Community
Abbey owner provides update
With the Immaculate Conception School and church now completely moved to a new location off Palmer Road, the former parish grounds on Main Street in Columbia are ready to experience…
Read MoreCannabis biz ban in Waterloo
Waterloo is saying no to weed, at least when it comes to allowing recreational cannabis businesses in town. In June, Illinois became the 11th state to allow recreational marijuana. Effective…
Read MoreRed Bud author pens children’s book
With Halloween over, the holiday season is in full swing and one local author has an offering that could be a welcome addition to families’ holiday tradition. That is “The…
Read More‘For the Love of Community’ | A rivalry hoops game of caring
An event that raised about $12,000 for the Webb family last year is back again, this time to benefit a Columbia police officer and Immaculate Conception School toddler. The event…
Read MoreOfficials mulling cannabis
As Waterloo and Columbia take steps to decide whether they will allow adult-use recreational marijuana businesses in their towns, other local governments are also in that process. Monroe County Commissioner…
Read MoreLocal projects in capital plan
Lawmakers and Illinois Department of Transportation officials released details last week of work planned as part of the approximately $45 billion capital plan the General Assembly passed this year. The…
Read MoreTEAMWork to expand nationally
A program that helps young adults with special needs and began in Columbia will soon start expanding nationally through the YMCA. That will happen after representatives from the Monroe County…
Read MoreWedding venue zoning request tabled
A request to rezone a barn wedding venue in the 1400 block of Centerville Road in rural Columbia and the five-acre land parcel it is on was tabled Monday by…
Read MoreFundraisers net $100,000 for Hopkins family
Local resident Ashley Hewitt presented a check on Saturday for $100,000 to Whitney Hopkins – wife of fallen Illinois State Police Trooper Nick Hopkins – and her children Evelyn, Owen…
Read MoreCrash victim was ‘emblematic of service’
James “Mitch” Ellis joined the U.S. Marine Corps in the early 1990s, serving on active duty from November 1992 to August 1996. After he got out, Ellis earned a master’s…
Read MoreMiles Cemetery prairie protected
The Illinois Department of Natural Resources will soon recognize the natural prairie area adjacent to the Miles Mausoleum at Eagle Cliff-Miles Cemetery West of Waterloo. A dedication ceremony will take…
Read MoreHudson hangs up his clippers
When barber Dean Hudson, owner and operator of Dean’s Barber Shop in Dupo, posted on Facebook that he would be retiring Oct. 11, the response was remarkable. Within 24 hours,…
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