Pet Adoption Day at Westinn Kennels
Dozens of animals from the St. Charles County Pet Adoption Center will be available for adoption
St. Charles County 3⁄4 The St. Charles County Division of Humane Services will be holding a Pet Adoption Day at Westinn Kennels in Wentzville on Saturday, March 11 from 10am to 3pm. Westinn Kennels is located at 1522 Swantnerville Drive in Wentzville, Missouri.
Dozens of animals from the St. Charles County Pet Adoption Center will be available for immediate adoption. Citizens can also bring their existing pets and have them permanently identified with a microchip for just $10 (cash or check only). Those who adopt a new pet at the event will receive a discount on training classes offered by Westinn Kennels. Sharon West, owner of Westinn Kennels and professional trainer, will be on hand to give advice and practice agility with her dogs.
“Sharon has taken several of our dogs from the shelter and worked with them on obedience training and helped find them homes. With the cooperation of Sharon and Westin Kennels, this event is a way for us to showcase dogs in St. Charles County that are currently available for adoption,” stated Theresa Williams, director of St. Charles County’s Division of Humane Services.
Westinn Kennels is located at 1522 Swantnerville Drive in Wentzville, Missouri. Travel Hwy 70 west to exit 208, left over Hwy 70 to the South Outer Road, right on the South Outer Road, left onto Swantnerville Drive (between Wentzville Auto Plaza and First Bank).
The St. Charles County Pet Adoption Center serves St. Charles County through sheltering and adopting animals, providing pet owner education, animal control services, and investigation of incidents involving animal cruelty and neglect. Visit the Pet Adoption Center at 4850 Mid Rivers Mall Drive. For additional details on the Pet Adoption Day, call 636-949-PETS (7387) or online at www.scchealth.org
O’Fallon Police Department to present class on protecting children from sexual predators
Parents and guardians will have an opportunity to learn more about protecting their children from sexual predators at a class presented by the O’Fallon Police Department on Wednesday, April 19, 2006, at 7 p.m. in the Multi-Purpose Room at O’Fallon Municipal Centre, 100 North Main Street, O’Fallon, Missouri 63366.
The session is free of charge and will last about an hour. Detective James Klingler will conduct the class, focusing especially on Internet safety. Statistically on average, Klingler says, 1 in 5 girls and 1 in 10 boys will be victims of sexual abuse. “The internet allows sexual predators into our homes and gives them access to our children like never before,” he says. “It’s important to know how to impede that access and protect our kids.”
For more information, contact Detective Klingler at jklingler@ofallon.mo.us or (636) 240-3200 ext. 670.
An Evening of Style and Elegance Lindenwood University Presents the...9th Annual Fashion Show 2006 April 30th
Come experience an exciting journey on the “Fashion Freeway” with attractions presented by aspiring junior and senior couturiers of Lindenwood University’s Fashion Design program. At the 9th annual show, students will showcase their designs in sportswear, tailored suits, swimwear, evening wear and bridal gowns. The evening will also include submissions for the “The way to express The Body & Mind” Arts of Fashion design competition which culminates in a showing in the couture capital of Paris, France.
The event takes place in the Lord & Taylor Court at the Westfield West County Mall on Sunday, April 30, 2006. The pre-show Champagne Reception begins at 7:30 p.m. The Westfield West County Mall is conveniently located at I-270 and Manchester Road in Des Peres, Missouri.
Tickets are $25 per person and can be purchased at the Lindenwood University Box Office (Roemer Hall) on the Main campus or at the door the evening of the event. Reservations can be made by calling the box office at 636-949-4878.
If you love fashion and want to view the designs of the couturiers of tomorrow, please join us in April. Proceeds from the fashion show benefit the Lindenwood University Fashion Design program. The event is presented by the Lindenwood University Fashion Design Department and hosted by Westfield West County.
For more information about the University or the program, call Florence Dewan at 636-949-4866 or visit the web at www.lindenwood.edu.
Explore History and Culture in New Harmony
You can be part of a one-of-a-kind trip to New Harmony, IN, to learn more about an historic religious commune and utopian experiment. Journey to this unique, historic village on the Wabash River with a St. Peters Rex-Plex motorcoach on Friday, April 21.
Learn more about the self-sufficient Harmonie Society of the 1820s and the social experiment known as “Community of Equality,” a utopian vision that may not have endured, but significantly contributed to the American scientific and educational study.
The tour will also visit the Atheneum, the spectacular building that serves as the Visitors Center for New Harmony and has received many design awards over the years. Participants also will experience the magic of the Sacred Garden and the elaborate Cathedral Labyrinth. The tour also will stop at the famous Red Geranium Restaurant and make time for local antique and specialty shops.
The tour fee is $72 and includes motorcoach transportation, a tour guide, lunch, admissions, and gratuities. Participants will meet at the west parking lot at City Hall, One St. Peters Centre Blvd. The motorcoach leaves at 7 a.m. and will return to the same location at 7 p.m.
For more information, visit stpetersmo.net online and click on Rec-Connect, or call 636.939.2FUN, ext. 400.
The Foundry Art Centre in Historic St. Charles will offer “Creating with Legos ,” a week-long camp during children’s spring breaks, from Monday, March 20 through Friday, March 24. Two sessions will be held, from 9 a.m. to noon and 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. The camp is for students nine years and older who will learn aspects of composition, elements of design, patterns and mosaics by building works of art with Legos. Cost of each five-day session is $68 for Foundry members and $75 for non-members. An additional $10 charge will be added for lunchtime supervision for students who attend both sessions. Students should bring a bucket of Legos and a sack lunch. For more information,
Foundry Art Centre to Host Third Annual Gala Fundraiser
The Foundry Art Centre will hold its third annual gala fundraiser, “Pirates of the Caribbean Ball,” on Saturday, March 25 at 6:30 p.m. The black-tie and masquerade event will raise money to fund the Foundry Art Centre in Historic St. Charles. Honored as one of AAA Midwest Traveler’s Travel Treasures in 2005, the Foundry attracts thousands of visitors each month to its art exhibitions, classes and artist workshops. Nearly 300 people attended last year’s gala event, raising over $59,000.
The “Pirates of the Caribbean Ball” includes a cocktail hour, dinner and dancing. Those attending the event are encouraged to dress as their favorite swashbuckler. The dinner will feature Caribbean specialties.
“The Spectrum” with Tim Callihan, voted one of the best bands in Missouri, will provide the music for the night. Guests also may participate in a silent auction during the cocktail hour and a live auction after dinner. A five-night trip to the Marigot Beach Club Hotel in Marigot Bay on St. Lucia Island in the Caribbean is one of the items to be offered at the live auction.
“This year’s gala promises to be extraordinary with great music, delicious food and exciting auction items,” said Joyce Rosen, executive director of the Foundry.
Tickets are $150 per person, tables of 10 are $1,500 and a corporate sponsorship, including a table of ten is $3,000. Single seating is available. For more information, call (636) 255-0270.
Zips Little League Parents Sponsor St. Patrick’s Day Celebration
The Zips Little League baseball team parents will sponsor a St. Patrick’s Day celebration from 7 p.m.-midnight March 18 at the VFW Hall, 2201 Old Highway 94 South, St. Charles. The $15 ticket will include music by Serapis plus beer, snacks and sodas. For tickets, call Chris Ricks at 636-949-7863.
Bittersweet Inn
B & B in Frenchtown
Story & Photos By R Greer
A few weeks ago my wife and I attended an open house of the most recently opened Bed and Breakfast, Bittersweet Inn, located in Frenchtown at 1101 N. Third Street in St Charles, Missouri. It’s a beautiful remodeled home that the proprietor, Sandy Snyder, said she purchased and closed in September of 2005. Within five weeks, she completely renovated the inside first and second floors. Her first guests had reservations for the first of November 2005. Ms. Snyder said the walls in one room had five layers of wallpaper which had to be removed and the color of the remaining walls were bright colors that reminded a person of the ‘50-60’s. Her current choices of paint combinations were superbly coordinated and relaxing to the eye. Ms. Snyder said without all the help she received from family and friends she would never have met her first guest obligations. The furniture choices appeared to be comfortable, allowing your mind and body to relax and unwind after a hectic day. The warm personality of the proprietor was reflected in the atmosphere radiating from the interior of each room. There were two bedrooms on the first floor and two on the second floor containing queen beds in each room. The interior was acoustically quiet and quite cozy throughout the home, which also added to the relaxing feeling one has while sitting, standing or walking anywhere in the home. Once again the name is Bittersweet Inn and phone number is 636-724-7778. If you are looking for a place to spend a night or two away from home and don’t wish to drive far away I recommend you give the Bittersweet Inn an opportunity to accommodate you and yours and select one of the fine restaurants around St Charles City for dinner.
Saturday, March 11, 2006
CRESCENDO CONCERT SERIES PRESENTS CHANSON
CRESCENDO CONCERT SERIES
PRESENTS CHANSON
CRESCENDO CONCERT SERIES will present CHANSON, a six-voice male vocal ensemble formed in 1997 at Concordia College in Moorhead, Minnesota. Featuring a wide variety of musical styles from creative folk song arrangements, Renaissance motets, passionate Russian anthems, energetic spirituals, and even newly commissioned works, the group has earned a reputation for its seamless blend, precise intonation, and warm, resonant sound.
Chanson combines three tenors (Matthew T. Kneefe, J. Aaron McDermid, and Micah Lamb), two baritones (Aaron M. Zinter and Peter A. Lovett), and Bass Brett McDermid. Four of the members are natives of Minnesota, one of Winnipeg, Manitoba, and one from Louisville, Kentucky. Even though their careers in choral performance, conducting, composing, and the arts are practiced in cities across the U.S. and Montreal, they continue to tour widely and to delight audiences with their uniquely rich and expressive style. They have released two compact disc recordings “Come Sing to Me of Heaven” and “There is Sweet Music.”
The Shrine of Ste. Philippine Duchesne at the Academy of Sacred Heart in St. Charles is an ideal location for such a concert, and this is the first Crescendo Concert Series presentation on this historic site. Many of Chanson’s selections will take advantage of the acoustical properties particular to the Shrine.
A non-profit organization, the Crescendo Concert Series was a joint project initiated in 1999 by St. John United Church of Christ, St. Charles Presbyterian Church, and First United Methodist Church. It has been supported for the past six years through generous grants by the Arts and Culture Commission of the City of St. Charles, by corporate sponsors such as Target Stores and Parkside Meadows Retirement Community, by individual donors, and by advertising purchased by local businesses and merchants.
Said George Morris, president of the Crescendo Concert Series Board of Directors, “People of St. Charles City and County have shown growing interest and appreciation over this past season by coming in greater numbers to hear fine music. Our final spring concert on May 21 will feature renowned cellist Andres Diaz who lives in the Philadelphia area.” All concerts are on Sundays at 3:00 p.m. at various venues in St. Charles city. A pre-concert talk begins at 2:30 p.m. conducted by Nancy Rubenstein, Ph.D, who has taught music history and appreciation at local universities and now serves on the Crescendo Concert Series Board of Directors.
“Ticket revenue is only a small part of the income needed to present a concert series, even when conducted entirely by volunteers. We are also grateful for generous gifts from individuals and from our advertisers and co-sponsors of some concerts. We encourage lovers of fine music to support our efforts,”
Morris concluded. Tax-deductible donations can be made by sending checks to the Crescendo Concert Series.
The concert will be held at the Shrine of Ste. Philippine Duchesne at the Academy of Sacred Heart, 619 North Second Street, St. Charles, Missouri. (Enter from North Fourth Street and follow the Crescendo Concert signs.)
It will be held at 3 p.m., Sunday, March 19, 2006
Individual adult tickets for $12 and student tickets for $5 can be purchased by sending a check or money order and a self-addressed stamped envelope to the Crescendo Concert Series, P.O. Box 1613, St. Charles, MO, 63302-1613 or at the door. Group rates are available by calling (636) 724-2507. For additional information consult
SPORTS - First Capitol News Sports Section - MIKE MCMURRAN Sports Editor
Duchesne Girls Celebrate Their Victory over University City. Scroll for story. First Capitol News Photo by BOB BARTONMY COLUMN MIKE MCMURRAN - First Capitol News Sports Editor
Sometimes it’s the little things in life that make a difference. As many of you probably know, writing for this fine weekly is not my main source of income. As a matter of fact, when I first began writing for the paper, it was costing me money, with travel and all. On more than one occasion, my lovely wife Lynn asked me why I was committing so much time to the paper. She probably still wonders, but pretty much allows me to do my own thing. Ditto for Bob Barton – except I am quite sure it still costs him money. I on the other hand probably break even – which is fine with me.
Allow me to try and answer the “why do you do it?” Primarily, I believe the point-of-view of this publication is very much needed in St. Charles City. I began reading this paper about 3 years ago. I anxiously awaited my Saturday delivery, and pretty much read it from cover to cover. Still do.
As time went on, more and more people were asking Tony to add a Sports Section – as indicated by the Letters to the Editor. With my background in high school sports, over 20 coaching or administrating, I knew I was just the guy to do it. We, I mean to say, I, started slowly, covering maybe a game or two a week. When readers nominated worthy student-athletes, we would have an athlete of the week. Slowly it took off. My photography background was poor, at best, and so I recruited Barton to help me out. Bob is what really made this thing take off. I truly think that some day Bob will make a living with his camera. He has already been published in a national publication, as well a regular contributor to The St. Louis American. The truth is Bob and I very much enjoy working together, and hope to continue doing so for some time. Again I will present the question: Why do we do it?
This past Sunday was one of the “perks,” if you will. Sunday, at the championship game of the Missouri Valley Tournament, sitting on the court, in the very front row, at the base line, was Bob Barton and camera. Sitting immediately behind the Southern Illinois University’s bench, close enough to hear Coach Lowery yell instructions to his players, was yours’ truly. The first row of seats to the general public were behind me – now those are truly some Bob Uecker specials.
Now, I wouldn’t be doing the Missouri Valley Conference justice if I didn’t write a word or two about the tournament. By the time this week’s edition comes out, the fact that SIU topped Bradley 59-46 to earn their fifth consecutive trip to the NCAA tournament will be old news. Allow me to shed some light upon a couple of other incidents that went relatively unreported.
Most everyone read about SIU cheerleader Kristi Yamaoka, and her spill to the Savvis Center floor during a gymnastic routine. I am here to say that I was one of the few who was watching the routine closely – very closely. Ms. Yamaoka hit the back of her head on the floor after falling at least 15 feet. She was clearly knocked out (remember, I was in the front row). It took all of about 3 seconds to summon the stretcher to the court. Remember now, this game was on national television, CBS none the less, so time is at a premium. The game was stopped for at least 8-10 minutes, with all eyes on the emergency medical personal attending Yamaoka. It was quiet, very, very quiet. After Yamaoka came to, and was placed on the stretcher, she waved to the crowd to let them know she was o.k.
