Category Archives: News Briefs

Halloween Craft Ideas for Kids

News Progress Posted on by

•October 19, 2022•
Halloween is an enjoyable holiday for all, but particularly for children. Kids enjoy the opportunity to channel their whimsy and imagination, whether that involves choosing a clever costume or helping design the theme and scope of home decorations.
Parents, guardians and educators can channel the creativity inspired by Halloween into various craft projects. Crafts can not only keep children busy when the “I’m bored” lamentations inevitably turn up, but crafts also are a way to keep children off of screens. Plus, the items that children create can be used to decorate rooms in the house — helping to curb added expenses on commercial decor.
The following are some Halloween crafts children can make alone or with the help of older siblings and parents.

Jack’s slime Read More

When Can Kids Trick-or-Treat Without an Adult?

News Progress Posted on by

•October 19, 2022•
Jack-o’-lanterns on front porches and crisp air are signs that Halloween is right around the corner. Costumes have likely been chosen and bags of candy are undoubtedly hidden in the back of pantries ready to delight trick-or-treaters.
Trick-or-treating is one of the most anticipated components of celebrating Halloween, and scores of kids venture door-to-door seeking the best chocolate bars and other candies. Children typically are chaperoned by their parents or other adults on trick-or-treating ventures. But some day kids will inevitably ask if they can go out alone with their friends. How can parents know when kids are mature enough to go it alone on Halloween? Read More

How to Keep Kids Safe on Halloween

News Progress Posted on by

•October 19, 2022•
When Halloween arrives each October, most people are interested in the entertaining aspects of the holiday in addition to the abundance of sweet foods that are there for the taking. Even though fun may be foremost on the brain, it is important for everyone keep safety in mind as well.
According to the Florida Law Group, Halloween is a time of heightened injuries and fatalities, and is actually the deadliest day of the year for children. A State Farm insurance study that analyzed four million fatalities between 1990 and 2010 discovered children are twice as likely to die on Halloween as they are on any other day of the year. Data published in the Wall Street Journal indicated children between the ages of four and eight are 10 times more likely to be fatally injured by a car on Halloween than any other day of the year. Read More

What’s in a Name?

News Progress Posted on by

•October 19, 2022•
By Jerry L. Ginther
NP Guest Writer

Now, when I was a lad and ol’ Shep was a pup my maternal grandparents lived in Sullivan, IL. At the time they were faithful to listen to the evening news broadcasts on the radio. During that era, after WWII, there were a couple of famous news broadcasters/commentators, Walter Winchell and Gabriel Heatter, whose voices were heard daily in the living room. This practice continued for many years after a television set was present in their home. Read More

Facts for Families: What’s on Your Plate?

News Progress Posted on by

•October 19, 2022•
By Cheri Burcham
Family Life Educator

Have you ever heard someone say, “There’s a lot on my plate,” or “I have too much on my plate?” Chances are you have even said it yourself. This idiom generally means there is too much to do, too much going on, or too much to deal with in a person’s life. In fact, we are all prone to times when we are stressed by the “busyness” of our lives.
This is a great article by Extension Educator Molly Hofer, who addresses how to prioritize activities in our lives to relieve stress. Molly says: So, what is on your plate? In fact, why not grab a paper plate and consider your own “plate of life” for a minute. Take the paper plate and a pen and write down EVERYTHING you do in an ordinary week. Go ahead, try it! While you’re at it, include the things you may not do weekly but take care of often, like take the dog to the vet, pay bills, wash the car, etc.
Once you have finished your plate of life, look at it and contemplate these questions: Read More

IDPH Stresses Need to Close Cancer Screening Gap Caused by COVID-19 Ahead of National Mammography Day

News Progress Posted on by

•October 19, 2022•
With National Mammography Day approaching on October 21, Governor JB Pritzker and the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) are urging women in Illinois who have delayed breast cancer screenings due to the COVID-19 pandemic to take action and schedule a comprehensive exam now.
“Breast cancer is a tragic disease—taking the lives of more than 40,000 women throughout the nation each year,” said Governor Pritzker, who issued a proclamation declaring October 21 is Mammography Day in Illinois. “But thanks to modern medicine, we can lower that number with early detection and regular mammograms. This National Mammography Day, I encourage the women of Illinois to schedule their annual mammogram, especially those who’ve delayed their exam amidst the chaos of the pandemic.” Read More

Department on Aging to Assist Older Adults During Medicare Open Enrollment Period

News Progress Posted on by

•October 19, 2022•
The Medicare open enrollment period began on Saturday, Oct. 15, older adults looking to change their existing Medicare plan can receive free, personalized assistance through the Illinois Department on Aging’s (IDoA) Senior Health Insurance Program (SHIP).
“It is that time of year where people with Medicare will encounter numerous advertisements about the various Medicare health and drugs plans for 2023,” said Illinois SHIP Director Sandy Leith. “Don’t go it alone, let us put your mind at ease when you discuss your options with a certified SHIP counselor and make an educated choice.” Read More

Governor Pritzker Continues Effort to Adjust COVID-19 Requirements

News Progress Posted on by

•October 19, 2022•
As part of an ongoing effort to carefully roll back Illinois’s COVID-19 executive orders, Governor Pritzker on Monday updated masking and testing requirements for healthcare facilities and long-term care centers. These new guidelines, which went into effect Monday, are in line with updated Center for Disease Control recommendations. Federal requirements remain in effect for those facilities.
“Thanks to the tremendous efforts of our health care workers and residents, Illinois has done better at keeping our people safe with vaccines, boosters, and masking, which puts us in a position to continue to scale back health care requirements in line with the CDC,” said Governor JB Pritzker. “COVID-19 is on its way to becoming endemic, like the flu, but it still poses a real threat to our immunocompromised and disabled communities. Here in Illinois, we look out for one another—it’s what defines us as Illinoisans. Let us continue to live up to those ideals by masking up and testing when we have symptoms and getting COVID-19 booster shots—as I recently did—so that we can protect our neighbors.” Read More

Illinois Department on Aging to Honor Long-term Care Residents During Residents’ Rights Month

News Progress Posted on by

•October 19, 2022•
Joining advocates, residents of nursing homes and other long-term care facilities, facility staff and others across the country, the Illinois Long-Term Care Ombudsman Program (LTCOP) will honor the individual rights of long-term care residents by celebrating Residents’ Rights Month this October. Designated by the National Consumer Voice for Long-Term Care (Consumer Voice), Residents’ Rights Month highlights residents living in all long-term care settings, as well as gives special recognition to the work of the individuals who help assure their dignity, privacy and other basic human rights are maintained. Read More

October is College Changes Everything Month

News Progress Posted on by

•October 19, 2022•
October is College Changes Everything® (CCE) Month in Illinois, when the Illinois Student Assistance Commission (ISAC) teams up with high schools and community partners to support students in completing their college and financial aid applications. During CCE Month and the Fall CCE Campaign from Labor Day through Thanksgiving, ISAC and its partners provide an intensive schedule of free college and financial aid application completion workshops available statewide. That’s especially important this year, as students will see changes in the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA®) that will begin to simplify the application, and there will be expanded financial aid eligibility for some students. The 2023-24 FAFSA and the Alternative Application for Illinois Financial Aid became available Oct. 1, 2022. Read More