Features

[MARCH 16, 2001]  Even if there’s not a drop of Irish blood to be found anywhere in your body, that doesn’t stop many of us from pretending or at least celebrating March 17. We pluck out the lime-green sweater from storage, stick shamrock stickers on our cheeks, loop green plastic beads around our necks and maybe enjoy a local parade.

For those unaccustomed to breaking out in an unabashed Irish jig in public or plastering our bodies in green, there’s always the refined, dignified manner of celebrating with a large, hot bowl of steamed cabbage and potatoes followed by an Irish coffee at a local restaurant.

So what’s the appeal of St. Patrick’s Day? It’s not just those who can honestly claim an Irish heritage who celebrate the 1,600-year-old holiday and the "wearing the green" in recognition of an ancient Irish custom of farmers burning green leaves in spring, spreading the ashes over the fields to enrich the soil.

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What is it about the holiday that makes everyone want to be Irish — if just a day? After all, the holiday is named after a man (Saint Patrick) who was actually born British, and the color of honor today (green) was initially blue.

Maybe it’s the allure of the "Emerald Isle," or the rich heritage of the tiny country that makes everyone want to wear green, drink green liquid and dance Irish jigs.

(To be continued)

[Penny Zimmerman-Wills]

[MARCH 10, 2001] 

Irish Stew

Ingredients

1½ pounds lean, boneless lamb shoulders, cut in ¾-inch cubes

12 fluid ounces beer, or water

2 14-ounce cans broth

3 cups cubed potatoes

2 cups thinly sliced carrots

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 onion, coarsely chopped

1 teaspoon pepper

1 envelope brown gravy mix

parsley, chopped, for garnish

Directions

In three-quart pan with cover, heat oil. Add onion and sauté until brown; stirring occasionally. Add lamb and sauté, stirring until browned. Stir in beer or water, and pepper.

Cover and simmer for 30 minutes. Mix in broth and gravy mix. Add potatoes and carrots, cover and simmer for 15 to 20 minutes or until vegetables are tender.

Garnish with chopped parsley if desired.

(Source: http://www.theholidayspot.com/patrick/
irish_recipes.htm)

Boxty

Boxty is a traditional potato dish, celebrated in the rhyme "Boxty on the griddle, boxty in the pan, If you can't make boxty, you'll never get your man."

Ingredients

1 cup raw potato

1 cup mashed potato

2 cups plain flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

large knob of butter, melted

about ½ cup milk

Directions

Grate the raw potatoes into a bowl. Turn out onto a cloth and wring, catching the liquid. This will separate into a clear fluid with starch at the bottom. Pour off the fluid, scrape out the starch, and mix with the grated and mashed potatoes. Sieve the dry ingredients and mix in along with the melted butter. Add a little milk if necessary to make a pliable dough.

Knead lightly on a floured surface. Divide into four and form large, flat cakes. Mark each
into quarters but do not cut right through, and bake on a griddle or in a heavy pan.

More milk and an egg can be added to make a batter that can be fried in bacon fat like
drop scones.

(Source: www.irelandseye.com)

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Corned Beef and Cabbage

Corned beef is brisket, topside or silverside which has been pickled in brine. It is especially popular around Dublin. It is best to soak a joint overnight to remove excess salt.

5-pound joint of corned beef

1 large cabbage

bay leaf

2 large onions

cold water to cover

2 large carrots

ground black pepper

4 potatoes

Directions

Quarter the cabbage and put aside. Peel and slice the other vegetables. Cover the meat
with the water and bring to the boil. Skim the surface, add the vegetables (except the
cabbage), the bay leaf and the pepper, and simmer gently for 20 minutes. Add the cabbage and cook for 30 minutes more.

Serve the meat surrounded by the vegetables with additional mashed potatoes. Serves four to six.

[compiled by Penny Zimmerman-Wills]

[MARCH 2, 2001]  In like a lion, out like a lamb — March is upon us and that means that spring is ALMOST here! Temperatures should start to gradually warm, and the bulbs that you planted last fall will begin to show their beautiful faces. While you’re out adoring your bulbs, keep these gardening tips in mind:

• Prune your grape vines and fruit trees now before the buds begin to break. Also be ready to apply your first application of fruit tree spray. Pick a time when it’s going to be above 40 degrees F and it’s not going to freeze overnight the first night. It is very important to make your first application BEFORE the buds break!

