Days Gone By In Staunton

Thursday, Oct. 4, 1990 -- Improvements At Wall's Pasture -- Improvements at Wall's Pasture on South Union Street may make the location more usable for recreational activities. The City of Staunton and the Central Illinois Branch of the Lutheran Brotherhood #8615 recently combined efforts to upgrade the turf on the site. The City applied additional dirt to the field and levelled it. Seed and fertilizer, which were provided by the Brotherhood were applied by Gary Sievcrs, and Wayne and Ryan Ruehrup.

Part of the field, which was originally part of the pasture belonging to the Wall family, has been used for a practice baseball diamond for some time. Helen Silvester, who along with Jim Brinkman of Hillsboro is a Brotherhood district representative, said people have talked about improving the pasture for sometime. "It needed dirt," to level it out, she said. She said since the terrain is now level it would be easier to use the pasture for other recreational activities such as T-ball or soccer.

Seeking Funds for Civic Center building -- The search for funds to establish a civic center in Staunton has led to the Illinois Department of Commerce and Community affairs. Dwight Brackman, Chamber of Commerce Project Chairman, said no financial assistance is available from the county at this time. Brackman recently made contact with the D.C.C.A. and was told there is money available for such centers. A department representative suggested getting more input from the community and meeting with D.C.C.A. representatives to discuss various possibilities. There are communities similar to Staunton who have received help through the D.C.C.A.

Brackman has assembled preliminary information on the costs of remodeling an existing structure or building a new structure for use as a civic center. One potential site that has been discussed is the former "Alleys" on Henry Street. A preliminary study indicated the approximate cost of remodeling that building for a civic center would be about $300,000. Construction of a new building of the same size, about 9,000 square feet, was estimated at $325,000. However, some people think a new building, built to order, could possibly be more efficiently operated and maintained in the long run.

Class of 1930 Held Their 60th Reunion -- The class of 1930 of Staunton Community High School held their 60th reunion at the Gardens in Litchfield on Saturday, September 29, at 6:30 p.m.

There were 17 members in attendance: Lewis Jacobs and wife, Belva; Olivia Karlovic (Fanti) and husband John; Milton Beinke and wife Lydia; Josephine Schnaare (Pedrotti) and husband Elmer; Adeline Burgoyne (Erisman), Helen McBrien (Fey), Marie DeWerff (Kraus) and friend Orville Ruhlander, Natalie Dumar (Chirnich) and daughter Dianne, Oscar Spengel, Hugo Alberini, and Don Beane (class sponsor).

Oscar Spengel was emcee. He had each member give an account of the last five years since the last reunion in 1985. Mr. Beane gave a very complimentary and inspiring talk. Four letters were read from those who could not attend: Gertrude Myer (Cronan),Wilma Vaughn (Farris), Helen Kleinhans (Miller), and Elsie Lindo (Rolle).

It was decided to have another reunion in two years.

Boy Scouts Took Part In Scuba Program -- Boy Scout Troop 34 of Staunton took part in the Self-Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus (SCUBA) program earlier last month.

The boys took the certification program through Windwalker Scuba from Belleville. The program consisted of classroom work, closed water training (swimming pool), and open water training (lake). Each was tested individually for physical water skills; swimming, snorkeling, and use of SCUBA equipment and techniques. Passing a written exam was also required.

Upon successful completion of written and physical testing led to the individual certification as a SCUBA diver.

Troop 34 wishes to thank Charles Landers, Walter Haase and Wayne Kellebrew for helping with the instruction.

Those who participated in the course were Chad Heyen, Cain Smith, Bill Sminchak, Sam Davis, Brian Gregory, Andy Bird, Tim Minkanic, Mike Smith, Brian Stipcak, Jeff Fleming, Scott Colley, Mike Maedge, Randy Bird, Steve Davis, Tom Colley, Jeff Spencer, David Heyen and Charlie Spencer. Fifteen of the participants are fully certified. Three more will complete the course in the near future.

Boy Scout Troop 34 is sponsored by VFW Post 1241. Any boy who is interested in sharing the Spirit of Scouting should contact Charlie Spencer at 635-3457. Come join the fun and excitement in Troop 34.

Construction of Ambulance Building started -- Ground has been broken and work is progressing on the combined ambulance garage and office building of the Staunton Area Ambulance Service. Last week Nelson Excavating of Prairietown repositioned a drainage ditch that crossed the property at the corner of Pennsylvania and Ash Streets. Nelson also dug the footing for the building which will be about 4800 square feet on a concrete slab. Plumber Ken Kuethe was waiting while the concrete footing was being poured to hook up a temporary water tap. Demars Construction of Glen Carbon will erect the structure that will front Ash Street and provide three ambulance bays, office space, and quarters for the emergency medical technicians.

Band Boosters Calendars Still Available -- The regular meeting of the Staunton Band Boosters will be held on Tuesday evening, October 9, at 7:30 p.m. in the band room. Everyone welcome.

Community events calendars are still available. The cost of a calendar is $4.00. A reminder to band students, please turn all calendar money in or any unsold calendars.

On Saturday, September 29, a group of band parents and students made pizzas at the Masonic Temple.

We would like to thank everyone who helped in any way with the pizza project.

A special thanks to the men of the Masonic Temple for the use of their hall and to Bill Miller for everything he does for Band Boosters. Thank you to the community, your support is always appreciated.