we like it here 10-07
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Coming HomeTRANSCRIPT
2 THE SOUTHERN ILLINOISAN THURSDAY, OCTOBER 7, 2010 WE LIKE IT HERE www.thesouthern.com
INTERNATIONAL BROTHERHOOD OFELECTRICAL WORKERS
LOCAL UNION 702
Supporting America’s WorkforcePresident: Ron Waldron Business Manager: Steve Hughart
Asst. Business Manager: Tate Wright106 North Monroe Street • West Frankfort, IL 62896
Phone: 618/932-2102 • Fax: 618/932-2311www.ibewlocal702.org
About this sectionNearly four years ago,
my wife and I faced acareer and relocation
decision. Wecould stay inIndiana,where I wasmanagingeditor of TheTimes ofNorthwestIndiana or
move to Southern Illinoisto be the editor of thisnewspaper.
To help make thedecision, we spent timehere, meeting people andseeing the sights.
We ate ribs and brisketat 17th Street Bar & Grill,saw SIU men’s basketballteam beat Creighton andhad a terrific breakfast,complete with biscuits andgravy, at Mary Lou’s Grill.We also went to the AltoPass scenic overlook andtoured the amazing winecountry.
Since moving here inearly 2007, we’ve run intopeople who could liveanywhere but chose thisregion.
That’s the theme behindthe “We Like It Here”special sections. The oneyou are reading today, thesecond, tells the story ofpeople who were born andraised here, moved awayand returned. We’ve toldthe stories of those whonever left SouthernIllinois (Sept. 30) andThursday, Oct. 14, we willprofile those who pickedSouthern Illinois as theirnew home.
We like it here. We hopeyou like it here, too.
GARY METRO is the editorof The Southern Illinoisan.He can be reached at 618-351-5033 or [email protected].
Do you ‘like ithere?’ Send your story to
ccaarraa..rreecciinnee@@tthheessoouutthheerrnn..ccoomm.
Metro
MARILYN JAMES
‘I am a strongSaluki and justlove SIU.’BY ROB CROWTHE SOUTHERN
More than 30 years ago,Marilyn James leftCarbondale, only to thrivein the big-city lifestyleAtlanta had to offer. Andafter returning in 2005,James is trying to bringsome of the big city’s best to her belovedhometown.
Growing up inCarbondale’s northeastneighborhood, James fellin love with the diversityand sense of communitythe city had to offer. Sheattended the now-closedAttucks School and waspart of the first integratedclass at Lincoln JuniorHigh School.
“We got a chancegrowing up to really seesome diversity,” she said.
“I was the only African-American in my classes atLincoln Junior HighSchool, so I had some
really, really goodexperiences.”
But it was herexperience at SouthernIllinois UniversityCarbondale that James hassome of the fondestmemories of — inparticular, her experienceshelping build the SIUSchool of Law with its firstdean, Hiram Lesar.
“Going to SIU, that wasvery good,” she said. “I ama strong Saluki and justlove SIU.”
Not long aftergraduating from SIUC,however, James movedsouth to Atlanta, whereshe was able to haveexperiences most can onlydream of. Involved withthe church throughout herentire life, in Atlanta shebecame friends with thefamily of the Rev. MartinLuther King Jr., and joinedthe family in marching forcivil rights.
When James came backto Carbondale to help care
for her parents, she saw adisconnect between thecity and SIUC that she didnot feel while attendingthe school. To help bringthe city and schoolcommunities together, shehelped bring speakers likeMartin Luther King III toCarbondale — an eventthat saw many peoplefrom the city anduniversity attend.
“Being in a metropolitancity for such a long periodof time, I wanted to helpbring some of that to
Carbondale,” she said. “Iwanted to be able to play arole in that in some way.”
Even now, decades aftershe was in school, Jameshas times when she feelsthat sense of communitycome back. James said shestill sees former teachersfrom time to time,including her kindergartenteacher, whom James runsinto at Spirit of Attucksevents.
Gatherings like those forAttucks School graduateshelp remind James of the
Carbondale she grew upin, the town she grew uploving — and one thecommunity activist is nowhoping to make otherslove.
“When I was growing uphere, it was really a close-knit community,” Jamessaid. “… Now, if I have aresource, and you have aneed, I will do whatever Ican to have that helpbenefit you.”
STEPHEN SIGLEY
‘I will return home for good someday.’I am responding to the
article posted online aboutliving in Southern Illinoisand moving away. I grewup in Jackson andWilliamson counties;most of my family stilllives in Johnston City. Ijoined the military afterhigh school and was ableto travel abroad, whichstarted my passion fortraveling.
After themilitary, Ireturnedhome andenrolled atSouthern
Illinois UniversityCarbondale and managedto stick around for aboutthree years. After thosethree great years of goingto SIUC and enjoying allit had to offer, I got
restless again and decidedto move to south Floridawith one of my fraternitybrothers. Out of all of mytravels, the beach has heldme down the most, whichis why I started with southFlorida.
After a few years inFlorida, I was given theopportunity to move to theWest Indies for a jobopportunity, so I took it
and have lived on an islandcalled St. Croix ever since.In those years since, I havereturned to the states forroad trips east to west,north to south. I recentlystayed in Johnston Citywith my family for a fewmonths before comingback to St. Croix. Aftertraveling so far away fromhome, it really made meappreciate what the region
did for me growing up andhow it still affects my life.The people, the way oflife, values and work ethicthat make up SouthernIllinois are things I havealways been proud of.
Because the draw backhome is so strong, I’m sureI will return home for goodsomeday, but until then,I’ll be here, taking it easyon the beach.
THE SOUTHERN FILE PHOTOMarylin James left Carbondale for Atlanta but returned in 2005.
MARK LASTER
‘I like the fact I can go downtown, and I know people.’BY TOM BARKERTHE SOUTHERN
Living in SouthernIllinois is a real personalexperience, says MarkLaster, principal at Annajunior high andelementary schools.
Having grown up inJonesboro and attendedschool in Missouri and atSouthern IllinoisUniversity, the Annaresident taught 12 years inAnna schools beforebecoming principal in2005.
“There’s a lot of littlethings I like aboutSouthern Illinois,” Lastersaid. “I like the fact I cango downtown, and I knowpeople, and they knowwho I am.”
As a school principal,Laster said he appreciatesthe support he gets fromhis community. If ever inneed of anything, all hehas to do is reach out tothe various groups in thearea, and they will lendhim a helping hand.
“We might have lessresources than a largerarea, but we still have thepeople resources, and wehave people in thecommunity that careabout each other and aremore than willing to pitchin.”
The education ofchildren, Laster said, iswhere Southern Illinois’small-town lifestyle reallybecomes a benefit. Insmaller communities likeAnna and Jonesboro, theparents of the students arevery involved with theactivities of the schools.
“I feel like, as a school,we can serve studentseasier,” he said. “InSouthern Illinois, in asmall town, it’s just easybecause you know allthose people; there’s lesshoops to jump through.”
Although he spends a lotof time in the schools andvolunteering and coachingin various youth athleticsprograms, Laster said heloves to hunt, fish, hikeand camp, all things he
can enjoy right here inSouthern Illinois. Anotherbig passion of his is highschool football, whichdoesn’t get any better thanin our region, he said.
“I love going to a gamein a town of 5,000 peopleand half of them show up,”he said. “It’s prettyexciting.”
Even though the small-town atmosphere is whatmakes Southern Illinois agreat place to live, Lastersaid, its proximity to moremetropolitan areas like St.Louis is ideal for weekendgetaways to the city.
“If you want a touch ofthe city, you can jump inthe car and, in three hours,be at a Cardinals ballgame,” he said.
Having been in Annaschools for 16 years, Lastersaid he enjoys his work asprincipal and doesn’t planon moving anywhere elsein the near future.
“This is what I want todo for now,” he said. “Ithink I could move up to asuperintendent’s position
if I wanted, but I enjoyhaving contact with thekids and the teachers.”
As far as leavingSouthern Illinois is
concerned, Laster said theoption may come up inretirement, but foranother 15 to 20 years, he’shere to say.
“I’m pretty happy whereI’m at right now,” he said.
TOM BARKER / THE SOUTHERNMark Laster, principal at Anna junior high and elementary schools, loves living in SouthernIllinois because of its personal feel. Parents are very involved in school activities, he said, andeducation is better because of it.
THE SOUTHERN ILLINOISAN THURSDAY, OCTOBER 7, 2010 3WE LIKE IT HEREwww.thesouthern.com
1 1/2 Mi. W. of Murphysboro on Rt. 149Murphysoboro, IL 687-3663
Hours: Mon-Sat 9-5pm Sun 12-5pm
BY TOM BARKERTHE SOUTHERN
Wally and Lisa Britt ofCobden have made a lot ofnew friends since takingover Fuzzy’s Tavern in2004, as plenty of newfaces come to the bar dailylooking for some Southern Illinoishospitality.
Cobden native Wallyand then SIUC studentfrom Chicago Lisaassumed managementroles at Fuzzy’s after Lisa’sparents purchased theestablishment in 2004,and the Britts haven’twanted to be anywhereelse since.
“I really loved all thepeople, and it sort of fit inwith the lifestyle I wanted,so I ended up staying,”said Lisa Britt.
“What I really love inthis area is the diversity ofeverybody; we get peoplefrom all walks of life thatcome in here”
Lisa Britt moved fromChicago to SouthernIllinois in 2000 to attendschool, choosing to takeup work outside ofCarbondale at Fuzzy’sTavern. Working at thebar, she met Wally, nowher husband, and learnedof a life outside of the city,a life where everybodyknows everybody andfriends are more commonthan strangers.
“You don’t have to lookvery far to find somebodywho’s willing to give you alittle boost of confidence,”Wally Britt said. “InChicago, you’re surprisedto see somebody youknow, and in Cobden,you’re surprised to see
somebody you don’tknow.”
The small-town life ofSouthern Illinois was soappealing to the Britts thatthey took on the job ofrunning Fuzzy’s, a well-known localestablishment that’s beenaround 75 years. Wally, anAppleknocker by birth,had worked at Fuzzy’s onand off as well, and thechance to be managerswas too good to pass up.
“You don’t have manyjobs where part of your jobis to talk and startconversations,” Wally said.“There’s not a strangerthat walks in the door.”
Fuzzy’s participates in anumber of motorcyclepoker runs, bringing agood number of newcustomers to the barregularly. The Britts alsomake it a point tocontribute to several localfundraisers and causeswhen given the chance.
The sense of communityis really what puts life inSouthern Illinois a stepabove the city life, Lisasaid.
“We’re constantlymeeting people, but, atthe same time, we buildrelationships with thepeople that are here.”
Working as managers formore than six years now,the Britts have becomevery protective of Fuzzy’sand don’t plan to leave itanytime soon.
“I have no desire to liveanywhere else,” Wallysaid. “And I don’t haveany intentions of goinganywhere anytime soon.”
WALLY BRITT
‘What I reallylove in this area is the diversity.’
TOM BARKER / THE SOUTHERNWally and Lisa Britt, managers at Fuzzy’s Tavern in Cobden,enjoy running the bar because of all the new faces they see.
KIRK RUETER
‘It was so easy for us to come back.’BY PETE SPITLERTHE SOUTHERN
Kirk Rueter neverenjoyed big-city life, evenwhen it gave him theopportunity to pitch forthe Montreal Expos andSan Francisco Giants.
Rueter grew up inHoyleton — population520 at the 2000 census —attended Nashville HighSchool and left home toplay baseball at MurrayState. Drafted by theExpos in the 19th roundout of the Cape CodLeague in 1991, he played13 seasons in the majorsbefore returning to thequiet life in Nashville.
“I grew up in SouthernIllinois, and I learned a lotabout family values,”Rueter said. “When theoffseason came, we wouldalways come back. Wenever planned to doanything else, the big citynever appealed to us.”
Rueter’s wife, Karla, is aNashville native, and thecouple has two daughters.Four years removed fromhis 2006 retirement frombaseball, Rueter nowdevotes his time towatching his nephews,Bryce and Brady Harre,play out their senior yearof football at NashvilleHigh School.
“It was so easy for us tocome back to SouthernIllinois,” Rueter said. “Itwas a normal occurrenceto see people every daythat you knew.”
And that closeness with
the community stuckwith Rueter all those yearsof pitching in some of themost historic stadiums ofbaseball. He got to sleepin his own bed wheneverthe Giants and Exposplayed the St. LouisCardinals at BuschStadium, but dealing withtraffic jams and thecramped feeling ofskyscrapers was not apleasant experience.
“I’m so used to goingoutside and being in thefresh air withoutbuildings around you,”Rueter said.
Still young — Rueterwill turn 40 in December— the winningest left-handed pitcher in Giantshistory, and a self-professed “basketball
junkie,” has also beenworking on bringing theIllinois Basketball Hall ofFame to Pinckneyville.
“It’s in the early stages,but it’s going forward,”Rueter said. “I’m a hugebasketball junkie andwould have rather playedthat in college. It will befun for me to see all thedifferent guys who cancome back and getinvolved with it.”
Part of the Hall of Fameresearch would be gettingmementos and otherartifacts from athletes’families. It’s a practicethat Rueter is veryfamiliar with.
“It will be a fun projectin getting all theinformation andmementos, and I’m big
into memorabilia myself,”Rueter said.
Rueter is famous for his“Shed,” a largerecreational facility filledwith sports memorabiliathat also served as hishome during his playingcareer.
Part game room, partmuseum and part theater,the 5,000-square foot,two-story building isheaven for anyoneinterested in sportscollectibles. The facilityfeatures seven televisions,video game machines andeven a bedroom with a fullbath.
Among the Shed’sartifacts are thewristbands Barry Bondswore when he hit his 73rdhome run in 2001 and twoframed copies ofcontracts Rueter signedwith the Giants — one forthree years and $8.5 million, and the otherthree years for $15.65 million.
But nothing in hiscollection is as valuable asthe bonds he has formedwith the people ofSouthern Illinois.
“Southern Illinois hasall kinds of sports and alot of good athletes havecome out of SouthernIllinois,” Rueter said. “Istill think we feel like weare being groupedtogether as SouthernIllinoisans. That’s whatmakes it special.”
THE SOUTHERN FILE PHOTOKirk Rueter poses for a photo in 2008 with his wife, Karla,and daughters, Halle (left) and Hope.
4 THE SOUTHERN ILLINOISAN THURSDAY, OCTOBER 7, 2010 WE LIKE IT HERE www.thesouthern.com
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ROGER MOORE
‘God just worked it out.’BY ADAM TESTATHE SOUTHERN
Growing up in theAnna-Jonesboro area,Roger Moore attended thelocal Church of God withhis family every Sunday.
As he grew older, Moorestrayed from religion andstopped attending church.Four years aftergraduating from Anna-Jonesboro CommunityHigh School in 1991,Moore once again foundhimself a man of faith andbegan attending SanduskyPentecostal Church,where he met his wife andbecame a youth pastor.
“I always knew thatmore than likely I’d comeback to the Church ofGod,” Moore said.
In 2003, that thoughtbecame a reality as he wasaccepted into the churchnetwork’s pastoralprogram and assigned to achurch in Auburn, about10 miles south ofSpringfield.
While he and his wife,Tashya, along with now11-year-old, Noah, and 9-year-old, Jacob, enjoyedlife in central Illinois,Moore said they alwayshad a special place in theirhearts for SouthernIllinois.
“We always wanted tocome back,” he said,noting specifically his
desire to serve as pastor atChurch of God inCarbondale. “I neverreally thought we’d be ableto have the opportunity.”
In 2008, Moore wasreassigned to Church ofGod in Metropolis,bringing his family backhome to Southern Illinois.By June of this year,another move was in storefor the Moores, as theymade the ideal transitionto the Carbondale church,where Moore now servesas lead pastor.
“God just worked itout,” he said.
Southern Illinois offersan ideal place to raise afamily, and Carbondalemaintains its small-townfeeling while still offeringthe amenities of somelarger cities, Moore said.The people also make adifference, as everyoneseems like family andresidents of communitiesoften treat their neighborsas relatives.
From the pastoral side ofthings, the people ofSouthern Illinois are alsomore open to the ideas offellowship and are morewelcoming into their lives,he added.
“That’s one thing weabsolutely love about thisarea,” Moore said.
ALAN ROGERS / THE SOUTHERNRoger Moore is pastor of Carbondale Church of God onCounty Line Road. He grew up in the Anna-Jonesboro area.
KIM MILLER
‘It’s really about a quality of life.’BY STEPHEN RICKERLTHE SOUTHERN
Having lived most oftheir adult lives inSouthern Illinois andmoving away for theircareers, Kim and ScottMiller found themselvesin a city that was lackingthe quality of life theywere accustomed to inSouthern Illinois.
Kim Miller came toSIUC as an undergraduatestudent and stayed untilshe earned a Ph.D. inhealth education andhealth promotion.
Her husband, Scott,came to SIUC in 1969, andupon graduating in 1971,got involved in theconstruction trade. Scottworked for the physicalplant at SIUC for 13 years,beginning in 1987.
When Kim finished herdoctorate, she was offereda job at University ofKentucky in Lexingtonand became a tenuredprofessor there.
The couple lived inKentucky for 10 years butdidn’t feel at home likethey did in SouthernIllinois.
After a decade away, thecouple decided to walkaway from the careersthey built in Kentucky inorder to be back inSouthern Illinois.
Scott is semi-retired,and Kim, having given upher tenured position as aprofessor, is now anadjunct professor but saidshe is open to careerchanges or a full-timeposition.
Scott said career-wisethe couple gave up a lot,but they are happy to beclose to friends and family
again. Scott’s childrenfrom a previous marriagelive in Southern Illinoisand were a factor in thecouple coming back.
“There’s trade off’s witheverything,” he said. “Andwe thought the trade offof being in a comfortableenvironment and feelinglike part of thecommunity, we werewilling to take that leapand let the chips fallwhere they would withthe work knowing thatwe’re both capable andexperienced and we’d findsomething to do.”