• Treat for peach leaf curl with an application of a broad-spectrum fungicide. Peach leaf curl infection occurs on fruit trees at bud-break so it is extremely important to spray just before the buds break!

• Sign up for a lawn maintenance program. Weed spray and fertilizer programs usually begin in early April. The lawn care professional at your local garden center will be able to make recommendations on the needs of your yard.

• Meet with your landscape designer to plan your new garden areas. Planting season will be in full swing soon, and you’ll want to be ready! Your landscape designer can help you lay out your new beds, pick your plant materials and give you proper care instructions.

• Start your seeds indoors. If you are planning on growing some of your own flower and vegetables from seed, now is the time to get them growing! An Illinois Certified Nursery Professional (ICN Pro) at your local garden center will be able to answer the questions you might have.

• When the soil thaws and begins to dry out, then you can till your garden. It is a good idea to work some organic material in when you till. Mushroom compost is a mixture of different organic matters that works very well. Simply scatter the mushroom compost on top of your garden area (amount will vary depending on the condition of your soil) and then till it in. Mushroom compost is very high in nitrogen, so it is imperative that it is worked into the soil. Using mushroom compost can cut down on the amount of synthetic fertilizers you have to use!

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• Cut back your ornamental grasses and other perennials before they begin to grow (late March). Roses will need to be uncovered around the first or middle of March. Be sure to uncover them BEFORE they begin to grow!

• If you have a water garden, you will need to begin feeding your fish again in March. Do NOT add your tropical plants to your water garden until the danger of frost is completely past! Your hardy water plants can be added once the water temperature reaches 50 degrees. Beneficial bacteria can also be added once the water temperature reaches 50 degrees. If you have questions, consult the ICN Pro at your local garden center.

During the month of March, a lot of activities will be going on at your local garden center or nursery. Garden seed, onion sets and plants, potatoes and all sorts of new garden ideas will be arriving. It’s a great time to stop and visit with an ICN Pro about your garden ideas, problems or new products for spring 2001!

If you would like more gardening information or have questions, please feel free to contact an Illinois Certified Nursery Professional (ICN Pro) at your local garden center.

["Gardening tips" is provided monthly
by the Illinois Nurserymen’s Association,
1717 S. Fifth St. in Springfield.]

[FEB. 24, 2001]  Thirteen years ago, Patti Austin of Springfield began a divorce-recovery program at Westside Christian Church. Since that time, the program has expanded to Lincoln, Taylorville, Riverton and even out of state. There are 30 congregations that have begun Austin’s divorce-recovery program. Due to the great need for divorce counseling, Westside now has a waiting list for its biannual, 14-week program.

Austin developed her program out of "a need she saw in her own children and the children of single parents in her church." Austin used her own experience — she was divorced and a single parent for nine years — and the help of a professional counselor to write the program’s curriculum. The first edition of the program took a year to write and focused on single parents who were widowed, never married or divorced. The program has since been rewritten to focus on parents and children hurt specifically by a divorce.

The most important aspect of her program is that it focuses on adults and children both. She has seen several models that help just the children, but Austin believes that parents and children need help to heal together.

Just three years after Austin began the program in Springfield, members of Jefferson Street Christian Church heard of the program and asked her to help them begin the same program in Lincoln. Austin agreed, and now Lincoln’s program is 10 years old. Several of the program-trained counselors help in Lincoln’s divorce-recovery program because they have gone through divorces and want to help participants better relate to what they are facing.

For the past three years, Joyce Bechtel has been coordinating Lincoln’s program, but this year she is training Steve Elkins and Sarah Wilson to replace her. Bechtel began volunteering six years ago because she "saw that it was a good program" and that it was a way of supporting those families who could not afford weekly counseling. She decided to step down to focus on teaching the children in "Broken Promise."

