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A Digging in To Education One of only two schools in the State of Illinois with such a program, a class in Heavy Equipment Maintenance and Operation was started at John- sburg high school this year. According . to Johnsburg vocational director, Steve Pollock, the two-year course presently has 43 students, boys and girls, enrolled and is divided into four phases: diesel mechanics, semi-truck driving, equipment maintenance and equipment operation. The students are also taught sur­ veying in the course. Pollock said the school district owns a large ditching machine, a tractor and backhoe, a grader, a bulldozer, three semi tractor- trailer rigs, a couple of dump- trucks and two truck-mounted cranes. The vocational director noted that most of the equipment owned by the district was purchased from the federal government at costs ranging from 1 to 3 percent of the market price. The equipment is rebuilt in the maintenance part of the program and, later, students learn to operate the machinery in the field. Pollock said there are about five acres of land behind the school where students practice digging foundations, building roads, etc. He also noted that the license for the semi-trucks cost the school about $5 as opposed to the prohibitive cost of a commercial truck license. "The amount of money in­ vested and used in operating the program is not prohibitive." If at first yen don't succeed, try again. Students in the ent class at Johnsburg high school learn by doing. Working at the baseball diamonds recently/the cat operator missed the first time and had to dump the load. He tried again from a better angle and completed his task. Career days at the high school were held this week. More photos appear on page 13 of this issue. STAFF PHOTO-ANTHONY OLIVER Pollock said. "If we had to by the equipment on the open market, we could not afford it." In the future, he said, the program should become self- supporting as far as the equip­ ment is concerned. Pollock said he hopes the district will be able to sell some of the refurbished equipment in order to purchase other pieces from the govern­ ment. Pollock also observed that a part of the program was eligible for vocational reimbursement grants from the state and federal government. According to Pollock, the emphasis of the program is to provide a realistic, practical working and learning experience for the students. "It gives the student a chance to find a field he or she is in­ terested in," Pollock said. The class does most of the excavation for the Building Trades house and next year the class hopes to do all of the ex­ cavation, Pollock said. ^ The course also provides students with incentive to stay in school, learn responsibility and develop a sense of pride. "These things are more im­ portant to me than the skills," Pollock commented. "You can't teach those things without a hands-on program." An added benefit of the program. Pollock said, was that students who complete it tend to receive higher starting wages and get their operating engineer's union cards faster than others do. Upon completion of the course, the student is licensed to operate a semi-truck There is a need for this kind of training. Pollock said, and noted that in an after school class, adults in the CETA program also come to learn heavy equipment operation. On this day, the students were working diligently at resurfacing and improving the baseball diamonds behind the high school - - a job that normally would have been contracted to a private company. "We can improve the training and athletic fields at little cost to the school district and it provides a realistic working experience for the students." Pollock ob­ served Pollock said the Heavy Equipment class was also cleaning and rebuilding some ponds at St. John's church in Johnsburg, stockpiling the excess soil in hopes of building a mini ski slope The only other school district in Illinois with a similar program, the vocational director said, is at Albion. It was developed when Pollock was . in the Vocational Education department there. School Votes Lose THE MCHENRY PLAINDEALER "SERViyG THE CHAIN O-LAKES REGIOK SI*CE 1875" VOLUME 105 NUMBER 73 FRIOAY, APRIL' 10, 1981 2 SECTIONS 2% PAGES 25* Vote Changes Two Aldermen Some veteran office holders were returned to office in Tuesday's McHenry election, but they will be joined by newcomers. In Ward I, Elizabeth (Liz) Nolan was returned to office by a vote of 418 over Lynne Donarski, who polled 244 in her first contest to serve as alderman. Also back in office, but by a smaller margin, is Edward Datz in Ward II. He won over William Austin by a vote of 556 to 537. There were upsets in both Ward III and Ward IV I f V * mu$m tnnfg . It was an evening of delightful en­ tertainment last Saturday in West campus auditorium when several dozen young people opened their hearts and voices to a receptive audience as they presented "The Music Man". Few musical offerings have the appeal of Meredith Willson's conniving salesman who invades the small Iowa community of River City to sell his wares. And could this young cast handle the demanding roles? They most certainly could ~ and did as they performed with a professionalism that would bring pride to any high school. No comment would be complete without mention of Doug Maris, the swashbuckling music man whose whole demeanor, acting and booming voice were ideally suited to his role. And it would not be complete without a mention of Marion, the librarian, in the person of Julie Cassell. A sensitive portrayal accompanied by a very lovely voice won fans for this youag lady in her first starring role. But this is only the start. An un­ dertaking as gigantic as "Music Man" demands excellence from many others who perform with less fanfare. While their names may not have been up in 1 lights, every