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Still Waters,
Bird’s-Eye
View, the
em space, Where They Stand,
By
the Numbers, How We Stack Up,
What’s
Up With That?
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Commentaries
posted do not necessarily represent the opinion of LDN.
Any opinions expressed are those of
the writers.
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Ryan’s
decision leaves more unanswered than answered
By Mike
Fak
[FEB.
6, 2001] Half
full? Half empty? That is a question that a lot of LDC proponents
are asking themselves after Gov. George Ryan officially gave the
news of a massive downsizing for the Lincoln Developmental Center.
Yes, the news is better than just pulling the plug on 250 residents
and 700 employees… but not by much.
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In
a classic fit of gubernatorial pomposity, Ryan refused admittance to
his press conference to anyone except the waiters. Excuse me, I mean
the reporters. I get those two occupations confused since many in
both occupations simply write down what someone tells them without
asking any intelligent questions regarding the authenticity or
actuality of the words.
Yes,
only reporters were allowed to transcribe the governor’s diatribe.
Of course, why would it be considered proper to let others into the
press conference, such as the parents of residents or perhaps
representatives of the employees? What do they know about what they
want? Gov. Ryan is in charge of their lives as well as their
children’s. He, like the Wizard of Oz, is all-knowing. What a
shame he also is not all-caring.
The
governor says that only 100 residents, moving into
community-integrated homes, will remain at LDC. The homes, at a
great deal of taxpayer expense ($6.25
million to be exact), will be replacing the cottages that already
are set up like a community home. There’s a real savings to the
state. The cottages, as well as the rest of the buildings on the
75-acre plot formerly known as Wyatt’s Grove, are to be used for…
Sorry, no one said what was going to happen to them, and of course,
no one asked.
Perhaps
the state will allow them to deteriorate. That way, in a decade or
so the community homes can be closed because they are adjacent to an
abandoned ghetto. Perhaps they will be maintained by state employees
so that doesn’t happen. But is that a good use of tax money and
manpower either?
Ryan
stated he was downsizing the facility based on the requests of
parents of residents. This, of course, is not true, but no one asked
the governor for a list of these complainants. There has been only
one disparager compared with dozens of parents who want the center
to remain home for their children and wards. Geez, a golden
opportunity to catch the guy in his own stink went right out the
window on Monday.
Ryan
stated that CILAs are the future of mental health care, and of
course they are. But since they are not here yet, and human beings in
a place they have called home all their life are… Couldn’t we do
this gradually over the years? The ARC’s own website states there
are 271,000 Americans waiting for group homes, with 6,800 of them
being in Illinois. How about filling the needs of those waiting for
proper residency before pushing into CILAs those who would rather
live just up the block from these homes.
[to top of second column in this
commentary]
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Continuously
Ryan talked about how terrible LDC was in care to residents. It
never made his conversation that five state institutions have a
higher rate of negative incidence than LDC, including Jacksonville,
where LDC residents have been unceremoniously shipped off to in the
past few months.
Ohhh,
for just a question or two to have been asked about that.
The
governor went on about how LDC has had problems for two decades. I
assume he means receiving high accolades just 10 years ago as a
model health care facility is a problem. Actually if you’re a
governor trying to close a place, I suppose that is a problem. No
comments about this ambiguity in the governor’s statement came out
of the peanut gallery either.
The
papers, of course, followed the verbatim article with negative
quotes about LDC from every organization that has never visited LDC
except for the Free Willy Foundation. What a shame that a quick
blurp by Sen. Bomke that he questioned Ryan’s statement regarding
parental support for the closure was placed in print and then
dropped. Wouldn’t it have been fun to ask the senator if he
believed the governor lied. That would have been a good story to
read.
Gov.
Ryan again promulgated his own agenda by saying whatever he felt
like saying. No one gave the other side a chance to counter his
spurious remarks. Fair and balanced reporting? I haven’t seen it
yet on LDC, regardless of what people in the business say. You see,
in the world I live in, when someone says something stinks, I ask,
"Compared to what?" A fair comparison of all 10 state-run
institutions, which only was briefly touched on by the State
Journal-Register, shouldn’t have taken three months to appear. But
then, at least someone did their homework. Better late than never, I
suppose.