The divorce-recovery program actually has two divisions: "Broken Promise" for children and "New Beginnings" for adults. These two programs are advertised for families, but adults without children are welcome as well. Even the parts of the class that focus on how children feel and behave can be helpful to an individual without children, because he or she may remarry and have stepchildren.

The goal of both programs is to give families tools to reconstruct their lives. One of the coordinators, Sarah Wilson, said the purpose of "Broken Promise" is to give children "a neutral environment where they can express their feelings." Teachers, trained by professional counselors, help children move through different emotional stages: denial/guilt, anger, bargaining, depression, acceptance and hope. If the teachers see that a child needs more help than they can offer, they are able to recommend local, professional counselors to the parent.

"New Beginnings" also has its own goals. Teachers and counselors help parents, just like the children, move through the emotional stages. The program teaches parents which feelings and problems to expect in their children of different ages. Four- to 6-year-olds tend to be clingy and whiny because they fear abandonment. Eight- to 9-year-olds often worry about the family’s income and provisions. Some children, usually the oldest, appear to adjust very smoothly. They maintain their composure for the sake of the family, but they typically are damming up a flood of emotions. Counselors refer to this as the Sleeper Syndrome and warn parents to prepare for that child to collapse.

Wilson, the coordinator, joked that this is a program where children play and parents have homework. Single parents may have assignments such as: make an effort to express your feelings this week, allot 10 minutes a day per child for one-on-one time or have a family activity this week.

Nine volunteer teachers plan to work with the children this year: Joyce Bechtel, Randy and Debbie Bruns, Cynthia Clark, Cheryl Frank, Deborah Martinsic, Allen and Melanie Shew, and Larry Simonson. The directors plan not to exceed a student-teacher ratio of 3-to-1 for the younger grades and 5-to-1 in the older grades, so that the children may have the individual attention they crave. The children’s classes are divided into five age groups: 4 years to second grade, third and fourth grade, fifth and sixth grade, seventh and eighth grade, and high school.

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The children’s curriculum is as follows:

• Week 1 — Introduction to the course
• Week 2 — "Emotions"
• Week 3 — "The Family"
• Week 4 — "Denial"
• Week 5 — Meet your leader
• Weeks 6 and 7 — "Anger"
• Week 8 — "Bargaining"
• Week 9 — "Guilt"
• Week 10 — "Depression"
• Week 11 — "Acceptance and Hope"
• Week 12 — "Forgiveness"

• Week 13 — Review and closing program

Two volunteer teachers, Steve Elkins and Sarah Wilson, team-teach the adult program with professional counselors.

The parents’ curriculum is as follows:

• Week 1 — Introduction to the course
• Weeks 2 to 4 — "The Grief Process"
• Week 5 — Parents meet with their child’s counselor
• Week 6 — "Communication with Children"
• Week 7 — "Assertive Disciple"
• Weeks 8 and 9 — "Shared Parenting"
• Week 10 — "You and Your Ex-Spouse"
• Week 11 — "Anger and Guilt"
• Week 12 — "Forgiveness"

• Week 13 — "Dating and Intimacy" and closing program

Participants are asked if there are specific topics they need addressed. In the past, an attorney came to class to answer legal questions. A minister often comes in on the 12th week to discuss forgiveness.

Anyone who has gone through a divorce is welcome to enroll in the program. The divorce may be recent or it may be a while in the past. Often children’s emotional development is stunted at the time of a divorce, and counseling, even years later, can rekindle emotional development.

Members of other congregations and non-church attendees are all welcome. There is not pressure to join Jefferson Street or Lincoln Christian churches.

For single parents who bring their children, or single individuals, the cost is the same: $15. If parents send their children without participating themselves, the cost almost doubles, because the program is designed to help the family.

Registration for "Broken Promise" and "New Beginnings" is on a first-come, first-served basis, so it is important that interested families register early. The adult classes usually have eight to 15 participants but can hold up to 25. The children’s classes usually have 15 to 20 children in the combined age groups.

Due to the confidential nature of this program, counselors were unable to give specific success stories. The counselors do sense that parents appreciate the help and information they receive on how to relate to their children. Wilson did say that she not only received a compliment on the program from a participant but also witnessed a word-of-mouth recommendation for the program.

