SPRINGFIELD – The Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) is accepting applications for the State Furbearer Fund Special Funds Grant Program through May 15. The State Furbearer Fund provides grants to appropriate not-for-profit organizations, governmental entities, educational institutions, and corporations for projects that benefit furbearing mammals and improve harvesting opportunities for hunters and trappers of furbearers. Furbearing mammals are defined as badger, beaver,
CHICAGO – Attorney General Kwame Raoul today announced that a $7.4 billion settlement reached with Purdue Pharma and its owners, the Sackler family, has become legally effective, capping nearly a decade of work by attorneys general from across the country who pursued investigations and litigation over Purdue’s and the Sackler family’s role in fueling the opioid crisis. Raoul and a bipartisan coalition of 55 attorneys general, representing all eligible states and U.S. territories,
GODFREY — Illinois Community College Board data shows that Illinois’ community colleges are a powerful driver of the state’s economy, generating $27.2 billion in total economic impact and supporting 324,273 jobs statewide , according to a newly released economic impact study. The report, The Economic Value of the Community Colleges of Illinois , reflects fiscal year 2023–24 data and underscores the critical role community colleges — including Lewis
ELSAH - On May 14, 2026, at 7 p.m., Historic Elsah Foundation presents Bill Egan, who will share his expertise on Cahokia Mounds. Egan is from Collinsville, Illinois. He served in the United States Air Force in Vietnam. After a career in industrial battery sales, Egan began volunteering at Cahokia Mounds Historic Site. He was recognized as Outstanding Volunteer of the Year in 2021. The presentation will be at Farley Music Hall, 37 Mill Street, in Elsah. Refreshments will be served. The program
SPRINGFIELD – The Illinois Department of Agriculture (IDOA) kicks off the 19th season of the Illinois Product Farmers Market Thursday, May 15, 2026 from 3:30 to 7 p.m. at The Shed on the Illinois State Fairgrounds. “As we kick off another season, I’m proud to see the Illinois Product Farmers Market continue to bring people together while uplifting Illinois' hardworking growers and small businesses who make it possible,” said Lieutenant Governor Juliana Stratton. "Ag connect
CHICAGO, May 1, 2026 — While two fortunate Powerball ® players in Indiana and Kansas matched all six numbers in Wednesday night’s drawing to split a whopping $143 million jackpot, several Illinois Lottery players are also celebrating major wins. In a rare outcome, four Illinois Lottery players each won prizes of $1 million or more in a single Powerball drawing — an unusually high number of big winners for the state in one night. The winning numbers for the Wednesday,
WOOD RIVER - The Riverbend East Rotary Club recently hosted a picnic at the Rotary Shelter in Belk Park in Wood River, bringing together local scholarship recipients, Rotary Youth Leadership Academy students, and school counselors. The picnic included invitees from East Alton-Wood River and Roxana high schools, including scholarship and RYLA students, as well as their school counselors. Also in attendance was Lilly, a Rotary Youth Exchange outbound student headed to Crema, Italy.
