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CHICAGO — Governor JB Pritzker today signed House Bill 3768, expanding racial classification categories when reporting statistical data within state agencies. The legislation amends the Uniform Racial Classification Act to create a “Middle Eastern or North African” (MENA) category. “Here in Illinois, we are committed to instilling the values of inclusion and equity in every department of state government,” said Governor JB Pritzker. “That’s why this legislation is an important step in ensuring proper representation for every individual in our great state. When it comes to distributing resources and providing support from our state’s agencies, we need to be sure every single Illinoisan is accounted for—leaving no one behind.” "When we tell the story of Illinois, it must reflect the diversity of our state and do so accurately and with intention," said Lt. Governor Juliana Stratton. "This expansion is critical in ensuring every

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SPRINGFIELD – Epinephrine auto-injectors, commonly known by the brand name EpiPens, will now cost a maximum of $60 per twin-pack thanks to a law backed by State Senator Christopher Belt. “EpiPens are crucial. Every person who relies on EpiPens should have affordable, reliable access,” said Belt (D-Swansea). “The high cost of this life-saving medication has been a significant barrier for many individuals and families, putting their health and well-being at major risk.” EpiPens are the only medication that works on the entire body to combat anaphylaxis, a potentially fatal allergic reaction. However, since 2017, a global shortage has made the medication increasingly difficult to obtain. The cost of EpiPens has skyrocketed in recent years, with a twin pack costing anywhere from $500-700 on average, and a single injector costing anywhere from $300-400. The new Belt-backed law will limit the cost of EpiPens to a maximum of $60 per twin-pack. “No one

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COLLINSVILLE - Revity Credit Union employees joined together to raise $1,030.00 in the month of July to benefit Collinsville Charities for Children through their Smile for Jeans Program. The Smile for Jeans Program is funded by Revity Credit Union employees who make monthly, monetary donations out of their own pockets to a local organization. By donating $15 or more to a specific organization, Revity employees are able to wear jeans and tennis shoes on Fridays and Saturdays during that month. Nothing gets better than seeing a smile on an organization’s face when Revity Credit Union presents them with a jeans donation check. Revity Credit Union’s 2023 Smile for Jeans Program focuses on supporting our local communities that we work, play and live in. During the month of July, Revity employees proudly raised $1,030 for Collinsville Charities for Children. Collinsville Charities for Children’s mission is to ensure that the children of our community have the necessities

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Alton native Donald D. McDonough has announced an upcoming campaign for state representative. He has been involved in political campaigns on behalf of candidates, organizations and issues at every level of government from local, state, national, and international. He has worked for progressive organizations and causes including environmental issues, taxes, land use, healthcare, labor, trial lawyers, medical and dental associations; education, transportation and transit; law enforcement, police and firefighters; the arts; aviation and public ports. After volunteering for a presidential campaign while in high school, he went on to work on three presidential campaigns as national staff. He also managed three congressional campaigns and worked as chief pollster and strategy consultant for scores of other campaigns, Initiatives, and referenda. His areas of experience and expertise include campaign planning, budgeting and fundraising, targeting and field organizing, media and advertising

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EDWARDSVILLE - The partnership between the Edwardsville YMCA and Mitch-N-Friends, who puts on the annual clinic for special needs players held during the Edwardsville Futures tennis tournament, presented by the EGHM Foundation, was solidified on Thursday when Mitch-N-Friends presented a check for $1,230 to the Edwardsville YMCA during a ceremony held at the end of the annual clinic. The money, which was raised by donations to Mitch-N-Friends, will help with costs of the program, in which the Meyer Center began hosting monthly clinics last year, on the second Thursday of each month from September through May. How the organization and the partnership between the Edwardsville Y and Mitch-N-Friends started was in a very simple and heartfelt way. "So, 10 years ago, when my father died, Mitch-N-Friends was about two or three years into our organization," said Kevin McGinnis, the main force behind the organization named for his son Mitch, a longtime staple of the Edwardsville High School

