State Briefs 2/20/08
<p class="MsoNormal">Elementary school receives battle-used flag from Army unit
<p class="MsoNormal">SHIRLAND, Ill. - Students in Shirland School's first-grade class received an unexpected surprise in the mail today from Army troops serving overseas in Iraq.
Secretary Wilma Faerber said the school received a folded American flag which had been flown by Bravo Company in a helicopter during a combat mission. A certificate accompanying the flag reads:
"Certificate of Authenticity. This flag of the United States of America is presented to Shirland School. This flag was carried aloft by a Bravo Company, 2-159th ARB, AH-64D Apache (Longbow) during a combat mission in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom 07-09 on December 31, 2007."
It bears a helicopter and American flag and is signed by Davis Lewandowsky, pilot-in-command and Richard Hartfelder, co-pilot/gunner.
Students were elated, Faerber said, and they don't have to look far as to why they received the special surprise.
Students, faculty and the community collected items for troops serving overseas in November and children also sent Christmas cards and greetings to troops overseas in December, some students keeping in regular contact with troops such as Sgt. Brian Remily.
Faerber said previously the school sort of adopted Remily, a seven-year serviceman and U.S. Army combat engineer, a married, father of five who is serving his third tour of duty in Iraq.
<p class="MsoNormal">Rockford Register Star
<p class="MsoNormal">Wreck kills two
<p class="MsoNormal">OLNEY, Ill. - Two Noble men died in a traffic accident Tuesday.
<p class="MsoNormal">According to the Illinois State Police report, Brein Mike Campbell, 79, of Noble, driving a 2001 Chevrolet pickup, was southbound on Onion Hill Road.
<p class="MsoNormal">Carl S. Klingler, 39, Noble, driving a 2000 GMC pickup, was westbound on Tank Farm Lane. The two vehicles collided at the intersection. There are no traffic-control signs at the intersection.
<p class="MsoNormal">Campbell and a passenger in the vehicle, Jimmie D. Patterson, 69, Noble, were killed in the accident. Neither was wearing a seatbelt, according to the report.
<p class="MsoNormal">Klingler, who also was not wearing a seatbelt, according to the police report, was taken to Richland Memorial Hospital for treatment.
<p class="MsoNormal">Klingler was cited on a charge of failure to wear a seatbelt.
<p class="MsoNormal">Olney Daily Mail
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Mailboxes appear all over Mackinaw since ban ended
<p class="MsoNormal">MACKINAW, Ill. - Mailboxes have popped up like spring flowers in front of Mackinaw homes ever since a long-standing ban on home mail delivery was abolished Sept. 24 by the Mackinaw Village Board.
<p class="MsoNormal">The village banned boxes at homes for years, requiring residents to pay for post office boxes and pick up their mail at the post office. Officials said the intention was to keep children safe from mail trucks and prevent excessive wear on city streets.
<p class="MsoNormal">About 70 people have decided to make the switch and trek only to the curb to get the mail.
<p class="MsoNormal">But there are many others who say home delivery is a nuisance and the posts are an eyesore.
<p class="MsoNormal">"I think these people from the city ought to stay in the city if they want city services," said Ed Graham, who has lived in Mackinaw since 1943 and has taken a firm stance against mailboxes outside of homes.
<p class="MsoNormal">Graham said he likes the security a post office box offers because no one can tamper with his mail. Junk mail can also be tossed out at the post office instead of at his home, he said recently as he sifted through a stack of envelopes in the building downtown.
<p class="MsoNormal">Village Board President Craig Friend said the issue is somewhat complex and runs deep along lines of new residents, old residents, tradition and convenience. Ban supporters said individual mailboxes make neighborhoods look bad.
<p class="MsoNormal">Friend said some of the town's older residents see the boxes as more of a tradition than an inconvenience and feel they offer a chance for socializing. But residents with young children say having to bundle up the little ones and drive to town in bad weather just to get the mail was a hassle.
<p class="MsoNormal">Peoria Journal Star
<p class="MsoNormal">E-mail scam threatens recipients' lives
<p class="MsoNormal">BARTONVILLE, Ill. - A new scam popping up in e-mail boxes is preying on recipients' worst fears.
<p class="MsoNormal">Two Peoria County women reported receiving the e-mail over the weekend. In it the sender claims to have been contracted to kill them if $15,000 is not paid.
<p class="MsoNormal">The sender also claims to possess an audiotape of conversations made between himself or herself and an individual who is called a "friend" of the recipient who wants them dead. The recipient is warned not to contact police or the sender will target their family. The author also warns them not to leave their house after 7 p.m. "until I make out a time to see you."
<p class="MsoNormal">"I've never seen anything that threatening," Bartonville Police Chief Brian Fengel said Tuesday, referring to the e-mail a village resident opened Sunday night. "It's pretty disturbing."
<p class="MsoNormal">The FBI has been aware of the scam since December. About 115 complaints about it have been filed with the bureau's Internet Crime Complaint Center.
<p class="MsoNormal">Fengel urged anyone who receives a threatening e-mail to either delete it or drop it in their junk mail folder. If the recipient truly believes their life is at risk, then they should call police immediately.
<p class="MsoNormal">FBI officials recommend not replying to the sender. Doing so may signal to the sender that they've reached a live e-mail account and further intimidation attempts could be made.
<p class="MsoNormal">Peoria Journal Star
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