ALTON - America's 250th birthday celebration is coming to Alton with a three-day festival aptly named "250 on the Mississippi" starting Wednesday, July 1, and culminating with a spectacular fireworks show on Friday, July 3. Taking place across downtown Alton, the community-wide event will commemorate the nation's semiquincentennial with three days of free entertainment, activities, history, and patriotic festivities along the Mississippi River. Events include a donut eating contest, presentation
ST LOUIS COUNTY - A St. Louis County judge sentenced Ballwin resident Yahya Maly, 29, to 291 years in prison Tuesday morning after he was convicted of raping seven women he met on dating apps, according to court proceedings in St. Louis County. Maly was convicted in April on 17 of 21 counts against him. The convictions included four counts of first-degree rape or attempted rape, eight counts of second-degree rape and five counts of first-degree sodomy or attempted sodomy. He was acquitted of
GODFREY - A Godfrey teenager and former Alton High School cheerleader has earned a spot on Top Gun All Stars’ Senior Large Coed Level 6 team in Miami, a move that will take him to Florida as he completes his senior year online and pursues all-star cheerleading at one of the sport’s most prominent programs. Landon Davis, who spent two years as a varsity coed cheerleader at Alton High School and received the All-Conference Athlete Award in 2025, was selected for the Top Gun All Stars
GRANITE CITY – Granite City High School Principal Tim McChristian announced that 647 students earned Honor Roll accolades for the Spring semester of the 2025-26 school year. Students who obtained a grade point average of 5.0 or higher during the second semester earned high honors, while students with a 4.2-4.999 GPA with no D earned was named to the honor roll. All GPAs are based on the current semester GPA (not cumulative). To view the complete list of honorees, click HERE ! For more
EDWARDSVILLE – The Edwardsville Police Department announced a Fourth of July traffic safety campaign focused on impaired and unbuckled drivers. Enforcement takes place between June 19 and July 6, 2026, covering the summer weekends leading up to and after Independence Day. "We're asking for your cooperation. If you are driving, don't drink or use impairing substances. Our officers will be working to prevent impaired driving and ensure all occupants are buckled up," said Lt. Matt Senci.
CHICAGO – June is National Homeownership Month, and the Illinois Housing Development Authority (IHDA), the state’s leading financier of affordable housing developments and homebuyer down payment assistance, is reminding residents about the tools and resources available to achieve the dream of homeownership in Illinois. “Many aspiring buyers worry the opportunity to own a home is out of reach, but that's simply not the case,” said IHDA Executive Director Kristin Faust.
SPRINGFIELD – Morrison-Rockwood State Park in Whiteside County will be closed to the public June 23-24, 2026 while staff apply aquatic herbicide treatment at Carlton Lake. The treatment will focus on eliminating invasive vegetation and will improve water recreation for anglers, boaters and kayakers. Removing invasive species will improve fish habitat and increase lake access for bank fishing. Public access to the park will be restricted during this time, and camping will not be available.
