Cover Story
Opioid overdoses increase
Tears welled in Rich Scheib’s eyes as he thought of his son, Wade, who died of a drug overdose on Dec. 7. Scheib said the first time he realized his son was using drugs was when he suffered an overdose four years earlier. “I just didn’t think he was that type of person. I just…
Immigrant stereotypes dehumanize us all
Words matter. Immigrants have been an essential part of American culture since our beginning. And throughout our history, references to immigrants have been intentionally framed to stigmatize and dehumanize them. This is particularly the case with immigrants who are Black and brown, from Asia and the Global South. Inflammatory rhetoric has recently included terms like…
Stephen “Steve” D. Shelton
Stephen “Steve” D. Shelton, 71, of Springfield, Illinois, went to be with the Lord on Sunday, March 9, 2025. He was born in Pittsfield, Illinois, on Jan. 9, 1954, the son of Wayne and Corinne (Tayon) Shelton. Stephen married the love of his life, Debbie Burrows, on Dec. 21, 1973. Together, they built a beautiful…
DOGE cuts come to Springfield
Springfield business owner John Chiang received a letter March 10 that landlords dread: a tenant is breaking its lease. The tenant is the U.S. government’s Department of Labor, which rents office space on the second floor of the building at 3161 W. White Oaks Drive. The building is owned by Chiang, 82, who also owns…
Republican bills aim to assist Illinois in its battle against fentanyl
Illinois Republican senators have filed bills that would combat the state’s fentanyl crisis and further punish major possessors of the drug. One bill would reclassify a fentanyl overdose as a “poison,” while another would consider major fentanyl possessors a threat to public safety. According to the Illinois Department of Public Health, Illinois experienced 3,261 fatal opioid-related…
Healing the world, Part II
You’ve probably noticed the plethora of self-care articles and posts over the last couple of months. It’s hardly surprising given the ongoing chaos which surrounds us. As I suggested in my last column, self-care is essential but it’s not enough if we are to begin to heal the world. Baha’is, guided by Baha’u’llah’s vision for…
International Women’s Day: Unite & Resist in Springfield
International Women’s Day has been celebrated since March 8, 1913. Hundreds of people showed up at the Illinois State Capitol on Saturday for International Women’s Day – Unite & Resist in Springfield to speak out for women’s rights and protest actions by President Donald Trump and Elon Musk. Speakers included Martin Woulfe (Abraham Lincoln Unitarian…
Pritzker wants state to ban cellphones in classroom
Are cellphones a useful tool or a distraction in the classroom? According to Gov. JB Pritzker, they’re a distraction, and he has proposed banning them during classroom instruction. Pritzker proposed legislation during his State of the State speech in February that would call for banning cellphones during classroom learning time. However, his proposal would not…
Another challenge for state’s foster care system
Advocates say a major storm is brewing that could overwhelm the state’s child foster care system. The problem is legal liability insurance, or, more specifically, the lack thereof. Insurance companies, advocates and providers say, are not taking on new private foster care agencies as clients and some agencies are being notified that they’re losing their…
Hundreds rally at the Capitol to oppose homeschool bill
Hundreds rallied Thursday at the Capitol in Springfield to voice their opposition to a bill that would require oversight of families who homeschool their children, a response to concerns that the state offers no restrictions on homeschooling families. The bill, called the Homeschool Act, would require families to notify their local school districts if they…
Mickey 17 a smart sci-fi comedy, Jenny Pen falls short despite strong lead actors
Mickey 17: A testament to individuality News of reshoots and long nights in the editing room, as well as ever-changing release dates, are hardly good omens regarding any film. Yet, such difficulties plagued director Bong Joon Ho’s Mickey 17, an adaptation of the novel by Edward Ashton. The one-step-forward-two-steps-back progress of the filmmaker’s follow-up to…
Illinois civil forfeiture rules get a D grade
The case of a former southern Illinois police chief accused of selling for personal gain vehicles seized during a criminal investigation is giving rise to an effort to change state law to require law enforcement to better track what they do with other people’s possessions. At least three bills introduced in recent weeks are aimed…
Former ambassador talks Panama tensions
A sold-out audience packed the Illini Country Club meeting room Feb. 26 to learn about and discuss the hot-button topics of Panama and tariffs. More than 100 people began with a meal of Panamanian food and another 40 arrived for a presentation by former Ambassador Edward O’Donnell at the World Affairs Council of Central Illinois…
Massey Commission grapples with the issues
The Massey Commission is “charged to address systematic racism and community mistrust in the patterns and practices of law enforcement and other helping professions.” At its most recent meeting citizens, including three county board members, emphasized the need to resolve the question of legal authority question for a sheriff recall ordinance. Despite the recall question…
Goldfish
When a graduate student lived at my house in Springfield he brought along his alligator. Every so often he would come home with a little package, the sort you get Chinese food in he would announce “feeding frenzy!” I would join him at the alligator’s tank and Andy would pour in the goldfish. Then what…
From addiction to sobriety
Kriston Feleccia, 37, who has struggled with addiction most of her life, said her opioid addiction began when she was prescribed Vicodin after nearly cutting off one of her fingers. “I always had issues with alcohol, and I even got into cocaine when I was really young – 14 or 15. I needed something to…
Puttin’ on the Ritz
“First, you brine a nice piece of fish and refrigerate it overnight. Then, you coat the fish with mayonnaise and crushed Ritz crackers and broil it. You’ll have a piece of fish like you’ve never had before!” This advice didn’t come from a TikTok influencer or a recipe from the back of a cracker box…
March to the music
Off we go into the madness or otherwise of the first full weekend of music in March for 2025. We’ve got a lot to cover, as usual, with a wide assortment of entertainment of the musical variety happening in our fair city, so let’s get to it. We are going to jump over Thursday this…
Magical Music of Harry Potter
Magic Music of Harry Potter Friday, March 7 7:30 p.m. UIS Performing Arts Center 217-206-6160 ilsymphony.org/harrypotter “Ah, music. A magic beyond all we do here,” said Albus Dumbledore, the fictional headmaster of the school for young wizards and witches, in author J.K. Rowling’s novel Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone. Tomorrow and Saturday, Harry Potter…
Editor’s Note
In his long speech to Congress March 4, President Donald Trump celebrated the disruption he has brought to Washington and the world since he took office in January. But he never explained how his chainsaw approach helps get us to the Golden Age he claims. The connection remains unclear between indiscriminate firing of government workers…
Noncitizen health care outstrips original cost estimates
A pair of health care programs that benefit noncitizens – one of which is already on Gov. JB Pritzker’s budgetary chopping block – far outstripped its original estimated price tag and cost the state of Illinois $1.6 billion through last summer, according to a new audit of the programs published Feb. 26. The report also…
A day for laughter, a day for vigilance and commitment
Aside from the commemoration of the Holocaust and the celebration of Israel’s independence that were instituted in recent times, Purim, the Feast of Lots, which will occur this year on Thursday evening, March 13 and Friday, March 14, is one of two holidays on the Jewish calendar that are not mentioned in the Torah (the…
The importance of mental health in our community
My name is Kortnee Walton. I am a senior psychology student at the University of Illinois Springfield and an intern at Faith Coalition for the Common Good. By growing up in Springfield and being a part of the Calvary Missionary Baptist Church since childhood, I have always felt a deep connection to my community. Now,…