Bechtel knows of one family who was so blessed by the program that they enrolled a second time. The mother said that "Broken Promise" and "New Beginnings" was the best program in which she had participated. She has since referred many friends.

In the future, Lincoln’s coordinators would like to see "Broken Promise" and "New Beginnings" grow. They are not hoping for more broken families but instead hope more divorced individuals and families use the program. If needed, the coordinators hope to do two cycles a year instead of one. They would also like to see other congregations adopt a similar program.

Bechtel compliments the program for "teaching parents how to deal with their children." Wilson reminds interested individuals and families that the program is a "non-threatening environment to help you get the tools you need to navigate sometimes rough waters. We’re just here to care about you. . . .this is not a place of judgment."

If you want more information on the 14-week program or plan to enroll this year, please call Jefferson Street Christian Church at 732-9294. The course begins for adults and children on Monday, March 5, at 7 p.m. at 1700 N. Jefferson St. Each class session begins at 7 p.m. and ends about 8:15 p.m.

If you live in the Springfield area, contact Westside Christian Church at 793-2800 to enroll in their program. The present cycle has already begun there, but they will have a second cycle later in the year. Call early, because their classes fill quickly.

[Jean Ann Carnley]

Animals for adoption

These animals and more are available to good homes from the Logan County Animal Control at 1515 N. Kickapoo, phone 735-3232.

Fees for animal adoption: dogs, $60/male, $65/female; cats, $35/male, $44/female. The fees include neutering and spaying.

Logan County Animal Control's hours of operation:

Sunday  –  closed

Monday  –  8 a.m. - 5 p.m.

Tuesday  –  8 a.m. - 5 p.m.

Wednesday  –  8 a.m. - 5 p.m.

Thursday  –  8 a.m. - 5 p.m.

Friday  –  8 a.m. - 3 p.m.

Saturday  –  closed

Warden: Sheila Farmer
Assistant:  Michelle Mote
In-house veterinarian:  Dr. Lester Thompson

[MARCH 2, 2001]  Jacksonville is a city rich in cultural heritage, educational facilities and grand old homes. But it may be the Ferris wheel that has made this central Illinois city famous.

[click here for Part 1]

[click here for Part 2]

Annual events

• Farm Toy Show — fourth weekend of March, at the Holiday Inn of Jacksonville. A toy auction is held in conjunction with a show featuring thousands of farm and construction toys, trucks and antique signs.

• DTBA Flea Market — May and September, at Central Park Plaza. Antiques, crafts and other items are offered at one of central Illinois’ largest outdoor flea markets.

• Antique Auto Show — June, at Central Park Plaza. Antique and classic automobiles take center stage and compete for 50 trophies.

• Historic Homes Tour — June. Four of the city’s historic homes can be toured. Guides discuss the history, architecture and furnishings of each home. Co-sponsored by the Art Association of Jacksonville and the Jacksonville Historic Preservation Commission.

• Fine Arts Fair — July. Artists from the Midwest display, demonstrate and sell their work in Central Park Plaza. Entertainment, a children’s art fair and music also are provided.

• Prairieland Heritage Museum Antique Steam Engine Show — fourth weekend in September. A very popular event with horse-powered equipment, antique tractors, gas and steam engines, threshing, baling, blacksmithing and molasses-making demonstrations.

• Cruise Night and Street Rod Reunion — in late September. One of the largest cruise nights in the state, this event draws more than 1,000 classic and antique autos to the city and includes music from the 1950s and ’60s, a cruise and car show.

• Christmas Homes Tour and Tea — first Sunday in December. Five homes and a church professionally decorated for the holidays are available for touring. Sponsored by the International Pilot Club of Jacksonville.

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Facts

• Population: 20,284

• Located in Morgan County, 230 miles from Chicago, 87 miles from St. Louis and 58 miles from Lincoln.

• Named for General Andrew Jackson

• Incorporated in 1867

• Illinois College granted the first bachelor’s degrees in the state in 1835 and started the state’s first medical school in 1843. Beecher Hall, erected in 1829 at Illinois College, was the first college building built in Illinois.