Knowing that she was at least alive and conscious, the Saluki band began playing the SIU fight song. As Yamaoka was being wheeled off the court, in front of a crowd of over 13,000 spectators, she began to wave her arms to the fight song, in perfect precision. All this while having her head taped to an emergency backboard and loaded onto a stretcher. It was a very moving, and at the beginning, frightening turn of events.
Another incident you will read about only in the FCN, was the family celebration assistant coach Rodney Watson had minutes after the conclusion of the game. Watson gave his wife Blake a big kiss and hug, along with a lady I am assuming was his mother. Then Watson gave his 9 year-old daughter, Olivia Watson a big kiss and hug. Remember now, I was right there soaking all this in. Watson’s daughter hugged her daddy back, and said, “Daddy, I love you and am so proud of you,” as he picked her up over the Savvis Center wall and brought her down to court level. I think Barton was crying.
United Hockey League
Molly McMaster to become
First Female River Otter
Part of a Colon Cancer Awareness Project
By Louis J. Launer
As a part of Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month, the United Hockey League and The Colon Club are allowing Molly McMaster to participate in one game in every UHL city. McMaster will make her appearance as a Missouri River Otter on March 15 against the Flint Generals.
McMaster was diagnosed with stage II colon cancer on February 19, 1999, her 23rd birthday. Since her battle with cancer, McMaster founded The Colon Club a national nonprofit organization dedicated to education and awareness of the disease.
“Colorectal cancer can happen to anyone at any time and I am determined to prove that to everyone who will listen,” stated McMaster. “I’m definitely looking forward to playing hockey and getting my message out to a whole new crowd.”
McMaster did appear in St. Charles last month during the all-star break. That was when final preparations and clearances were made for her to participate as a UHL player. Originally, she wanted to do this for her hometown of Glens Falls, New York, home of the Adirondack Frostbite. But UHL Commissioner Richard Brosal felt that there needed to be a wider exposure and awareness than just one team.
“This is an opportunity for the UHL to make a huge difference in educating people about this disease,” Brosal said. “We want to fill the arenas when Molly plays, but more importantly, our goal is to send a life-saving message to as many fans as possible.”
McMaster has already seen the River Otters in action. This past Friday, she played one game in a Flint Generals uniform and the River Otters was the visiting team in Flint. McMaster impressed a crowd of 2,684 at Perani Sports Arena in Flint.
Wearing a Generals jersey with No. 06 on it, McMaster lined at right wing to start the game along with Flint forwards Dave Stewart, Terry Marchant, Brent Currie and J.P. Morin. Her shift lasted 27 seconds and took her to both ends of the ice before she went to the bench.
McMaster stayed on the Flint bench the entire game. Because the Generals were playing one man short, coach Bobby Reynolds kept her around in case he needed someone to serve a penalty. In her two previous appearance at Adirondack and Danbury, she stayed on the bench for the first period and left to talk to fans for the rest of the game.
McMaster spent five minutes in the penalty box after Flint rookie L.P. Martin received a boarding major and a game misconduct midway through the first period of a penalty-riddled game.
Blake Stewart of the River Otters dumped the puck into the Flint end and it bounced off the boards toward Flint goaltender Jason Saal. He attempted to fire the puck in, but it took a bounce in a weird fashion off his stick and deflected off the goal post into the net to give the River Otters a 1-0 lead. Mark Odut also scored for Missouri with 54.3 seconds left in the first period.
Jim Duhart, who played in Flint a good part of his career made it 3-0 when he scored what eventually became the game-winner at 3:34 into the second.
“It was a big character, win,” said Duhart to the Flint Journal. “We lost a couple of guys to injuries in the first period. But our team showed composure and we worked hard.”
Flint has still a chance for the UHL Playoffs. The River Otters are very doubtful to make the playoffs. But Duhart knows about Missouri’s other role during this season’s stretch run.
“I don’t know if we’ll make the playoffs,” he said, “but we want to be spoilers.”
THE CURSE OF MARK REEDS LIVES: The Kalamazoo Wings are back in first place in the UHL’s Central Division with their 7-1 win over the River Otters on Saturday in Kalamazoo. Reeds, who used to coach the River Otters before going to Kalamazoo, has had a stellar year for the K-Wings. They have been battling defending Colonial Cup champion Muskegon Fury for the top spot in the Central Division all season. It looks like the K-Wings will have an interesting and exciting stretch run for playoff position. With the win over the River Otters, the K-Wings remained undefeated in regulation in their last eight games and touted a five-game winning streak to end the week. Unnessary penalties by the River Otters allowed the lopsided loss. The next afternoon, the Quad City Mallards defeated the River Otters, 3-1. Jeff Brown was the only River Otter to score the only goals in both games.
Girls Class 4
Duchesne returns to Final Four
50-47 win over University City
By: Mike McMurran
Sports Editor
Trips to Columbia and the final four of the Missouri State High School Activity Association’s girls basketball tournament are becoming old stuff for Duchesne’s head coach Charlie Elmendorf, “But this year is extra special,” Elmendorf said, just minutes after his Pioneers had topped the Lions of University City 50-47 in quarterfinal action at Hazelwood Central High School. “In years past we have always had a ‘go to’ player, someone who we looked to when we needed a big basket,” he offered, “we also entered district play as a number one seed.”
Such is not the case this season, on both fronts. The Lady Pioneers entered quarterfinal play against the Lions with a meager, yet identical record of 16-12. The Lion’s line-up featured LaShayla Bell, who was averaging over 15 points per contest. In the district title game with Jennings, Bell scored 35 points. Duchesne hasn’t a player averaging in double figures. “This was a team effort,” said Elmendorf, “this win is the direct result of the schedule we play, both conference and non-conference.”
To get out of district the Pioneers had to take on St. Dominic, a team they lost to earlier in the season, and then battle St. Charles High, the number one seed. “Our conference this year was tough, real tough,” he said, “battles with St. Charles and Holt prepared us for games like today. Today’s game was physical, very physical.”
So physical that U. City’s Bell fouled out with 1:34 remaining in the game – with U. City up 45-42. At one point in the 4th quarter, the Pioneers could only muster free throws. “We would drive the basket and they would foul. We would go for a rebound and they would foul. We would miss a lay-up and they would foul,” Elmendorf explained.
It game came down to the final 34 seconds and U. City holding a 45-44 lead. Liz Boschert, who was doubled teamed, managed to get off a perfect pass to sophomore Erica Sams who nailed a 9-foot jumper. The play gave Duchesne the lead, but it was the free throw shooting of Sarah Sullivan that doomed the Lions. “Like I said, we don’t really have any stars on this team, we play a team concept game,” Elmendorf concluded.
Duchesne, who won the state title in 2004, were led by Boschert’s 13 points.
The Pioneers will put their 17-12 record on the line Friday morning when they take on Lee’s Summit West (21-8) in a 10:35 a.m. tip off. The other semifinal contest will feature Lutheran South (24-5) against Ozark (23-6). The winners will meet Saturday at 12:10 p.m. in the title game.
THE BULL IS READY TO RIDE
By Mike Thompson
It was like we had never really left….the players showed up in great shape, the drills were sharp and precise, or as well as could be expected for the first practice of 2006…Rage Head Football Coach Mike Wyatt was in midseason form, for certain, as time after time his voice bellowed throughout the indoor facility the Rage will employ in the coming year:
“Way too deep on that cover seven route”
“Watch the man coming across the middle”
“Let’s go…let’s go…next group”
“Don’t stop until that whistle is blown, not if you want to make this football team”
And at one point, seeing something he didn’t like, Wyatt jumped up from his seat on the sidelines, and belted out the message loud and clear:
“The championship begins TODAY”
Loud…clear…and to all 36 players looking for a spot on the Rage 22 man game day roster this year…understood!!
The National Indoor Football League enters its sixth season of play next weekend, and the RiverCity Rage is primed and ready. This enraged bull, snorting and pent-up since the unexpected opening round playoff defeat last July to the Cincinnati Marshals, has practiced now for the last 2 weeks with the spirit and focus that has Wyatt enthused about his team’s chances in 2006. “I’ve treated every one of these practices like a mid-season practice. I’ve got to instill a work ethic in this team that will carry over into the season and all year, for that matter. We lost our drive, our focus, towards the end of last year and we ended up getting the door to the title slammed in our face. So, I’ve established from the get-go that we’re here to work. On the depth chart, every practice counts towards where a player will be when the next practice comes around.” Pausing briefly, Wyatt smiled and said, “I’ll say this…they’ve responded well. Whoever we play in 2006 is gonna run into a buzz saw.”
One speaks for the offense, the other from the defensive side of the line, but both sum up the feeling that has festered the wound of this football team since that opening round loss last summer at Savvis Center. Rage quarterback Clay Groefsemsa: “I spent all summer working on my Dad’s farm in California, and not one day went by that I didn’t reflect on that loss. I’d be out in the fields, replaying that game over and over in my mind, reliving every play, especially in the second overtime. Maybe I was a bit hard on myself, but throwing that interception that ended our chances, well, let’s just say I had the chance to play football locally for Fresno in the AF2 this year, a bit closer to my home, but I just couldn’t leave this organization behind. I couldn’t let my career in St. Louis end that way. I had to be back.”
Asked about how that would translate on the football field this season, Grofsema couldn’t hold back. “This entire program is a win-win situation this year. We’re playing at Savvis, the coaching staff is pumped-up, and that’s filtered its way down to the players. I’m ready, the team’s ready, and the way it ended last year, well, it’s just another reason to be motivated to take it all.”
Rage Linebacker Terrell Washington thinks this Rage team has the ability to go all the way. An NIFL leader last season in tackles, fumbles forced and recovered, Washington says the loss to Cincinnati was tough to accept. “We had their number twice during the regular season, and then to have them come in and take it away, it was hard to handle. Like a lot of guys on this team, I’ve had to zero in on why that happened and dedicate myself to making sure I don’t spend another off season like this past one. I started my off-season training program the day after that game. I came to camp ready.”
Washington says the move to Savvis will only help this football team in 2006. “We’ll be center stage at one of the best venues in the Midwest, downtown playing our games in the best sports city in America. There’s nothing like a crowd to pump up a team, and we saw that last year at playoff time. It’ll be great to have all seven home games at Savvis Center, and trust me, from the look of this team, we’ll have our share of playoff games there, too.”
Rage Team Physician Eugene ‘Doc’ Bell couldn’t agree more. When asked to evaluate the condition of the returning players and newcomers, Bell said “they came to camp in Ram’s shape. I’ve noticed from the charts that a number of players lost or gained weight according to their individual needs, and everyone has been working out on a regular basis since the end of last year. Hey, this is pro football; these guys know the importance of finding the edge that allows them to keep their jobs. They look great and it’s reflected this early in practice on the field.”
For those who have followed the amazing career of Rage All-Star receiver Scott Pingel, the news may come as a bit of a shock, but Scott has decided to retire from the indoor game. Citing family responsibilities and the demands of his career as a teacher and football coach at CBC High School, Pingel can look back on a career as one of the most prolific receivers in the history of the NIFL. Rage Head Football Coach Mike Wyatt says his absence will be felt. “You don’t lose a player of Scott’s talent without feeling the loss, and we will feel it, on the field, in the locker room and on the practice field.” Wyatt explains, saying “I’ve seldom, if ever, seen a player of Scott’s calibre work so hard on the practice field. It was an inspiration to me and to the other guys on the team to see a player who could have mailed it in, so to speak, from time to time, but he never did it. Every route, every play was run with the same dedication and precision he used in the games. He never had a bad practice in all the years we were together. One of the NIFL’s greatest players was also one of its hardest workers. You know the message that sends to the other players on this team…that’s what I’ll miss most of all.”
The RiverCity Rage will open the chase for the title on Saturday, March 18th when the team travels to Houston to take on the Katy Copperheads. The home debut at Savvis Center will give Rage players, coaches, and fans the chance to make up for a summer’s worth of restlessness. Sunday, March 26th…3pm…Savvis Center….The RiverCity Rage meet the Cincinnati Marshals.
The championship begins today
Saturday, March 04, 2006
FRONT PAGE - FIRST CAPITOL NEWS - March 4, 2006
Click on image to enlarge. To read the entire edition just scroll down.
Criminal Violations - Widespread forgeries on Recall Petitions
Copy of letter sent by police department to more than 1000 names on Dottie Greer Recall Petitions
Click on image to enlarge.
The First Capitol News has learned St. Charles Police have uncovered several criminal violations including widespread forgeries of signatures on the petitions that were turned in for the recall election of Councilwoman Dottie Greer. The results of the investigation are being turned over to St. Charles County Prosecuting Attorney Jack Banas with a request for criminal prosecution.
On February 24, Police Chief Tim Swope sent a letter (see letter opposite page) to more than 1000 registered voters whose signatures were on recall petitions submitted by the Citizens Empowerment Committee headed by Linda Meyer and supported and financed by Glennon Jamboretz, TR Hughes, Kevin Kast and Ken Kielty. In the letter Chief Swope told the voters that though the police detectives have spent innumerable hours interviewing many of the people listed on the signature sheets, it is not feasible for the police to expend the total number of man-hours required to verify, in person, all of the names on the signature sheets. He told them he was sending the letter to each person whose signature was on the petitions and asked that they contact the police if they had not signed the petitions.
We have learned that since the letters were sent out more than 54 individuals contacted the police. Some told the police that they had not signed the petitions other said they had been lied to. They said they were not told the petitions were to recall Councilwoman Dottie Greer but that their signatures were needed to place Dottie Greer’s name on the ballot thus leading them to believe she was up for reelection.
We also learned that during the investigation police discovered that one of the petitioners, a nurse living in south St. Louis County who was being paid per signature, had turned in signed petitions but refused to complete the notarized affidavit attesting she had collected the signatures. Then Linda Meyer, one of the leaders of the recall drive, gave those petitions to Melissa Root and Matt Root and they were to go back out and verify the signatures on the petition. When Matt Root was confronted by a resident at her front door telling him she did not sign the petition and telling him to leave her property, he reportedly returned the petitions to Linda Meyer, allegedly telling her what hat occurred. During their investigation the police found those same petitions as part of the ones turned in to support the recall of Greer.(First Capitol News January 27, 2006 “Police take Suspect Into Custody Involving recall Petitions Investigation, can be found on our web log firstcapitolnews.blogspot.com)
Earlier when City Attorney Mike Valenti attempted to take a deposition from Melissa Root, she invoked the Fifth Amendment. Root, represented by attorney Mike Kielty, refused to answer any questions regarding the collection of signatures on recall petitions.(First Capitol News January 14, 2005, available in our archives at firstcapitolnews.blogspot.com) When questioned by Valenti, her attorney told Valenti, “She has invoked her rights to any and all questions on her behalf as her attorney she does not have to say anything. She does not have to invoke her rights, her rights have been invoked by me. I’m acting as counsel. This is tantamount to her sitting next to me at a criminal defense table and the State trying to get her to take the stand.” (First Capitol News January 14, 2006 can be found on our web log
firstcapitolnews.blogspot.com)
Charita Walker, admitted in a sworn deposition she signed a notarized affidavit she had collected signatures that were on a recall petition when in fact she had not collected the signatures. Walker said she had been told by Linda Meyer to sign the affidavit after she told Meyer she had not collected the signatures and did not witness them being signed on the on the recall petition. (First Capitol News January 14, 2006 can be found on our web log
firstcapitolnews.blogspot.com)
Meyer, one of the leaders of the Citizens Empowerment Committee, the group trying to recall the Council persons, is the wife of a St. Charles police officer who at one time headed the St. Charles Police Officers Association.
