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EDWARDSVILLE — An Illinois judges’ ruling preventing the state from ordering school districts requiring students to wear masks will be a topic of discussion Tuesday night during Madison County’s Health Advisory Committee. “Some school districts over the weekend made the decision to make masks optional and others have kept them in place,” Chairman Kurt Prenzler said. “The County made its decision July 21, 2021, when the Board passed a resolution recommending to the school districts to give parents a choice on whether their children should wear masks or not.” Last Friday, a judge in Sangamon County ruled against the governor’s mask mandate inside school buildings, in response to lawsuits involving parents and teachers from more than 150 districts. The temporary restraining order prevents school districts from mandating to students and school employees involved in the lawsuit to wear masks, show proof of vaccinations, or be tested weekly

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SPRINGFIELD - Statewide, COVID-19 cases are dropping. The Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) on Friday reported 60,389 new confirmed and probable cases of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Illinois and that number is less than half as many reported during the previous week (123,812). Another interesting stat is that on Jan. 22, 2022, the statewide daily cases peaked at 41,064, and on Feb. 4 was at 10,070 cases, a substantial decrease. Statewide, there were 608 deaths reported from Jan. 28, 2022, to Feb. 4, 2022. Madison County announced there were 493 new cases of COVID-19 from Wednesday to Friday of last week and the seven-day positivity rate is 12.3 percent. The transmission rate remains high in the county, the county report says. The seven-day rolling average of cases is 200. A total of 63 were reported in Madison County hospitals for COVID-19-related symptoms and 14 on ventilators on Friday. There were three COVID-19-related deaths reported on Friday, Feb. 4, 2022,

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GLEN CARBON – Dr. Julie Steinhauer, OD, FCOVD, owner of Vision For Life and Success in Glen Carbon, and one of a select group of functional vision doctors in the nation, says syntonics (the use of light therapy) should be utilized in any customized vision therapy program to help patients recover from the loss of eyesight due to a brain-related injury or other conditions impacting binocular vision. Syntonics utilizes eyewear, similar to 3D-looking glasses, with various colored lenses. The lenses can include one of 25 syntonic filters each playing a specific role for various functions such as first calming the brain after trauma, and/or retraining the eye and brain connection to regain as much visual field as possible Dr. Steinhauer says syntonics has proven to be highly effective for patients seeking to regain vision after a stroke and for those with binocular vision disorders such as convergence insufficiency, strabismus and amblyopia (lazy eye). “Syntonics can help balanc

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Our Love Story: The Couple: Kevin and Erin from Cottage Hills Date Met/Started Dating: January 4, 2004 Briefly Describe First Date: We were so nervous that we brought our best friend with us. Date Married: October 4, 2019 Name Something You Enjoy Doing Together: We are big fans of stand-up comedy. Share Advice For A Happy Relationship: Communication is literally everything. You have to choose the person every day.

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JERSEY - Jersey Community Unit School District 100 announced over the weekend a change to their masking guidance following a ruling from a judge in Sangamon County. However, the ruling’s temporary nature means those rules will either be extended or reversed in about 10 days. The ruling, which affects 145 schools in Illinois, places a “temporary restraining order” on Governor J.B. Pritzker’s executive orders on mandatory masking, vaccination and testing guidance. This means the decision on whether or not to make masks mandatory now falls to each individual school district. Jersey CUSD 100 announced their masking rules will change from required to optional. “In compliance with the court’s order, beginning tomorrow, the use of universal masking is highly recommended for all staff and students but is not required within the building,” the school district wrote in a statement. This ruling is the result of a lawsuit filed by many school

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Our Love Story: The Couple: John and Valerie Perotka from Godfrey Date Met/Started Dating: September 17, 2007 Briefly Describe First Date: John took me to the Pasta House. Date Married: August 9, 2016 Name Something You Enjoy Doing Together: Cooking, cleaning, and taking care of our yard. Share Advice For A Happy Relationship: You have to trust, love, and have communication.

