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TROY - "The Flagman's Mission Continues" volunteers have requested help to set up 1,500 flags and take them down for the Traveling Vietnam Wall Display. Help is needed for Tuesday, October 18, in Troy, for a patriotic display of the Vietnam Memorial Wall. The takedown of the flags will be on Sunday, October 23. The AVTT Traveling Vietnam Wall is being hosted at Truck Centers, Inc. Training Center, 2376 Formosa Road in Troy from October 20 to October 23. All are welcome to experience this 80 percent scale replica memorial in support and remembrance of those who paid the ultimate sacrifice while serving their country in combat during the Vietnam War. Starting at 5 p.m. on Thursday, October 20, the wall will remain open 24 hours a day until closing at 1 p.m. on Sunday, October 23. Locator services to find where the name of your loved one or Comrade on the wall will be available daily from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Staging for the motorcycle escort will be at the Pierron, IL., Exit 30 on I-70

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WOOD RIVER - The Wood River Police Department issued a reminder late last week that it still seeks any information about Vernon L. Law, who worked as a deckhand on the riverboat "Kevin Michael." On July 27, 2022, the Wood River Police Department received notification that a male subject, identified as Vernon L. Law, was last seen on July 21, 2022, at 2:40 p.m., by a coworker, departing Economy Boat Store, 200 S. Amoco Road, Wood River. Wood River Police said Vernon left some of his property on the boat. His wallet and identification were not left behind. He possibly left with these items in his possession. Vernon is from Chester, Illinois, with associates in Columbia, Illinois, and O’Fallon, Missouri. Vernon was last seen wearing a blue t-shirt, blue jeans, and work boots. A check of his cellphone has been conducted. The last time his phone was active was at 2:40 p.m. on July 21, 2022. Investigators with the Wood River Police Department found a video of Vernon L. Law walking

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WOOD RIVER - The Wood River Water Distribution Department announced Monday afternoon that it is working the main break near Wood River Avenue and Ferguson. Residents may experience an interruption in service or loss of pressure as they work to isolate the leak and repair the line or valves. If a boil order is issued, you will receive a notification on your front door, Wood River said in a statement. The city added: "If you have lost water pressure or lost service - when service is restored you will be under a boil order. No door notices will be posted. Most of the town is affected." Areas currently not affected - Those Serviced by Tower #3 (Illinois Route 111 and 255) Kendall Hill, Kendall Estates, Walmart, Route 143 Car Dealerships, Schnucks, Heritage Trails, Rock Hill Road (Wesley Eastward).

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GLEN CARBON – Senior forward Daniel Gierer has eclipsed 13 goals and five assists so far in his senior season for the Father McGivney Catholic High School boys' soccer team. Arguably his most important goal of the season was the one that took the lead against the Staunton Bulldogs in the Class 1A Regional Finals Friday afternoon in Roxana. The Bulldogs took the lead in the 16 th minute and McGivney tied it back up 12 minutes later. Daniel’s goal came five minutes before halftime to make it 2-1 in a game they went on to win by a score of 4-1. Daniel Gierer is a Byron Carlson Petri & Kalb Male Athlete of the Month for McGivney. “I’m feeling good,” Daniel said after the win Friday afternoon. “I feel like we set out at the beginning of the year to get to regionals and win regionals.” He’s played a vital role on the team this season after transferring from his original defensive position to now playing up top and being the team’s third-leadin

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2022 has witnessed an explosion of pickleball in the Riverbend area. More than 40 members of the Riverbend Pickleball Group gathered at the new pickleball courts at Glazebrook Park on Monday, October 10, to celebrate World Pickleball Day with a bountiful breakfast potluck and plenty of pickleball to work off the extra calories. Not since the beginning of athletics by the Ancient Greeks in 776 BC has there been a sport take the world by storm like pickleball. Founded in 1965 on Bainbridge Island, Washington, pickleball is touted to be the fastest growing participation sport per the Sports & Fitness Industry Association (SFIA). This attributed to its appeal to all ages, simple rules, quick to learn, a short game and affordable. Pickleball has no season. Unlike soccer fields, tennis courts, baseball fields, and splash pads that are used only a few months of the year, outdoor pickleball courts are in use year-round, sunrise to lights out, weather permitting. And pickleball has no age

