The Pantagraph from Bloomington, Illinois • Page 2

A2 THE PANTAGRAPH, Thursday, Aug. 17, 1989 Runaway solution for B-N agencies still undiscovered i 'They're usually middle-class kids. The parents have had college or professional schooling after high school. There is a real misconception that kids who run away have parents who don't care. The parents do Kevin Crutcher, Project Oi tiilf' M3'A'm nil" ILL By MARTHA PURDY Pantagraph staff In less than a week, members of a committee formed to find new housing and funding options for teen-age runaways have made progress for the short term, although long-term solutions remain elusive.

Last Thursday, 20 representatives of various agencies formed three subcommittees to find alternatives to the Home Sweet Home Mission emergency shelter for. runaways. The mission opted not to reapply for a federal grant to provide the services, and an application by Catholic Social Service was denied. That means that as of Sept. 1 there will be no shelter for the 10-to 18-year-old runaways for whom Project Oz provides counseling and referral services.

Most of the 91 runaways Project Oz served last year were 14 to 16 years old and about evenly divided between boys and girls, said Kevin Crutcher, youth initiative program coordinator. Of those, 63 required emergency placements averaging 2V days each, for a total of 150 days in placement. The others were placed with friends or relatives until counseling had been arranged and they were reinstated with their families. Although the placements do not last long, they are essential, Crutcher said. He and Sally Williams, 321 S.

Bone Drive, Normal, the only non-agency representative on the committee, said yesterday that the group believes it has located enough licensed foster parents willing to take runaways to get through the short term, although licensed care-givers still are being sought. Such parents will be paid $23 per night per child, and Crutcher and Ms. Williams are optimistic that the money will be found for the short run. The real problem, they agreed, was paying for a permanent shelter, assuming an acceptable facility is located. The majority of those who run away have experienced some type of family trauma, such as divorce or physical or sexual abuse.

Capitol eclipse The dome of the Capitol in Washington, D.C., served as the point of reference for this triple exposure of last night's lunar eclipse. The view in much of Central Illinois was obscured by clouds, but many skywatching Americans got their first chance in more than 20 years to watch a "prime time" lunar eclipse as the full moon dipped toward the Earth's shadow and a transformation into a glowing, reddish disk. Please see story on page C5. Simon stances draw applause at meeting By DON CAVALLINI Pantagraph correspondent LEXINGTON U.S. Sen.

Paul Simon spoke on issues ranging from gun control to education at a town meeting in Lexington yesterday, more than once drawing applause from the crowd of almost 200 who came to talk with him at the Old Gym. The first-term Illinois senator's remarks on assault weapons were among those that gained approval from the crowd. "If it comes down to a choice between the National Rifle Association and law enforcement agencies, I will support our agencies every time," Simon said in endorsing a bill to restrict automatic and semiautomatic weapons. AP our grandchildren," Simon said, adding that the thrift crisis was brought on by the abuse of power allowed by deregulation. Said interest on the national debt is the fastest-growing item in the budget.

It soon will surpass what the nation spends on defense annually. Stressed the fact that he was one of only three senators who voted against the 1986 tax-reform package. While there were many provisions he did not support, one he said he would vote to keep is the tax on capital gains. "Somebody should not get a tax break for speculation. Your labor is equally as valuable as capital gains to the nation." Our i in in LWITH i 1 gram actually, costs the government more than would grants.

The Democrat won additional applause for his stand to the flag-burning controversy when he said, "While I have great respect for the flag it flies in front of my home I don't think we should amend the Constitution or the Bill of Rights." On other issues, Simon: Admitted the government was "playing games" by financing the savings and loan bailout as an off-budget item, sidestepping Gramm-Rudman deficit-reduction law spending limits. "We are living off a huge credit card, and that bill will be sent to ing off a primary battle between Lt. Gov. George Ryan and Transportation Secretary Greg Baise over who should be the GOP nominee for secretary of state. Baise backed down and is likely to announce for treasurer Aug.

28. Meanwhile, U.S. Rep. Lynn Martin of Loves Park joined other Republicans officeholders in painting Simon as an out-of-touch liberal in a conservative state. Ms.

Martin proclaimed herself the underdog in name-recognition and funding, but promised a clean, hard-fought campaign to unseat the popular incumbent. She said Simon should have sought committee assignments that would help Illinois instead of seeking a Foreign Relations Committee post. What's ahead FRIDAY On the eve of a concert in LeRoy, the Kendalls talk about overcoming the myth that a father-daughter duet couldn't make it in country music. Entertainment The Pantagraph Published dally and Sunday by Evergreen Communications 301 W. Washington Bloominglon, IL 61701.

Second-class postage paid at Bloominglon, IL (USPS) 1447601 TELEPHONE (304) I2-4N Horn delivery Classified ads 10-7323 121-6633 minn iii fin Edgar says Demo governor would be puppet for Madigan "There are varying degrees (of turmoil)," Crutcher said. "Generally, there is a kind of tentative relationship with the parents and an incident happens to exacerbate an already strained relationship." Most runaways do not go far and frequently are found when concerned parents phone police after a day or two to say their child is missing and they think he is at a certain friend's house. But the more often they run away, the farther they are likely to travel, and Crutcher returned four youths to parents in Florida, Texas, Washington state and New England last month. That was unusual, he added, saying that 75 percent of the runaways he sees are area residents. Preventing a repeat is one of the agency's goals.

