Category Archives: News

City Council Ordinance Amendment Allows Raising Chickens in City Limits

News Progress Posted on by

•December 13, 2023•

by Crystal Reed

The Sullivan City Council held a regular meeting on Monday, December 11 at the Elizabeth Titus Memorial Library. All commissioners were in attendance with Commissioner Chuck Woodworth attending by phone. The meeting began with two public hearings. One was for a proposed federally funded Community Development Block Grant project for storm sewer system improvements and the other was for the tax levy. 

The public hearing on the CDBG grant was in regards to the city applying for a $650,000 community development block grant to help fund storm sewer improvements. The grant is funded by the federal government and administered by the state. The amount of CDBG funds proposed to be used for activities that will benefit low to moderate income persons is $371,540. This was approved later in the meeting under new business.  Read More

Marny’s Miniatures on Display at MC Historical Center

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photo by Crystal Reed
Marny Ennis Elliott and her son Charles hold a few of her framed needlepoint designs. She has a display of her dollhouse room boxes, handmade miniature furnishings and needlepoint on display until March 31, 2024 at the Moultrie County Historical Center.

•December 13, 2023•

by Crystal Reed

Marny Ennis Elliott of Champaign, formerly of Lovington, has a special exhibit of dollhouse room boxes and their handmade miniature furnishings on display at the Moultrie County Historical Center until March 31, 2024. The exhibit is called “Marny’s Miniatures.” Elliott recalls receiving a metal dollhouse at age six from Santa in 1949. The walls and floors were printed with rugs and pictures and plastic furniture. She donated it to the less fortunate. Read More

Santa’s Little Helper Workshop 2023

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photo by Crystal Reed
Santa’s Little Helper Workshop
Calvin Lawler works on a craft during the Santa’s Little Helper Workshop activities held at the Masonic Temple in Sullivan. Activities included Christmas crafts, cookie decorating, writing letters to Santa and refreshments. The event was free and offered by Dove, Inc.

photo by Crystal Reed
Christmas Fun
Alexis Rosine and Han Warren enjoy the activities in Santa’s Little Helper Workshop.

photo by Crystal Reed
Santa Letter Writing
Employees at Moultrie County Counseling volunteered at Santa’s Little Helper Workshop offering children the opportunity to write letters to Santa and coloring pages. Pictured are Mary Stutzman, Alexa Matthies and Alejandra Huerta.

photo by Crystal Reed
Helping Out at Santa Workshop
Molly Tenuto with Dove and her daughter Maddy helped out in Santa’s Little Helper Workshop prior to the Sullivan Christmas parade the evening of Friday, December 1.

photo by Crystal Reed
Visiting with Santa
Sawyer and Patsy Woodworth visit with Santa during the Sullivan Chamber and Economic Development’s Christmas activities on Friday, December 1.

Santa at the Bethany Depot 2023

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photo by Crystal Reed
Santa at the Bethany Depot
Aria Lane visited with Santa when he visited the Depot in Bethany on Sunday, December 3. Santa rode into town in an antique fire truck and the Okaw Valley band played as he rode up to the Depot.

photo by Crystal Reed
BASO Volunteers
Pictured are some of the volunteers that made Santa’s arrival in Bethany possible in front of the village’s Christmas tree.

photo by Crystal Reed
Bethany Royalty Help Santa
Bethany royalty helped Santa at the Bethany Depot. Pictured are Young Miss Bethany Archer McPheeters, Little Miss Bethany Davanee Lenover, Miss Bethany Julia Hildebrandt and Junior Miss Bethany Falynn Irvin.

photo by Crystal Reed
Reindeer Games
Evie Law plays a ring toss game with Bethany Free Methodist Church Pastor Chris Benton. Santa came to Bethany on Sunday, December 3 and activities were held in the library’s community room, Santa photos at Bethany Depot and a tree lighting at the village hall.