Meyer was also one of the members of the recall committee who received pay. She was paid $300 on November 10, 2005 $300 on November 12, 2005 and $400 on November 18, 2005. In addition TCL Bookkeeping was paid $500 on October 24, 2005 and $600 on November 14, 2005 for accounting services. We could not find a record of TLC bookkeeping on file with the Missouri Secretary of State. However a city business license was issued for the company at Meyer’s home address in St. Charles. (See First Capitol News January 27, 2006, Citizen Empowerment Committee Leaders Profit Personally From Recall Efforts. Can be found in our archives firstcapitolnews.blogspot.com.)
The police report on the investigation was turned over to St. Charles County Prosecuting Attorney by the St. Charles Police with a request for prosecution.
Police Report, TR Hughes Was Aware Of Recall Petition Forgeries
By Tony Brockmeyer
The First Capitol News has learned that TR Hughes, one of the leaders and money men behind the recall efforts against Councilwoman Dottie Greer and Councilman Mark Brown was allegedly aware that fraud and forgeries was being committed and did nothing to stop it.
The police investigation indicates that Hughes was at a meeting of the committee when discussions of the fraud and forgery was brought up. This was prior to any of the signature petitions being turned in to the City Clerk for verification.
The report indicates that when discussion of fraud and forgery was brought up and discussed Hughes left the meeting without any comment.
Taxpayers Money,
Tom Hughes, Mike Sellenschuetter,
Kevin Kast,
Ken Kielty,
Glennon Jamboretz,
Finance Recall Efforts
By Tony Brockmeyer
Records on file with the Missouri Ethics Commission and other sources reveal that the Citizens Empowerment Committee is being financed by taxpayer money, Millionaire developer TR Hughes, Kevin Kast former head of SSM St. Joseph Hospital who suddenly retired, Ken Kielty a former City Councilman and partner with public relations guru Glennon Jamboretz in St. Charles Citizens for Responsible Government.
St. Charles Citizens for Responsible Government was formed for the recall of St. Charles office holders. Mayor York has been accussed of funnelling money to the recall effort. (See First Capitol News October 22, 2005 available on the internet in archives on our web log, firstcapitolnews.blogspot.com )
Click on image to enlarge.
The First Capitol News has learned St. Charles Police have uncovered several criminal violations including widespread forgeries of signatures on the petitions that were turned in for the recall election of Councilwoman Dottie Greer. The results of the investigation are being turned over to St. Charles County Prosecuting Attorney Jack Banas with a request for criminal prosecution.
On February 24, Police Chief Tim Swope sent a letter (see letter opposite page) to more than 1000 registered voters whose signatures were on recall petitions submitted by the Citizens Empowerment Committee headed by Linda Meyer and supported and financed by Glennon Jamboretz, TR Hughes, Kevin Kast and Ken Kielty. In the letter Chief Swope told the voters that though the police detectives have spent innumerable hours interviewing many of the people listed on the signature sheets, it is not feasible for the police to expend the total number of man-hours required to verify, in person, all of the names on the signature sheets. He told them he was sending the letter to each person whose signature was on the petitions and asked that they contact the police if they had not signed the petitions.
We have learned that since the letters were sent out more than 54 individuals contacted the police. Some told the police that they had not signed the petitions other said they had been lied to. They said they were not told the petitions were to recall Councilwoman Dottie Greer but that their signatures were needed to place Dottie Greer’s name on the ballot thus leading them to believe she was up for reelection.
We also learned that during the investigation police discovered that one of the petitioners, a nurse living in south St. Louis County who was being paid per signature, had turned in signed petitions but refused to complete the notarized affidavit attesting she had collected the signatures. Then Linda Meyer, one of the leaders of the recall drive, gave those petitions to Melissa Root and Matt Root and they were to go back out and verify the signatures on the petition. When Matt Root was confronted by a resident at her front door telling him she did not sign the petition and telling him to leave her property, he reportedly returned the petitions to Linda Meyer, allegedly telling her what hat occurred. During their investigation the police found those same petitions as part of the ones turned in to support the recall of Greer.(First Capitol News January 27, 2006 “Police take Suspect Into Custody Involving recall Petitions Investigation, can be found on our web log firstcapitolnews.blogspot.com)
Earlier when City Attorney Mike Valenti attempted to take a deposition from Melissa Root, she invoked the Fifth Amendment. Root, represented by attorney Mike Kielty, refused to answer any questions regarding the collection of signatures on recall petitions.(First Capitol News January 14, 2005, available in our archives at firstcapitolnews.blogspot.com) When questioned by Valenti, her attorney told Valenti, “She has invoked her rights to any and all questions on her behalf as her attorney she does not have to say anything. She does not have to invoke her rights, her rights have been invoked by me. I’m acting as counsel. This is tantamount to her sitting next to me at a criminal defense table and the State trying to get her to take the stand.” (First Capitol News January 14, 2006 can be found on our web log
firstcapitolnews.blogspot.com)
Charita Walker, admitted in a sworn deposition she signed a notarized affidavit she had collected signatures that were on a recall petition when in fact she had not collected the signatures. Walker said she had been told by Linda Meyer to sign the affidavit after she told Meyer she had not collected the signatures and did not witness them being signed on the on the recall petition. (First Capitol News January 14, 2006 can be found on our web log
firstcapitolnews.blogspot.com)
Meyer, one of the leaders of the Citizens Empowerment Committee, the group trying to recall the Council persons, is the wife of a St. Charles police officer who at one time headed the St. Charles Police Officers Association.
Meyer was also one of the members of the recall committee who received pay. She was paid $300 on November 10, 2005 $300 on November 12, 2005 and $400 on November 18, 2005. In addition TCL Bookkeeping was paid $500 on October 24, 2005 and $600 on November 14, 2005 for accounting services. We could not find a record of TLC bookkeeping on file with the Missouri Secretary of State. However a city business license was issued for the company at Meyer’s home address in St. Charles. (See First Capitol News January 27, 2006, Citizen Empowerment Committee Leaders Profit Personally From Recall Efforts. Can be found in our archives firstcapitolnews.blogspot.com.)
The police report on the investigation was turned over to St. Charles County Prosecuting Attorney by the St. Charles Police with a request for prosecution.
Police Report, TR Hughes Was Aware Of Recall Petition Forgeries
By Tony Brockmeyer
The First Capitol News has learned that TR Hughes, one of the leaders and money men behind the recall efforts against Councilwoman Dottie Greer and Councilman Mark Brown was allegedly aware that fraud and forgeries was being committed and did nothing to stop it.
The police investigation indicates that Hughes was at a meeting of the committee when discussions of the fraud and forgery was brought up. This was prior to any of the signature petitions being turned in to the City Clerk for verification.
The report indicates that when discussion of fraud and forgery was brought up and discussed Hughes left the meeting without any comment.
Taxpayers Money,
Tom Hughes, Mike Sellenschuetter,
Kevin Kast,
Ken Kielty,
Glennon Jamboretz,
Finance Recall Efforts
By Tony Brockmeyer
Records on file with the Missouri Ethics Commission and other sources reveal that the Citizens Empowerment Committee is being financed by taxpayer money, Millionaire developer TR Hughes, Kevin Kast former head of SSM St. Joseph Hospital who suddenly retired, Ken Kielty a former City Councilman and partner with public relations guru Glennon Jamboretz in St. Charles Citizens for Responsible Government.
St. Charles Citizens for Responsible Government was formed for the recall of St. Charles office holders. Mayor York has been accussed of funnelling money to the recall effort. (See First Capitol News October 22, 2005 available on the internet in archives on our web log, firstcapitolnews.blogspot.com )
Senator John Edwards Speaks at Fund Raiser for Democrats
From left to right, Mrs. Wayne Henke, Wayne Henke Democratic candidate for State Senate to fill the unexpired term of Senator Jon Dolan who resigned, Senator John Edwards, Greg Boothe, Senator Chuck Graham at a fund raising event for Wayne Henke. Senator John Edwards spoke to a standing-room-only crowd Sunday night in St. Peters. Edwards was in town to raise funds for Wayne Henke, D-111th District, who is running for state senate. Edwards spoke of the lack of leadership in current government and encouraged Democrats to become active in changing that fact starting with local politics.
During the 2004 presidential election, Senator Edwards spoke critically of “two Americas,” one for the rich and one for everyone else. The response to Hurricane Katrina’s devastation in the Gulf Coast region made Senator Edwards’ comments of “two Americas” even more telling.
Edwards stated that he has experienced everything this country has to offer and he is a Democrat because he knows he didn’t get to where he is today by himself. He also stated that Democrats are the voice of the poor and underprivileged and said that, “...If we don’t speak up for the poor, nobody will!” Senator Edwards also challenged the belief that the poor are lazy and stated that the people he meets across the land are, in many cases, working two and three jobs to provide for their family.
Senator Edwards has become very active fighting poverty and standing up for the Middle-class. More can be read about Senator Edwards at: OneAmericaCommittee.com. When asked if he plans on running for President in the next election, Mr. Edwards commented, “I’m seriously considering it.”
RAMBLING WITH THE EDITOR - Tony Brockmeyer
EIGHTH ANNUAL
HOLLYWOOD PARTY
TO BENEFIT
MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS
SUNDAY EVENING
AT TONY’S ON MAIN STREET
The Eighth Annual Hollywood Party to Benefit Multiple Sclerosis will be held on Sunday, March 5, 20005 at Tony’s On Main on North Main Street. Every year Tony’s on Main Street is transformed into a gala straight from Hollywood. The event is presented by 6 Degrees Promotions and they rely on business members of our community to help by donating their services or products. Money is raised during a silent auction and raffle of items and then donated to help individuals who are coping with MS and to find the cure for this devastating disease. If you would like to make a donation it is still not too late. You can contact Mary Puelo at 636-751-4985, 636 947-9997 or Carla Serra (Schneider 636-949-8829, Gayle Gallagher 314-221-6685 or Corinne Gallagher at 314-221-6837.
Or you can drop off your auction item or obtain a ticket at Alfredo Grill at 504 Droste Road in St. Charles.
Multiple Sclerosis affects approximately 400,000 Americans and every week about 200 people are diagnosed. Multiple sclerosis is a chronic, unpredictable disease of the central nervous system (the brian, optic nerves, and spinal cord). It is thought to be an autoimmune disorder. This means the immune system incorrectly attacks the person’s healthy tissue. Advances in treating and understanding MS are made every year and progress in research to find a cure is very encouraging. (from Just the Facts 2005-2006; NMSS brochure)
WE WON’T FORGET
Why is it that so many seem to want the rest of us to forget who is the leader of the City. Three former Mayors, Boschert, Wetter and Moeller, were recently interviewed in an ad publication. They said they felt the actions of the City Council were terrible.
These three un-wise men seem to forget that the current Mayor and City Administrator have created the animosity that exists. Currently the Mayor is involved in the recall of two sitting council members. It is alleged she has used taxpayer dollars to support the recall efforts. Her father actually collected signatures in Councilman Brown’s recall petition drive. York is a master at making it look like she is above the fray but the recent revelations of illegal activities in the collection of signatures, the letter of support of Thomas Mayer ( the cop that was suing the city at the time), the still looming outcome of her signing an illegal contract with Express Scripts. The sale of the old police headquarters, York is following in the steps of our national leaders who believe they are above the law. I guess these three think it is wrong for a Council to be the checks and balance for the taxpayer dollars it is supposed to be.
HOLLYWOOD PARTY
TO BENEFIT
MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS
SUNDAY EVENING
AT TONY’S ON MAIN STREET
The Eighth Annual Hollywood Party to Benefit Multiple Sclerosis will be held on Sunday, March 5, 20005 at Tony’s On Main on North Main Street. Every year Tony’s on Main Street is transformed into a gala straight from Hollywood. The event is presented by 6 Degrees Promotions and they rely on business members of our community to help by donating their services or products. Money is raised during a silent auction and raffle of items and then donated to help individuals who are coping with MS and to find the cure for this devastating disease. If you would like to make a donation it is still not too late. You can contact Mary Puelo at 636-751-4985, 636 947-9997 or Carla Serra (Schneider 636-949-8829, Gayle Gallagher 314-221-6685 or Corinne Gallagher at 314-221-6837.
Or you can drop off your auction item or obtain a ticket at Alfredo Grill at 504 Droste Road in St. Charles.
Multiple Sclerosis affects approximately 400,000 Americans and every week about 200 people are diagnosed. Multiple sclerosis is a chronic, unpredictable disease of the central nervous system (the brian, optic nerves, and spinal cord). It is thought to be an autoimmune disorder. This means the immune system incorrectly attacks the person’s healthy tissue. Advances in treating and understanding MS are made every year and progress in research to find a cure is very encouraging. (from Just the Facts 2005-2006; NMSS brochure)
WE WON’T FORGET
Why is it that so many seem to want the rest of us to forget who is the leader of the City. Three former Mayors, Boschert, Wetter and Moeller, were recently interviewed in an ad publication. They said they felt the actions of the City Council were terrible.
These three un-wise men seem to forget that the current Mayor and City Administrator have created the animosity that exists. Currently the Mayor is involved in the recall of two sitting council members. It is alleged she has used taxpayer dollars to support the recall efforts. Her father actually collected signatures in Councilman Brown’s recall petition drive. York is a master at making it look like she is above the fray but the recent revelations of illegal activities in the collection of signatures, the letter of support of Thomas Mayer ( the cop that was suing the city at the time), the still looming outcome of her signing an illegal contract with Express Scripts. The sale of the old police headquarters, York is following in the steps of our national leaders who believe they are above the law. I guess these three think it is wrong for a Council to be the checks and balance for the taxpayer dollars it is supposed to be.
CASE IN POINT By Joe Koester, Councilman Ward 9
“The Price of Freedom of religion, or of speech, or of the press, is that we must put up with a good deal of rubbish.”
Robert Jackson
Let us be thankful there is a First Capitol News in St. Charles - a newspaper willing to write stories that ruffle the feathers of business leaders, government leaders, and anyone fleecing city tax dollars.
Many readers of this newspaper may not be familiar with the reporters of some of the competition and the First Capitol News certainly would like to keep it that way. As the most read newspaper in town, (and more importantly, the most exciting) I hate those weeks with holidays which mean that we have to wait a little longer to get the next edition of the paper. Whereas, I can remember for weeks certain front pages of the First Capitol News, I couldn’t tell you what the other guys printed yesterday.
