The new downtown YMCA opens Nov. 30 in the heart of the medical district. It will be an inviting place to work out, whether you exercise individually, participate in fitness classes or enjoy group sports. The new Y is not only a state-of-the-art fitness center, but a community asset serving youth, adults and community organizations. […]
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Posted inBest of Springfield®
BEST OF SPRINGFIELD® 2020 Intro
Every year, we ask our opinionated readers to tell us about their favorite people, places and things in the Springfield area. Over the decades we’ve been doing this, we’ve continued to tweak both the process and the results issue to try to keep things fresh and interesting, and of course, the votes tend to reflect […]
Posted inNews
Century of suffrage
Suffragists in Illinois were ahead of their time, earning the right for women to vote in presidential elections in 1913, before many other states. State suffragists utilized a variety of methods. In 1891, Ellen Martin, a Chicago lawyer who lived in Lombard, was reportedly the first woman in the state to vote. Since the town’s […]
Posted inArts & Culture
Share your ideas about the future of Springfield
Do you have an idea – big or small – about the future of the capital city? The Community Foundation for the Land of Lincoln (CFLL) wants to hear from you. Over the next six weeks, from now until Thanksgiving, local citizens are invited to share their ideas about the future of the greater Springfield […]
Posted inNews
Black Caucus highlights racial health disparities
The Illinois Legislative Black Caucus is drawing attention to national and statewide health disparities between Black and white Americans in an effort to educate fellow lawmakers and build consensus for action ahead of the fall veto session. At an Oct. 9 news conference outside of the Touchette Regional Hospital in Centreville, ILBC Chairwoman state Sen. […]
Posted inNews
Going nowhere
Don’t print my name, he asked, and don’t show my face. I won’t, I promised. The bargain struck, Jack, with help from me, pulled off his left boot so I could take a picture. “Whose fault is this?” I ask. “Mine,” he answers. He’s embarrassed that he lost all five toes to frostbite a couple […]
Posted inNews
High-stakes rematch
A political rematch two years in the making, with campaigns dictated by the COVID pandemic, will decide who represents a large swath of central Illinois in the nation’s capital. And when it’s over, whoever wins may not have a district in which to run for reelection in 2022. The 13th Congressional District race is a […]
Posted inNews
Igniting change
Harry Carlsen roasted a pig while his uncle, Buff Carmichael, sat in the backyard under a tent. A line of friends took turns greeting him. They wore masks and sat in distanced lawn chairs on a summer day in August. A rainbow windsock twirled nearby. A Black Lives Matter sign was planted in the lawn. […]
Posted inNews
Killing fields
As agricultural sagas go, controversy over an herbicide that’s become ubiquitous in farm country would seem to have it all. Millions, if not billions, of dollars are at stake. Without dicamba, an herbicide first sold while the Vietnam War raged, big agriculture says the nation’s farmers would lose an important tool. Environmentalists warn that dicamba […]
Posted inSpecial Issues
Fall Home & Garden
Most of us are still spending a lot more time at home than usual, and every home or garden project completed seems to lead to another. Maybe you need to convert a space into your house into a dedicated area for remote learning, or you want to finally tackle cleaning out your garage to be […]
Posted inArts & Culture
A generous community
“I can’t work on a vaccine, but I can give what I have,” says Cecelia Wendler, a Springfield resident who has been regularly fulfilling requests posted to the Springfield Families Helping Families Facebook (SFHF) group. “It’s the immediacy of stepping in; it’s very in-the-moment. It gives a sense of the lived concern for everyone in […]
Posted inSpecial Issues
Fall Guide
While the pandemic continues to affect the activities offered around town, there are still many options for fall fun. Art fairs and gallery shows are still happening, as are a variety of Halloween events. Schools aren’t offering field trips these days, but we have suggestions for field trips (and day trips) that will be enjoyable […]
