HOT JOBS
|
|
Easily applyEPD DAILY ACTIVITY REPORT
EPD DAILY ACTIVITY REPORT FOOTNOTE: This information was provided by the EPD and posted by the City-County-County Observer without opinion, bias, or editing.
THUNDERBOLTS SHOW RESILIENCE IN CLOSE LOSS TO BULLS
Pelham, Ala.: After a tough first 30 minutes against the Bulls, the Thunderbolts battled back time and time again, nearly coming back several times, but could not find the tying goals in their 6-4 loss in Pelham on Friday night. The Thunderbolts’ next home game will be on Sunday, January 22nd against the Huntsville Havoc at 3:00pm CT. For tickets, call (812)422-BOLT (2658), go to EvansvilleThunderbolts.com, or visit the Ford Center Ticket Office.
The Bulls carried a 1-0 lead into the second period, followed by a pair of goals in the second period’s first half to open up a 3-0 lead, before the Thunderbolts rallied and made it a very close contest down the stretch. At 13:06, Alex Cohen scored from Cameron Cook and Jake Goldowski to pull the Thunderbolts back within two goals. A couple minutes later at 15:26, Felix Sasser found the back of the net, also from Cook and Goldowski, to suddenly make it 3-2.
In the opening minute of the third period, Evansville nearly tied it off a net-front passing play, however the Bulls’ Austin Lotz came out of his crease, colliding with Aaron Huffnagle to negate the scoring chance, and also draw a penalty on Evansville and halt the Thunderbolts’ momentum in the process. The Bulls scored at 4:25 to make it a 4-2 game, before Brendan Harrogate led another Thunderbolts response in scoring at 7:43, assisted by Scott Kirton and Kyle Thacker to again make it a one goal game. On the power play, Jake Pappalardo picked up a hat trick goal to again make it a multi-goal difference, 5-3 Birmingham with 7:24 remaining. Sasser however would score again with 2:26 remaining from Cook to give Evansville life once again, before a late goal from Birmingham’s Michael Gillespie with 1:20 remaining put the game to rest, 6-4 Birmingham.
               Sasser scored twice, Cohen and Harrogate scored one goal each, while Cook tallied three assists and Goldowski finished with a pair of assists. Zane Steeves stopped 28 of 34 shots faced in goal. These two teams meet again on March 16th at Pelham Civic Complex.
Otters Mourning The Loss Of Analyst Bill McKeon
Otters Mourning The Loss Of Analyst Bill McKeon
EVANSVILLE, Ind. – The Evansville Otters are mourning the death of radio analyst Bill McKeon, who died after a brief illness Friday surrounded by his family at age 90.
McKeon witnessed a lot in 70 years of working in baseball. He experienced the game from every perspective – as a player, coach, scout, manager, and broadcaster.
His time with the Otters began as an advisor before shifting to the dugout, where he served as a bench coach. McKeon was also the interim manager for the franchise in 2010, preceding manager Andy McCauley for two games and finishing with a 1-1 record.
Since 2010, he was the radio analyst for our franchise, calling games on WUEV-FM and later Otters Digital Network. He worked with the late Mike Radomski from 2010-15, Jevin Redman and Jordan “Gordy” Fisher in 2016, Lucas Corley in 2017, Sam Jellinek in 2018, Dave Nguyen in 2019, Ryan Brown in 2021 and Matthew Will this past summer.
McKeon shared several stories with family and friends from his experiences scouting for the Kansas City Royals and San Diego Padres after a five-year minor league career that included two seasons in Evansville playing for the Milwaukee Braves Class B affiliate in the Three-I League.
Many of his fondest memories come from his playing days with Evansville in 1956 and 1957 at Bosse Field. One moment in particular always stuck with McKeon.
“Probably one of the greatest nights I ever experienced was with the Evansville Braves in 1956,†he said during Bosse Field’s centennial celebration. “We were winning the pennant by about 28 ballgames.â€
As a reward for the Braves’ success, a local furniture store owner gave each player and the team’s manager, Bob Coleman, a $5 gift certificate to his store.
Braves’ General Manager Austin Brown had also coordinated with the furniture store to give Coleman an easy chair.
“It was brought in on an Evansville Fire Department truck with the siren blasting,†McKeon said. “A weird occasion, put it that way.â€
McKeon’s skipper was not pleased about the spectacle taking place at Bosse Field.
“He said ‘what the hell is Brown doing now?’†McKeon said. “Coleman was nothing but baseball from 12:01 in the morning to 11:59 in the evening – if he weren’t talking, thinking, and playing baseball there was nothing else in life.
“He was kind of disturbed – here comes the fire truck and of course, he didn’t know what was going on.â€
Before the ceremony began, Brown had approached McKeon about being the team spokesman in front of the fans to present Coleman the easy chair. A microphone was dropped down by the cord from the old press box that sat on the roof overlooking home plate and McKeon did what he does best, finding words to describe his true feelings and thank his manager on behalf of his teammates.
