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Two Community Leaders Recognized

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By Randy Pierce Two community leaders who have served for a combined total of nearly 50 years were publicly praised and complimented recently for their dedication and the exemplary performance of their duties. Toni Corona, retiring from her position as director of the Madison County Health Department, was given a round of appreciative applause by…

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By Devese Ursery The Triad School Board Meeting on Monday, June 27, kicked off this week’s meeting with the Board recognizing the Triad Varsity girl’s soccer team and its coaches on their back-to-back State Championships. “We’ve asked the varsity girl’s soccer team to attend tonight’s meeting for recognition of their achievements. Certainly the most recent one… your second championship at the State level,” said Superintendent Leigh Lewis. “We’re all proud of you and wanted to give the Board an opportunity to send their congratulations directly to you. Mrs. Lewis added, “Things looked different, sports looked different, school looked different, but you persevered and you were able to achieve some greatness on the soccer field.” Coach Matt Bettlach also added some well-deserved praise to his team for their amazing accomplishments in the last couple of years. He spoke on their dedication to the task at hand and how well-rounded they are. “These girls really worked hard all year and they had one goal in mind and they accomplished that goal. I’m very proud of this group and the 12 seniors that we have, said Bettlach. “… They’re great athletes, but they are great kids… we are very fortunate, in our program, to have just outstanding young women, and may they all go on to do great things.” Caty Burton, Skylar Webb, Brynn Presley, Maddie Hunt, Isabel Boyd, and Jocelyn Carmody each stood up and introduced themselves to the Board and received a round of applause. During the administrative reports and announcements, director of special education Linda Kowalski announced the death of visual impairment teacher Dan Eads this past Sunday. In the Superintendent’s report she announced that this would be her last Superintendent’s Message as she will be retiring from her position(?). There were 18 topics of new business on the school board meetings agenda all together. The most having to do with normal school board business for the 2022-2023 school year. Item one was the approval of donations. There was an anonymous donation of $25,000 to Triad High School Athletics for new scoreboards for both the baseball and softball fields. Modern Woodmen of America Chapter 1919 donated $500 for musical activities; and donations consisting of bulk loads of hand sanitizer, disinfectant wipes, paper towels, and toilet paper came from Troy Carquest Auto Parts. Item two of new business was the approval of several resignations with most due to retirement in the upcoming years. Item three was for the approval of the 2022 amended budget, which has been on display for the required 30 days. Changes to the original budget were made to more accurately reflect differences in revenue and expenditures that have occurred within the fiscal year. Next on the agenda was the recommended renewal of the district’s transportation contract with First Student, which provides the majority of transportation to the district’s outplaced students. The 2022-2023 renewal reflects a 12.5 percent increase over last year. This is due to the increases in the cost of wages and fuel, according to official documents. The next item dealt with the renewal of the district’s food service contract with Sodexo for the 2022-2023 school year. The increase in price of 6 percent is set by the Consumer Price Index. Earlier in the school year, Triad was granted a waiver to allow the district to go one additional year without going out for a food service bid. Unless a similar waiver is granted, the district will go through the food service bid process in the middle of next year for the 2023-2024 school year. The board also approved a 10 cent increase to basic breakfast and lunch prices. Agenda topics 7-10 were the approval of bills like energy and insurance for the 2022-2023 school year. In topic 11 of the agenda for new business, the Board approved the bid from Frederic Roofing for the C.A. Henning Gymnasium roof project. The bid for the roof is $145, 381.00 which includes material and labor. According to documents, Mike Staub, architect from FGM interviewed Frederic Roofing to ensure that everything had been covered in their bid. Mr. Staub stated, “that he saw no reason that the Triad School District should not award the contract for the roofing project to Frederic Roofing. The motion was passed with unanimous vote from the Board. The next three topics the Board approved of was the new Student/Parent Handbooks for Triad High School, Triad Middle School and the elementary schools. The rest of the meeting ended in a closed Executive session. The next Triad School Board Meeting will be held on Monday, July 12, at 6:30 p.m. at 203 E. Throp Street.

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By Devese Ursery The Triad School Board Meeting on Monday, June 27, kicked off this week’s meeting with the Board recognizing the Triad Varsity girl’s soccer team and its coaches on their back-to-back State Championships. “We’ve asked the varsity girl’s soccer team to attend tonight’s meeting for recognition of their achievements. Certainly the most recent…

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Unofficial tallies for Madison County’s Primary Election

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By Devese Ursery, Reporter   The unofficial ballots have been collected for the June 28 primary election in southwestern Illinois’ contested races.   In Madison County 100 percent of precincts reported tallies, but these may not include all mail-in votes.   The numbers below show the results of the primary elections in Madison County, as…

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Contested Primary Races Draw Attention

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By Randy Pierce While things are relatively quiet for next Tuesday’s primary election in Madison County on the Democratic Party side, there are several contested races for various Republican Party positions that are being sought. At the forefront and garnering considerable attention is the race for Madison County Sheriff with Jeff Connor and Jeff Larner…

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Local Hero Gets Dedication and Plaque Unveiling at SAFB

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By Devese Ursery On Friday, June 17, Scott Air Force Base held a dedication ceremony and plaque unveiling for local hero, Senior Airman Bradley R. Smith, a Troy,Illinois native who was killed in action while serving in Afghanistan in 2010. The ceremony dedicated the Air Force Master Sergeant Bud L. Andrews Airman Leadership School’s auditorium…

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County Purchases Variety of Vaccines

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By Randy Pierce Madison County is acquiring 14 different types of vaccines from a company located in Chicago to help with the prevention and treatment of various illnesses. A resolution approving the health department’s acquisition of these vaccines was approved unanimously by the Madison County Board last month, the cost not to exceed $70,000. The…

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Pre-trial proceedings for Collinsville man on hold in Montgomery County

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By Jake Leonard Pre-trial proceedings in the case of Robert J. Tarr of Collinsville are in a standstill for nearly a month. Tarr is facing two murder charges in the death of 45-year-old Troy businesswoman Leslie Reeves and two charges of attempted murder relating to the shooting of 48-year-old Chris Smith of Farmersville. The proceedings…

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Troy Council Take Action On Multiple Ordinances and Resolutions

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By Devese Ursery   It was an extremely busy City Council meeting on Wednesday, June 6, as the board took action on eight ordinances and three resolutions, and a load of road construction projects. The first three ordinances had to do with authorizing the execution of water service and Pre- Annexation agreement that deals with…

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