By USDA SPRINGFIELD – There were 4.0 days suitable for fieldwork in the week ending July 14, 2024. Statewide, the average temperature was 75.5 degrees, 0.9 degrees below normal. Precipitation averaged 1.93 inches, 1.13 inches above normal. Topsoil moisture supply was rated 2 percent very short, 15 percent short, 79 percent adequate, and 4 percent…… MORE
Dewon Griffin faces at least 48 years in prison after being found guilty Monday in connection with a deadly New Year’s Eve shooting four years ago.… MORE
In a Monday morning announcement, Normal Mayor Chris Koos said he seeks re-election in the April 2025 consolidated election for an anticipated sixth term.… MORE
OSF HealthCare is investigating a statement shared on an employee’s social media account.… MORE
By WMBD-TV WOODFORD COUNTY – Scammers found a new grift by masquerading as Woodford County deputies and staff, according to a post from the office’s Facebook page. The Woodford County Sheriff’s Office reminds residents they don’t call for payment or any other kind of solicitation. Scammers will often use threats or coercion while imitating police to get…… MORE
A mobile home in rural Fairbury became caught on fire on Friday evening.… MORE
A woman and her three dogs escaped unharmed after their home in Normal caught fire on Saturday.… MORE
Stellantis, the parent company of Chrysler and Dodge, plans to reopen a shuttered plant in Illinois after receiving hundreds of millions of dollars from the Biden Administration.… MORE
In an emailed statement after President Joe Biden held court for more than an hour in a televised news conference, a Rockford Democrat is calling on him to drop out of the race for the White House.… MORE
A month’s long traffic enforcement led to the arrest of two individuals in Normal.… MORE
By Mike Matejka Because of COVID, there is no Labor Day Parade this year. It’s always a great event for our everyday workers to march proudly down the street and enjoys the festive crowd. If there had been a parade, this year’s Labor Day theme was to be “150 years of struggle: your right to vote.” …
By Mike Matejka As President Donald Trump threatens to send federal marshals into Chicago, over the objections of Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker, recall another Illinois Governor who protested the incursion of armed federal personnel into the city. Those federal troops, rather than calming, escalated the situation, leading to deaths and violence. Illinois poet Vachel Lindsay…
By Mike Matejka Our nation is at a unique watershed in human relations. African-Americans have been killed too many times in the past before George Floyd, but the response to this man’s death is international and all-encompassing. I was a grade-schooler during the Civil Rights 1960s. I watched Birmingham demonstrators hosed and the Selma – Montgomery…
Looking around our community, when we say employer, most will respond to State Farm, Country, or Illinois State University. We too often forget those who are building our roads, serving our food, or our public employees. COVID-19 has made us more aware of the risk. Going to work every day for some people means…