Month: August 2009

By the numbers, agency in need

Posted by apierceall – August 13, 2009

Judging by the numbers, AVENUES’ call for local assistance by way of tax credit-eligible donations is a must.
AVENUES, Northeast Missouri’s domestic violence and sexual assault shelter and advocacy service, saw its numbers  jump from 354 to 457 new clients yearly between 2003 and 2008. Bed nights at the shelter climbed from 1,210 to 2,982 for the same period, as did direct service hours, which rose from 2,504 to 7,704.
Here is a complete breakdown of AVENUES efforts since 2003:

2003
354 New Clients
1210 Bed-nights (each person residing in shelter is counted each night).
2,504.25 Hours of direct service hours to clients

2004
354 New Clients
1565 bed nights
2,967.50 Direct services hours to clients

2005
353 New Clients
1875 bed nights
3,897.25 Direct services hours to clients

2006
415 New Clients
1572 bed nights
5,075.50 Direct services hours to clients

2007
428 New Clients
1,696 Bed-nights
5,946.00 direct services hours to clients

2008
457 New Clients
2,982 bed-nights
7,704.75 direct service hours to clients

Those types of increases are huge especially for an agency that’s seen cuts to its funding over the last three years and, this year, cuts to its staff.
AVENUES needs donations from local businesses and individuals. Even a $100 donation, people can earn a 50 percent tax credit from the state, and a full deduction from the federal government.
The agency needs to raise just over $86,000 between now and June 30. If it does, it will make use of all $43,478 in tax credits from the state by offering them to their donating supporters.
AVENUES provides a vital service to its clients — mostly women and children — in seven counties. It’d be a shame to see the agency continue to struggle.

Training pays off for Hannibal Fire Department

Posted by apierceall – August 12, 2009

What could have been a tragic turn of events came out all right Wednesday afternoon thanks to the rescue efforts of the Hannibal Fire Department, solid equipment — and a lot of luck.

Ruth Hart of Milan, Ill., simply wanted to show Hannibal’s Lover’s Leap to her friend, Nancy Stohl, of Rock Island, Ill. The two got more than they bargained for at the popular overlook when, instead of hitting the brakes at the top of the hill, Hart accidentally pressed the accelerator, sending her 2008 Toyota Camry through the protective fencing and over the bluff, which is one of the highest points in Hannibal.

Here’s where the luck came in: The car overturned and landed on its roof in some trees about 30 feet down the bluff.

Then the training and equipment kicked in.

Hannibal Fire Department trains for rescues just like this all the time. Hannibal has too many hills and bluffs like Lovers Leap not to do so.

The fire department also now has the equipmeent on hand to handle such a rescue. Fire Chief Tim Carter pointed out that the new rescue truck was bought in 2007 specifically with a winch rated strong enough to hold vehicles in place during such a rescue. Also, the department’s aerial truck ladder is perfect for hoisting a rescuer and victim out of vertical position like this car was in.

So “attaboys” have to go to training program, the equipment purchases and to the men who did the work, especially Assistant Chief Shane Jaeger (who secured the car and then Hart and Strohl) and Engineer Jeff Moore, who safely brought the two women back to the top of the bluff.

“Attagirls”, too, should go to Hart and Strohl, who assisted the rescue by remaining calm during the ordeal.

Just imagine Rockcliffe restored to its original state

Posted by apierceall – August 6, 2009

Kenneth Marks, the man who has signed a letter of intent to purchase Rockcliffe Mansion in Hannibal, says he wants to ensure the mansion and its contents will still be available to future generations of Hannibal visitors and residents alike.

Renovations, started by current owner Rick Rose, are slated to continue if Marks’ purchase is approved by the bankruptcy court in Shreveport, La., now overseeing the property. Marks says he wants to see Rockcliffe “restored to its original grandeur.”

Just imagine that. The one-time family home returned to the state in which J.J. Cruikshank envisioned it.

To make that happen, Marks is calling for the support of local entities, civic leaders and the people of Hannibal. He does not say in what shape that support would take, but given the outcry of many residents after they learned of a planned sale of some of the mansion’s contents, support of the moral variety surely is there.

It will be up to Marks to indicate what other kind of support he’s looking for.

Here’s hoping that what Marks has said he wants to do to Rockcliffe Mansion comes about. The mansion is truly one of the gems in Hannibal’s attraction crown … or it should be.