News | The Journal-News

Litchfield Education Association members honored for their retirement this spring, from the left, are Mark Elvers, Brenda Elvers, Lisa Schaffer and Lori Heise. Not present for the photo was Bill Jones.

LEA Holds Annual Recognition Dinner In April

Members of the Litchfield Education Association held their annual recognition dinner on Friday evening, April 19, at the Litchfield Community Center. This year's Creativity Grant winners were … more

4/25/24

Fletcher Retires From Bank & Trust This May

Patty Fletcher, assistant vice president and branch manager at Bank & Trust Company’s Raymond Branch, has announced her retirement after 29 years of dedicated service. Fletcher began her … more

4/25/24

LHS Grad Publishes Article On COVID

Beverly Matthews of Springfield, formerly of Waggoner, has published an article in BMJ Case Reports on the effects of long-COVID this year. The article, "Long-term cognitive effects of COVID-19 … more

4/25/24

HSHS To Hold Women’s Conference

HSHS St. Francis Hospital presents the “Women’s Health Survival Guide” event, an informational conference to discuss women’s health concerns and safety resources with local … more

4/25/24

Litchfield, Flannery Approve Settlement Agreement

After much discussion over the last month, the members of the Litchfield City Council approved a settlement agreement and the release for Economic Development Director Tonya Flannery during their … more

by Kyle Herschelman | 4/22/24

Nokomis Board Prepares For End Of School Year

President Chad Ruppert called the Nokomis CUSD22 School Board to order at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday, April 16. In addition to Ruppert, Superintendent Scott Doerr, board members Steve Janssen, Carl Ray … more

by Randy Rieke | 4/22/24

Five Loaves Food Pantry Director Linda Williams, left and Heidi Miles, right, are hoping to make a difference in Fillmore and surrounding communities with their efforts in providing homeless students, families and all in need with the basic supplies they need to survive.

Five Loaves Hopes To Make A Difference

The phrase “Be Kind” is one that many are told throughout their lives, as well as being one that they follow in their day to day lives without thinking much about it. Linda Williams … more

by Cayden Huber | 4/22/24

Junior Board Does Spring Cleaning In Hillsboro

Hillsboro Health Junior Board was hard at work on Saturday, April 20, doing some spring cleaning throughout the city. The volunteers spent time sweeping the sidewalks and picking up trash in … more

4/22/24

Haven Home of Hope in Hillsboro received a $10,000 from Nokomis Christian Missions (NCM) as part of their Bridge The Gap fundraiser. Pictured above, from the left, are NCM Board of Directors Chairperson Suzanne Dooley, NCM Treasurer JoAnn Bauman, Haven Home Of Hope Executive Director Jennifer Carron, Haven Home Of Hope Program Director Erica Petcher, NCM Board Member Chris Compton, NCM Board Member Father Michael Meinhart and NCM Co-Director Kevin Laurie.

Haven Home Receives $10,000 Donation

Nokomis Christian Missions (NCM) has recently donated $10,000 to Haven Home of Hope in Hillsboro as part of the 2024 Bridge The Gap (BTG) fundraiser. Haven Home of Hope, a part of Crossover … more

4/22/24

John Battuello and Melanie Irvine, pictured with Raise the Bar LLC owner Heather Greenwood (center), were the inaugural winners of the Hillsboro fitness center’s 12 Week Transformation Challenge, which was held Jan. 8 through March 30. Battuello lost 13 pounds and gained 2.2 percent muscle, while Irvine lost 19.2 pounds and gained 1.9 percent muscle. All told, the nine people who participated in the challenge lost 77.4 pounds.

12 Week Transformations Revealed At Raise The Bar

To start the new year, Raise the Bar LLC set out to show that significant change can happen in a fairly short amount of time. On March 30, they received the final results. The Hillsboro fitness … more

4/22/24

HSHS Volunteer Program Accepting Applications

HSHS St. Francis Hospital is offering service opportunities to area teens this summer through the 2024 Junior Volunteer Program. Applications are being accepted now through Wednesday, May 1. … more

4/22/24

Local 4-H Members Win State Scholarships

The career achievements of Illinois 4-H members were lauded at the Illinois 4-H Celebration of Excellence held on Saturday, April 6, at the Hilton Garden Inn. The Illinois 4-H Foundation awarded … more

4/22/24

McKendree Offers Teacher Apprenticeship

McKendree University’s new Paraprofessional+ Pathway program has recently gained certification from the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE), making it the very first institution of higher … more

