We hope that today’s “IS IT TRUE” will provoke honest and open dialogue concerning issues that we, as responsible citizens of this community, need to address in a rational and responsible way.

IS IT TRUE we congratulate Vanderburgh County Commissioners for approving the unprecedented road repairs and paving project for our county roads?  …this massive repair and paving projects that will include around 50 miles of County roads at a 5 million dollars total cost? …this is the first time in approximately two decades that a paving and repair road project of this magnitude has been attempted?  …our County Commissioners and Council Council members pooled their financial resources to fund this massive road project without raising local taxes? …this project received a unanimous vote from County Commissions President-Ben Shoulders, Vice Chairmen-Jeff Hatfield, and Cheryl Musgrave?  …we also want to give special credit to County Highway Superintendent Scot Wichser, County Engineer John Stoll and County Council Finance Chairman Jim Raben for helping making this project a reality?

IS IT TRUE that yesterday the County Commission extended the Anthem Health Insurance coverage for six months so that the “County Employee Health Insurance Study Committee” could finish their work? …we are told this decision was made in order to see if the county employees can get the best bang for their buck in regards to future health care coverage?

IS IT TRUE at yesterday’s Vanderburgh/Evansville Parks and Recreation meeting, the board voted in favor of hiring six people with high-powered rifles in Wesselman Park Reserve in order to reduce the overpopulation of deer? …at the last Parks and Recreation meeting, the board voted against this proposal? …we wonder if any board members contacted the Evansville Mayor, County Commissioners or County Council members to get their opinions concerning this issue? …some people hope whoever is in charge of this search and kill the project at Wesselman Park Reserve will take into consideration the highly traveled roadways and Stockwell Sports Complex adjoining this property before firing these high power rifles at running deers in the woods?…we wonder what this project will cost? …that many people wonder why the board didn’t decide to tranquilize the deer that graze at the enclosed  Wesselman Park Reserve and transport them to a rural area where they can continue to graze and raise their young? …we are told that many people feel that it is more humane to tranquilize and transport the deer instead of annihilating them with a high power rifle?

IS IT TRUE at yesterday’s Vanderburgh County Commission meeting, the Commissioners approved local #215 Teamsters to represent the employees of the County Clerk and the non-lawyers at the Prosecutors office? …the approval of these county offices to unionized are just two of the many that have been approved for collective bargaining over the last several years? …that the employees at the Vanderburgh County Clerk and Prosecutor offices will now be joining the County Auditors, Treasurers, Coroners, and the Recorders offices as the latest county Departments to be unionized? …we are told that the practice of wage disparities, favoritism, political patronage, and nepotism has taken its toll on the county employees over the years? …we are also told that employees who work for the City of Evansville are now talking about becoming members of the local #215 Teamsters?  …we are also told that the practice of wage disparities favoritism, political patronage, and nepotism has also taken its toll on the city employees over the years?

IS IT TRUE yesterday a letter was sent to The CCO Editor written by a local minister from Evansville that made some serious allegations about 2nd Ward City Councilwoman Missy Mosby campaign staff? …that some of the remarks in this letter concerned us so we contacted our attorney and he advised that we shouldn’t publish it until we have confirmation and documentation of the allegations put forth in his letter? …we were also informed that Missy Mosby is now represented by legal counsel concerning this issue? …that this a developing story?

IS IT TRUE that the 2nd Ward City Council primary race is really turning out to be a political barn burner? …that political newcomer, Dr. D’Angelo Taylor campaign committee is pulling out all stops to defeat the 12-year City Council incumbent Missy Mosby? … that Missy Mosby campaign committee is also doing similar to defeat political newcomer, Dr. D’Angelo Taylor? …we are told if the election turnout in the 2nd Ward is low, the challenger will have the edge?  …if the turnout is similar to years past, then the incumbent should prevail?

