Thomas Jefferson who put his soul into the Declaration of Independence. (Painting by Rembrandt Peale, 1800),

Looking Back – Those who risked it all for liberty

“When in the Course of human Events, it becomes necessary for one People to dissolve the Political Bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the Powers of the Earth, the separate and equal Station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature’s God entitle them, a decent Respect to the Opinions of Mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the Separation.”

So begins the Declaration of Independence, our most sacred and revered national document.

County Board approves appointments, resolution for highway funds

The Cass County board approved the appointment of Adam Bentley to the Cass County E911 Board and Pam Anderson to the Housing Authority Board unanimously at its October 9th, meeting. They also stated that Art Gramann retired from the Health Committee after many years of service and wanted to thank him for his service.

City Hall, Beardstown

Property inspections big issue at Beardstown City Council 

A question posed by Beardstown Alderman Ron Culves about implementing a plan for inspections on rental properties and other properties in the Beardstown area was discussed at length at the Tuesday, October 3rd, Beardstown City Council meeting. Rental inspections were conducted in the past when Debbie Large was ordinance officer. She would have Tom Cooper assist her in the inspections. Currently, inspections are not being done and with many properties having multiple families living in them, the risk of harm can be great. This is not the fault of anyone in particular. Beardstown just needs more housing and inspectors to do the work.

Michael Charles

Chicago Blues Hall of Fame artist to be in concert at Daugherty’s Pub

The public is invited to a concert by Grammy elected Chicago Blues Hall of Fame artist Michael Charles and His Band as he takes you on a three-hour non-stop guitar driven journey through thirty nine years and forty releases. 

The precision and level of energy is spectacular and will leave you astounded by the driving force, the contemporary blues, and the soulful ballads of Michael Charles.

We need to right the ship!

As Americans watch their favorite national news station, we can all agree that our country is a mess. We can’t blame it all on the Republicans or the Democrats. Every voting member of this nation has had a hand in this disaster. We are all caught with our hands in the cookie jar.

Pointing our finger is so easy and very unproductive. We’ve whined and complained for the last several years about what needs to be done and how it should be done.

Ethan Heller lowers his shoulder on his way to the end zone.

BHS Tigers stung by BCHS Hornets

The Beardstown Tiger football team had a great chance to finish off a stellar comeback last Friday night against Brown County at Mt. Sterling.  In fact, BHS had a couple of great opportunities to score the winning points, but in the end some excellent goal line defense from the Hornets and too many Tiger mistakes sent Beardstown to a heartbreaking 24-22 loss.  A plethora of penalties, bad snaps and fumbles allowed the Hornets to score the game’s first three touchdowns.  Jack Anderson caught a 23-yard pass to give the Hornets a 6-0 lead in the first quarter then scored on an 11-yard run with 11:54 left in the second quarter and a 1-yard plunge with 5:36 left to make it 18-0 in favor of Brown County.

A ribbon cutting was held at Jennie Marr Dunaway Park on the new pickleball courts on Sunday, October 1. Those present in the photo are representatives of theVirginia City Council, Virginia Park Board, economic development and beautification committees. Photo by Kaitlyn Copley

Jennie Marr Dunaway Park  now serving pickleball

Jack and Lynn (Beuoy) Handy, of Springfield but fomerly of Virginia and VHS graduates, Class of 1970 and 1972, donated $35,880 to bring pickleball to their hometown.

With resurfacing and remarking, the two Jennie Marr Dunaway Park tennis courts are now pickleball courts or with net adjustment, one court can still be used for tennis.

Flag

Honoring our veterans

Once again, the Cass County Star-Gazette will honor our veterans for Veterans Day in our November 9th issue. We have done this the last few years and each year, it grows a little more. We intend to grow it even more this year and that can only happen by the community, near and far. Veterans Day is November 11 and honors all of those who have served our country in war and peaee, dead or alive, although it’s largely intended to thank living veterans for their sacrifices. It’s a celebration to honor America’s veterans for their patriotism, love of country and willingness to serve and sacrifice for our great country.

Ashland Fire Station

Fire district pursuing grant

Ashland Fire Chief Tyler Latham reported the fire district is pursuing a State Fire Marshall Grant. Latham said at last week’s meeting of the fire district board the grant is $26,000 for small equipment. He said the district might use the money to obtain firefighting monitors. The grant application is due by Dec. 15.