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EDWARDSVILLE - Sina Rowe has spent 21 years teaching special education – 16 of those in District #7 at the K-2 level – including the last nine years with the CASTLE (Collaboration for Autism Spectrum Teaching, Learning and Excelling) program. She said that although she did not really choose the CASTLE program and that instead it chose her, it felt like coming home. “With this population of kids, it’s very communication driven. If you think about how hard it would be if you could not say what you needed to say or ask for what you wanted, those kids are dealing with that times a hundred. So those kiddos have my heart and I have really found my home here in the CASTLE program.” Rowe began her stint in D7 by teaching cross-categorical at Leclaire before moving to Goshen when the autism program. She then returned to Leclaire with CASTLE seven years ago. “I do like challenging behaviors, and I do like problem-solving behaviors,” she said. “Everything

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CHICAGO – Following Gov. Pritzker’s significant expansion of anti-violence measures focused on Chicago area expressways, the Illinois State Police (ISP) today announced arrests and charges in multiple shooting incidents. The charges, filed against 20 individuals, include three first degree murders, one involuntary manslaughter, three attempted murders, and additional charges for crimes including aggravated discharge of a firearm, reckless discharge of a firearm, aggravated vehicular hijacking as well as aggravated fleeing and eluding. Under Gov. Pritzker’s leadership, ISP has significantly ramped up enforcement action on expressways, including more proactive patrols with additional Troopers, deployment of Air Operations assets to monitor expressways and provide real-time information to troopers on the ground, and the installation of automated license plate readers on expressways to provide ISP Special Agents with essential leads and evidence. ISP Crime Scene and

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Our Love Story: The Couple: Tabatha Powell and Steven Easley from Jerseyville Date Met/Started Dating: April 20, 2016 Briefly Describe First Date: We met at work, but our first official date was at Buffalo Wild Wings. Name Something You Enjoy Doing Together: Any quality time together is a bonus, *going out to eat or even snuggled up with a movie* but, spending time with our beautiful family we have created has to be our favorite! Including them in family activities, while spending time together. Share Advice For A Happy Relationship: Never stop learning something new about your partner! Grow together, and learn together. Show your kids a love story so they expect nothing less as they get older!

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COLLINSVILLE - Madeline Woelfel, a senior for the girls bowling team at Civic Memorial, had a very successful IHSA regional tournament Feb. v5 at Camelot Bowl in Collinsville, finishing in a tie for second place overall with Collinsville's Courtney Baer with an identical six-game score of 1,267 as the Eagles went through as a team to the sectional at Mt. Vernon, finishing fourth to claim the final spot. Woelfel was fired up over the fact at her finish and the Eagles going on to the sectional, and in a post-tournament interview, talked about how exciting it was for CM to advance. "I'm very excited," Woelfel said, of advancing to sectional, "and I was really proud of our team that we could come out and get fourth as a team." Woelfel felt overall, she bowled well, but had trouble finding a strike zone in the final game, but made the needed adjustments to finish strong. "I'd say I bowled pretty well," Woelfel said. "I mean I was really trying to stay positive the whole time. Then, in

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SOUTH ROXANA - Chralene O’Dell, one of two latest hires for the South Roxana Police Department, comes with high aspirations for the new position. For O’Dell, the job is “a dream come true.” She said for many years, she wanted to be a full-time post as a police officer. O’Dell, 29, said everyone in South Roxana and her department from Police Chief Bob Coles and the other officers has been very welcoming to her and embraced her with open arms. She said so far officers from surrounding towns in Roxana, Hartford, etc., have also been very accommodating. She was sworn into her new post on January 4, 2022. “I am very excited for South Roxana to hire our first female police officer,” South Roxana Police Chief/City Administrator Bob Coles said. “I think Charlie will be an excellent addition to our department and look forward to training and providing guidance for her to excel at the job and make this her forever home. “After Charlie's

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Our Love Story: The Couple: Darin and Amy from Alton Date Met/Started Dating: June 13, 2018 Briefly Describe First Date: He helped me move and then we got cheeseburgers at the Mini Corral. Date Married: December 12, 2020 Name Something You Enjoy Doing Together: We love playing Scrabble and watching re-runs of The Office. Share Advice For A Happy Relationship: Talk and laugh together often! Be quick to listen and slow to speak. Always be ready and willing to admit when you are wrong and/or sorry.

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Name: Everett Cole Gutmann Parents: Cole Gutmann and Vanessa Simpson Birth Weight: 8 pounds 11 oz Birth Length: 20.5 inches Birth Date: 1/21/22 Time: 11:40 a.m. Hospital: Mercy South, St. Louis, MO Grandparents: Lynn and Chris Klunk of Grafton, IL; Daniel and Cindi Gutmann of Godfrey, IL; Kim and Dave Moody of Gray Summit, MO; Loren Simpson of Eureka, MO Great Grandparents: Howard and Victoria Blackwood of Alton, IL; Georgian Hock of Alton; James and Sharon Simpson of Hillsboro, MO; Cheryl Cooper of Gray Summit, MO Sibling: Francesca Julane Gutmann, three years old