“It’s really about aquality of life move, that’sreally the bottom line,”Kim said. “After we’dbeen for Lexington thosemany years we’d had a lotof conversations aboutwhat kind of life we
wanted. We knew weweren’t living it, but wehad a lot of conversionsabout what we did wantand it always seemed likeit came back to here.”
Kim said the move wasthe right decision, andthey now enjoy a bettersense of connection to thecommunity, people andthe outdoors.
She said they are avidfitness people and enjoytaking advantage of all theoutdoors activitiesSouthern Illinois has tooffer.
She said one of thegreatest things aboutliving in Southern Illinoisis all the activities it has tooffer and its low-stressenvironment.
“On the weekends, youcan kind of live like you’reon vacation without going
on vacation,” Kim said.“We have friends whohave boats on LittleGrassy Lake, and they’vebeen nice enough to inviteus, and it’s like whenyou’re out there, there’snobody out there. Peopletravel a long way to havethis kind of experienceand here it is right in theirbackyard practically.”
Having been back in theregion for only a fewmonths, the couple saidthey are still rediscoveringsome areas of SouthernIllinois.
They said they have noregrets about what theygave up to come back toSouthern Illinois.
“It feels like the rightdecision,” Kim said.
I am happy to share mystory of why I like it here.
My name is ShawnnaDonovan.I am 36 andam fromMarion. I amthe classicexample of amid-liferwho movedback to
Southern Illinois afterbeing outside of this areafor more than 13 years.I recently moved back toMarion this mid-May, andI’m currently singlewithout children. I’m a1992 graduate of MarionHigh School, graduatedfrom Southern IllinoisUniversity Carbondale in1997 with a degree injournalism/politicalscience and high-tailed itout of this area one dayafter college graduationand moved to Springfield.I vowed to familymembers and friends thatI would never be back;boy, was I wrong.
As a communicationsprofessional, with longstints in Springfield, St.Louis, Springfield and
Chicago,Tampa Bay,Fla., andthen inChicagoagain, I
never wanted to comeback to Southern Illinois. Iam the former director ofcommunications underformer Lt. Gov. CorinneWood (Ryanadministration), I workedas a regionalcommunications manager(state agency) for formerFlorida Gov. Jeb Bush,made tons of money inreal estate in Florida until Ileft in 2007 and theIllinois political scene(once again) in Chicagoand many other worthytitles and business cardsenough to decorate abulletin board.
But they were only titlesand experiences. Don’t getme wrong, I enjoyed theslower pace and thenatural beauty; however, Ididn’t want to live downhere. I honestly feltisolated, for most of mychildhood, in SouthernIllinois even though I wasvery outgoing in both high
school and college (workedat The Daily Egyptian,etc.). I was the biggestskeptic until I washuddled in my mother’sretirement duplex lastMay, during the weirdstorm, I didn’t want to behere for any longer thannecessary (I ended upspending six weeksstraight in her crowdedduplex). As I sat in thedark and aroundcandlelight, I listened tothe radio on how much thecommunity bandedtogether, took care of eachother, and so on. The lightwent on in my head, andin the home, and I neverfelt the same about thisarea. Suddenly my eyeswere opened, and I feltmore at peace in this areathan anywhere else.
For the next 12 months, Idrove back and forth (sixhours each way) eachmonth for an average of 10days at a time to take careof my mother and father(who is now in the nursinghome). I got my motherback on her feet, bothphysically and mentally,and started contemplating
my life after being the 100percent caregiver. I wasmore here (SouthernIllinois) than I was there(Chicago).
My mother tells thestory about how I rescuedher from possible death(we almost lost her a fewtimes in the last 12months); I can honestlysay that Southern Illinoisrescued me from wastingmy life in an unhappysituation (mid-life) whenall I really ever wanted wasto come back andcontribute to thecommunity. I’m happy tosay I did. I was just electedto the Regional Board ofthe American CancerSociety and am involved ina number of organizations.Who says you can’t goback home?
I honestly never feltmore at home anywhereelse. I bought a house, cutmany ties up north andappreciate the word“soda” now over “pop.” Tome, it’s a do-over not ado-under.
Thank you for your timeand trouble reading mylittle novel above.
SHAWNNA DONOVAN
‘I felt more at peace in this area.’
Donovan
STEPHEN RICKERL / THE SOUTHERNKim Miller poses for a portrait at Heartland Regional Medical Center in Marion.
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BARBARA DALLAS
‘My roots are in Murphysboro.’BY BARBARA DALLASFOR THE SOUTHERN
I was born in the Navyhospital in Charleston,S.C., where my father wasa Navy radio operator, but Icame to Murphysboro as ababy.
After being dischargedfrom the service, Motherand Daddy moved us toMurphysboro. I grew up inthat house blessed withthree parents and evennow go out of my way topass by it daily. My home isMurphysboro.
The wonderful memoriesof growing up in myhometown include safelywalking the block andpassing through the girls’entrance at Logan Schoolfor kindergarten and thenlater carpooling for eightyears to St. Andrew’sSchool. To this day, I creditthe nuns and the religiousand advanced learningprogram for the educationI received early on. I alsomade many friends withwhom I still haverelationships with today.Murphysboro TownshipHigh School was a cultureshock after St. Andrew’sand broadened myhorizons. I made morefriends and gotreacquainted with somefrom kindergarten, but thebasic core of the St.Andrew’s group remainedclose. Many of my lifelongfriends and role models —who could choose to liveanywhere — are inMurphysboro.
After high school, myfirst job was asreceptionist/clerk atDaniel Grocer Co. and thena temporary stint at theSouthern IllinoisUniversity Bursar’s Office.At this point, I learned it’snot what you know, it’swho you know. Marion
Nash got me the job assecretary to the vicepresent of McNair MetalProducts, a new companyin town.
In 1965, I married an SIUstudent, whose job took usto Milwaukee. Never did Irealize I would missMurphysboro so much.Everybody on the streetslooked like somebody inMurphysboro, and I had toforce myself to notapproach them. I hadfriends, a church and agreat job at EvinrudeMotors that allowed me todo some modeling withpeople like Bart Starr andRay Nitzke. But it wasobvious my marriagewasn’t working.
There was way too muchsnow, and Murphysborowas calling.
I wanted my son to growup with the wonderfulmemories I have of a safe,secure childhood andyoung adult life. I wantedhim to have picnics andshare time with family. Iwanted him to play on the
merry-go-round atRiverside Park and go toCamp Ondessonk. Iwanted him to have curlydogs at Elsie’s andbarbecue in Mike Mills’sbackyard before he became The Legend. Iwanted him to havelifelong friends.
I needed to regularly seemy family; go to Mass atSt. Andrew’s Church; walkdown Walnut Street andspeak with people I know;observe and get betteracquainted with my rolemodels; drive through LakeMurphysboro and PineHills; and live inMurphysboro.
Even though I wasn’table to get a job inMurphysboro, my newhusband felt as strongly asI about choosing to livehere, and in fact, we live inhis childhood home. As ayoung couple starting out,we had little time and lessmoney, but were able tohave some involvement invarious church activitiesand pay Chamber of
Commerce personal dues.This partially satisfied myneed to give back to myhometown, but I alwaysknew at some point Iwanted and needed to domore.
My service at SIU formore than a decade was aneducational experienceand an exciting time.Within two years, I wasearning the same salary asin Milwaukee. And my sonwas the first to get GaleSayers’ autograph when Ihelped sneak him intotown for his interview. Ihad the good fortune towork with Ken Gray, ClydeChoate and Glenn Poshard— great minds and creativethinkers. Helping ArdieSayers start LaBoss (LadyBoosters of Saluki Sports)was so much fun. I stillcarry one of the woodenSaluki purses she made forseveral of us. SIU willalways hold a special placein my heart.
Personally, we had one ofthe first boats on KinkaidLake, and my family has
fond memories of familyboating and camping atLake Murphysboro. Wegasped at the stunningFourth of July fireworksdisplays at Riverside Park.We went to local festivals.Trips to the many scenicwonders in our region werepart of our routine. Wedeveloped friendships withmany SIU students, someof whom stayed inSouthern Illinois.
In 1980, I took a chanceon a management traineeposition with the SouthernIllinois office of a statetrade association. My jobwas to represent theinterests of small hospitals,and before I knew it I wasadvocating for almost 100hospitals in the state andwas active nationally.Obviously, such a scheduledid not lend itself to givingback to Murphysboro,although many of thecommunities I workedwith were very similar. Wevisited cities and sawlandmarks, some of whichthis little Southern Illinois
girl didn’t even knowexisted. But the best partof every trip was drivingmy car into myMurphysboro garage.Suddenly, 25 years hadpassed. It was 2004, and Iwas fortunate to retire.
I then started working onmy Murphysboro BucketList. There is an attractionabout Murphysboro Icannot ignore. There is anunconditional lovebetween Murphysboro andme. I want to assist thepeople — the mostvaluable treasures in town— by helping with FirstFriday Mass at Rehab andCare Center of JacksonCounty; lending a hand atthe Elks Lodge dances withSTART clients; andsupporting the Food Bank.I love planning theCommunity Flag DayService and seeing theLion’s Club-flag linedMurphysboro streets. Isought a role in growingthe Gen. John A. LoganMuseum and the LoganNeighborhood.
