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USDA Assists Farmers, Ranchers, and Communities Affected by Recent Flooding

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To help residents, farmers, and ranchers affected by the devastation caused by recent flooding, U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue has directed the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to aid people in their recovery efforts. USDA staff in the regional, state, and county offices are responding and providing a variety of program flexibilities and other assistance to residents, agricultural producers, and impacted communities at large.

“Recent flooding in the Midwest and along the Missouri and Mississippi River Valleys has caused devastating impacts across the region, and USDA has personnel and resources devoted to helping farmers and communities recover after this storm,” Secretary Perdue said. “I encourage area farmers and ranchers to contact their local USDA Service Center so we can work with them to identify the resources and tools needed to reestablish their operations. While farmers and ranchers in the area are resilient, the pain is real. We will do everything in our power at USDA to be as helpful as we possibly can.”

On Thursday, President Donald J. Trump declared that a major disaster exists in the Nebraska counties of Butler, Cass, Colfax, Dodge, Douglas, Nemaha, Sarpy, Saunders, and Washington.

Background:

Farm Production and Conservation Agencies Helping Producers Weather Financial Impacts:

When major disasters strike, USDA has an emergency loan program that provides eligible farmers low-interest loans to help them recover from production and physical losses. USDA also offers additional programs tailored to the needs of specific agricultural sectors to help producers weather the financial impacts of major disasters and rebuild their operations.

Livestock owners and contract growers who experience above normal livestock deaths due to specific weather events, as well as to disease or animal attacks, may qualify for assistance under USDA’s Livestock Indemnity Program. Producers who suffer losses to or are prevented from planting agricultural commodities not covered by federal crop insurance may be eligible for assistance under USDA’s Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program if the losses were due to natural disasters.

USDA’s Emergency Assistance for Livestock, Honeybees and Farm-Raised Fish Program provides payments to these producers to help compensate for losses due to disease (including cattle tick fever), and adverse weather or other conditions, such as blizzards and wildfires, that are not covered by certain other disaster programs.

USDA Helping Agricultural Operations Recover After Disasters:

USDA provides financial resources through its Environmental Quality Incentives Program for immediate needs and long-term support to help recover from natural disasters and conserve water resources.

Orchardists and nursery tree growers in the affected area may be eligible for assistance through USDA’s Tree Assistance Program to help replant or rehabilitate eligible trees, bushes, and vines damaged by natural disasters.

USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service has information about protecting livestock on its Protecting Livestock During a Disaster page. Additionally, the agency is helping to meet the emergency needs of pets and their owners, as inspectors are coordinating closely with zoos, breeders, and other licensed facilities in the region to ensure the safety of animals in their care.

USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service Preventing Foodborne Illness:

As residents make it back into their homes, USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) is helping ensure they are taking the proper steps to reduce the risk of foodborne illness. Food safety tips after a power outage and flooding are available on the FSIS website.

USDA encourages those whose homes flooded during the storm to take steps to protect the safety of their food.

Tips to protect food safety after flooding occurs:

  • Drink only bottled water that has not come in contact with flood water. Discard any bottled water that may have come in contact with flood water.
  • Discard any food that is not in a waterproof container if there is any chance it may have come in contact with flood water. Food containers that are not waterproof include those with screw-caps, snap lids, pull tops, and crimped caps.
  • Discard wooden cutting boards, plastic utensils, baby bottle nipples, and pacifiers that may have come in contact with flood water.
  • Thoroughly wash all metal pans, ceramic dishes, and utensils that came in contact with flood water with hot soapy water. Sanitize by boiling them in clean water or by immersing them for 15 minutes in a solution of 1 tablespoon unscented, liquid chlorine bleach per gallon of drinking water.
  • Undamaged, commercially prepared foods in all-metal cans and retort pouches (for example, flexible, shelf-stable juice or seafood pouches) can be saved. Follow the “Steps to Salvage All-Metal Cans and Retort Pouches” in the publication Keeping Food Safe During an Emergency.

USDA Helping Impacted Communities Recover:

During declared natural disasters that lead to imminent threats to life and property, USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service can assist local government sponsors with the cost of implementing recovery efforts like debris removal and streambank stabilization to address natural resource concerns and hazards through the Emergency Watershed Protection Program.

