Taking action

Thumbs-up to members of the newly formed Jackson County Drug Awareness and Action Team, which is in the process of setting goals and coming up with ideas and plans for how to move people and the community from addiction to recovery and to change public opinion on who uses drugs and why.

Still waving

Thumbs-up to members of American Legion Post 89 in Seymour who celebrate the nation’s flag with a Flag Day program each year on June 14 at One Chamber Square in downtown Seymour. The ceremony includes the replacement of the old American flag with a new one at the park at 105 S. Chestnut St. and a presentation about the history of the flag from the yellow-and-black “Don’t Tread on Me” banner to the present Stars and Stripes. The flag history has been presented by Seymour Elks Lodge 462 for decades. So a related deserved thumbs-up to lodge members. June 14 was officially established as Flag Day in 1916, but according to the June 8, 1909, edition of The Seymour Tribune, the governors of many states, by proclamation, called public attention to Flag Day in 1908 and ordered flags to be displayed upon public buildings.

Among the first

Thumbs-up to the three Jackson County natives who were among the nine Indiana University-Purdue University Columbus students who made history May 13 by becoming the first to graduate from the Honors Program at the university. Since the program began in the fall of 2014, the seven women and two men completed an additional 24 hours of coursework within their major while also working with faculty mentors. The nine graduates, who include Abbigail Young of Norman and Michael Foist and Jordan Jones, both of Seymour, were honored during a ceremony before graduation May 13 at Columbus East High School. They each received a medallion with the school’s Discovery statue on it to wear during graduation.

No erratic driving

Thumbs-down to motorists who drive below the speed limit and then speed up when other motorists attempt to pass them.