Jean-Michel Cousteau was 7 years old when his father outfitted him and his 4 – year-old brother, Philippe, with an aqualung air tank, before their dad, Jacques-Yves Cousteau, threw them over the side of the boat. “We were instant scuba divers,” says Cousteau, 72, to a crowded auditorium April 10 at the Kirkland Fine Arts […]
Holly Dillemuth
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Despite ‘fragile’ budget, Mayor Edwards relished ‘carrying the load’ for a while
Stable” but “fragile.” That’s how Springfield Mayor Frank Edwards described Springfield’s finances in the annual State of the City address at the Springfield Hilton Mon., April 11. “Basically, we’re using a fiscal year 2009 budget with the expense level of 2012,” says Edwards. Edwards called the city’s economic meltdown, “the perfect storm,” that started with […]
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WWII vets return from their big day
Shouts and cheers exploded throughout the terminal at Abraham Lincoln Capital Airport, April 5, when the first veterans emerged through the doors after a day at the World War II Memorial in Washington, D.C [see “Honor flight sends WW II vets to Washington, D.C., for a day,” by Holly Dillemuth, April 7]. “This is wonderful,” […]
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Honor Flight sends WW II vets to Washington, D.C., for a day
Springfield resident Bernard Carver, 89, remembers loading ammunition, refueling four-engine B-24 bombers and flying along with pilots in the Eighth Air Force, to pick up equipment during World War II. Early Tuesday morning, April 5, Carver, along with his son, Bernie Carver, boarded a plane, this time chartered by Land of Lincoln Honor Flight. The […]
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Methodist distribution center in Chatham sends relief to Japan
Five days a week volunteers bustle about the kitchen and heated warehouse inside the Midwest Mission Distribution Center in Chatham. Many are retired and some come from as far as North Dakota. All volunteers come to serve. The distribution center is one of seven distribution warehouses connected with the United Methodist Committee on Relief, an […]
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Labor unions balk at bargaining bill
Labor unions are continuing negotiations over legislation backed by Gov. Pat Quinn that would lift collective bargaining rights from current high-ranking state agency workers and legislative liaisons, as well as their right to apply for future union membership. “We strongly support union representation and collective bargaining for many state workers, but the system only works […]
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Illinois Muslims gather at Capitol for ‘action’
Teenage Muslims knelt for afternoon prayer on the floor of the Statehouse after a rally on Muslim Action Day, March 9. Nearly 1,200 Muslim faithful converged on the state capital to push for education reform, civil rights and the environment. The Council of Islamic Organizations of Greater Chicago, United African Organization, Illinois Coalition for Immigrant […]
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Park board race draws field of newcomers
The Springfield Park Board will have a new set of players after the election on April 5, when four candidates, plus a write-in, will run for three seats on the park board. Candidates include current park board trustee and middle school teacher Tina Jannazzo; Ted Flickinger, a former president of the Illinois Association of Park […]
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Paper and perks, top issues for city clerk candidates
Democrat Frank Kunz, 3rd Ward alderman and candidate for mayor of Springfield, says “everything just moves quicker” at the city clerk’s office since Cecilia Tumulty took the helm in 2003. Kunz began his career as alderman in 1999, the same year as Tumulty. He says she has made information a lot easier to come by […]
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Aldermanic candidates quizzed for answers to community problems
Doris Turner says that 65 percent of the people within the Third Ward do not have sidewalks, something she hopes to change if elected to the alderman post in the April 5 election. Infrastructure and public safety were only a few of the hot-button issues that gained traction at the Citywide Aldermanic Forum March 3. […]
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Schock: Obama’s budget ‘unsustainable’
Congressman Aaron Schock may be young, but he’s not shy about putting his foot down. Schock highlighted several areas of President Barack Obama’s budget, which he says would raise taxes by $1.6 trillion over 10 years. “Even with $1.6 trillion in new taxes, if we passed them all…over a 10-year period, we would more than […]
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This may be the year for ‘concealed-carry’
Bipartisan and law enforcement support may be the ticket for successful concealed-carry legislation in Illinois, an issue that been passed back and forth in the state since the 1990s. Concealed-carry would allow residents of Illinois to carry a concealed weapon at age 21, with restrictions for past criminal convictions. The concept is not new but […]
