News Progress

•May 13, 2026•

Reservations for campsites and shelters at Illinois state parks and historic sites transitioned to an updated platform beginning May 1st, offering park users a more user-friendly system for making reservations and securing permits. Users will continue to use exploremoreil.com – the customer service platform of the Illinois Department of Natural Resources – to make campsite and shelter reservations, but they will notice an improved interface. 

•May 13, 2026•

The Illinois Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) is recognizing May as Foster Parent Appreciation Month, a time to acknowledge and celebrate the extraordinary foster families and relative and kinship caregivers across the state who have opened their hearts, their homes, and their lives to care for the state’s most vulnerable children. “Our incredible foster parents, relative and kinship caregivers are our true partners as we work to transform Illinois from a child welfare system into a child well-being system,” said Illinois DCFS Director Heidi E. Mueller. “Their commitment not only helps create brighter futures for children, but it also strengthens our shared vision – that every child and youth can grow and thrive in a family.”

•May 13, 2026•

Lake Land College recently held its annual TRIO Student Support Services banquet, recognizing students who participated in the program throughout the 2025-2026 school year. During the event, several students received awards for their outstanding leadership and academic achievements. 

Jonathan Lindley, Alamo Defender, part 3

•May 13, 2026•

by Janet Roney

I’ve been sharing the story of the only Alamo defender who was born in Illinois, Jonathan L. Lindley. He was born in February 1814, in Hill’s fort, south of what is now Greenville, Madison County, Illinois. He was just seven months old when his aunt, Lydia Little Pursley, rode out from that fort to save Ranger Tom Higgins’ life after the fort’s ranger patrol had been attacked by Indians. (See “Remembering...” #55)

Jonathan Lindley was twelve years old when his parents traveled on up the Kaskaskia with Moultrie County’s first group of settlers in 1826, led by Jonathan’s grandfather, John S. Whitley. He was nineteen in 1833 when his father, Samuel Washington Lindley, took his family to the Vehlein Colony in Texas (bordering, but not in the Austin colony, as I wrote last week). By 1835, Samuel had moved his family to Montgomery County, Texas.

2016

Moultrie County Courthouse computer systems grew slower and older, prompting the County Board Building and Grounds committee to recommend an upgrade. County Clerk Georgia England reported Quality Network Solution (QNS) findings at the regular meeting. Slow access and crash problems prompted QNS to look further into the problems within the system. They discovered servers from 2001, 2003, and 2006 were in use beyond their capacity. 

Those attending the No Job Left Behind session at Yoder’s Kitchen in Arthur learned the value of the Talent Management Pipeline. Guest speakers Vicky Haugen, executive director, and Kim Kuchenbrod, Workforce Development of Vermilion Advantage, presented the Talent Management Pipeline program. Several businesses were in attendance, including Hydro-Gear, Agri-Fab, GSI, IHI Turbo, Moultrie County Counseling Center, Masterbrand Cabinets, and several school officials and business teachers.