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More than $100,000 in utility bill assistance has been provided to Evansville residents since the launch of a partnership between Evansville Water and Sewer Utility (EWSU), the Community Action Program of Evansville (CAPE), and HomeServe USA (HomeServe).

June marks the second year of an agreement between EWSU and HomeServe to offer low-cost water and sewer line repair service plans to local homeowners so they can be better prepared to manage the costs of emergency repairs to these systems.  More than 3,300 EWSU customers have chosen to sign up for one or more of the service plans.

The utility receives 10 percent of all HomeServe policies sold to EWSU customers, which funds a Water Bill Assistance Program administered by CAPE. Since June 2017, CAPE has processed over 500 applications for assistance from low-income households, and has awarded a total of $100,885 in utility bill assistance through end of May 2019.

EWSU Director Allen Mounts said homeowners are often under the impression that the utility is responsible for water line leaks and sewer breaks on their property, when in fact homeowners are responsible for facilitating the repairs and paying for the costs. Mounts said the utility also identified a need in the community to aid customers who become frustrated with the high cost and hassle of unexpected repairs to their water and sewer lines resulting from the aging infrastructure in our community.

HomeServe is a low-cost optional solution to help homeowners with emergency repairs, while generating revenue to provide financial assistance to qualifying utility customers who need help paying their utility bill.

“We are making this program available as an option. We do not tell customers to buy it,” Mounts said. “We encourage utility customers to determine what their specific needs are when considering the service plans. Many residential customers who own older homes may have deteriorating clay sewer lines and /or old water lines on their property that would be very expensive to replace. Customers should also check with their insurance agent to determine if similar coverage exists under their home insurance policy.  Those are a couple of the issues homeowners should think about.”

Homeowners who sign-up for one of the HomeServe service plans receive access to a Repair Hotline 24-hours a day year-round, and HomeServe will arrange for a local, licensed and insured contractor to provide high-quality home repairs in a timely manner.

HomeServe service plan options include external water line coverage, sewer and septic line coverage, and in-home plumbing coverage ranging from $5.99 to $12.99 per month. Households qualifying for the Water Bill Assistance Program can receive up to $250 every 12-month period on the disconnect amount or to reconnect water service. The average household benefit is approximately $190.

Click here for more information on the City of Evansville website, or visit www.homeserveusa.com. For information on the Water Bill Assistance Program, call CAPE at 812-492-3941.

MONTHLY REVENUE REPORT OF INDIANA CASINOS        

Revenue Report – May 2019 or HTML Version

Author Rick Reed will hold a book signing for his novel “The Cleanest Kill”.

The signing is a fundraiser for the charitable 911 Gives Hope organization.

Meet the author and purchase a copy of his book while enjoying coffee and mystery treats. The event takes place Saturday June 29, from 9:30 AM to 12:30 PM at the downtown Evansville Public Library in Browning Room A. This event is open to the public.

After a 20-plus year in law enforcement, including a stint running Internal Affairs, Rick Reed retired from the Evansville Police Department and turned his attention to writing, creating the Detective Jack Murphy series. Each book in the fiction thriller series centers around Murphy working to solve a different crime that usually involves locations in and around Evansville. For example, in one of the books a (fictional) murder takes place behind Turley Jewelers in downtown Evansville, while another involves the former Kid’s Kingdom playground.

Reed recently released the seventh book in the series, The Cleanest Kill, a story about a cold case murder where the prime suspect is the incoming Chief of Police for the Evansville Police Department. Here’s the official plot summery from Amazon.

Detective Jack Murphy never met a cold case he couldn’t crack. This one’s been on ice for 37 years. The prime suspect in a decades-old unsolved murder is about to be named Evansville’s next Chief of Police. The Mayor wants the top cop’s name cleared—and that’s why Murphy and his partner, Liddell Blanchard, are ordered to re-open the investigation. But when the victim’s sister and mother are targeted for violence, troubling new questions arise. Is this the work of the same killer, or is someone else playing a deadly game? The answers lie buried in the past. But no one digs through the dirt like Jack Murphy . . .