The “A Weekend inMurphysboro” jointproject with SIU has givenus a traveling exhibit, awebsite (southof64.com),and, hopefully, soon acoffeetable book.Murphysboro is beyond“Ripe with Possibilities.”
It’s bittersweet. I want tokeep Murphysboro tomyself, but, at the sametime, I want to share itwith others, because it’ssuch a wonderfulcommunity in a greatregion of our state, and Iwant them to enjoy it.
I’m not only inMurphysboro,Murphysboro is in me, andits roots run deep. Howcan I say “no” to want tohelp make it the best it canbe?
THE SOUTHERN FILE PHOTOBarbara Dallas of Murphysboro is very active in the community.
THE SOUTHERN ILLINOISAN THURSDAY, OCTOBER 7, 2010 7WE LIKE IT HEREwww.thesouthern.com
STEVE JAHNKE / THE SOUTHERNScott Sensmeier returned to Southern Illinois and opened StarView Vineyards.
I grew up in SI. Camping, hiking, swimming, shopping, the arts, education, friendly people,horseback riding, biking. Moved from there when I married but spend a week there every year.
— Patricia Ann Lewis Hofman
SCOTT SENSMEIER
‘A much better environment.’BY D.W. NORRISTHE SOUTHERN
The desire to leave SouthernIllinois is one which pushesmany young people of thisregion to go to college, jointhe military or simply pack upand go.
Scott Sensmeier was in thatfirst category, and his planworked.
After he completed hisundergraduate studies atUniversity of Illinois andearned a master’s degree inbusiness administration fromSouthern Illinois UniversityCarbondale, Sensmeierpacked up his things and hitthe road for one of America’shottest metropolises —Atlanta, where he lived forabout 10 years.
Sensmeier made goodmoney in the tech industryand found a wife — twocomponents of the Americandream — but when his youngfamily welcomed its firstchild, Will, and then another,Emma, Sensmeier figured itwas time to come home. Hesaid he’s glad he made thatdecision.
“We had kids, and this isjust a much betterenvironment to raise yourchildren in than the suburbsof a major city,” Sensmeiersaid.
Family and friends toppedthe list of why Sensmeier, a
Cobden native, thinks thisregion is more suitable forfamily life.
Sensmeier said theprofessional opportunity hefound in Southern Illinois wasalso a plus; he and his wife,Kate, own StarViewVineyards. Sensmeier said healways wanted to own abusiness, and he and Katesaved for years to make thathappen.
“We hadn’t set out to own avineyard and winery when wedecided to come back,”Sensmeier said.
“We wanted to own abusiness and this one suitedour needs best. The conceptof agritourism, I’d grown upin agriculture prior to my lifein Atlanta — I loved theoutside work and theagriculture aspect. Really, thewinemaking is an extension ofthat, and it seemed like it hadgood potential for us.”
The Sensmeiers have 40 acres of land; they growgrapes on eight of those acres.Half the 75 tons of grapesthey’ve used this year havecome from their land, andStarView has produced10,000 gallons of wine.
Sensmeier said hiseducation and life experienceshave helped him with hisvineyard.
“As a small-businessperson, you areconstantly synthesizing a lot
of data and project managinga lot of different things,”Sensmeier said. “I think thatwas the biggest thing Ilearned in my career, before I got back here, and inschool.”
And his wife, Sensmeiersaid, is learning how toappreciate her new home.Getting a New Jersey girl tomove to the rural splendor ofUnion County was at first atough sale.
“Yeah, it kind of was,”Sensmeier said.
“It was definitely atransition for her, but she’sembraced the lifestyle andculture, and she’s very happyhere as well.”
Sensmeier said he does notsee himself leaving SouthernIllinois for more than avacation because of theopportunities he has in hisbusiness and social life.Sensmeier stays busy awayfrom the winery as presidentof the Shawnee Hills WineTrail and a season ticketholder for Saluki men’sbasketball. Plus, he said, thereare the people he meetsthrough his winery.
“There are hundreds ofpeople here every week, so weget to meet all kinds of peoplefrom all over the place,” hesaid. “It’s great.”
BY LES WINKELERTHE SOUTHERN
Fred Huff doesn’t singand dance — at least notprofessionally. Althoughhe’s quick with thewisecrack, he doesn’t telljokes — at least notprofessionally.
Yet, the longtime Du Quoin resident hasbeen helping to provideentertainment forSouthern Illinois residentsfor most of the past 60 years.
“I’ve been very fortunatein a pretty long associationwith two of what I wouldcall the most successfulhappenings in SouthernIllinois — the Du QuoinState Fair and SIUathletics,” Huff said.
“They provided so muchenjoyment for me. Iwalked out of my houseevery morning for almost63, 64 years and felt prettygood about what was onmy plate for that day.
“For the most part, oneof my primeresponsibilities has beendoing things for otherpeople, particularly somuch of the time, formembers of the media. Itake great satisfaction inhelping. I’ve just beenlucky.”
His relationship withSouthern Illinois has beenmutually beneficial.
“There are so manythings I enjoy aboutSouthern Illinois,” Huffsaid. “I enjoy the people.I think the people inSouthern Illinois are sortof a kick back to the oldsaying that what you see iswhat you get. I enjoyeveryone I know aroundhere. It seems like they arejust common folks whoseem to appreciate whatyou do for them.”
Huff was born inDanville. When he wasabout 2 years old in 1931,his father, a coal miner, gottransferred to a mine in Du Quoin.
After attending Du Quoin schools, Hufftook off for Milwaukeewhere attended MarquetteUniversity for one year.When things didn’t workout as he planned, hereturned to Du Quoin.
“I began working at theDu Quoin Evening Call in1947, and I haven’t lookedfor a job since,” Huff said.
Through his job at thenewspaper and hisbasketball officiatingavocation, Huff gotinvolved with staging aprep all-star basketballgame at the Du Quoin
State Fairgrounds.That event helped
launch a long associationwith the Du Quoin StateFair and the Hayes family,which operated the fair.Then, Huff’s career took aturn in 1960.
“In 1960 SIU lost its SID(sports informationdirector), so (formerSouthern Illinoisan sportseditor) Merle (Jones) is theperson who persuaded meto toss my hat in downthere,” he said. “I wasreluctant to do thatbecause I didn’t have acollege education. So, I got
the job there in 1960 andwas there for 11 years. Inthose 11 years I wasmoonlighting at the fair,writing releases.
“I did that until 1971, BillHayes hired me as the PRdirector. After one year, hepromoted me to fairmanager. I was fairmanager for six years,really six great years of thefair. We had Red Skelton,Sonny and Cher and theCarpenters. I hired RedSkelton by calling him athis home.”
However, when theHayes family startedtalking about selling thefair, Huff figured it wastime to move on.
Gale Sayers, who was theathletic director at SIU atthe time, contacted calledHuff and asked him toreturn to SIU. Initially,Huff declined. However,after further review, hedecided to call Sayers backto ask if the job was stillopen.
“The day after LaborDay 1977 I started at SIUas Gale’s assistant,” hesaid. “That was probablythe most enjoyable fouryears I ever spent in mylife working for Gale. Youput him in a crowd, he wasabsolutely great, but hedidn’t want to be therealone. He wantedsomebody with him all thetime. When Gale wentsomewhere, I went withhim. We became very, veryclose, and we still aretoday.”
Among other duties,Huff was responsible forputting together SIU’sfootball schedule. With asubsequent change inadministration, hereturned to the sportsinformation field.
Huff retired in 2001,ending a 35-yearassociation with SIU.
Through the years, hehas touched the lives ofmany people, many ofwhom he doesn’t know.
“I don’t know who thesepeople are, but you don’thave to have an SIU T-shirt on, at the fair, atbasketball and footballgames, people are just sopolite and nice and theystop and talk,” Huff said.“It certainly gives you alittle bit of a rush. I’ve justbeen so terribly fortunateand lucky, being in theright place at the righttime and fitting in.”
And, just because he istechnically retireddoesn’t mean he’s sloweddown.
“The other part is justbeing here in Du Quoin,too,” Huff said. “I treasureit and feel strongly about itto. I will be president ofthe chamber this year.Seven years ago I chairedthe sesquicentennial.Du Quoin has been verygood to me. I like it, and I like the people.”
8 THE SOUTHERN ILLINOISAN THURSDAY, OCTOBER 7, 2010 WE LIKE IT HERE www.thesouthern.com
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FRED HUFF
‘What you see is what you get.’
ALAN ROGERS / THE SOUTHERNFred Huff has served as publicist for the Du Quoin State Fair for more than 20 years.
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JASON SHORT
‘We’ve taken roots here.’BY TOM BARKERTHE SOUTHERN
Jason Short was raisedto show appreciation forhis community anddoesn’t plan on leavingSouthern Illinois behindanytime soon.
Vice president at ShortEnterprises, his family-owned corporation of nineSouthern IllinoisMcDonald’s restaurants,Short believes in givingback to the communitiesthat have made the familybusiness so successful.
“The customers havebeen so good to us, andthe communities havebeen so good to us that wetry to give back wheneverwe can,” Short said.