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The CDC and ACIP recommend a higher-dose flu vaccine for people 65 and older. As we enter fall, the emails from your workplace or pharmacy may start to pop up in your inbox. “It’s time for a flu shot!” But how early is too early to get the yearly jab? It depends, says Jason Kole, MD , director of Emergency Department Services at OSF HealthCare in Danville, Illinois . Dr. Kole says every influenza season is different. When will it peak? What will be the dominant strain of the virus? How effective will the flu vaccine be against that strain? Plus, Dr. Kole says, health care providers are still devoting time to treating COVID-19 patients. “If actually hits the strain of flu that’s prevalent during that season, then the flu season’s going to be relatively mild,” Dr. Kole says. “If it doesn’t hit that strain, then we’re going to have a heavy flu season.” “We’re all going to have to stay on our toes

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ROXANA – This was Chris Walleck’s second go-around in the heated rivalry between the Roxana Shells and Wood River Oilers. The Shells’ quarterback remembers last season when East Alton-Wood River blanked them 34-0. The two schools went at it last Friday night in what was a thrilling game, one that lived up to all of its hype. “We had to get back from last season,” Chris said. “This is all we wanted. We wanted this so bad. It‘s been built up for so long.” The Shells lost the rivalry game at home last year. This season the Oilers played host. Walleck is a Midwest Members Credit Union Male Athlete of the Month for Roxana High School. After the Shells made quite the dramatic entrance in a police escort just minutes before kickoff, they went on to win the game by a score of 35-27. Chris loved every bit of it. “I love getting the win on the road, being the villain.” When asked how his team was able to bounce back from last season’s

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ST. LOUIS COUNTY - The deceased in a fatal accident in the 9800 block of Halls Ferry Road in the North County Precinct at 12:20 p.m. on Oct. 13, 2022, has been identified as Lucy Jones, 92 years of age, of the 4300 block of Sulla Drive, in Florissant, MO., 63033. St. Louis County Police Crimes Against Persons detectives and the Accident Reconstruction Unit are investigating a fatal motor crash in the 9800 block of Halls Ferry Road which resulted in the death of an adult female. On October 13, 2022, at 12:20 PM, St. Louis County police officers from the North County Precinct responded to a call for service for a motor vehicle accident in the 9800 block of Halls Ferry Road. Arriving officers located two motor vehicles involved in a motor vehicle crash. Preliminary investigation revealed a gold-colored Chevrolet Cavalier was traveling southbound on Halls Ferry Road and was attempting to turn left into a parking lot near the intersection of Halls Ferry and St. Cyr, when it was struck

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ALTON - At 9 a.m. on Saturday, October 22, volunteers from Pride, Inc. will share forces with Katie Piper, Head Gardener, and Horticulturist from LCCC in learning how to “Put Your Gardens to Bed” at the State House Circle at College and Central Ave in Alton. Katie will be leading this hands-on event, teaching how to clean up and prepare your garden beds for the winter, while assisting Pride with the maintenance of this beautification project that they initiated years ago. Over the years, it has been the volunteers from Pride, Inc. that continue to pour their souls and hard work into keeping the area attractive and well-groomed. This collaboration with the Monticello Sculpture Garden is just one way to welcome more Friends of Pride, and to share our vision to “ Love Where You Live!” This location holds historic significance to the Alton area, and we are grateful to all committed to beautifying our neighborhoods and community. So, grab your garden glove, maybe