As soon as a youth enters Project Oz's service system, counseling begins even before he is placed in a temporary emergency shelter. That counseling, and the continuing family counseling after youths go home again, helps keep the recidivism among Project Oz clients low. The teens Crutcher sees are not the stereotypical lower-class drug abusers of the movies. "They're usually middle-class kids," he said. "The parents have had college or professional schooling after high school.

There is a real misconception that kids who run away have parents who don't care. The parents do care." "In a sense, they're anybody's kids," Ms. Williams said. IKY stalled curio lights, nhnnA inrk nnA eeirei grommets make this SAVE SAVE $60 COVENTRY E. Empire Bloomington kk1.KMk OPEN 10-9; Sat.

1 0-5; Sun. 12-5 -f Will 11 JBUY OF THlzl I ST MIDWAY 1 Sheets $9195 A U. vv ii i ti Simon speaks on farm issues during Central Illinois swing, page D1 To underscore that he was not alone in that view, Simon read a letter written by former conservative Republican Sen. Barry Gold-water taking a strong stand against public access to assault rifles. On education, the senator said he supports a return to grants for college students in lieu of government-guaranteed student loans because of the high default rate on those loans.

Simon said the defaults, combined with high administrative costs, mean the loan pro State Fair schedule, page A4 at age 53 found himself already cast as the party's elder statesman yesterday. Thompson spent the day exhorting the Republican rank-and-file to secure his legacy of "leadership into the '90s" by electing Edgar and other GOP officials. But the party's spotlight had clearly shifted to his understudy, the man Thompson said he put on the path to the governor's mansion in 1981 by appointing him secretary of state. Tazewell County GOP Chairman Bob Purcell was among those hailing the switch, saying Edgar has none of the baggage that had begun encumbering Thompson. Thompson has set the party's political agenda for more than a decade, espousing a moderate stance to the frequent dismay of more conservative Republicans.

Edgar shares the same moderate views, but both men said those views reflect the middle-of-the-road philosophy of a majority of Illinoisans. Changing of the guard State Party Chairman Al Jour-dan likened Edgar's ascension to "a changing of the guard" that should add new faces and excitement to the 1990 race. The state party has cleared up its debt of two years ago and should spend more than $800,000 next year for direct mail and voter registration, Jourdan said in an interview. That is in addition to the $3 million to $4 million that will pass through the state party's coffers on its way to individual candidates, he said. Toward that end, Jourdan announced statewide marketing of the 12.72 percent Capitol GOP VISA credit card, with a portion of the profits going to state and local GOP organizations.

Democrats have had their own VISA card for more than a year, but Jourdan said the Republicans' interest rate is slightly lower. Last week, Edgar, 43, played his new role of party leader by stav i Li 1 i'JU PRIZE WINNING BUYS! ii Waterbeds TAKE ALL AWARDS. Grand Champion LUVJbJN $34995- I Hue Ribbon Winner CORNERSTONE 30995 This bed has it all. Pastel floral glass and mirror, dentil moulding, curio doors, lights and hidden compartment. Best of Show By DON THOMPSON Springfield bureau chief SPRINGFIELD Republican gubernatorial hopeful Jim Edgar began asserting himself as the party's new leader yesterday, using his first party outing to paint powerful House Speaker Michael Madigan, D-Chicago, as a bogyman who would control Illinois' future if a "wishy-washy" Democratic governor is elected.

Prospective Democratic nominee Neil Hartigan denied that Madigan Or anyone else pulls his strings, and a spokesman said Edgar is trying to blur the real issues of the 1990 governor's race schools and taxes. "It seems to this point that Mike Madigan is calling the shots," Edgar said at the Illinois State Fair yesterday. Executive control "I think if Neil Hartigan gets elected governor, Mike Madigan is going to be even more influential in what happens in Illinois politics," Edgar said. "I'm not sure you want the speaker of the House to also control the executive branch." Democrats already control the General Assembly, both U.S. Senate seats and a majority of Illinois congressional seats, Edgar told the party's county chairmen at their annual State Fair rally, termed by some the first official event of the i990 campaign.

Allowing Attorney General Hartigan to win the governorship held for 14 years by Republican James R. Thompson would give control of the state to Madigan and end the traditional two-party balance of power, Edgar claimed, calling Madigan the most influential statewide Democrat. Whoever controls the Legislature and governor's office will control the political remapping after the 1991 census, he warned. He said Madigan is shooting for "Democratic domination of the General Assembly for yet another decade Democratic domination for the remainder of this century." With 17 months left in his administration, lame duck Thompson Coventry collection Dresser, Hutch Nightstand ii Padded nails JL flU Special new designer color. ClAQ'k Ml 2 Piece tlOQC Oly Se Mm SAVE $400 Note the eye-catching floral glass and mirrors.

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