After McKeon said a few kind words, it was Coleman’s turn to talk.
“I handed him the microphone and his first words to the fans sitting in the ballpark was, ‘Ladies and gentlemen, if we weren’t winning the pennant by 28 games, McKeon would not be here witnessing this because he drove me crazy all year long,’†McKeon recalled, laughing. “That’s probably one of my greatest memories of Bosse Field.â€
Though McKeon wasn’t from Evansville originally, playing at Bosse Field had a profound impact on his life.
While with the Braves, he met a local girl, Elizabeth Unfried, at a local swimming spot on July 4, 1956, and asked her on a date to watch Tommy and Jimmy Dorsey at the amphitheater.
She said yes and less than two months later, they were engaged. They married the following February.
“From there on, we were together all the time,†McKeon said. “She came to the ballgames, although let me say this, in all honesty not only did she come to see me but her brother (Joe) was the left fielder so she came to see him.â€
After the wedding, they moved to Bill’s home state of New Jersey. They moved back to Evansville in 1987 to be with Elizabeth’s side of the family, who still lived in town.
In addition to his time with the Otters, he helped found “Friends of Bosse Field” in 1992 with his brother-in-law and that organization remains today, now called the Tri-State Hot Stove League.
The Otters extend their deepest thoughts and prayers to Bill’s wife, Elizabeth, his children and the McKeon family.
Funeral arrangements are pending.
The Circus Returns To Washington D.C.
Another Morning Cup Of Coffee “Newsâ€
The Circus Returns To Washinton, D.C.
By Dannie McIntire
If you watched the spectacle of Representative Kevin McCarthy finally ascending to the role of Speaker of the House after 15 rounds of voting then you are well aware that the circus is back in Washington.
As a Republican, I was dismayed to witness the dysfunction within the Republican Party that was in full view in front of the American public. After the recent election, I would have hoped the Republican Party could take control of the House as a unified party.Â
Well at the moment it doesn’t appear that will happen. To obtain the House leadership role Kevin McCarthy had to surrender too many demands of the extreme right faction of the Republican Party. Â
One procedural rule change he had to agree to in order to secure the support of the extreme right of the party was to allow anyone House member to make a motion to elect a new speaker. The old procedure required a minimum of five House members to file a motion to elect a new speaker.
The old five-member rule was reasonable. Now you will have the one-member rule and you can expect to have constant motions from both sides of the aisle to elect a new speaker. If you thought the House was dysfunctional before I believe instead of getting down to work for the American people much time will be spent on frivolous motions to elect a new speaker.Â
Another concession by Kevin McCarthy was to agree to bring to a vote on term limits. Many people are for term limits while many are against having a limitation on terms. The downside to having a term limit is “retiring†a member who may be an effective and fair lawmaker. In my opinion, a term limit already exists, it’s called elections. The “people†just have to have the collective will to vote the bad apples out of office.
However, in my opinion, not all the concessions Kevin McCarthy had to make were bad concessions.
I was happy to see that the right wing of the Republican Party stood firm or a promised that no bill would be brought to the floor for a vote until 72 hours had passed. That gives lawmakers time to read the proposed bill to know what’s actually in it. No more “Pelosi†you have to pass it to know what’s in it.
I also like that the speaker-elect had to agree to try and adopt a budget resolution that would balance the budget in ten years and a cap on the fiscal year 2024 spending that would not exceed the 2022 level.
Our national debt is out of control and needs to be lassoed and brought back into the “sensible corralâ€. Our current national debt stands at 31 trillion dollars;’ that’s a debt of $94,257 per U. S. citizen. Our government operates on borrowing and that needs to be controlled. The current rate of excessive government spending is saddling our future generations with unsustainable debt. Â
One thing is certain; you can look for the 118th Congress to be another year of “welcome to the circusâ€. Â
 Â
Braun, Ackerman Named 2023 Business Hall of Fame Laureate
Braun, Ackerman Named 2023 Business Hall of Fame Laureates
Junior Achievement of Southwestern Indiana and Dentons Bingham Greenebaum announced Mike Braun and the late Raphael Ackerman as the 2023 JA Dubois County Business Hall of Fame Laureates at a press conference Thursday. Laureates will be inducted into the JA Dubois County Business Hall of Fame at 7:30 a.m. EST on Thursday, April 13, 2023, at The Huntingburg Event Center.
The announcement was made by Assistant Vice President and Campus Dean of VUJC Christian Blome. “Mike Braun and Raphael Ackerman are the kinds of role models we need for our young people and for the area’s future business leaders,†he said. “These laureates live out the promise of a servant leadership that creates opportunity, fosters creativity, and not only creates success but, more importantly, builds a community that flourishes.â€
The JA Dubois County Business Hall of Fame honors members of the Dubois Business Community who exhibit strong vision, innovation, and inspiring leadership and who are visionaries within their respective industries. A crystal eagle symbolizing the spirit of free enterprise is presented to each laureate. A monument with a citation and image of each laureate will also be displayed at the
Dubois County Museum.
