Recently, Charlestown Mayor Mike Hall has embraced an idea brought forward by one of Charlestown’s dedicated residents, DeAnna Hall (no relation).
    The general idea is for Charlestown to become classified as a "Tree City U.S.A.," thereby, making the town eligible for up to $20,000 in grants annually from the Indiana Department of Natural Resources.
    In order to become eligible for the grant money, Charlestown must have a community forestry board and an official Arbor Day celebration as well as an inventory of their current trees.
    If they as a community can successfully acquire these prerequisites, the grant money would be used for several projects not limited to, but consisting of: the enhancement of Charlestown community property, public trails, tree plantings, education, Arbor Day events and public tree care inventory.
    Another benefit of the program is that it coincides with the Beautification of Charlestown. As residents of the Charlestown community it is imperative that they make an environmental difference not only for themselves bur for the future generations as well.
    The first step Mayor Hall has taken in making this idea a reality was by forming the Charlestown Community Forestry Board. This step complies with the first prerequisite. The goals of this non-partisan board include: the improvement of many of Charlestown’s aging forests, the establishment of a community forestry program and the enhancement of the environmental health of the community.
    Charlestown will be having its inaugural Arbor Day Celebration and Proclamation on Saturday, April 28 at 11 a.m. in the square at Greenway Park, which complies with the second prerequisite given by the IDNR. There will be a "Color Your Favorite Tree" contest for the Charlestown children in grades kindergarten through fifth grade, tree plantings and refreshments sponsored by Domino’s Pizza, McCoy’s Landscape and the City of Charlestown.
    The top five colorings will receive a free medium pizza from Domino’s along with their picture in The Leader. Domino’s pizza is providing a coupon for a free order of "cinna-stix" to each entrant. The children’s colorings will also by displayed at City Hall from May 16 through May 30.
    Pleasant Ridge and Jonathan Jennings Elementary Schools will have contest forms available for their students. Coloring forms can also be obtained at Domino’s Pizza or City Hall after April 1.
    This program takes minimal effort and is an inexpensive way of replacing what was taken.
    If you have interest in helping with the Community Forest Project, please attend the first meeting March 27 at 6:30 p.m. at City Hall.
    For more information contact Deanna Hall at daledeanna@yahoo.com or contact City Hall at 256-3422. 

    The Clark county Soil and Water Conservation District announces their 2007 Conservation Poster contest with the theme of "Conservation’s Power."
    Poster entries are now being accepted for the contest.
    The theme for this year’s contest is in coordination with the National Stewardship Week theme for the year, "Conservation’s Power." Energy saved by no-till farming practices, solar, wind, alternative fuel sources, renewable versus non-renewable resources, conservation at home, and partnerships with conversation districts, communities and families working together. More information on the theme can be found at National Stewardship web site at http://stewardship.nacdnet.org.
    The contest rules are as follows:
    Posters will be accepted in the following categories: K-1, 2-3, 4-6, 7-9 and 10-12.
    Any media may be used to create a flat or two-dimensional effect (paint, crayon, colored pencil, charcoal, paper or other materials).
    Poster size must be at least 8.5"x11" but not bigger than 22"x28".
    All posters must have a completed entry form attached to the back of the poster.
    Entries must be received in the Clark County SWCD office by close of business, 4 p.m., June 1.
    All posters must be created by an individual student rather than a team of students.
    Although younger students will most likely receive help in planning from parents or teachers, the SWCD encourages each student to do as much of the work as possible by himself.
    Poster Evaluations
    Posters will be evaluated on the following criteria: conservation message- 50 percent, visual effectiveness- 30 percent, originality- 10 percent and universal appeal- 10 percent.
    Prizes
    Winners at the county level will be forwarded to the State Association for judging at the state level in June. Winners at the state level will be judged at the national level in December. National winners will be announced in early 2008.