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SPRINGFIELD - Illinois State Treasurer Michael Frerichs’ office made history this week when it returned $11 million to the estate of a Chicago man who died of natural causes just before Christmas in 2016. It is the largest returned unclaimed property dollar amount in the nation’s history. Most of Joseph Richard Stancak’s 119 heirs reside in Poland, where his parents were born, as well as Slovakia. And little is known about how Mr. Stancak accumulated such wealth so quietly, although he did own a boat named “Easy.” “This is a life-changing amount of money,” Frerichs said. “I only wish we knew more about Mr. Stancak.” Unclaimed property refers to money or accounts within financial institutions or companies in which there has been no activity for several years. Unclaimed property includes forgotten bank accounts, unpaid life insurance benefits, the contents of safe deposit boxes and other items. Returning unclaimed property is

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EDWARDSVILLE - Edwardsville High School Principal Steve Stuart reflected on this year's homecoming festivities and said between the game, dance, and all the other week-long activities it was a huge success. "More than 1,600 tickets were sold for the dance," he said. "It has been a long while since we sold that many. I want to thank Mrs. Kupferer and the Student Council for making it a memorable week." The halftime of the game was memorable as the new Edwardsville homecoming queen and king Emerson Weller and Isayah Kloster were presented. The very popular Sydney Harris, a former basketball star, and Cliff Seaman returned to present the new queen and king their crowns. The Tigers marching band, color guard and dance team also delivered strong performances. The Tiger royalty court included Axton Anomand and Izzy O'Day, Lexi Trimm and Maddox Karnes, and Weller and Kloster. Also on the Senior Court were Daniel Vanston and Kahlia Vaughn, Jacob Watts and Ellie Bozarth, and Montrez West

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GODFREY - A series of three Chili Drive-Thru events are coming up for the next three Thursdays on Oct. 20, Oct. 27, and Nov. 3, each from 3:30-6:30 p.m. at Resurrection Lutheran Church, located at 1211 W. Homer M. Adams Parkway in Godfrey. Two bowls of chili with crackers will be available for $6, and the bowls are microwave-safe for easy reheating. Tickets will be sold for $6 each at the drive-thru, and can also be purchased in advance by calling the church at (618) 466-2788 or contacting any Men’s Club member. Men’s Club President Dan Garner said each year, proceeds from these events are donated to a charitable cause. This year’s event proceeds will help fund relief for Illinois and Missouri flood victims. “With all the flooding that happened, a lot of people in the East St. Louis and St. Louis area had homes flooded and so on, so we like to keep the money local,” Garner said. He added that the chili recipe is award-winning, and that this mark

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EDWARDSVILLE – The Southern Illinois University Edwardsville School of Engineering’s (SOE) Department of Civil Engineering will celebrate 50 years of civil engineering excellence with a special golden anniversary celebration. Faculty, industry partners and alumni are invited to join for a celebratory event being held from 11:30 a.m.- 2 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 5 at the SIUE Morris University Center’s Meridian Ballroom. “The Civil Engineering Department celebrates 50 years of educating the designers of society’s infrastructure,” said Ryan Fries, PhD, professor and chair of the Department of Civil Engineering. “Every time you turn on the faucet, enter a building, or drive on a road, civil engineers have impacted your life. Join our celebration for reflections on the past and insights into the design of our future communities.” The event will feature keynote speaker Regional Director of Lochmueller Group and President-Elect of the American Society

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ST. LOUIS - Tough Mudder, the global leader in obstacle course adventures, today announced it will host an event at World Wide Technology Raceway in Madison, Illinois. The Tough Mudder event is scheduled for April 29-30, 2023. WWTR is located five minutes from downtown St. Louis. The multi-faceted adventure competition joins a stellar calendar of WWTR events in 2023, including the NASCAR Cup Series, the NTT INDYCAR SERIES, the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series Midwest Nationals, Formula Drift, and the new SpeedTour Grand Prix Festival for the TransAm Series. “World Wide Technology Raceway is both an entertainment and recreation destination,” said Chris Blair, World Wide Technology raceway’s Executive Vice President and General Manager. “Hosting Tough Mudder enables us to provide St. Louis and the Metro East Region with another showcase program that illustrates the diversity of our event schedule. With more than 700 acres located less than five minutes fro

