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EAST ST. LOUIS - East St. Louis School District 189 announced that Meonshai Houston, a teacher at Annette Officer Elementary School, received the Illinois State Board of Education’s Award of Special Recognition as part of the Those Who Excel 2026 honors. The award “celebrates educators who are valued for the skills, passion, and dedication they bring to their school communities each day,” the district said in its announcement. “Ms. Houston’s commitment

JERSEYVILLE — Jersey Community Unit School District No. 100 announced that Cali Breden has earned a spot on the 2026 Illinois Athletic Directors Association All-State Team, an honor that recognizes senior student-athletes for athletics, academics, leadership, and community service. Breden is also a 2026 JCHS Illinois State Scholar. Breden is a Sparklight Female Athlete of the Month for Jersey. Breden, a senior student-athlete, is averaging nearly 10 points per game for the Panthers

ALTON – Soulcial Kitchen will host its monthly Block Party for Good on Friday, February 27, 2026, from 2:00–4:00 PM at Soulcial Square (Market & 5th Street, Alton, IL) — providing free groceries, hot chef-prepared meals, and medical information and assessments to the community at no cost. The event is open to all. No ID is required. Supplies are available while they last. The February Block Party for Good will feature: Free Groceries provided by the St. Louis Area

The month that’s supposed to celebrate love is also one of the busiest times for breakups. That sounds backward. Yet relationship counselors, dating apps, and even social media trends often notice the same pattern: a spike in “we need to talk” moments around February. It’s not that February has magical breakup energy. It’s that the month stacks pressure, expectations, and practical stress in a way that exposes cracks that were already there. The “love month”

EDWARDSVILLE/MORO - First-grade students at Midway Elementary School celebrated Lunar New Year with their teacher, who spent five years teaching in China. Chelsey Phipps, a first-grade teacher at Midway, explained that she wanted to share her experiences in China with her students in the Edwardsville class. Students have spent the past week reading and learning about the Lunar New Year. On Friday, Feb. 13, 2026, they created a paper lantern craft, enjoyed oranges as a snack, and received

EDWARDSVILLE — One person died when a Chevy Silverado pickup truck crashed into the Redmon Insurance Agency building in the 100 block of South Main Street in Edwardsville at 11 p.m. on Sunday, Feb. 15, 2026, Illinois State Police said. The crash caused significant damage to the building, according to authorities. Illinois State Police confirmed the death. ISP, Edwardsville Police, and SIUE Police responded to the crash, but additional information has not been released. Workers were bus

People say they “fell in love” as if love were a slick patch of ice—one wrong step and suddenly you’re down, heart-first, with no say in the matter. But the way we talk about love isn’t just poetic. It quietly shapes what we expect love to be: accidental, uncontrollable, and a little dangerous. That single phrase— falling in love —carries a whole story about desire, risk, and commitment. It hints that love happens to us, not through us. Yet real

In the late 1500s, Europe’s religious and political tensions were already shaping daily life. On February 16, 1568, Spain’s king issued a decree establishing the Tribunal of the Inquisition in the Spanish Netherlands. The goal was to enforce Catholic orthodoxy in a region where Protestant ideas were spreading. Instead of restoring calm, harsh enforcement added fuel to resentment and helped push the Netherlands toward a long struggle for independence. The episode is remembered as a

This morning starts with some fog that will lift early, giving way to partly sunny skies. Temperatures this morning are on the cooler side, starting around 41 degrees. By afternoon, expect a warmer day with highs reaching near 66 degrees under partly sunny skies. Winds will come from the south at around 9 mph, with gusts up to 25 mph. The evening will bring partly cloudy skies and mild conditions, with temperatures gradually dropping. Overnight will stay relatively mild, with lows around 41 degrees

ALTON - Lynne Burnett has always had a fire for giving back. Burnett, one of the YWCA’s eleven 2026 Women of Distinction, will be honored at the Y’s annual gala for her commitment to the community. Whether working in child welfare, advocating for marriage equality, or assisting at the Overnight Warming Location, Burnett does everything she can to help others. “W e're always involved with something,” Burnett said of herself and her wife. Burnett shared that she

