Category Archives: News Briefs

Sullivan’s Downtown Christmas Celebration 2022

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Photo courtesy of Molly Tenuto
Dove, Inc. Hosts Santa’s Little Helper Workshop
Staff from Dove, Inc. hosted Santa’s Little Helper Workshop during Sullivan’s Christmas activities on Friday, December 2. The indoor activities were quite popular. Activities included cookie decorating, Letters to Santa and a variety of crafts. They also served hot dogs, chips and hot chocolate. Pictured from Dove, Inc. are Jennifer Tolladay, Becky Comstock, Andrea Kocher and Jamie Houchins.

Photo by Crystal Reed
Making Christmas Crafts
Marlee Weaver shows the necklace that she was making at Santa’s Little Helper Workshop on Friday, December 2. Activities included making necklaces, decorating cookies, writing letters to Santa, coloring pages and more.

Photo by Crystal Reed
Writing a Letter to Santa
Lyla and Cade Nadler wrote Letters to Santa at the Masonic Temple in Sullivan as part of Santa’s Little Helper Workshop which was organized by Dove, Inc.

Photo by Crystal Reed
Sullivan Singers Jr. Sings Christmas Carols
Members of the Sullivan Singers performed Christmas songs during the Christmas festivities in Sullivan. Sullivan Dance Studio dancers also performed as well.

Photo by Crystal Reed
Visiting with Santa
Cooper, Waylon and Tucker Atchison visited with Santa during Sullivan’s Christmas festivities. Children were able to share their Christmas wishes with Santa throughout the evening with a short break in visits during the Christmas parade.

Photo by Crystal Reed
Free Christmas Ornaments
Lori Poorman of Agri-Fab gave out free Christmas ornaments during the Sullivan Christmas activities on Friday, December 2. The ornaments have the word Joy with a manger scene and star in the “o” of the word.

Moultrie County Swears in New Officials and Board Members

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•December 7, 2022•
Moultrie County Circuit Judge Jeremy Richey swore in new county officials during a ceremony on Thursday, December 1. Those sworn in were County Clerk Linda Qualls, County Treasurer Stephanie Helmuth, County Sheriff Gary Carroll, and County Board members Scott Buxton, Tyler Graven, Kenny Graven, Bill Voyles, Aaron Wilhelm, Travis Phelps and Joshua Roe. County Board members John Vander Burgh and Marsha Kirby will be sworn in at a later date.

 

Photo by Kristi Hart
Carroll Sworn in as Moultrie Co. Sheriff
Gary Carroll is sworn in as the new Moultrie County Sheriff by Moultrie County Circuit Judge Jeremy Richey.

Photo by Kristi Hart
Helmuth Sworn in as Moultrie Co. Treasurer
Stephanie Helmuth is sworn in for another term as Moultrie County Treasurer by Moultrie County Circuit Judge Jeremy Richey.

Photo by Kristi Hart
Qualls Sworn in as Moultrie Co. Clerk
Linda Qualls is sworn in as the new Moultrie County Clerk by Moultrie County Circuit Judge Jeremy Richey.

Photo by Kristi Hart
Moultrie Co. Board Members Sworn in
Scott Buxton, Kenny Graven, Aaron Wilhelm, Tyler Graven, Joshua Roe, Travis Phelps and Bill Voyles are sworn in as county board members.

Students Decorate Courthouse Tree 2022

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Photo courtesy of Kristi Hart
Students Decorate Courthouse Tree
The Christmas tree at the Moultrie County Courthouse is ready for the holidays after Morning Project HELP and Early Childhood and Afternoon Project HELP kids from Okaw Valley Elementary School decorated on Thursday, December 1.

English Students Express Opinions in Letters to the Editor

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•December 7, 2022•
Editors Note: The following letters to the editor were submitted by Cami Badman’s honors English students at Sullivan High School. Studnts picked a debatable topic of their choice and used the techniques they learned in class. Several letters were provided to us and we have chosen to print the following letters. They will be spanned out in the next couple of weeks so check out our next week’s edition for more.

