Recognizing royalty
Thumbs-up to Brownstown’s Brycelyn Nickole Ruddick for her selection as the 61st Jackson County Fair queen and the rest of her court, first runner-up Alexis Koch, also of Brownstown, and second runner-up and Miss Congeniality Olivia Benter of Seymour, along with the 12 other young women who competed in the pageant. It’s not easy for some to get up on a stage in front of family, friends and strangers to compete for the crown and the July heat never helps.
A great fair
Thumbs-up to everyone who found the time and made the effort to make this year’s Jackson County Fair another rousing success. That includes those who helped their church or organization raise funds by selling food, ice cream and other items and those who brought their farm equipment and historical items for display or their livestock to show.
Ready for School
Thumbs-up to everyone who contributed to the Jackson County United Way’s annual Rock’n Ready program, which provides school supplies to more than 750 Jackson County children each year. The goal of Rock’n Ready is to ensure 100 percent of the schoolchildren in the county arrive prepared on the first day of school. The backpacks full of school supplies will be distributed Saturday.
Sharing
Thumbs-up to Miss Indiana 2017 Haley Begay who recently spoke with girls at Girls Inc. of Jackson County. The Pittsboro resident and Indiana University student discussed the challenges she faced in winning the crown in June and the challenges her mother faces as she recovers from surgery to remove a brain tumor.
Clean sweep
Thumbs-up to local residents who take the time to help city, town and county highway department workers clean streets and roads of debris after storms move through the area.
Not too sharp
Thumbs-down to those who drop uncapped needles in the gray drop off box for prescription and over-the-counter medications at Seymour Police Department. Doing that creates a safety risk for the officers who have to empty the container. There is a separate container for needles.