USDA Rural Development (RD) offers technical assistance, loans, grants, and loan guarantees to rural communities and individuals to assist with the construction or rehabilitation of utility infrastructure including water and wastewater systems, community infrastructure, and housing. Rural Development is also helping businesses and utilities that are current USDA borrowers by considering requests to defer principal and/or interest payments, and to provide additional temporary loans. Current USDA single-family home loan customers may also qualify for assistance. Rural community leaders and current USDA Rural Development customers can contact their local RD office or visit the RD disaster resource website to obtain more information.

Visit USDA’s disaster resources website to learn more about USDA disaster preparedness and response. For more information on USDA disaster assistance programs, please contact your local USDA Service Center. To find your local USDA Service Center, go to offices.usda.gov.

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DEATH LIST REPORT FOR VANDERBURGH COUNTY

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DEATH LIST WK 3-18-19 TO 3-22-19

Softball set for weekend series against Loyola

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Aces and Ramblers to meet up at Cooper Stadium

With the opening four home games in the books, the University of Evansville softball team will continue its homestand this weekend with a 3-game series against Loyola.  The weekend begins with a noon doubleheader on Saturday before Sunday’s series finale is set for an 11 a.m. first pitch.

 

Last Week

– Evansville opened up its home slate with a series against Illinois State last weekend before welcoming UT Martin on Thursday

– The Aces dropped all four games, falling by a combined score of 44-10

– Two UE players finished the opening week of home play batting .500 with Lindsay Renneisen and Allison Daggett accomplishing the feat

– Renneisen was 5-10 with four RBI while Daggett went 3-6 and added three RBI of her own

 

Hitting for Power

– As a freshman, Lindsay Renneisen started all 49 games for UE and has continued to be a dependable force, making her way into the starting lineup in each game of the 2019 season

– She is second on the team with her four home runs and 13 RBI

– Renneisen has walked 12 times, increasing her on-base percentage to .349

– In the first four home contests, Renneisen led the team with a .500 batting average, earning five hits in 10 at-bats while notching four RBI, two walks and a run scored

 

Full Speed Ahead

– Allison Daggett is hoping to build on some recent momentum that has seen her pick up three hits in her last five at-bats entering the Loyola series

– She had a 2-RBI hit in the finale against Illinois State before adding a hit and RBI versus the Skyhawks

– For the season, she checks in batting .273 with six RBI; as a freshman, she batted .182 with one RBI in 46 games

 

Scouting the Opponent

– Loyola enters the series with an overall mark of 15-7 and are 0-3 in the Valley

– The Ramblers dropped three games at Missouri State last weekend

– Three Loyola players are hitting over .400, led by Allyson Ivey, who has a .438 average and a team-high five home runs and 25 RBI

– Shannon McGee and Jessica Shields hit .435 and .433, respectively

– The pitching for the Ramblers is also solid as they have a team ERA of 1.25

 

 

Operation Pull Over initiative. 

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The Evansville Police Department will continue increased traffic enforcement through the end of March as part of the Operation Pull Over initiative. 

Officers will be looking for aggressive drivers and impaired drivers. The increased enforcement is happening throughout the day in all areas of the city. 

February Indiana Employment Report

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Indiana’s unemployment rate stands at 3.5 percent for February and remains lower than the national rate of 3.8 percent. With the exception of one month when it was equal (October 2014), Indiana’s unemployment rate now has been below the U.S. rate for more than five years. The monthly unemployment rate is a U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) indicator that reflects the number of unemployed people seeking employment within the prior four weeks as a percentage of the labor force.

Indiana’s labor force had a net increase of 7,997 over the previous month. This was a result of an increase of 1,755 unemployed residents and an increase of 6,242 employed residents. Indiana’s total labor force, which includes both Hoosiers employed and those seeking employment, stands at 3.40 million, and the state’s 65.2 percent labor force participation rate remains above the national rate of 63.2 percent.

Learn more about how unemployment rates are calculated here: http://www.hoosierdata.in.gov/infographics/employment-status.asp.

February 2019 Employment Charts

Employment by Sector

Private sector employment has grown by 40,400 over the year and 4,400 over the previous month. The monthly increase is primarily due to gains in the Trade, Transportation and Utilities (3,300) and the Professional and Business Services (2,500) sectors. Gains were partially offset by losses in the Construction (-2,100) and the Financial Activities (-900) sectors. Total private employment reached a preliminary record highpoint of 2,747,600, which is 15,500 above the December 2018 peak. The February 2019 peak, like all data within this report, is subject to monthly revisions and annual benchmarking.

Midwest Unemployment Rates

February 2019 Midwest Unemployment Rates

  

EDITOR’S NOTES:

Data are sourced from February Current Employment Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics – U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

February employment data for Indiana Counties, Cities and MSAs will be available Monday, March 25, 2019, at noon (Eastern) pending U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics validation.