On February 14, 1929, seven men were killed in Chicago in what became known as the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre. The attack was part of a struggle between rival criminal organizations during the Prohibition era, when the United States banned most alcohol sales and a huge illegal market took its place. At the time, the killings shocked the public because they showed how organized crime could operate with military-style planning in a major city. It still matters today because it helped push

CHICAGO — Attorney General Kwame Raoul today co-led a coalition of 24 state attorneys general in sending a comment letter to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) opposing an unlawful attempt to roll back regulations under the Fair Housing Act (FHA). The FHA prohibits discrimination based on the effects of a housing policy, even if the intent of the policy was not to discriminate. HUD’s proposed rule change would remove all mentions of liability under the FH

JERSEYVILLE — A sixth-grade teacher in Jersey Community Unit School District No. 100 has been recognized by the Illinois State Board of Education for her work in the classroom. The Jersey District said Christy Schilling received the Award of Meritorious Service in the Classroom Teacher category through the Illinois State Board of Education’s Those Who Excel Awards. In a statement posted by Jersey Community Unit School District No. 100, the district said it was “proud

EAST ST. LOUIS - Myisha Ross, a special education teacher at Dr. Katie Harper Wright Elementary School in East St. Louis School District 189, has received the Illinois State Board of Education’s Award of Special Recognition as part of the Those Who Excel 2026 honors, the district announced. The award “celebrates educators who are valued for the skills, passion, and dedication they bring to their school communities each day,” according to the district’s statement.

SPRINGFIELD – State Senator Christopher Belt introduced new legislation that would require service providing companies to give consumers a one hour notice when they will arrive at your residence. “I don’t know about you, but I’m pretty fed up with companies giving me a five hour timeframe to show up at the house,” said Belt (D-Swansea). “As private equity continues to buy up family businesses across the country, we need safeguards in place to protect our resident

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL)—Ranking Member of the Senate Subcommittee on Aviation, Space and Innovation—today lambasted the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) for its failure to carry out key safety procedures, maintain crucial inter-agency communications with the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) and address the air traffic controller (ATC) shortage leading up to the tragic, but preventable, DCA mid-air collision. During today’s hearing with

SPRINGFIELD – Illinois Environmental Protection Agency’s (Illinois EPA) Office of Energy is offering $7,000,000 in grant funding to strengthen energy resilience at publicly owned wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs). Through the Resilient Energy for Wastewater Infrastructure (REWI) Grant Program, communities can access funding to assess energy vulnerabilities and implement solar energy systems paired with battery storage. Individual awards will range from $200,000 to $2,000,000, with

On February 13, 1926, an article in the Alton Evening Telegraph announced “a novel balloon blowing contest” to be held during the Alton Automobile Association banquet. The Association held the banquet at Mineral Springs Hotel. Prizes were offered for the blowing of the largest balloon without breaking. The grand prize was a three-month scholarship in Brown’s Business College offered by W.G. Swope, chairman of the Association’s membership committee. There were eight

GRANITE CITY – Granite City Elks Lodge #1063 recognized Granite City High School seniors Kwinton Chism and Sophie Davison as Students of the Month for February. The Elks Student of the Month Program is designed to recognize outstanding young men and women for achievements in school and community life-fine arts, hobbies, athletics, church, school, club and community service, industry and farming. Nominees are judged on multiple achievements including leadership skills, good

ST. LOUIS - Patrick Smith, president of Ameren Illinois, makes a contribution to support the 26 th annual Hardee's Rise and Shine for Heat biscuit fundraiser held in several locations in Illinois and Missouri. Smith gives his donation to an Ameren volunteer, Gemma Flores-Olivas. Ameren made a $200,000 contribution to Heat Up St. Louis at the event, Feb. 13, in addition to the $250,000 contribution it made in December 2025 to help even more customers in both states. Heat Up St. Louis is