The Independent-News, Volume 111, Number 39, Walkerton, St. Joseph County, 27 February 1986 — Page 4

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- THE INDEPENDENT NEWS - FEBRUARY 27, IM6

EDITORIALS

UP TO THE PUBLIC? It appears that eventually two of the most controversial matters before the Indiana Legislature may just end up with a referendum vote at a later date. These two matters are, the amending the state constitution to allow a state lottery in the future, and late action, in a matter to be brought up this week, there is an effort to put the license branch reform issue up to a referendum vote to get the sentiment of the public. These are not just cut and dried matters and also there is a little more to this than the immediate problem of the state lottery and license branch reform indicate by just mentioning these two items. First of all, the amending of the state consititution to allow a lottery in the future. The action must be passed again in exactly the same wording in the next legislative session, which would mean in either 1987 or 1988, when the next assembly meets. Then, and only then, will it be put before the public in a general election for a referendum vote of yes or no by the voters of Indiana. Despite the apparent success of getting this passed this year, the fight is a long way from over. The opponents have vowed that they are not about to take this decision as final, and will be making a concentrated effort in their cause in the future. Also, it might be explained to the public, and certainly will be more so when and if further action calls for a referendum vote, that amending the constitution to allow the forming of a state lottery, does not just make a lottery legal in Indiana. The section of the constitution that must be amended relates to gambling ... not just a lottery. The result of a change in this would in all probability, then put strong restrictions on all other kinds of gambling. The ever-popular bingo games, the raffles that so many dubs, organizations, and yes, even some churches hold for fund raising, pari-mutual, and every other kind of gambling would be affected. It would put all of this under state control, and the very popular fund-raising bingo games and raffles that are so important to many organizations now, but are just overlooked by law agencies, would come under contol of the governing body that would control gambling. Is the public ready to lose all of these means of revenue, some which are the basic survival for many organizations? On the matter of the license branch reform, although not spelled out until action is taken, the proposal of a referendum vote stated on the ballot in 1988. There would be no action before 1989 other than making the current records public, if this proposal succeeds. There is little doubt that the public does favor reform. There is a big question as to how and when this will happen and just what impact it will have after any action is taken. As of this writing, the Senate and House had both passed reform in one form or another, but were not that close on a final bill that must be accepted by both bodies. These two key issues will continue to be in the news, will continue to be key topics of Indiana politics, and certainly will continue to be subjects of much discussion one way or the other in the Hoosier state. These are a couple of matters that your legislators would like to know your opinion on, not just now, but in the future as these will continue to be key topics in Indiana. WHEN—

1981 On Saturday morning, February 21, the new fire truck for the North Liberty Volunteer Fire Department arrived. All parents and grandparents of pre-school and elementary school children are notified of the semiannual book fair at the Walkerton Elementary School, to be held March 5,6, 9, 10 and 11, from 8:00 a m. to 3:00 p.m. Effective Monday, February 23, the North Liberty postal hours will be from 8:30 a m. to 5:00 p.m. There will be no closing during the noon hour. Through the fine efforts of the WEMSA members, the ambulance membership has increased to 469 members. This is just a little over half of the goal which is for 800 members. Featured out at Montana Charlie’s Chuckwagon on Friday is all you can eat smelt with fries and salad bar for $3.95 and on Saturday steak and fries for only $2.25. 1976 On Valentine’s Day, the new Walkerton Lumber Co., 301 Illinois Street, Walkerton, held their opening. Special for the one day sale was Georgia-Pacific Arcy-Tuff paneling, regular price of $6 49, spec

ial price of $4.99, three colors to choose from, oak, pecan or walnut. A 13-foot jump shot from the right baseline that swished through the net with :02 showing on the clock, capped a lack-luster Glenn performance Friday night but did seal the lid on the Northern State Conference championship. The Falcons beat LaVille 56-54 for the title with a perfect 5-0 record. Solo tryouts for the Walkerton area Bicentennial musical, "I Love America", will be held at 2:00 p.m. on Sunday, February 29, at the Walkerton United Methodist Church. At the market blade cut chuck roast was selling for 69 cents a pound; swiss steak at $1.19 a pound; ground beef at 79 cents a pound; short ribs of beef for 79 cents a pound; wieners at 59 cents for a 12-ounce package; stewing chickens at 59 cents a pound; honey loaf at $1.59 a pound; slicing bologna at 89 cents a pound; American cheese at $1.39 a pound; an eight-inch baked apricot pie for $1.19; a gallon of Vim for $1.29; four loaves of white bread for $1.00; a 32 ounce jar of Miracle Whip for 85 cents; five pound bag of Gold Medal flour for 78 cents; 10 ounce jar of Hills Bro*, coffee for

$1.89; 16 ounces of pure Florida orange juice for 59 cents; a head of lettuce for 19 cents; 10 pounds of Idaho potatoes for $1.33; and five pounds of bananas for SI.OO. 1936 A disastorous fire completely gutted the beautiful cobble-stone Methodist Church, in Walkerton, early this morning, February 20, while firemen from Walkerton, North Liberty, South Bend and Plymouth were helpless to stop the onslaught. The blaze had gained so much headway before it was discovered that when the Walkerton department arrived they were able to fight it from the inside for only a few minutes. Ground for the church was broken on May 1, 1905 and the cornerstone was laid April 26, 1906. The church was completed the following year and dedication was on August 25, 1907. Total cost of the structure was $15,000 plus much donated labor and material which brought the actual cost to $20,000. Seating capacity was 550. The residents of Lincoln Township, outside of the Town of Walkerton, may now receive all the privileges of the Walkerton Public Library on an equal footing with the residents of the town. “Cute and adorable, lovely and attractive, delightful and charming" — thus were the three ages of women described by Judge J. Elmer Peak in his address at the annual Benedicts Frolic sponsored by the Women's Community Club, on Friday evening. A delightful dinner was served by members of the club to their husbands and guests. Mail service on the New York Central railroad. South Bend-Kan-kakee division, was cut off today, February 27, by an ice jam at the Yellow River railroad bridge in Knox. The ice jammed against the bridge so hard that the tracks were out of line about eight inches, making it impossible to operate the trains. The workmen have been able to open up the flow of water and relieve the pressure so that service will likely be re-established this afternoon. This cut Walkerton and North Liberty off from mail service Wednesday and Thursday. VOICE OF THE PEOPLE “Walkerton Is Uniqne” Walkerton is unique — from any other small or large town we’ve lived in throughout the United States. The total lack of cooperation and unwillingness to admit their errors is NOT conducive to a progressive or amicable environment. It isn’t fair to welcome new taxpayers with exorbitant overcharges, and then to not listen to where the errors are on Town office records, and admit to them. The tax paying customers who are paying their exorbitant salaries, only complain when they have errors to complain about. Our first month in Walkerton we used 2,200 gallons of water — not the 22,700 gallons we were forced to pay for. Our second month in Walkerton we used 3,800 gallons — not 8,300 gallons. The Walkerton Town office owes us a credit of 25,000 gallons of water. Our monthly average over the past 18 months is 4,294 gallons per month. It would require only a few minutes for Walkerton Town office to check their records and clarify this matter by crediting us with the 25,000 gallons of water they owe us. I repeat again — our residence has NOT had a water leak of any kind since we have occupied it. 1 repeat again where the errors are: 1. A computer error where a "zero" was inserted after a figure instead of a comma. 2. 10,000 gallons of water used by former resident, but charged to and paid for by us. I’m not alone. Others voice their complaints publicly about unresolved errors in utilities.