One local reporter who must get pressure from his boss is, Jason Lee of the Suburban Journal. Poor Jason, instead of reporting on hard-hitting issues, or doing some fact-finding about corruption at city hall has to spend his days thinking how he can rewrite the same story over and over again. The latest story titled, “Former mayors say city ‘a mess’” rehashes how everyone is fighting.
A Day in the Life of Jason Lee...
I picture the editors telling Jason, “Look, we have written our slanted editorial for the month, you’d better get out there and figure out a way to create some news about how the council is fighting.”
Jason rebuttals, “I know of a great story about how the council saved a lot of money on health insurance costs.”
At this point, things really get heated, “Do you know who our major advertisers are?” We are not going to write any stories that will upset our major supporters.”
“Well, what if we finally covered the story about Express Scripts? We could certainly talk about the mayor’s letter sent to Chief Mokwa which is prohibited by charter and which endangered a $100 million dollar lawsuit. Or even the sale of the police department — now there are some real curiosities there...or, to be fair, what if we wrote a good story on how the main signature collector refused to speak at her deposition and pled the 5th. Certainly that is worth looking into and reporting.”
“Look, Jason, we here at the GOP Journal, err umm, Suburban Journal, aren’t as much reporters as advertisement specialists. You know that. We have talked about all this before. Do you know how much money the City of Saint Charles spends with us a year? We couldn’t rent this new office in Saint Peters if they weren’t coughing up $250,000 a year with us! We understand that you went to J-school and you want to ‘make your mark’ but we here at Lee Enterprise have taken our stand and you have got to fall into line or go work for the other paper in town.”
“You mean the Post?”
“No, that’s Lee Enterprises too and they have the same bucks flowing into their bank account from the same people we do! I meant the First Capitol News.”
“Oh!”
“Write another story about how those guys are all fighting, it’s an embarrassment, yada yada yada...”
“Don’t you think we have beat that drum long enough? I mean, Saint Peters is fighting, O’Fallon is fighting and our newspaper...”
“Advertisement spreadsheet.”
“Advertisement spreadsheet...seems to really just focus on Saint Charles.”
“Here’s an idea...call some former mayors and ask them to give a comment about the city. Leave out anything good that is said, you know lead them a little - call Boschert, Wetter and Moeller. You can say something about how they give the council an “F” on their report card, it will be great and there’s no need to look through records, dig for fact, etc. you just put in a nice friendly call.”
“Wait a minute, wasn’t the charter written the way it is because folks were kinda afraid of Boschert becoming a strong mayor? And, didn’t he lose his election as well as Wetter - and Moeller made it into office with like, 20% because they didn’t have runoff elections back then? Also, you forgot Nichols.”
“Jason, those questions sound more like a reporter, and what are we?”
“I know, Advertisement Specialist.”
“Good! Now get out there and get us a scoop. I want chocolate and I think Amy wants Strawberry. And remember - NO REPORTING! Customers don’t like a paper that is controversial.”
Under his breath, “Is that why the First Capitol News is read by more people in St. Charles than our two or three papers combined?”
“I heard that!”
On a promising note, Steve Pokin has written a couple of stories that weren’t bad. Good luck Steve! I’m not sure how long you can keep up writing those stories in the GOP Journal, but I wish you luck!
On a sadder note, Don Knotts (aka Barney Fife) recently passed. I wanted to take a moment to pay my respects.
THE CITY DESK - City Council President Rory Riddler
New Mardi Gras Krewe Member
Survives Ride On The Wild Side
I’m not what most people would describe as a party animal. Alright, no one would describe me as a party animal. So when my wife Sue came home and said we had been invited to join a Krewe for the annual Mardi Gras Parade in Soulard, I think I responded with my usual level of enthusiasm for putting myself in harms way.
Part of me, the boarder-line agoraphobia part, started asking those kind of questions that are only interrogatories because we happen to put a question mark at the end of them. We have to be there how early? We have to dress up like what? The parade is how long? It’s going to be how cold?
But beneath my usual protective layer of phobias, another part of me wanted to see first hand what being part of a large Mardi Gras Krewe was all about. St. Louis Krewes may not have the old-money aristocratic mystique of some of their New Orleans counterparts, but you are “invited” to join. As everyone knows, being asked to join any group immediately elevates the importance and prestige of that organization in your own eyes.
The first challenge for organizers is picking a theme and designing a float. This year the overall theme of the parade was television shows. A few of the standout floats were a reproduction of Fort Courage for “F Troop”, a complete Gotham City on the “Batman” float, and the silver flying-saucer like Jupiter Two from “Lost In Space” large enough to be picked up by radar at Scott Air Force Base. Also represented were floats saluting “I Love Lucy”, “ER”, “Survivor”, “American Idol”, “Super Friends”, “McHale’s Navy”, “Hee Haw”, “Green Acres”, “Love Boat” and “Saturday Night Live” complete with a John Belushi character decked out as the Samurai Chef.
The creativity, detail and size of these floats was astounding. I wondered what had happened to all the engineers and designers downsized from aerospace industries. I’m not sure that model of the Jupiter Two didn’t take off at the end of the parade.
The group we were invited to join had “Mystery Science Theater 3000”, the cult-classic where wise-cracking robots and an erstwhile astronaut are forced to watch the worst B-rated horror and science fiction movies of all time. They did a great job reproducing the techno-warehouse feel of the show’s sets.
One of the biggest individual challenges is coming up with an appropriate costume. Krewes are large (ours had seventy people) and many spent considerable time on costuming and make-up. There was a perfectly detailed “Barbarella” costume (Jane Fonda’s most memorable role), what I took to be four mini-skirted neon clad 60’s “victims”, a swamp monster, two mummies, Dracula, a brain sucking monster atop its host’s head, a bevy of silver-skinned aliens and more lab-coated “mad” scientists than you can find at a Monsanto Christmas party.
My wife put together a convincing Viking costume, which all true MST3 (Mystery Science Theater 3000) fans know is from season three, Viking Women Versus The Sea Serpent…truly a B-movie train wreck. What? You never heard of it?
I found a suitably “dignified” character from the show…one of The Observers who dressed in long purple robes with hoods and carried their brains around in bowls. It turned out to have a huge unintended advantage. I was able to keep a black windbreaker on underneath and the heavy cape cut down on the cold somewhat.
The sun tried its best to stay out, but the temperature seemed to get colder as the day progressed. Maybe we were just steadily losing body heat. We had to be in front of the Radisson at 8:40 AM to get on the float for a ride to the staging area. That’s a giant waiting area for floats. In fact, you wait there for two hours. Of course you need that time to check out the other floats, get your beads ready, have a sandwich from the tailgate party at the back of the float, refill beer cups, adjust your costume just one more time and stand in line for the porta-john built into the float.
Ours was a two-tier float with the lower throwing stations resembling the spacious accommodations of a slave galley or the lower decks of a cheaper cruise line. You have to “load” the people one at a time in the order they are going to be standing because once in place, there is no getting around the ten people to your rear. Your bead supply is hanging on hooks, your arms and in a box you have to be a contortionist to reach beneath the upper tier behind you.
Once the parade starts, that’s when the fun begins. If you have never seen a half-a-million people screaming at you for beads, it’s somewhat difficult to describe. Forget tax cuts, what people really want is beads. Americans don’t pour into the streets for trivial things like protesting cartoons of religious prophets. We jam every square inch of a parade route and rooftops yelling for people to throw us brightly colored plastic beads.
There are those who take this quest to be showered in beads to excess. Probably about two-dozen women, out of the tens of thousands there, did so on our side of the street. Those who did, tended to fall into two categories. Those who perhaps paid good money to enhance what God gave them and were anxious to get a return on the investment and those for whom wisdom hadn’t necessarily come with age. The former tended to have all-over tans, the latter missing teeth. Such women of both extremes were often in cahoots with the men around them to share a cut of the excess bead bounty that seemed to rain down in their general vicinity. The women participating in the act having their hands otherwise engaged. Mardi Gras veterans euphemistically refer to such women as “Bead Bait”.
On the other end of the spectrum are the children, especially toddlers, who become the favored recipients of more beads than they can carry. Some revelers use baskets, other umbrellas to catch beads. A few had the long mechanical extension arms people use to get things off tall shelves. It seems they work well to reach over police lines and scoop up beads that fall short of the crowds. Signs with catchy slogans and dozens of “pairs” of false female accessories (yes you are very funny now sit down) are used in hopes of attracting more of the precious plastic baubles. But the world’s worst bead attracting device had to be the guy holding aloft a head and shoulders cut-out of Donald Trump. People wanted to throw something, just not beads.
Sue and I went through approximately five gross of beads or around 720. The City of St. Louis had just planted new street trees along 7th Street, so the police barricades were behind the grass medians. That meant throwing beads a little further to reach even the front rows of the crowd. By the time you’ve thrown 360 sets of beads, as far as you can, you feel like you gave the team seven good innings and are ready for them to send in a relief pitcher.
Our gracious hosts for the day were The Bone Daddy Krewe. This popular bar and nightclub band’s members are primarily St. Charles based. They are equally popular in St. Louis if crowd reaction was any indication. Bone Dadddy has been active in the St. Louis Mardi Gras celebrations for years.
Adding a live performance by a great band to any float kicks it up several notches. They played the entire route non-stop. Their song selections were appropriate to the Mystery Science Theater theme. “Blinded Me With Science” was a crowd favorite, but “Werewolf Of London” really rocked those under an overpass as it echoed off the steel and concrete.
The hour and a half parade route went by in a flash. The ride back was longer and more circuitous as parade organizers made the entire caravan of floats drive out to Gravois at Jefferson before heading back downtown. By the time we hit the new baseball stadium, the band started up again. Workmen waved from the heights of the new Cardinal’s nest. The doorman at the Adams Mark did a great dance for everyone to “Viva Las Vegas” the band was playing at a long traffic stop. Meanwhile two men were holding up a third and dragging him down Market. I bet he woke up the next day wondering how the tops of his shoes got so scuffed.
The float pulled up to the front of The Radisson, where Bone Daddy gave a free outdoor concert for the next hour, in the cold and wind for a crowd that gathered. These are guys that just love music and like making people feel good.
The Krewe moved inside to party suites they get each year where I’m sure the fun continued to the wee hours of the morning. Sue and I started to fade around 7 PM. Then again, we haven’t been in training and the day did start rather early.
It wasn’t till the ride home that it that it all started to sink in. I had not only managed to survive the day, but I had fun. The people on The Bone Daddy Krewe made it fun. They are a creative eclectic mix of people who went out of their way to help the new kids on the block. Other floats might have been bigger or cost more to build, but our float was the crowd favorite. It took a lot of years, but for one day, hanging with the band, I came close to being cool.
THE CONSERVATIVE FACTOR by Alex Spencer
Missouri Republican Party
204 East Dunklin
Jefferson City, Missouri 65101
Dear Missouri Republican Party,
My name is Alex Spencer, and I live in St. Charles County. We need your help. Whatever happened to President Ronald Reagan’s Eleventh Commandment?
Did we already forget what happened when we couldn’t unite behind one candidate? Do you remember April of 2005? It was time for the special election to fill the vacancy left by State Representative Sally Faith on the all-Republican St. Charles County Council. The Republicans nominated former St. Charles City Councilman Richard Baum to fill the seat. We even brought in outside talent in the form of John Hancock (the former Missouri Republican Party Executive Director and Governor Blunt’s spokesman). The Democrats nominated Joe McCulloch, brother of St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney Bob McCulloch. A spoiler named Jerry Butterbaugh filed as an Independent. Our Republican Governor was under fire for some unpopular decisions. The Republicans in St. Charles County were bickering and Hancock was off his game. Republicans could not get it together and support their candidate.
Democrat Joe McCulloch joined the St. Charles County Council. We’re still not sure what happened. The Republican Party in St. Charles County needs your help.
A vocal minority of the Republican Party has placed its own agenda above all else at the expense of winning elections. For purposes of this letter, we’ll call this group the “green wing” of the Republican Party. Basically, the “green wing” was born when Great Rivers Habitat Alliance joined up with St. Charles County’s favorite couple – Carl Maus and Ray Stone and they conspired to stop all growth in St. Charles County. The Great White Duck Hunters were primarily concerned with stopping any interference with their playground in the floodplain, and Carl and Ray like to “go fishing” and seem to detest development of any kind. Sure, they call it “smart growth” but we all know that’s a nifty marketing ploy that really means “no growth.” The Great White Duck Hunters were on a crusade against the City of St. Peters, and so was our good friend and Republican Central Committee Vice-Chair Brandy Pedersen, ergo, a match made in heaven.
This motley crew has interfered in a number of elections and they place their own green wing agenda ahead of best interests of the Republican Party, the voters, or anyone else for that matter. They are very short-sighted and even when they lose fair and square, they run to court to achieve a different result. But, they claim to be Republicans.
Now, here we are quickly approaching the April 2006 election. State Representative Scott Rupp is the Republican Nominee to replace State Senator Jon Dolan. As you well know, Rupp is bright, articulate and energetic. While he may not have quite as much flair as Dolan, I’m not sure that’s a bad thing. Rupp would be an outstanding representative for the people of the 2nd District. Rupp is facing a strong Democrat challenger, State Representative Wayne Henke of Lincoln County who is pro-life and pro-business. Henke recently hosted former Senator (and Democratic Vice-Presidential candidate) John Edwards. That’s pretty noteworthy no matter how you slice it. John Edwards was not in town to stump for Claire McCaskill, he was in town to encourage rank-in-file democrats to get out the message and support Henke. That’s pretty scary stuff. It was certainly a main topic of conversation during our Lincoln Days Celebration last week. As always, Lincoln Days was a great party and we had a good time, but there was a palpable level of concern in the room, and we were all warned: “don’t be complacent and don’t take anything for granted.”
In attendance that evening was County Councilman Joe Brazil, who is now the poster child of the new “green wing” of the Republican Party. Brazil has consistently voted pro-labor, pro-Duck Hunter, anti-business, anti-growth. According to the rumor mill, he had a nasty divorce and used to be a democratic activist across the river someplace before he moved to St. Charles County. Can’t you check this stuff out?
Brazil’s biggest fan is a particularly annoying blogger named Chuck MacNab (outspoken friend of alleged “Republican” Brandy Pedersen). MacNab thinks that Republicans should vote for Henke this April to teach the Republican Party establishment (that would be you guys by the way) a lesson and pave the way for Brazil to win the Republican Primary in August. MacNab has a pathetic little website where he basically criticizes other Republicans (ranging from President George H. W. Bush for hanging out with President Clinton all the way down to Republican State Committeeman Roland Wetzel for towing the “party” line.) I won’t give you MacNab’s website address since I don’t want to increase his readership all the way to double-digits. Sufficed to say, he and Pedersen are more destructive to our Republican candidates than their Democratic opponents. With friends like these, who needs enemies?