The book is available now on Amazon, but you can also pick up a copy and support 911 Gives Hope when Reed hosts a book signing at Central Library in downtown Evansville on Saturday, June 29th from 9:30 a.m. until 1:00 p.m. Profits from all copies sold during the signing will be donated to the local non-profit.

The University of Evansville Department of Theatre announces the hiring of Amelia McClain as an Assistant Professor of Acting and Wes Grantom as Resident Director. McClain and Grantom, both members of the 2003 UE Theatre class, were in residence as visiting guest artists during the 2019-20 academic year.

A 2006 graduate of New York University’s prestigious Tisch School of the Arts, McClain has an MFA in Acting and will teach all levels of acting at UE, including senior-level audition techniques, as well as direct two productions in the 2019-2020 performance season. McClain was in residence this past year after a year-long run as Sandra in Broadway’s smash-hit production of The Play That Goes Wrong. On Broadway, she also worked on Fool for Love, Noises Off, The Heidi Chronicles, The House of Blue Leaves, and the Tony Award-winning Vanya, Sonia, Masha & Spike. She has also been in over 20 productions off-Broadway and in regional theatres across the country, including Repertory Theatre of St. Louis, San Diego’s The Old Globe, Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park, and Merrimack Repertory Theatre. Her favorite regional theatre productions include October/November at Ensemble Stage Theatre in New York, Brooke

in Noises Off at Arena Stage in Washington, DC, and Juliet in Romeo and Juliet at the Pioneer Theatre Company in Utah. McClain is a member of the Actors Equity Association.

Grantom will teach beginning and advanced directing classes and direct the musical next season. This past year at UE, he directed Spring Awakening, and, in 2011, he guest-directed Once In A Lifetime in Shanklin Theatre. His professional credits include the world premiere of Civics and Humanities for Non-Majors, The Lion in Winter and A Comedy of Tenors at Pioneer Theatre Company; Toxic Avenger: The Musical at Pittsburgh Civic Light Opera; Lone Star Spirits with Crowded Outlet; Eager to Lose, by Matthew-Lee Erlbach, at Ars Nova; The Steadfast, by Mat Smart, and Mine, by Bekah Brunstetter, for Slant Theatre Project. Grantom’s upcoming professional projects include beep boop in Scotland’s Edinburgh Fringe Festival and Lifespan of a Fact at Utah’s Pioneer Theatre Company. Grantom has also worked at Roundabout Theatre Company, Williamstown Theatre Festival, the Atlantic, Asolo Rep, the New Harmony Project, Berkshire Theatre Festival, Alley Theatre, Premiere Stages, and TheatreSquared. He has a number of Broadway credits as resident and associate director, working alongside theatre luminaries, such as James Lapine, Emma Rice, John Rando, Anthony Page, and Rufus Norris. He is a recipient of multiple Drama League Fellowships, a member of Lincoln Center Theater Directors Lab, and the Artistic Director of Crowded Outlet based in Queens, NY. Grantom is a member of the theatrical union Stage Directors and Choreographers Society.

UE Department of Theatre Chair Eric Renschler says, “We are very excited to welcome Amelia and Wes back to Evansville. Their extensive professional experience will be invaluable to the success of our students both on campus and as they begin their own professional careers upon graduation.” He also notes that the couple joins other Broadway veterans on the faculty and will continue UE Theatre’s core mission of educating future professionals.

For over fifty years, UE Theatre has garnered a national reputation for the education and training of theatre artists who have gone on to have success in all fields of the entertainment industry. Notable performance alumni of the program include: Academy Award-winning actor Rami Malek (Bohemian Rhapsody), Carrie Preston (Claws), Rutina Wesley (Queen Sugar), Nathan Darrow (Gotham), Deirdre Lovejoy (The Wire), Bill Heck (The Ballad of Buster Scruggs), Shane McRae (Sneaky Pete), Toby Onwumere (Empire), and Kelli Giddish (Law & Order SVU).

RECOGNIZING THOSE WHO RISE ABOVE