O’Fallon Around Town — Feb. 3 edition
Noon Thursday, Feb. 3, is the deadline to appear in next week’s “Around Town” listing. We must receive your event in writing with a contact phone number for questions. Due to the number of submissions, events may run only one time in print, will be edited and appear in the week before the event date.
Email: lifestyle@bnd.com. Mail to: O’Fallon Progress Around Town, Belleville News-Democrat, P.O. Box 427, Belleville, IL 62222-0427. Questions, call Jennifer Green at 618-239-2643.
Thursday, Feb. 3
▪ National Alliance on Mental Illness Southwestern Illinois (NAMI SWI) — 7-8:30 p.m. Online via Zoom. Virtual support meetings for family members and other caregivers of individuals with mental illness. Meetings are peer-led and rely on the knowledge and experiences of the group to help one another. Registration is required in order to receive the link to these meetings. For more information or to register, contact Pat Rudloff at silverlining6@charter.net.
Friday, Feb. 4
▪ Book Sale — 9 a.m. to noon. Tri Township Library, 209 S. Main St., Troy. Book donations accepted during the book sale and on Tuesdays from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Sponsored by the Friends of the Library. During inclement weather, if the Triad Unit 2 School District is closed on the day of the sale, it will be canceled. 618-667-2133.
▪ Saint Louis Zoo Job Fair — 9 a.m. to noon. The Living World, North Entrance, St. Louis Zoo, 1 Government Drive, St. Louis. For those interested in part-time work at the Zoo. In addition to spring, summer and fall employees, the Zoo also is seeking applicants who have immediate availability this winter. Energetic, responsible and service-oriented individuals are needed for part-time positions, including engineers and conductors for the Zooline Railroad, catering and food service personnel, groundskeepers, gardeners, retail and parking lot attendants, and more. Flexible weekday and weekend positions are available for ages 15 (work permit required at time of hire) and up. For more information: 314-646-4816 or stlzoo.org/employment.
▪ O’Fallon Fish Fry — 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. and 4-7 p.m. Fridays. Knights of Columbus Hall, 402 E. U.S. 50, O’Fallon. Traditional menu of cod available along with hamburgers, hot dogs, pork steaks and additional side dishes. Dine-in and carryout. Credit cards accepted. Orders can be called in at 618-632-6229.
▪ Shiloh Eagles Fish Fry — 5-7 p.m. Shiloh Eagles 545, 100 Eagle Drive, Shiloh. Cod, walleye, catfish, shrimp and sides. Full menu. Dine-in or carryout available. For carryout, call 618-624-5412.
Saturday, Feb. 5
▪ Caritas Family Solutions 9th annual Heart & Soul Gala — 6 p.m. Virtual event. The gala serves as the nonprofit’s largest fundraising event, supporting its mission of strengthening the social and emotional well-being of individuals and families in order to create healthy relationships, loving homes, and strong communities. The agency’s services include foster care, pregnancy care for women experiencing homelessness, adoption, counseling and independent living for adults with disabilities among other service lines. Free and open to the public. Register online: caritasfamilysolutions.org/gala
Saturday, Feb. 5, & Sunday, Feb. 6
▪ St. Louis Symphony Orchestra: Chan Conducts Tchaikovsky — 8 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 5 and 3 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 6. Powell Hall, 718 N. Grand Blvd., St. Louis. Conductor Elim Chan makes her SLSO debut with Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s Second Symphony, celebrating the folksong of Ukraine. Tan Dun’s percussion concerto captures the threat, sadness, and resolve of humanity in the face of natural crises. In celebration of Lunar New Year, traditional dress is encouraged, not required. slso.org
Monday, Feb. 7
▪ ImpactLife Blood Drive — 2:30-6 p.m. O’Fallon Public Library, 120 Civic Plaza, O’Fallon. Appointments are required. 800-747-5401 or bloodcenterimpact.org.
Wednesday, Feb. 9
▪ O’Fallon Sunrise Rotary Meeting — 6:45 a.m. O’Fallon Township Building, 801 E. State St., O’Fallon. 618-210-8156 or ofallonsunriserotary.org
Wednesday, Feb. 16
▪ O’Fallon Senior Citizens Club — 6:30 p.m. O’Fallon Township Building, 801 E. State St., O’Fallon. Business, birthdays, cash bingo, pay dues. Last sign up for Kiwanis Dinner. 618-401-7588.
