The cloudy skies and cool temperatures marked the beginning of the Fishers Memorial Day event, but the day began to warm and the sun started peaking from the sky as the ceremony continued.  This was a stark contrast to 2020, when the pandemic prevented any in-person Memorial Day event.

I have attended every Memorial Day ceremony in Fishers since we became a city in 2015 and this was the largest crowd yet assembled.  There was a good reason – the new Gold Star Families Memorial Monument was unveiled at Monday’s event.

Gold Star Families lost a family member in military service.

The White River Brass Troupe handled the music.  Colonel Doug Hendrick, a U.S. Army reserve Chaplain, provided emotional stories of heroism on the battlefield and the military hospitals.  Indiana National Guard Brigadier General Timothy Winslow was overcome with grief as he spoke of families losing loved ones in war.  Fishers Mayor Scott Fadness spoke of his own young sons in understanding the sacrifices military families endure.

But the most important people at this event were the Gold Star families themselves, invited by the city to attend this ceremony and lay a flower at the memorial being dedicated on this Memorial Day.

Pictures can explain this event better then any words I can write.  So, here are photos from the 2021 Fishers Memorial Day ceremony and unveiling of the Gold Star Families Memorial Monument.

Continue reading Gold Star Family Memorial Monument unveiled at Fishers Memorial Day commemoration →

The Indy 500 was a big part of my life growing up.  My family loved the race and followed closely all the month of May activities.  It was traditional to listen on our family radio as the IMS Radio Network described the race.

I never understood the world-wide impact of the race until I was on a tour bus during my first visit to New York City.  The year was 1981 or 1983, I am not certain about the year.  However, I do remember this story.

The guide asked all passengers where they were from.  We had people on the bus from Soviet Russia, London, Paris…well you get the idea.  It was a very international crowd.  We were last to be asked and I told the guide we were from Indianapolis.  I expected a shoulder shrug from this worldly crowd, but no, everyone asked me about the Indianapolis 500.  They were all familiar with the race and wanted to know more about it.

I had covered many qualification weekends during my radio broadcasting career in the 1970s.  I took a working vacation after switching careers and covered practice and qualifying for many years in the 1980s.  I have always loved the race and its iconic history.

The race lost some luster when there was a split in the open-wheel racing family and it took about 10 years to get everything back and many said it had lost some glory.  The 100th running brought a lot of the excitement back and the race has been gaining steam once again the past few years.

It didn’t hurt that during the 2021 race, history was made.  For the first time in 30 years, a driver won a fourth Indy 500 title.  Helio Castroneves joins AJ Foyt, Al Unser (Sr) and Rick Mears as a 4-time winner.

Castroneves is a favorite with the fans and the media.  It is better that this year’s race had fans in the stands, even if limited.

Congratulations to Helio Castroneves.  You earned the win and earned the right to enter into Indy 500 history.

by

Fred Swift

Hamilton County Reporter

Hamilton County Commissioners and representatives of the county council will meet June 14 to discuss methods of distribution for federal COVID relief funds.

The county has been granted $65.5 million which must be distributed in the next two years. But, there are only certain areas where the money can be spent, including to county agencies with pandemic-related losses, certain infrastructure needs, non-profit community groups, and assistance to small businesses impacted by the pandemic.

The county thus far has only expended the relief funds for its employees who were paid bonus amounts up to $3,000 for the hazardous duty they experienced.

The 9 a.m. June 14 meeting is largely to get an explanation of the methods and guidelines for distribution of funds, and not for establishing amounts to be granted to specific agencies, organizations or firms.

The funds cannot be used for capital building projects.

Cities and towns within the county also receive relief funds designed to compensate for lost revenue during the past year. None has yet revealed their plans for distribution.

As we have reported here before, this is the week 116th Street in the heart of downtown Fishers will close for an estimated 60 days, at the Nickel Plate Trail.  Also, be aware of upcoming lane restrictions to the east on 116th Street and on parts of Allisonville Road in the coming week.  On top of that, lots of other projects are underway around the city, including the ongoing State Road 37 construction.

For more details on that and more, check out the latest listing as provided by the City of Fishers May 28th:

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Fishers believes the 85% COVID vaccination goal can be achieved in July, based on the numbers crunched so far.  The Fishers Health Department says 59 percent of eligible city residents are fully vaccinated, with residents 60 and older reaching a 91.2 percent vaccination rate. Over 67 percent of the eligible population has received their first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine.