When Dean and GailShort sold their Chicagoservice station business in1980 and moved to Annato build the first of theirMcDonald’s restaurants,their son, Jason, was onlyone year old. Now, raisedas a McDonald’s man witha passion for SouthernIllinois life, the youngShort continues thefamily tradition ofsupporting all of the
company’s communitiesthe way they’ve supportedthe Shorts.
“We chose this areabecause we love thecommunity, and we lovethe small-townatmosphere,” Short said.“It creates a philanthropicculture; when we giveback to the community,you can physically seehow it’s helping people.”
Short Enterprises hasalways been there for thepeople, Short said,whether sponsoring atleast 25 youth sportsteams in four countiesannually, purchasingbicycles for the SouthernIllinois UniversityCarbondale PoliceDepartment, or throwinglarge fundraisers forvictims of violent crimes.
The philanthropy of thecompany most comesfrom Short’s mother, Gail,who helped establish theBethany Village shelter inAnna and nearly joinedthe Peace Corps beforegiving birth to him, hesaid.
“She’s bred that culturein our whole family,”Short said. “In these
communities, we’ve donevery, very well, and that’show we show ourappreciation.”
With nine restaurants inJohnson, Union, Jacksonand Perry counties, ShortEnterprises employs morethan 500 people acrossthe region. Helping theemployees, he said, isanother way the companyfeels it can repay SouthernIllinois for its success.
“It’s like a family feelwhen you do businesshere,” he said. “Incommunities like this, youcan actually make adifference in business.”
From Vienna to Du Quoin, most of theShorts’ restaurants aremainstays in their smallcommunities and Shortsays that, while he travelsfrequently, he doesn’tintend to leave.
“We’ve taken roots here,and this is where myfamily’s going to grow up,”he said. “We’re fullyinvested in thiscommunity.”
TOM BARKER / THE SOUTHERNJason Short, vice president of Short Enterprises, owns nine McDonald’s restaurants.
WADE HALVA
‘The woods were myplayground growing up.’BY SCOTT FITZGERALDTHE SOUTHERN
Like many in the clericalprofession, the Rev. WadeHalva has lived andserviced in many places.
He got a touch ofSouthern Illinois from2001-06 when he servicedat three churches inGallatin County beforebeing called to Salt LakeCity.
But now since hereturned to SouthernIllinois in January tobecome pastor at FirstPresbyterian Church ofMarion, he feels at homeand is excited to be here toexpand the church.
“They (FirstPresbyterian) do a greatjob of mission andworking outside ofyourself. What they(congregation) give is whatmatters. This is what Iwant for my children,” saidHalva who was born inMinnesota and raised inNorth Carolina.
Halva’s introductioninto ministry work aftergraduating from ColumbiaTheological Seminary ofDecatur, Ga., was a uniquesituation.
He pastored threechurches in GallatinCounty at New Haven,Ridgway andShawneetown thatrequired a 72-mileroundtrip on Sunday.
“They prepare you forone thing in school, butwhen you get out, youlearn another,” he saidwith a laugh as the workentailed preparing thedelivery of three sermonson Sunday and overseeingthree separate budgets.
Gallatin County remainsa special place to Halva
and his wife, Laurie Fields,as they had their firstdaughter, Madeline, andreceived communitysupport when Halva found out his father wasstricken with terminalcancer.
The family eventuallymoved to Salt Lake, ametropolitan area of morethan a million residentsand the home of TheChurch of Jesus Christ ofLatter-Day Saints.
“It was like being aPresbyterian pastor inRome, Italy,” he said,laughing and citing thevast scarcity ofPresbyterian churchesthroughout Utahcompared to SouthernIllinois.
Servicing in a largemetropolitan area had adifferent measuring stickfor success.
“The sense of measuringsuccess was in thenumbers rather thanasking yourself, ‘Did yousee the people you needed
to see,’” Halva said.When he came here to
interview and guestpreach from the pulpit atBenton, Halva sensedimmediately he hadarrived home andimmediately took up oneof his loves that SouthernIllinois offers inabundance — wildernesshiking.
“The woods were myplayground growing up.There are so manyopportunities here to getout and get away,” Halvasaid.
The mission work fromFirst Presbyterian thatwon over Halva to settlehere was Marion MedicalMission that does work inAfrica.
Halva hopes to establishmore youth groups at FirstPresbyterian with a goal ofdeveloping relationshipswith adults who are notfamily.
SCOTT FITZGERALD / THE SOUTHERNThe Rev. Wade Halva returned to Southern Illinois in Januaryto be the pastor at First Presbyterian Church in Marion.
10 THE SOUTHERN ILLINOISAN THURSDAY, OCTOBER 7, 2010
BY LINDA RUSHTHE SOUTHERN
Though Bill and MollyNorwood could haveretired “anywhere in theworld,” Molly says, theyopted to come home toSouthern Illinois, whereboth grew up.
“Southern Illinois willbe home no matter wherewe live,” Molly said. “Wewill be buried in theNational Cemetery inMound City. My family isall there, and our son isburied there.”
The Norwoods live in ahome made forentertaining; its amenitiesinclude indoor basketballand racquetball courts, ahuge deck and pool, hottub and pool table. There’salso plenty of room in thegarage for Bill to work onthe radio-controlledplanes he loves to buildand fly.
Often the Norwoodsentertain students andalumni from SouthernIllinois University; bothcredit SIUC for providingthem with the opportunityto reach — and exceed —their early goals.
Molly, the former MollyCross, grew up in VillaRidge, in Pulaski County,where her ancestorsarrived in 1865 as freedmen. “They were the firstblack landowners in thecounty,” she said.
Bill Norwood grew up “avery poor little boy fromCentralia with holes in hisshoes,” Molly said. Heenrolled in advancedROTC courses at SIUCpartly so he could becomea pilot, and partly tostretch his meagerwardrobe by wearing theprovided uniforms to classtwo days a week afterdrills.
“Bill was the first personI met on campus,” Mollysaid. She arrived early forfreshman orientation; Billwas a junior and footballplayer, an outstandingquarterback. He attendedSIUC on a footballscholarship, but alsomajored in chemistry andphysics.
Though his family hadlittle money, he said, theygave him much. Theyinsisted their childrenexcel in school and also“be good people.” He tookcollege prep classes atCentralia High School thatgave him an excellentscience background, hesaid. By contrast, Molly’schemistry classes atMeridian High didn’t evenhave lab facilities.
Friends from their firstmeeting, the coupleeventually began dating.They were married whenBill was in flight school.
He had planned onmaking the Air Force hiscareer, he said. Then theCivil Rights Act of 1964was passed. “Up until thenno African-Americansserved as pilots onpassenger flights,” Billsaid. He considered bothAmerican and United.“Molly and the boys hadflown United and liked it,”so he applied there, herecalled.
He was the first blackpilot hired by United, andthe first to attain the rankof captain. Norwoodretired in 1996 after morethan 30 years at United.He actively encouragedother young men to pursueaviation careers, andpromoted SIU’s aviationprogram.
Returning to Carbondalewas a natural choice, thecouple said. Both still hadfamily in the area and Billwas on the SIU Board ofTrustees, where he servedmore than 20 years,including two terms aschairman.
Their son, George, wasin the SIUC School of Lawat the time they movedback. George now is anassistant U.S. attorney forthe Southern District ofIllinois, living in Marionand working in Benton.Another son, Bill Jr., whowas an air trafficcontroller, died of
pancreatic cancer fouryears ago.
“We have a wonderfuldaughter-in-law and fourgrandchildren,” Mollysaid. They remain close.When their daughter-in-law, Cindy, wasconsidering remarrying,she first brought herfiancé to meet Bill andMolly. He told them Cindythought so much of themthat if they didn’t like him,the deal was off. They gavethe couple their blessing.
The Norwoods recentlycelebrated their 50thanniversary on aCaribbean cruise — “98people went with us,”Molly added. “We tooknine immediate familymembers, and thenopened it up to friends.”About 20 of those friendswere from Carbondaleand about 65 of them hadnever cruised before.“Their ages ranged from 2 to 80,” Bill said.
The night before they setsail, Molly hosted a picnic
for the group at their hotelso they could meet eachother. All were givenyellow rubber wristbandsso they’d recognize eachother among the 3,000passengers on the ship.
The guests teamed upand surprised theNorwoods with a $5,000gift for the Bill and MollyNorwood Endowment atthe Paul Simon PublicPolicy Institute at SIUC.The endowment is justone of the ways the couplegives back to the
university and the region.They also give ascholarship to a Med Prepstudent at SIUC, anaviation scholarship, and ascholarship to MeridianHigh graduates inmemory of Molly’sparents.
They give far more thanmoney, though. Studentsoften are invited to dinnerat the Norwood home.Generally the gatheringsare small and informal, butMolly said she’sentertained as many as 150for dinner (on thebasketball court). Sheprides herself on herorganization.
“We try to answer theirquestions, have a meal andhave fun,” Bill said. “I tellthe kids not to wait untilproblems becomeoverwhelming.”
He loves to interact withthe young athletes, too.Molly said after a recentSaluki loss, Bill went totalk with the footballplayers, telling them not totake losses (or wins) too
seriously. “Win or lose,that’s the way life is,” Billsaid. And ultimately, headds, it’s just a game.