• Home of three Illinois governors: Joseph Duncan, Richard Yates and Richard Yates Jr.

• Home to Eli Bridge Company, the only manufacturer of the Ferris wheel in the world.

• Other major employers include Pactive Corporation, Bound To Stay Bound Books and AC HUMKO

Sites to visit

• David Strawn Art Gallery, 31 W. College St.

• Heritage Cultural Center, located at the Illinois School for the Deaf, 125 N. Webster, second floor.

• C.B. Lewis Museum, 325 W. Lafayette.

• Governor Duncan Home, #4 Duncan Place in Duncan Park.

[Penny Zimmerman-Wills]

[MARCH 1, 2001]  Jacksonville is a city rich in cultural heritage, educational facilities and grand old homes. But it may be the Ferris wheel that has made this central Illinois city famous.

[click here for Part 1]

Dining

While the Rocket Diner, at 1000 W. Morton Ave., may be the shiniest restaurant in which you’ll ever eat a meal, it’s the good, old-fashioned food that keeps customers happy. Owners Dennis Hayes and Bob Faeth serve traditional breakfast items like biscuits and gravy and bacon and eggs — and nothing on the menu is more than $3. But what’s special are the classic food groups like hamburgers and French fries, hot dogs, and the thick kind of milkshakes you have to eat with a spoon. You can use the drive-through if
you’re in a hurry, but it’s more fun to eat inside the shimmering silver hut.

Another nice and relaxing place for lunch is the Nursery Lane Tea Room, located adjacent to one of the local antique malls, at 1527 Nursery Lane Road. The tearoom is open from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., Monday through Friday, and is enjoyed by both men and women because of the homey atmosphere, hearty home-cooked food and luscious desserts. This isn’t a typical tearoom, dripping with lace, that serves tiny finger sandwiches. The restaurant, with its wooden ceiling beams and simple décor, is usually filled with customers at lunchtime because of its inexpensive but tasty food. Menu items include specials like cabbage rolls and potatoes, and sandwiches are served with your choice of homemade soup.

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Any trip to Jacksonville should include a meal at Lonzerotti’s Italia Restaurant, located on 600 East State St. in the former Chicago and Alton Railroad station. Customers can eat their meal at a table or booth in the tastefully decorated dining room, which once served as a waiting room for train passengers, or wait in an entrance lobby once used as the station’s office and ticket area. Florentine glass transoms are all original to the
building, constructed in 1910. The simple, elegant geometry of the building, with horizontal lines, wide roof overhangs and hip-roofs, is an excellent example of Prairie School design.

While the charming atmosphere of the building leads to the ambiance, it’s the food that’s worth the trip. The restaurant serves pastas; oven-baked entrees such as seafood lasagna,
veal, pork, chicken, seafood and beef dishes; and hearty salads. Even the sweet Italian salad dressing is good and can be purchased by the bottle at local grocery stores and at the restaurant. Customers have raved about the restaurant since it opened in 1987. Lonzerotti’s reflects the owner’s maiden name, and many favorite family recipes are used to create the menu.

(To be continued)

[Penny Zimmerman-Wills]

[click here for Part 3]

[FEB. 20, 2001]  Jacksonville is a city rich in cultural heritage, educational facilities and grand old homes. But it may be the Ferris wheel that has made this central Illinois city famous.

The Eli Bridge Company, the world’s oldest manufacturer of Ferris wheels and other amusement rides, was founded by W.E. Sullivan, who introduced the first portable "Big Eli" wheel on the Jacksonville town square in 1900. Now operated by the family’s third generation, the company is still churning out the rotund rides.

It’s evident the city — approximately an hour's drive from Lincoln — is proud of its Ferris wheels. Big Eli Wheel No. 17 can’t be missed in the community park on the corner of Morton and Main streets and is one of the first things you notice when entering Jacksonville. The city logo also sports the profile of a Ferris wheel in the city skyline.