    Prizes will be awarded at the National level in each of the five grade divisions: first place- $100 and second place- $75. The winning posters will be featured at the 2008 NACD Annual Meeting and will then be returned to their home state contacts. Posters not receiving national awards will be returned to their home state contacts in a timely manner following judging.
    What Makes a Good Poster?
    A brief, catchy message; one theme that can be read in 10 seconds.
    A slogan telling the viewers to do something and making them want to do it.
    Colors and white space to get and hold attention.
    Letters large enough to be easily read and words separated enough to make them quickly grasped.
    Principles of good design.
    Submitting Posters
    Posters may be hand-delivered or mailed to the SWCD office by June 1: Clark County SWCD, 9608 Highway 62, Charlestown, 47111.
    Any questions regarding the contest should be directed to the SWCD office staff at 256-2330, ext. 3.

    The citizens of Charlestown and the surrounding communities were saddened late Sunday into Monday morning as the word of a local doctor’s passing spread throughout the community. Many could not believe what they heard as they tried to cope with the loss of their friend and doctor.
   Dr. David Hale Jones died on Sunday afternoon at Washington County Memorial Hospital in Salem after suffering massive heart failure at his new home in Salem. He was 75.
   Dr. Jones was outside working with a leaf blower when he suddenly fell. He never recovered.
   Dr. Jones had treated most of the people in the area and had befriended many others. He definitely had a passion to help heal others as he spent 44 years serving the community before deciding to retire in 2003. Even though he ‘retired’ Dr. Jones was still seen working at the office located at 935 Water Street in Charlestown.
   His office family was devastated early Monday morning as they tried to concentrate on getting through the day and the full patient load that has become custom on Mondays at Drs. Jones, Voskuhl and McGhee’s office.
   When asked to comment on Dr. Jones and their fond memories Dr. George McGhee and Dr. William "Lou" Voskuhl, along with the office girls, were quick to respond to the opportunity.
   "Dr. Jones was a very wise and kind man. His dedication to the field of medicine was unmatched. He has done and seen more than I ever have in medicine. He has taken care of generations of families. It has been a great pleasure and honor working with him and he will be dearly missed," stated Dr. McGhee.
   Dr. Voskuhl and Dr. Jones have a long history together. Dr. Voskuhl joined Dr. Jones’ practice in Charlestown in 1965. The duo become quick friends.
   "Dr. Jones started here in Charlestown in 1958 and I became his partner in 1965. We have been partners and great friends ever since," stated Dr. Voskuhl. "He was a compassionate and very talented man. He was the hardest working man I have ever known even with the physical problems over the years, he continued to be the same energetic man I first met. He will be missed by everyone in the area."
   Dr. Jones loved his "girls" as if they were his own family. The office staff loved him back.
   Justine Frakes who recently celebrated her 30^th anniversary as the Business Office Manager had a hard time Monday afternoon talking about Dr. Jones.
   "We’re all just devastated over there (the office). We are a family," Frakes noted.
   Frakes and the office staff worked together to pay tribute to the doctor they dearly loved.
   "Dr. Jones was loved by every girl here which you don’t see often in today’s working environment. He was more than an employer to us, he was family. He took care of us and our families as if we were his own. We loved him and we will miss him," the girls stated.
   Dr. Jones was one of a select few doctors that had cured the ailments of his patients for their entire lives. Some families have children, parents, grandparents and great-grandparents that have all called Dr. Jones their family doctor.
   Dr. Jones even made house calls when he first began practicing in the area.
   Dave Abbott fondly remembers Dr. Jones making house calls when he was a young boy.
   "I can remember when Dr. Jones came to the house for me, my brother and sister. He always made you feel like part of the family. He was a very gentle, caring doctor that truly loved each and every patient," Abbott stated. "My dad, Ray, said he remembers when Dr. Jones first came to town, he drove a 1964 white Corvette. That was a big thing back then."
   Abbott was a patient as a young boy and his grandmother, Virginia was one of Dr. Jones’ first patients.