Yes,
this column is pro-LDC. I am not a journalist, you see; I am a
commentator. I have been asking some of the questions, however, that
no one else deigns important enough to bring to this story. I will
until the man in Springfield leaves and LDC stays.
[Mike
Fak]
Reply to
Fak
(not for publication):
mikefak@msn.com
Response
to Fak’s commentary:
ldneditor@lincolndailynews.com
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Scathing
story of state ineptitude
and injustice effectual
By Mike
Fak
[JAN.
30, 2001] Just
when you thought we didn’t have a winter’s precipitation in
Hades to salvage LDC, a story comes to light that should make us all
regather our collective wills and push forward with our objections
to the governor’s "prepaid" decision to close the
center.
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The
budget cuts, some $500 million by the governor, not only placed our
own major employer’s situation in jeopardy but also sounded the
death knell for other such institutions across the state.
One
of the most tragic stories regarding the executive guillotine of
statewide human services had to be the decision to close the
Illinois Center for Rehabilitation and Education in Chicago. This
facility, primarily focusing on young men and women who do have
basic life skills, was deemed nonessential by Ryan in last month’s
budget-trimming nightmare. The institution, which offered such
services as an education as well as physical and emotional therapy,
with a long-range goal of community placement for its graduates, was
advised that it was to be closed and its students moved to other
suitable area facilities. This is where the story became ugly.
The
Department of Health and Human Services had begun to ship out the
residents before a hearing on a stay by the local union came before
the Cook County circuit judge. The destinations of the residents
were nothing near what had been promised by DHHS. Close to home? How
about a young man being sent 250 miles away from his elderly mother.
Proper facility? How about that same 21-year-old man, who has a high
school diploma and was getting ready for a community home, being
sent to a nursing home for severely handicapped senior citizens. A
nursing home that had no physical therapy program nor means to allow
him to do anything but wait out the rest of his life.
While
this was happening, there wasn’t a word from the ARC, nor the
Equip For Equality coalitions. Too small a cause? Just one small
fish when there is a whole lake full of fish to fry in Lincoln? Who
knows? We haven’t heard from them to tell why they ignored this
human rights issue.
All
seemed hopeless. And then this past week, Celeste Garrett of the
Chicago Tribune brought this scathing story of state ineptitude and
injustice into the public forum with a pair of headline articles
regarding the treatment of the residents of the Chicago center. It
didn’t tell the story of the center, it told the story of the
people involved. The story brought to tens of thousands of
Illinoisans the same type of story that residents and parents of LDC
have been facing with far less notoriety. Did Garrett’s story have
power? You bet it did! Was it the truth? Absolutely. Did it have any
effect on the Chicago institution’s residents? Thank God it did.
[to top of second column in this
commentary]
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In
Tuesday’s State Journal-Register, an article by Jeff Druchniak
sayings that Ryan had reversed his decision to close the Chicago
Rehabilitation Center flashed off the paper like a Roman candle.
The
power of a major newspaper to find the humanity in a story and bring
it to center stage had done more than all the letters and calls and
petitions of hundreds of concerned Illinoisans. In the limelight of
a statewide audience, Ryan and DHHS were shown up as having no souls
nor conscience. The heat was too much even for an I-don’t-care,
lame-duck governor like Ryan to ignore.
The lives of dozens of special souls were given a second chance
because a reporter delved into the body of the issue rather than
just continued to write down what everyone told her. Garrett made a
difference that only someone in her special circumstances could do.
She did more than just write a story. She helped people who needed
help when everyone else just wrote words and then went home.
LDC
is in these same dire straits as the Chicago center was. There is
still one chance, one opportunity to save the institution. All it
will take is one Chicago Tribune reporter or one reporter from the
lawmaker’s digest, the State Journal-Register, to bring out the
humanity of the individuals in this story and give the residents a
chance to live their lives as they would want.