person who atteded this 2 wett produced musical was aware of the contributions that set this play aside as one of the best of the annual offerings. Music of a completely different chiftacter will offer a treat in the McHenry community later this month. Tlie highly talented New Oratorio Singers prpmise an exciting concert in St. John church, Johnsburg, April 26, as they did last October. With orchestral accompaniment, the 80-voice chorus will offer three serious works. If the previous concert is a criteria, (Continued on page 16) In the third ward, Raymond Smith went into office with a slight advantage over his opponent, the incumbent Vince Adams, liie vote was 340 to 302. In the fourth ward, the strong write-in vote of Cecilia Serritella won her a seat on the council. She defeated the in­ cumbent, Ernest Schooley, by a vote of 329 to 216 The Ward IV race was one of the most colorful within memory in McHenry. Schooley had been successful in his attempt to have Ms. Serritella's name removed from the ballot because of a technicality. In the only other city race, Jon. J. Meyer defeated Robert Podgomiak for treasurer by a wide margin of 2,222 to 687 Mayor Joseph Stanek and Clerk Barbara Gilpin were returned to office by votes of 2,575 and 2,656. respectively. Neither had opposition. Among the hardest fought contests were those for the position of trustees at McHenry Shores. A proposed road improvement assessment prompted write-in campaigns that were suc­ cessful. Winners in a seven-candidate race were Richard Panerali, Charles Werth, and Rose Lillegard, the latter a write-in candidate. The votes were 317 , 327 and 294, respectively, for the four-year terms. For two-year trustee, it was Donna Tobeck in a write-in vote over the only candidate on the ballot. Sara Sosinski The three-way race for president of the Village of MCullom Lake resulted in the election of Monty Yates, who polled 168 votes Ronald Krumsee received the support of 110 voters, and Ralph Regner had 33 Dawn Miller won handily in her race for clerk by a vote of 187 over 124 for Joanne Weisenberger. For trustees, Lois Parenti with 246 votes, Thomas Olson with 216, and Carol Krumsee with 173 were winners Nancy Yates received 133 votes Richard Hyatt was returned to the office of president of the Village of Lakemoor with 141 votes to 103 for George Garbacz Lola Narcaroti, with 181 votes, was elected to replace Patricia Morrison as clerk. Mrs. Morrison, a long time office holder, did not seek reelection From a large field of canidates for trustee, Harry Brady, with 98 votes. Charles Godt with 79. and Kathy Kelley with 92. were named to office William Mitchell was the successful candidate for president of Sunnyside with a vote of 129 His opponent. James Eichhorn, received 87 votes Elected trustees were William Sandell, 156 votes. John Miedzianowski, 145, and Ray Nolan. 145 Betty Messer was returned to office as clerk with 202 votes She was unopposed. At Wonder I^ake, where there was no contest. John DePvssler, Mrs. Anita Vanderwiel and Scott Axelson were elected trustees and Mrs. Duane Zeman as clerk The votes were 187, 177 and 199 for trustees and 218 for clerk J. Thomas Storey and James Rosater were named trustees in the Village of Bull Valley Patricia Hughes was elected president of Holiday Hills with 158 votes Her opponent. Emil Wesa, received 50 votes. Elected trustees at Holiday Hills were Ireta Jimmie, high vote getter with 160, Don Peterson with 156 and David Caldwell with 145 (Continued on page 16) Refuse To Seat Hospital Directors The present board of directors for the McHenry Hospital corporation refused to seat directors chosen at the con­ troversial March 31 meeting of the membership as they attended Mon­ day's meeting. According to newly elected director, James Bishop, Board President LeRoy Olsen, backed up the board refusal to seat the new directors with a four-page opinion from the board attorney The attorney advised the board that the March 31 meeting of the mem­ bership was invalid for a number of reasons which included: The call for the meeting was not signed by the president or mailed by the secretary; there was not time for the board to send members notices; there was not a majority of board members at the meeting; and it was not presided over by the president or vice-president. Bishop noted that he asked Olsen if» the call had gone out for the April 21 meeting. Olsen indicated yes, that the notices had been mailed the day before, which was the last date before the proposed meeting that it could be legally done. Olsen also assured Bishop that the call contained proposed by­ laws amendments and other items on the agenda as requested by the membership. Bishop indicated that he then presented Olsen a restraining order issued by Judge Harry D. Strouse of the 19th Judicial Circuit which enjoined the board from hiring a chief executive officer at this time. It also restrained the board from amending the by-laws with the purpose of interferring with the members' call of the meeting or frustrating the interests of the mem­ bership in the conduct of the April 21 meeting Bishop noted that his group of members is still soliciting proxies for use at the April 21 meeting Defeat Proposal To Dissolve Village Residents and^oters' ^gTTrjwrie Grove cast their T&fldts intavor of keeping village status Tuesday as they defeated a proposal to dissolve the Village of Prairie Grove. Unofficial results from the county clerk's office in Woodstock showed a 2 to 1 margin in favor of keeping the village. According to the results, 196 people voted against dissolving the village, while only 94 "yes" votes were cast. Former Village President, David Masters, who lost his bid for trustee, said after the results were in that those candidates who worked for maintaining the village status (Masters, Von Dressier and McCreary) all failed to win election "We had no time to campaign for ourselves," Masters said. "We were so busy trying to drum up support for maintaining the village the way it was that we failed to campaign enough." Unofficial returns showed Jerry Chatham elected president with 133 votes; Edwin Garman, William Bolin and Richard Anderson elected as trustees with 220, 163 and 186 votes respectively. Masters polled 81 votes and Mc­ Creary. 