The annual breakfast event raises funds for the Dubois County Junior Achievement program and increases awareness of the program.
Laureate committee member Al Mihajlovitz commented that they are only scratching the surface on the depth of potential Dubois County laureates with their eighth annual selection announcement. He pointed to the many successful entrepreneurs that turn that success into support for their communities and other up-and-coming entrepreneurs.
“Dubois County is a unique county,†he said.
” src=”blob:https://city-countyobserver.com/89a186f4-2b6e-4fda-a9a9-ad66ae7ff136″ alt=”image003.jpg” border=”0″ class=”Apple-web-attachment” style=”width: 2.0833in; height: 3.7187in; opacity: 1;”>
Mike Braun is an entrepreneur with great vision. He started working at Meyer Body Company in 1981, bought half interest in 1986, and became sole owner in 1994 with only 15 employees, in Haysville, Indiana, with about 21,000 square feet of warehouse space and an office in a mobile home. Now there are over 1400 employees, in 48 states, and in Canada, with over 4 million square feet of warehouse and office space in 89 locations across the country. Over 25% of the space is in Jasper, employing about 450 locally.
He is also owner of Meyer Logistics, a sister company that services all Meyer customers plus third-party warehouse and transportation needs, owning their own fleet. Their sales increase averaged 20% a year since 1981. Challenging times were in the 80s with high-interest rates and the 90s with a very competitive market, and Mike made sound financial decisions with a diversified business plan. In 2008-2010 when many competitors closed their doors, Mike’s vision for Meyer Distributing enabled them to diversify, acquire, and expand, positioning them as one of the top distributors in the nation. They received the coveted SEMA “Distributor of the Year Award†in 2010, 2015, and 2017 as well as many nominations and industry awards from various manufacturers.
Mike was courageous to self-insure his employees in order to reduce their health care costs. Meyer has not had a premium increase for their employees in the last 15 years. He has shared this success with anyone who will listen. He built the family business, treating employees as family. Mike would say a major accomplishment is that three of his four children will continue the family business, and its future is in good hands.
Mike graduated from Wabash College in 1976 summa cum laude in Economics and is a member of Phi Beta Kappa. He was the first class of entrepreneurship offered at Harvard Business School, where he graduated in 1978 with an MBA. This class and business degree gave him the courage to think and act differently from his peers, moving back to his hometown to start his own business, a very unusual move.
Mike’s hobby of forest management has also turned into a business. He buys timber ground for investment. This includes tree planting, and timber stand improvement, along with hunting and fishing on these properties. He and a friend were awarded the Charles Deam and Pioneer Forestry awards for woodland management. Mike is a member of the Nature Conservancy, Indiana Woodland Owners Association and Quail & Upland Game Alliance. In 1979, Mike co-founded Crystal Farms, Inc. which expanded over the years to become one of the largest turkey operations in the tri-state.
Mike is a mentor to many who want to start their own business, are in a financial bind, need succession planning, or want to know about Meyer’s health plan. He takes the time to meet and discuss as a confidante. He has inspired leaders in the community with his common sense and fiscal approach. He has inspired youth, having coached youth baseball, basketball and soccer.
Mike’s community service includes Jasper, Dubois County, the State of Indiana and our country. He served on the Greater Jasper Consolidated School Board for 10 years. He was elected State Representative for District 63 from 2014-2018. Mike is now serving as a US Senator. He overcame huge odds in beating two US Congressmen to win the primary and then win the election over an incumbent, where incumbents win 85% of the time. He serves on Health, Education, Labor & Pensions, Agriculture, Budget, and Appropriations & Aging Committees. Mike has the honor of being elected the first US Senator from Dubois County and in 2021, had the most bills passed of any US Senator.
Mike was recognized as an outstanding JHS alumnus in 2008 for his leadership and involvement. He received the Dubois Strong Entrepreneur Award. He was an Eagle Scout, president of his high school class, and president of the Student Body at Wabash College. He is on the Conexus Indiana Logistics Council Southwest, and the Mid-State Corridor Development Corp. Mike is a member of the Knights of Columbus and St. Joseph Parish. Mike is married to Maureen and they have four adult children and six grandchildren.
FOOTNOTE: January 14, 2014Read the full article in the Dubois County Free Press
 Vanderburgh County Commissioners Direct Funds to The Arc of EvansvilleÂ
The team and the Board of Directors at The Arc of Evansville would like to thank the Vanderburgh County Commissioners for their continuous support of individuals with disabilities as they work towards self-sufficiency!Â
About The Arc of EvansvilleÂ
The Arc of Evansville is a not-for-profit organization with the mission to empower individuals with disabilities to build relationships, gain independence, and achieve their full potential. Founded in 1954 by a group of parents frustrated with the lack of services for their children with disabilities, the organization has become a leading advocate for the rights of individuals with disabilities. Innovative services range from training and supports for employment, transition services from high school to adult life, volunteer opportunities in the community, and the development of life skills. www.arcofevansville.org.Â