocopiers which are common to most libraries, Lincoln’s library offers some services that many others its size do not have, according to Library Director Richard M. Sumrall.

He points with pride to the local history collection. "We try to provide anything that will aid researchers looking for local history or genealogy. There is a tremendous interest now in both those areas."

The collection includes census records, cemetery records, family histories, manuscripts, telephone books and old newspapers from Lincoln and from the smaller communities in Logan County, according to research librarian Caroline Kiest.

The newspapers, stored on microfilm, date back to 1859 and include the "Lincoln Herald" and "Lincoln News-Herald," the "Lincoln Times," the "Lincoln Journal," the "Star," and "The Courier," along with former Atlanta, Middletown and Mount Pulaski newspapers. Even the "Lincoln Volksblatt," a German-language newspaper published from 1877 to 1898, is included.

[Lincoln Public Library]

More historical information is stored on CD-ROMs. These computer disks list marriage records in most states of the Union, some going back as far as 1641, as well as land records, Social Security death indexes, census records, and collections of genealogy books.

"Using these CDs, people can come in, type in a surname, and do a national search," Sumrall explained. "In the summer, almost every day a couple from somewhere else comes in looking for their relatives. Many people don’t know this area was a gateway for settlers who were heading West. For example, in 1846 the Donner Party started for California from Springfield, Ill." (The Donner Party became trapped in the Sierra Nevada Mountains by heavy snow, and some members resorted to cannibalism to survive.)

[Story time at the library]

"What makes us special is that we are really committed to public service," Sumrall continued. "Whenever someone comes in with a query, no matter how difficult it may seem, we want to give that person some kind of information. We never want to utter the words, ‘We can’t help you answer that question.’"

Service is also the emphasis in the Annex, the library addition, which houses the adult fiction and the children’s department. Pat Schlough, the youth services librarian, wants it to be "a comfortable, attractive place where children want to come."

When the Annex opened in March of 1995, the children’s library was able to move from the basement of the main building to its present spacious quarters. It houses more than 12,000 children’s books, along with four computers, a craft room and a guinea pig, Wilbur, named for the pig in the classic children’s book "Charlotte’s Web."

"Parents and children like our story times," Schlough said. "Story time encourages them to be readers. Once children listen to us read to them, they begin to want to take the book home and read it themselves. If they enjoy a certain book they know how to go to the shelf and find others like it."

During the school year, story hours for children ages 3-5 are Monday and Tuesday at 10 a.m. and Monday evening at 6 p.m. A story program for kindergartners is held on Tuesday at 2:15 p.m. In the spring and fall, 50 to 60 children sign up for story time. In the summer, with five story hours scheduled, about a hundred children attend, Schlough said. Craft time for children in grades one through six is held from 3:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. on Thursdays.

In addition, an after school tutorial program, staffed by volunteers Monday through Thursday, offers children help with homework and studying. The children’s library also has copies of all textbooks used in grades one through eight in school District 27, so children who forget their books can come in and catch up on their homework.

Each week the library is open until 8 p.m. Monday through Thursday, until 6 p.m. on Fridays, and until 3 p.m. on Saturday.

[Pam Sheley and Richard Sumrall]

[Joan Crabb]

Lincoln College Marks 135th Anniversary

[FEB. 14, 2000]  Lincoln College celebrated 135 years of existence at Charter Day observances Sunday, Feb. 13. The granting of the school's charter was marked by speeches and by giving special recognition to honored alumni and public figures. President Jack Nutt presided over the ceremonies in the Johnston Center on the Lincoln College campus. He reminded the audience of the college's commitment in 1865 to its namesake, President Abraham Lincoln, "to do justice to your name." Several speakers expressed their belief that the college's promise had been fulfilled.

The 2 p.m. observance featured the academic procession of administrators, trustees, honorees and faculty. Faculty marshals leading the procession were Dr. Howard Anderson and Professor David Schroder, student marshals were Joshua Day and Lacey Middlecoff. Musical selections were provided by Professor Bill Buffington and the Lincoln College Express, accompanied by Ann Doolen. Keynote speaker was Dr. Barbara Burkhardt, professor of English at the University of Illinois, Springfield. She spoke about her research into the life and literary works of William Maxwell, a respected author and editor of The New Yorker magazine, whose stories reflect his upbringing in Lincoln, Illinois, early in the twentieth century. She noted his influence in the careers of such luminaries as John Cheever and John Updike and traced his "empathy and wisdom," as well as his "humanity and quiet strength," to his years in Lincoln. Though much of his life's work and residence have been in New York City, Lincoln was his "imagination's home," according to Burkhardt. Burkhardt was awarded an honorary doctorate of humane letters following her speech.

            [Burkhardt]                [Ginzel]

Among others awarded honorary doctorates were artists Roland Ginzel and his wife Ellen Lanyon. Both Ginzel and Lanyon are internationally famous artists whose works are widely exhibited. Ginzel took art classes at Lincoln College as a child and later was a college student on campus. U.S. Rep. Ray LaHood was also awarded a degree for his public service. LaHood represents the 18th District in Illinois, a district with a rich legacy of leadership, for the district has been represented by Abraham Lincoln, Everett Dirksen, Ed Madigan of Lincoln, and Bob Michael. LaHood announced that plans are moving ahead for the Lincoln Presidential museum in Springfield and that he had sponsored legislation establishing a commission to plan the observance of the 200th anniversary of President Lincoln's birth.

              [LaHood]                [Lanyon]

Also presented with honorary degrees were Charles T. Cullen, computer archivist and editor of Thomas Jefferson's papers; Norman Hellmers, superintendent of the Abraham Lincoln home site; and Marion Smoak, former Chief of Protocol for the U.S. State Department during the Nixon presidency. Smoak shared several amusing and touching stories about international dignitaries he helped host during his government service. Smoak, whose wife attended Lincoln College, urged neighbors and constituents to "never overlook the jewel" they have in Lincoln College.

[Cullen]

             [Hellmers]                  [Smoak]

The Charter Day observance of Lincoln College's past establishes a rich foundation for a bright future. This anniversary comes at a time of rapid growth in student enrollment and development of the campus facilities. The Lincoln City Council recently approved a $5 million bond issue for building new dorm facilities, a new classroom and office building, an addition to the Johnston performing arts center, and a new maintenance building for the Lincoln campus.

[Barbara Burkhardt]

[John F. Welter]

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