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wo north county towns are feeling the fallout after a trusted official was indicted for looting city coffers.

ROXANA - The American Cancer Society’s Relay For Life of Riverbend, presented by OSF HealthCare, is proud to announce an exciting new format for its 2025 signature event. Taking place on Saturday, June 7, 2025, at the RoxArena in Roxana Community Park, this year’s event will be a Relay For Life Survivor and Team Dinner with the theme —“Re-Lei for a Cure!”. In a shift from the traditional Relay format featuring fundraising tents and continuous walking, this year’s Relay For Life of Riverbend will focus on a special Survivor & Team Dinner Event, followed by a Luminaria Remembrance Ceremony. The new event format invites the community to come together in a refreshed and inspiring way to honor cancer Survivors, support Caregivers, and celebrate the commitment of Relay teams and participants. “We’re excited to launch a new format that keeps the heart of Relay alive while offering a more connected and meaningful experience,”

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WASHINGTON – U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee and author of the Dream Act , today delivered remarks at the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities (HACU) forum. In his remarks, Durbin spoke about meeting Tereza Lee, the daughter of South Korean parents who fled to Brazil following the Korean War. Born in Brazil, Ms. Lee and her family moved to the United States when she was just two years old in 1985. While applying to colleges, Ms. Lee’s status as an undocumented immigrant created complications. She contacted Durbin’s office in hopes of remaining in the United States and attending college in the country. Her story inspired Durbin to immediately begin drafting the Dream Act . “Twenty-four years ago, Senator Hatch and I first introduced the Dream Act after I met Tereza Lee, a musical prodigy who immigrated to the United States at just two years old. She, like so many other Dreamers,

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Riley Isaacs, a 17-year-old from Bradleyville, Missouri, caught the first state record fish in 2025 while bowfishing at Lake Taneycomo, breaking the previous alternative methods record of 2 pounds, 2 ounces.

From KSDK:  When Teddy Gooch and his mother, Erin, would visit traditional playgrounds, what should have been joyful afternoons often ended in frustration and tears. “We would both leave the playground in tears and sweat,” Erin Gooch said. “It was a lot of work. I wasn’t able to talk to any other moms during it […]

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) today released the following statement after he voted against moving forward with the nomination of Frank Bisignano to lead the Social Security Administration (SSA): “As if it wasn’t enough to tank the economy and decimate Americans’ retirement accounts, President Trump has put forth a nominee to lead the Social Security Administration that would be complicit in closing SSA offices, limiting SSA phone services, and perpetuating delays in Americans receiving their hard-earned retirement benefits. “In casting their vote to move forward with Frank Bisignano’s nomination, Senate Republicans greenlit President Trump and unelected billionaire Elon Musk’s grand plan to destroy Social Security.”

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From St. Louis/Southern Illinois Labor Tribune:  A union member who died on the job last year was remembered at the 45th Annual Robert O. Kortkamp Union Labor Mass and Interfaith Prayer Service on April 27 at the Shrine of St. Joseph, the patron saint of the worker in downtown St. Louis. The annual mass and […]

CHICAGO – May is National Foster Care Month, a time to recognize the important role child welfare professionals, community social service agencies, caregivers and the public play in supporting children and families. This year’s theme, “Engaging Youth. Building Supports. Strengthening Opportunities,” aims to raise awareness about the importance of involving youth in the decisions being made about their welfare, the significance of maintaining connections to important people in their lives and how to best support youth as they transition out of foster care. “Every child and youth in our care deserves to feel safe and loved” said Illinois DCFS Director Heidi E. Mueller. “It is because of our incredible foster parents across the state that children, youth and siblings can have a home and foster parent who has opened their heart, home and even their family so that a child can have the love and stability they need during a very difficult time.”

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SPRINGFIELD – The Illinois Department of Natural Resources’ long-awaited off-highway vehicle park in southern Illinois will officially open to riders on Friday, May 2, 2025. Sahara Woods State Recreation Area near Carrier Mills in Saline County features Illinois’ first state-managed off-highway vehicle (OHV) trail system in Illinois. The nearly 30 miles of two-way trails are designed to meet a growing demand for motorized recreation. Hours of operation are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday through Monday. Vehicle permits are $20 per day or $65 for a four-day pass. Riders can go online to purchase permits and complete the registration form and liability waiver. OHVs cannot be wider than 64 inches, consistent with the Illinois Motor Vehicle Code. Riders also must abide by safety rules. Visit Sahara Woods online for details. The Sahara Woods trails were funded in part by federal grants and IDNR capital funds. The land at Sahara Woods was the site of an active coal mine

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From ENR Midwest:  A day after St. Louis shut down a program to repair dilapidated and vacant buildings, a lawsuit was filed seeking to learn how the program operated, selected contractors and managed recordkeeping and quality controls—as well as to uncover any alleged money trail that plaintiffs believe will show kickbacks paid for approval of […]

From Spectrum Local News:  Longly anticipated upgrades to Kinetic Park in Saint Charles opened up on Monday, April 14, 2025, after over a year of renovations and construction. Builders put the finishing touches on the new 40,000 square-foot, “universally designed,” adventure playground when Spectrum News visited the park on April 9, 2025. Onsite St. Charles County […]

One of the city’s largest Cinco de Mayo celebrations returns this weekend.

Authorities are interviewing more students at a daycare in an ongoing suspected child abuse investigation.

Governor Mike Kehoe requested for Trump to approve a major disaster declaration.

From St. Louis Magazine:  There is a house on this block of Dodier Street, one block from North Grand Boulevard, that is almost impressively ugly. But the ugliness doesn’t come from neglect. It comes from a lousy rehab job by an out-of-state investment company—and unpermitted construction work the city has been trying to shut down, […]

GLEN CARBON - Devin Ellis, a senior midfielder for the Father McGivney Catholic High girls soccer team, scored perhaps the biggest goal in the program’s history on April 30, 2025, when she sent a header to the inside of the far post off a corner by Rachel Kretzer into the back of the net to give the Griffins a 1-0 win over Edwardsville in a very well-played game by both sides at McGivney. The goal came in the 79th minute to give the Griffins the win. For Ellis, it was her sixth goal of the season to go along with three assists. She’s emerged as a key player on the team, who kept their 100 percent record alive at 16-0-0. Ellis is a Byron, Carlson, Petri & Kalb Female Athlete of the Month for the Griffins. In her post-match interview, Ellis, to say the least, was very happy with the winner and how things turned out in the game. “I’m feeling ecstatic,” Ellis said. “It’s the first time we’ve played Edwardsville, just feeling all the

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WASHINGTON — A federal judge Thursday struck down President Donald Trump’s use of a wartime law to deport Venezuelan nationals, but limited the scope to the Southern District of Texas. Judge Fernando Rodriguez Jr., whom Trump appointed in 2017, wrote in a 36-page order that the administration’s invocation of the 1798 Alien Enemies Act was unlawful, […]