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Frerichs' Plan to Allow Leftover College Savings Funds to Be Used For Retirement Signed Into Law

11 months ago
Parents who don’t use all the money in their Illinois 529 College Savings Accounts (Bright Start and Bright Directions) are now able to roll over the funds into a Roth IRA under Illinois Treasurer Michael Frerichs’ plan that was signed into law . “This will give parents another option when deciding what to do with the money they’ve saved for their children if they don’t use all of it,” said Treasurer Frerichs, who thanked Gov. JB Pritzker for signing the legislation and State Sen. Steve Stadelman and State Rep. Diane Blair-Sherlock for sponsoring it. “A common question we get from parents is what they can do with their Illinois 529 money if their child doesn’t go to college or gets a scholarship, and there is money left over in the account, and we have good news to share with them.” The option is possible because Congress approved a measure in December 2022 changing Section 529 of the Internal Revenue Code to authorize tax-

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Illinois Route 3 Closure Near Granite City Is Announced

11 months ago
GRANITE CITY – The Illinois Department of Transportation today announced that an intersection replacement project on Illinois 3 between Niedringhaus Avenue and Rock Road will begin, weather permitting, at 6 a.m. on Monday, Aug. 12. To complete the necessary work, Illinois 3 will be closed to through traffic at 20th Street. Motorists should follow the marked detour as follows: Illinois 3 northbound: Illinois 3 to Plank Road to Packers Avenue to eastbound Interstate 70 to northbound Interstate 255 to westbound Interstate 270 to Illinois 3. Illinois 3 southbound: Illinois 3 to eastbound I-270 to southbound I-255 to westbound I-55/70 to Illinois 3. The work is expected to be completed by mid-September. Drivers are urged to remain alert while traveling the marked detour throughout construction. Drivers should reduce speed, obey all construction signage and refrain from using mobile devices while driving the detour route. For IDOT District 8 updates, follow us

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Employment Services and Opportunities Available for Area Veterans at Resource and Job Fair, Co-Hosted by SIUE Veterans Upward Bound 

11 months ago
EDWARDSVILLE - Area veterans will be the recipients of free clothing, door prizes, employment, community and educational resources and services, and will have the opportunity to be interviewed on site by employers during the upcoming Resource and Job Fair, co-hosted by Southern Illinois University Edwardsville Veterans Upward Bound (VUB). VUB, in partnership with the City of Florissant, The Kaufman Fund and Florissant area veterans service organizations, will hold the Fair from 10 a.m.-3 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 14 at the John F. Kennedy Community Center, 315 Howdershell Road, St. Louis, Mo. According to VUB Outreach Coordinator Bill Schnarr, who is also an U.S. Army veteran, the event is at capacity for providers, with 45 vendors registered to attend. “We are extremely excited to be offering a Resource Fair of this magnitude,” said Schnarr. “We look forward to assisting veterans in various ways, particularly in finding employment.” “Taking care of veterans

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Exploring Mexican mole in St. Louis is a journey of taste and geography

11 months ago
Mole is a staple of Mexican cuisine, but what’s special about this sauce isn’t just its flavors — chilis, nuts, fruits, chocolate — it's where those tastes come from. Sauce Magazine writer Ileana Martinez explored four local restaurants serving their own, region-specific takes on the staple. Angel Jimenez Gutierrez, co-owner of the Mexican restaurant Malinche in Ellisville, discusses why mole never leaves his menu — and how the dish reminds him of home.

Christian Music Artist Talks Obedience and Fulfillment on Most Recent Episode of "You're Beautiful"

11 months ago
ALTON - In the most recent episode of “You’re Beautiful” with Brian Trust, Cole Abell shared his perspective on fulfillment and obedience to God. Abell, a Christian music artist, spoke about the power of prayer and reading the Bible to help people connect to God. He believes this is how to build a relationship with Him. While Abell has struggled with feelings of unfulfillment, his faith has guided him through these periods of uncertainty. “Faithfulness and obedience will always take you further than staying complacent,” Abell said. “If I want to build my relationship with God, what do I have to do? Doing nothing gets me nothing. If I want to build my relationship, I have to do what? Get in the word, pray, go to church, worship. There’s all these things in His word. We act like we don’t know what to do when it comes to God, but it’s all right there in His book. All we have to do is read it.” Abell encourages

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In ‘Radical Atlas’ 100 maps show the what and why of Ferguson

11 months ago
Urban design, tax incentives and landscaping can make racial and economic inequality worse in suburbs like Ferguson. Patty Heyda, a professor of architecture and urban design at Washington University, talks about her new book “Radical Atlas of Ferguson, USA”. She shares what mapping Ferguson — in more than 100 different ways — reveals about how cities are unjustly built.

Major Upgrades For Big Bend At Crossroads

11 months ago
From Webster-Kirkwood Times:  A $2.35 million partnership between Webster Groves and St. Louis County is underway to improve a 0.3-mile stretch of Big Bend Boulevard from the Interstate 44 overpass to the South Elm Avenue intersection in the Crossroads Business District. One key feature of the project is the implementation of a traffic-calming measure known […]
Kacey Crawley

Appeals Court Rejects DMCA Constitutional Challenge, Because Apparently Fair Use Means Nothing Good Will Ever Be Published

11 months ago
What began as an attempt to challenge the constitutionality of the DMCA’s terrible anticircumvention provision has now backfired. A court ruling will limit our rights to fair use and free expression in favor of Hollywood’s ability to lock stuff down with digital locks. It’s not great. I had thought we had gotten past the era […]
Mike Masnick