4/22/24

In the first row are Kamryn Langston, Hanna Hughes, Clara Armbruster, Brennan Harston, Alyssa Leisure, Aubrey Reincke, Cole Lenczycki, Cody Boerckel, Austin Newingham and Addison Compagni. In the second row are Addison Lowe, Zoey Savage, Addison McLaughlin, Cheyenne Harston, Leah Hemken, Tatum Christian, Drake McSperritt, Jackson Tuetken, Antonio Valentin and Mitchell Cunningham. In back are Reagan Lentz, Frankie Huber, Emily Lanter, JadienLynn Summers, Emma Bell, Eli Howard, Andrea Huber, Lauren Storm, Dominic Granito and Peyton Brewer. The Hillsboro High School National Honor Society advisor is S. Chris Harms.

Toppers Inducted Into National Honor Society

Hillsboro High School hosted its 44th annual National Honor Society induction ceremony on Wednesday, April 17, in the HHS gym with 30 new inductees. Pictured above, in front, from the left are … more

4/22/24

Pictured above, in the front row is Janet (McLaughlin) White of Coffeen; Carol (Salsi) Booher; Robin Sheridan of Tucson, AZ; Vicky (Reitz) Murphy; Debbie (Furness) Kershaw of Virden; Joy (Fudoli) Kirchoff of Blackburn, MO; Debbie (Elam) Jones; Vickie (Claxon) Barlow; LouAnn (Casey) Trebig of Edwardsville; Karen (Wankel) Hamilton; Curt Nelson of Washington; Brenda (Donham) Gibb. In row two is Cathi Grantham of St. Louis, MO; Susan (Ware) Pollard; Randy Reck; Bob Pollard; Frankie (Johnson) Sievers of Edmond, OK; Mary (Brohammer) Logsdon of Champaign; Sylvia (Greenwood) Dutton of Belton, TX; Tom Moroney; Nadine (Huber) Baldwin of Greenville. In row three is Steve Lee of Nokomis; Denny Alderman of Springfield; Dan Strausbaugh; Tim Huber of Rosamond; Chuck Herman of Coffeen; Bruce Sievers of Edmond, OK; Diane (Parr) Walker of South Bend, IN; Tom Blackburn of Chatham. Not present is Rosina (Crouch) Rohrs of Greenville.

HHS Class Of ‘71 Celebrates Turning 71

The Hillsboro High School Class of 1971 classmates are turning 71 years of age this year, so they decided to celebrate this special occasion with a “birthday party.” The party took place … more

4/22/24

Pictured above are Montgomery County Democrat precinct committeemen and party officers elected at the reorganizational meeting on Wednesday, May 18. From the left are Greg Springer, Randy Singler, Mike Glenn, Jim Overholtz, Perry Jackson, Kathy Rogers, Paul Sellers, Melanie Sherer, Chase Wilhelm, Kathy Painter, Michael Collins, Chuck Napier and Tim Fogle. Not pictured but present are Jim Moore, Jimmy Evans and Sherri Lanter Cook.

Democrats Elect Officers At Meeting

The Montgomery County Democrat Central Committee elected Chase Wilhelm of Fillmore as party president at a reorganizational meeting on Wednesday, April 17, at the Historic Courthouse in Hillsboro. … more

4/22/24

County Republicans Elect New Officers At Meeting

The Montgomery County Central Republican Committee met for the county convention on Wednesday evening, April 17, at the new courthouse in downtown Hillsboro. By state statute, the group has to meet … more

4/22/24

Extension Offers Taste Of Local Programming

More than 50 local residents attended the second annual Taste of Extension program on Friday evening, April 19, at the University of Illinois Extension office in Hillsboro. Participants enjoyed … more

4/22/24

Eric Kohnen of Poettker Construction led a tour of the Litchfield Early Childhood Center prior to the regular monthly board meeting of the Litchfield School Board on Tuesday evening, April 16. The facility, which was formerly JD Colt Elementary School, will be open this fall for pre-kindergarten through first grade students. Journal-News/Mary Herschelman

Litchfield Board Tours Early Childhood Center

"It's really getting there," said Litchfield Superintendent Dr. Greggory Fuerstenau. He and Eric Kohnen of Poettker Construction led a tour of the Litchfield Early Childhood Education Center prior to … more

by Mary (Galer) Herschelman | 4/18/24

Hillsboro Council Discusses Repairs For Sewer Lift Station

Financial decisions and discussions about future actions or inactions were highlights of the Hillsboro City Council when they met in regular session Tuesday evening, April 16, in city hall. As … more

by Ron Deabenderfer | 4/18/24