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GODFREY - As we near the start of the fall semester, Lewis and Clark Community College (LCCC) is happy to highlight the College for Life program, which provides non-credit classes to students with disabilities. Students over age 18 who have a documented intellectual or developmental disability or similar learning challenges are eligible for the program. Program Coordinator Roselyn “Rosie” Ellington explained that it’s a great chance for students to engage with campus life and continue their education past high school. “It’s a really fun program, and it’s also amazing because it’s so inclusive,” Ellington said. “There’s no program like ours in the area. And it’s called College for Life because students can come for as long as they want, and it’s a very good way for the students to also be involved in a college setting.” More than 130 students are enrolled in the College for Life (CFL) program at LCCC’s

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SPRINGFIELD – The Illinois State Treasurer’s Office returned more than $11.5 million in unclaimed property during July, Illinois Treasurer Michael Frerichs announced today. The total includes nearly $11.5 million in cash and interest and almost $45,000 in stock value. All told, 12,554 claims were paid. “My office helps the Illinois economy by putting money back in people’s pockets,” Frerichs said. “I have taken numerous steps to make the system of reuniting people with their unclaimed property more efficient.” Illinois’ unclaimed property program — also known as I-CASH — is one of the state’s oldest consumer protection initiatives. The State Treasurer is tasked with safeguarding unclaimed property, such as the contents of overlooked safe deposit boxes, unpaid life insurance benefits, forgotten bank accounts and unused rebate cards. Illinois holds more than $5 billion in unclaimed property. The Treasurer’s

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GODFREY - The Evangelical United Church of Christ School in Godfrey will welcome Amanda Macias as their new principal this year. Macias previously taught at Alton High School before serving as the principal at North Greene Junior and Senior High School for five years. She doesn’t have as much experience working with elementary school students, but she’s excited for the chance to learn and get involved with the Evangelical community. “I’m really excited about this new adventure in my life,” Macias said. She joked that her time at North Greene has prepared her for almost anything. “Your feet hit the ground running, and that first year, I just probably couldn’t even tell you my name…The learning that I did there was amazing. I’m not near as nervous for my first year at this job.” This summer, Macias has been adjusting to her new role and noting the differences between public and private schools. She has done a lot of

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EDWARDSVILLE - The City of Edwardsville is applying for a grant which, if approved, would fund up to 40 percent of the cost of a new proposed bike/pedestrian trail along Schwarz Street. The new trail would allow greater connectivity between Brent Leh Dog Park, the sidewalk along Schwarz Street, and the Route 66 trail. 4th Ward Alderman SJ Morrison said this project has been on the “priority list” of projects yet to be completed under the city’s new Bicycle and Pedestrian Master Plan . He added the project has been highly requested by residents. “It’s a good project, I think it’ll score well,” Morrison said. “It’ll connect to the dog park and to the sidewalk along Schwarz. It’ll also connect by a crosswalk to the Route 66 bikeway along 157 … we’ve heard this request for a while.” Specifically, the new trail segment will connect the Route 66 trail at the intersection of Highway 157 and West Schwarz

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EAST ALTON - Early Monday morning, July 31, NGRREC researchers took to the Mississippi River to deploy one of their GREON stations. GREON stations are designed to capture real-time water quality data, such as temperature, dissolved oxygen, blue-green algae, and nitrate, to name a few. These data are important for informing watershed health and understanding the ecology of large-floodplains. “We are excited to redeploy our GREON buoy back in Ellis Bay,” Research Specialist Jen Hemphill said. “Data has been collected here since 2014 and has allowed us to study seasonal, annual, and climatic changes on the water quality. One of our goals with GREON is to deploy water quality platforms throughout Illinois rivers gathering data in areas not currently monitored. This will help fill in data gaps of a river system’s overall water quality.” National Great Rivers Research and Education Center (NGRREC) NGRREC is dedicated to the study of great river systems