Durbin Reflects On 14th Anniversary Of DACA, Calls On Congress To Finally Provide A Pathway To Citizenship For Dreamers In 2010, Durbin sent a bipartisan letter asking then-President Obama to stop the deportation of Dreamers—fourteen years ago today, President Obama responded by announcing the DACA program. WASHINGTON – In a speech on the Senate floor, U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee and lead author of the Dream
WASHINGTON – After the Trump Administration announced a preliminary deal to end the conflict between the U.S. and Iran, U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) highlighted holes in the framework in a speech on the Senate floor, including those that fail to address critical issues related to Iran’s nuclear program and Iran’s support for terrorist proxies. Durbin said, “While I am glad that we might be seeing an end to the hostilities, I am deeply concerned
Children and Family Services Advisory Council Garvin Ambrose will serve as a Member of the Children and Family Services Advisory Council.* Ambrose currently serves as Chief of Staff to Cook County State’s Attorney Eileen O’Neill Burke. Previously, Ambrose served as Chief of the Bureau of Administrative Services at the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office. Earlier in his career, Ambrose served as Chief of Staff to the Cook County State’s Attorney Anita Alvarez
CHICAGO – The Illinois Workers' Compensation Commission (IWCC) is proud to announce that Deputy General Counsel Cole Garrett has been named a recipient of the 2026 NextGen Award from the International Association of Industrial Accident Boards and Commissions (IAIABC), a prestigious recognition honoring emerging leaders under the age of 40 who are making significant contributions to the workers' compensation industry. Garrett was selected for his leadership, innovation and dedication
SPRINGFIELD – Illinois Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias announces Dutch Reach awareness campaign to help prevent tragic crashes. The Dutch Reach, a technique for safely exiting a vehicle, has been promoted through Illinois driver education programs and the Rules of the Road publication as a simple way to improve awareness of approaching cyclists, pedestrians and other roadway users. The reminder comes after Chicago Department of Transportation employee Riley O’Neil, 35,
SPRINGFIELD – The Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services (HFS) has awarded new HealthChoice Illinois (HCI) contracts to six Medicaid Managed Care Organizations (MCOs). The new contracts will make significant improvements to the way that the Medicaid program operates by holding the MCOs accountable for how they serve customers by promoting whole person care. The new contracts now require MCOs to improve the integration of physical and behavioral healthcare with a focus on
MADISON COUNTY – The Illinois Department of Transportation will hold a public meeting to discuss a study for the proposed improvements on U.S. 40 from Formosa Road to Illinois 162 in Madison County. The meeting will be held: Monday, June 29, 2026 ?4-7 p.m. ?CA Henning School ?520 U.S. 40, Troy, Ill. IDOT, in cooperation with the Federal Highway Administration, has initiated the preliminary engineering and environmental study of U.S. 40. This section of U.S. 40 is in the city o
“Soaking up the sun” sounds physical, as if people can absorb sunlight the way a towel absorbs water. Of course, that is not what happens. Yet the phrase feels so natural that most people use it without thinking. That is what makes it interesting: behind this simple expression is a mix of body language, emotion, culture, and old ideas about what sunshine means. What “soaking up the sun” actually means At its most basic, “soaking up the sun” means spending
Tuesday starts partly sunny and comfortable, with temperatures in the low 60s and just a light southeast breeze. Early risers get a calm start, and it should stay quiet through the first part of the morning before clouds and sun continue to mix overhead. By afternoon, temperatures climb to a high of 78 as a southwest wind picks up to around 10 mph, with gusts as high as 25 mph. A thunderstorm could pop up later in the day, with rain chances at 55 percent. If you are out through midday or early
On June 16, 1963, Valentina Tereshkova became the first woman to travel into space, a milestone that carried meaning far beyond the Soviet space program that launched her. Flying aboard Vostok 6, she orbited Earth 48 times and spent nearly three days in space. At the time, her mission showed how fiercely the Cold War powers were competing for scientific prestige and global influence. It also mattered on a human level: Tereshkova’s flight challenged assumptions about who could take part
EDWARDSVILLE — Madison County is poised to take a major step in relocating operations out of the former Wood River Township Hospital, with the County Board expected to vote Wednesday on the purchase of three downtown Wood River buildings as part of a plan that officials say would cost less than rehabbing the old hospital site. The board is expected to approve the purchase of 34 W. Ferguson Ave., 22 W. Ferguson Ave., and 203 S. Sixth St. for about $750,000. Renovating those buildings is
EAST ALTON - Several proposals, including a police promotion, demolition plans for four properties, and the purchase of new basketball hoops for the Keasler Complex, were discussed Monday night during an East Alton committee meeting and are set to go before the village board for a vote Tuesday. Among the items discussed was the appointment of Officer Wesley Hockaday to sergeant. Hockaday began his career with the East Alton Police Department in April 2021 after coming from the Venice Police
WOOD RIVER – A future park in downtown Wood River is getting closer to construction. City Council members unanimously approved two items related to the proposed City Center Park at their June 15, 2026 meeting. These include approval to seek bids to build the park and the purchase of materials for the planned stage and pavilion. The “total cost” for the city to purchase the stage and pavilion materials was originally listed in the resolution as $16,630. After Councilman
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