•September 15, 2021•
By Cheri Burcham
Family Life Educator

I have always encouraged volunteering to the older adults I work with as a way to feel purpose, share wisdom and skills and socialize. So when I saw this article written by Extension Educator Judy Schmidt about how volunteering helps the whole family and why, I wanted to share with you. Judy says: volunteering together can be a great way for families to spend time with each other. Additionally, volunteering as a family has been shown to significantly impact the amount teens volunteers. America’s Promise found that 81% of teens who had one adult family member or role model who volunteered reported volunteering themselves (Child Trends, 2006). Read More

25 Years Ago This Week

The members of the Bethany Village Board signed off on a potential $1.5 million project designed to shore up Bethany’s collapsing streets. Officials signed a letter of intent with the county and state to participate in an infrastructure project to renovate storm sewers and streets in Bethany.
The schedule of improvement for the Sullivan school district included new windows for vocational and science rooms, removal of underground storage tank and elementary locker installation, total $170,000; new lighting, ceiling tile, windows for agriculture, band, art and cafeteria rooms, $200,000 and more. The school board was reviewing planned building improvements. Read More

•September 15, 2021•
Mental health and substance use issues are common. Nearly 1 in 5 U.S. adults lives with a mental illness according to the National Institute of Mental Health. From 1999 to 2016, 630,000 people died from drug overdose according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Give someone in your community a hand by learning how to recognize and respond when someone might need help with the free Mental Health First Aid workshop offered by University of Illinois Extension and the North Central Farm and Ranch Stress Assistance Center. Read More

•September 8, 2021•
By Jim Baumann
NP Guest Writer

I heard from two readers in the past week regarding the word “troops.”
That kind of coincidence simply requires some navel-gazing.
“As I read the Aug. 17 Daily Herald headline stating ‘13 U.S. troops killed amid evacuations,’” wrote Terry Valentino, “I am wondering how it means 13 soldiers? A terrible story, but I thought perhaps it would be better saying ‘13 U.S. soldiers killed ...’ To me, the word or term ‘soldier’ makes it more human and even a bit sadder. Maybe that is why using the word ‘troops’ was used by editors — to makes it less tragic.” Read More

•September 8, 2021•
On the evening of September 11, 2001, United States President George W. Bush addressed a nation that earlier that day witnessed the deadliest terrorist attacks in world history. That morning, hijackers took control of four airplanes, ultimately crashing two into the Twin Towers at the World Trade Center in New York City and another into the Pentagon in Washington, D.C. A fourth hijacked plane crashed in a field near the town of Shanksville, Pennsylvania after passengers and crew attempted to regain control of the plane from the hijackers. All passengers and crew on board all four flights died on September 11, and thousands of others on the ground lost their lives that day as well. It was under those conditions that President Bush delivered the following speech to a shaken nation. Read More