by

Richie Hall

Hamilton County Reporter

Judging by her reaction after being named the 2019 Hamilton County 4-H Queen, Emma Higginbotham might not have been expecting to win.

But she did. And the county 4-H Fair will have itself a new queen, who began her reign at the conclusion of the 4-H Queen Pageant, which took place Friday at the 4-H Fairgrounds in Noblesville.

“This is a shock,” said Higginbotham, a Hamilton Heights graduate who is now a freshman at Franklin College. “I have the best support system, and one of my favorite things about growing up in Hamilton County is the unconditional love. You either win or learn, and I’m thankful I’ve had people to help me grow, but also support me when I win.”

Higginbotham emerged from a field of 27 contestants at the pageant. The daughter of John and Kim Higginbotham, Emma is a 10-year member, affiliated with Sheridan Ag. She names swine as her favorite 4-H project, for more reasons than one.

“It’s early mornings and late nights with my dad in the barn,” said Higginbotham. “We spend a lot of time bonding there. It’s kind of our time together. It’s caring for something other than yourself, which is preparing me for one day when I do have a family and I have to be time-manageable. I have to wake up early and be the last one to bed.”

Contestants are judged in three categories: Interview, during which they sit down for a five-minute interview with the three judges; Professional Wear, and Formal Wear, which takes place during the pageant itself. The contestants are asked an impromptu question during the Formal Wear section. Higginbotham was asked “what is her dream career,” and she responded that it was to become an elementary school teacher, which is her career path, “because I want to leave a lasting impact on my students as my teachers have done for me.”

“I can’t even begin to describe the amazing things the 4-H program has done for me,” said Higginbotham. “Anywhere from growing me, not only into a person, but into a leader. Just starting in the third grade, I’ve had the amazing opportunity to show a broad spectrum of livestock, as well as inside projects. It’s taught me so many like skills that I just really couldn’t learn anywhere else.”

Before Higginbotham was named Queen, the other members of the court were announced. They are First Runner-Up Hailey Rivers, Second Runner-Up Emily Peterson, Third Runner-Up Emma Swain and Fourth Runner-Up Madelyn Zola.

Mya Lotarski of Winners’ Unlimited was named Miss Congeniality.

“It’s always been a dream of mine to just be on court, and just being with all these amazing girls has made my day,” said Lotarski.

The Queen and her court will be in attendance throughout the 4-H Fair, which begins Thursday, July 18 and runs through Tuesday, July 23.

The Fishers employee health insurance program has cost the city $4.8 million through June of this year, and $8.4 million has been budgeted for the health insurance program in 2019.  At Wednesday’s City Council Finance Committee meeting, Controller Lisa Bradford said the health insurance program is now projected to cost the city $9.1 million for the entire year of 2019, putting the program in a deficit.

In past years, the city moved money around to handle the increase in health insurance costs.

Finance Committee Chairman John Weingardt described the cost of employee health insurance as “a big ___ number.”  Committee members discussed possible options to save money in the program, but did not approve any specific suggestions for the full council.

Councilman Eric Moeller said the deficit number is not larger only because the city has a self-funded health insurance program.

Abigail Kemper will be entering the 8th grade next month, but she already has a long list of accomplishments in the field of science.  She talked about that before the Hamilton Southeastern School Board Wednesday night, and answered questions from board members.

This past year, Abigail placed in the Top 10 at the Seventh Grade Science Fair held at Fishers Junior High, which qualified her to attend the regional competition. At that competition, Abigail won the Air Force Outstanding Engineering Project Award, First Place in Seventh Grade and First Place in the Junior Division, also qualifying her to move onto the state competition.

On March 30 at the Indiana Science Fair State Competition, Abigail took home the Lemelson Early Inventor Prize, the Indiana Association of Environmental Professionals Award for Excellence in Environmental Science and the Best Engineering Project by a Female from the Society of Women Engineers. Abigail also placed second overall and was awarded a $650 prize.

Abigail is a former student of SCI teacher Jennifer Suskovich and used their classroom project of designing and building a solar panel stand that utilizes angles of the seasonal sun to maximize the amount of solar energy captured by the panel as her starting point for her award-winning project.

Abigail and Mrs. Suskovich recently returned from Washington, D.C. where they attended the NEED Awards Ceremony. Sand Creek Intermediate was named the Indiana School of the Year and National Junior Rookie of the Year.

Fishers Police will be expanding the ways citizens can provide tips to local officers.  Many of the systems already in place will continue but new options are coming through partnerships with private companies.

Here are more details, from a Fishers Police Department news release:

The Fishers Police Department is proud to announce our recent partnership with the Texas-based company, Anderson Software, to provide a more seamless and efficient way for community members to offer information to help solve and prevent crimes or other serious matters. P3 Intel will provide another valuable resource to Fishers residents partnering with the police department to proactively maintain a safe community.

