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Recent Obituaries: Edwin “Jim” Taylor

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Edwin "Jim" Taylor

Edwin James “Jim” Taylor, 89, of Sullivan, passed away 8:35 a.m. Thursday, October 24, 2019, at Mason Point, Sullivan.
Funeral services will be 1:00 p.m. Sunday, October 27, 2019, at McMullin-Young Funeral Home, Sullivan. Visitation will be held an hour prior to the service Sunday at the funeral home. Burial will be in Marrowbone Township Cemetery, Bethany. Memorials may be made to the donor’s choice.
Jim was born April 14, 1930, in Seattle, WA; the son of Raymond and Ruth E. (Gilbert) Taylor. He served in the United States Navy Reserves. He married Sharon K. Brown on September 12, 1981 in Shelbyville; she preceded him in death on April 2, 2016. He liked electronics, C.B. Radios, rummage sales, boating and camping. His favorite sports teams were the CUBs, Chicago Bears and the Illini.
He is survived by his son, James Ray (Debra) Taylor, Jr. of Cerro Gordo; daughter, Ricki (Dave) Ware of Mountain Home, ID; step-sons, Jim (Tami) Brown of Sullivan, Jack (Kelly) Brown of Sullivan and Jan (Linda) Brown of Kirksville. He is also survived by 4 grandchildren, 10 great-grandchildren, 4 step-grandchildren and 2 step-great-grandchildren.
He was preceded in death by his parents, wife and 1 brother.
Condolences may be offered to the family at www.mcmullinyoung.com

Recent Obituaries: Edwin Taylor

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Edwin Taylor

Edwin James “Jim” Taylor, 89, of Sullivan, passed away 8:35 a.m. Thursday, October 24, 2019, at Mason Point, Sullivan. Funeral services will be 1:00 p.m. Sunday, October 27, 2019, at McMullin-Young Funeral Home, Sullivan. Visitation will be held an hour prior to the service Sunday at the funeral home. Burial will be in Marrowbone Township Cemetery, Bethany. Memorials may be made to the donor’s choice. Jim was born April 14, 1930, in Seattle, WA; the son of Raymond and Ruth E. (Gilbert) Taylor. He served in the United States Navy Reserves. He married Sharon K. Brown on September 12, 1981 in Shelbyville; she preceded him in death on April 2, 2016. He liked electronics, C.B. Radios, rummage sales, boating and camping. His favorite sports teams were the CUBs, Chicago Bears and the Illini. He is survived by his son, James Ray (Debra) Taylor, Jr. of Cerro Gordo; daughter, Ricki (Dave) Ware of Mountain Home, ID; step-sons, Jim (Tami) Brown of Sullivan, Jack (Kelly) Brown of Sullivan and Jan (Linda) Brown of Kirksville. He is also survived by 4 grandchildren, 10 great-grandchildren, 4 step-grandchildren and 2 step-great-grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his parents, wife and 1 brother.

Recent Obituaries: Charles Whitehall

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Charles Whitehall

Charles R. Whitehall, 65, of Lake City, passed away 4:09 p.m. Monday, October 21, 2019, at Decatur Memorial Hospital.
No services will be held. Memorials may be made in care of the family. McMullin-Young Funeral Home is in care of the arrangements.
Charles was born February 14, 1954 in Monmouth, the son of Russell and Pauline (Brock) Whitehall. He married Georgia Jones on March 31, 1973 in Monmouth and they spent 46 wonderful years together. He enjoyed his horses, cats, DVDs and action movies. He worked at Sloan Implement in Assumption for many years.
He is survived by his wife, Georgia of Lake City; daughter, Stephanie (Andy) Weaver of Minnesota; sisters, Rita (Carl) Sousa of Ft. Myers, FL, Paula Noel of Florida and Amy Whitehall of Godfrey. He is also survived by 2 grandchildren.
Condolences may be offered to the family at www.mcmullinyoung.com

A Chance to Give a Little Change Can Mean a Lot

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Photo by Mike Brothers
Gerry Nolen gets ready to Round up as Sullivan IGA cashier Tony Feeler checks out.

