These past few weeks our nation has observed and celebrated its 250th anniversary! Numerous expressions of celebration have been held. Numerous events have been held. People celebrated various aspects of this nation’s history. Interestingly, certain of our current nation’s leaders have, and still are, advocating for the elimination of certain factual components of America’s history. […]
Community & Lifestyle
Posted inArts & Culture
The legacy hanging inside this downtown boutique that isn’t for sale
At first glance, the Itty Bitty Fashion Trunk looks like exactly what you’d expect from a charming downtown boutique. But if you look a little closer, you’ll realize the most valuable thing inside isn’t hanging on a rack or nestled in the storefront. It’s the legacy of a sister whose dream still greets customers every […]
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Springfield DAR commemorates Declaration of Independence
Springfield members of the Daughters of the American Revolution gathered near the carillon in Washington Park at 5 p.m. on July 8 read out loud the Declaration of Independence, celebrating the 250th anniversary of the first public reading of this founding document. Four days after the Second Continental Congress approved the Declaration of Independence on […]
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Roads to opportunity
As I begin my service as president of Lincoln Land Community College, I have spent a great deal of time reflecting on what makes community colleges so special. One image that keeps coming to mind is a printed road map, where the destinations are possibilities and the roads are the pathways that turn dreams into […]
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A summer of hope and action
This summer, as tensions rise along with the temperature and the persistent deep divisions in our country give rise to a sense of hopelessness in some quarters, there are those bringing renewed hope and purpose across this land. Young Baha’is, along with their friends from numerous faith traditions, backgrounds and ethnicities, are spending their school […]
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Memories sustain us in time of loss
This past weekend marked a transition in the life of Temple Israel, the congregation I served for 47 years as rabbi and of which I am now the rabbi emeritus. The experience was a bittersweet one. On Saturday morning we held our last Shabbat service in the building that has served as our spiritual home […]
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Fourth of July celebration at ALPLM
The Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum is joining the America 250 Celebration in a big way on the Fourth of July. The day begins with free admission to the museum starting at 9 a.m., where visitors can fully explore the life and legacy of our 16th president – including a new exhibit, “The Second […]
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Goodwill to host Youth Summit
Area youth, families, community members and service organizations are invited to attend the Land of Lincoln Goodwill Industries 5th Annual Youth Summit on Thursday, June 25, at its headquarters located at 1220 Outer Park Drive in Springfield. The event will be held from 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., and is free and open to the […]
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Do we really want to be human?
Do we really want to be human? Sometimes I think not. I’m pondering this now in light of Pope Leo’s first encyclical, Magnifica Humanitas: On safeguarding humanity in the time of Artificial Intelligence. Billed as the “AI” encyclical, it is more than that. The document includes a masterful summary of Catholic Social Teaching. It recenters […]
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United is the Way
As I wrap up my year as board chair of United Way of Central Illinois, I find myself reflecting on a journey that began more than 25 years ago. My United Way story started in 2001 when I led the workplace campaign at Eaton Hydraulics. Not long afterward, I began volunteering as a co-chair on […]
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Call me Ishmael
“And God heard the voice of the boy …” Genesis 21:17a Call me Ishmael. With these three words, Herman Melville begins his 19th century novel Moby Dick and introduces the man who will be telling his story of the adventures at sea. For Melville, naming his narrator after the biblical character Ishmael who was sent […]
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What we meant when we wrote the Calls to Action
Palestinian poet Mourid Barghouti once wrote that if you want to dispossess a people, the simplest way is to tell their story and start with “secondly.” I have been thinking about that idea often because history is full of stories that begin too late. Many Americans were introduced to Juneteenth only after it became a […]