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ALTON - Marilyn Minor has officially opened her business at 235 East Delmar Road in Alton, Illinois 62002. The RiverBend Growth Association (RBGA) team facilitated the ribbon-cutting ceremony for family, friends, and community members on Tuesday, August 1, 2023. Team members include Marilyn Minor, Owner/Stylist; Chynethia Hewlett, stylist specializing in skin care; and stylist Carmen Samuels. Marilyn’s upscale salon services include the art of hairstyling, trendy haircuts, express hair weaving (bonding and sew-ins), finger waves for days, natural hairstyling, updos, silk press, hair braiding, eyebrow waxing/razor, hair coloring, and more." "We are a hair replacement center, for men and women," she added. "Our motto is 'We Care About Your Hair," she said. "In Marilyn’s Care is a distributor of age-defying skincare products." Marily said her goal is that every person she comes in contact with is made to look and feel beautiful. Call for a free personal consultation and/or

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ST. LOUIS - It’s that time of year when it can be pretty easy to lose a couple hours of good sleep. Even if we’re usually pretty good about keeping up with our regular bedtime routines, there can be a lot going on that can get in the way. Evening trips to the park or a late summer concert can keep us up later than usual. Uncomfortably warm bedrooms can make it harder to get to sleep and stay asleep. And the kids in our lives may feel summer coming to a close, bringing some extra energy and disrupted sleep in anticipation of a new school year. Occasionally missing out on a healthy night’s sleep is fine. But, when it happens regularly, it can be more of a concern and have a real impact on our health. “Sleep is essential in maintaining good physical and mental health, as well as well-being,” said Yikyung Park, professor in the Division of Public Health Sciences at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. “Getting too little sleep

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EDWARDSVILLE - Construction on “The Station on Main” complex in Edwardsville is expected to be completed in Spring 2024. The site, located at 400 North Main Street, previously housed Edwardsville’s first City Hall and various other public safety services. The new development will include 38 single-bedroom apartments and townhomes, four restaurants, five boutique retail sites and up to five businesses, according to a press release from the City of Edwardsville dated October 2022. “We’re really excited to be making a pretty big impact on downtown Edwardsville,” said Kevin Neffelhauf, the project manager with Pfund Construction . Construction by Pfund Construction started earlier this year. Neffelhauf said there are three phases of construction and it has been going well. They plan to be finished sometime between late March and mid-April. “We’ve been there on site for about nine months now, kind of clearing what was there

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EAST ST. LOUIS – A 15-year-old East St. Louis male has been charged with First-Degree Murder (a Class M Felony) and Aggravated Vehicular Hijacking (a Class X Felony). The Illinois State Police Public Safety Enforcement Group (PSEG) and St. Clair County State's Attorney's Office made the announcement about the charges Friday afternoon after what they described as a "thorough investigation." The 15-year-old is currently detained at the St. Clair Juvenile Detention Center. On Aug. 27, 2022, the East St. Louis Police Department requested ISP PSEG to conduct a death investigation. A female, later identified as 49-year-old Harriett Childers of St. Louis, was located in the 1800 block of Gaty Avenue with a gunshot wound. Childers was a full-time nurse and had been driving for a ride share when the shooting occurred. Childers was pronounced deceased on scene. ISP DCI was assisted by the East St. Louis Police Department, St. Clair County Coroner’s Office, ISP Crime Scene Services,

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CHICAGO – An Illinois Lottery retailer in the Chicagoland area strikes again. A $700,000 winning Lucky Day Lotto ticket was sold at Kostner Korner, located at 4356 W. Howard St. in Skokie. The Lucky Day Lotto ticket matched all five numbers for the Wednesday, August 2 midday drawing to take home the jackpot prize. The winning numbers were: 8-19-26-32-37. “Due to the big Mega Millions Jackpot, we’ve had a lot of new customers coming into the store to buy tickets so I’m not sure who might have bought the winning Lucky Day Lotto ticket,” said Bhupendra Patel, owner of Kostner Korner. “Whomever it is, I’m just very happy that one of our customers is a winner.” This is the second time the store has sold a winning Lucky Day Lotto ticket within the last five weeks. On June 30, a lucky player took home the jackpot prize - a cool $450,000. Kostner Korner is also one of the top 10 Illinois Lottery retailers in the state that have sold the most