The
story is still lying there on the ground just waiting to be picked
up. Oh for just one white knight to enter the foray.
[Mike
Fak]
Reply to
Fak
(not for publication):
mikefak@msn.com
Response
to Fak’s commentary:
ldneditor@lincolndailynews.com
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Rousing
rally, comparative analysis, growing House support give hope
By Mike
Fak
[JAN.
14, 2002] I
broke a cardinal rule of journalism Saturday. It’s OK since I’m
not a journalist. That rule is someone reporting a story should not
become part of the story. Accordingly, I shouldn’t have spoken to
the crowd at the LDC rally and then written an article as well as
preparing a report for Channel 15.
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I
understand the concept quite clearly and agree with it just about
most of the time. But not this time. Not this Saturday.
The
people at LDC, through their union, felt I should be among the
political figures, resident guardians and community leaders who were
given a few moments to help employees of the beleaguered institution
realize that they are not alone in their fight to keep the
institution open. If I were asked to speak a thousand times at this
rally, I would have said yes just as many.
In
the event you feel my observations are now biased or jaded, I will,
as always, leave that up to you. This is what I saw. This is what I
heard. Most importantly, this is what I felt.
I
felt like I had gone back in time to an old fashioned 1960s union
rally. Aggressive words used to excite an audience to become part of
the rhetoric filled the auditorium that day. To some on the stage, I
could sense a discomfort. This wasn’t a quiet "meet the
candidates" forum. This was an old-fashioned "You take my
job over my dead body" kind of gathering. In 20 years, I have
never seen the likes in Logan County.
I
sat on stage between more political candidates than you can shake a
stick at. There were Davis and Bomke and Wright. There
were even Klingler and Brady and
Mitchell on the folding chairs
around me.(*) Yes, I should say their full
names, their party affiliation and where they live, but I feel like
breaking another rule of proper reporting today.
Most
important in my mind was the fact that Democratic gubernatorial
candidate Paul Vallas was there. The man got up and stated for the
record that as governor he would fix LDC and keep it open. The
political correctness of the statement was, of course, self-serving
but the repercussions could be immense. To date no candidate for
governor has come out from behind the curtain to even acknowledge
the LDC issue. Vallas’ comments may cause those more timid than he
to realize a block of voters is awaiting their input now, not come
next spring.
State
Rep. Jonathan Wright advised us that a full 96 percent of the
reportable observations at LDC ended with positive conclusions.
Wright stated that was an A in his book. It is in mine as well. As I
sat next to Jonathan I constantly felt bad that he will be lost to
us so soon as our state representative.
[to top of second column in this
commentary]
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I
listened intently as AFSCME Deputy Director Roberta Lynch reported
on how other institutions and community homes in a 50-mile radius
have been faring in fulfilling their state-mandated mental health
residency requirements. I was shocked to hear of bathrooms with no
toilet paper or soap, of defective sprinkler systems and smoke
alarms with dead batteries. I listened as reports of poorly trained
staff and improper medication safeguards came from her speech. I
have always wondered why there has been no comparative analysis made
as to how LDC stands among its peers. Here was the telling
information I have been so dearly trying without success to obtain
myself.
As
I listened to Lynch’s report, I became angry at the media.
Throughout this entire story, only what has been spoon fed to the
press has made the news. Why, I
have to ask, hasn’t anyone in the media sought this information
out themselves. Isn’t another rule of journalism to ask questions
and to seek both sides of a story. Are all the reporters, especially
in area television, simply now like waiters, who write down what
they are told without a single question or effort to go farther.
I
hope others at the rally walked away with the same feelings I did. I
can base it on nothing substantive, but it seems that it is becoming
"en vogue" for politicians to come to the aid of LDC. That
is what it is going to take to keep the center open. We as residents
of Lincoln can do just so much. A united General Assembly taking up
the cause is the only true means of winning this battle. I think I
saw the birth of just that this past Saturday.