THE INDEPENDENT-NEWS Publication Number 261460 ROBERT E. URBIN, EDITOR SUSAN R. URBIN, ASSISTANT EDITOR INDEPENDENT-NEWS CO., INC., PUBLISHER 601-03 Roosevelt Road, Walkerton, Indiana 46574*1294 Telephone (219) 586-3139 PUBLICATION TIME: Thursday of Each Week Second Class Postage Paid At Walkerton, Indiana 46574 SUBSCRIPTION RATES: 15‘ Per Copy; $5.00 Per Year (SI.OO Extra If Mailed Out Os State)

For those temporarily in power to have the biased opinion that the customer is always WRONG, is a detriment to Walkerton's image — and progress. My Mother always advised me, "when you know you’re right, stick to it”. Shirley Magner STATEHOUSE REPORT R y C. Edward Cook Busy Week In The Legislature Wednesday was the last day for bills from their house of origin to clear the other chamber. The House voted on more than 75 bills in a hectic, late night session. Lottery Bm In a historic vote this week, the Indiana House of Representatives approved a resolution repealing the state constitutional ban on lotteries. The measue passed in a surprisingly strong vote of 72-28. This is only the first step in the process allowing an Indiana lottery. The vote must be repeated by the General Assembly either in the 1987 or 1988 sessions, then the issue must be approved by the public in a referendum. An Indiana lottery would help reduce the outflow of S9O million a year that Hoosiers spend on out-of-state lotteries and could raise as much as SIBO million for state programs. Superintendent Bill The Senate defeated the Governor’s proposal to appoint the Superintendent of Public Instruction this week in a close vote of 24-26. The amended measure would have allowed the governor to choose a superintendent from five nominations supplied by the State Board of Education. Originally the Governor had proposed that the superintendent be appointed by the governor alone. In the Senate, however, the governor failed to receive support for the plan from members of his own party. The proposal may still be revived when the legislative action moves to conference committee. Senate Paste* Uceswe Branch Bill The Senate approved a measure (30-14) to place the license branch system under the control of a five member state commission. This bipartisan panel would serve at the governor’s pleasure and be chaired by the commissioner of the Bureau of Motor Vehicles. Under the proposal, personalized license plate money would still be divided equally between the two political parties. This plan would not take effect until July 1, 1988, and until then all branch business would become public record. During this period, all direct political contributions from the branches would be banned. The Senate proposal is significantly different from the House version and will most likely go to a conference committee. Background Check* Fer Prospective Day Caro Employee* Prospective employees of day care centers around the state would be required to sign an affidavit saying they had not been previously convicted of child molesting, abuse, or other related crimes according to another bill (SB 126) which we passed this week. The bill also requires licensed day care

centers to do a criminal history check of job applicants through the state police computer to confirm the affidavit. This history check provision, however, will not apply to most church-sponsored day care centers. Other BUI* Passed Other bills passed by the House this week include: SB 284, establishing the Governor’s Scholars Academy, a summer program for gifted high school students in Indiana. SB 365, creating a state recount system to be overseen by a three member commission consisting of the Secretary of State and designees from the two major parties. SB 72, recognizing the third Monday in January as a statewide holiday for Martin Luther King. This coincides with the national holiday held in his rememberance. SB 344, authorizing a new statewide integrated telecommunications network to be used solely by local and state offices. Youth Exchange Seeking Exchangees And Host Families international Christian Youth Exchange, a program founded in 1955 that has worked with some 15,000 international exchange students, is now recruiting American exchangees and host families for the 1986-87 school year. Both high school enrollment and voluntary service settings are available. The program in the United States is divided into 20 regions with a volunteer staff for each region and a national staff in New York. Trained people and resources are immediately available in all areas. While ICYE has been recognized and is accredited through the U. S. State Department, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, the program has purposefully remained small. This way personal attention can be given to each exchangee or host family. Opportunities are available for exchange with over 25 countries and with all types of living situations: big city, small town, rural, single family homes, apartments, townhouses, etc. The backgrounds and interests of the exchangees can be as varied as the people of the world. Indiana and Michigan are in region — which is seeking for your help. If you are an American student interested in spending a year abroad or if you are a family that would like to expand your horizons by hosting an international exchangee, contact Ralph and Rebecca Showman, 608 Liberty St., Elkhart. Ind. 46516, 219-295-1049 or Dain and Janay Morehouse, 21018 County Road 18, Goshen, Ind. 219-875-5975. Persons interested in working indirectly with exchanges are also needed and welcomed. Wyoming was the first state to allow women to vote. Hr