IS IT TRUE that all eyes will be on the Republican At-Large City Council race? …earlier this year, local GOP party Chairman, Wayne Parke, chastised Republican Alex Schmitt (R) for attending his good friend Ben Trockman’s (D) announcement filing for the 1st City Council Ward seat as a Democrat? …because of Mr. Schmitt’s attendance at Mr. Trockman’s (D) filing event, the local GOP party boss has publicly encouraged the party faithful not to vote for Alex in the upcoming primary election?  …we considered this entire situation to be somewhat petty and encourage our readers to consider Mr. Schmitt’s resume and community service as the criteria to vote for him in the upcoming City Council primary election? …we don’t care if you’re a Democrat or a Republican, but we do care if you have the right qualifications to hold office?  …we feel that Mr. Schmitt has the qualifications to run for public office?

IS IT TRUE that it’s obvious that the Evansville City Council should have known who would be paying the $3 million dollar costs to dismantle the dock at Marina Pointe before approving the move of the LST to the Tropicana area?

IS IT TRUE last week a bill that was designed to overhaul career and technical education across the state was signed into law. Governor Eric Holcomb?  …that HB 1002 was authored by Evansville Rep. Holli Sullivan and gives the Governor’s Workforce Cabinet control of $50 million of federal funds and also creates a statewide grant for career coaching and a program to keep college graduates in Indiana? …we give 5 Cheers to Mrs. Sullivan for addressing something that should have a positive impact on career education in the future?

Child Food Insecurity Rates In Tri-State Food Bank’s Service Area Are Higher Than Overall Food Insecurity Rates

 Tri-State Food Bank announced the release of Map the Meal Gap 2019, the latest report by Feeding America^® on food insecurity and the cost of food at both the county and congressional district level. It is the only study that provides food insecurity data at the local level.  

Map the Meal Gap 2019 reveals that food insecurity exists in every county in Tri-State Food Bank’s service area. It also shows that children are more likely to be food insecure, with the child food insecurity rate at 17.7% compared to 13% for the overall population in the 33 counties in IL, IN, & KY of which Tri-State Food Bank serves.

“There isn’t a single state or county in America free from child hunger, and it is within our collective power to change that and ensure that today’s children are tomorrow’s leaders,” said Claire Babineaux-Fontenot, chief executive officer of Feeding America. “The Feeding America nationwide network of food banks is investing in our nation’s future by helping to provide over 146 million meals to children every year. Still, Map the Meal Gap highlights that more must be done. Together food banks, corporations, policymakers, donors, volunteers and advocates can solve hunger.” 

“I encourage everyone to visit the website, map.feedingamerica.org to find out what hunger looks like in their community and get involved to be part of the solution,” Babineaux-Fontenot continued. “One way is to tell Congress to invest in kids during Child Nutrition Reauthorization legislation and increase access to food for kids during the summer. Your voice matters and we can make a difference.”

Overall food insecurity in the Tri-State varies throughout the counties Tri-State Food Bank serves in Illinois, Indiana, and Kentucky. Food insecurity rates in Illinois ranges from a low of 11% of the population in Edwards County up to 23% in Alexander County. The food insecurity rates in Indiana range from a low of 10% of the population in Dubois County up to 16% in Vanderburgh County. And food insecurity rates in Kentucky ranges from a low of 13% of the population in Livingston County up to 19% in Union County. 

Tri-State Food Bank Executive Director Glenn Roberts states, “It is positive news that, from 2016 to 2017, national and local food insecurity rates have dropped, and here in the Tri-State they decreased from 13.4% to 13.0% overall, and from 18.3% to 17.7% for children. Improved economic conditions mean that fewer people are living on the edge. However, 1 in 7 adults and 1 in 6 children still do not always know where their next meal is coming from, and this is unacceptable. And what hasn’t changed is the fervency of our work at Tri-State Food Bank because hunger continues to be a serious problem in this country, especially for our most vulnerable populations – our children, senior citizens, and those living in rural communities. Tri-State Food Bank is passionately committed to fill the gaps where hunger exists, and we invite the community to get involved in our mission by volunteering and/or making food or monetary donations.”