•October 23, 2019•
By Turk Rounder
for The News Progress

Where else could giving so little mean so much?
It’s Round up time at Sullivan IGA from Nov. 3 to Nov. 9 giving every customer a chance to help buy turkeys for Moultrie County Food Pantry’s Thanksgiving.
“It’s amazing how quickly it adds up,” IGA manager Pat Stinson said of the eighth annual fund raising event for the food pantry.
“The most you can donate is 99 cents and even a penny makes a difference,” he continued, noting the week long event contributes some $1200 annually to the food pantry’s Thanksgiving meal giveaway. Read More

Redskins Volleyball Prepares for Senior Night

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•October 23, 2019•
The Redskin volleyball team dropped two games this past week.
Sullivan lost to Windsor/Stewardson Strasburg last Tuesday and St. Teresa Thursday.
Thursday against St. Teresa, Sullivan lost in straight sets, 25-11, 25-17.
Avery Still had seven kills, while Zoe Walton added three.
Jerra Goad served two aces and had five digs, and Gwen Diepholz added five digs. Read More

OVMS at State

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Photo furnished
OVMS at State
The Okaw Valley Middle School boys’ cross country team placed 11th overall at the IESA State Meet in Bloomington Saturday. Eighth grader Dominic Herold medaled by placing 18th out of 230 runners.

SOV Football Falls to Clinton

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•October 23, 2019•
The Sullivan-Okaw Valley football team scored 38 points against Clinton High School High but lost 66-38 for its eighth-straight loss of the year.
Sullivan is set to end its season on Senior Night against Central A&M Friday at Victory Field.

Let’s Talk About Electronic Devices, Communication and Guns

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•October 23, 2019•
By Jim Nowlan
NP Guest Columnist

I muse widely, yet my knowledge base in quite narrow. So, I could sure use help from thoughtful readers who know more than I about the topics below, which I am beginning to explore for possible essays. If you have informed thoughts and links to good sources, please email at jnowlan3@gmail.com.
First: There will be war-like conflicts in the future, and the U.S. won’t be spared, as we have been in the past. As drones and cyber conflict replace much of the boots-on-the-ground-warfare, the first thing to go down in any major future dust-up would likely be our electric power grid.
Would apocalyptic chaos ensue on the streets? Would a nation like ours be brought to its knees, just like big corporations that make huge ransomware payoffs to hackers, to get their systems back up and running?
Could Americans benefit from “civil defense” training, or would it be useless? How would you and your family fare if you were without electricity for several weeks? Should every family buy a small gas-powered generator to keep the lights on, and a supply of food and water? Read More

Remember When? 10-23-2019

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25 Years Ago This Week

The Sullivan Sixth Grade Singers participated in a 50’s Sock Hop. With the girls in their poodle skirts and boys in their rolled up white t-shirts, a photo shows Dana Howell, Amanda Martin, Lindsey Hagan, Rachael Howard, Tyson Grooms, Ryan Crawford and Adam Yoder.
Sherry E Harris of Sullivan received an honorable mention ribbon for her art exhibit “The Lion Sleeps” at the 40th Annual Paris Art Exhibit. Maggie McClellan, an artist and teacher firm Miami Florida, presented the awards and gave a gallery talk.
Mr. and Mrs. W. Scott Blomeley were given a surprise 40th anniversary luncheon at The Inn at Eagle Creek. The luncheon was hosted by their children, Mrs. Betty Jane (BJ) Boyer, Mrs. Kathy Cantrall, Cyndi Selby and Scott H. Blomeley. Over 50 guests attended the luncheon including Mrs. Blomeley’s matron of honor and an usher from their wedding in 1954.
The Gingerbread House in Windsor (formerly Jimmy’s) is newly remodeled and serving “made from scratch” meals. They feature homemade bread, cinnamon rolls and pies. Read More

OV Schools Honor Veterans

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•October 23, 2019•
Okaw Valley Community Unit School District invites all Veterans and their family members to a Veterans Day program at Okaw Valley High School in Bethany on Monday, November 11th. A breakfast will be provided to all who attend beginning at 8:15am in the cafeteria and a short assembly will follow at 9:15am. The assembly will feature the Okaw Valley School District band and chorus students, and keynote speakers.
The students and staff at Okaw Valley thank all Veterans for their acts of courage and devotion to the ideals that have served to guide our nation. We would be honored if you could join us to pay tribute to all the brave men and women who have admirably served our country.
If you will be able to attend, please call 665-3232 for a reservation.