It’s too early to say, but I suspect that Carl and Ray, financed by the Duck Hunters, will step in and run Brazil’s campaign for State Senate. After all, the Duck Hunters would like an ally in the State Senate. All of this will be at the expense of the Republican Party and McCulloch may not be the only Democratic victor of a special election in St. Charles County. I know that you guys are trying to ignore the whole mess, but I don’t think you can much longer.
President Ronald Reagan said: “Thou shalt not speak ill of a fellow Republican.” What is the Missouri Republican Party going to do to help us? Are you going to continue to let Carl and Ray, Pedersen and MacNab, and the rest of our “critics-in-chief” continue to destroy your Republican Stronghold? I sure hope not.
We saw what happened during the February Special Election earlier this year. St. Charles County could be next. Please send help.
Sincerely,
Alex Spencer
204 East Dunklin
Jefferson City, Missouri 65101
Dear Missouri Republican Party,
My name is Alex Spencer, and I live in St. Charles County. We need your help. Whatever happened to President Ronald Reagan’s Eleventh Commandment?
Did we already forget what happened when we couldn’t unite behind one candidate? Do you remember April of 2005? It was time for the special election to fill the vacancy left by State Representative Sally Faith on the all-Republican St. Charles County Council. The Republicans nominated former St. Charles City Councilman Richard Baum to fill the seat. We even brought in outside talent in the form of John Hancock (the former Missouri Republican Party Executive Director and Governor Blunt’s spokesman). The Democrats nominated Joe McCulloch, brother of St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney Bob McCulloch. A spoiler named Jerry Butterbaugh filed as an Independent. Our Republican Governor was under fire for some unpopular decisions. The Republicans in St. Charles County were bickering and Hancock was off his game. Republicans could not get it together and support their candidate.
Democrat Joe McCulloch joined the St. Charles County Council. We’re still not sure what happened. The Republican Party in St. Charles County needs your help.
A vocal minority of the Republican Party has placed its own agenda above all else at the expense of winning elections. For purposes of this letter, we’ll call this group the “green wing” of the Republican Party. Basically, the “green wing” was born when Great Rivers Habitat Alliance joined up with St. Charles County’s favorite couple – Carl Maus and Ray Stone and they conspired to stop all growth in St. Charles County. The Great White Duck Hunters were primarily concerned with stopping any interference with their playground in the floodplain, and Carl and Ray like to “go fishing” and seem to detest development of any kind. Sure, they call it “smart growth” but we all know that’s a nifty marketing ploy that really means “no growth.” The Great White Duck Hunters were on a crusade against the City of St. Peters, and so was our good friend and Republican Central Committee Vice-Chair Brandy Pedersen, ergo, a match made in heaven.
This motley crew has interfered in a number of elections and they place their own green wing agenda ahead of best interests of the Republican Party, the voters, or anyone else for that matter. They are very short-sighted and even when they lose fair and square, they run to court to achieve a different result. But, they claim to be Republicans.
Now, here we are quickly approaching the April 2006 election. State Representative Scott Rupp is the Republican Nominee to replace State Senator Jon Dolan. As you well know, Rupp is bright, articulate and energetic. While he may not have quite as much flair as Dolan, I’m not sure that’s a bad thing. Rupp would be an outstanding representative for the people of the 2nd District. Rupp is facing a strong Democrat challenger, State Representative Wayne Henke of Lincoln County who is pro-life and pro-business. Henke recently hosted former Senator (and Democratic Vice-Presidential candidate) John Edwards. That’s pretty noteworthy no matter how you slice it. John Edwards was not in town to stump for Claire McCaskill, he was in town to encourage rank-in-file democrats to get out the message and support Henke. That’s pretty scary stuff. It was certainly a main topic of conversation during our Lincoln Days Celebration last week. As always, Lincoln Days was a great party and we had a good time, but there was a palpable level of concern in the room, and we were all warned: “don’t be complacent and don’t take anything for granted.”
In attendance that evening was County Councilman Joe Brazil, who is now the poster child of the new “green wing” of the Republican Party. Brazil has consistently voted pro-labor, pro-Duck Hunter, anti-business, anti-growth. According to the rumor mill, he had a nasty divorce and used to be a democratic activist across the river someplace before he moved to St. Charles County. Can’t you check this stuff out?
Brazil’s biggest fan is a particularly annoying blogger named Chuck MacNab (outspoken friend of alleged “Republican” Brandy Pedersen). MacNab thinks that Republicans should vote for Henke this April to teach the Republican Party establishment (that would be you guys by the way) a lesson and pave the way for Brazil to win the Republican Primary in August. MacNab has a pathetic little website where he basically criticizes other Republicans (ranging from President George H. W. Bush for hanging out with President Clinton all the way down to Republican State Committeeman Roland Wetzel for towing the “party” line.) I won’t give you MacNab’s website address since I don’t want to increase his readership all the way to double-digits. Sufficed to say, he and Pedersen are more destructive to our Republican candidates than their Democratic opponents. With friends like these, who needs enemies?
It’s too early to say, but I suspect that Carl and Ray, financed by the Duck Hunters, will step in and run Brazil’s campaign for State Senate. After all, the Duck Hunters would like an ally in the State Senate. All of this will be at the expense of the Republican Party and McCulloch may not be the only Democratic victor of a special election in St. Charles County. I know that you guys are trying to ignore the whole mess, but I don’t think you can much longer.
President Ronald Reagan said: “Thou shalt not speak ill of a fellow Republican.” What is the Missouri Republican Party going to do to help us? Are you going to continue to let Carl and Ray, Pedersen and MacNab, and the rest of our “critics-in-chief” continue to destroy your Republican Stronghold? I sure hope not.
We saw what happened during the February Special Election earlier this year. St. Charles County could be next. Please send help.
Sincerely,
Alex Spencer
COMMENTS & COMMENTARY from Charles Hill
I am beginning to think maybe I made a mistake in blaming Steve Powell for the many misuses of the tourism tax.
Recently the Convention and Visitors Bureau gave a grant of over $4000 to do a archeological dig in the South Main Street yard of one of the members of the board. I realize trying to find keys to the past might be neat but what will this dig do for the City and tourism? To pay for this dig over $40,000 will have to be spent just to get break even collecting the one percent tourism tax. Let me say to the CVB, it was better when Steve spent money at Riverport Amphitheater. At least that had some remote chance to pay for itself.
I think I was to hasty in discharging my venom on Powell.
The waste of tax money might be tied to the other person who has strong ties to the many vendors who cash tourism department checks, Councilman Riddler. We all know his passion for history but his interests should not be paid for on our dime.
This easy spending does not stop with the dig. At the same meeting with Brian Hill as the acting chairman, the CVB gave $6,500 to help seed an upstart magazine for South Main.
With all due respect to the many who hold South Main in high regard, when are you going to produce any money for the rest of the city? This street is welfare at the highest level. Now they need money to start an ad rag. The two involved with this start up venture knew who to ask. Lets ask the CVB, they won’t say no. After all this is for Main Street.
Riddler has been the longest sitting member on the honey pot CVB and we thought it was all Steve. Well Steve is gone and a new board is there and they are doing the same things the same way.
So here is my solution. Get rid of the CVB board and let the CVB Director come directly to the council. Let's strip the newly crowned king of his ability to spend tourism tax on none tourism items. We can't wait 14 years like we did with Steve.
Did you know the City sent inspectors to Kimmswick, Missouri to inspect the Robert E. Lee riverboat. We hear that Jim Reed wants to bring the boat to St. Charles and lease offices and restaurants onboard.
The Robert E. Lee had been taken from the St. Louis Riverfront to Kimmswick where it was a dismal failure. It was also moved illegally without Coast Guard permission. I wish Jim Reed good luck with the venture but I hope he is not expecting the taxpayers of St. Charles to contribute any funds either for the vessel or for our $1.5 million dock.
Recently the Convention and Visitors Bureau gave a grant of over $4000 to do a archeological dig in the South Main Street yard of one of the members of the board. I realize trying to find keys to the past might be neat but what will this dig do for the City and tourism? To pay for this dig over $40,000 will have to be spent just to get break even collecting the one percent tourism tax. Let me say to the CVB, it was better when Steve spent money at Riverport Amphitheater. At least that had some remote chance to pay for itself.
I think I was to hasty in discharging my venom on Powell.
The waste of tax money might be tied to the other person who has strong ties to the many vendors who cash tourism department checks, Councilman Riddler. We all know his passion for history but his interests should not be paid for on our dime.
This easy spending does not stop with the dig. At the same meeting with Brian Hill as the acting chairman, the CVB gave $6,500 to help seed an upstart magazine for South Main.
With all due respect to the many who hold South Main in high regard, when are you going to produce any money for the rest of the city? This street is welfare at the highest level. Now they need money to start an ad rag. The two involved with this start up venture knew who to ask. Lets ask the CVB, they won’t say no. After all this is for Main Street.
Riddler has been the longest sitting member on the honey pot CVB and we thought it was all Steve. Well Steve is gone and a new board is there and they are doing the same things the same way.
So here is my solution. Get rid of the CVB board and let the CVB Director come directly to the council. Let's strip the newly crowned king of his ability to spend tourism tax on none tourism items. We can't wait 14 years like we did with Steve.
Did you know the City sent inspectors to Kimmswick, Missouri to inspect the Robert E. Lee riverboat. We hear that Jim Reed wants to bring the boat to St. Charles and lease offices and restaurants onboard.
The Robert E. Lee had been taken from the St. Louis Riverfront to Kimmswick where it was a dismal failure. It was also moved illegally without Coast Guard permission. I wish Jim Reed good luck with the venture but I hope he is not expecting the taxpayers of St. Charles to contribute any funds either for the vessel or for our $1.5 million dock.
THE VIEW FROM THE CHEAP SEATS
The View From The Cheap Seats
By Jerry Haferkamp
First, I have to apologize to Mike Weller. A few weeks ago I stated that Don Knotts was dead and that Mike wouldn’t be able to get Barney Fife to investigate the fraud in the collection of recall signatures. I learned this weekend that Don Knotts had just died. I guess Mr. Weller could have used Barney Fife for about 4 weeks to botch the investigation, health permitting. Sorry if I inconvenienced you Mikey. However, James Best (Roscoe P. Coltrane of The Dukes Of Hazzard) is still available.
Speaking of the admitted fraud and the accompanying possibility of conspiracy to commit fraud (according to sworn depositions), there are rumors around that the findings may be swept under the rug. I’m sure our police department and the Chief will do their jobs. We will be keeping an eye on what happens after our prosecutor gets the report. Surely he’ll do his job, won’t he?
For those of you who may not have a scorecard to see the roster, we now have an attorney under contract with the city whom the Mayor won’t pay and a former City Administrator without a contract that she will pay. Only in the “Center of the Universe”, folks. I suggest any future contracts that are negotiated with Mr. Williams be printed on tissue paper about 5” wide, perforated for ease of tearing and delivered on a roll with a tubular cardboard center.
The power of the vote was evidenced at the Council meeting where our Council President defended the use of eminent domain. Being the consummate politician, he realized that the Frenchtown business owners probably don’t vote in Ward One. If their livelihood are stripped from them, he may only lose a vote or two.
He followed with an ominous warning to small business owners that if the “big bucks” want to expand and you are in their way, TOUGH! He used the example that if Bass Pro needed to expand, pack up and get out of the way. Why anyone would want to start a small business in St. Charles is beyond reason. The message is clear. We’ll bowl over anyone if the bucks are big enough.
The proponents of stripping rightful ownership repeatedly used the phrase “valuable tool” when referring to eminent domain. This “tool’ isn’t a screwdriver to fine tune, even though screwing is involved. It is a 500 pound sledgehammer being wielded by a 2000 pound gorilla known as government and is held over someone’s head until they give in to the developer. If they don’t submit, the hammer drops. Now, that’s a “tool”.
Did anyone else notice during the February 21 council meeting that the councilman who usually decries other councilmen’s use of “staff” to obtain information relating to city business has no problem tying up staff to get information on a councilman he dislikes? Mike Weller “tied up” staff to get information to deliver a five or ten minute tirade on Pearl Ridge; not on the water problem, not on public works boo-boo, but on when Mark Brown built his home.
While other councilpersons wait months to get info from our former City Administrator about real issues, Mikey gets unlimited access to useless garbage to further his handlers’ agenda.
I guess it all depends on who you are to our former City Administrator. By the way, since his “Charmin Contract” doesn’t mean anything, I guess he doesn’t have to fulfill the requirement to move here. Are we still paying his travel expenses to fly home every time he gets “in the mood”?
By Jerry Haferkamp
First, I have to apologize to Mike Weller. A few weeks ago I stated that Don Knotts was dead and that Mike wouldn’t be able to get Barney Fife to investigate the fraud in the collection of recall signatures. I learned this weekend that Don Knotts had just died. I guess Mr. Weller could have used Barney Fife for about 4 weeks to botch the investigation, health permitting. Sorry if I inconvenienced you Mikey. However, James Best (Roscoe P. Coltrane of The Dukes Of Hazzard) is still available.
Speaking of the admitted fraud and the accompanying possibility of conspiracy to commit fraud (according to sworn depositions), there are rumors around that the findings may be swept under the rug. I’m sure our police department and the Chief will do their jobs. We will be keeping an eye on what happens after our prosecutor gets the report. Surely he’ll do his job, won’t he?
For those of you who may not have a scorecard to see the roster, we now have an attorney under contract with the city whom the Mayor won’t pay and a former City Administrator without a contract that she will pay. Only in the “Center of the Universe”, folks. I suggest any future contracts that are negotiated with Mr. Williams be printed on tissue paper about 5” wide, perforated for ease of tearing and delivered on a roll with a tubular cardboard center.
The power of the vote was evidenced at the Council meeting where our Council President defended the use of eminent domain. Being the consummate politician, he realized that the Frenchtown business owners probably don’t vote in Ward One. If their livelihood are stripped from them, he may only lose a vote or two.
He followed with an ominous warning to small business owners that if the “big bucks” want to expand and you are in their way, TOUGH! He used the example that if Bass Pro needed to expand, pack up and get out of the way. Why anyone would want to start a small business in St. Charles is beyond reason. The message is clear. We’ll bowl over anyone if the bucks are big enough.
The proponents of stripping rightful ownership repeatedly used the phrase “valuable tool” when referring to eminent domain. This “tool’ isn’t a screwdriver to fine tune, even though screwing is involved. It is a 500 pound sledgehammer being wielded by a 2000 pound gorilla known as government and is held over someone’s head until they give in to the developer. If they don’t submit, the hammer drops. Now, that’s a “tool”.
Did anyone else notice during the February 21 council meeting that the councilman who usually decries other councilmen’s use of “staff” to obtain information relating to city business has no problem tying up staff to get information on a councilman he dislikes? Mike Weller “tied up” staff to get information to deliver a five or ten minute tirade on Pearl Ridge; not on the water problem, not on public works boo-boo, but on when Mark Brown built his home.
While other councilpersons wait months to get info from our former City Administrator about real issues, Mikey gets unlimited access to useless garbage to further his handlers’ agenda.