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GODFREY - The College for Life program at Lewis and Clark Community College (LCCC) recently celebrated the end of their gardening class with a meal using produce from the garden. College for Life (CFL) is a community education program for adults with intellectual or developmental disabilities. This summer, 12 students tended to LCCC’s Growing Knowledge Garden and learned how to harvest and cook the produce they grew. They celebrated with a homemade luncheon on Aug. 4. “To be a part of is one of the best parts about my job,” LCCC’s garden designer and horticulturist Katie Piper said. “I honestly have so much fun and I really love getting to work with all the students and getting to hang out with the College for Life teachers…You guys brighten my day.” Piper led the students through taking care of the garden and cooking the meal. Administrators and community leaders attended the luncheon with CFL students and staff. They enjoyed a meal

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GODFREY - After much discussion and debate, the Godfrey Village Board of Trustees decided not to vote on an amendment to the village’s Electrical Code which would have established electrical licensing requirements and more. Supporters cited safety concerns, while critics claimed it would discourage electricians from working in Godfrey. Under the proposed amendment, any person or company doing electrical work in Godfrey other than “minor electrical repairs” would need to apply for an electrical license first. That person, or a designated individual chosen by an affiliated company, would be required to pass a licensing exam with a grade of 75% or better. Trustee Jeff Weber criticized the low testing threshold and said it “wouldn’t actually make anything safer.” He noted that this amendment also failed to pass two meetings ago. “This ordinance doesn’t stop the bad people or electricians doing stuff without a permit or without a license,”

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EDWARDSVILLE - Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed a bill into law last week allowing the Metro East Sanitary District (MESD) to offer its board members insurance, a move met with disapproval from Madison County Board Chairman Kurt Prenzler. Prenzler said the MESD has been giving its board of commissioners insurance in violation of state law before having the law changed. He noted that about 10 years ago, Madison County board members also used to get insurance - that practice has since stopped for the County Board, but reportedly not for MESD commissioners. By law, both the salaries of Madison County board members and MESD commissioners are set at $14,500. But Prenzler estimated the value of the insurance in question at up to $20,000 for commissioners and their families. After bringing up the issue, Prenzler said they changed the plans from being offered to families to individuals, at a value of around $10,000. If MESD commissioners are receiving insurance of any value, Prenzler said

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EDWARDSVILLE - Soon, Captain Kris Tharp of the Madison County Sheriff’s Office will be retiring. He officially retires on Thursday, Aug. 10, 2023, after a 26-year career in law enforcement. Twenty-four of those years have been of service in the sheriff’s office. Kris has not decided on a next move and said his passion lies in serving others and any future pursuit or endeavor will involve that. “I want to continue to be a big part of the community,” he said. Kristopher “Kris” Tharp has had a remarkable life and career. His story has always served as an inspiration for those who worked with him in the sheriff’s office and everyone around him. Kris was raised by a single mother in Wood River. He graduated from East Alton-Wood River High School in 1994 and is a local product. After high school graduation, he immediately began serving the community as a law enforcement cadet with the Wood River Police Department at age 18. Kris said his wife,

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ALTON - Enjoy the sounds of smooth jazz and the taste of great wine as the successful Alton Jazz & Wine Festival returns to the Alton Amphitheater on Saturday, September 2, 2023 with gates opening at 6 p.m. The Alton Jazz Confluence, featuring up and coming Alton/Godfrey student musicians, will again kick off this year’s festival. Following this exciting group of future jazz stars will be The Jason Swagler Group. The headliners for this year’s Alton Jazz & Wine Festival will be the Trumpet Trio, three top-notch players in the St. Louis area: Danny Campbell, Kasimu Taylor, and Dawn Weber. These three occupy the summit of the region’s jazz trumpet talent and experience. The Amphitheater Commission is privileged to host them in both collective and individual settings, featuring trumpet pieces from Alton-born Miles Davis, Dizzy Gillespie, Louis Armstrong, and others. All three have starred at recent Festivals and ceremonies in the Riverbend. Dawn played at the first

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