A Newsletter for the Forsyth Community April 11, 2019

ILLAGE ISIONVVLongtime Public Works director retires after nearly three decades

Mayor Marilyn Johnson presents Larry Coloni with a plaque at a gathering at Forsyth Public Library held in his honor to celebrate his retirement.

On Saturday, April 20 at 10 a.m. there will be thou-sands of Easter eggs scattered about in Forsyth Park. Bring your little ones out to participate in the Village’s fun-filled, annual Easter extravaganza. Come early because this is an Easter egg hunt that, despite the large numbers of eggs, tends to be over in just a few minutes. We don’t want any disappointed egg hunters. Remember there will be a special appearance by the Easter Bunny!

If there’s bad weather, the event will be moved to Forsyth Public Library. Volun-teers needed to help hide eggs on Saturday morning; text or call Kerstin Trachtenberg at (217) 454-5770.

Easter egg hunt is April 20

Larry Coloni, director of Public Works, retired on March 31 after 28 years of dedicated service.

Family, friends and colleagues dropped in to wish him well and to say thank you during a farewell gath-ering held in his honor in the commu-nity room at Forsyth Public Library on March 29.

Coloni said he was looking forward to having his time be his own after years of living with the possibility of being interrupted by a phone call in the middle of the night or while on vacation to take care of a problem that required his immediate attention.

He said he plans to spend more time with family and will keep pursuing his hobbies of running and

London, Peck and Shaw win trustee bids

Post-election congratulations go to newcomer Jeff London; to Jim Peck, incumbent; and to Jeremy Shaw, who won for the first time after filling out the remainder of the late Larry Reed’s term. All three were victorious in their runs to serve as trustees following the Consolidated Election, which was held April 2.

These three candidates, along with Michelle Guffey, were on the ballot competing for three spots. Longtime Trustee Kerstin Trachten-berg chose not to run again after serv-ing two terms on the Board.

Larry Coloni calls it a career

playing golf.“We are all going to miss Larry,”

said Mayor Marilyn Johnson, who estimated she had known Coloni for all 28 years he’s been on the job.

She spoke of Coloni’s dedication to his work and to the people who call Forsyth home.

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Library News

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Story TimeHop in to Forsyth Public Library for the last story time of the spring, Bouncy Bunnies, on Friday, April 12 at 10 a.m. Sing, play, listen to stories and create a fun bunny craft with us! Story times are geared for ages 2-5, and siblings are welcome. No regis-tration is necessary. We’ll be taking a few weeks off from story times as we prepare for summer reading but will resume on Friday, June 7. Don’t forget, you can always check out a book bundle or story time-to-go kit and have your very own themed story time at home!

Dance with MeCome Brain Dance with Michi Bar-ber from The Dance Centre. Chil-dren and their adult partner dance and learn together, exploring move-ment that provides a body and brain workout. Activities are designed for ages 16 months through 3 years, but all children not yet in kindergarten are welcome. The next session is Tuesday, April 16 at 10 a.m. No registration is necessary.

Baby TalkParents and caregivers of children ages birth to 3 are welcome to join their youngsters for a time of inter-action through story, song and play. Grownups can share challenges and accomplishments. Baby Talk is here every Wednesday morning from 9:30-10:15 a.m. No registration is required. Bookkeepers Book GroupThe Forgotten Garden by Kate Mor-

ton is the title for the Friday, April 26 meeting of Bookkeepers book dis-cussion group. Bookkeepers meets on the third Friday of the month at 10 a.m. All readers are welcome to attend! Dirt Pudding Drop-in Spring into our gardening-themed drop-in on Saturday, April 27 from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. We’ll create delicious dirt pudding — complete with gum-my worms — and decorate a biode-gradable flower pot. You’ll even get seeds to plant in your pot once you get home! All ages are welcome, and no registration is necessary.

Muddy, muddy pigs were the topic for a recent story time at Forsyth Public Library. Kinsley did a great job creating the perfect pig pen.

Magazine & Used Materials SaleForsyth Public Library’s 2019 Maga-zine & Used Materials Sale will be held in the library’s conference room Friday, April 12 from 10 a.m.-4 p.m. and Saturday, April 13 from 10 a.m.-noon. Sale items will include DVDs (50¢ each), magazines (10¢ each) and books (25¢ each). Of special note is the large number of children’s books available for purchase in this year’s sale. These items have been withdrawn from the library’s collec-tion for reasons of datedness, condi-tion or lack of circulation. Proceeds from the sale go to the Village of Forsyth’s general fund.

Summer Public Works Help – Village of Forsyth, IllinoisThe Village of Forsyth is seeking applicants for Summer Public Works Help. Performs a variety of tasks assisting

in the maintenance of Village buildings, grounds, parks and public ways. Must be at least 16 years of age and have a valid Illinois driver’s license. $9/hour.

Application forms may be obtained online (www.forsythvillage.us) or at Village Hall and should be submitted in person or by mail to: Village Hall, 301 S. Route 51, Forsyth, IL, 62535, Attn: Summer Public Works Help.

Colonicontinued from front page

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Erica Elsey, far left. Back row: Josh Fawley, Reilly Fitzpatrick, Cooper Kane, Josie Mar-tin, Mavis Wang. Front row: Anthony Lee, Konstantinos Goros, Maaz Bashir, Gammachu Amae, Megan Leighton, Maya Jyothinagaram, Rabya Hasnain (blue hoodie), Eric Manley.

Larry Coloni, left, and Public Works colleague Linn Summers almost three decades ago when they were beginning their long careers with the Village.

School District News Maroa-Forsyth School Dis-

trict invites you to join the Middle School Steering Committee. This invaluable committee will meet once a month starting April 30 to begin the important process of addressing the facility needs for our middle school. To apply to be part of the committee, visit mfms.mfschools.net/committee. Congratulations to Maroa-

Forsyth High School’s Academic Challenge Team on winning the sec-tional competition at Eastern Illinois University on March 7. Konstantinos Goros and Gammachu Amae tied for first in chemistry, and Reilley Fitzpat-rick and Anthony Lee tied for second in mathematics. The team is heading to state in April. Maroa-Forsyth’s math team

won regionals and will head to state in May for the ICTM State Math

Contest at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. The National Honor Soci-

ety raised over $14,000 for Special Olympics by participating in the Polar Plunge! Congratulations Harlan

Kupferschmid on being named a 2019 WYXY Radio Classic FFA All Star. Harlan was selected as one of 10 candidates this year and will be recognized at an upcoming banquet.

Three Maroa-Forsyth School District students advanced to the regional spelling bee. Fifth-grader Arnav Kolluru took first place at the Macon County Spelling Bee and seventh-grader Isabella Nilles got third place. Anika Jyo-thinagaram, a sixth-grader, will also advance to the regional bee. Also, congratulations to Arnav who got second place in the regional spell-ing bee.

“He truly cared about Forsyth, and he was so good at his job because he cared about our residents,” John-son said.

Johnson added that she will miss seeing Coloni at Village Board meet-ings and she hopes he gets to travel and do all the things he enjoys.

His interest in one of his hob-bies was featured creatively in a golf-themed cake that was part of the festivities.

Interview process beginsThe interview process for hiring

a new director of Public Works has begun. In the interim, the Village has contracted with EJ Water Cooperative out of Dietrich, Illinois, to manage the water treatment plant and its op-erations until a replacement is hired.

The contract, described as a

“short-term solution” by Village Administrator David Strohl, initially calls for EJ Water Cooperative to oversee the water plant’s operations for three hours per day, Monday

through Friday at a rate of $6,500 per month.

“The long-term goal is that the new Public Works director be a Class A water operator,” Strohl said.

Village of Forsyth Mayor and Board of TrusteesMayor Marilyn J. Johnson 195 E. Ruehl St. .............................433-3655Kerry Denison 873 Cara Chris .............................. .330-0795 Bob Gruenewald 718 W. Forsyth Pkwy. .....................520-5489Jim Peck 335 Forsyth Parkway .....................433-5700Jeremy Shaw 1274 Raptor Lane ................ (309) 830-0509Kerstin Trachtenberg 923 Stevens Creek Circle ..............454-5770David Wendt797 Christopher Drive ....................877-2935

Village Hall ....................................877-9445301 S. Rt. 51, Forsyth, IL 62535Hours: 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.; closed 12:30-1:30 p.m. for lunchwww.forsythvillage.usEmail: Info@forsythvillage.usTwitter: @ForsythILInstagram: ForsythIL

Forsyth Public Library .................877-8174 www.forsythlibrary.com

Public Works ................................877-1653

for 22 years

Forsyth Fast FactsItems of interest from village staff and recent board meetings

Local Postal PatronForsyth, IL 62535

Presorted StandardU.S. Postage

PAID Forsyth, IllinoisPermit No. 2

NOTE: On Sunday, April 28 Market Street will be closed tempo-rarily from 8 a.m.-4 p.m. to accom-modate the 27th Annual Blessing of the Bikes event at Coziahr Harley-Davidson. Save the date! The Family Fest 5k, 1 Mile, and Kids’ race is Satur-day, June 15 this year. Events start at 7:45 a.m. Guaranteed dri-fit shirts for all participants who sign up before June 1. Go to: runsignup.com/forsythfamilyfest. Paper copies are available at Village Hall. In his final report to trustees for the April 1 meeting, now-retired Public Works Director Larry Coloni noted that the water meter replacement project is now complete. Coloni added that, per a request from Trustee Jim Peck, he received an order of Ameri-can flags for Weaver Road. Coloni

also reported that he had instructed EJ Water Cooperative how to run the water treatment plant. During the April 1 law enforcement report, Deputy Megan Burgener of the Macon County Sheriff’s Office told trustees that there have been more calls to Hickory Point Mall regarding juveniles causing problems, includ-ing fighting. The groups are usually dispersed by the time deputies arrive on the scene so foot patrols have increased as a result, in addition to stepping up communications efforts to the public via news and social media. The next regular meeting of the Forsyth Board of Trustees is sched-uled for Monday, April 15, 2019, at 6:30 p.m. in Village Hall at 301 S. Route 51 in Forsyth. Board meetings are held the first and third Mondays of the month and are open to the public.