Fairfield Memorial Hospital is excited to announce that General Surgeon, Lauren Williams, M.D. will be joining the Medical Staff of Fairfield Memorial Hospital on a full-time basis starting in August of 2022. Dr. Williams is a native of Fairfield and received her Medical Degree from Rush Medical College of Rush University Medical Center. She completed her residency in General Surgery at Rush University System for Health in Chicago where she also served as Chief Resident. Dr. Williams will offer a large variety of surgical services to patients, to include appendectomy, biopsies, colonoscopy/EGD, general surgery, cholecystectomy, hernia repairs, insertion of ports, wound debridement, botox injections, and more. Dr. Williams will be seeing patients on the 2nd floor of the new Surgical Pavilion of Fairfield Memorial Hospital. Appointments are now being accepted and can be made by calling 618-919-4020. "We are proud to welcome back Dr. Lauren Williams, General Surgeon, to her hometown and excited to have her care for the patients in our community! Dr. Williams joins us at a historical time for our organization with the opening of our new state-of-the-art Surgical Pavilion and as the needs of our community continue to grow. Dr. Williams will be a great addition to the team of outstanding surgeons that already practice here at Fairfield Memorial Hospital." commented FMH CEO Katherine Bunting-Williams, Ph.D. LNHA. To schedule an appointment with Dr. Lauren Williams, call FMH's General Surgery Clinic at 618-919-4020. For more information about the services offered at Fairfield Memorial Hospital, call 618-847-8243. Fairfield Public School District #112 will conduct registration for all students in pre-kindergarten through eighth grade on Tuesday, July 19, in the new cafeteria at North Side School, and NOT at Center Street School. This is a change from previous years. Please enter through the North door on the new addition. (Signs will be posted). The hours of registration will be from 10:00 A.M. to 6:00 P.M. All students must register prior to the beginning of school. Horizon Healthcare will be on-site to provide School and/or Sports Physicals at no cost. No appointment necessary, but a parent does need to be present with student. For Pre-K students proof of household income is required at registration This is required by the State. The 2022-2023 registration fees for grades K - 8 will be $40.00, with an additional $20 Technology fee for 4th – 8th grades. Registration fees must be paid at the time of registration. Every child entering school for the first time (Early Childhood, Pre-K and Kindergarten) and those entering sixth grade must present proof of a physical examination. Students will not be allowed to begin classes until a physical is complete. Every child entering grades Kindergarten, 2nd and 6th must present proof of a dental examination. All kindergarten students and those entering school for the first time, age kindergarten and older, must present proof of an eye exam. School opens August 12th with a 1:00 dismissal. The first day for Pre-k students will be Wednesday, August 17th. Buses will run on a temporary schedule the first week. Children who are not eligible to ride a bus may do so by paying a fee of $80.00 for the first child and $40.00 for each additional child. Transportation fees must be paid before bus service begins. More information regarding the first days of school and meal prices will be available at registration. Parents/guardians of new students and those that have moved will be required to sign a Verification of Residence Statement when registering a student. Proof of residence will be required, such as a driver's license, utility bill, telephone bill, real estate tax form, or any monthly statement. The Verification of Residence Statement will assure school officials that the child and their legal guardian legally reside within the boundaries of Fairfield Public School District #112. The statement will also inform the legal guardian that falsification or misstatement of residence will result in a tuition and penalty fee. The 2022-2023 tuition fees as established by the Illinois State Board of Education for our district will be a maximum of $9501.68. Supply lists for both schools will be available at registration. Pre-school screenings will be conducted on September 14, 15, and 16 at North Side School. Staff will be available to schedule appointments for these screenings at registration. The City of Fairfield Finance Committee will meet Wednesday, July 20 at 3:15 p.m. at City Hall to discuss Evaluation of Utility Rates and Facility Charges. Fairfield Public School District #112 will hold their Regular Board of Education Meeting tonight at the Center Street School Boardroom. Among items to be addressed are Action on the FY23 Fuel Bids, District Depositories, Authorization of the District to expend funds, and Action on a One-Month Contract Extension for the Interim Superintendent. In closed session the board will discuss Personnel and Collective Bargaining. Action items include Resignation and Employment of a Paraprofessional, and Employment of Long-term Substitutes. The Illinois Eastern Community Colleges Board will meet on Tuesday, July 19 at 6:15 p.m. at Wabash Valley College Main Hall 101. After various reports the board will discuss Appointment of Board Audit Committee, and LTC Foundation/IECC Van Lease Agreement. The board will also seek approval of Affiliation Agreements with Embarras River Basin Head Start, Embarras River Basin Senior Center, Happy Day Express, and Lawrence Crawford Association for Exceptional Citizens. A 51-year-old Iuka woman was airlifted from the scene of a single-vehicle crash Friday afternoon on Iuka Road about four miles south of Iuka. Marion County Sheriff's Deputies say Lori Lacy left the east side of the Iuka Road for an unknown reason, hit a culvert, and overturned an unknown number of times before the vehicle came to rest on its wheels. Lacy had to be removed from the vehicle on a backboard and loaded into an air ambulance that landed in the field across the road and flown to a regional hospital for treatment. Both the Iuka Fire Department and United Medical Response assisted at the scene. The crash was reported at 12:11 Friday afternoon. The Illinois State Board of Education, has distributed the fiscal year 2022 School Maintenance Grants, totaling $30 million in state funding, to over 600 eligible applicants. Grantees will use the money to improve and maintain education infrastructure throughout the state of Illinois. School districts in our area that received $50,000 grants include North Clay, Dieterich, Iuka, North Wayne and the Geff Grade school District. To be eligible for School Maintenance Grants, applicants must be capable of matching any awarded state funds and commit to completing proposed projects within two years of funding dispersal. Funds must be used exclusively for the maintenance or upkeep of educational buildings, but applicants are given the freedom to submit projects that involve multiple types of work for a single building or a single type of improvement for several buildings. Secretary of State Jesse White is reminding residents to be on alert for scams claiming to be from the Secretary of State's office or from "Illinois DMV" seeking personal information to defraud Illinoisans. White said there is a new round of fraudsters' attempts to entice the public into falling victim to scam texts and emails. The most recent scam is a text message claiming to be from "Illinois DMV." The text message states, "Due to increased fuel prices, State of Illinois has initiated rebate payments of $1500 per vehicle. Check eligibility." This is a scam; do not click on the link. Visiting these fraudulent websites could place malware on the recipients' devices or trick them into disclosing sensitive personal information. The Secretary of State's office never requests personal information, like a Social Security number, via email or text message. "Delete the text or email," said White. "Do not cl