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Name: Charles Batson Hometown: Granite City Years of Service: 1962-1965 DOD: November 15th, 2015 KIA: No Branch: Army Rank: Spec 5 Wars: Vietnam Medals/Honors Earned: Good Conduct Medal, Marksman (Rifle) Expert (Rifle M-14), Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal Message: Greatly loved and dearly missed. Submitter's Name: Becky Batson

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Name: William Roe Hometown: Alton Years of Service: 1976-1980 KIA: No Branch: US Navy Rank: HT 2 Wars: NA Medals/Honors Earned: Good Conduct ribbon Meritorious Unit Citation Battle E Ribbon Submitter's Name: Susan Roe

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More pics at: https://www.randymanning.com/Jersey-at-CM-Football JERSEY - Jersey High School senior rewrote Panther football history on Friday night in a 42-0 win over Civic Memorial with his six touchdowns on the ground. He scored from 63, 82 and 8 yards in the third period alone and also scored a pair of two-point conversions for a total of 40 of Jersey’s 42 points . His point total in the game eclipses Brad Brown’s record in 1988. Withrow is a Jersey Male Athlete of the Month for his performance. Chase thanked his line for their support and said it was a “team effort” to defeat rival CM on their home turf. “Our offense had a great game, but the defense was even better with the shutout,” he said. “We put it all together against Civic Memorial. They are our rivals and we felt like we had to go through. Our younger guys got in and got after it. We are looking forward to playing Columbia next week.” Chase said he wants to play

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BETHALTO - Senior Hannah Meiser is already having a year to remember at Civic Memorial, and she's just getting started. She runs cross-country in the fall, plays basketball in the winter, and runs track in the spring. According to her cross-country coach Jake Peal, "She had a great summer of training and probably the best she has had in cross country." All of that hard work paid off for her Thursday afternoon at Principia College. She won the Mississippi Valley Conference Championships with a time of 18:27.80. "One of her goals was to win a conference title and she did it on Thursday," Peal said. "An individual title in cross country was on her bucket list of achievements." She had placed well at this event in years past with a fifth-place finish in 2019, her freshman year, with a time of 19:53.40. She finished fourth last year with a time of 18:58.30. Hannah Meiser is a Tom Lane State Farm Insurance Civic Memorial Female Athlete of the Month. Winning this race meant a lot to

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ALTON - This has been an eventful weekend for Millenium Temple Pastor Michael Porter Sr. and his wife, Alberta, at the church located at 801 Blair Avenue in Alton. There has been a celebration that started Friday evening, then continued with a service Saturday afternoon, and concludes at 3 p.m. Sunday with festivities led by Supt. R. Douglass. Each event has featured a church service in Pastor Porter's honor. Sarah Porter, the couple's daughter, has helped coordinate the services honoring her father, who has had a tremendous impact on not only the church congregation but the entire community. "I am very proud of my dad for being a pastor who does a lot for the community," Sarah said. "He looks out for people. He opens the food pantry here for those in need and always has the church open to people. We do a Thanksgiving dinner and a toy drive at Christmas time which helps a lot of residents. "My mom and dad have always been active in the community. I run the food pantry and I help i

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BUZZ MAGAZINE - October offers a bountiful harvest of great books by some of our top authors. Best-selling author John Grisham returns to Mississippi in The Boys from Biloxi with a gripping legal thriller of two sons of immigrant families who grow up as friends but ultimately find themselves on opposite sides of the law. Biloxi is noted for its beaches, resorts and seafood, but it has a darker side of gambling, prostitution, bootleg liquor, drugs and contract killings. Keith Rudy and Hugh Malco were childhood friends. But Keith’s father became a legendary prosecutor determined to clean up the coast, while Hugh’s father became the boss of Biloxi’s criminal underground. The two families head for the ultimate showdown in a courtroom. Jodi Piccoult turns to mystery and suspense in Mad Honey which features two families who find refuge in small-town New Hampshire. Then the daughter of one family is found dead, and the son of the other family is accused of the

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