A Look Back…3-4-2026

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2016 Moultrie County Emergency Services and Disaster Management coordinated an Active Shooter Training exercise with Sullivan Schools. Local ESDA coordinator Jim Haegan said the full-size exercise involved radio chatter during the time period. “This is an active shooter attempting to enter the school,” Haegan said, explaining that the radio conversations were identified as a simulation, so the general public would not be alarmed. Decatur Memorial Hospital celebrated its 100th anniversary. The January date was also a celebration of a Bethany woman who dedicated a significant portion of her time and energy to birthing the establishment a century ago. Sue Hagaman … Read More

Narcan: better access can help save lives

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•March 4, 2026• by Angela Hogan Administrator – Moultrie County Health Department Across the United States and here in central Illinois, opioid overdoses continue to affect families, workplaces, and neighborhoods. Narcan is one of the most effective tools we have to prevent opioid overdose deaths. This easily administered nasal spray can take effect within minutes, giving someone a second chance at life.  Why Narcan access matters: Opioid overdoses remain a major public health crisis. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), around 76,500 people died in the 12 months ending April 30, 2025, at a rate of … Read More

SBD’s support Senior Center

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•March 4, 2026• Pictured are Mid-Illinois Senior Services Representatives Kathie Garvie, Nancy Ozee, and Serria Decker, second row on the left with the SBD. The Sullivan Blue Dolphins partnered with the Mid-Illinois Senior Services to collect items for the center.  This is SBD’s first year helping this organization, titling it, ‘Swimmers Supporting Seniors’. This collection was structured very similarly to the annual ‘Swimmers Supporting Soldiers’ that the Dolphins do every summer.  Mid Illinois Senior Services sent the SBD a list of items that were much-needed. The team collected numerous items such as puzzles, paper towels, bathroom tissue, cups, sweeteners, Lysol … Read More

Rick King to perform in Allenville

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•March 4, 2026• Allenville Christian Church will host a concert featuring Rick Alan King from Carmi, Illinois, on March 14th at 6:00 p.m. at the Allenville Christian Church, located at 201 Allen Street in Allenville. Snacks and fellowship time will follow the concert. A free Will offering will be taken. From his earliest childhood memories, Rick Alan King was in church singing harmony with his mother and looking at the faces in the audience, seeing tears streaming down someone’s face, a smile, a bowed head, or a hand raised in praise. These images speak strongly into his young life. He … Read More

MoCo monthly quarter madness

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•March 4, 2026• Moultrie County Monthly Quarter Madness will hold its March Quarter Auction on Wednesday, March 11th. The event will be held at the Sullivan American Legion. This month’s organization is the Tri-County Shrine Club. This group is composed of Shriners and Masons located in Douglas, Moultrie, and Piatt counties.  Shriners is a fraternity grounded in fun, fellowship, and the Masons in principles of brotherly love, relief, and truth. They support Shriners Children’s, a renowned healthcare system dedicated to enhancing the quality of life for children worldwide. Patients with orthopedic conditions, burns, spinal cord injuries, and cleft lips and … Read More

MC History Center writing group

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•March 4, 2026• The Moultrie County History Center writing group, led by Jeannie Barnes, meets on the 2nd Thursday of each month from 10:30 to noon in the History Center library. The center is located at 1303 S. Hamilton Street in Sullivan.  This group is free and open to all. You can join in any or all sessions. It’s never too late to get started. For more information, call (217) 728-4085, or visit their Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/MCHGS … Read More

Recent Obituaries: Karen Coe

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Karen Coe Karen D. Coe, 70, of Sullivan, passed away Monday, February 23, 2026 in St. Mary’s Hospital, Decatur. Celebration of Life services will be 11:00 a.m. Monday, March 2, 2026 in the Reed Funeral Home with Jeannie Ruppert officiating. Burial will be in the Bolin Cemetery, rural Sullivan. Visitation will be from 10:00 until service time on Monday at the funeral home. Memorials are suggested to the New Life Pregnancy Center, 1698 E. Pershing Rd, Decatur, Illinois 62526. Online condolences may be sent to the family at reedfuneralhome.net. Karen was born May 28, 1955 in Versailles, Kentucky, the daughter of Charles and … Read More

Remembering Who We Are……….98

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Parties on the prairie #3 •February 25, 2026• by Janet Roney In the mid-1820s, when white settlers first began arriving in Moultrie, they found most of the county covered with swampy tall grass prairie, which was too wet to farm and almost impossible to travel across except on a few trails. However, the southern part of the county was different. It was covered with a much drier prairie because from Whitley Creek south, the elevation of the land gradually rises towards the Shelbyville Moraine that runs along the south boundary with Shelby County.  Along the south side of the moraine … Read More

Singers season continues, set to host Sullivan Singers Invitational

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•February 25, 2026• On Friday, February 20th the Singers Jr competed at the El Paso-Gridley Show Choir Showdown and had Maverick Foster take home the honor of Best Performer. Then on Saturday, February 21st, the Sullivan Singers danced their way to a 1st runner up finish in their division, as well as winning Best Choreography. Will Miller was awarded Best Performer.  … Read More

Shrove Tuesday pancake fest draws in community

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Photo by DM WilliameeThe hard-working crew behind the festivities, from pancakes and sausage to cupcakes and music: L-R: Ann Wheeler, Yvonne Workman, Lisa Hagan, Lois Shuman, Ron Weaver, Susan Connor, Ray Burris, and Teresa Lane. by DM Williamee On Tuesday, February 17th, locals flocked to the Sullivan First United Methodist Church to enjoy the church’s annual Shrove Tuesday pancake supper feast. With live music, festive decorations, and fabulously fluffy pancakes of multiple varieties, accompanied by sausage, the warm and joyous atmosphere was a wonderful display of community at its finest. Even before the doors officially opened, community members made their … Read More