•July 17, 2019•
Starting salaries for Moultrie County employees became a stumbling point for county board members attempting to set a salary for an assistant animal control warden.
County board chairman Dave McCabe opened the topic when he moved to approve a $25,000 starting salary for the position. The motion died for lack of a second.
Personnel committee chairman Billy Voyles noted the starting salary for county courthouse employees is set by policy at $19,000 to $21,000. Read More
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Correction
•July 17, 2019•
Cortney Blackford and Steven Sands, both of Sullivan, will be married at 6 p.m. July 20 in Solid Rock Chapel in Sullivan.
An incorrect name for the groom was used in the cutline for the photo in the July 10 edition of the News Progress. The News Progress regrets this error and extends our apologies.
Remember When? 7-17-2019
25 Years Ago This Week
Rochelle Boyd of Lovington and Roy Culp and Cheryl Roberts, both of Gays were honored during a reception held at Lake Land College. Boyd has been with the college since August 1972 and is one of eight employees retiring. She was the special projects coordinator in the office of continuing education.
Neil Simon’s production of The Odd Couple is on the stage of The Little Theatre-On the Square though July 17. Oscar Madison is played by theatre fave Jack Milo and Felix Unger is played by Michael Haws.
A heated debate arose at the Sullivan School Board meeting when architects presented their total bid for the new elementary school. The board is working with a budget of $5 million and the projected cost is $5.118 million.
Sullivan Living Center employees of the month are Toni Hollingsworth, Gretchen Johnson and Joy Scott. Read More
Summer Fun at Wyman Park
•July 17, 2019•
By Ellen Ferrera
for the News Progress
The first week in June, like lemmings to the sea, Sullivan’s children ages 5-12 migrate from their classrooms into sunny Wyman Park to participate in an eight-week recreation program that has endured for over 60 years.
Recreation Director, Jake Haegen, recounts, “My father was in the program when he was young, and I have been involved for over 20 years. My wife and Co-Director, Melissa, joined the staff nine years ago. Both she and her father grew up in the recreation program so it has been in existence for some time.”
A cooperative effort between the Park District and the Civic Center, the program serves, on an average, 100 children a day with a top of 155. The program is entirely free except for a $1 fee for swimming on Fridays. Through a state-sponsored program the children are provided a free lunch each day at the high school.
“We are so fortunate to be able to take advantage of this meal service. Many of the children would not have food during the summer without this program which also provides breakfast for those not having a breakfast at home,” Jake points out.
The recreation activities run from 8:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Monday through Friday from June through July. A typical week’s activities might include the following with lunch at noon: Read More
SHS Class of 1969 Reunion Scheduled
•July 17, 2019•
The Sullivan High School class of 1969 will celebrate their 50th reunion the weekend of August 9.
Activities scheduled are as follows:
Friday, August 9 – 5-7 p.m. Social hour at VFW (dinner is on participants’ own) Read More
Obituaries 7-17-2019
Ferol Henry
Ferol Vaughn Henry, 90, a longtime resident of Springfield, Illinois, passed away peacefully Sunday, Feb. 3, 2019, in Meridian, Idaho. A private burial will be held July 17, 2019, in Calvary Cemetery in Jacksonville, Illinois, with the Rev. Steven Janoski officiating.
Curry Funeral Home in Pawnee is serving the family of Ferol Henry. Online condolences may be expressed at www.curryfh.com.
Community and the United Way Invest
•July 17, 2019•
United Way of Decatur & Mid-Illinois (UWDMI) is announcing investment in multiple Moultrie County programs and is looking forward to seeing measurable, community impact following the completion of the recent Community Investment Process.
Each year, UWDMI focuses on investing in the most effective, efficient, and integrated community programs in Moultrie County — programs that are moving residents towards self-sufficiency or that are allowing residents to live independently with dignity.
While UWDMI facilitates the Community Investment Process, it is Moultrie County residents who volunteer on the investment panel that choose where to invest the community’s resources.
Thanks to the generosity of Moultrie County businesses and individuals, the volunteer investment panel was able to invest the community’s resources in six local programs for the next two years. Read More
Art Sparked
Photo by Sonya Best
Art Sparked
Shelbyville artist, Jamie M. Rutherford, demonstrates her marbling technique on silk scarves at Art in Tabor Park, sponsored by Sullivan Spark.
Sullivan Tourism Exhibit Draws Attention in Big Apple
Photo furnished
SCED Executive Director Laurrie Minor and Little Theatre Executive Director John Stephens discovered magazine travel editors in New York City were interested in Sullivan.
•July 17, 2019•
By Mike Brothers
Sometimes being a little duck in a big pond pays off.
That’s what Little Theatre on the Square and Sullivan Chamber and Economic Development executive directors John Stephens and Laurrie Minor discovered at the Meredith Corporation tourism promotion in New York City last week.
Sullivan’s advertisement in Meredith Corp owned Illinois Country Living tourism magazine earned the SCED an invitation to the two day event. Sullivan was the smallest among eight representative tourism locations in Illinois represented in NYC.
“We were the smallest city represented,” Stephens began, noting Sullivan was competing for tourism attention among the magazines owned by Meredith among much larger tourism operations.
Minor explained exhibits from the Illinois Dept. of Tourism, Chicago Metro area, Rockford, and Starved Rock represented much larger populated areas, but Sullivan stood out drawing more attention than the bigger players. Read More
Sullivan Schools Reduce Bus Route, Prepare for Increased Fuel Costs
Tentative Budget Approved
•July 17, 2019•
By Ariana Cherry
for the News Progress
Director of Transportation and Maintenance Kevin Landrus presented the annual Transportation Report at the opening of the Sullivan School Board on July 8, 2019.
“Costs are down overall. We have consolidated a route, which eliminated a bus and driver,” he stated.
Laudrus informed the board that regular driven miles went down from 86,000 to 72,000 miles. “We need to start looking at the odometer readings on some of the buses. A few of them are getting a lot of miles,” Landrus said of bus replacement rotation.
He also recommended buying a handicap accessible unit with a wheel chair or leasing a second one. Noting fuel expense was rising he pointed out the cost on average was $2.61 a gallon. Read More