Beacon Dec 2023
Your hometown news source. Regional Reach. Community Commitment. Covering Dearborn, Franklin, Ohio, and Ripley Counties in Southeast Indiana and Southwest Ohio.
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Page 8A THE BEACON <strong>Dec</strong>ember <strong>2023</strong><br />
By<br />
Jeff<br />
Hermesch<br />
Purdue<br />
Extension<br />
jhermesch@purdue.edu<br />
Indiana Maple Syrup<br />
In 2021, Purdue Extension<br />
received a grant to work with<br />
Indiana maple syrup producers.<br />
As a member of this team,<br />
I am working statewide to<br />
help increase Indiana maple<br />
syrup demand while also<br />
helping to improve maple<br />
syrup production practices.<br />
Since 2021, the team has<br />
concentrated efforts on creating<br />
a marketing strategy, developing<br />
a web page, obtaining<br />
a bird-friendly certification,<br />
organizing field days at maple<br />
syrup farms, promoting maple<br />
syrup and value-added products<br />
at festivals and events, as<br />
well as creating networking<br />
opportunities for producers to<br />
share success stories.<br />
With vast acres of maple<br />
forests, Indiana stood as the<br />
nation’s number one maple<br />
syrup producer back in 1919<br />
and had a strong reputation<br />
for high quality and flavor.<br />
There were no major maple<br />
syrup producers back then,<br />
rather an abundance of small<br />
farms harvesting it as a<br />
financial supplement for the<br />
winter. Maple syrup was the<br />
main source of sweetener over<br />
a hundred years ago as corn<br />
syrup didn’t exist and sweeteners<br />
like sugar cane and beet<br />
sugar were very costly.<br />
However, with decades<br />
of removing trees for row<br />
crops, this industry saw major<br />
declines in production as<br />
smaller farms disappeared<br />
taking the maple syrup with<br />
it. In 2020, Indiana accounted<br />
for only 0.6% of the USA<br />
maple syrup production which<br />
equates to 24,000 gallons.<br />
That may sound very low, but<br />
it is a 20% increase compared<br />
to the 2019 numbers. The<br />
recent increase is likely due to<br />
developments that have made<br />
harvesting and processing<br />
much easier for maple syrup<br />
producers. One such development<br />
is plastic tubing with<br />
UV protection and incredibly<br />
smooth interiors to ward off<br />
bacteria and mold. This tubing<br />
can be plumbed together<br />
throughout the woods to one<br />
collection point which helps<br />
harvesting time.<br />
The Indiana Maple Syrup<br />
Association can be found<br />
online at https://www.indianamaplesyrup.org/<br />
or you<br />
can find them on Facebook<br />
by searching “Indiana Maple<br />
Syrup Association”.<br />
In addition, every spring,<br />
Indiana maple syrup producers<br />
open up their “sugar<br />
shacks” so you can experience<br />
how syrup is made on the<br />
farm. Please mark your calendars<br />
for the Indiana Maple<br />
Syrup Weekend which is<br />
March 9-10, 2024. For more<br />
information check out this<br />
website:https://indianamaple<br />
weekend.com/<br />
To learn more about maple<br />
syrup production, feel free to<br />
contact me by email at<br />
jhermesch@purdue.edu or by<br />
phone at 812-926-1189. The<br />
Dearborn County Extension<br />
Office is located at 229 Main<br />
Street, Aurora, IN 47001.<br />
Look for my next article<br />
in the upcoming issue of The<br />
<strong>Beacon</strong>!<br />
Retirement Checklist<br />
Borrow Before You Buy This Holiday Season<br />
By Jake Moore, Director,<br />
Lawrenceburg Public Library Dist<br />
The holidays can be such a<br />
stressful time. Pressure comes<br />
from everywhere, not least of<br />
which is making sure to get<br />
the right gifts for friends and<br />
family. If you’re like me, every<br />
year you end up spending<br />
money on gifts for everyone<br />
(and possibly yourself) that<br />
are only used once or twice<br />
and then recycled, donated,<br />
forgotten, or thrown away.<br />
Why not make your life<br />
slightly easier by taking<br />
advantage of the Library of<br />
Things at both branches of the<br />
Lawrenceburg Public Library<br />
District? If you’re unfamiliar<br />