I guess it all depends on who you are to our former City Administrator. By the way, since his “Charmin Contract” doesn’t mean anything, I guess he doesn’t have to fulfill the requirement to move here. Are we still paying his travel expenses to fly home every time he gets “in the mood”?
THE PEOPLE SPEAK - Letters To The Editor
Dear Editor,
The scandal going on among conservatives’ illegal effort to unseat Dottie Greer in the city of St. Charles is typical of it’s highly volatile brand of infighting among it’s politicians but it surprises the real world enough to make headlines. Yet, amazingly, Post Dispatch right-wing columnist John Sonderegger completely ignores this scandal that may wind up in arrests of some of his associates by the County Sheriff. Instead, he writes a column bragging about Conservative politicians and himself watching one of the most corrupted news services in the history of media distortion and corporate monopolization.
It boils down to corrupt politicians and a corrupt Conservative City council recall effort being ignored in favor of bragging about a corrupt news service. Yet, in spite of their own headline, the Post-Dispatch publishes this partisan columnist that is condoning it by ignoring it. The problem intensifies by the fact that this is the guy that attends all the council meetings in most of the St. Charles County municipalities and reports on their exploits which lends a highly suspect spin to what should be factual reporting. I realize the newspaper is trying to be balanced and wants to sell newspapers in a highly conservative county but Sonderegger is so biased, it’s embarrassing. The Post should keep his column separated so readers won’t think he’s reporting facts and replace him with a real reporter for St. Charles Council meetings.
Joe Morice
O’Fallon, MO
Phyllis and Tony,
I wanted to let both of you know that this week's edition of the First Capitol News was out of the ballpark. It was one of the best editions I have ever read. I really appreciate you two being right on the top of things when it comes to stuff going on in St. Charles.
Have an excellent President's Day.
Louis Launer
P.S.--I appreciate what is being posted in the daily blog.
Received by e-mail and we were able to determine the author...
Dear Tony,
We'd really like to sign our names to this letter but St. Charles is a small county and we're not independently wealthy. Also, we like these folks, but apparently politics doesn't bring out the very best in some or all of us. If you have any questions, we'll write back. Since we're not signing we don't know how you can use this except for a laugh, but please feel free to do whatever with it. We're leaving the baby at the doorstep with this note. Here it is:
Dear First Capitol News,
We enjoyed Alex Spencer’s Chuckie Awards! But he/she missed a couple of spots. Mind if we join the fun with the UpChuckie Awards?
FOR WORST MAYOR IN ST. CHARLES COUNTY AND ST. CHARLES CITY HISTORY:
The Honorable Patti York, for substituting sex appeal for nearly everything.
SHE WINS AGAIN!
Republican Rich Chrismer as St. Charles County Election Authority, for playing footsie with the Diebold rep and spending about $1.5 million to purchase Diebold optical scan voting machines from a company that in 2003 promised to deliver the 2004 election to G.W. Bush. Chrismer says that the county was required by law to purchase the machines to replace punch card voting. Hey, that’s Rich! For months before the purchase he dodged requests for a meeting from the Rev. Dr. Judy Conoyer and others concerned that election fraud would be so much easier due to the machines hackability. Hey, Rich, can you explain the 98% returns in some St. Charles County precincts in 2004?
These days, Chrismer is making personal appearances at city halls and senior centers to explain the voting machines, but NONE are being demonstrated at local high schools to computer-savvy students, even though, thanks to Congress, a U.S. Army recruiter is on hand to encourage the students to enlist.
AND THE WINNER IS: It’s a TIE! DEMOCRACY is the loser on all counts.
FOR WORST REPORTER IN ST. CHARLES COUNTY
Jason Lee of the St. Charles Journal, for reporting that propositions and elections funded by wealthy Republicans who back Mayor York are “grassroots” efforts.
Mark Schlinkmann of the Post-Dispatch, for never examining the petitions to recall Greer or fellow council-member Mark Brown to see if they looked liked they had been signed by one person many times over. Schlinkmann also didn’t bother to interview residents in either Greer’s or Brown’s wards to determine if residents really wanted a chance to recall their council reps.
John Sonderegger, “Charleytown” columnist for the Post-Dispatch, for incessant public relations on behalf of Republican politicos, and for never, ever explaining to readers what’s REALLY going on. Well, maybe once, but his track record's so bad we're just not sure.
Steve Pokin, Journal columnist and reporter, ditto.
AND the envelope, pleaseâ! The WINNER is John Sonderegger, for mentioning Rory Riddler in a nasty way and Kevin Kast and T.R. Hughes in a nice way 1,000 times in the past year.
FYI
U.S. Senator Jim Talent hasn’t voted for anything to benefit wildlife or wilderness in so long -- maybe ever --that his promotion of the National Heritage Corridor at the confluence of the rivers is amazing.
What could be his motivation? Refer to paragraph seven, final sentence of an editorial in the Post-Dispatch on 2/22/06, ??But a national heritage designation would make the land eligible for up to $1 million a year in federal funds over 10 years, to be spent on river projects and programs??
Go to the Ducks Unlimited website and compare the map of local duck clubs to the proposed National Heritage Corridor map. They match up nicely. The land would not be opened up to the public.
The biggest duck clubs are private country clubs that, because of their location and participation in federal and state programs, get tax funds and tax breaks. Their privacy, proximity and lavish, rustic appointments, and guest services like guns, kennels filled with hunting dogs, boats, hummers, etc. and stuff to shoot (ducks, geese, quail, doves, pheasants) that duck clubs are the perfect place to lobby in the time-honored tradition of good ole boys. Women may have gained entrance to the golf course, but they don’t have similar access to duck blinds.
Great Rivers Habitat Alliance is a 501(c)3 organization run by very wealthy (probably all) Republican duck club owners like Adolphus Busch. GRHA gets public monies, including grants, for wetland and related projects. Members have purchased quite a few candidates in St. Charles County in the last two or three elections, and now are involved in the recalls of at least two pesky St. Charles officials -- Democrats, most likely.
President George W. Bush is an avid duck hunter. The ONLY environmental benefit he’s ever approved has been for wetlands. Vice president Cheney likes to shoot lawyers and quail.
The scandal going on among conservatives’ illegal effort to unseat Dottie Greer in the city of St. Charles is typical of it’s highly volatile brand of infighting among it’s politicians but it surprises the real world enough to make headlines. Yet, amazingly, Post Dispatch right-wing columnist John Sonderegger completely ignores this scandal that may wind up in arrests of some of his associates by the County Sheriff. Instead, he writes a column bragging about Conservative politicians and himself watching one of the most corrupted news services in the history of media distortion and corporate monopolization.
It boils down to corrupt politicians and a corrupt Conservative City council recall effort being ignored in favor of bragging about a corrupt news service. Yet, in spite of their own headline, the Post-Dispatch publishes this partisan columnist that is condoning it by ignoring it. The problem intensifies by the fact that this is the guy that attends all the council meetings in most of the St. Charles County municipalities and reports on their exploits which lends a highly suspect spin to what should be factual reporting. I realize the newspaper is trying to be balanced and wants to sell newspapers in a highly conservative county but Sonderegger is so biased, it’s embarrassing. The Post should keep his column separated so readers won’t think he’s reporting facts and replace him with a real reporter for St. Charles Council meetings.
Joe Morice
O’Fallon, MO
Phyllis and Tony,
I wanted to let both of you know that this week's edition of the First Capitol News was out of the ballpark. It was one of the best editions I have ever read. I really appreciate you two being right on the top of things when it comes to stuff going on in St. Charles.
Have an excellent President's Day.
Louis Launer
P.S.--I appreciate what is being posted in the daily blog.
Received by e-mail and we were able to determine the author...
Dear Tony,
We'd really like to sign our names to this letter but St. Charles is a small county and we're not independently wealthy. Also, we like these folks, but apparently politics doesn't bring out the very best in some or all of us. If you have any questions, we'll write back. Since we're not signing we don't know how you can use this except for a laugh, but please feel free to do whatever with it. We're leaving the baby at the doorstep with this note. Here it is:
Dear First Capitol News,
We enjoyed Alex Spencer’s Chuckie Awards! But he/she missed a couple of spots. Mind if we join the fun with the UpChuckie Awards?
FOR WORST MAYOR IN ST. CHARLES COUNTY AND ST. CHARLES CITY HISTORY:
The Honorable Patti York, for substituting sex appeal for nearly everything.
SHE WINS AGAIN!
Republican Rich Chrismer as St. Charles County Election Authority, for playing footsie with the Diebold rep and spending about $1.5 million to purchase Diebold optical scan voting machines from a company that in 2003 promised to deliver the 2004 election to G.W. Bush. Chrismer says that the county was required by law to purchase the machines to replace punch card voting. Hey, that’s Rich! For months before the purchase he dodged requests for a meeting from the Rev. Dr. Judy Conoyer and others concerned that election fraud would be so much easier due to the machines hackability. Hey, Rich, can you explain the 98% returns in some St. Charles County precincts in 2004?
These days, Chrismer is making personal appearances at city halls and senior centers to explain the voting machines, but NONE are being demonstrated at local high schools to computer-savvy students, even though, thanks to Congress, a U.S. Army recruiter is on hand to encourage the students to enlist.
AND THE WINNER IS: It’s a TIE! DEMOCRACY is the loser on all counts.
FOR WORST REPORTER IN ST. CHARLES COUNTY
Jason Lee of the St. Charles Journal, for reporting that propositions and elections funded by wealthy Republicans who back Mayor York are “grassroots” efforts.
Mark Schlinkmann of the Post-Dispatch, for never examining the petitions to recall Greer or fellow council-member Mark Brown to see if they looked liked they had been signed by one person many times over. Schlinkmann also didn’t bother to interview residents in either Greer’s or Brown’s wards to determine if residents really wanted a chance to recall their council reps.
John Sonderegger, “Charleytown” columnist for the Post-Dispatch, for incessant public relations on behalf of Republican politicos, and for never, ever explaining to readers what’s REALLY going on. Well, maybe once, but his track record's so bad we're just not sure.
Steve Pokin, Journal columnist and reporter, ditto.
AND the envelope, pleaseâ! The WINNER is John Sonderegger, for mentioning Rory Riddler in a nasty way and Kevin Kast and T.R. Hughes in a nice way 1,000 times in the past year.
FYI
U.S. Senator Jim Talent hasn’t voted for anything to benefit wildlife or wilderness in so long -- maybe ever --that his promotion of the National Heritage Corridor at the confluence of the rivers is amazing.
What could be his motivation? Refer to paragraph seven, final sentence of an editorial in the Post-Dispatch on 2/22/06, ??But a national heritage designation would make the land eligible for up to $1 million a year in federal funds over 10 years, to be spent on river projects and programs??
Go to the Ducks Unlimited website and compare the map of local duck clubs to the proposed National Heritage Corridor map. They match up nicely. The land would not be opened up to the public.
The biggest duck clubs are private country clubs that, because of their location and participation in federal and state programs, get tax funds and tax breaks. Their privacy, proximity and lavish, rustic appointments, and guest services like guns, kennels filled with hunting dogs, boats, hummers, etc. and stuff to shoot (ducks, geese, quail, doves, pheasants) that duck clubs are the perfect place to lobby in the time-honored tradition of good ole boys. Women may have gained entrance to the golf course, but they don’t have similar access to duck blinds.
Great Rivers Habitat Alliance is a 501(c)3 organization run by very wealthy (probably all) Republican duck club owners like Adolphus Busch. GRHA gets public monies, including grants, for wetland and related projects. Members have purchased quite a few candidates in St. Charles County in the last two or three elections, and now are involved in the recalls of at least two pesky St. Charles officials -- Democrats, most likely.
President George W. Bush is an avid duck hunter. The ONLY environmental benefit he’s ever approved has been for wetlands. Vice president Cheney likes to shoot lawyers and quail.
School District Foundation Surprises Teachers with Grants
School District Foundation Surprises Teachers with Grants
The Foundation for the School District of the City of St. Charles surprised teachers recently with news that they were selected to receive grant checks.
Fifteen teachers in the following schools won grants: Blackhurst, Hardin, Harris, Benton, Jefferson, Lincoln, SCHS, Lewis & Clark
The teachers were selected from among those who applied for the grants in November of 2005. Teachers will use their checks from the Foundation to purchase items for their classrooms to enable them to implement innovative ideas for teaching and learning.
Grants include $1,200 to Martin Hanley at Lewis & Clark Tech Center for Robotics teaching tools for 11th and 12th graders; $350 to Kathy Barnett to start an online Literary magazine at Benton Elementary; $325 to teacher Elizabeth Creer at Monroe Elementary for a math and science butterfly garden project. “We have approved grants for virtually every subject area,” said Tom Williams, Foundation President.
The Foundation solicits donations from local businesses, individuals, and national charitable organizations, and also holds an annual fundraiser to provide these special grants to District teachers for projects not covered by the District budget.
The Foundation, which was established in 1992, has given out almost $90,000 in grant money to teachers within the St. Charles district since the first grant was provided in 1996. Any classroom teacher or counselor within the district may apply for a grant. “Teachers have great, creative ideas to improve learning,” said Williams. “Our goal is to help teachers implement their ideas to help students.” Because the Foundation is a not-for-profit organization, it provides a tax-effective way for individuals and organizations to contribute money to local schools. “We try to serve all disciplines,” says board member Grace Harmon. “We have helped teachers purchase everything from first grade reading materials to sophisticated computer programs for high school students, and we are eager to do more.”
Dr. Jim Cale, St. Charles Schools District superintendent praises the Foundation’s efforts. “These grants mean a lot to our teachers, and ultimately to our students. They are another example for the students of what a caring and supportive community we enjoy.”
Information about the Foundation for the School District of the City of St. Charles may be obtained by calling Lee Phillion at 636-946-0470, Jeff Comotto at 636-940-1369 or Tom Williams at 636-925-3975, or the School District Administrative Office 636-433-4000.
Friday, March 03, 2006
FIRST CAPITOL NEWS SPORTS - MIKE MCMURRAN SPORTS EDITOR
MY COLUMN - Mike McMurran Sports Editor
March is here, and that can mean only one thing: BASKETBALL! High school and college hoop tournaments are in full swing. First of all, hats off to Wade Bouslog and Charlie Elmendorf, who have led Duchesne’s boys girls basketball squads to district titles. Deadline requirements for this fine weekly are less than conducive for coverage of the high school state tournament. Well, that is not exactly true; deadline for this week’s edition was 8 a.m. Thursday morning. Both Duchesne squads played Wednesday evening – both against St. Francis Borgia from Washington, MO, both at Hannibal High School. The boys’ game was scheduled to begin at 8:15, which meant it would end, shall we say at the earliest 9:30. In reality more like 9:45. If Bob Barton and I had attended, by the time the interviewing was wrapped up, it would have been 10:30 before we would have been on the road home – getting home around midnight; that I could live with. However, staying up until 1 or so to write the story, and then getting up the next morning at 5 for clarinet lessons (for Maggie, not me) could present problems. My priorities must remain with my day job. And as you might imagine, showing up at Jennings Junior High School, with less than a full night’s sleep, is looking for a disaster.