As a boy, Bill said, henever imagined “I wouldbe in such a comfortableplace.”
Their life has been good,but also has hadchallenges. Loss of theirson was devastating, butbrought the couple closer,they said. Molly also is an11-year survivor of breastcancer; she said shecouldn’t have done itwithout Bill.
A former teacher with amaster’s degree as areading specialist, Mollyalso established her owneducational publishinghouse.
And she used herknowledge to self-publisha book, “The WaitingGame,” which describesthe role of “faith, familyand friends” in helping hersurvive.
A former board memberof Women for Health andWellness, Molly recentlyspoke at the SouthernIllinois Women’s HealthConference about herbattle with cancer.
The Norwoods are readyto “downsize andsimplify,” Molly said. Theyhave the rambling houseup for sale.
“I’ll be 70 on mybirthday, and Bill will be 75 on his. We don’t needall these stairs,” she saidfirmly.
She plans to sell or giveaway all the furnitureexcept for two pieces thatare her family’s heirlooms.She’s not sure what willbecome of the countlesstrophies, awards and othermemorabilia that fill the“his and hers” homeoffices. The scrapbooksshe has lovingly createdfor friends and family willbe saved, she said.
And the couple agreedthat no matter where theymay be, Carbondale willalways be their home.
THE SOUTHERN ILLINOISAN THURSDAY, OCTOBER 7, 2010 11WE LIKE IT HEREwww.thesouthern.com
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BILL & MOLLY NORWOOD
‘Southern Illinois will be home no matter where we live.’
STEVE JAHNKE / THE SOUTHERNOne of Bill’s hobbies is working with radio-controlled airplanes, of which he has several.
PROVIDEDBill and Molly Norwood decided to retire in Southern Illinois.
• Gov. Quinn took over at atime of crisis in Illinois, but asgovernor he has workedtirelessly to reform state ethicslaws and put Illinois back towork.
• Gov. Quinn spearheaded thefirst jobs bill in over ten years,which will put over 439,000people back to work.
• Gov. Quinn created aprogram to give $2500 toevery small business thatcreates a job.
• Gov. Quinn cut $3 billion fromthe state budget and opposesSen. Bill Brady's tax cuts for thewealthy because they will addover $1 billion to the statedeficit.
• Gov. Quinn understands theimportance of hunting to theSouthern Illinois economy, andhas continued to support thecreation of a fourth zone forwater fowl hunting. This effortwill ensure that Southern Illinoisremains competitive withsurrounding states andreceives its share of huntingrelated revenue.
GovernorPPaatt QQuuiinnnn
EELLEECCTTIIOONN DDAAYY TTUUEESSDDAAYY,, NNOOVVEEMMBBEERR 22
Paid for by the Southern Illinois Waterfowl Association, Inc.
for Southern Illinois
VOTE GOVERNOR PAT QUINN
12 THE SOUTHERN ILLINOISAN THURSDAY, OCTOBER 7, 2010WE LIKE IT HERE www.thesouthern.com
• Shopping• Restaurants
• Roscoe MisslehornArt Gallery
• New Memorial Park• Sparta Public Library
MARY SCHOFIELD CASTLE
‘We knew ... we wanted to move back.’
I left Carrier Mills in 1965 to attendSIU and from there, I moved back andforth between Southern Illinois andKansas City from 1967 through 1971,then a short stay in Worcester, Mass.,while my then-husband attendedgraduate school, then back to SIU in1972, and then to Ashley.
In 1975, we moved to Chicago,where I lived until March 1986,when, after a divorce, I moved to SanAntonio, married another SIUgraduate.
We then moved to St. Louis in 1987for my husband’s new job. In 1990, weagain moved, to Titusville, Pa., wheremy husband was site administrator atthe historic site, Drake’s Well, the siteof the first commercial oil well in 1859.
After nearly three years in northwestPennsylvania, we moved to southeastPennsylvania, where my husband wasthe site administrator of the site whereGeorge Washington crossed theDelaware during the AmericanRevolution.
Then, in 1999, the PennsylvaniaHistoric & Museum commission againtransferred my husband to anotherhistoric site, Old Economy Village, thelast home of the Harmonist Societyafter they sold New Harmony, Ind., toRobert Owen.
At times, I have to pinch myself andshake my head! The timid, small-towngirl from Carrier Mills really wasprobably the member of the CMCHS tochange the most.
I also was a member of the firstkindergarten in Carrier Mills (1950; thisis the 60th anniversary year).
My mother’s family were among thesome of the first pioneers in this area.I don’t remember if it was my Richeyancestors, my Miller ancestors, myHarris ancestors or my Black ancestors
who were among thefirst to cross the Ohioand settle in the areathen known asGallatin County, but Ihave very deep roots
in this area.My husband’s paternal family was
among some of the first to settle in thearea around Mounds and Villa Ridge.
We knew from living on the east coastthat we wanted to move back toSouthern Illinois and started looking atreal estate books each time we would bein the area visiting, going to my highschool reunions, etc.
In 2007, we were forced to spendChristmas Day in our hotel room, and,amazingly, the real estate listing bookwas the size of the combined SouthernIllinois phone book.
I called a real estate broker, left amessage, and she called back at 8 p.m.
On Dec. 26 and 27, we spent themornings looking at houses. When wewalked into our present home, we knewit was the house for us.
I had previously purchased six acreson the Saline/Williamson county line,but after checking the various costsinvolved with building a house, wefound it was less expensive to purchasea house.
We love Southern Illinois and while,by the time we moved, only one of mymother’s eight siblings is still living, Ihave a number of cousins in the areaand so many of my classmates fromCarrier Mills are still close by. Andwhile we don’t see as much of them aswe would like, my three great nieceslive in Marion.
I think our story of why we left andwhy we came “home” could be ofinterest, and we are happy to tell youour journey.
BY BECKY MALKOVICHTHE SOUTHERN
The storied musicalcareer of Billy Grammertook him to many a finecity, but when it cametime to settle down, heknew home was where hisheart really was.
“I’ve seen a lot of niceplaces I wouldn’t mindliving, but they still aren’thome. Home is home,” hesaid of his move backhome to Grammer Hill inrural Franklin County.
Grammer, 85, was bornin Benton but spent muchof his childhood movingfrom town to town inFranklin County. He spenttime in schools in Benton,Sesser, Royalton andValier.
“I’ve really been all overthe county as far as aneducation,” he said. Hewent into the U.S. Armyright out of high schooland then spent a few yearsworking at the U.S. NavalGun Factory inWashington, D.C.
He returned to the areato marry Ruth, his “schooldays sweetheart,” and outof “desperation to work, I
started with the SesserConcrete Block Co. Thatwas pretty hard work,” helaughed. “An old buddywho’d heard me singconvinced me to try outfor a show.”
Nationally known discjockey Connie B. Gay wasputting together a liveband for his radio show inArlington, Va.
After hitchhiking cross-country to get to the EastCoast, Grammer got thejob. He and wife, Ruth,left the area from 1947 to1988, returning only tovisit now and then.
Of course, Grammerstayed fairly busy,building what would turnout to be a legendarycountry music career thatwould see him honoredfor 50 years ofmembership in the GrandOle Opry during a specialceremony in 2009.
His many creditsinclude “The Jimmy DeanShow,” “The Ed SullivanShow,” “Dick Clark’sAmerican Bandstand,”“Bill Anderson’sBackstage Opry,” and“Hee Haw.”
In 1958, Grammer
formed his own band andsigned a recording dealwith Monument Records.The next year, Grammer’s“Gotta Travel On” becamea million-seller and a Top5 hit on country and popcharts.
Grammer also recordedhits “Bonaparte’s Retreat,”“Wabash Cannonball”and “I’m Letting Go.”
He was on the road foryears, crisscrossing thecountry, until he startedlosing his vision from agenetic eye disease.
“I couldn’t driveanymore and I was reallygetting discouraged,” hesaid. “So we decided tocome back home in 1988.”
The couple ended upbuying Grammer Hill,property that had been hisgreat-grandfather’s. Infact, the Civil War veteranis buried on top of the hill.
“I guess I’m kin to halfthe people here, and that’ssometimes good andsometimes bad,” he joked.“I like my home folks, andI was ready to be backamong them.”
BILLY GRAMMER
‘I like my home folks, and I was ready to be back among them.’
THE SOUTHERN FILE PHOTOGrand Ole Opry member Billy Grammer strums one of his namesake guitars on the front porchof his rural Valier log cabin home Tuesday. A similar Grammer guitar sold for more than$100,000 at an auction of Johnny Cash’s estate.
Left Southern Illinois in 1971. Moved back in 1992 and have never looked back!You can come home again!
— Cheryl Schafer Collins
BY LES WINKELERTHE SOUTHERN
Jerry Sloan has seen thebig city.
The McLeansboro nativehas been associated withthe NBA for most of thepast 45 years.
After graduating fromthe University ofEvansville, Sloan played 11 NBA seasons, one forBaltimore, 10 in Chicago.He has been an NBA headcoach for 25 seasons.