EDWARDSVILLE - Emily Ottwein didn’t always plan to be a teacher, but she’s so glad life worked out the way it did. Ottwein is a choir teacher at Edwardsville High School in the Edwardsville Community Unit School District #7. This Teacher Appreciation Week, she is reflecting on the journey that led to this role and the reasons why she loves it. “I love the choral art form and most of my best memories and experiences from my youth are from choir and drama club. I want to
BETHALTO - Brianna Wooley has always had a passion for helping others, and teaching was an obvious next step. Wooley is a special education teacher for eighth grade students at Trimpe Middle School in the Bethalto Community Unit School District. This Teacher Appreciation Week, she is proud to know she is making a difference. “From a young age, I felt drawn to helping people overcome obstacles, find confidence in themselves, and succeed. I’ve always wanted to inspire others,
ALTON - For Gina Frye, school has always been “a positive place.” Now, she’s creating that space for her students. Frye teaches second grade at Eunice Smith Elementary School in the Alton Community Unit School District #11. This Teacher Appreciation Week, she is remembering the experiences that convinced her to become an educator. “Growing up, school was always a positive place for me,” she shared. “I looked up to my teachers and wanted to be like them
ALTON - Anjanette Baumgartner cares about supporting her students. Baumgartner teaches kindergarten at Gilson Brown Elementary School in the Alton Community Unit School District #11. This Teacher Appreciation Week, she is reflecting on how much she loves working with students and her colleagues to support the next generation of learners. “It is the most important job I know. A kindergarten teacher shapes and molds young children. She has a lasting impact on each student,” Baumgartner
GRANITE CITY - Misty Scott, whose 13-year-old daughter Serenity McMillan lost both legs after being run over by a train in a 2024 rail crossing accident in Granite City, has an ongoing GoFundMe to help with the family’s expenses. The accident occurred in the 2900 block of Missouri Avenue in Granite City. The accident occurred on Friday, April 5, 2024. Serenity and her sister, ages 13 and 12 at the time, were apparently walking home from the Granite City Soccer Complex. Scott identified
WORDEN/EDWARDSVILLE - Worden Elementary School met its newest learners during a special “Worden Welcome” event. On Friday, May 1, 2026, second graders from Midway and Hamel Elementary Schools were bused to Worden, where they will attend third grade next year. Students had the chance to meet each other, tour the building, talk with current third graders and hear from Principal Dana Morton. “This allows them to kind of put a face with a name,” Morton said. “It
Mother’s Day didn’t start as a card-and-flowers holiday. In the United States, it began as a public campaign led by a woman who later spent years trying to undo it. That twist matters because it reveals what Mother’s Day has always been: a mix of love, politics, grief, and culture. The day we recognize with brunch reservations and last-minute grocery-store bouquets grew out of real family stories and social movements. Understanding that history can make the holiday feel less
A bouquet can say “I’m sorry” without using a single word—and most people will still understand it. That’s the strange power of flowers. They are just plants, yet they carry emotional meaning in a way few objects do. We use them when we’re in love, when we’re grieving, when we’re proud, and when we don’t know what else to say. So why do flowers, of all things, become stand-ins for feelings? Flowers speak when words feel risky Emotions ca
A mother’s work is often most visible when she’s not in the room. The packed lunch appears. The permission slip is signed. The birthday candle is found at the last minute. When a job is done well enough, it can look like it happened on its own. Traditions that honor mothers push back against that illusion. They make care visible. Why mothers are singled out in tradition Most traditions are built around what a community cannot afford to lose. Food, safety, belonging, and identity
On May 4, 1970, Ohio National Guardsmen shot and killed four students and wounded nine others during a protest at Kent State University in the United States. The crowd had gathered in response to the Vietnam War and the recent expansion of U.S. military action into Cambodia. The deaths quickly became a national shock, not only because the victims were young and unarmed, but because they highlighted how deeply divided many societies can become during wartime. At the time, the shootings intensified
ST. LOUIS — Police are investigating the fatal stabbing of a man in his 20s following an overnight dispute outside Busch Stadium in St. Louis, where two contractors were working, authorities said. The stabbing happened about 2:45 a.m. Monday, May 4, 2026, on the property outside Busch Stadium in the 700 block of Clark Avenue, according to the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department. Police said the incident involved two third-party contractors working overnight at the stadium. Officers
ALTON - The Alton Police Department has filed felony charges against a 20-year-old Alton man in connection with a shooting at Salu Park that police said followed a physical altercation on April 27, 2026. Police said officers were dispatched at about 12:47 p.m. after receiving a 911 call reporting a fight at the park and a firearm being discharged. Officers determined that after the fight, a male retrieved a handgun and fired multiple shots in the direction of several individuals, according t
ALTON – An Alton area man remains in custody after reportedly firing shots at two people in James H. Killion Park. Jacob C. McAfoos, 20, listed as homeless out of Alton, was charged on May 1, 2026 with two counts of aggravated discharge of a firearm (both Class 1 felonies) and one count each of possession of a firearm with a defaced serial number (a Class 3 felony), aggravated unlawful possession of weapons, and reckless discharge of a firearm (both Class 4 felonies). McAfoos is accused
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