[Mike
Fak]
*Ed.
note: Officials
referred to are Mayor Beth Davis, Logan County Board Chairman Dick
Logan, Illinois Sen. Larry Bomke, and state Reps. Gwenn Klingler,
Dan Brady, Bill Mitchell and Jonathan Wright.
Reply to
Fak
(not for publication):
mikefak@msn.com
Response
to Fak’s commentary:
ldneditor@lincolndailynews.com
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Bird’s-Eye
View
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Three twos, two shoes and $2 in good
news
A
while back someone noted in a letter that the date 02-02-02 was
coming. I figured that thoughts of twos fit with a month that has
Valentine’s Day in the middle.
Since
I hadn’t gotten around to it before, I changed one of my calendars
on Feb. 2, the special date, and got a look at a new picture. It
showed windmills in Spain, although I usually associate them with
the Dutch.
So I
wasn’t surprised when a couple of songs from a grade school
operetta came to mind. One told about the clackety-clack sounds of
windmills in Holland. Another mentioned twos again. It said:
Let’s
do a dance in our little wooden shoes —
We’ll
couple up in twos; a partner we’ll choose.
As it
happened, a pair of shoes — not wooden but probably hardened with
cold — was one of the first things that caught my interest on the
day labeled with twos.
The
frosty pair was parked near the entrance of a lot where most of the
other parked items were cars. I assumed I was looking at a bit of
Friday night fun left over for people to wonder about in the
morning. For example, one could speculate if the owner, sans shoes,
had been abducted by aliens at that point or simply vanished into
the air.
The
shoes were a distance apart but not so far that I couldn’t
duplicate the stance. The trick was to put my right foot behind and
to the left of my left foot, while crossing my left foot to the
right and also pointing my toes about 90 degrees to the right. It
was as if someone had been following directions in a game but got
stuck and left the shoes behind.
With
no one available to explain the situation, I continued my regular
activities and watched for other twos besides the shoes.
By the
time the day was done, there had been two unexpected social
encounters. The first was with a couple looking for breakfast. I
hope I directed them to the right one. The second brief encounter
was closer to supper time. When someone indicated that it felt cold,
my response was that the temperature was OK considering it was
January. On second thought I had to correct that to February. You’d
think I would have had the second month firmly in mind by then.
I also
visited two grocery stores. Milk was the main object of my interest
at the first store. At the second the primary attraction was
bananas, but I also bought snacks for the road — two, of course.
Returning
home with the peanut treats in my pocket, I ate one but couldn’t
find the other at first. In search of it as I gathered up the two
sets of groceries to take inside, I reached down between the driver’s
seat and the emergency brake module. That’s when I came across one
more unexpected set of twos for the day.
I
thought I had a discarded wrapper in my hand, but there were two
dollar bills instead. They were crumpled and had seen better days,
but I was delighted to find them. True, my billfold was almost empty
by then, but the pleasure of discovery was out of proportion to the
monetary value.
A week or so before, I was
short two dollars when I examined a handful of change I’d grabbed
as I hurried away from a busy checkout. I wasn’t sure if I’d
dropped some on the way to the car or what had happened. The loss,
though minor, almost wiped out what I thought I’d saved on sale
items that evening, so the two dollars found were doubly welcomed
back on 02-02-02.
[Mary
Krallmann]
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Where
They Stand
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Where
They Stand is a commentary section addressing specific issues in the community. Informed individuals present their
position with facts, opinions or insights on the issue. The
material is posted unedited, in its entirety, as received. If you have further comment on the
issue, please send an e-mail message, complete with your name,
address and telephone number to ldneditor@lincolndailynews.com.
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Local
teacher announces her candidacy for regional superintendent of
schools
By
Jean Anderson, candidate
[OCT.
31, 2001] My
name is Jean Anderson and I am announcing my intent to be a
Republican candidate for the office of Regional Superintendent of
Schools for Logan, Mason, and Menard counties.