Other area happenings
▪ 2022 Illinois Law Enforcement Torch Run Polar Plunge — 6 p.m. Friday, Feb. 18. Collinsville Veterans of Foreign Wars, 1234 Vandalia, Collinsville. This winter, the metro-east community is invited to be bold and get cold by taking the Polar Plunge in Collinsville to support Special Olympics Illinois athletes. To register: bit.ly/CollinsvillePlunge. For information: Justin Dunning, at jdunning@soill.org or call 618-248-8558. More information is available at plungeillinois.com.
▪ O’Fallon Garden Club 2021-2022 Scholarship — Now through Tuesday, March 1. Online at ofallongardenclub.org. The O’Fallon Garden Club is now accepting applications for the 2021-2022 scholarship. Applications must be residents of O’Fallon or Shiloh, or are currently attending or have graduated from O’Fallon Township High School. The application deadline is March 1. For more information or to apply, visit ofallongardenclub.org.
▪ Memorial Auxiliary Hospital is accepting books, sheet music, DVDs, CDs and cookbooks for their 2022 Book Bazaar. Books are accepted 8-11 a.m. every Tuesday and Thursday through Thursday, March 17 and 8-11 a.m. on the the first and third Saturdays of the month through March 17. Books need to be dropped off at the Auxiliary warehouse at the Annex, located on the southeast corner behind the hospital.
Barrels for book drop off are at the following locations through March 17:
Memorial Hospital Belleville, Main Entrance, 4500 Memorial Drive, Belleville
Memorial Hospital Orthopedic & Neuroscience, Main Entrance, 4700 Memorial Drive, Belleville
Memorial Hospital Shiloh, Main Entrance, 1404 Cross St., Shiloh
Memorial Hospital Shiloh Medical Office Building, 1414 Cross St., Shiloh
Poettker Construction Achieves big Growth in 2021
Poettker Construction, an award-winning family-owned construction company, closed out the 2021 calendar year with tremendous employee, financial and market sector growth across the company.
After a difficult year navigating through the pandemic, Poettker grew its employee base by 18% with new hires and promotions across every department and level — from leadership, preconstruction, and project management positions to field supervision, safety, and quality control roles.
Following the sudden passing of the company’s founder and CEO, Charles “Chuck” Poettker in July 2021, the company expedited its strategic succession plan and restructured its executive leadership team, naming Keith Poettker as chairman and CEO, Ryan Poettker as president, Kimberly Luitjohan as executive vice president and chief financial officer, and Jonathon Carroll as executive vice president and chief operations officer.
Six employees were also promoted to vice president positions including: Philip Pingsterhaus, VP of finance; Tracy Millard, VP of human resources; Eric Kraeger, VP of information technology; Kevin Poettker, VP of business development; Corey Noder, VP of risk management; and Walker Gusewelle, VP of project management.
“What a tremendous and challenging year to end on such a high note for our company,” said Keith Poettker, chairman and CEO of Poettker Construction. “Heading into a new year, I’m humbled and privileged to continue my father’s legacy of building relationships on unparalleled service, quality of work, and safety for its people and business partners.”
Poettker continues to be a Best Place to Work, national best in class business, and a top contractor in the Midwest and Southeast. The company ranked as one of the top 10 construction firms in the St. Louis area and was recognized nationally as an ENR Top 400 Contractor for the first time by Engineering News-Record.
Poettker also had a very strong year in the education, multi-family, and retail markets. The company completed a mixture of new construction, renovations, and additions for five schools; broke ground on the new 92-unit Revela Senior Living facility in O’Fallon; and enhanced online shopping and grocery pickup services at 47 facilities for multiple major retail chains.
Poettker also supported over 35 non-profit organizations through philanthropic partnerships, advocacy, fundraising, and volunteering initiatives in 2021.
Following a 2020 hiatus on its annual golf classic benefiting Big Brothers Big Sisters of Southwestern Illinois, Poettker held the event in 2021 and raised a record-breaking $37,000 in donations. Since 2017, the Poettker golf classic has raised close to $175,000 for BBBS’ mission. To close out the event, BBBS awarded Poettker with a Big Defenders award for making a significant impact on the organization’s mission.
This story was originally published January 31, 2022 at 11:08 AM.