ALAH BOE Approves Tentative Tax Levy

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•December 6, 2023•

by Ariana R Cherry

The ALAH Board of Education approved a tentative tax levy at their school board meeting Wednesday. November 15. The tax levy was figured at 5.6%. Since the levy is over 5%, it will require the board to have a Truth and Taxation hearing. While the levy is over 5%, it still is considerably lower than last year’s which was 9%. The formula to configure the levy is established by state code. Superintendent Shannon Cheek also looks at other counties when he tries to estimate the EAV (equalized assessed value). In his research, he found that Moultrie County had a 7% increase, Piatt County was at 8% and Coles County was 6%.  There will be a hearing at the next school board meeting in December, and the tentative tax levy will be on file for the next 30 days.

The district received a matching maintenance grant from the ISBE (Illinois State Board of Education) of $50,000 to help cover the cost for the renovations of the bathrooms at Arthur Grade School and Lovington Grade School. Grunloh Construction’s bid of $537,000 was the one awarded to complete the project. Read More

OV Student Sharing Love of Space with Grade Schoolers

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photo furnished
Gabe Benning teaches students about space during one of his visits to a local school. He has developed a three day space unit designed for grade schools and has shared his knowledge in several local districts.

•November 29, 2023•

by Crystal Reed

Gabe Benning has loved space and astronomy since he was a child, whether it’s meteor showers, stars, black holes or planets he knows about it. Benning is a senior at Okaw Valley High School in Bethany and last semester this past April he was thinking about what he could do for the community and our area about his interest in space. He saw a Tik Tok that sparked an idea to create a three day space unit designed for grade schools.

The space unit is broken down in 30 minute sessions each day. Read More

Kirby Foods Donates Turkeys 2023

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photo by Crystal Reed
Kirby Foods Donates Turkeys
Kirby Food Meat Department employees delivered a donation of 60 turkey breasts and 40 turkeys to the Moultrie County Food Pantry on Monday, November 20. Pictured (in no order) are: Cameron Eccles, Shawn Eccles, Sandra Hanke and Seth Cobb.

Marrowbone Public Library Family Reading Night 2023

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photo by Crystal Reed
Marrowbone Public Library Family Reading Night
Marrowbone Public Library held Family Reading Night on Thursday, November 16. The event included special guest readers: Mrs. Heidi Vander Burgh (pictured), Mrs. Angie Russell and Mrs. Kathy Doty. There was also a special paper cutting demonstration by Tammy Sims.

photo by Crystal Reed
Guest Reader
Mrs. Angie Russell reads to children who attended Marrowbone Public Library’s Family Reading Night.

photo by Crystal Reed
Reading Stories
Mrs. Kathy Doty reads to children as a guest reader during Family Reading Night.

Red Cross Blood Drive in Honor of Mark Conlin

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photo by Crystal Reed
Red Cross Blood Drive in Honor of
Mark Conlin
A blood drive was held in honor of Mark Conlin on Tuesday, November 14 at the Sullivan American Legion Post 68. Pictured are donor Mike Kirk and Drive Coordinator Jeri Davis. Donations collected during that drive will help over 100 people. The next drive at the Sullivan Legion will be on Tuesday, January 9 from Noon to 6 pm.

Open House Held for New Water Treatment Plant

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photo by Crystal Reed
City Council members, contractors and water plant employees gathered to cut the ribbon on the City of Sullivan’s new water treatment plant on Thursday, November 16.

•November 22, 2023•

by Crystal Reed

An open house was held at the City of Sullivan’s new water treatment plant in the evening of Thursday, November 16. A ribbon cutting by the Sullivan Chamber of Commerce and Economic Opportunity kicked off the event. Construction on the plant began June 6, 2022. 

Commissioner Chuck Woodworth said the planning and designing of the plant began around August 2019 but it took 14 months for the EPA to issue a construction permit because of COVID. At that time EPA employees were working at home remotely.

Woodworth said that the major factor in building the new water treatment plant was several changes with EPA regulations. “Meeting the new requirements would have been almost $9 million and there was not enough room around the old plant to build the new requirements, which was another softener unit,” he said “The condition of the wood frame buildings and several other factors.” Woodworth said the options were to spend $9 million in updates to a 30 year old plant or $12 million on a new plant. Read More