Hello gardening friends. August can be a tough month as our gardens begin to look a bit tired and the heat is unbearable some days. Persevere with these tips, as cooler days will be here before you know it.

The Summer Reading program at Washington Library has come to a close. Each year the program continues to grow with 1,238 children and teens signed up this year.

Whenever I travel somewhere, I really get caught up in the feel of the place.

Rather than buying T-shirts with a state name on them, I buy historical books so I know some of what happened there.

If anyone in Washington notices I seem to have an extra spring in my step today and that my words are flying out of my mouth at even higher than normal speed, it’s probably because I am still on an adrenaline high after flying with aerobatics pilot Rob Holland.

I recently learned that Dairy Queen is celebrating the 25th anniversary of the Blizzard®.

For me, this is significant. The DQ Blizzard is a symbol of my teenage years. This anniversary has me reflecting on past memories of my time working at Dairy Queen.

The dog days of summer will soon be upon us! In July’s gardening tips we will not only talk about what to do, but also what not to do.

This is a good time of year while out in your yard and garden to make notes on what’s working, what’s not, what needs to be divided, pruned or possibly moved all together.

“What you can do for your library/What your library can do for you” is the heading on a bookmark available at the Washington District Library.

Here come the samaras! The winged fruit of Maple trees will soon be sprouting all over and pulling the seedlings from your garden beds can be added to the to do list. If you mulch your garden beds, make a mental note to lay fresh mulch after we get through the ‘helicopter’ period!

Here is a list of other things to do during May:

Recently, my mom made the comment that she misses reading the columns I write.

I started my “Kendall’s Korner” in 1992 when I began working at Tazewell Publishing Co. in Morton.

Over the years, I wrote about all sorts of topics. They ran the gamut, but were mostly about life experiences, ranging from when my cousin had her baby to when my other cousin committed suicide to my first time skiing.

Calling all kids! As you plan your summer fun, be sure to include, “Scare up a Good Book,” a Washington District Library and Sunnyland Branch summer reading program extraordinaire! This program is for young people, ages 3 to 18. Prizes are awarded to all who read, with special rewards for reaching your reading goal.

March saw us go from 67 degrees to freezing rain all within a day. Such is the life of a midwestern spring!
April and May are very busy months — keep working hard, keeping in mind that June is when we can sit back and enjoy the fruits of our labor.

This month you can re-pot your houseplants if necessary — going only one pot size larger — and begin fertilizing as they begin actively growing. They’ll love it outside, but not until mid to late May when temperatures are consistently above 50 degrees at night.

The community theme of National Library Week, April 11-17, is a perfect opportunity to discover all that your library has to offer everyone throughout the Washington Library District. Lots of exciting activities will be taking place for all ages to enjoy.

A book sale will take place April 9 and 10 and April 12-14 in the meeting room of the main library. Sponsored by the Friends of the Library, it is a great opportunity to purchase books of all kinds at great prices. There is a preview sale 5 to 7 p.m. April 9 for members of Friends or for a $5 donation.

Submitted by Vickie Hinkle, branch librarian

Washington community is very fortunate to have two libraries. Almost everyone is familiar with the main library recently built as a part of Five Points. There is also a branch library on the other side of town. In continuous operation since 1975, the Sunnyland Branch Library has been a mainstay of the Sunnyland Plaza. Both libraries serve the entire Washington Township.
Sunnyland Branch Library has many items and services to offer and most are free.  Of course there are books, but there are also DVDs, music CDs, magazines and audio books available for checkout.

Last Tuesday night at the Washington Citizens Police Academy, I could not get the Bee Gees out of my head. We were being CPR certified through the American Heart Association, and I have always heard chest compressions should be done to the beat of “Stayin’ Alive” to get the speed right.

OK, I admit, the closest I have ever come to being CPR-trained was watching “The Office” episode in which they attempt to become CPR-trained but the class turns into a Bee Gees sing-along.

Some gardeners are approaching a busy time of year, so if you didn’t clean, sharpen and ready your tools this past winter — do so now. As weather permits, try and fit in the following:

Begin general cleanup of your lawns and garden beds now, but don’t be too anxious to remove protective mulch, especially from your roses. Cut down perennials that were left standing over the winter — except slow starters like mums and lavender — wait until you see new growth on these and then cut back.

This is the third of three articles explaining the financial situation of Washington Grade School District 52, including Lincoln and Washington middle schools. In the previous articles, I outlined the impact that the state financial crisis is having on D52 and described the current deficit spending in the district. To sum it up, D52 is spending more money than it takes in — about $750,000 more per year. But the district has an ample fund balance. i.e. savings, for the short term — about $5.2 million. To further compound the situation, the State of Illinois is sending a clear message that all Illinois schools could lose significant state revenue over the next two years — about $700,000 for D52. This shortfall will further reduce our savings.

I know I said in my last column that watching “drunk people struggle to say the alphabet backward while standing on one foot” was not my idea of a good time, but, I have to admit, last week’s citizens police academy class was extremely entertaining.

State trooper Mike Connor, a 22-year law enforcement veteran and a former technician and breath alcohol instructor, gave a presentation explaining how police officers are trained to determine if someone is under the influence of alcohol or drugs when they are pulled over.
As a police officer, specializing in and training other officers for DUI detection and field sobriety testing was a natural inclination for Connor, who grew up in Streator and has, pun intended, alcohol in his blood.

This is the second of three articles explaining the financial situation of Washington Grade School District 52 (Lincoln and Washington Middle schools). In the first article, I outlined the impact that the state financial crisis is having on D52. To sum it up, D52 could potentially lose around $700,000 of state revenue over the next couple of years. Ouch! Also, in the article, I mentioned that the district has started deficit spending in the last two years.

How many classes exist that actually offer students a chance to shoot guns, witness drunk people submit to a sobriety test, see a trained K9 unit in action and put themselves in the position of a police officer?

“The one thing everyone wants to know the first day of class is, ‘When do we get to go to the shooting range?’” Officer James Fussner, the community resource officer at the Washington Police Department, said at our first Citizens Police Academy class Jan. 26 in the Washington Fire Department’s training room.

District 52 Superinendent John Tignor looks at the district’s financial situation in his series of articles as a guest columnist.

Washington Grade School District 52 (Lincoln Grade and Washington Middle schools) has enjoyed many years of financial stability, thanks to the efforts of the previous superintendent and past board members. These individuals made wise and prudent decisions that resulted in many years of balanced budgets and savings for a rainy day. Unfortunately, the rainy day is upon us.