Private Sector Employment Again Reaches Preliminary Record Peak

 

400 Medley Relay Highlights Indiana’s Night at the NCAA Championships

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The No. 17-ranked Indiana University women’s swimming and diving team continued competition at the 2018 NCAA Championships on Thursday evening at the Lee and Joe Jamail Texas Swimming Center in Austin, Texas.

 

Heading into Friday, the Hoosiers sit in 11th place overall with a total of 54 points. IU’s total is eight points better than it was at this point at last year’s NCAA Championships.

For the second-straight year, the Hoosiers won silver in the 400 medley relay, as the team of Morgan Scott, Lilly King, Christine Jensen and Shelby Koontz touched the wall with a time of 3:27.01. The second-place finish is tied for the best in program history in any relay at the NCAA Championships.

King just missed her own record for fastest breaststroke leg in 400 medley history, splitting an incredible 55.67. The senior set the mark with her split of 55.66 at this year’s Big Ten Championships.

The All-America honor is the 13th in King’s historic career and the third for Jensen. Koontz earned her second, while Scott recorded her first.

In the Championship Final of the 200 IM, senior Bailey Andison placed eighth with a time of 1:54.17. Andison earned the seventh All-America honor in her career.

Andison’s finish is tied for the best showing for any Hoosier in the event at the NCAA Championships, matching Allysa Vavra’s eighth place in 2012. Andison and Vavra are the only two women in IU history to make a Championship Final in the 200 IM at the NCAA Championships.

In the Consolation Final of the 1-meter dive, redshirt senior Jessica Parratto notched her career-best showing in the event at the NCAA Championships, winning to finish ninth overall with a score of 320.65.

Parratto’s ninth-place finish is the best for any Hoosier in the event at the NCAA’s since Christine Loukas placed fifth in 2006. The Honorable-Mention All-America honors for Parratto gives her 10 total in her illustrious Indiana career.

The 2019 NCAA Championships will continue on Friday morning with the prelims of the 400 IM, 100 butterfly, 200 freestyle, 100 breaststroke, 100 backstroke, 200 medley relay and 3-meter dive. The action gets underway at the Lee and Joe Jamail Texas Swimming Center at 10:00 a.m. ET.

Be sure to keep up with all the latest news on the Indiana men’s and women’s swimming and diving teams on social media – Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.

200 IM

8. Bailey Andison – 1:54.17 (All-America)

1-Meter Dive

9. Jessica Parratto – 320.65 (Honorable-Mention All-America)

400 Medley Relay

2. Morgan Scott, Lilly King, Christine Jensen, Shelby Koontz – 3:27.01 (All-America)

 

YWCA Evansville Announces Major Gift from the City of Evansville Endowment Fund

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The YWCA is thrilled to announce that the preliminary funding goal needed to replace the roof on its aging building has been secured through an emergency capital grant from the City of Evansville Endowment Fund (CEEF), a stand-alone supporting organization of the Community Foundation Alliance. Funds are still being sought to repair the extensive interior damage to residential and common areas of the historic building.

In a meeting of the CEEF board on February 27, an off-cycle award of funding of $50,000 was approved that, along with an outpouring of private community donations and a generous matching gift from an anonymous donor, catapulted the YWCA’s ‘Raise the Roof!’ campaign past its initial fundraising goalneeded to replace the roof on its historic building downtown. The City of Evansville Endowment Fund is not governed or administered in any way by the City of Evansville.

In early February, an urgent call for help went out across the city, as Erika Taylor, CEO of the YWCA, facility shelter for women and children and residential housing mobilized an urgent full-press campaign seeking donations to help ‘Raise the Roof!’ for its Serving as emergency and domestic violence for homeless women recovering from substance abuse, the YWCA building at 118 Vine Street is well-used and well-loved, but the roof had finally failed, though the organization has worked tirelessly to fund its repair over the years. Inside the YWCA where families they serve are housed, rain now fell into bedrooms and hallways; the interior had become a maze of trash cans and buckets strategically placed to capture the water pouring in, and damage to walls and ceilings in residential and common areas was compounded with each rainfall or snowmelt. Taylor was sleepless with worry.

page1image52139264Though emergency repairs to the roof had been completed over the decades and a contractor was in place, the YWCA still found itself short of the more than $100,000 needed to fully fund the necessary roof replacement. On February 8, Taylor sent a plea for donations through social media, local news networks, and the Courier and Press. The release in part read: “It is imperative that we have our roof replaced as soon as possible.

