Brian Hamp and Jana Gray wrap up their performance during Saturday night’s Dancing with the Seymour Stars at Celebrations in Seymour.
Zach Spicer | The Tribune
Still dancing
Thumbs up to everyone who made the eighth Dancing with the Seymour Stars on Saturday night at Celebrations a rousing success. The event, which featured a dance competition involving eight couples, raised more than $112,00 for Seymour Main Street and the Boys and Girls Club of Seymour. Besides the couples who put a lot of hard work into preparing for two performances, many people worked countless hours to organize and pull off an enjoyable evening of entertainment. Everyone who attended and donated to the cause also deserves a thumbs up.
Dedicated to serving
Thumbs up to the family of the late James Richard “Rick” Hirtzel, who died from COVID-19 on Oct. 21, 2021. Hirtzel, a Seymour native, recently was posthumously named the Jerry Hounshel Reserve Officer of the Year for 2021 by the Jackson County Sheriff’s Department. Hirtzel is the sixth person to receive the award, presented to a reserve officer who goes above and beyond the call of duty. The 1984 Seymour High School graduate, who was 55 at the time of his death, spent more than 32 years as a reserve officer and also actively participated in the annual Fraternal Order of Police Donald M. Winn Lodge 108 Cops and Kids program, formerly Shop with a Cop.
D.A.R.E.-ing
Thumbs up to the fifth and sixth grade students at St. John’s Sauers Lutheran School, Crothersville Elementary School and Medora STEM Academy who recently completed the Drug Abuse Resistance Education program. Law enforcement officers teach students good decision-making skills that will help them lead safe and healthy lives, including internet safety and avoiding drugs, alcohol, violence and bullying.
A day of service
Thumbs up to the dozen members of the Point Students group at The Point in Seymour who made Martin Luther King Jr. Day on Jan. 17 a “day for service and not just a day off of school.” On that national holiday, the youth spent five hours at Anchor House Family Assistance Center and Pantry in Seymour. They helped organize nonperishable food items in the warehouse, assisted food pantry clients and cleaned one of the apartments for the next homeless family that will stay there for temporary shelter.