Masked employees serve a steady stream of pick-up and carry-out customers now at Cafe Moxo in downtown Springfield, both old and new customers who come to the popular establishment to get their daily caffeine fix or take away a bite to eat. What many patrons may not realize is that the coffee and lunch spot […]
David Blanchette
David Blanchette has been involved in journalism since 1979, first as an award-winning broadcaster, then a state government spokesperson, and now as a freelance writer and photographer. He was involved in the development of the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum and more recently the Jacksonville Area Museum. David and his wife, Sue, live in Jacksonville.
Posted inArts & Culture
Ramadan in Springfield
Thursday, April 23, marks the official start of Ramadan, the annual month-long Islamic observance of fasting and prayer that encourages reflection and promotes community. Members of Springfield’s Muslim community will join their 1.8 billion faith brothers and sisters in daily suhur pre-dawn meals; abstention from food, drink and several activities from sunrise to sunset; and […]
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What were we thinking?
What do we think? Our race and income determine how we feel about certain things, a lot of us struggle with daily living expenses, and we are a fairly trusting lot, unless you happen to be a politician. We also like it here, but maybe our young folks should move away. Every two years Sangamon […]
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Better beef
Healthy red meat from buffalo hybrids. More cows being put out to pasture. Raising beef cattle as the antidote to climate change. Welcome to the modern world of the beef industry, where consumer demand and environmental concerns are driving the way that many Illinois producers raise, market and sell their animals. It’s a continually changing […]
Posted inArts & Culture
Down on the farm
The seeds of a trade war, severe weather, plummeting prices and corporate farming competition mean that many farmers are harvesting a bumper crop of problems, especially those people loosely defined as “family farmers.” “They call them ‘the farmers in the middle,’ and their numbers are declining pretty rapidly,” said National Farmers Union President Roger Johnson. […]
Posted inArts & Culture
Teaching LGBT history
Illinois’ public school students may soon learn about Jane Addams in a new light. “Illinoisan Jane Addams, the mother of social work, founder of the Hull House, and Nobel Peace Prize recipient, was in a committed 40-year relationship with her partner, Mary Rozet Smith,” read a statement from Equality Illinois during the debate over House […]
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How AND why to DIVERSIFY
Chances are good that if you serve on a nonprofit organization’s board, your fellow board members look and act a lot like you. That might be a problem, according to a Springfield-based initiative that is seeking to make those boards more reflective of the communities that they serve. The Building Board Diversity (BBD) initiative was […]
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A second chance in life
More than 150 people who attended a free program in Springfield on Oct. 19 emerged with a possible second chance. The Expungement and Record Sealing Summit, hosted for the second year by the Sangamon County Circuit Clerk’s Office, gave pre-registered participants free, full-service assistance to get their adult criminal records possibly expunged or sealed. Volunteer […]
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Small town with big plans for growing groceries
It will be a small grocery store in a small town, but its developers hope it will impact area food production, buying and consumption trends in a big way. Market on the Hill in downtown Mt. Pulaski will open in the spring of 2020 and will feature locally grown fruits and vegetables, locally produced meats, […]
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Attracting teachers 101
It appears that until very recently Illinois has been trying to make the career of teaching seem as unpalatable as possible.“For many years there’s been a lack of respect for the educators in our schools,” said Kathi Griffin, president of the 135,000-member Illinois Education Association. “The funding has been diminished so much over the years […]
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The Ambassador of Salsa
The Salsa Ambassador has reached the 10-year anniversary of his ongoing mission of inclusion through Latin dance, and the dancing diplomat shows no signs of slowing down. The Salsa Ambassador is 38-year-old Julio Barrenzuela, who for more than a decade has been teaching salsa dancing every place he can, including nursing homes, facilities for persons […]
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Camp Compass, where learning is fun
The yellow buses pull up to the southeast side elementary school and children pour out, laughing and running and twirling as they head into the building for another day of school. In the middle of July. The enrollment has tripled, the programs have been expanded, and a new partnership with Springfield School District 186 means […]