We are calling upon the Tri-State community to open their hearts and their wallets to help fund this urgent need.”

The community responded enthusiastically–both new and long-time supporters saw the coverage and wanted to help, often sending notes, letters, and touching messages of encouragement with their gifts.

Completely overwhelmed by the outpouring, Taylor says, “It reassures me so much to know people really do pay attention and care about our mission and the women and children we serve!”

page2image52124608A week of steady donations and a generous matching gift from an anonymous donor moved the needlesignificantly toward their campaign goal, but it was still not enough to cover the full cost of replacement significantly toward their campaign goal, but it was still not enough to cover the full cost of replacement.

page2image52125760However, one of those who had paid attention to Taylor’s plea and the Raise the Roof! campaign was Jill Carpenter, Executive Director of the Community Foundation Alliance of Evansville. Knowing the City of Evansville Endowment Fund had, in November 2018, granted to the YWCA for repairs to roof-related damage to the interior of the structure, Carpenter asked the CEEF Board of Directors at their February 27 meeting whether an additional amount, outside their regular grant cycle, could be granted specifically for roof replacement. The Board listened to Carpenter describe the urgent need and deteriorating living conditions inside the facility and was moved.

Jerome Stewart, CEEF Board president, explains, “The women and children being served by the YWCA have already been through so much, and we knew that providing this grant would greatly improve theirenvironment. We knew we needed to help them.” By unanimous action, the Board approved the grant.

Taylor, though relieved this goal has been met, now wants to send out another important call to thecommunity: The extent of damage caused by the leaking roof to the building’s interior is still an evolvingunknown. Any and all donations toward costs of repairing the significantly damaged residential and common areas throughout the building are welcomed. Donations can be made online at ywcaevansville.org or by check to 118 Vine St., Evansville, IN 47708.

SLIGHTLY ENLARGE THE TENT By Jim Redwine

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Gavel Gamut

By Jim Redwine

www.jamesmredwine.com

(Week of 25 March 2019)

SLIGHTLY ENLARGE THE TENT

For many years many of America’s universities have gladly accepted contributions from wealthy donors whose children or grandchildren then receive special consideration for admission to those schools. The mock shock of the academic world over the current debacle concerning bribery and fraud in the admission process for colleges such as Yale, Texas, U.S.C., Stanford, Georgetown, Wake Forest and others rings hollow when the name on a building at a school is the same name as an under qualified admitted freshman.

When colleges sell their academic or athletic souls in return for the naming rights to stadiums, gymnasiums, libraries, classroom buildings and even practice fields, they have already set the bar at a level where money, not academic or athletic achievement or potential, is the criterion for admission. That does not mean there is anything anti-American about the donors or schools who engage in such practices. After all, there is little in our world that survives without transfusions of money. 

It is not those under qualified applicants who are let in that is the problem but those the ones let in keep out. No, it is not the generalized practice of giving preference to those the donors promote that should give us pause. Really, how many can there be who can afford to buy their family’s way into the “Elite” schools? Therefore, what universities should do is simply acknowledge the practice we all know has existed for years and continue to admit these not quite so bright or athletic applicants in spite of their shortcomings. They will probably fail in a year or two anyway.

However, after accepting the non-merit applicants, then the colleges should expand the freshman classes or the sports teams by the number of legacy kids admitted so that truly qualified students and athletes are not shut out. There is no great danger a genius or Heisman Trophy winner will be displaced by a ne’er-do-well as the true genius or excellent athlete will rise while the ne’er-do-well fades away. Of course, occasionally a legacy kid might later become a CEO or maybe even President, but he or she will most likely be insulated from running things into the ground by his or her advisors who have risen through merit.

Gentle Reader, you might sense a certain cynicism in this approach. But I ask you to consider this most recent affront to our academic and athletic sensibilities has so far resulted in fewer than 100 charges and none of those have been against students or universities. Whom are we kidding? America is not going to change from a capitalistic society so why pretend. Let’s publicly fess up to the realities on the ground and deal with them by making sure our freshman classes can accommodate both the few non-merit super wealthy applicants and those who truly merit admission.

Of course, the universities need to set the sales price for non-merit admission high enough that only truly wealthy families can participate. After all, we would not want merely middle class parents to put second mortgages on their homes so their children can attend those colleges willing to participate in this scheme. Such a practice might result in many more Americans getting the opportunity to rub shoulders with the “Elite”. That would dilute the pool of graduates and make the value of their degrees much the same as those of other schools where degrees are not negotiable.

