Paper Commentaries

It’s a Wonderful Life in Dwight

Wed, 4 Jan 2012 19:36:41 -0600

The 2011 Salvation Army Kettle Drive ended up in typical Dwight fashion with a total of $5604.55. As Jerry Beier talked about the generosity of Dwight residents at the “Christmas Under the Windmill” program – Dwight has a way of stepping up to help our neighbors, especially when there is a need and right now there is a great need in our community. Proceeds from the bell ringing go into the Salvation Army account and are used for residents of our community. Vouchers from this account are used for assisting individuals in areas such as electricity, heat, food, medicine and rent. This assistance serves as temporary help while individuals or families are experiencing difficulties.
A huge thank you to all those persons who gave of their time and energy to make this drive successful. We were amazed at how many persons rang the bell multiple times and spread Christmas cheer to everyone they came in contact with. We had many groups and organizations and businesses that took multiple slots of time and helped spread the Christmas joy.
We also had the help of several “Comfort Dogs” and many children who helped convince shoppers to be very jolly and generous.
Many thanks also to Berkot’s Grocery Store, Pamida, the BP Amoco gas station, and Heritage Health for allowing us to place our kettles at their busy locations and being so accommodating to our bell ringers.
Please contact St. Peter’s (815-584-1199) if you need any information in receiving help from these funds.
1st Weekend, $1278.90; 2nd Weekend, $1305.48; 3rd Weekend, $1292.50; 4th Weekend, $1727.67. Total $5604.55
Again, thanks to everyone for sharing and caring for your neighbors!
Salvation Army Committee:
Alan and Elaine Mortensen, Brad and Barbara Wilkinson, Cathee Clausen, Henry Novak, Lynne and Louis Cronin

…And here’s Our story.

Wed, 5 Oct 2011 21:29:18 -0500

You, the reader, and perhaps some prospective advertisers, may not know OUR STORY. Twelve years ago, yes, 12, The Paper, made its debut in Dwight and surrounding 20 communities. Every address in 21 communities began receiving a FREE newspaper every week of the year. We’ve never thrown them in your yard, we’ve never charged you for a subscription (unless you asked) and rarely have we ever charged for mailing an extra paper. Some folks have been too generous and left a few dollars for coffee or doughnuts, but most of the time we just “DO IT.” It’s FREE!
The Paper is mailed to 99.9% of the households in the COMMUNITIES we cover - Dwight, Gardner, Mazon, Odell, Reddick, Campus, Essex, Cullom, Kempton, Buckingham, Union Hill, Ransom, Blackstone, Cabery, Herscher, Saunemin, Emington, Kinsman, Verona, Braceville and South Wilmington. The Paper is mailed FREE! It’s a gift to you.
Shop with our advertisers. Send a card to the newlyweds. Attend the benefit for a neighbor. Show your respect at a funeral. We give you the tools to work on your projects in life – and we ask that you continue to give us the news and story ideas for us to thrive.
We are here to be criticized, congratulated, to give and receive complaints, to run articles that you submit and some that we hear about. We don’t know everything that is going on and we can’t possibly cover every event.
We thank all of you for your support of The Paper. We would not be here without you. Your submission of story ideas, engagements, weddings, birth announcements, Dean’s lists, club news, pancake breakfasts, schools and village board stories is much appreciated. This is YOUR PAPER.

THE ADVERTISERS are what enable us to continue each and every week. We don’t have any secrets as to how The Paper is able to send it to you FREE. Just great advertisers who pay in a timely manner and believe in us. Many run weekly, some every other week and some once a month. They’re here for sponsoring pages with school schedules for band, sports, fire safety, breast cancer awareness and much more. Our ADVERTISERS don’t think twice when a “team” is doing well and we feel the need to do a congratulatory page. They SPONSOR that page. Our support has been solid and sustaining.

Let us know what we can do to make YOUR paper better.

The Paper
Mark and Mary Boma

Of course – newspapers are number one

Wed, 5 Oct 2011 21:28:13 -0500

by Bill Williams
The Paris Post-Intelligencer

Newspapers are the number one source of local news. That’s the theme of National Newspaper Week, October 2-8.
Except for perhaps a few well-known papers that market themselves as national, every newspaper in the land considers local news its bread and butter. Consider all the newspapers in the country. Their combined news staffs dwarf those of any other medium.
At virtually any function that is considered to be the potential source for news, newspaper reporters are there, while other news media have to cherry pick for the juiciest plums.
Other media often get their tips on the top breaking news stories of the day from what comes out in print, or from what shows up on newspapers’ websites.
In the same sense that all politics is local, so is all news. It is the impact on a local reader that makes a happening newsworthy. Good editors instruct their writers to evaluate events by how they stand to affect the reader. Part of good news coverage is taking the time, and the words, to explain why a news item is significant. That can be tough for electronic media, which are forced to concentrate on brief, punchy reports.
Newspapers have the advantage of all that space. The number of words on the front page of a daily U.S. newspaper exceeds the number of words of an entire 30-minute network newscast, the Newspaper Association of America (NAA) has calculated.

