ALAH High School Holds Commencement For Class of 2021

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Photo by Crystal Reed
Pomp and Circumstance
Arthur-Lovingtown-Atwood-Hammond High School held commencement for the Class of 2021 on Saturday, May 29. The graduating class of 2021 was 71 members. Pictured above are graduates marching into the ceremony.

•June 9, 2021•
by Crystal Reed
NP Writer

Arthur-Lovington-Atwood-Hammond High School held commencement for the 71 members of the class of 2021, Saturday, May 29, on the football field. The motto for the class of 2021 is this quote by Vince Lombardi, “Perfection is not attainable, but if we chase perfection, we can catch excellence.”
Senior Class President Jack Martin said that perfection is not the word to describe the last 15 months. “We are leaving this high school after an entire year of being fully masked and fully distanced, but we must be fully confident moving forward,” he said.
Layton Hall, salutatorian, addressed those in attendance. He said that sports is one of the areas in which the class succeeded. Hall noted that the school band played at Millikin University last year, and the senior class won grand champion at the Effingham marching competition both their freshman and junior years.
He noted that their class was also active in agriculture. Read More

Memorial Day Services Held In Bethany and Sullivan

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Photo by R.R. Best
Members of the Sullivan American Legion Post 68 march towards Greenhill Cemetery in Sullivan prior to the Memorial Day service. This year’s speaker was Becky Lawson.

•June 2, 2021•
by Crystal Reed
NP Writer

Memorial Day services were held in Bethany and Sullivan Monday morning. The Sullivan American Legion conducted ceremonies at Greenhill Cemetery and Moultrie County Cemetery; Bethany American Legion led ceremonies at Marrowbone Township Cemetery.
Sullivan American Legion and Boy Scout Troop 39 marched from the square to Greenhill Cemetery prior to Pastor Bob Vail leading in prayer and comments by Becky Lawson. Read More

ALAH School Board Approves Amended FY2021 Budget

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Photo by Ariana Cherry
Newly hired Arthur Grade School Principal Andrew Peralta was introduced during the recent ALAH school board meeting.

•June 2, 2021•
by Ariana Cherry
NP Writer

Before the school board began their meeting Wednesday, two ALAH High School students, Wyatt Shonkwiler and Michaela Powell, shared a landscaping project for the high school greenhouse complete with slides showcasing their ideas and examples. Their hope is that this project will motivate students to use work skills outside of school and encourage them to learn working in smaller groups as well as make the greenhouse more pleasing to the public eye.
Working in the greenhouse will help high school students get the service hours they need as well. Some of the landscaping ideas include purchasing a new trellis, stepping stones, containers and plant pots. The students are looking for an estimate of anywhere from $961-$1,000 in donations, with most of the purchases being made at Home Depot.
“I think it’s really amazing how you’ve taken ownership, initiative and pride in your school. It’s really well done. I am proud of both of you,” said Superintendent Shannon Cheek. Read More

Summer Reading Kickoff Party

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Photo by Crystal Reed
Summer Reading Kickoff Party
The Elizabeth Titus Memorial Library held their summer reading kickoff party on Friday, May 28. There were 2 inflatables, snowcones and kids could sign up for the summer reading program while they were there. This year’s theme is “Reading Colors Your World.” For more information on summer reading visit the circulation desk at the library. Pictured is Grace and Jack Grooms enjoying the obstacle course inflatable.

Sullivan Residents Find Box of Family Memories in Old Barn, Return Them to Decatur Resident

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Photo by Crystal Reed
Siobhan and Austin Hunter of Sullivan recently found a box of family photos and memorabilia in a barn and returned them to Wayne Carter of Decatur. The Hunters were able to find Carter through a Facebook post that featured some of the photos and newspaper clippings in the box.

