Special Olympics: Becoming a Family and Not Just a Team

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Special Olympic Hornets front row, L-R Cassi Connley, Tyler Hahn, Jerry Klein, Bradlee Todd and coach Leslie Todd.  Back row, L-R Coach Brad Duncan, David Conklin, Curtis Covington, Eric Fulton, Austin Jones and Brooke Whitrock.

Alpha Bears Win

•March 28, 2018•

By Ellen Ferrera
for the News Progress

The Region I Alpha Bears defeated the Chicago Independent Wolves 55-23 in a stunning upset on Sunday, March 18 in Bloomington, Ill. to win the Illinois Special Olympics state basketball championship.

Region I of Special Olympics covers the heart of central Illinois from Champaign to Effingham and west to Lincoln and has 130 Special Olympic teams. The Alpha Bears is a coed team with members from Sullivan, Mattoon, Arcola, Neoga and Shelbyville.

Sullivan residents Bradlee Todd and David Conklin, who works at Habitat, are members of the team. The coed team has two girls and seven boys. Read More

Bomb Threat Forces Early Spring Break at Sullivan Schools

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Photo by R.R. Best
Sullivan Chief of Police Jim Waggoner directs students a safe distance from Sullivan schools with city administrator Dan Flannell in background joining teachers, additional city employees and first responders to help keep the situation under control last Friday afternoon.

•March 28, 2018•

A threatening note led to early dismissal of Sullivan Schools for Easter break Friday. No credible threat was discovered with the responsible student taken into custody.

According to a press release from Supt. Ted Walk a note was discovered Friday, March 23, indicating a possible bomb threat to Sullivan High School. The credibility of the threat could not be immediately determined, and Sullivan schools dismissed students starting at 1:15 p.m.

Students were relocated to the American Legion and Sullivan Civic Center for parent reunification.

Law enforcement and school administration conducted a search of the buildings and grounds, and no evidence of a bomb was found.   Read More

ALAH Board Releases Schuring from Coaching

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•March 28, 2018•

By Ariana Cherry
for the News Progress

The release of longtime football and basketball head coach Dale Schuring from coaching brought an expressive crowd to the Arthur-Lovington/Atwood-Hammond District School Board meeting.

Close to 100 attended the meeting with former and current high school students, parents and teachers in the crowd. They all came together to speak on behalf of Coach Dale Schuring.

Coach Schuring began coaching basketball and football at Arthur High School in 2003. He had 11 winning seasons. Schuring also went on to win five Little Okaw Valley Conference regular season titles, LOVC Northwest Division titles and four LOVC tournament titles. He also led the ALAH Knights to four class 1A regional championships and two Sweet Sixteen appearances in 2011-2012 and 2012-2013. Read More

County Board Seats New Member, Supports Tourism

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•March 21 2018•

Neil Bryan of Sullivan was appointed to the Moultrie County Board by chairman Dave McCabe at the regular March 15 meeting.

Bryan replaces Ron White, who recently stepped down after 15 years on the board. Bryan, who was sworn in by County Clerk Georgia England took his place with the board. He was assigned to serve on the Moultrie County Health Department Board; Public Health and Safety and Personnel and Election committees. Bryan will serve until the Nov. general election when the seat is up for a two year term.

“It will take some time for me to get up to speed, but I look forward to serving the county,” Bryan said of his board appointment.

Laurrie Minor of Sullivan Chamber and Economic Development and Sarah Haslett of the U. S Corp of Engineers at Lake Shelbyville reported on the tourism outreach partnership between the Corp and Sullivan. Read More

Lovington Village Boosts Fireworks Contribution

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•March 21 2018•

Lovington village board approved up to $7000  donation to the village fireworks show, following the Saturday, June 16 Community Club fish fry.

Lisa Kamm told board members the Fireworks fund raiser was set for the American Legion on March 17. Last year the Fireworks community donated $3000 toward the show and anticipates the same donation for the coming year, Kamm explained. The additional donation from the village will allow a $10,000 fireworks program Saturday, following the Lovington Community Club Fish Fry. Read More

Students Walkout in Effort to Stop Gun Violence in Schools

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Photo by Mike Brothers
Students at Sullivan Middle School and High School left classes for about 20 minutes last Wednesday in memory of the students who died in the Parkland, Fla shooting earlier this month. Some 33 students observed the 15 minute nationwide observation.

•March 21 2018•

By Mike Brothers

At 10 a.m. Wednesday March 14, one month after the Parkland, Fla school shootings, students from Sullivan Middle School and high school gathered at the flagpole to honor those killed in school shootings over the past few years.

“It’s a shame that we have to do this in an effort to save the lives of students who are just trying to get an education,” a SHS student commented on the walkout requesting tighter gun controls.  Read More

Bagpipers Visit Mason Point

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Photo by R.R. Best
Bagpipers Visit Mason Point
Members of the St. Andrew’s Society of Central Illinois (SASCI), a group dedicated to the highland dance and bagpiping traditions, performed at Mason Point in Sullivan Friday, March 16 to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day. Jody Ogilvy demonstrated the traditional highland dance with Toby Campbell, Mary Kay Cunningham and Griffin Kaufmann piping to drummer Colton Mills’ beat. Above Cunningham and Kaufmann play while Glenn Ryherd, wearing the green bowler, listens.

Sullivan Native Wins 15th District Nomination

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•March 21 2018•

Sullivan native Kevin Gaither won the Democratic nomination for the 15th U.S. Congressional District defeating Carol Spoerer of Mahomet with 62% of the vote, 32,990 to 20,178.

In Moultrie County Gaither received 76% to Spoerer’s 24% for a 508 to 161 margin.

Republican incumbent John Shimkus received 1,770 votes in Moultrie County.

The Moultrie County treasurer’s race, created by the retirement of Marci Thompson had competition on both tickets.

Diane K. Waggoner won the Democratic nomination for treasurer 533 to 185 over Pam Wittkowski. Read More

Sullivan Approves Subdivision

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•March 21 2018•

By Ariana Cherry
for the News Progress

The Sullivan City Council approved the preliminary plat for the new Burdick sub-division at the March 12 meeting.

The new sub-division will lie along the east side of Patterson Road and south of the White Heath Subdivision to the four way stop at Country Club Drive which is about a half mile east of Route 32 South. The driveways will back into Patterson Road.

Near the White Heath sub-division, Burdick sub-division consists of nine one to two acres sites.

Developer Darin Burdick noted a couple of sites were larger with one lot about three acres and another five. The city is installing utilities andthe subdivision has been zoned residential with “high-quality” homes. Read More

OVHS Band Plays at Festival

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OVHS Band Plays at Festival
The Okaw Valley Band traveled to the LOVC Band Festival on Thursday afternoon. The festival was held at Sangamon Valley High School. Students practiced all afternoon and put on a concert at 7:00. Okaw Valley Sophomore Addison Webner and Junior Elizabeth Herbord were also members of the featured LOVC jazz band that also performed. OVHS Band from left: Row one - Connor Powers, Issac Dickens, Clayton Bone, Ethan Suarez, Luke Vander Burgh, Eric Boomer, Hayden Carlson. Row two - Julia Hilderbrandt, TJ Williams, Madison Ray, Baylie Suarez, Shelby Harding, Alyssa Nihisar, Hannah Durbin, Elizabeth Herbord. Row three - Haven Caulfield, Alesia Smegal, Caleb Hildebrandt, Addison Webner, Shelby Hagerman, Madison Vogel, Hutson Dickens, Ethan Macklin, Tyson Brown, Bella Benning, Kyra Jackson.