That being said, I think you will find this week’s article on the Extreme Ice racing competition, which was held last Sunday at Family Arena both interesting and informational. Not only that, but FCN is the only publication that covered the event. Why? Because that’s the type of weekly we are.
Back to basketball: if either the boys or girls won on Wednesday, you can bet your bottom dollar Bob and I will be at Hazelwood Central on Saturday to cover the state quarterfinals. A win there and Bob and I will take a road trip to cover the final four in Columbia the weekend of March 9-10.
This weekend, if you like basketball, the place to be is clearly Savvis Center. Starting Thursday the Missouri Valley Conference will hold their annual men’s basketball tournament in downtown St. Louis. I have been attending the tournament for a number of years now, dating back to when it was played in the Arena, or Checkerdome, or what ever that building was called at the time. I can remember when they had a giant black curtain dividing the building into two, giving the illusion of a smaller venue – and a larger crowd. The tournament then became part of ESPN’s “Championship Week,” which meant Monday night’s title game was televised nationally. Personally the past four tournaments have been the most exciting, thanks to a former student of mine by the name of Darren Brooks. Darren played for SIU and pretty much rewrote their record book, having twice won the conference MVP award and Defensive Player of the Year Award.
This year promises to be the best tournament of all, and 2003’s record attendance of 62,000 is almost certain to fall. This year the Valley has 6 teams ranked in the top 42 of the Ratings Percentage Index (RPI): Missouri State (21), Wichita State (24), Northern Iowa (31) Creighton (32), Southern Illinois (40) and Bradley (42).
In a weekly press release, Valley Commissioner Doug Elgin said, “Having the championship game live on CBS puts us in an elite group of conferences. It’s been an unbelievable year for us. We think we have a realistic chance of selling out the tournament,” he added.
Tournament action begins Thursday evening, when number 8 seed Drake (12-18) takes on number 9 Indiana State (12-15) in a 6:05 tip off, followed by number 7 Evansville (9-18) and 10 Illinois State (9-18) at 8:35. The top four seeds went to Wichita St. (23-7), SIU (19-10), Missouri St. (20-7) and Creighton (19-8). One would be foolish to rule out the 5 and 6 seeds Bradley (18-9) and Northern Iowa (22-8).
I am proud to say once again I have a former student in the tournament. Travis Wallace who was in my freshman English class back in the late 90’s will come off the bench for Illinois State. And speaking of Northern Iowa, remember the year they were a number 14 seed in the NCAA Tournament and bested number 3 see Missouri for one of the biggest upsets in tournament history? Well, it seems a St. Charles County resident was a member of that NIU squad. Eric Schaefer, and his lovely wife Kelli now call St. Charles County home (Eric was on the team, not Kelli). Their daughters, McKenna and Chloe are in 5th grade and kindergarten at ASH.
Odds are they will be watching Friday night’s game against Missouri State from the NIU suite. Should State top Northern Iowa, and that is not a gimme, it would likely set up a SIU – Missouri State contest on Saturday afternoon at 4:05. If that game does happen, you can bet the noise level at Savvis Center will blow the roof off the place.
No matter what happens, The Valley is looking at a win/win situation.
And that would be it, and I could say to Family Almus that I wrote an entire article without mentioning a member of my family, were it not for Maggie McMurran scoring her first two points in basketball. As a matter of fact she was tied for the leading scorer, along with Grace Schwendemann, as the Falcons of ASH feel to ICD by a score of 12-4.
See ya next week.
THE BEILSTENS:
A Roller And Ice Hockey Family
By Louis J. Launer
Special to the First Capitol News
As the National Hockey League will supply players to compete internationally at either the Olympic Games or the World Hockey Championships, there are a few minor league players that if they are lucky, can participate in international competition.
But it might not necessarily be the sport of ice hockey.
Missouri River Otters forward J.P. Beilsten has used a stick and puck and slightly different skates in another competition—roller hockey.
Several ice hockey players either got their start or play roller hockey during times of the year when ice isn’t around. Roller hockey had some of its origins from those who played street hockey in school or church parking lots, or in some cases, the streets. The competition is the same. It is still a rough and tumble sport. Whether it is on ice or on a hard floor surface, players are prone to hit or be hit and get the puck into the net at any cost.
Beilsten has played for Team USA in the 2003 Pan American Games. J.P. currently plays for one of the top rated professional roller hockey teams, Tour Beemers, and he recently won double gold medals for Team USA in the World Roller Hockey Championships and the World Games. Barring any unforeseen circumstances, he will most likely be representing his country in the 2007 Pan American Games scheduled for middle July. Approximately 5,500 athletes from 42 countries competing in 28 sports, including roller hockey, will take place in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
Beilsten as an off-and-on River Otter during his ice hockey career. Injuries and other factors with the team has had Beilsten on the team and off the team. The St. Louis native is not only a fan favorite, but well known in roller hockey. His father, Ron Beilsten, coaches roller hockey for Lindenwood University. The elder Beilsten is in his third season behind the bench with the Lions’ roller hockey team. In his first two seasons Beilsten has a combined record of 55-1-0 and back-to-back NCRHA National Championships.
This year, the Lindenwood Men’s Roller Hockey team has accumulated a 21-0 record in the NCRHA Winternationals, just finishing up that season in mid-February. In March, Lindenwood will host the regional tournament and in April, Lindenwood likely will qualify for the national tournament.
“We have a very excellent roller hockey program,” said Lindenwood University President Dennis Spellmann. “For many years it has been a cornerstone of our athletic department. We’re happy to have great personnel coaching our team.”
Before coaching at Lindenwood, Beilsten was an assistant coach for the St. Louis Vipers in the RHI. His coaching credits also include working with McCluer High School’s club hockey team in the Mid-States Club Hockey Association.
Here’s a little bit of trivia that many forgot,” the elder Beilsten said. “The last hockey game played at the St. Louis Arena was a Vipers game.” The St. Louis Arena was closed in 1994 and imploded in 1999.
Beilsten began coaching the Vipers in 1993. The Vipers followed the Blues in moving to Savvis Center in 1995. Roller Hockey International played their seasons during the summer months when there was no ice in the arenas and the venues were more available. The Vipers lasted until 1999 when RHI folded. Also ironically, the Vipers were the last RHI champions.
Ron Beilstein also believes that those who can skate in ice hockey can also skate in roller hockey.
“People need to stop the roller and ice conflict,” he said. “What is done in ice hockey is also done in roller hockey. The intensity, the play and preparation is the same. There are some great ice hockey players who are remarkable roller hockey players and many roller hockey players have turned to ice hockey.”
His son, J.P. Beilsten, is one of those players who play both ice and roller hockey. He remains on the River Otters roster in the United Hockey League.
J.P. is also involved with Lindenwood’s roller hockey program. J.P. is in his second season behind the bench as an assistant with the junior varsity squad at Lindenwood. In 2005, he helped guide the junior varsity squad to the B Division National Championship.
The Beilsten family is well attended at the Family Arena when the River Otters play hockey. It’s not just father, son. The aunts and uncles along with other family members also attend many games at Family Arena. They also attend many Lindenwood University roller hockey games and encourage those who are fans of hockey to attend as many local games as you can. You never know if you will find a noted personality playing on either a future ice hockey game or a roller hockey game in the Pan American Games.
RAGE DEFENSIVE CAPTAIN PROUDLY ACCEPTS AWARD AS ‘OUTSTANDING ALUMNI’
By Mike Thompson
For Rage defensive back Clarence ‘CJ’ Jones the choice was simple. Driven even as a youngster to “do the right thing, to make those around me proud and to be able to face myself day after day, I knew that I couldn’t be a part of the bad stuff going on around me. I saw guys getting involved with things that could only take them further and further away from the right road in life, things that eventually would lead to desperation, jail time or even death.” Reflecting back on that time, Jones can only shake his head and “thank God that there was something like the Matthews-Dickey Boys and Girls Club to rescue me, to keep me focused and get me involved with positive influence. I’m so proud to have been a part of it for so many years.”
In accepting an award proclaiming him an ‘Outstanding Alumni’ Jones, on Saturday night, looked back on those days when as a youth from ages 8 to 14 he “played all sports, not just football, and was afforded the opportunity to do things that I otherwise would not have been able to do. I traveled with various teams around the country and was making new friends every summer, kids like myself who were looking to stay straight and listen to their coaches and mentors, their parents and their teachers at school. It was that kind of surrounding that allows me to be standing where I am today.”
Clarence ‘CJ’ Jones exemplifies the type of football player Rage Head Football Coach Mike Wyatt talks about all the time. In any interview given, Wyatt will brag that “our team is not just made up of good football players, but good people as well. I look for the kind of player who has respect for the game, for himself and his teammates. That’s the kind of person who will end up playing football for the RvierCity Rage.” Jones readily agrees, saying “I learned at an early age to show respect for my coaches and that education went a long way with me, into the classroom, into my personal life, and again, much of that is due to the influence of the Matthews-Dickey Boys and Girls Club. This award tonight is like a chance to come home again.”
A standout at both Parkway-Central High School and the University of Missouri, ‘CJ’ has been a mainstay in the defensive scheme of Coach Wyatt for the past two seasons and looks forward to the 2006 Rage campaign, one he says should finish up some unresolved issues from last year.
“I really felt we were the best team in the entire NIFL last season, and to get taken out by Cincinnati in the first round of the playoffs, well let’s just that was a feeling I don’t intend to take on again. Every player, every coach on this team is focused and ready, and with Savvis Center looming ahead I’d say a championship is all that will erase that feeling from 2005. I’m ready to do my part to see that happen.”
Back to Saturday night for a moment….Clarence ‘CJ’ Jones was back in the circle of influence that started him on the road to success both on and off the field. At the Anheuser-Busch Banquet Center in front of some 200 people, Clarence was given a plaque that he says meant more to him than any football award he has ever received. Matthews-Dickey Boys and Girls Club has been a constant in the lives of inner-city and metro St. Louis youth since the early 1960’s. The organization has helped and encouraged youth with sports programs of all sorts, offered leadership classes, after school mentoring and even taken on life-skills classes like cooking and computers. And for Jones, it was the positive force that gives him the desire to reach out today to youngsters just like himself back then.
“I see myself in so many of the young guys who are part of the program today. Young kids who are learning from teachers and coaches who really care about them, who help them stay out of trouble, make the right choices and keep them under the umbrella of positive influence. I know for myself, it allowed me to take pride in what I was doing and gave me something I could rely on. I got to travel to Kentucky and Philadelphia with the baseball team, to Florida with the football program. To be able to shake hands tonight with Mr. Matthews and my employer Mr. Elliott and know they both had an influence on my life today, well, let’s just say I’m proud.”
Rage Majority Owner Tye Elliott was in attendance Saturday night and has reason to be proud of Jones on two counts. “Clarence ‘CJ’ Jones is an outstanding young man,” said Elliott, the State Sales Coordinator for AFLAC Insurance Company, “not only has he found success on the football field, but he’s made a key contribution to AFLAC in becoming a successful Financial Consultant for the firm.” A lot of pressure for certain when your two jobs are given to one employer, but Elliott smiled and said “I’m sure Clarence is up to the challenge. He’s met ever one so far.”
St. Charles West Hockey Team
Bound for Savvis Center
Will play for Wickenheiser Cup Title March 8
First Capitol News Staff Report
After getting crushed by the Francis Howell Central Spartans in the first round of the Mid-States Club Hockey Association Challenge Cup playoffs, they wound up in the consolation Wickenheiser tournament and the team’s run through that tournament has also been nailbiting.
The playoff rounds have been a two-game series. Their first opponent in the Wickenheiser tournament two weeks ago was Whitfield from west St. Louis County. The Whitfield Warriors were a rough and tough team, playing a style of hockey that involved punches and pushes. Both teams ran on emotion in both games. SCW took the first game, 8-7 and won the second game, 8-1.
Having had to play two physical teams in their first two playoff series did take its toll as SCW took on Northwest of House Springs. The Warriors discovered that once you get further into the tournament that the games don’t get any easier. They took the first game, 5-4 at North County on Presidents’ Day and the following day at the Fenton Forum, won, 5-3. It was clearly evident that in the second game against Northwest, the Warriors had trouble with their defense who kept missing their assignments to check Northwest’s forwards.
This past weekend, the Warriors took on a more local rival, Wentzville Holt, winning both games and now are on the way to go to Savvis Center for the Wickenheiser Cup Finals, a one game championship, scheduled for 5:30 p.m. on Wednesday, March 8.
Although they have had their lumps this season, this year’s St. Charles West Warriors hockey team is focused. No one in the MSCHA expected St. Charles West to accomplish anything this year. After a month, St. Charles West started turning heads. The Warriors began their season on a tear and played as if they were one of the typical established teams in St. Louis County.
St. Charles West has a hockey tradition going back 28 years. The team disappeared during the 1980s. The club was resurrected in the early 1990s, hopefully not to go away again.
Traditionally in the MSCHA, long-time established teams played a grind-down, physical game. St. Charles West this season is playing a slightly different game that not only are other teams surprised to see, but they wonder why they didn’t take the Warriors more serious in the original game plan.
“We have speed in all positions,” said SCW head coach Shawn Lewinski. “We have players who can hold onto the puck and pass it cleanly.”
Lewinski’s team this year can adjust to almost any opposition. This appears to be one factor to SCW’s undefeated season from the beginning of November through mid-December – 10 games. The team is halfway through the season and is aware that the games are not going to get any easier.
“Our second half of the season was tough and our players knew that,” Lewinski said. We have taught the players to play as a team since the beginning. They are doing a fantastic job doing what they are supposed to do. This team can adjust to the kind of game that the opposition decides to do.”
Unlike the professional leagues, high school hockey has officials that make sure that rules are enforced consistently. Checking from behind is one of the most common penalties enforced by referees in high school and amateur ranks. The rule has existed in high school hockey for decades. The rule exists not just to minimize injuries. It does keep players from attempting to commit other flagrant penalties, including any intent to injure.
“That is one positive thing this league does,” Lewinski said. “We don’t want to see any player take any aggression out on anyone else. The consequences are too high for the player and for the team.”
The Warriors continue a St. Charles high school hockey history that 25 years ago, saw a 1980-81 club gain third place in the Blues Challenge Cup tournament. The Warriors’ appearance this year at Savvis hopefully will rekindle the interest in high school hockey throughout St. Charles.