Tri-State Food Bank is a member of Feeding America’s hunger-relief network comprised of 200 food banks and 60,000 food pantries and meal programs that together provides food assistance to more than 40 million people in the U.S. struggling with hunger.  Looking back at our work from 2018, Tri-State Food Bank distributed approximately 8.6M pounds of food (7.2M meals) through its 248 partner agencies and schools of which help carry out Kid’s Weekend BackPack food programs, Senior Meal programs, summer feeding sites, soup kitchens, and food pantries. During this time, we were able to serve over 110,000 unique individuals in the Tri-State through a 10% increase in distributions over 2017. 

Map the Meal Gap 2019 uses data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, U.S. Census Bureau, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics and food price data and analysis provided by Nielsen, a global provider of information and insights. The study is supported by The Howard G. Buffett Foundation, Conagra Brands Foundation and Nielsen. 

Key local findings:

• Child Food Insecurity in the Tri-State is nearly 1% higher than the national average (17.7% locally compared to 17% nationally)
• Overall Food Insecurity in the Tri-State is 0.5% higher than the national average (13% locally compared to 12.5% nationally)
• There are 34,990 Food Insecure Children in the Tri-State

The study’s findings underscore the extent of need that remains in communities in the Tri-State area and across the U.S., despite national measures from the USDA that indicate overall improvement.

Dr. Craig Gundersen, Professor of Agricultural and Consumer Economics at the University of Illinois, Executive Director of the National Soybean Research Laboratory and a member of Feeding America’s Technical Advisory Group is the lead researcher of Map the Meal Gap 2019. 

This is the ninth consecutive year that Feeding America has conducted the Map the Meal Gap study. 

The Map the Meal Gap 2019 interactive map allows policymakers, state agencies, corporate partners, food banks and advocates to develop integrated strategies to fight hunger on a community level.

A summary of the findings, an interactive map of the United States, and the full report are available at map.feedingamerica.org. 

Join the conversation about Map the Meal Gap 2019 on Twitter using #MealGap.

Attorney General Curtis Hill announced today that Indiana this year has received more than $136 million from tobacco product manufacturers under the Master Settlement Agreement (MSA).

Reached in 1998, the MSA imposes prohibitions or restrictions on tobacco advertising, marketing and promotional programs. The agreement was reached by the attorneys general of 46 states and 6 U.S. territories to resolve lawsuits against the four largest tobacco manufacturers seeking to recover billions of dollars in state health care costs due to smoking-related illnesses.

“The Tobacco Master Settlement Agreement remains the largest civil settlement in U.S. history,” Attorney General Hill said. “The result is that our residents are better protected from the disease and death caused by smoking. With Indiana remaining above the national average in percentage of smokers, we must keep working to become a healthier state.”

Since the MSA’s inception, Indiana has received nearly $2.7 billion and will continue to receive payments in perpetuity. For more information on quitting smoking, call Indiana’s Tobacco Quit line at 1-800-QuitNow.

Jamie and Joshua Owens, Boonville, IN, daughter, Kinsley Nicole, April 19

Randi Delaney and Scott Nation, Evansville, son, Connor Scott, April 19

Erika and Kyle Miller, Evansville, daughter, Lily Marie, April 20

Kayelee Walker and Hunter Reese, Mount Vernon, IN, daughter, Hadlee Rose, April 20

Lauren Hodge, Evansville, son, Kamdyn Leon, April 22

Mackenzie and Benjamin Wilkinson, Evansville, son, Noah Benjamin, April 22

Jessica Wininger and Gerald Stephens, French Lick, IN, son, Kingston Kenneth-Allen, April 22

Carrington Graves and Jai Collins, Evansville, daughter, Jaicari Leamont, April 22

Whitney and Derrick Baker, Mount Carmel, IL, son, Weston Robert, April 23

Emily and Ty Riffert, Evansville, daughter, Harper Rose, April 23

Kayla and John Lapradd, Henderson, KY, son, Berkley Randall, April 23

Kelbe and Austin Douglass, Evansville, son, Kallum Elias, April 24

Shannon and Jonathan Eickhoff, Evansville, daughter, Lexi Nicole, April 24

Astasha Scott and Kevin Davis, Newburgh, son, Keith Lamond, April 24

Tiffany Sharp and Joel Mudd, Newburgh, son, Rufio Stamford-Porter, April 24