Mayor Lloyd Winnecke will hold a news conference on Monday, March 4, at 11:45 a.m. at Mesker Park Zoo and Botanic Garden to announce this year’s Rain Barrel program. This year’s theme is “Dasani – Every Drop Counts”. The Rain Barrel project is a unique partnership with Coca Cola Company which will beautify our city, improve water quality and conserve resources.
Mesker Park Zoo and Botanic Garden is located at 1545 Mesker Park Drive.

Saturday, March 2, 2013
Mayor Lloyd Winnecke and approximately 200 Clean Evansville volunteers will pick-up litter from 9 to 11 a.m. along South Green River Road from the Lloyd Expressway to Monroe Avenue. The wrap-up ceremony will take place on the Washington Square Mall parking lot at the corner of Green River Road and Washington Avenue.
Mayor Winnecke will be at the Ford Center as the University of Evansville Aces take on Indiana State during Senior Night. Tip-off is at 4 p.m.
Sunday, March 3, 2013
Mayor Winnecke and his wife, Carol McClintock, will stop by the annual Maple Sugarbush Festival & Pancake Breakfast at Wesselman Park. The exact time has not been determined. The event is a fundraiser for Wesselman Nature Preserve.
Mayor Winnecke will be back at the Ford Center at 5 p.m. to see the Evansville IceMen play against the Cincinnati Cyclones. Game time is at 7:15 p.m.

April 22-28th, 2013

The WNIN Action Auction is a 40 year tradition in the Tri-State, and is broadcast live on WNIN for one week, from 6:00-10:00 p.m. each night. It takes 800 businesses donating over 1,000 items and 500 community volunteers to make the WNIN Action Auction possible each year!

Please consider donating items or your time to make this auction the most successful one yet! For more information contact Denise Rodgers at 812.423.2973 ext. 136 or drodgers@wnin.org.

Schools across the state are getting students ready for this year’s Spring ISTEP + testing which will begin in EVSC schools Monday, March 4. To get students pumped about doing their best on the test, many EVSC schools are hosting school-wide assemblies with fun activities for students.

Cynthia Heights Elementary School: Friday, March 1, 1:15 p.m. The school will host a pep assembly on Friday with motivational speaker Bryon Garland. In addition, the assembly will include five celebrity appearances (five student teachers) who will promote positive ISTEP preparation suggestions aimed to motivate students to “Rock the Test.” In addition, the assembly will include Gangnam-style dancing by fourth and fifth grade students.

Lodge Community School: Friday, March 1, 1:15 p.m. Members of the University of Evansville’s Men’s Basketball team are coming to Lodge Elementary School tomorrow to speak with students about having a positive mental attitude, and giving 100% effort and “shooting” for your goals. The school also will celebrate its own ISTEP version of the Harlem Shake.

Vogel Elementary School: Friday, March 1, 1:30 p.m. To get students at Vogel excited, the school will host a school assembly that will include Vogel cheerleaders and a special choreographed song for students that Vogel staff will perform.

Cedar Hall Community School: Monday, March 4, 8:45 a.m. On Monday, the school will introduce students to this year’s ISTEP theme which is borrowed from Survivor – Outsmart, Outscore, Outlast. The assembly will include a special skit and someone will be voted off “ISTEP island.”

Fairlawn Elementary School: Monday, March 4. Lower grade teachers have organized a surprise breakfast for teachers in grades 3 – 5 (only students in grades 3-8 take ISTEP). The upper grade teachers will be called in to a last minute meeting on Monday and they will be welcomed instead with a surprise breakfast. (Media Advisory: If you would like to attend this event, please let me know and I will get an exact time.)

Jam Productions is proud to announce that Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers will headline the Ford Center on Thursday, May 16.
Tickets go on sale Saturday, March 16 at 10:00 AM. Full ticketing details are below.
Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers belong to a special class of artists. A class comprised of those few acts that have sustained decades-long careers despite the restlessness of popular music’s audience.
They have scored hits in five different decades such as “American Girl,” “Refugee,” “The Waiting,” “I Won’t Back Down,” “Free Fallin’,” “Mary Jane’s Last Dance,” and “You Don’t Know How It Feels.” And they have sold tens of millions of records along the way. Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame during their first year of eligibility and have garnered accolades and awards too many to mention. Through it all their uncompromising integrity has never wavered while their concert tours have become things of legend.
Tom Petty has said the Heartbreakers are first a live band. Critics have said they are one of the few great live rock ‘n roll bands still playing today. The audience spoke loudest of all in 2010 when Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers’ last major North American tour was their most successful, attended by more people than ever before.
Tickets go on sale Saturday, March 16 date at 10:00 AM.
Reserved seat tickets ($117.00 / $74.50 / $52.50 / $29.50) will be available for purchase at the Ford Center ticket office, all Ticketmaster locations, Charge by phone at 800-745-3000 and online at Ticketmaster.com.
Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers Highway Companions Club ticket pre-sales will begin on Wednesday, March 13 at 10:00 AM. To learn more about the Highway Companions Club, please visit HighwayCompanions.com.
Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers Premium Ticket Packages, which include premium seating and exclusive band merchandise, will also be available for this show via Ticketmaster.com. Full details can be found at TomPetty.com.
For Show Information Contact:
Mike Lynskey, Jam Productions, 312-440-9191, mike.lynskey@jamusa.com

State’s petition alleges Crowley not present for writing of 513 prescriptions

INDIANAPOLIS –The Indiana Medical Licensing Board accepted an agreement to summarily suspend the medical license of an Evansville-area pain clinic physician, following the State’s filing a petition alleging that the doctor has engaged in dangerous prescribing practices and has allowed non-qualified individuals to issue prescriptions under her name.

Dr. Diane Crowley of Holland, Ind., agreed to the summary suspension of her medical license sought by the Indiana Attorney General’s Office. The Medical Licensing Board voted Thursday night to accept the summary suspension agreement which will be in effect for 90 days. At a later hearing, the Attorney General’s Office would have the opportunity to present the State’s evidence against Crowley.

The State’s petition, filed February 26, notes that Dr. Crowley is employed at Med 1st, a pain management facility in Evansville. The investigation determined that Crowley was herself hospitalized and not in the office to write prescriptions on dates where a total 513 prescriptions were issued to patients under her name. The petition alleges that Crowley pre-signed blank prescription forms using her DEA registration number, and then the prescription orders were filled in by other individuals, including chiropractors and other workers not allowed to prescribe controlled substances.

The State’s petition also alleges that Dr. Crowley has administered “facet block injections” to patients at the Med 1st clinic despite not having the appropriate education, training or experience to perform such intricate interventional procedures. The State’s petition alleges Crowley has failed to use the appropriate standard of care.

“This physician would present a clear and immediate danger to public health and safety if allowed to practice, and so it is imperative that the public be protected in the meantime with a suspension order until a disciplinary licensing hearing can be scheduled,” Indiana Attorney General Greg Zoeller said. The Attorney General’s Health Licensing Division brings licensing petitions to the Medical Licensing Board, which would decide what disciplinary action to impose against the physician’s license, if any.

The disciplinary licensing petition filed by the Attorney General’s Office takes place as the Indiana General Assembly is considering legislation to combat pain clinics that overprescribe addictive narcotic painkillers and put patients at risk. Senate Bill 246, which imposes various new requirements on such clinics, passed unanimously in the Indiana Senate on Monday and advanced to the Indiana House. The legislation was recommended by Attorney General Zoeller, who chairs the state’s Prescription Drug Abuse Task Force.