History

Jacksonville, which many agree was named for General Andrew Jackson, was chosen as the county seat in 1825 but not incorporated until 1867. The city still retains many signs of its historical significance, evident by streets lined with grand, century-old homes and restored buildings. At one time, Jacksonville was the largest town in the state, with 1,800 settlers in 1833.

Many state and national leaders have ties to the city. Stephen A. Douglas, Abraham Lincoln’s rival, was Morgan County prosecuting attorney in 1835. Three Illinois governors lived in Jacksonville, and during the Civil War, Ulysses S. Grant camped his Illinois Division on what is now the Morgan County fairgrounds.

Educational institutions

The city has a rich connection with education and has been called the "Athens of the West" because of its wealth of higher-education institutions. The city is now home to Illinois College, MacMurray College, the Illinois School for the Deaf, Illinois School for the Visually Impaired and Jacksonville Mental Health and Developmental Center.

Illinois College

Illinois College, founded in 1829, is located on a 65-acre campus on the city’s west side. It was founded by John Ellis and a group of Congregational-Presbyterian missionaries called "the Yale Band." Six of the buildings on campus are more than 100 years old, including the famous Beecher Hall, the state’s oldest college building. Illinois College awarded the first college degrees in the state and opened the first medical school in the state, in 1843. Richard Yates, later a Civil War-era governor, was one of the first two graduates.

MacMurray College

MacMurray College, a national liberal arts college nearly 150 years old, is located on a 60-acre campus. It was called Illinois Conference Female Academy when founded in 1846.

State institutions

Because of humanitarian and political influences in the city, three state institutions for the handicapped are located here. The Illinois School for the Deaf was charted in 1839. The Illinois School for the Visually Impaired began as a private school in 1847 and became a public facility in 1848. The Jacksonville Mental Health and Developmental Center was authorized by a charter in 1847, only two months after Dorothea Dix, the legendary champion of prison and state-hospital reform, appealed to the state legislature.

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Entertainment and sites

One of the best ways to get a feel for what the city is all about is to take one of several available walking tours. You can choose between a tour featuring historic buildings located near the downtown area, which include the courthouse and public library; a tour of the historic district, beginning in Duncan Park, and homes on West State and West College streets, and architecturally and historically significant buildings further east on West State Street; and a tour of buildings on the east side of town.

My recommended stops to visit include the David Strawn Art Gallery, the Governor Duncan Home, Our Saviour Church Rectory, the Octagon House, Fayerweather House and William S. Hook house.

The gallery features rotating art exhibits on the main floor with permanent collections including the Miriam Cowgur Allen Collection of antique and collectible dolls and Early Mississippian Indian pottery.

The Governor Duncan Home is a 17-room mansion built in 1835 and located in Duncan Park. The Georgian-Federal style structure was home to Gov. Joseph Duncan and served as the official governor’s mansion at that time, when the Capitol was in Vandalia and there was no governor’s mansion. It is the only governor’s mansion in existence outside of Springfield.

Our Saviour Church Rectory, located at 462 E. State, was completed in 1896 and features many special characteristics of Victorian design, such as stone spindlework, louvered crossed gables and stone banisters.

The Octagon House, located at 22 Park St., was built by Rufus C. Crampton, an IC professor, and is an amusing example of one of the first styles of American architecture.

The Fayerweather House, at 252 Park St., is a classic example of Gothic Revival style, while the William S. Hook House, located at 1042 W. State St., is a large, rambling Queen Anne-style home constructed of brick covered by shingles.  The original owner of the home and his brother played a prominent role in the developing the streetcar railway system in Jacksonville and Los Angeles.

Make sure to stop at the C.B. Lewis Museum, which gives visitors a look at how farmers once lived. The restored grain elevator on West Lafayette Street offers a unique way to see life on the family farm in the early 1900s. A large collection of antique farm machinery and other items represent a colorful sample of the county’s agricultural heritage.

If you visit during the summer months, make sure to finish your day by attending a musical performance by the Jacksonville Theatre Guild. The Jacksonville Symphony Orchestra and Chorale and Illinois College’s McGaw Fine Arts Series all present concerts throughout the year.

(To be continued)

[Penny Zimmerman-Wills]

[click here for Part 2: Dining]

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