The Fishers Police Department will now be accepting tips via, the web, FPD social media platforms, and by way of the new, free FPD Tips mobile app available on the iOS and Android platforms, greatly enhancing the mobile tip submission process. Anderson Software’s sophisticated encryption processes obscure any and all identifying information and provide assured confidentiality for tipsters.

Even without the app, there is still an easy and secure option for submitting tips from any internet or mobile browser by going tohttps://www.fishers.in.us/241/Police. Using whichever method, once a person submits a tip, they will be given a TIP ID and password. FPD Crime Tips is not monitored 24/7 and all emergency situations must be reported to 911 or 317-773-1282.

This new FPD Crime Tip software is just one resource the agency is using to connect and communicate with residents. In addition, residents can also report non-emergency situations thru the FPD Crime Watch App. For more information please visit https://crimewatch.fishers.in.us/. It is important to remember that neither the Crime Tip nor the Crime Watch Apps are designed to replace 911. All emergency situations must be reported to 911 or 317-773-1282.

Those parking on Lantern Road in the Nickel Plate District should watch for parking restrictions beginning July 13th.  That’s one of several updates on traffic work in and around the Fishers area.

Here is the full listing, as provided by the City of Fishers, for the work week starting Monday, July 15th:

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There will be bicycles at the Fishers District Development, under construction near The Yard in the area of I-69 and 116th Street.  The developer, Thompson-Thrift, says the Cycle Bar of Fishers will open this fall.

The studio will take up almost 2,000 square feet of space, and will feature 45 bikes and other amenities. Cycle Bar provides riders with a pair of cycling shoes and towels for each ride. Class types include Classic, Performance, Connect – including Private,  CycleGives, and Themed Rides.

“I’m very excited to bring the first dedicated premier cycling fitness studio to Fishers, and to be opening at the Fishers District this fall,” says Amanda Moor, Owner, CycleBar Fishers, in a Thompson-Thrift news release. “As a resident of Fishers, I’m passionate about this community and thrilled at the opportunity to combine my experience in sports with the CycleBar fitness experience. We’ll have an awesome team at this location and know CycleBar will further enhance the fitness experiences at Fishers District.”

Federal investigators have charged two Fishers men of attempting to provide automatic weapons to the Islamic State of Iraq, also known as ISIS.  The Grand Jury indictments were announced Thursday by the United States Attorney’s office in Indianapolis.

Officials say the indictments were handed down after a months-ling federal probe.

Under indictment are Moyad Dannon, 21, and Mahde Dannon, 20, both from Fishers.

Below is the full news release from the office of U.S. Attorney Josh Minkler:

Continue reading Two Fishers men under federal indictment, accused of attempting to sell firearms to ISIS →

Wednesday was a big night for Clint Wilson.  He brought his wife and three children to be a part of his swearing-in ceremony as he assumes a seat on the Hamilton Southeastern (HSE) School Board.  Wilson replaces Mike Bottorff, who resigned from the board in late May.

I recorded a podcast interview with Clint Wilson recently and it is available at this link. 

Bottorff had been serving as President of the HSE School Board, so now that the board is back at full strength with seven members, Superintendent Allen Bourff told board members Wednesday night that they will need to conduct an election of officers at the July 24th meeting.

Board Vice President Sylvia Shepler has been serving as acting board president since Bottorff’s resignation.  Michelle Fullhart is currently serving as board Secretary.

So, HSE Schools will have a new Board President after the election of officers July 24th.

A brand new school building about to open is a very busy place – furniture is still being put together, a few teachers are already there setting up their classrooms and the final touches of construction continue.

Former and current members of the Hamilton Southeastern School Board toured the new Southeastern Elementary School Wednesday, near Southeastern Parkway on Cyntheanne Road.  The building is set to open next month when classes begin for the 2019-2020 school year.

School officials had estimated that about 540 students would occupy Southeastern Elementary in its first year of operation.  It is now expected that 682 youngsters will be taking classes in the new building,  The capacity of Southeastern Elementary is 707 students.

Here are more pictures of the brand new Southeastern Elementary School:

Continue reading New Southeastern Elementary School nears completion with more students expected than estimated →

You may have seen the new Fishers sign (sans the I) on the Pavilion building between City Hall and the Nickel Plate Amphitheater.  It was installed in late June, but was officially unveiled in a ribbon-cutting ceremony Tuesday night.

The idea came from a group of 4th grade students at Harrison Parkway Elementary School.  The idea began with student involvement in plans for the Nickel Plate Trail.

The students envisioned a “Be in the I in Fishers” sculpture along the trail, where residents would be invited to complete the artwork by posing as the “I” in Fishers.

Through a grant by the Indiana Arts Commission and approval from the Fishers Art and Culture Commission, the City of Fishers worked with local artist Rachel Kavanthe to adapt the concept into a large-scale, graphic print on the side of the Nickel Plate District Amphitheater Pavilion.