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I
am a graduate of Lincoln College and Sangamon State University (now
the University of Illinois, Springfield). I have a Master’s
Degree in Educational Administration and hold the Type 75
certificate, both requirements for the position of Regional
Superintendent. I am currently employed by Lincoln Elementary
District #27 Schools as the eighth grade Language Arts teacher at
The Lincoln Junior High School, a position I have held for the past
seventeen years. I also serve that school as its Discipline and
Attendance Officer.
A
member of the First United Methodist Church of Lincoln, I was its
organist for over 22 years and currently serve on the Board of
Trustees. I am chair of the Communications and Bargaining committees
and treasurer of the Lincoln Elementary Education Organization, and
also belong to the Illinois Education Association, the National
Education Association, and the Lincoln Junior High School
Parent-Teacher Organization.
The
daughter of Lincoln residents Paul E. and the late Helen Musa
Rankin, I have resided in Lincoln and Logan County for my entire
life. My husband of thirty-two years, Mike, is a Logan County
Highway Department employee. We are parents of Jonathan Anderson,
Director of Instrumental Studies at The Victoria College, Victoria,
Texas; and James Anderson, a kindergarten teacher at Mt. Pulaski
Grade School, Mt. Pulaski, Illinois. My sister, Susan Rohrer, and
her family also reside in Lincoln.
Although
I am a political novice, I believe I would be an effective Regional
Superintendent. For one, I am a strong written and oral
communicator, due to many years of teaching and music performance. I
have a working knowledge of school law and the many issues educators
currently face. Having spent seventeen years in the classroom, I am
very much aware of the concerns felt by today's teachers. I have
received formal training in negotiations, employer/employee team
building, and conflict resolution, and have served as chief
negotiator for our district's bargaining team. Our last three
contracts have been settled amicably, without mediation or
work-stoppage. In addition, I am organized and work well both
independently and in group situations.
[to top of second column in
this
section]
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Teacher
recertification is an important new issue in the education field. I
am currently serving as a member of my district's Local Professional
Development Committee, a group responsible for overseeing and
assessing the state-required recertification requirements of our
teaching staff. I received training for this position through the
Springfield Regional Office of Education. Part of my duties as
Regional Superintendent will be to provide local training for the
teachers of Logan, Mason, and Menard counties, and assist them in
the recertification process. I also plan to work with local school
districts that want to become Providers, a designation that allows
them to bring on-site training for their staff rather than sending
them to another location for training or paying an outside group for
facilitating the process.
When
elected, my intention is to continue in the professional and
dedicated manner of our current Regional Superintendent George
Janet. Not only has his leadership been outstanding, the fact that
he is a resident of this county has been a definite advantage for
all Logan County citizens, and he has represented the Republican
party well. I believe that it is advantageous for this tradition to
continue. Therefore, I feel that my party affiliation, my residency
in this county, my strong ties with area schools and school
personnel, and my knowledge and dedication to current issues make me
a strong contender for the position of Regional Superintendent.
Sincerely,
Jean
Anderson
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By
the Numbers
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Population
estimates in Logan County
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| 30,798 |
Total population,
1990 |
| 15,380 |
Rural population -
49.9%, 1990 |
| 15,418 |
Urban population -
50.1%, 1990 |
| 2,875 |
Projected births,
1990-1998 |
| 2,736 |
Projected deaths,
1990-1998 |
| 3,143 |
Persons below poverty
level - 11.8 % |
| 258 |
Average marriages per
year |
| 135 |
Average deaths per
year |
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Alexis Asher
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| Logan
County high schools: 1960-2000 |
| 1962 |
Middletown
High School consolidated with New Holland |
| 1972 |
Atlanta
High School became part of Olympia School District |
| 1975 |
Elkhart
High School consolidated with Mount Pulaski |
| 1979 |
Latham
High School became Warrensburg-Latham |
| 1988 |
New Holland-Middletown
High School consolidated with Lincoln Community High School |
| 1989 |
San
Jose High School consolidated with Illini Central (Mason City) |
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