By Dave Dahl SPRINGFIELD – What better time than Juneteenth to begin a two-week showing of a copy of the Emancipation Proclamation? The Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library is the place to see it. The copy was a gift to the state in 1937 and is one of about two dozen surviving copies. Library and museum…… MORE
The Bloomington police gun safe giveaway is encountering humidity problems.… MORE
Law enforcement in Illinois will now be able to use drones as a public safety tool.… MORE
The latest U.S. drought monitor puts 65 percent of the state in at least a moderate drought, and 15 percent of Illinois is in a severe drought.… MORE
Former Illinois State University Athletic Director Kyle Brennan is returning to his roots after abruptly resigning.… MORE
By WMBD-TV METAMORA – A Metamora man was found guilty of one count of attempted sex trafficking of a minor Thursday. According to a Department of Justice news release, 49-year-old Dana Curtin was found guilty after a three-day trial. Presented evidence showed that Curtin had spoken to an individual he believed to be an adult…… MORE
The Illinois Department of Natural Resources is warning the public about the invasive red swamp crayfish.… MORE
A recent report looks at the reasons why students choose to go out of state for college.… MORE
The jobless rate fell slightly in May to 4.1 percent. 2,500 jobs were added as well.… MORE
By WMBD-TV PEKIN – A reckless driver has left two people dead in Pekin. According to Pekin police, two people were found near Caroline and North 2nd Streets early Thursday morning. A woman was pronounced dead on the scene. A 46-year-old man was transported to a local hospital where he later died from his injuries.…… 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…