Cheers & Jeers
Cheer: Two youngsters from Clarksville are due a debt of gratitude for their quick thinking last November when a tree fell on a family friend in the woods. Aaron and Kaitlyn Hilverding, ages 8 and 9 respectively at the time, alerted first responders after Timmy Howard became trapped by a fallen tree. Aaron rushed home where he and his sister called 911. “I needed to save that guy, so I just ran down and jumped over the gate,” Aaron said during a recognition ceremony last week at Carmichaels fire hall to honor the two. “I’m just glad that we saved him. If it wasn’t for me and her, he would’ve been dead.” Howard, who suffered numerous serious injuries, including a skull fracture and broken neck and back, was there for the event too, and expressed his appreciation to the children and first responders. “I owe every one of these guys something,” he said.
Cheer: Sidney Crosby of the Pittsburgh Penguins continues to play outstanding hockey and break records despite his team being out of the playoff hunt. Crosby notched a point in a 6-1 loss to Tampa Bay Tuesday night which means he needs one more over the last nine games to clinch a 20th consecutive season of averaging one point per game. That would snap the great Wayne Gretzky’s record of accomplishing that feat 19 years in a row. Crosby remains one of the best players in the NHL despite being one of its elder statesmen. Of the top 20 scorers in the league this year, all are younger than 30 except Tampa Bay’s Nikita Kucherov, who is third and 31, Winnipeg’s Mark Scheifele, who is 14th and 32, Artemi Panarin of the Rangers who is 15th and 33, and Crosby, who is 11th and the oldest of the group by far at 37.
Jeer: As tempting as it may sound, starting a backyard chicken enterprise is not a practical solution to lowering your grocery bill and will end up costing more in the long run. As the price of eggs continues to soar, some folks are going out and buying chicks without doing a little necessary homework, the newspaper reported earlier this week. Consider: Hens don’t start laying eggs until they are 5 months old, and some breeds take as long as eight to nine months. A few of the less informed are buying breeds that aren’t meant to lay eggs but are raised for their meat. And the rush to buy is driving up the cost of the birds. Jason Ellis, who owns a 100-acre farm in Greensboro, said he’s happy to share his knowledge with novices but warns of the associated costs of raising chickens, including food, shelter and medical care. “People say, ‘I got my first $3,000 egg,'” Ellis said. That $5.90 a dozen price doesn’t sound so bad after all.
Cheer: As Women’s History Month comes to a close, we recognize the achievements of some notable area females who impacted the lives of many and whose legacies will live on through their work. Among those highlighted earlier this week were Dr. Phoebe Jane “Jennie” Teagarden, Greene County’s first female physician and highly regarded diagnostician who helped to establish the Greene County Children’s Aid Society; Fayette County native Sarah B. Cochran, who took on traditional male leadership roles in the coal and coke industry in the 19th century and built Linden Hall in Dawson; Washington educator Pearl Harris, a 1940s-era teacher who taught preschool-age children at the LeMoyne Center; and Charlotte LeMoyne Wills, a champion of social justice who helped create the National Woman Suffrage Association. Pioneers in their own right, the women carved a path for future generations to follow.