Elizabeth Hare, 54, joined the Illinois Symphony Orchestra last month as interim executive director. Although she grew up playing piano, majored in music theory and music history at Rice University, and sang in the San Francisco Symphony Chorus for more than three years, Hare says she never thought of herself as a professional musician. “I […]
Dusty Rhodes
Posted inArts & Culture
The long road
Ask Deidre Lockhart how tall she is, and she will tell you she’s just under 5-foot-10. You don’t even have to verbalize the follow-up question. With a tone that says “I get this all the time,” Lockhart will answer your look of disbelief: “I know — I’m not as tall as I appear,” she says. […]
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Modulation at Illinois Symphony Orchestra
After almost a year with no one officially at the helm of the Illinois Symphony Orchestra, the board of directors has hired a new interim executive director, Elizabeth Hare. She joins the organization at a particularly tumultuous time, as the musicians are taking steps to unionize, and have conducted an official no-confidence vote expressing their […]
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Former cop sues Vermilion County prosecutor
David Lewis, the former law enforcement officer who spent more than a year in the Vermilion County jail charged with 49 felonies, has hired a Springfield attorney to file suit against his accusers. Lewis had been indicted on charges ranging from official misconduct to criminal sexual assault and armed violence, but was released from jail […]
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Bigger isn’t always better
Karen Hudson didn’t know what to think when she first learned that factory farming was coming to her town. Elmwood, Ill., is a small but prosperous bedroom community about 20 miles west of Peoria, and a retired Caterpillar worker who owned some acreage there wanted to construct a “swine finishing” facility to raise hogs, a […]
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An unusual move for power as Democrat chairman departs
In a move that has party veterans scratching their heads, Patrick “Tim” Timoney, outgoing chairman of the Sangamon County Democrats, has appointed almost 40 new precinct committeemen over the past month, according to records provided by the county election office. Many of those appointees have names that ring a bell with anyone familiar with Springfield […]
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Give me Liberty or give me my identity
Untitled Document Normally, if somebody offered to bring me a sack of trash, I’d find a polite way to say no thanks. But when Glenn Sisco called me, his trash sounded intriguing. The way he described it, he was at work and decided to step outside for a smoke break. When he went to throw […]
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Quinn picked two 29-year-old directors over these more experienced men
{image-1] When Gov. Pat Quinn chose a young West Point graduate to head the Illinois Department of Veterans’ Affairs last month, he skipped over a highly decorated veteran who served eight years as deputy director of the agency scheduled to receive $80 million in federal stimulus funds. Harold A. Fritz, who received the Congressional Medal […]
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Illinois EPA takes hands-off stance toward manure regulation
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has expanded its investigation of the Illinois EPA, according to a group seeking improved regulation of factory farms. The group, Illinois Citizens for Clean Air and Water, petitioned the EPA a year ago asking the EPA to formally revoke the IEPA’s authority to issue certain types of permits [see “Plan […]
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Born leader
Ask Jonathon Monken how he got the job as director of Illinois State Police — at the tender age of 29, with no law enforcement experience — and he’ll start with a story about being introduced to now-Gov. Pat Quinn at an awards ceremony a few years ago. “The first time we met was when […]
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Buckhart hog operation opens while neighbors fume
Last month, Bob and Sandy Young hosted a ribbon-cutting and open house at their hog farm a few miles east of Rochester on Buckhart Road. About 350 people showed up to listen to a few speeches, dine on free pork chops and tour the state-of-the-art shed that will eventually house some 3,740 hogs being fattened […]
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Nice bridge, but would you want to live there?
As bridges go, this one is deluxe. It’s built on a vintage single-span construct donated by the township of Island Grove, and topped with a newly-made pitched roof that, once completed, will feature two cupolas, each lit by a wrought-iron chandelier. Situated on the drive to the site of a future bed-and-breakfast, it’s designed to […]