   "He will be greatly missed by the entire community. I think it would be hard to find someone in the area that had not been seen by Dr. Jones or had someone in their family seen by him. He left a legacy and many fond memories for the community he served," Abbott concluded.
   Dr. Jones was born in Russell Springs, Kentucky to Kilbreth and Ruby Hale Jones on April 6, 1931. He and his family moved to Indiana when he was just two years old.
   Dr. Jones graduated from Indiana State University before graduating from Indiana University’s School of Medicine.
   He came to Charlestown in 1958 and opened his first office. Dr. Jones moved the office to its current location at 935 Water Street in 1963. Two years later, in 1965, Dr. Voskuhl joined him.
   In an earlier interview when Dr. Jones was preparing to retire, Dr. Voskuhl stated how well the duo worked together.
   "We got along very, very well. In all the years we worked together, we never had an argument," Dr. Voskuhl stated during the interview in 2003.
   Dr. Jones and Voskuhl worked side-by-side for 37 and a half years.
   After retiring in June of 2003, Jones lost his first wife, Louise. They spent 52 wonderful, loving years together.
   His retirement was an opportunity for the entire community to celebrate with him as the local hospital, at the time called Medical Center of Southern Indiana, now known as Saint Catherine Regional Hospital, hosted a picnic luncheon, "Luncheon on the Lawn" to honor Dr. Jones on June 7, 2003.
   Many patients, friends, family and hospital employees took the opportunity to personally thank Dr. Jones for his lifetime of dedication to the community and their families.
   Saint Catherine Regional Hospital personnel know how important Dr. Jones was to the community.
   "Dr. Jones cared so much for his patients and so much for this community. As a patient of his, you would think that you were the only one in the hospital or the only one in his office that he had to see that day, every patient was that important to him," stated Ginger Ottersbach, RN, Director of Emergency Department and Intensive Care.
   Robert M. Lane, the acting President and CEO of Saint Catherine Regional Hospital stated, "I have only had the opportunity to work with Dr. Jones for less than one year, whereas he has a record of almost 50 years of outstanding and dedicated service to the community of Charlestown. From my brief interactions and from the history that has been imparted to us, it was a unique privilege to have known Dr. Jones. He will be sorely missed as a leader and a healer who made our community a better place. On behalf of Saint Catherine Regional Hospital, we thank him for his exceptional service and dedication."
   Charlestown Mayor Mike Hall stated, "The city is in mourning. It’s hard to imagine the City of Charlestown without Dr. Jones. He will be greatly missed. He was an icon in this city."
   Hall went on to explain how how Dr. Jones went above and beyond the call of duty for the children of the community.
   "They would call him and say, hey doc, we have a kid here who needs a physical and he would say, just send them up," stated Hall. "That was well before they were giving free physicals and it did not matter if the kid was a patient of his or not. He was always so good to the kids of Charlestown. He always went above and beyond for the kids."
   Dr. Jones was a member of the American Medical Association, Indiana State Medical Association and the American Academy of Family Practitioners. He was a former board member and Chief of Staff at Clark Memorial Hospital and St. Catherine Regional Hospital.
   Dr. Jones left his wife, the former Sarah Lambert. The two married on December 15 of last year. He is also survived by two sons- Joe E. Jones of Charlestown and Dr. John G. Jones of New Palestine, Indiana; a daughter, Marianne Smith of Charlestown; step-daughters- Karen Floyd of New Albany and Susan Campbell of Salem; a brother, James Jones of Anderson, Indiana; a sister, Margaret Bennett of Detroit, Michigan; 10 grandchildren including David T. Jones, Katie Jones, Jenni Jones, Alex Jones, Brian Jones, Cullen Jones, Derek Jones, Megan Jones, Lindsey Smith and Andrew Smith and one great-grandchild- Kelan Jones.
   The funeral service for Dr. Jones will be held today, Wednesday, at 12 noon at Grayson Funeral Home in Charlestown. Burial will be in Charlestown Cemetery.