The Fishers Health Department says the city is outpacing all other county jurisdictions in Indiana for first dose administration by greater than five percent and just second behind Ohio County in full vaccination coverage, according to the May 28 state data.

“We are thrilled to see our community continue to take COVID-19 seriously and realize the importance of vaccinations in getting life back to normal,” said FHD director Monica Heltz in a health department news release. “Underscoring this effort is the impact the vaccinations are having on positive COVID-19 cases in which we’re seeing no new cases since March for residents 80 and older. Our hope is that residents in that 12-29 age category prioritize their vaccination so we can start to see a true drop in new cases in our community.”

The FHD tracks the vaccination rates by age group, gender, and ethnicity on their dashboard accessible here.

The City Council approved $2 million in April 2020 to fund the newly formed Fishers Health Department’s COVID-19 efforts. Since that time, more than 45,000 COVID-19 tests have been administered for free to residents. $1.8 million of the appropriated money has been reimbursed from the Federal government’s CARES Act.

The FHD vaccination site now takes walk-in appointments for COVID-19 vaccinations from all three approved manufacturers and hosts pop-up events around the city. To learn more, use this link.

It appears librarians are quite popular within the Hamilton Southeastern School District.  Kristen Distler, Fall Creek Junior High School’s Teacher Librarian, is the district’s teacher of the year for the upcoming school year.  For the school year just ended, no individual teacher received the award, with the school corporation citing all teachers as teachers of the year with the added stress of teaching during a pandemic.

The two previous teachers of the year, Maria Kussy & John Hochstetler, were both school librarians (also called media specialists).

The Hamilton Southeastern School Foundation established a fund to financially reward the HSE Schools Teacher of the year.  The fund was established by Superintendent Allen Bourff and is intended to be handed out to each teacher of the year moving forward.  Ms. Distler was awarded a $500 check.

Below, see the listing of Honor and Excellence awards.  Below that, view the video produced by HSE Schools about Kristen Distler.

It’s been discussed for months and now it is about to happen…116th Street will close at the Nickel Plate Trail beginning June 1 for what is expected to be a 60 day period.  During the construction, 116th Street will be closed from east of Municipal Drive to west of Maple Street. All local business and public parking access will remain open.

106th Street will serve as the detour (see map above).

Portions of the Nickel Plate Trail are now open, including the paved portion from 131^st Street to North Street, and from South Street to 106^th Street. The 116th Street tunnel will complete the trail connection through downtown Fishers, joining South Street and North Street, and establishing a full connection from 131^st Street to 106^th Street. While the tunnel is under construction, a pedestrian detour route will provide access through downtown between the north and south sections of the trail. View the pedestrian detour map here.

Health food lovers will have a new location to try starting in September.  Kurt Christian of the Indianapolis Business Journal writes that Clean Eatz will open a new restaurant at 8510 E. 96th Street.

For more, use this link to read the IBJ story.

Brittany RayburnThe local nonprofit group, Youth Mentoring Initiative (YMI), is welcoming a new executive director.  Brittany Rayburn is taking the helm after Alison Gatz left that post following four years of growing the organization.  Ms. Rayburn’s official start date is July 12.

“On behalf of the entire Board and staff, we are excited to welcome Brittany to the YMI team,” said YMI Board President Joe Eaton in a YMI news release. “With her non-profit experience and passion for service, the more than two hundred mentees we serve each school year will ultimately benefit. We hope to continue to grow and expand our outreach and services to help every student within the HSE School District who needs a mentor, so they know there is always a caring adult on their side.”

Rayburn, a Fishers resident, joins YMI with extensive experience in nonprofit work including fund development, relationship management, strategy, and staff leadership and development most recently with Hamilton County Community Foundation, an affiliate of Central Indiana Community Foundation.

“After serving this community for many years, I am looking forward to making sure YMI remains a critical resource for students in Hamilton Southeastern Schools, working with our generous donors and partners, and supporting the staff and mentors that impact lives every day,” said Rayburn.

YMI provides adult mentors to students in the Hamilton Southeastern School District.

Will this summer movie season see audiences returning to the big screen in the multiplexes this summer?  One big test will be a film being released over the Memorial holiday season, A Quiet Place Part II.  A sequel to the original 2018 film, this movie is most definitely made for a movie theater, not as much for a big screen at home.

So, is A Quiet Place Part II a good film and worth seeing?

Here is my review.