Around The Town

Jacksonville Rotary Club scholarships now available.

The Jacksonville Rotary Club is pleased to announce that applications are being accepted through March 24, 2017, for two scholarship programs. According to Scholarship Committee Chair Steve Holt, “The Club offers two categories of scholarships for local students, Senior Scholarships and the Staff Sergeant Matthew Weikert Memorial Scholarship. ”To be considered for the $2,000 Senior Scholarship award, an eligible student must be a resident of the legally defined boundaries of Jacksonville School District 117, and be a senior expecting to graduate in May or June 2017 with plans to attend a four-year institution of higher learning. Students may have attended a public or private school within the district boundaries.

Jacksonville Rotary Club President Nancy Thorsen said, “Application scoring is weighted towards community service and leadership activities. If the applicant can document hours of community service and/or church service, and can easily express their scholastic goals, they will be competitive for this scholarship.”

The Staff Sergeant Matthew Weikert Memorial Scholarship is dedicated in honor of Weikert, who was a graduate of Jacksonville High School (JHS) and was mortally wounded while serving his country in Afghanistan in 2010. This second category of scholarships is open to JHS Seniors and adults who graduated from JHS, who will be attending vocational school, technical school or community college.

To be considered for the Weikert scholarhip, an eligible student must be a resident of the legally defined boundaries of Jacksonville School District 117 (current JHS students), or a resident of the State of Illinois (past JHS graduates). If a current JHS senior, the applicant must expect to graduate in May or June 2017 and plan to attend a vocational school, technical school or community college in 2017. If a past JHS graduate, the applicant must plan to attend a vocational school, technical school or community college in 2017. “Please note that the Weikert scholarship is not for a four-year degree program,” said Holt.

Both scholarships, which will be paid directly to the awardee’s selected school of higher education, may be used toward tuition and/or school supplies including books. Children of Rotarians are not eligible to apply for either scholarship. Applications for both scholarships are due March 24, 2017. Application forms and additional information can be found on the Club’s website at http://jacksonvillerotary.org/scholarships/. For any questions regarding the scholarships or the application process, please contact Holt at 479-619-7358.

Rotary is an international organization that does charitable and service work both locally and throughout the world. Rotary unites people from all continents, cultures, and occupations—it’s truly one of our greatest strengths. Our members are leaders in their fields and communities. Our diverse perspectives help us to see problems differently—and help us solve them in communities throughout the world.


Passavant Area Hospital acquires Physical Therapists Clinic Ltd.

Physical Therapists Clinic Ltd., a rehabilitation therapy business with locations in Jacksonville and Beardstown, will become part of Passavant Rehabilitation Services Feb. 1. “This acquisition allows us to provide increased rehabilitation opportunities for the patients in our service area as we continue our mission to improve the health of the people and communities we serve,” said Harry Schmidt, president and CEO.

Physical Therapists Clinic Ltd. owner Curt Keim said, “I began my career at Passavant. It’s good to come home again.”

Trevor Huffman, Passavant’s director of rehabilitation services, added, “We will maintain the strengths of their clinic and combine this with the strengths and resources of Passavant to improve both facilities’ ability to meet the rehabilitation needs of the community.”

As part of the acquisition, the Physical Therapists Clinic will change its name. The Jacksonville facility, located at 1440 W. Walnut St., Suite 2, will become Passavant Rehab Clinic-Jacksonville, while the Beardstown facility, located at 400 S. State St., will become Passavant Rehab Clinic-Beardstown. Current employees of Physical Therapists Clinic Ltd. will remain at both facilities. The phone number for Passavant Rehab Clinic-Jacksonville will change to 479-5670, while the number for Passavant Rehab Clinic-Beardstown remains 323-4001. The current Jacksonville number will roll over to the new number during the transition.

Passavant Rehabilitation Services, located on the Passavant campus, provides comprehensive services including physical therapy, occupational therapy, speech therapy, pediatric rehabilitation, sports medicine and a lymphedema clinic. Rehabilitation and aquatic therapy services are also provided at Passavant’s facility at 901 W. Morton St., in the Lincoln Square Shopping Center.


Next Meeting of Audubon.

The next meeting of the Morgan County Audubon Society will be on Friday, February 3 at 7 p.m. at the First Presbyterian Church in Jacksonville. The program will be members’ slides and stories.

Share This

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *