Photo by Florence Hallford
Pictured, left to right, are Lovington Grade School librarian Karen Smith-Cox, Joshua Zander holding his prize, fifth grade first-runner up Alyssa Thompson, and fourth grade, third place Emma Edwards.

School reads more than 67 million words during contest

June 3, 2015

by Florence Hallford
& Keith Stewart
keith@newsprogress.com

As Amazon’s great text stats have calculated, the average length of a book is around 64,000 words. But for Lovington seventh grader Joshua Zander, that’s hardly a big deal.
And he would know.
Zander recently won a reading contest at the grade school after totaling 5,148,507 words read throughout the school year.
That came to 75 books, but even that was an easy feat after learning what the prize was.
“Once Josh found out the “Call of Duty” was involved, it was easy for him to take the tests in AR to document his accomplishments,” said Karen Smith-Cox, the grade school’s librarian for the past 12 years. “I noticed Josh was a reader last year when discussing books with him. I was impressed with his reading level and types of books. I would order through Illinois Heartland Library System books we did not have in our library for him. He also goes to the public library a lot to order even more books.”
Word count was verified through a test system called AR (accelerated reading). The student would enter the book he or she read and the AR system would test them on the book to assure they read it. Read More

Submitted
Pictured (left) is Sullivan McDonald’s owner Angie Matlock and (right) Sullivan high school senior Beretta Phelps, who along with Matlock’s help, collected 400 pounds of pop tabs to donate to the Ronald McDonald House Charity as a state service project.

Tabs converted into cash to help Ronald McDonald House

May 20, 2015

by Ariana Cherry
Arthur/Sullivan Reporter

Forty-four gallons of soda are drunk per year, according to an associated press article published in 2013. Of those who consumed the 44 gallons, it is quite possible that they did not give much thought to the worth of a pop can tab. At the Ronald McDonald House, however, they think much differently when they see a can of soda-they think of hope and the chance at helping save lives. Each year nearly 40, 000,000 tabs are collected for the Ronald McDonald House Charity. Those tabs are cashed in to raise money to help the patients and families who stay there. That adds up to $10K annually for its charity.
Former Sullivan Middle School principal Nancy Schaljo can attest to this beneficial charity because of her own personal experience.
Nearly 12 years ago her granddaughter was very ill and had to undergo a heart transplant. While undergoing care, she stayed in the Ronald McDonald House in Philadelphia. Read More

Photo by Keith Stewart
Lesa McDaniel puts the finishing touches on a flower arrangement Monday morning. McDaniel, along with her mother Kimberlie Elkins, are the new owner/operators of the Flower Pot in Sullivan.

Shop remains familiar to customers while adding a few items

April 22, 2015

by Ariana Cherry
Arthur/Sullivan reporter

When it came to making the decision to take over The Flower Pot, new owners and mother/daughter team Lesa McDaniel and Kimberlie Elkins (of Mackinaw, Ill.) didn’t have to go out on a limb. With Elkins already having experience running a store and McDaniel’s motivation, the idea to take over the business was already planted firmly in both of their minds.
“My husband and I are friends with Mike and Ellen (Bernius). When I had first heard she was going to retire, I told my husband that I would love to run it and have my mother move down here to run it with me,” said McDaniel. “I had been a stay-at-home mom over the last 10 years and was ready to have a career. I was also given the opportunity to come in before Ellen closed, and she taught me how to make a proper arrangement and showed me what I needed to know.
“My mother had a store up in Mackinaw and loved what she did so I thought it would be a lot of fun to work with my mom. I got a hold of Ellen, and here we are. I am very grateful that we were given the chance to keep the business going!” Read More

One of Moultrie’s oldest families tries to reunite

April 22, 2015

by Joash Tiarks
Bethany Reporter

A picture can be worth a thousand words, but what about a thousand relatives? And what if many of the faces in that picture are without names, waiting to be identified? A complex puzzle to be sure, especially when that photo was taken nearly 100 years ago.
Yet, this is just what Janie Ball of Estes Park, Colo., Doris Hubner of Onarga, Ill., and Connie Cerdena of LaCenter, Wash. have undertaken to do in planning and preparing for their family’s reunion set for the May 9 and 10 in Sullivan.
However, this is not your typical family get together.
Ball, Hubner and Cerdena each trace their lineage back to one of the first families to arrive in Moultrie County, who were actually the first white settlers to take up permanent residence here: the Isaac Waggoner family.

Submitted
Pictured is a photo from 1928 in what was then called Freeland’s Grove (near present day Wyman Park) of the Waggoner family reunion. The family goes back as far as 1828, making it one of the first to settle in Moultrie County. After more than 80 years after their last, the family plans to reunite in Sullivan next month, but is still trying to get the word out to family members.

Read More

Submitted
Pictured is local artist and clothing designer Darby Harden who just recently unveiled her new clothing line, The Wanderlust Collection–a handcrafted line that boasts uniqueness in every garment.

Darby Harden designs new Wanderlust Clothing Collection

April 8, 2015
by Ariana Cherry
Arthur/Sullivan Reporter

Many have heard the saying, “turning something old, into something new” or “somebody else’s trash, is another person’s treasure.” Darby Harden, owner of Gypsy Soul Revival in Sullivan did something similar with her latest clothing line, “The Wanderlust Collection” by literally turning vintage pieces into an intricate meaningful fashion line for women to treasure for years to come.
“I love things that have a history, that would normally get discarded and that need to be reused,” she said. “I have handcrafted each piece in the Wanderlust Collection using select vintage linens, lace, fabric, and trims. No two items in the collection are the same.”
Harden may have found the perfect “niche” as there is already an interest in antiques and handcrafted items within the area. But in order to stand out amongst the rest, though, it is important for items to have something special and unique. Read More