•June 2, 2021•
by Crystal Reed
NP Writer

Siobhan and Austin Hunter of Sullivan were cleaning out her grandfather’s barn and found a cardboard box with a protective fabric cover sitting in the loft area. Siobhan said they opened the box and didn’t recognize any of the photos or newspaper clippings.
A few of the items inside included a picture of a soldier and a document tube that held a purple heart certificate for Wayne Loeb. The couple went to the Sullivan VFW and Moultrie County Historical Society to see whether anyone had information that could help them discover whether there were any relatives still around to whom they could return the box of photos, newspaper clippings and other family memorabilia.
The document tube had a Sullivan address on it so they tried to see if they could find a lead that way. The Hunters made the decision to make a post on Facebook to see if someone recognized the name Wayne Loeb or any of the photos in the box. “Through Facebook and continued efforts, we found the person to give the box back to,” Austin said.
That person happened to be Wayne Carter of Decatur. Carter said that when he saw the post, he initially thought that he had been hacked. Some of the items in the box are from the mid to late 30’s. Read More

Sullivan First United Methodist Church Celebrates 175 Years

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•June 2, 2021•
by Janet Roney
NP Guest Writer

Rev. Peter Cartwright”, the famous frontier Methodist evangelist, delivered a rousing sermon at Sullivan First United Methodist Church Sunday, May 23, to mark the congregation’s 175th anniversary. Portrayed by the Rev. Dr. Joel Catlin, he challenged the large congregation and the three ministers present: Bishop Frank J. Beard of the Illinois Great Rivers Conference, and Pastors Mike and Beth Fender of the Sullivan church to win more souls for Christ as he did at frontier camp meetings. Read More

Placing Flags at Greenhill Cemetery

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Placing Flags at Greenhill Cemetery
Several FFA members and their advisor joined members of the Sullivan American Legion Post #68 and other volunteers last Friday to put out flags for Memorial Day at Greenhill Cemetery. Pictured are Mike Daily, Kent Buxton, Mike Keown, Tony Feeler, Mark Conlin, Mike Black, Bob Ingram, Bob Sims, George Selby, Dee Ann Daily, Mac Bond, Becky Lawson, Reagan Sims, John Voyles, Beau Fleming, Matthew Wesselman, and Willow Krumwiede. Not pictured is Mallory Batman.

4-H Grant

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Photo Submitted 4-H Grant Farm Credit Illinois recently awarded a community grant in the amount of $500 to the Moultrie County Shining Stars 4-H Club. The club chose to donate a bench to Sullivan Elementary School Playground. Club members and parents helped pick out the bench, including the style and color. 2020-2021 Club President Sarina Voegel contacted SES Principal, Leslie Guyot to ask about the need for a bench and then contacted her again to tell her the 4-H club had been awarded the grant. The Moultrie County Shining Stars were one of more than 40 4-H Clubs and FFA Chapters in Illinois who received one of these grants. More than $30,000 in grant funds has been awarded to clubs and chapters in the last decade making tangible contributions in their communities by implementing improvement projects.

Blood Drive

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Photo by Crystal Reed
Blood Drive
Agri-Fab Inc. hosted a community blood drive on Wednesday, May 26 in the Agri-Fab meeting room. 22 units of blood were collected which will potentially help up to 66 people. There were also four first time donors. Their next blood drive will be July 22. Pictured is Doug Moore donating blood during the drive.

Crowes Retire From Sullivan School District

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Submitted photo
Gary and Kathy Crowe in Sullivan School District work shirts.

•May 26, 2021•
by Crystal Reed
NP Writer

Gary and Kathy Crowe retired last week from the Sullivan School District. Gary retired after 35 years with the district and Kathy after 25 years. Gary was the custodian at the high school, and his wife Kathy worked as custodian at the Sullivan Elementary School.
Sullivan High School principal Daniel Allen said that Gary is pretty close to being a perfectionist. “He has a routine, and he does everything he can to make things clean,” he said. One of the things Allen has observed about Gary is that he could always be heard whistling in the hallways.
Besides making sure that the school was clean, he also did maintenance on occasion. “If he had time and the tools, he would take care of it,” Allen said.
He added that Kathy was an extremely hard worker, one of the hardest workers he knows, and was always willing to help out where needed. Read More