The numbers in bothlevels of the NBA areimpressive. As a player, hescored more than 10,000points and grabbed morethan 5,600 rebounds. As acoach, he’s led the UtahJazz to a pair of NBA finalsand he enters this seasonwith 1,190 wins. His No. 4was the first numberretired by the ChicagoBulls.
The NBA recognizedthat excellence last year,inducting Sloan into theNBA Hall of Fame.
That’s a lot of fame andfortune for a SouthernIllinois kid. But, despitethat national acclaim,Sloan maintains a home inMcLeansboro. He spendsas much time there aspossible.
“It’s always been myhome, that’s the main
thing,” Sloan said. “I wentto high school here inMcLeansboro. Every year Iplayed ball, I pretty muchcame back toMcLeansboro. There are alot of wonderful peoplehere.
“That’s just my feeling.The people have alwaysbeen cordial. They’vegiven us our space as far aswhat we do. It’s not a bigdeal to them. I’m justanother person who likesto live here. I wish therewas something moreexotic.”
The Sloan family wasbased in the Chicagosuburbs during his playingcareer and his earlycoaching career. Thatchanged in 1982 whenSloan was fired by theBulls.
The Sloans relocated toMcLeansboro. His twoyoungest children, Hollyand Brian graduated fromMcLeansboro HighSchool. Brian helped leadthe Foxes to the 1984 Class 1A state basketballchampionship.
“When I got fired inChicago, I felt like it wasimportant to have a placeto call home for the kids,”Sloan said. “You can getinto a rat race and neverknow where your kids aregoing to be. They have
no attachment.”And, Sloan’s attachment
to McLeansboro has a lotto do with comfort.
“There are other placesthat are comfortable,” hesaid. “I’m certainly morecomfortable here than anyplace I know. I’mcomfortable in Utah.That’s one of the things wetell our players, whenyou’re working, you hopeyou’re comfortable.”
Although Sloan iscomfortable in Utah,McLeansboro remains arefuge.
“It’s always important toget away from it,” he said.“This about as far away asyou can get from it. It’sbeen great for me.”
In McLeansboro, he’sjust Jerry Sloan, not theJerry Sloan. He can go out
to dinner and not bebesieged by autographhounds or fans that wantto talk basketball.
“I’m not a guy who getshassled in terms of peoplewho want autographs,” hesaid. “I don’t mind signingthem.
“That’s why a lot ofpeople enjoy smallcommunities. It’s not thehustle and bustle. It’s alittle easier to getacclimated and certainlyhave a lot of independenceas you get older. There area lot of plusses.”
Sloan tries to spend asmuch time in theoffseason as possible atMcLeansboro.
However, the offseasonis not the four to fivemonths that peopleenvision. Summer leaguesand the NBA draft occupymuch of his time duringthe offseason.
After being inductedinto the NBA Hall of Famelast year, Sloan looked
forward to attending theceremonies this year withKarl Malone was inducted.
“It will be fun to watchhim sweat as he preparesto speak,” Sloan said.
In the meantime, thepace of life inMcLeansboro suits himjust fine.
“I’m not a golfer,” hesaid. “I do things I enjoydoing. I piddle around. Icollect tractors.”
And, most importantly,Sloan calls McLeansborohome.
THE SOUTHERN ILLINOISAN THURSDAY, OCTOBER 7, 2010 13WE LIKE IT HEREwww.thesouthern.com
JERRY SLOAN
‘It’s always been my home.’
BY STEPHEN RICKERLTHE SOUTHERN
After living in severalparts of the United Statesand overseas, Jennifer andChris Seaman had theopportunity, because ofChris’ career as apharmacist, to choosevirtually anywhere to live.They chose SouthernIllinois.
Jennifer was born andraised in West Frankfortand graduated from theUniversity of Illinois witha master’s degree inhuman resources. Shetook a job with DuPontand moved to Wilmington,Del. During her time withDuPont, she also lived inRichmond, Va., andKansas City, Mo.
While in Richmond, shemet her husband, who wasin pharmacy school. Chriswas in the Air Force andwas stationed at White-man Air Force base nearKansas City. Jennifer wasable to transfer to the areawith her job. The couplemarried in Kansas City.
Chris was then stationedin England for three years,and was deployed to Iraq.As they got to talkingabout family with thepharmacist filling in forChris during hisdeployment, theydiscovered he was fromHerrin and his brother wasa pharmacist at VAMedical Center in Marion.
Jennifer said being so farfrom home anddiscovering such a closeconnection was viewed asa sign.
“We had thought aboutcoming here, but we kindof saw that as a sign,” shesaid. “I always knewfamily was important tome, and I wanted to come
back home. I have twosmall children; all myfamily is from this area. Ialways knew that this iseventually where I wantedto end up.”
She said when decidingwhere to settle after Chris’obligation in the Air Forcewas completed, theyconsidered St. Louis,Kansas City and theUpstate New York area,where Chris is from, butdecided to move back toSouthern Illinois to beclose to Jennifer’s family.
Jennifer said herhusband was reluctant tomove to the Midwestbecause he was terrified oftornadoes.
The couple moved backto Southern Illinois in thefirst week of May 2009and was welcomed by thesuper derecho.
She said the family hasrecently built a house inCarterville, with abasement, and enjoy thequality of life SouthernIllinois has to offer.
Jennifer said havingtraveled after collegewould later becomeimportant in deciding tosettle back in SouthernIllinois.
“I was fortunate enoughafter school to live in a lotof different places and seea lot of different things,”she said. “I think that’simportant because I got tosee a lot of different partsof the country. I think itmakes you appreciatehome that much morewhen you’ve been out inthe world. It just kind ofsolidified me wanting tomove back home. Small-town life is not so badafter all.”
JENNIFER & CHRIS SEAMAN
‘This is ... where Iwanted to end up.’
STEPHEN RICKERL / THE SOUTHERNJennifer and Chris Seaman pose for a portrait at their home inMakanda. The Seamans returned to Southern Illinois afterliving in Lexington where Jennifer was a university professor.
THE SOUTHERN FILE PHOTOJerry Sloan of McLeansboro has been an NBA coach for 25years. He was also a player in the league for 11 years.
14 THE SOUTHERN ILLINOISAN THURSDAY, OCTOBER 7, 2010WE LIKE IT HERE www.thesouthern.com
BY BECKY MALKOVICHTHE SOUTHERN
Tracey Webb has seenthe stars in other skies aswell as those in
Hollywood,but she’sfound herown starshines mostbright in hernativeSouthernIllinois.
Webb, Rend Lake Collegetheater director andassociate professor, grewup in Ewing and graduatedfrom Benton High in 1985to become part of anational championshipspeech team atSoutheastern IllinoisCollege. From there, shewent to Southern IllinoisUniversity Carbondale and“fell in love with theater.”
The next few years foundher in St. Louis; SanAntonio, where she didcommercial work;Chicago, where she got hermaster’s degree in theaterfrom University of IllinoisChicago; and finallyHollywood.
“I learned a lot about thebusiness, and I learnedthat I loved theater morethan acting on film,” shesaid. “It feels likerehearsal. I didn’t like itmuch, but I did extra andstand-in work. I liked itOK, and I loved theweather.”
But about a year into hernew life in Los Angeles,she heard about theopening at Rend LakeCollege.
“I know, why come backto all this humidity, right,but I missed home.
“I missed my family andI missed the slower pace oflife,” she said.
“In Chicago, people werealways in a hurry and on
the West Coast, you neverknow what to take at facevalue. I missed how realthe people here are.”
She moved back to takethe RLC job in 1997.
“I left Southern Illinoisin 1992 and moved aroundfor five years.
“That gave me enoughtime to see, just likeDorothy says (in ‘TheWizard of Oz’), there reallyis no place like home.When you get out in thereal world, you realizewhat you had at home andappreciate it more,” shesaid. “I’m happy. I nabbedmyself a farmer, settleddown, had a child and lifeis good, really good.”
Southern Illinois is agreat place to raisechildren, she said, and theoutdoor options are asvaried as the region’slandscape.
“Rend Lake, theShawnee National Forest,the Rivers. If you don’t likethe landscape, go a fewmiles in any direction and it will change,” shesaid.
She also takes issue witha common complaintabout the area.
“No culture? I beg todiffer. Theater, concerts,Cedarhurst (Center for theArts) in Mount Vernon, thearea has a lot to offer,” shesaid.
“And we’re not too farfrom St. Louis or Chicagoif you need somethingdifferent.”
Webb does not regret hermove back home, nor hertime away.
“I’m glad I got to seethose places and learnwhat they were about, butI’m quite happy here onmy farm. I like it here justfine,” she said.
JIM WRIGHT
‘There are somany advantageshere in the way of recreation.’
Webb
BY SCOTT FITZGERALDTHE SOUTHERN
Former Washington,D.C., resident and dataman Jim Wright can spininstantaneous numbersabout the advantages ofliving in his nativeSouthern Illinois.
“Living 23 miles fromthe center of D.C., youwould have to leave yourhome at 6:30 a.m. toarrive at work at 9 a.m.because the traffic isbumper-to-bumper. Canyou image doing thathere?” he said.