March is here, and that can mean only one thing: BASKETBALL! High school and college hoop tournaments are in full swing. First of all, hats off to Wade Bouslog and Charlie Elmendorf, who have led Duchesne’s boys girls basketball squads to district titles. Deadline requirements for this fine weekly are less than conducive for coverage of the high school state tournament. Well, that is not exactly true; deadline for this week’s edition was 8 a.m. Thursday morning. Both Duchesne squads played Wednesday evening – both against St. Francis Borgia from Washington, MO, both at Hannibal High School. The boys’ game was scheduled to begin at 8:15, which meant it would end, shall we say at the earliest 9:30. In reality more like 9:45. If Bob Barton and I had attended, by the time the interviewing was wrapped up, it would have been 10:30 before we would have been on the road home – getting home around midnight; that I could live with. However, staying up until 1 or so to write the story, and then getting up the next morning at 5 for clarinet lessons (for Maggie, not me) could present problems. My priorities must remain with my day job. And as you might imagine, showing up at Jennings Junior High School, with less than a full night’s sleep, is looking for a disaster.
That being said, I think you will find this week’s article on the Extreme Ice racing competition, which was held last Sunday at Family Arena both interesting and informational. Not only that, but FCN is the only publication that covered the event. Why? Because that’s the type of weekly we are.
Back to basketball: if either the boys or girls won on Wednesday, you can bet your bottom dollar Bob and I will be at Hazelwood Central on Saturday to cover the state quarterfinals. A win there and Bob and I will take a road trip to cover the final four in Columbia the weekend of March 9-10.
This weekend, if you like basketball, the place to be is clearly Savvis Center. Starting Thursday the Missouri Valley Conference will hold their annual men’s basketball tournament in downtown St. Louis. I have been attending the tournament for a number of years now, dating back to when it was played in the Arena, or Checkerdome, or what ever that building was called at the time. I can remember when they had a giant black curtain dividing the building into two, giving the illusion of a smaller venue – and a larger crowd. The tournament then became part of ESPN’s “Championship Week,” which meant Monday night’s title game was televised nationally. Personally the past four tournaments have been the most exciting, thanks to a former student of mine by the name of Darren Brooks. Darren played for SIU and pretty much rewrote their record book, having twice won the conference MVP award and Defensive Player of the Year Award.
This year promises to be the best tournament of all, and 2003’s record attendance of 62,000 is almost certain to fall. This year the Valley has 6 teams ranked in the top 42 of the Ratings Percentage Index (RPI): Missouri State (21), Wichita State (24), Northern Iowa (31) Creighton (32), Southern Illinois (40) and Bradley (42).
In a weekly press release, Valley Commissioner Doug Elgin said, “Having the championship game live on CBS puts us in an elite group of conferences. It’s been an unbelievable year for us. We think we have a realistic chance of selling out the tournament,” he added.
Tournament action begins Thursday evening, when number 8 seed Drake (12-18) takes on number 9 Indiana State (12-15) in a 6:05 tip off, followed by number 7 Evansville (9-18) and 10 Illinois State (9-18) at 8:35. The top four seeds went to Wichita St. (23-7), SIU (19-10), Missouri St. (20-7) and Creighton (19-8). One would be foolish to rule out the 5 and 6 seeds Bradley (18-9) and Northern Iowa (22-8).
I am proud to say once again I have a former student in the tournament. Travis Wallace who was in my freshman English class back in the late 90’s will come off the bench for Illinois State. And speaking of Northern Iowa, remember the year they were a number 14 seed in the NCAA Tournament and bested number 3 see Missouri for one of the biggest upsets in tournament history? Well, it seems a St. Charles County resident was a member of that NIU squad. Eric Schaefer, and his lovely wife Kelli now call St. Charles County home (Eric was on the team, not Kelli). Their daughters, McKenna and Chloe are in 5th grade and kindergarten at ASH.
Odds are they will be watching Friday night’s game against Missouri State from the NIU suite. Should State top Northern Iowa, and that is not a gimme, it would likely set up a SIU – Missouri State contest on Saturday afternoon at 4:05. If that game does happen, you can bet the noise level at Savvis Center will blow the roof off the place.
No matter what happens, The Valley is looking at a win/win situation.
And that would be it, and I could say to Family Almus that I wrote an entire article without mentioning a member of my family, were it not for Maggie McMurran scoring her first two points in basketball. As a matter of fact she was tied for the leading scorer, along with Grace Schwendemann, as the Falcons of ASH feel to ICD by a score of 12-4.
See ya next week.
THE BEILSTENS:
A Roller And Ice Hockey Family
By Louis J. Launer
Special to the First Capitol News
As the National Hockey League will supply players to compete internationally at either the Olympic Games or the World Hockey Championships, there are a few minor league players that if they are lucky, can participate in international competition.
But it might not necessarily be the sport of ice hockey.
Missouri River Otters forward J.P. Beilsten has used a stick and puck and slightly different skates in another competition—roller hockey.
Several ice hockey players either got their start or play roller hockey during times of the year when ice isn’t around. Roller hockey had some of its origins from those who played street hockey in school or church parking lots, or in some cases, the streets. The competition is the same. It is still a rough and tumble sport. Whether it is on ice or on a hard floor surface, players are prone to hit or be hit and get the puck into the net at any cost.
Beilsten has played for Team USA in the 2003 Pan American Games. J.P. currently plays for one of the top rated professional roller hockey teams, Tour Beemers, and he recently won double gold medals for Team USA in the World Roller Hockey Championships and the World Games. Barring any unforeseen circumstances, he will most likely be representing his country in the 2007 Pan American Games scheduled for middle July. Approximately 5,500 athletes from 42 countries competing in 28 sports, including roller hockey, will take place in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
Beilsten as an off-and-on River Otter during his ice hockey career. Injuries and other factors with the team has had Beilsten on the team and off the team. The St. Louis native is not only a fan favorite, but well known in roller hockey. His father, Ron Beilsten, coaches roller hockey for Lindenwood University. The elder Beilsten is in his third season behind the bench with the Lions’ roller hockey team. In his first two seasons Beilsten has a combined record of 55-1-0 and back-to-back NCRHA National Championships.
This year, the Lindenwood Men’s Roller Hockey team has accumulated a 21-0 record in the NCRHA Winternationals, just finishing up that season in mid-February. In March, Lindenwood will host the regional tournament and in April, Lindenwood likely will qualify for the national tournament.
“We have a very excellent roller hockey program,” said Lindenwood University President Dennis Spellmann. “For many years it has been a cornerstone of our athletic department. We’re happy to have great personnel coaching our team.”
Before coaching at Lindenwood, Beilsten was an assistant coach for the St. Louis Vipers in the RHI. His coaching credits also include working with McCluer High School’s club hockey team in the Mid-States Club Hockey Association.
Here’s a little bit of trivia that many forgot,” the elder Beilsten said. “The last hockey game played at the St. Louis Arena was a Vipers game.” The St. Louis Arena was closed in 1994 and imploded in 1999.
Beilsten began coaching the Vipers in 1993. The Vipers followed the Blues in moving to Savvis Center in 1995. Roller Hockey International played their seasons during the summer months when there was no ice in the arenas and the venues were more available. The Vipers lasted until 1999 when RHI folded. Also ironically, the Vipers were the last RHI champions.
Ron Beilstein also believes that those who can skate in ice hockey can also skate in roller hockey.
“People need to stop the roller and ice conflict,” he said. “What is done in ice hockey is also done in roller hockey. The intensity, the play and preparation is the same. There are some great ice hockey players who are remarkable roller hockey players and many roller hockey players have turned to ice hockey.”
His son, J.P. Beilsten, is one of those players who play both ice and roller hockey. He remains on the River Otters roster in the United Hockey League.
J.P. is also involved with Lindenwood’s roller hockey program. J.P. is in his second season behind the bench as an assistant with the junior varsity squad at Lindenwood. In 2005, he helped guide the junior varsity squad to the B Division National Championship.
The Beilsten family is well attended at the Family Arena when the River Otters play hockey. It’s not just father, son. The aunts and uncles along with other family members also attend many games at Family Arena. They also attend many Lindenwood University roller hockey games and encourage those who are fans of hockey to attend as many local games as you can. You never know if you will find a noted personality playing on either a future ice hockey game or a roller hockey game in the Pan American Games.
RAGE DEFENSIVE CAPTAIN PROUDLY ACCEPTS AWARD AS ‘OUTSTANDING ALUMNI’
By Mike Thompson
For Rage defensive back Clarence ‘CJ’ Jones the choice was simple. Driven even as a youngster to “do the right thing, to make those around me proud and to be able to face myself day after day, I knew that I couldn’t be a part of the bad stuff going on around me. I saw guys getting involved with things that could only take them further and further away from the right road in life, things that eventually would lead to desperation, jail time or even death.” Reflecting back on that time, Jones can only shake his head and “thank God that there was something like the Matthews-Dickey Boys and Girls Club to rescue me, to keep me focused and get me involved with positive influence. I’m so proud to have been a part of it for so many years.”
In accepting an award proclaiming him an ‘Outstanding Alumni’ Jones, on Saturday night, looked back on those days when as a youth from ages 8 to 14 he “played all sports, not just football, and was afforded the opportunity to do things that I otherwise would not have been able to do. I traveled with various teams around the country and was making new friends every summer, kids like myself who were looking to stay straight and listen to their coaches and mentors, their parents and their teachers at school. It was that kind of surrounding that allows me to be standing where I am today.”
Clarence ‘CJ’ Jones exemplifies the type of football player Rage Head Football Coach Mike Wyatt talks about all the time. In any interview given, Wyatt will brag that “our team is not just made up of good football players, but good people as well. I look for the kind of player who has respect for the game, for himself and his teammates. That’s the kind of person who will end up playing football for the RvierCity Rage.” Jones readily agrees, saying “I learned at an early age to show respect for my coaches and that education went a long way with me, into the classroom, into my personal life, and again, much of that is due to the influence of the Matthews-Dickey Boys and Girls Club. This award tonight is like a chance to come home again.”
A standout at both Parkway-Central High School and the University of Missouri, ‘CJ’ has been a mainstay in the defensive scheme of Coach Wyatt for the past two seasons and looks forward to the 2006 Rage campaign, one he says should finish up some unresolved issues from last year.
“I really felt we were the best team in the entire NIFL last season, and to get taken out by Cincinnati in the first round of the playoffs, well let’s just that was a feeling I don’t intend to take on again. Every player, every coach on this team is focused and ready, and with Savvis Center looming ahead I’d say a championship is all that will erase that feeling from 2005. I’m ready to do my part to see that happen.”
Back to Saturday night for a moment….Clarence ‘CJ’ Jones was back in the circle of influence that started him on the road to success both on and off the field. At the Anheuser-Busch Banquet Center in front of some 200 people, Clarence was given a plaque that he says meant more to him than any football award he has ever received. Matthews-Dickey Boys and Girls Club has been a constant in the lives of inner-city and metro St. Louis youth since the early 1960’s. The organization has helped and encouraged youth with sports programs of all sorts, offered leadership classes, after school mentoring and even taken on life-skills classes like cooking and computers. And for Jones, it was the positive force that gives him the desire to reach out today to youngsters just like himself back then.
“I see myself in so many of the young guys who are part of the program today. Young kids who are learning from teachers and coaches who really care about them, who help them stay out of trouble, make the right choices and keep them under the umbrella of positive influence. I know for myself, it allowed me to take pride in what I was doing and gave me something I could rely on. I got to travel to Kentucky and Philadelphia with the baseball team, to Florida with the football program. To be able to shake hands tonight with Mr. Matthews and my employer Mr. Elliott and know they both had an influence on my life today, well, let’s just say I’m proud.”
Rage Majority Owner Tye Elliott was in attendance Saturday night and has reason to be proud of Jones on two counts. “Clarence ‘CJ’ Jones is an outstanding young man,” said Elliott, the State Sales Coordinator for AFLAC Insurance Company, “not only has he found success on the football field, but he’s made a key contribution to AFLAC in becoming a successful Financial Consultant for the firm.” A lot of pressure for certain when your two jobs are given to one employer, but Elliott smiled and said “I’m sure Clarence is up to the challenge. He’s met ever one so far.”
St. Charles West Hockey Team
Bound for Savvis Center
Will play for Wickenheiser Cup Title March 8
First Capitol News Staff Report
After getting crushed by the Francis Howell Central Spartans in the first round of the Mid-States Club Hockey Association Challenge Cup playoffs, they wound up in the consolation Wickenheiser tournament and the team’s run through that tournament has also been nailbiting.
The playoff rounds have been a two-game series. Their first opponent in the Wickenheiser tournament two weeks ago was Whitfield from west St. Louis County. The Whitfield Warriors were a rough and tough team, playing a style of hockey that involved punches and pushes. Both teams ran on emotion in both games. SCW took the first game, 8-7 and won the second game, 8-1.
Having had to play two physical teams in their first two playoff series did take its toll as SCW took on Northwest of House Springs. The Warriors discovered that once you get further into the tournament that the games don’t get any easier. They took the first game, 5-4 at North County on Presidents’ Day and the following day at the Fenton Forum, won, 5-3. It was clearly evident that in the second game against Northwest, the Warriors had trouble with their defense who kept missing their assignments to check Northwest’s forwards.
This past weekend, the Warriors took on a more local rival, Wentzville Holt, winning both games and now are on the way to go to Savvis Center for the Wickenheiser Cup Finals, a one game championship, scheduled for 5:30 p.m. on Wednesday, March 8.
Although they have had their lumps this season, this year’s St. Charles West Warriors hockey team is focused. No one in the MSCHA expected St. Charles West to accomplish anything this year. After a month, St. Charles West started turning heads. The Warriors began their season on a tear and played as if they were one of the typical established teams in St. Louis County.
St. Charles West has a hockey tradition going back 28 years. The team disappeared during the 1980s. The club was resurrected in the early 1990s, hopefully not to go away again.
Traditionally in the MSCHA, long-time established teams played a grind-down, physical game. St. Charles West this season is playing a slightly different game that not only are other teams surprised to see, but they wonder why they didn’t take the Warriors more serious in the original game plan.
“We have speed in all positions,” said SCW head coach Shawn Lewinski. “We have players who can hold onto the puck and pass it cleanly.”
Lewinski’s team this year can adjust to almost any opposition. This appears to be one factor to SCW’s undefeated season from the beginning of November through mid-December – 10 games. The team is halfway through the season and is aware that the games are not going to get any easier.
“Our second half of the season was tough and our players knew that,” Lewinski said. We have taught the players to play as a team since the beginning. They are doing a fantastic job doing what they are supposed to do. This team can adjust to the kind of game that the opposition decides to do.”
Unlike the professional leagues, high school hockey has officials that make sure that rules are enforced consistently. Checking from behind is one of the most common penalties enforced by referees in high school and amateur ranks. The rule has existed in high school hockey for decades. The rule exists not just to minimize injuries. It does keep players from attempting to commit other flagrant penalties, including any intent to injure.
“That is one positive thing this league does,” Lewinski said. “We don’t want to see any player take any aggression out on anyone else. The consequences are too high for the player and for the team.”
The Warriors continue a St. Charles high school hockey history that 25 years ago, saw a 1980-81 club gain third place in the Blues Challenge Cup tournament. The Warriors’ appearance this year at Savvis hopefully will rekindle the interest in high school hockey throughout St. Charles.
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