Superintendent Susan Burris presented recommendations to the Litchfield School Board last evening regarding miscellaneous rates. The new rates will take effect on July 1st of this year as the School Board approved of them.
The rate for substitute teachers will increase from $145 per day to $155 per day. One-dollar increases per hour were approved for substitute paraprofessionals, clerical, food service and custodial positions. The circle route driver rate will increase from $15 to $16.50. The rate for extra-curricular table workers and announcers will increase from $18.19 to $19.19. Supervision will increase from $19.19 to $20.19, and for tickets, the rate will increase from $13.51 to $15.51. The last time that these rates were increased was December 1st of 2023.
The Board approved of the summer school programs and staff summer hours as part of the consent agenda. In the superintendent’s report, Burris told the Litchfield School Board that Adaptive Bowling Team members Donnie Weimer and Trinity Meyer qualified for and made it to the state competition on May 8th and did very well. She says Tyler Storm, Amy Terning and the students will be at the May 26th School Board meeting to share more details. On a related note, Board Chair Alex Carlson said that a Unified track meet will take place in Litchfield on Wednesday.
Students and staff at St. Philip’s Catholic School in Litchfield are wrapping their activities for the year, and May is proving to be a busy month for them. St. Philip’s School will be offering a preschool class next year.
Principal Andrea Dietrich says the preschool is for children ages 3-to-5 and if you enroll by the end of this month, you’ll get $200 off of the tuition. She says they will have graduation for their Kindergarteners on May 22nd and for the 5th graders on May 29th.
Dietrich says the last day of school at St. Philip’s is May 29th. She says they are going to reward the 5th graders for their patrolling duties by attending a Twins game and during the final week of May, they will have Field Day, a talent show and a visit from a Litchfield Public Library official to talk about the summer reading program. Enrollment for St. Philip’s School is open at any time and for more details, call 693-6283.
On this day in music, May 11, 1981, reggae pioneer Bob Marley died in Miami, following a lengthy battle with melanoma. The Jamaican singer-songwriter was instrumental in popularizing his country’s music with a global audience, thanks to his irresistible fusion of reggae, ska, and rocksteady. Just 36 at the time of his death, Marley left behind an impressive – and enduring – catalog of music, while his greatest hits album, Legend remains the best-selling reggae album of all time. Marley received numerous accolades before and after his death, including a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award and Jamaica’s Order of Merit, recognizing his contributions to the arts. Ever the poet, Marley’s last words to his son Ziggy were “money can’t buy life.”
In 1970, Woodstock: Music from the Original Soundtrack and More, was released in the US. Featuring select performances from the 1969 Woodstock Music and Art Fair, the triple LP highlighted such acts as The Who, Santana, Crosby Stills & Nash, Canned Heat, and Richie Havens. Woodstock landed in the Top Ten in multiple countries, while it hit No.1 in the US, where it achieved a gold certification within two weeks of its release.
In 1963, The Beatles’ Please Please Me began a 30-week run at the top of the UK album charts. The band’s debut soon made history as the longest-running No.1 album ever – only to be replaced by The Beatles’ self-titled sophomore album in December. Featuring the hits “Love Me Do” and “Please Please Me,” the album was primarily recorded in one session at London’s EMI Studios.
In 1974, Led Zeppelin attended Elvis Presley’s show at the Los Angeles Forum. After a shaky start, Elvis jokingly remarked to his band, “Wait a minute, if we can start together fellas, because we’ve got Led Zeppelin out there, let’s try to look like we know what we’re doing.” After the show, the British rockers met Elvis backstage, where they signed autographs for The King of Rock‘n’Roll’s daughter.
In 1967, The Bee Gees made their debut on British TV, appearing on Top Of The Pops. The Australian brothers, who had recently finished recording their first international album, Bee Gees’ 1st, performed “New York Mining Disaster.” They would go on to play the show nearly 90 times.
In 2001, “The Tour of Brotherly Love” kicked off in Las Vegas, featuring Oasis, The Black Crowes, and Spacehog. The tour was aptly titled to recognize the three pairs of brothers on the line-up: Noel and Liam Gallagher (Oasis), Chris and Rich Robinson (Black Crowes), and Royston and Antony Langdon (Spacehog).
BORN ON MAY 11
1888: Irving Berlin (Composer)
1941: Eric Burdon (The Animals)
1943: Les Chadwick (Gerry and the Pacemakers)
1947: Butch Trucks (Allman Brothers Band)
1966: Christoph Schneider (Rammstein)
1983: Holly Valance
1986: Kieren Webster (The View)
National Nurses Week was observed last week. Ecumen of Litchfield made efforts to recognize their nurses and show appreciation for what they do. Adult Day Supervisor Dawn Doty says they appreciate what their nurses do every day and their work does not go unnoticed.
Doty says the Adult Day program at Ecumen of Litchfield gives older adults a sense of purpose and it’s a lifeline for families and for caregivers who need a break. She says the staff at Adult Day has over 30 years of experience.
Jillian Miller says Home Care and Hospice at Ecumen of Litchfield takes referrals and the Hospice program is Medicare-certified. She says there are all kinds of services available through both the Home Care and Hospice programs.
Miller says the Hospice program is especially beneficial if you sign up sooner rather than later and for more information, call 877-311-4997. She says Ecumen of Litchfield is planning to have a senior expo on October 27th called “Falling Into Great Care” and the location and time will be announced as the date gets closer.