Likewise, Wright saidhe can leave his home inWest Frankfort, drive toPaducah to catch a majortheatrical production, forexample, in less time thanhe could do the sameventure in D.C.
“It’s about travel. Youhave to think in terms ofminutes to miles,” hesaid, smiling.
The West Frankfortnative who remodeledand expanded the homehe grew up in afterreturning here a few yearsearlier, is a reliable datasource. He spent 21 yearsin the White Houserunning the data centerunder fouradministrations — RonaldReagan, George H. Bush,Bill Clinton and part ofGeorge W. Bush’s firstterm.
He served in the U.S.Army, utilized his G.I. Billto get a degree ininformation systems atSouthern IllinoisUniversity Carbondaleand got hired by Geico
Insurance with a job inWashington. He workedfor AAA for a couple ofyears before getting hiredby Marriott Hotels as thechain boomed in the1970s and 1980s. Andthen he returned to thegovernment sector.
“The reason I got hiredwas to bring automationto the White House. Theyhad main frames andtypewriters. There was abig explosion of staff withthe new automation,”Wright said.
Wright was there whenthe Internet beganflowing. He helpeddeveloped e-maildelivery. And he had a bighand in developing datasecurity when Americawas sitting on the edge ofher seat after the Sept. 11attacks in 2001.
“I developed one of thefirst record managemente-mail systems in thecountry. It was crude, butit worked,” Wright said.
He laughs about howpowerful e-mail becamein the nation’s capital asit was subpoenaed forevidence in majorantitrust trials andhearings.
“What goes on e-mailnever dies,” he said abouthow Bill Gates ofMicrosoft lost his anti-trust battle when an e-mail he had writtensaying, “Bury IBM,” wasretrieved.
When Vice PresidentDick Cheney went intothe bunker on Sept. 11,Wright was there, helpingto install temporary andvital data systems. After
Sept. 11, he recalls howsecurity “tightenedbeyond belief,” as Wrightand his staff spent twoyears building a new datacenter outside ofWashington, D.C.
The affable and down-home Wright can speakabout a variety offascinating subjects andthat includes his nativeland that he has sincereturned.
“Southern Illinois is anice place to live. It’scheap. There’s a lot to
do,” said Wright whomyou will probably find onthe golf course most dayswith his regular playingbuddies.
“There are so manyadvantages here in theway of recreation, a placeto raise a family and thelow cost of living. Peoplereally have to learn toappreciate the openspace,” Wright said aboutSouthern Illinois.
CHUCK NOVARA / THE SOUTHERN Jim Wright of West Frankfort returned to his home afterspending years working at the White House in Washington, D.C.
TRACEY WEBB
‘I missed how realthe people ... are.’
BY JOE SZYNKOWSKIFOR THE SOUTHERN
Big brother. Dedicatedhusband. Distinguishedmilitary man.
Phil Clayton has wornmany hats since he wasborn in Marion in 1942.
But perhaps the hat he ismost proud of is the whiteone he earned during histime as a member of VFWPost 4183 near Scott AirForce Base. It was there heserved as post commandertwice, district commanderin 2000-01 and wasrecognized as a keymember of theorganization.
“(Earning the white hat) is quite anaccomplishment inregards to gatheringincreased membership forthe organization,” saidClayton’s wife, Joanne.
Clayton — child No. 8 of10 — grew up in a large-family atmosphere. That isone of the main reasons heand his wife decided toleave the Belleville area toreturn to Herrin threeyears ago. His four sistersand one brother who stillreside in Southern Illinoiswere the determiningfactors in the Claytons’move back to the region.
“Regardless of the factthat Herrin and thesurrounding areas aresmall, the wonderment ofliving in a relativelyclose-knit community hasbeen delightful in addition to having thesupportive moral boost offamily members,” Philsaid.
“The camaraderie ofmilitary members isstrong and runs deep butthe dedication of familymembers to each other iseven stronger, whichpulled at the heartstringsand beckoned Phil backinto this community,”Joanne added. “Seeing thefamiliar faces from highschool (although matured)has been a remarkableasset for Phil and theability to get reacquaintedwith family members hasbeen heart warming.”
Clayton joined the AirForce in 1962, shortly afterhis graduation fromHerrin High School. Heserved 23 years as acommunicationsintelligence specialist andtraveled to many Air Forcebases toward the end ofhis career on the inspectorgeneral team.
During his time in themilitary, he served a 13-month tour in Vietnamand was stationed inGermany, as well ascompiling temporary dutyassignments in almost all50 states.
One of his proudestmoments came when he
was stationed inHammond, La., shortlybefore his retirement. Amassive flood movedthrough the area and hisunit was deployed to assistin the rescue of civiliansfrom homes andbusinesses. Clayton wasawarded Louisiana’sMeritorious Service Awardfor his actions.
He retired from the AirForce in 1985 but was notquite ready to give up onhis passion for protectinghis country. He spent thenext 17 years working incivil service at Scott AirForce Base beforebecoming such an integralpart of the VFW.
Now 68 years old,Clayton enjoys the slowpace of Southern Illinois.
“He most enjoys visitingwith his family, attendingthe family get-togethers ofbarbecues and holidaymeals,” Joanne said. “Helikes it in the warmermonths to be able to gostrawberry and blueberrypicking, plus in the fallduring October to go toBandy’s Pumpkin Patch tohunt for Halloween
pumpkins and gourds.”And after spending so
much time serving andprotecting his country,Clayton is focused onfamily.
“Life is so short, andtime slips away from youwhen you are longdistance from extendedfamily members,” Philsaid. “Yet nothing canreplace the presence ofsiblings and the cherishedfeelings of assistanceduring both sickness andgood health.
“Far too often, we allhear of the bonding of thefamily unit havingdisappeared, yet inreturning back home afterso many years, the joys ofshared experiences,familiar landscapes andsimilar values are to betreasured and cherished.”
THE SOUTHERN ILLINOISAN THURSDAY, OCTOBER 7, 2010 15WE LIKE IT HEREwww.thesouthern.com
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BY JOE SZYNKOWSKIFOR THE SOUTHERN
Robert De Filippis is 70years old with a purpose.
He is back living inHerrin after spending hiswork and retirement yearsin various locations acrossthe country. He thinks theexperiences he gainedduring his time away willhelp him become a greatasset to the area.
“I find it very rewardingto be supportive of oldfriends who may have aneed,” De Filippis said. “Ithink your 70s ought to beabout helping others asmuch as you can — givingback, so to speak. I had awonderful education hereand want to givesomething back to thecommunity. I have all I’llever need. Lots of peoplemy age don’t.”
De Filippis grew up andgraduated from highschool in Herrin beforemoving on to SouthernIllinois UniversityCarbondale for hisassociate degree. Heearned his bachelor’sdegree from DePaul, andpursued master’s anddoctorate degrees fromthe Union Institute andUniversity.
His educationalexperience opened doorsfor a career in businessmanagement andorganizational consulting
in the applied behavioralsciences. He spent theearly days of his career onthe road.
“I initially went toChicago, where I marriedand had our fourchildren,” he said. “Aftertraveling continuously fora decade while aconsultant, I moved to theMid-Atlantic states totake ownership, with apartner, in a careermanagement firm inPhiladelphia. Ourpartnership broke up and Ibought him out of ourcompany in theWashington, D.C., area.
“I moved there in 1994and retired after sellingout. I went to theNorthern Neck of Virginiaon the Chesapeake. Ididn’t like it and moved toFlorida for three years. Idecided to come homeand build a house toretire. I also lived inMaryland, NorthernVirginia and Los Angles.”
What brought DeFilippis back afterexperiencing so manydifferent ways of lifeacross the country?
“I missed the feeling ofcommunity and oldfriends,” he said. “Herrinheld lots of memories forme … I think much of mydecision was made overthe last 10 years whilecoming back forHerrinFesta Italiana and
homecomings. I justremember lookingforward to those trips tosee old friends. I wasalways sad to leave.Another thing is that theweather is somewhatmilder here than up north.And the cost of living ismuch less.”
“I do enjoy being withold friends in Herrin, andthere’s plenty ofopportunities to do thathere. I did enjoy theprocess of having myhome built about one-and-a-half miles from thehouse where I grew up.”
Even though he iscontent with his currentliving situation, theadventurer in De Filippisstill enjoys traveling.
“I find it difficult to notwant to get away fromtime to time for a taste ofthe big-city life,” he said.
Brief excursions are onething, but now that he’sback, De Filippis doesn’tplan on leaving for goodagain.
“There’s also the slowerand easier pace … I’m surethat will change as I geteven older,” he said.
“And when thathappens I’ll be able to hirehelp and stay in my home.I’m not sure I could dothat if I lived in a largecity. I’ve told my childrenthat I drew my first breathhere and will draw my lastone here.”
PHIL & JOANNE CLAYTON
‘Time slips away from you.’
ROBERT DE FILIPPIS
‘I drew my first breathhere and will draw my last one here.’
PAUL NEWTON / THE SOUTHERNRobert De Filippis of Herrin is pictured at his home.
PROVIDEDPhil and Joanne Clayton live in Herrin.
16 THE SOUTHERN ILLINOISAN THURSDAY, OCTOBER 7, 2010