City Council Hears About Chamber’s of Commerce’s Christmas Plans

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•November 25, 2020•
by Crystal Reed
NP Writer

During Monday evening’s Sullivan City Council meeting the council heard about the plan that the Sullivan Chamber of Commerce has for the holiday season. Director of Sullivan Chamber of Commerce and Economic Development Laurrie Minor told the council that the chamber has an effort to try and provide every long term care resident in Sullivan a plant. They are $15 and the chamber only needs 86 more donations to make this effort possible.
Another event that they are doing is a reverse lighted parade. Instead of people lining up along the parade route people will drive through. At the end of the parade there will be the option to see Santa and give him a letter. Santa will be there to give children a candy cane as well with social distancing in effect.
There is also the Light It Up, Sullivan holiday decorating contest. The chamber asks that you send them a short video or picture of your house or business. Entries can be submitted to the chamber by Facebook messenger or e-mail information@sullivanchamber.com by December 10. Winners will receive utility bill credits. Read More

Businesses To Participate In Small Business Saturday

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Photo by Crystal Reed.
Allie Bridges works on a floral arrangement at The Flower Pot Florals and Boutique. The business will be offering specials during its Black Friday event which will carry over into Small Business Saturday.

•November 25, 2020•
By Crystal Reed
NP Writer

Small Business Saturday is a shopping holiday held during the Saturday after Thanksgiving. American Express created the event during the recession in 2010 to encourage people to shop small and bring more holiday shopping to small businesses.
One local business that is participating is Buxton’s Garden and Flower Shop located on 121 between Bethany and Sullivan. They started as a small roadside stand selling sweetcorn out of the back of a pick-up truck and have grown into a year round garden center.
Buxton’s will have their Christmas décor out in the shop and also will have two small businesses vendors setting up there on Saturday. Those businesses are Small Town Chic Boutique and Felt and Born. Read More

Ice Bucket Challenge

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Photo by Crystal Reed
Ice Bucket Challenge
Lovington Grade School held a food drive recently to benefit Christ’s Pantry. They raised over 7,000 pounds from food and monetary donations. The fifth and sixth grade team won the class competition so their teachers Mrs. Seal, fifth grade teacher and Mr. Davis, sixth grade teacher participated in the ice bucket challenge last Thursday afternoon. Both teachers dressed for the occasion wearing items such as pool floaties, water wings and even a life vest. A Lovington fire department truck sprayed them with cold water while their students watched.

Illini Prairie CEO Selling Face Masks For Class Project

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Photos furnished These are examples of the winter themed masks that the Illini Prairie CEO class is selling. For more photos of the masks visit their social media.

•November 25, 2020•
by Crystal Reed
NP Writer

The Illini Prairie CEO class is selling face masks with proceeds to benefit their next project in the spring, their individual businesses. There are 14 students in the class and in order to have enough money for all of the students to start up a small business of their own, they need to have a way to obtain seed money for each of them.
According to Illini Prairie CEO student Alexa Hauser, the group will be selling six face masks, four of those will be catering to the four representing communities that are involved with the class: Arcola, ALAH, Tuscola and Sullivan and will feature the individual school’s logo and colors. The other two are winter themed masks. Read More

North Lake Community Development Receives $84,000 Grant

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•November 18, 2020•
By Crystal Reed
NP Writer

Laurrie Minor, director of the Sullivan Chamber of Commerce and Economic Development announced to the Sullivan City Council that the North Lake Community Development, a non-profit under the Sullivan Chamber and Economic Development had been awarded a $84,000 grant from the Lumpkin Foundation to improve the end of Tabor Trail to the road past the sewer plant. For a project to qualify for the grant it has to have a direct effect on climate change in an area. Read More

Schools Celebrate Veteran’s Day

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Photo by Crystal Reed

Photo by R.R. Best

•November 18, 2020•

Sullivan High School’s Career English Class arranged an event called the “Road of Valor” in front of Sullivan High School and Sullivan Middle School on Veterans Day. The road was lined with 1,300 American flags representing all 1,151 students in the district and all full-time employees. Okaw Valley hosted a Veterans Day Parade through downtown Bethany. The parade was presented by the Okaw Valley Marching Band and High School Chorus. Students from the schools lined the streets holding flags, signs and banners that showed appreciation for our veterans.

Sullivan Fire Dept. Adds New Ambulance To Its Fleet

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Photo by Crystal Reed
The new ambulance that Sullivan Fire Department recently added to its fleet sits outside the department last week. The cost to the department was $230,000 which was paid for throughout TIF funds they received from the city.

•November 18, 2020•
By Crystal Reed
NP Writer

The Sullivan Fire Department recently added a new ambulance to their fleet. The ambulance is a 2020 Dodge Ram 4500 and the cost to the department was $230,000.
In 2019, the department approached the City of Sullivan asking for money to purchase the new ambulance and four powerload cots. The City granted part of the monetary request through TIF funds so that they could purchase the ambulance and one powerload cot. Just recently the department approached the city again requesting the remaining amount of the monetary request so that they may purchase 3 more cots for their ambulances. Read More

Cost Sharing Agreement For Route 32 Intersection Voted Down

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•November 18, 2020•
By Crystal Reed
NP Writer

A motion to approve an agreement with the Illinois Department of Transportation regarding cost sharing responsibilities for the improvement of the Illinois Route 32 intersection with Moultrie County Highway 4, Section 1,2 N unanimously failed Thursday evening. The Moultrie County Board, in a letter drafted and signed by county engineer Jeff Birch and board chair Dave McCabe, opted to record their opposition to the current IDOT plans for the intersection.
The county is responsible for one leg of the intersection while the remainder of the intersection is the responsibility of the Illinois Department of Transportation. Birch said the plans for the road include a raised concrete median where the left turn lane is located. “IDOT proposed something that the county just can’t agree with,” he said. Read More