News Progress

•August 24, 2022•
By Jim Baumann
NP Guest Writer

We’ve talked about portmanteaus — those fun combinations of words that create new words — as well as slang — informal ways of speaking, often defined by social and work groups.
But what about neologisms?
I dare say in all the years of writing this column I’ve never used the word.
Reader Gib Van Dyne requested I do so, and because I rarely get around to featuring Gib’s thoughtful and well-considered column ideas I thought this would be as good a time as any. Gib asked me to explore neologisms and coinages.
First, portmanteaus and slang could be considered subsets of neologisms, which are defined as a freshly coined words or phrases. But neologisms can also be new definitions of older words. Read More

•August 17, 2022•
The Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) announced today it is providing a one-time bulk shipment of 1 million over-the-counter (OTC) COVID-19 rapid antigen tests to K-12 public school districts outside of Chicago for the upcoming 2022-2023 school year. The tests will be provided free of charge. Read More

•August 17, 2022•
Come join in for the 60th Annual Arthur Mennonite Relief Sale which will be held August 26 and 27 at the Otto Center, ½ mile south of Arthur, Illinois.
The activities will begin Friday at 4:30 p.m. with a pulled BBQ pork dinner and the auction starting at 6 p.m. On Saturday a pancake and sausage breakfast runs from 6-10 a.m., with the auction beginning at 9 a.m. The silent auction is from 10 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. on Saturday. Read More

Photo furnished
New officers pose for a photo at the hospital’s annual volunteer luncheon. From left to right: Mary Michael Drier, Nancy Williams, Anita Culp, Mary Jean Bauer, Carol Holthaus, Maryrose Hagenbach, Keely Fiore

•August 17, 2022•
The Partners of HSHS St. Mary’s Hospital recently announced the election of new officers for the coming year. The new officers are as follows:
President – Mary Jean Bauer
1st Vice President, Ways and Means – Carol Holthaus
2nd Vice President, Programs – Anita Culp Read More

•August 17, 2022•
The C.E.F.S. Economic Opportunity Corporation, as administrator of the Home Energy Assistance Program in Christian, Clay, Effingham, Fayette, Montgomery, Moultrie, and Shelby counties, is pleased to announce that funds are available to assist income-eligible households with their natural gas, propane and electric bills and furnace assistance.
The program will begin September 1, 2022, for all income-eligible households. Applications will be taken on a first-come, first-served basis through May 31, 2023. There will be no priority groups this program year. Households in need are encouraged to apply.
Households must be at or below 200% of the federal poverty level to receive a benefit from the LIHEAP Program. The 30-day income guidelines for LIHEAP are based on Federal Poverty Guidelines, State Median Income and the number of persons living in the household. The income guidelines are as follows: 1-$2,265, 2-$3,052, 3-$3,838, 4-$4,625. Income limits for households with 5 members and more can be found at www.cefseoc.org. Read More