with what the Library<br />
of Things is, here’s a quick<br />
pitch- when you think of the<br />
Library, you think of what?<br />
Books? Maybe movies or<br />
music? You can borrow those<br />
things, but you can also borrow<br />
puzzles, games, activities,<br />
cake pans, toys, and more<br />
from a constantly-growing<br />
list, all free of charge.<br />
Let’s talk about a few of<br />
the items and why you should<br />
borrow them instead of buying<br />
them:<br />
Birdwatching Kit<br />
I have looked at birds, and<br />
I’ve watched them fly overhead,<br />
but would I be interested<br />
enough in the activity to<br />
purchase equipment? Borrowing<br />
the bird-watching kit provides<br />
a monocular telescope<br />
(with smartphone attachment)<br />
and a copy of the Field Guide<br />
to the Birds of North America,<br />
everything one needs to make<br />
the trek to the Oxbow, try out<br />
the hobby, and see if you like<br />
it. Who knows, maybe you’ll<br />
catch a glimpse of an Oriole,<br />
Wren, Swallow, or Warbler.<br />
Puzzles<br />
Have you ever put the same<br />
puzzle together twice? If you’re<br />
looking for something to pass<br />
the time during the cold winter<br />
months, borrowing a puzzle<br />
makes complete sense. Put it<br />
together, enjoy the moment, put<br />
it back in the box, bring it back<br />
to us, rinse, and repeat. You’ll<br />
never need to donate puzzles to<br />
Goodwill again!<br />
Guitars and Ukuleles<br />
The ultimate “Gift that is<br />
loved for a minute and eventually<br />
forgotten” is a guitar. For<br />
every person who took their<br />
acoustic guitar to college so<br />
they could sit on the quad<br />
playing “Wonderwall,” at least<br />
a dozen were never touched<br />
after the realization that being<br />
good is much harder than Oasis<br />
made it seem in 1996.<br />
The space-saving Hawaiian<br />
sibling of the guitar is<br />
the Ukulele. When everyone<br />
moves out of their parents’<br />
house and realizes that they<br />
don’t have room for a full-size<br />
guitar, they look to the ukulele<br />
for their stringed instrument<br />
joy. Again, these end up<br />
sitting around gathering dust<br />
once the difficulty of anything<br />
past a “C” chord is realized.<br />
Try borrowing ours first to see<br />
if you even really want a Ukulele.<br />
You’ll need to learn at<br />
least two songs before anyone<br />
will take you seriously.<br />
Power Rangers Cake Pan<br />
I love the Power Rangers<br />
as much as the next person,<br />
but how many times will the<br />
urge to shout “It’s Morphin’<br />
Time” hit you while you’re<br />
baking a cake? If you’re truly<br />
lucky, and you have a child,<br />
friend, sibling, or parent who<br />
is really, really into the Power<br />
Rangers, you could probably<br />
After spending decades in the working world, the last thing you want is for small details to trip you up<br />
in the home stretch toward retirement. Doing each of the things on the checklist below can help ensure<br />
that once you leave your job behind and enter retirement, you’re financially prepared to stay there.<br />
Track Monthly Expenses<br />
Knowing exactly how much you’ll spend each month goes a long way toward ensuring you don’t<br />
run out of money earlier than anticipated.<br />
Analyze Health Care Costs<br />
As many expenses often decline in retirement, health care typically becomes more costly with age,<br />
as a majority of seniors eventually need some form of long-term care.<br />
Update Beneficiaries<br />
To prevent avoidable disputes among your loved ones, be as clear as possible when explaining how<br />
you want your finances divided among your spouse, children, relatives or charities of your choice.<br />
Research Social Security<br />
All of those monthly contributions toward Social Security are about to pay off. Choosing when and<br />
how you start receiving benefits determines the size of your payouts from this point forward.<br />
Attack Debt<br />
Once you stop receiving regular paychecks, every dollar spent will come from your hard-earned<br />
savings. You’ll likely want to pay off as much debt as possible while you’re still working and making<br />
an income.<br />
Evaluate Investment Portfolio<br />
