West Newsmagazine 12-4-19

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December 4, 2019
WEST NEWSMAGAZINE
I NEWS I 11
NEWS BRIEFS, from page 9
institutions. The record-breaking donation
brings the total funds donated by Pedal the
Cause over the last 10 years to $29,077,611.
This money has funded 130 cancer research
projects – including 98 adult and 32 pediatric
projects. Funds donated by Pedal the
Cause in 2019 will be distributed to the
most promising research projects in 2020.
The $4.74 million donation was raised
by 3,725 riders and spinners, 522 kids and
over 1,107 volunteers who participated
in the tenth annual Pedal the Cause – a
cycling challenge and weekend community
celebration with the goal of curing
all cancers for everyone. Pedal the Cause
2019 took place on Sept. 28 and 29 at the
Chesterfield Amphitheater. Participants
continued to fundraise until Oct. 31.
“On behalf of the entire Pedal the Cause
community, we are honored to support
best-in-class research at our world-class
St. Louis beneficiaries, the Siteman Cancer
Center and Siteman Kids at St. Louis Children’s
Hospital,” Pedal the Cause Executive
Director Jay Indovino said. “These
funds will stay in St. Louis and move the
frontier forward in cancer research; supporting
new treatments, cures and diagnostics
for cancer patients here and around the
world. We’ll keep riding our bikes and raising
critical funds until we have a ‘world
without cancer.’”
With over 40,000 donors in 2019, Pedal
the Cause remains the region’s largest
peer-to-peer fundraising event.
“The support of the St. Louis community
through Pedal the Cause has been vital to
us as we advance discoveries and cures for
the tens of thousands of patients at Siteman
Cancer Center and Siteman Kids,” said
BJC President and Chief Executive Officer
Rich Liekweg. “This remarkable gift from
Pedal the Cause will go to work immediately
as we push towards a future without
cancer and continue to lead the field as a
top-tier research institution.”
Library and jail form partnership
On Monday, Nov. 25, a press conference
was held at the Buzz Westfall Justice
Center off Carondelet Avenue in Clayton
to announce a new initiative to provide
education opportunities for inmates.
The partnership between St. Louis
County Justice Services and the St. Louis
County Library is designed to not only provide
library resources to the inmates during
detention, but also provide a seamless transition
into other library services once they
are released.
“Making library assets more readily
available will help ease some obstacles
individuals face after being released from
incarceration,” County Executive Sam
Page said. “It’s another way to treat those
in our custody with dignity and respect and
prepare them for a brighter future.”
While in custody, individuals will now
have access to a larger and more varied
supply of library materials, available at
different reading levels. The reading materials
will also be refreshed monthly. Then,
upon release, those individuals interested
will have the option to obtain a library card
and access to resources that may be vital in
preventing them from repeating past mistakes
or offenses.
“We look forward to working with the
Justice Center on efforts to reduce recidivism
in St. Louis County,” Library Director
Kristen Sorth said. “Libraries offer
important resources for all members of the
community and can be of particular help to
those who are struggling.”
Computer classes and an online high
school program will be available to participants.
Online tools for job searching
and assistance is another key feature of the
program.
“We are excited about this partnership,
creating educational opportunities for
those in our care and providing opportunities
upon release to help chart a successful
future,” Lt. Col. Troy Doyle, acting director
of Justice Services, said.
This new initiative comes at an important
juncture for the County’s Justice Services.
Doyle’s tenure as acting director will soon
be giving way to the newly hired Director
of Justice Services, Raul Banasco.
Banasco brings to St. Louis County a
wealth of experience.
He’s been a jail administrator in San
Antonio and Ft. Worth, Texas. In 2016, the
Jail Administrator Association recognized
him as the Jail Administrator of the Year.
County unveils 2020
census plans
As of Nov. 25, a new website is live
as part of St. Louis County’s efforts to
encourage widespread participation in the
upcoming 2020 Census.
Every decade, the federal government
surveys each state, city and county for
updated population data. This information
is then evaluated and used to reapportion
congressional seats and determine how
much federal funds states and counties
receive.
There is a direct, proportional relationship
between census participation, accurate
population counts, and earned federal
dollars flowing into communities.
“County-wide participation in the
upcoming census is crucial for how County
government is run,” St. Louis County
Executive Sam Page said in an official
release. “The more accurate the statistical
data, the more representative the federal
Lt. Col. Troy Doyle, Acting Director of Justice Services for St. Louis County speaks to the media
on Nov. 25.
[Photo provided by Kara Smith, St. Louis County Library]
funds St. Louis County receives – ensuring
that County budgets can function in the
best interests of those we serve.”
Any information received through the
census remains protected by federal law
and can only be used to formulate statistical
information. All St. Louis County
residents, regardless of immigration or
governmental assistance status, are being
encouraged to participate. Any and all provided
answers are confidential and cannot
be shared with immigration or law enforcement
agencies.
“Census participation is our civic duty,”
Ethel Byndom, director for the Office
of Community Empowerment, said. “It
places us within our neighborhoods, districts,
and counties and asks the federal
government to recognize the communities
we’ve all built. Census dollars help sustain
and elevate communities that may be
struggling and give them the opportunity
to thrive.”
St. Louis County residents have multiple
ways to complete the census survey.
In March 2020, a survey will be mailed
through the U.S. Postal Service to all
addresses within the county. Residents
will also have the ability to complete the
survey by phone or online. Each resident’s
response will only be counted once.
More information can be found on the
official St. Louis County 2020 Census
website, www.census-2020-stlcogis.hub.
arcgis.com/
Council may call bow hunters
to control deer population
For the second time this year, the St.
Louis County Council is considering a
proposal to allow area hunters to assist in
the controlling of the local deer population.
Bill No. 324, which is co-sponsored
by councilmembers Mark Harder [R–District
7] and Tim Fitch [R–District 3], would
allow the Missouri Department of Conservation
to hold bow hunting events in St.
Louis County parks as it already does in
state parks.
“The goal of managed hunts is not the
elimination of deer, but a reduction in
numbers,” Mitch Leachman told the council
during its Nov. 26 meeting. “[The deer]
are part of a natural system. But lacking
natural predators, they overwhelm that
same system.”
Leachman is the director of programs
for the St. Louis Audubon Society, a local
environmental group with over 1,500
members. He made it clear he was speaking
on behalf of the group and expressing
the group’s support for controlled deer
hunts in St. Louis County parks. Leachman
also noted that the St. Louis Audubon
Society has performed over 13,000 hours
of service in county parks where volunteers
have planted trees and shrubs.
“Unfortunately, most of the 3,300 trees
and shrubs planted through our efforts
are no longer visible,” Leachman said. He
claimed that it is the uncontrolled deer
population whose constant grazing has
damaged and destroyed these conservation
efforts. “Simply put, county woodlands
that we know best are overpopulated by
deer and dying.”
Michael Meredith, certified Missouri
Naturalist and resident of Creve Couer,
also spoke in favor of Bill No. 324.
“I’m not one to usually advocate for
hunting on public property. However, the
deer population in our parks is reaching
critical levels that pose problems for both
humans and wildlife,” Meredith said.
Earlier in the year, Fitch brought a similar
measure before the council only to see
the proposal defeated by vote.
Bill No. 324 was passed through its first
reading without objection during the Nov.
26 meeting, but will require successful
second reading before becoming law.