For more Gavel Gamut articles go to www.jamesmredwine.com

Or “Like” us on Facebook at JPegRanchBooks&Knitting

 

Ashley Jordan to Speak at UE’s Annual History Spring Lecture

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Ashley Jordan, the new executive director of the Evansville African American Museum, will be the speaker for the University of Evansville Department of History’s annual History Spring Lecture on March 28. The lecture, which is free and open to the public, begins at 3:00 p.m. in Room 170 (Smythe Lecture Hall), in the Schroeder School of Business Building.

Jordan’s lecture will be based on this quote from Winston Churchill: “History will be kind to me, for I intend to write it.” She will also discuss the Underground Railroad in the Midwest and the migration of African Americans to Ohio. Both topics are Jordan’s research areas and specialties.

Prior to taking on the role of executive director of the Evansville African American Museum, Jordan served as the curator for the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center in Cincinnati, Ohio, as well as the National Afro-American Museum and Cultural Center in Wilberforce, Ohio. In addition to her professional experiences in public history, she has served as an adjunct professor for North Central State College in Mansfield, Ohio.

In May 2017, Jordan graduated with her doctorate in United States History from Howard University. She completed her undergraduate degree at Kent State University and graduated with a bachelor’s degree in history with a minor in political science in 2008.

Jordan is also the proud recipient of numerous professional, academic and civic awards including the Pace Setter Award from the Association of African American Museums, a multiple doctoral fellowship recipient for the Filson and the Kentucky Historical Societies and the Black Excellence Award from the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP).

James MacLeod, chair of UE’s Department of History, said that UE is “very excited to have Dr. Jordan come and deliver this lecture. She is an outstanding scholar and a wonderful communicator, and we are hoping this event will resonate with students of all majors, not just those who study history.”

View Online: http://evansville.meritpages.com/news/Ashley-Jordan-to-Speak-at-UEs-Annual-History-Spring-Lecture/8343

7th Circuit finds leadership enhancement harmless error

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Marilyn Odendahl for www.theindianalawyer.com

An Indianapolis furniture salesman who used his business as a front for selling cocaine and heroin persuaded the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals to buy his argument that he did not have a leadership role in the drug operation, but his 30-year sentence was still affirmed.

Geraldo Colon was a middleman in an Arizona-to-Indiana drug trafficking scheme. As he was purchasing kilogram quantities of cocaine and heroin from a Phoenix-based drug trafficker, he was also operating a furniture store in a mall in Indianapolis. He never segregated the mall’s lawful business, YRG Enterprise Entertainment, from his narcotics trafficking, instead depositing all the money from the mall and the drug dealing into the YRG business account.

In March 2016, Colon was indicted and found guilty of drug conspiracy, money laundering and making false statements in a bankruptcy proceeding.

The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Indiana applied an aggravating role enhancement under U.S.S.G. section 3B1.1 on both the drug trafficking counts and money laundering counts for the leadership role Colon played in committing those offenses. Although the advisory guidelines range was life imprisonment, the court sentenced Colon to 30 years.

On appeal, Colon argued the district court erred in applying the leadership enhancements. In particular, the district court acknowledged Colon’s leadership role was not the typical situation of a boss with minions but he was a “central figure” through which “huge quantities” of drugs entered Indianapolis from Arizona.

The 7th Circuit conceded the facts do not support an aggravating role adjustment and that the district court erred in applying the leadership enhancement. However, in United States of America v. Geraldo Colon, 18-1233, the appellate panel found the error was harmless.

“The district judge emphasized the large scale of Colon’s drug dealing and its impact on the Indianapolis community,” Judge Michael Scudder wrote for the panel. “She also pointed out Colon’s utter disregard for the law, as evidenced by duration of his narcotics trafficking and his continuing to do so after others in the scheme were arrested, allowing drugs to continue to flow into the community. In the district court’s view, the fact that Colon continued dealing following these arrests, ‘in a more impactful way than even the guideline calculation, point[ed] to the leadership role of Mr. Colon.’

“In all of these observations,” Scudder continued, “the district judge made clear that a 30‐year sentence was appropriate regardless of the guidelines calculation due to Colon’s prominent role as a wholesale distributor of hundreds of kilograms of heroin and cocaine, and the resulting harm to the community. This record allows us to conclude that the errors in the advisory guidelines range were harmless.”

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