Here are some more facts from NAA:

• The Super Bowl attracts about 49 percent of U.S. households. In Super Bowl week, 70 percent of U.S. adults read a newspaper.

• Ten million adults used Twitter in the past month, while 164 million read a newspaper in print or online in the past WEEK.

• In the last month, 82 percent of adults took some action as a result of newspaper advertising.
CNN founder Ted Turner once famously predicted that printed newspapers would disappear within 10 years. His prediction was made 30 years ago. With a nod to Mr. Turner, it should be acknowledged that an increasing number of people get their news from a newspaper’s website rather than from its print edition. But newspapers are no junior players in cyberworld. NAA says that the leading local website in the top 25 markets across the nation are those of the local papers.

You know you are from Dwight ...........

Wed, 24 Aug 2011 08:40:57 -0500

Recently someone started a new Facebook page titled ‘You might be from or grown up in Dwight, Il if you remember when…..”….
I caught the page on the second day it was up and there were about 60 members, but by the end of the week, day 5, the list of people belonging had grown to over 720.
It’s been an interesting and nostalgic read for me.
I spent over 35 yrs in Dwight. I spent most of my childhood and a great deal of my adult life there, getting educated, married and divorced and raising three children in the process. The first and best friend I have, I met in Dwight and she still lives there.
I was just a kid in a small town. I wasn’t a star in any way, didn’t draw much attention, good or bad, just a normal girl like most of the kids I grew up with in that square mile town.
I moved away to be closer to work (or so I said and felt) a little over 11 yrs ago. My youngest daughter had moved to college and it seemed like a good time to get the hell out of Dodge. I felt like I didn’t belong, that I hadn’t belonged for a long time. Looking back now, I realized that I just needed a change.
For far too many years I had let myself believe that I wasn’t FROM Dwight, but that I merely LIVED in Dwight. This was because I wasn’t part of a native family and I wasn’t born there, and I swore there was a distinction between the two.
Other than a very few old friends, I had no desire to go back unless I had to go. When I visit my friend, I slip in and out and don’t often ride around (not drive around!) to see what’s changed. Not much usually does.
But a funny thing happened the night I spent hours reading literally thousands of posts from present and former Dwightites, some of whom I remembered clearly and others whose names I still didn’t know. Some of them were much older than I, some the same generation and some were my children’s age.
These people had a lot of the same fond memories of this little town in the middle of corn and bean country that I had. This town where nothing was more than 5 minutes away and where as a child you could play outside all day and your mother never had to worry where you were. You’d come home for lunch at the noon whistle and when the church bells rang you went home for supper. They climbed the Rocket and probably hung out at 6 mile too. They went to the same schools I did, where teachers stayed long enough to teach your parents, you and even your children.
These men and women grew up in the same town where you were more afraid of what your father would say if you got in trouble, than what the cops could do to you. And where, when you got home your dad already knew what you had done and was waiting. Like my brother said, talk about the coconut telegraph. Small towns like Dwight really were a community where many people raised the children.
Small towns are unique in that when you mess up, yes everyone knows. But when you are in a mess, everyone knows this too, and people come and reach out and help. People bake chicken and pies for funerals. They go to wakes because they knew your dad and grew up with your cousins.
Funny thing I had felt so inferior for so many years in that town. I had let my insecurities keep me isolated from what were some truly wonderful decent people. I made myself believe I didn’t belong. I built that fence.
So let me say thank you to Bill King for starting that Facebook page. Thanks for the memories from all who posted to it and thanks for making me feel like I belonged to a pretty ordinary, but special place in the middle of the Mid-West. That I’m from Dwight.
Susan Cherco Holohan,
of Wilmington

‘We Care!’ New Baseball- Softball Complex is Needed

Wed, 4 May 2011 18:37:54 -0500

I am responding to letters criticizing the grant application to fund a modern, four-field baseball/softball complex on the grounds of Dwight Grade School.
One concern regarded “land-locking” the school. Citizens should view this area themselves. It’s bordered by dilapidated back stops. Improvement is greatly needed. The complex would still allow for future school growth.
Another concern detailed reliance on state funds versus restoring fields using local funds and manpower. Volunteers put in countless hours to make Garrett Park fields playable this season. While the argument that government grants shouldn’t be available has merit, the fact is, this grant is available. This complex would allow Dwight to host tournaments, bringing many visitors who spend money in local stores, gas stations, and restaurants.
The latest letter asked, “Do we care?” Yes, I care! I care that kindergarten enrollments at DGS are the lowest in decades. I care that our population is greying. I care that we can’t compete with state-of-the-art school buildings and infrastructure other towns in our area enjoy. I want better for Dwight.
I urge Dwight Village and Grade School boards, community groups and citizens to support this project. This complex could be a beacon for new growth in Dwight. I, too, was disturbed by the mayor's election letter. I implore my fellow citizens not to allow distrust of and personal feelings of antagonism toward the mayor to cloud your judgement on this issue. This is a chance to truly make an impact in our village.

Tammy Pulver