131, in their bids for the trustee positions Meet New Sports Editor Joins Plolndfoltr Pagm 6 FREE TV Guide In Today's Edition Tuesday's first vote under the new consolidation of election laws resulted in three county school referendums being rejected. The McHenry Elementary School District 15 proposal fjbr a 45-cent in­ crease in the educational tax rate lost by a vote of 3,038 to 2,254 This com­ pared to 1,587 negative votes and 1,247 in favor when the same proposition was placed on a special school ballot last November Although the loss in -McHenry amounts to a rejection as it did elsewhere, the vote was not as decisive as it was in Woodstock and Hebron, where passage was declared to be critical .» In Woodstock, a referendum from District 200 calling for a 90-cent tax increase was defeated by a 2 to 1 margin, according to unofficial results from the county clerk's office- The overwhelming "no" from the voters came despite massive cam­ paigns, both for and against the referendum, waged in the com­ munity. The District 200 school board voted in January to cut $15 million from the school budget, if the referendum failed The cuts included the elimination of 78 teaching positions, reducing secretarial and other help, closing two schools, chopping curriculum offerings and cutting vocational, special services and extra-curricular activities When the votes were tallied < unof­ ficial). 2,423 people cast their ballots in favor of the increase, while 4 832 were opposed The third education referendum to fail in Tuesday's voting was in Alden- Hebron School District '19 Voters in that school-district quashed all three tax increase referendums by a 2 to 1 margin Unofficial returns showed the Education fund referendum defeated by a vote of 540 to 293. the Operations and Building .Maintenance fund referendum. 5^1 to 264 and the Transportation! fund. 567 to 244 Referendum Reflections With the second decisive defeat Tuesday of a proposal to increase the educational rate in Elementary School District 15. the question is asked. "What nexf" No one is sure, but I)r Richard Farmer, superintendent of District 15. was forthright in assessing the defeat and stating his opinions on the future of education Speaking Wednesday morning, after a night of waiting for returns on the referendum's outcome. Dr Farmer said he was tired and "disappointed, of course." He admitted to having con­ siderable hope through election day the outcome was partially blamed on apathy I)r Farmer pointed out that even if the referendum had proved successful this week the board would face the next school year without additional tunds t>ecause the monev would not have been available in time to help meet the 1981 82 school year expenses He could make no prediction about the board's decision to hold another referendurrr next November However, he did say that if that should occur and pass, money would t>e available just as soon as it would if ),Tiiesda>'s referendum had been sucjfjlssful The A favorable vote would have given "daylight**? the end of the tunnel. The defeat gives us a dim view." The superintendent said they had accurately assessed that there would be more "yes" votes than were recorded in the November election But in a much larger election April 7. they had not predicted that the "no" votes would increase to such an extent Tuesday's defeat was 3.038 to 2.254. Exclusive of two Lake county precincts which had a negligible count and was not included in the above total Last November's vote was. 1,587 opposed and 1.247 in favor Farmer agreed that the economy of 1981 played an important part in the outcome, but admitted the April vote was "a fairly representative" turnout in comparison with November, when assessment in either case would be against the 1981 tjixes The difference, according to Farmer, is that a favorable vote April 7 would have given "daylight at the end of the tunnel The defeat gives us a dim view He foresees no major adjustments for the next school year because the board realized before the election that no additional money would be forthcoming in the immediate future State aid. he added, is indefinite but school authorities hope it will increase and give some help to a financially troubled school treasury Final word a^ to the figure will become known by the end of June (Continued on page 16) Merit Scholarship Winner Stephanie Allen, with book in hand, glances out of a West campus window prior to leaving for McHenry County college, where she is enrolled in shared time classes. This week the National Merit Finalist learned that she has been awarded a corporate- sponsored four-year merit scholarship to continue her education. The awards are made only to those who meet preferential criteria specified by the sponsoring corporations. STAFF PHOTO-W AYNE GAYLORD Stephanie Allen,' a West campus senior who was named this year as a National Merit Finalist, learned this week that she is among 1.460 winners throughout the United States of cor porate-sponsored four-year merit scholarships This was the first of three an­ nouncements of winners in this twentv sixth annual competition Miss Allen is among those who, in general, will win four-year merit scholarships worth between $1,000 and $8,000 over four years of college un­ dergraduate study The average is $1,300 a year or $5,200 for four years Miss Allen who is the daughter of Mr (Continued on page 16) Harrison Hosts History Fair Students In Competi t ion Page 16