Dear Editor,

The debate of increasing the federal minimum wage is ongoing and a very common topic within our politics today. Many states have taken this into their own hands, and either raised the wage or kept it the same. It is in our country’s best interest to not raise the wage to $15.00 an hour as it would raise unemployment levels and the price of goods, creating an increase in poverty. “The Congressional Budget Office projected that a minimum wage increase from $7.25 to $10.10 would result in a loss of 500,000.” 500,000 jobs lost is a significant amount and this estimate is only accounting for the job loss if the wage went from $7.25 to $10.10. Many politicians are pushing for the minimum wage to be set at $15.00 per hour, which would cause even more unemployment, putting too many people without a job. Read More

How do Deal with Academic Burnout and Stress

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•December 7, 2022•
by Cheri Burcham
Extension Educator, University of Illinois Extension

I would like to share this timely article written by Illinois Extension intern, Sharon Kim. Sharon says: With finals around the corner many students are feeling unmotivated or stressed. It can be hard to finish off the semester strong with such stress and pressure. Sometimes the constant buildup of projects, papers, exams, presentations, etc. can be too overwhelming and cause burnout. There seems to be less time for self-care, and it can cause people to gloss over problems. However, it is important to recognize the signs of burnout and address the issue before it starts to have long term effects.
Signs of burnout include: Read More

‘Gaslighting’ Sparks Dictionary Lookups

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•December 7, 2022•
By Jim Baumann
NP Guest Writer

Before flipping the calendar to December, the lexicographers at Merriam-Webster rolled the dice and released their list of most popular lookups for 2022.
I guess if “Mystery comet” or “Y2K23” don’t make a run for it by New Year’s Eve, it’ll be smooth sailing until next year.
The word of the year is ... “gaslighting.”
I’ve always loved this word, in part because it originated from the title of a play and the films that followed. Read More

Remember When? 12-7-2022

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25 Years Ago This Week

CyberTek Internet, founded by Duane Wooters of Sullivan, was purchased by the Lovington-based One-Eleven Internet Services, Inc. One-Eleven is affiliated with Moultrie Independent Phone Co. that provided local internet access for Windsor, Bethany, Lovington and Dalton City.
The Sullivan School District received the “Red Apple” award from Bill Lair, managing editor of the Charleston Times-Courier for the top performance on the Illinois Goal Assessment Program tests administered during the 1996-97 school year. Sullivan edged out Oakland as the top performing school. Read More

LLC to host Laker Visit Day

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•November 30, 2022•
Lake Land College will host Laker Visit Day from 9 a.m. to noon Dec. 2 in the Luther Student Center, giving potential students the opportunity to learn about The Laker Advantage and how it can guide them on the path to success.
Attendees will tour campus with a student ambassador, who will share information from a student perspective. Participants will also meet with faculty to learn more about specific programs. Read More

Curran Eyes ‘Balance’ as he Prepares to Lead Illinois Senate’s GOP Minority

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•November 30, 2022•
By Jerry Nowicki
Capitol News Illinois
jnowicki @ capitolnewsillinois.com

Senate Minority Leader-elect John Curran will take over a caucus that’s more than doubled in size by the majority-party Democrats.
His goal: “Bring balance to state government.”
“Because we’re going to produce better results with that balance for working families throughout all Illinois communities,” Curran said in an interview with Capitol News Illinois last Wednesday, one day after being chosen as the GOP’s next minority leader.
The Republican from southwest suburban Downers Grove has served in the General Assembly since 2017. In January, he’ll take over for Minority Leader Dan McConchie, a Hawthorn Woods Republican who was chosen for the post in November 2020, but whose caucus chose a new route by electing Curran this week.
“There’s no pivot,” Curran said. “We all sit at one table, this is a few people changing seats, just a couple of different roles as we go forward. But, you know, really, this is about us being a unified caucus.”
Capitol News Illinois · New Republican LeadershipCurran brings a track record of working with Democrats to his leadership role as the caucus looks to navigate a likely 40-19 Democratic majority. Read More

Youth Participants Sought for Quilt Fest

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•November 30, 2022•
The Decatur Quilters Guild is requesting youth participants for their Quilt Fest 2023 called “Our Town Kids Can Quilt.”
Participants should be aged 8 – 16 years. The child should make a quilt and enter it in the Decatur Quilt Fest to be held at the Decatur Civic Center on April 14 and 15, 2023. First, second and third place winners will be chosen by the show attendees with prizes awarded for chosen winners. Grand Prize will be a sewing machine. Read More