Descending into woods, a sign says “No bikes, No dogs.” Good. Leave that behind. The first fallen tree, two big trunks. This one fell last year sometime, not so long ago. Continuing, another tree with a young couple’s initials. I…
Farewell to elections expert Tom Bride, who should get a patience award for months of listening to misinformed citizens gripe about voter fraud. Peoria City Council On June 28, Mayor Rita Ali presented an overview of Safety Network’s efforts to…
Bargaining between teachers and Peoria Public Schools broke down last month, as the Peoria Federation of Teachers ended negotiations with District 150 by requesting federal mediation. “The PFT is pushing proposals that will better the school district and better the…
What’s worse than being sick and tired is being dead. It’s OK to be curious or concerned about monkeypox, an emergency. But it’s far less contagious than COVID-19 (only about 12,000 monkeypox cases have been reported, and no deaths). And…
I made a trip to the Mississippi Delta last month. During the seven-hour drive, I had the opportunity to listen to the story of Anthony Ray Hinton on the radio. Anthony Ray Hinton was a Black man falsely accused of…
Give credit to the majority members of the Peoria City Council. As we reported last month, members blocked an alleged effort by Mayor Rita Ali and City Manager Patrick Urich to quietly slip under the radar screen a payment of…
The free meals at the South Side Mission feed poor souls every day. But what’s been cooking in the kitchen nourishes the hearts and minds of a ministry of culinary artists. Chef Chris Franzoni has been devoted to teaching aspiring…
No matter the job, sometimes you know: “I want a beer.” Beer’s not therapeutic or medicinal, of course (although maybe there’s some study that Ivermectin taken daily with a case of beer reduces awareness of strokes). I’m no expert (you’re…
Novelist Arthur C. Clarke wrote, “Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic,” and at a time when we marvel at images from the James Webb space telescope, much less cryptocurrency, it’s understandable to take for granted how beer is…
Bearing witness to many of our challenges as of late, Peoria seems to be at a crossroads. A hot topic polarizing our community as of late is community crime and violence. Peoria is pushing records in shooting deaths per capita…
The film “Glory” tells the story of the all-Black 54th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment. The unit was the second African-American regiment, following the 1st Kansas Colored Volunteer Infantry Regiment, organized in the northern states during the Civil War. What is not…
Are you old enough to remember the song, “Ya Got Trouble (right in the River City),” from “The Music Man”? Robert Preston sings, “Friend, either you’re closing your eyes to a situation you do not wish to acknowledge or you…
Judge rules County must use outside counsel in Thomas case Judge James Mack on June 27 granted a motion to disqualify the Peoria County State’s Attorney’s office from representing the County Board in County Auditor Jessica Thomas’ lawsuit because the…
Passenger train service could return to Peoria, according to a 60-page feasibility study from the Illinois Department of Transportation released on July 21. The Peoria-to-Joliet route, with four stops between, is estimated to cost $2.54 billion, and the project could…
I had to attend a funeral recently even though the guest of honor was not one of my favorite people. News of his death shook me up even less than hearing Roger Ailes had died. In 30 seconds I slipped…
By DIANA SCOTT In Public Health we’ve talked a lot about different infections the past few years, but not much about West Nile virus (WNV). With summer still here in central Illinois, we now have WNV in mosquitoes and the…
Sometimes girls got in trouble. Nancy took to the trampoline every lunch hour Slapping herself down in a full frontal flop. We all knew What she was trying to do. Peggy stayed in high school Until she was asked to…
Mental health problems are on the rise in the Tri-County area. According to the 2022 Community Needs Health Assessment survey, the percentage of people describing their overall mental health status as “good” fell 73% in the past six years, while…