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GRANITE CITY – Granite City High School is partnering with the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) to host a School/Youth-Serving Organization COVID-19 Vaccination Clinic on Thursday, Feb. 10, from 3-7 p.m. in the GCHS cafeteria. Vaccinations are open for ages 5 and older and include: • Pfizer for 5-11 years old - 1st and 2nd dose • Adult Pfizer 12 and up - 1st and 2nd dose plus Booster • Moderna Booster • Johnson & Johnson single dose and Booster PREREGISTRATION LINK https://bit.ly/3GoQnmE WHEN • Thursday, Feb. 10 - 3-7 p.m. WHERE • Granite City High School Cafeteria, 3148 Fehling Rd. (Next to Kevin Greene Football Field) INFORMATION • Bring photo ID • Vaccine is free • Masks are REQUIRED • Walk-ins are welcome • Parent/guardian must accompany minors 5-17 years old • Boosters are available

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BETHALTO - Dathan Greene has been a standout for the Civic Memorial Eagles boys basketball team all season. In a recent contest against Triad at home, he finished with nine points to go with team member Sam Buckley's 19 points to pace the Eagles, despite a 54-41 loss. For his overall play and leadership this season, Dathan Greene is the Tom Lane State Farm Male Athlete of the Month for Civic Memorial. After the Eagles' difficult loss, one player stayed in his uniform. While his team was changing and getting ready to go home after their hard-fought game, Greene stayed to practice more. After asking Greene what motivates him to get back to practice right after a loss, the junior point guard said, “The motivation is to help this team go to first in the conference within the year. That is always the main goal. You have to put the work in and get as many shots in as possible.” “Working off-ball would have helped us against Triad and will again other opponents," said Gree

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GRANITE CITY – Granite City recently hosted the Alton Redbirds in a Friday night match-up. The Warriors defeated the Redbirds by a final score of 80-51. The Warriors' Mark Yarborough was responsible for a quarter of his team’s points with 20 points out of their 80 points. The 6’1 senior passed, got involved, and shot the ball well from start to finish. “I shot the ball well tonight and did a good job of getting to the basket," said the star senior. Yarborough's passing and shooting were so hot that while he was busy assisting points for teammates like Marc-Kell Longstreet and Mario Brown, he managed to score three three-pointers in the second quarter alone. Yarborough is the Stillwater Senior Living Male Athlete of the Month for Granite City High School. Mark was quick to credit the work ethic of his teammates and guidance from their coaches when asked how much work goes into playing such a successful game. “Our hustle on defensemen and getting to the

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COLLINSVILLE - Senior boys basketball player Ihzel Brown is one of the leaders for the Alton High team. Brown is a Redbird team member the younger players look up to and he tries to set an example for the younger players on the team to follow. For his efforts both on and off the court, Brown has been selected as the school's Auto Butler Male Athlete of the Month. Brown sees himself as the team's leader, making sure the young players are doing what they are supposed to be doing and lending a helping hand in practice and in games. "I do see myself as a team leader," Brown said. "The fact that I push everybody; they push me, too. But I make sure everybody is on time. I help direct the others at practice, and if they don't know the plays, I pace them." As far as goals for himself and the Redbirds the rest of the season, Brown is keeping it simple and easy. Brown said, "Keep on pushing through, try to get more wins, and play as well as we can each game." Riverbender.com's Athlete o

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ST. LOUIS - St. Louis County Police Department Crimes Against Persons detectives are currently investigating an accidental shooting that occurred in the 1200 block of Scott Avenue in the North County Precinct which resulted in injuries to two children. On February 6, 2022, at approximately 11:30 AM, St. Louis County Police officers from the North County Precinct responded to a call for service for a shooting in the 1200 block of Scott Avenue. Responding officers located two female children inside the home suffering from an apparent gunshot wound. Preliminary investigation revealed one of the children to have found their parent’s firearm in a coat and it fired accidentally. Both children were injured in their lower extremities. Both children were transported to an area hospital for treatment of their injuries with one being critical and the other non-life-threatening. There were no other persons injured during the incident. The investigation is active at this time. Additional

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ALTON - Alton firefighters battled a fire around 4 p.m. Saturday in the 1000 block of Diamond Street. The home was unoccupied and the fire department said flames were showing in part of the house upon arrival. No one was injured in the blaze and firefighters extinguished it without assistance from other area fire departments as a mutual aid request was not issued.

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ALTON - Alton High School Athletic Director Chris Kusnerick announced on Sunday, starting on Monday, February 7, 2022, Alton Community Unit School District 11 will return to normal attendance policies for all home sports contests. "No attendance restrictions will be in place," he said. "Masks are obviously still required and admission will be charged for all fans/spectators. "ACUSD #11 would like to thank all of our fans and parents for their patience and flexibility over the past month or so as we dealt with the COVID protocols."

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