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Recent Obituaries: Alice M. Miller

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Alice M. Miller

Alice M. Miller, 92 of Sullivan, died 1:06 a.m. Thursday, May 11, 2017 in St. Mary’s Hospital, Decatur.

Celebration of Life services will be 1:30 p.m. Saturday at the Reed Funeral Home with Pastor Charliam Renner officiating. Burial will be in the Moultrie County Memorial Park, Bethany. Visitation will be one hour before the services. Memorials are suggested the Mason Point Activity Fund. Online condolences may be sent to the family at reedfuneralhome.net.

Mrs. Miller was born January 13, 1925 in Bethany, IL, the daughter of Cayrel and Effie Pearl Standerfer Hilliard. Alice retired as a billing clerk at St. Mary’s Hospital, Decatur. Alice and her husband Joe owned and operated the Moultrie County Memorial Park, Bethany for many years. She had been a member of the Eastern Star Crystal Chapter #39 and the Sullivan First Baptist Church. Alice married Joseph A. Miller on September 9, 1969 in Decatur and he preceded her in death on September 9, 1992.

Survivors include her son Ronald Holmes of Knoxville, TN; stepdaughter Dee (Donald) Simerl of Mooresville, IN; son-in-law Ray Loy of Sullivan; sister Camellia Zimmerman of Sullivan; nine grandchildren; sixteen great-grandchildren and one great-great-grandson.

She was preceded in death by her parents, husband, daughter Paula Loy, one great-grandson, three sisters and one brother.

Sullivan FFA Mother’s Day

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•May 10, 2017•

The Sullivan High School FFA is holding a Mother’s Day greenhouse sale this Saturday, May 13, from 9 a.m.-noon in the SHS ag department greenhouse.

Everything from hanging baskets to planted pots to six packs of the buyer’s favorite flora and fauna is available with the proceeds helping the local FFA chapter.

Top Land Use

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Top Land Use
At the FFA Section 16 Annual Banquet, Okaw Valley senior Laine Crawford was recognized for her top individual finish in Land Use (Soils), and Okaw Valley’s soil judging team also received a first place plaque.

St. Columcille’s June 10 Watercolor Workshop Features Mahomet Artist

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•May 10, 2017•

Mahomet artist Dee Siegmund will conduct a watercolor workshop for the Sullivan Art Club’s third workshop of the year Saturday, June 10.

The workshop will be held in the St. Columcille Church hall located on the east end of the church at the corners of W. Jackson and McClellan streets. There is a dedicated entrance to the hall adjacent to the parking lot. Read More

OV Softball Gets a Pair of Wins

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OVHS softball senior players Maddie Petrine, Kayla Wheeler, Jesse Robinson and Kailyn Boyer were honored this week.

•May 10, 2017•

The Okaw Valley softball team picked up two wins this week to improve its record to 13-9.

The Timberwolves defeated St. Elmo/Brownstown Monday and Arcola last Tuesday.

Monday night in Bethany, OV took an early lead with a run in the first inning, then tacked on four more in the third inning to take a 5-1 lead.

Both teams scored a run in fourth, and OV scored two insurance runs in the sixth for the final 8-2 score. Read More

Warrensburg Wins Sullivan Redskin Invitational

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•May 10, 2017•

Ten schools, including four Moultrie County teams, participated in the Sullivan Redskin Invitational last Tuesday. Warrensburg won the meet with 140 points.

SOV girls’ team

The SOV girls’ team placed fourth with 69 points.

Katherine Kite took second in the 1,600-meter run with a time of 6:11.52, and senior Ashlynd Risley placed third in the 100-meter run at 13.74 and third in the 400-meter run at 1:06.04.

Laine Cameron took third in the 100-meter hurdles and 300-meter hurdles with times of 17.72 and 52.08, respectively.

Natalie Drury high jumped 4 foot 6 inched for fourth place, and Esther Miller jumped 4 feet 6 inches for fifth place.

Sophomore Alaya Bolin tossed the shot put 34 feet for fifth place, and Haley Rose ran the 300 hurdles in 52.86 for fifth place. Read More

Some Good Hits But No Wins For Knights

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•May 10, 2017•

By Jason Brown
NP Sports

The Arthur-Lovington/Atwood-Hammond baseball team finished the week 0-2 with losses to Decatur Lutheran and Argenta-Oreana.

Monday Decatur Lutheran scored two runs in the top of the eighth inning to take a lead and the eventual 6-4 win.

Decatur Lutheran took the lead 4-3 in the seventh inning, but ALAH tied the game with a run in the bottom of the inning to send it to the eighth.

Marcus Vanausdoll and Will Cohan each had two hits.

Vanausdoll scored a run, and Cohan knocked in a run. Read More

Understanding Illinois: Trying to Restring the Ties that Used to Bind

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•May 10, 2017•

By Jim Nowlan
NP Guest Columnist

I mix in quite varied circles. One day I might be helping at my rural hometown food pantry, and the next, enjoying my home away from home, the Union League Club of Chicago, a 23-story country club in the heart of the city.

When I was a boy 60 years ago, I like to think there were some ties, maybe quite loose, I admit, between rich and poor in a nation then largely of small towns and cities. I worry that those ties have been mostly severed.

The all-volunteer food pantry does a fine job of providing almost bounteous food stuffs once a month to 60 families, which range in size from one to eight, the last a household of three generations. This represents almost 10 percent of the area population.

A faith-based food bank in Peoria and a non-profit operation in the Quad-Cities make deliveries once a month in 18-wheeler trucks to food pantries like ours. The food is often top-of-the-line over-stock or near-expiration stuff donated by big box grocers and food manufacturers. Read More

Lake Shelbyville to host Pack the Park at Forest W. “Bo” Wood

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•May 10, 2017•

To celebrate camping season, Lake Shelbyville, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers will provide free camping during Pack the Park at Forest W. “Bo” Wood Campground May 11-13. Campsites will be available on a first come, first served basis Thursday through Saturday night. Paid camping will resume Sunday, May 14.

Campers may expect a full schedule of activities that the whole family can enjoy.

-Magician: The Great Boodini, Friday, May 12; 7-8:30 p.m. at the amphitheater

-Inflatable bounce houses Saturday, May 13; 10 a.m.-2 p.m. by the playground

-Canoe rides: Saturday, May 13; 10 a.m.-2 p.m. location TBD (info will be posted at fee booth)

-Wood carving/artisans, May 13; 10 a.m.-5 p.m. next to amphitheater

-K-9 Unit dog show, May 13; 2-3 p.m. at Bo Wood Dog Park

-Live Music - Them Gringos, May 13; 6-9 p.m. at the amphitheater

For additional information regarding Pack the Park, call the Lake Shelbyville Interpretive Services and Outreach Department at 217-774-3951 Ext. 2.

ALAH Softball Team Picks Up Two Wins

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•May 10, 2017•

The Arthur-Lovington/Atwood-Hammond softball team picked up two wins and earned a No. 1 seed in the I.H.S.A. Class 1A Girls’ Softball Regional hosted by the Knights.

ALAH defeated A-O 10-3 Friday and knocked off Sullivan 7-1 in Arthur, Monday.

Against the Redskins, the Knights jumped out to an early lead with two runs in the first inning and two runs in the second.

The Redskins scored one run in the top of the sixth, but ALAH answered with three more in the bottom of the inning.

For ALAH, sophomore Reagan Miller hit a home run and had two RBIs and two runs scored. Read More