Your investment allocations may have worked well thus far, but it’s common for retirees to change<br />
their approach to avoid volatility once they have saved enough for retirement.<br />
If you’re uncertain or need help with any of the<br />
areas above, a dedicated financial professional from<br />
Conservative Financial Solutions would be happy<br />
to help. Contact our team today to set up a no<br />
obligation appointment!<br />
CONTACT US<br />
Phone: 513.367.1113<br />
Email: info@conservativefinancialsolutions.com<br />
Securities offered through Madison Avenue Securities, LLC (MAS), member FINRA/SIPC. Investment advisory services offered only by duly registered individuals<br />
through AE Wealth Management, LLC (AEWM), a Registered Investment Advisor. MAS and Conservative Financial Solutions are not affiliated companies. AEWM and<br />
Conservative Financial Solutions are not affiliated companies. 835296 - 3/21<br />
The BEACON - Great News for Great People.<br />
make the same cake for two<br />
years, tops. Borrow this cake<br />
pan from us and wow them<br />
without having to commit<br />
to making this cake annually.<br />
Next year if they want<br />
the same cake just borrow it<br />
again! The real joy is when<br />
they have a new obsession,<br />
you’ll be able to look through<br />
the rest of our cake pans and<br />
beam with pride when you’ve<br />
created the Scooby-Doo<br />
cake they want for their next<br />
birthday.<br />
So many other items are<br />
available to borrow that<br />
listing them all here would<br />
completely consume this page<br />
of The <strong>Beacon</strong>, so visit either<br />
location of the Lawrenceburg<br />
Public Library District and<br />
take a peek through all we<br />
have to offer. We hope you’ll<br />
join us and “Borrow the Unexpected!”<br />
Annual Holiday<br />
(and More)<br />
Giveaway<br />
By Stefanie Hoffmeier<br />
Over the years we accumulate<br />
more and more Christmas<br />
decorations. If you are anything<br />
like me, a few things are<br />
always left in the boxes each<br />
year. Some items are saved to<br />
reminisce, and others are just<br />
too nice to throw out. Rather<br />
than hang on to those nice<br />
items, you can donate them to<br />
the Dearborn County Recycling<br />
Center (DCRC).<br />
The DCRC is hosting its<br />
fifth Annual Holiday (and<br />
More) Giveaway of holiday<br />
items, crafts supplies, and office<br />
supplies. All of the items<br />
given away are new or gently<br />
used and were donated to the<br />
DCRC by businesses and residents<br />
in Dearborn County.<br />
The Holiday (and More)<br />
Giveaway was started in 2018<br />
due to the large volume of<br />
holiday items that the DCRC<br />
received in Creation Station.<br />
Many holiday decorations and<br />
lights end up in the trash when<br />
people replace them with different<br />
décor from year to year.<br />
The Free Holiday Giveaway<br />
is a great way to keep all of<br />
those gently used items from<br />
ending up in the landfill.<br />
The DCRC will also include<br />
some craft items, office<br />
supplies, and décor items for<br />
other holidays such as Easter<br />
and Independence Day. Shoppers<br />
will be given a bag and<br />
will be limited on the number<br />
of items that they are allowed<br />
to take. Christmas trees will<br />
also be limited to one per<br />
family or group. All items<br />
are FREE, and the public is<br />
welcome. Shoppers do not<br />
have to be a Dearborn County<br />
resident to shop.<br />
The Giveaway will take<br />
place at the DCRC on Saturday,<br />
<strong>Dec</strong>. 2, from 9:00 A.M.<br />
to 2:00 P.M. The DCRC is<br />
located at 10700 Prospect Ln,<br />
Aurora, IN 47001. With all of<br />
the donations that the DCRC<br />
has received from the community,<br />
this year’s Giveaway<br />
will not disappoint.<br />
Participants are not required<br />
to make a cash donation or<br />
bring items to swap. If you<br />
would like to donate items for<br />
this year’s giveaway, please<br />
drop off your donation in the<br />
DCRC Drive-Thru by Nov. 29.<br />
Item donations will not be accepted<br />
on the day of the event.
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