We don't write papers, we build scrapbooks
We don't write papers, we build scrapbooks
Sorted by date Results 126 - 150 of 1301
Stephenson County Sheriff, Steve Stovall, stood in front of the County Board and asked them to fund a new CSU (Crime Suppression Unit) that he wanted to form. "All too often, our officers are simply reacting to crime – answering calls when they come in," Stovall explained. "We want to set up a unit that is proactive, and looks to take the fight against crime right to them." The vote was approved to begin a special four officer unit, but as it opened up operations, the County only had two d...
Let me ask you something, if you had been told before you decided to run for office, that if you won it would mean doing work on Saturdays in order to prepare for the Monday meetings, would you have the intestinal fortitude to complain about it, and try to change the entire system? During last week’s Freeport City COW (Committee of the Whole) meeting, Alderman Cecelia Stacy and Rachel Simmons put forth a discussion that asked for the Agenda for the Monday meetings to come out before late F...
People ask me why I love going to all of the High School sports contests all the time. When taken as a whole, it does seem rather exhausting. Driving to the four corners of our region to watch a battle between Scales Mound and Warren, then staying up late at night making sure the story is written on the internet, then getting up the next day knowing that I will repeat the process yet again once the sun begins to go down. Friday nights in the Fall are the most hectic - I try and get to at least...
China Buffet A Fat Guy Favorite In all honesty, the plan was to restart the Fat Guys. With Forks restaurant reviews at Cimmino's Pizza for their pasta buffet. I mean, it's listed on their menu, and when we had tried it before, it rocked. But upon entry, we found out the hard way that the staff had no idea what buffet we were talking about, so ... off to China Buffet. I would be the first one to admit that the Pandemic hit area restaurants hard, and the China Buffet was no different. For a long...
Most readers who follow the adventure that is known as the Freeport City Council knows that I filed a FOIA (Freedom of Information Request) regarding the text messages being sent during the meeting by Freeport Councilman, Larry Sanders and Cecelia Stacey. Specifically, there were two incidents – the first being when Sanders said over Zoom for all to hear, “Have Councilman Stacey text me back”, and the second when we took a picture of him plugging away on his phone during a meeting. Anywa...
Many years ago, after I first got married, I needed a new car and ended up buying a Buick LeSabre from Confer Chevrolet in Lena (So, you know we’re talking MANY years ago). I liked the car for one main reason – I fit into it. With big fabric bench seats in the front and back, I was never having my hips pinched, and it had plenty of head room. And the engine in it had a little “pick-up” too so … I thought I was set. Until I told my Dad. “Why’d you buy an ‘Old man’ car?” “A what?” “An old man ca...
The circus side show, otherwise known as the Freeport City Council meeting, took place last Monday night, with very few things on the agenda … but that didn’t mean it didn’t last more than three hours. It all started with a report from the Albertus Airport Manager, Angie Janssen, who explained the issues the airport was facing. Currently, there are 53 hangers occupied, with 12 still vacant, but all of them – according to Janssen – were in need of some form of repair. Apparently one hanger has be...
The third annual Volleyball All Star Game is scheduled to take place this coming Tuesday, June 4th at Eastland High School beginning at 6:00 pm. In order to be invited to play, a girl had to be a senior who graduated this year as per IHSA rules. Anyone within the Voices circulation area that was named to an All Conference team was invited. In addition, players from outside of our coverage area - ie Galena, Dakota, Durand, etc - was invited if they were named to their respective First Team All Co...
What is a dog? I mean, can you describe a dog? Some might say, “A four-legged carnivorous mammal with floppy ears and a tail.” But that doesn’t fit because not all dogs have floppy ears, and I swear my family once had a dog who loved grapefruit! You can try to look up “dog” in the dictionary, but even they can’t lock it down in spite of multiple paragraphs all trying to answer one simple question – What is a dog? If you think about it, the question is nearly impossible to define. And yet, I co...
For the third time, the Orangeville Broncos squared off against the Dakota Indians – this time in the Softball Sectional semi-final – but unlike any game played between the two ... ever – things got out of hand early. The Broncos got the lead batter out – which was big, because Finley Banks is already a star. But the next one hit a short fly to right that was dropped for an error – putting a runner on first with one out. That was when catcher, Kendra Nehring stepped into the box. The only left...
The old saying in baseball is pretty simple, Get 'em on, Get 'em over, Get 'em in." In the Sectional semi-final against the host Forreston Cardinals, the Panthers certainly got 'em on – in fact they had runners on base in every single inning of the game. They also got 'em over – Lena-Winslow had runners in scoring position in every inning except the first, and in four of the seven innings, they had a runner at third. But getting them in, was a problem. The Panthers left 11 runners on base in...
There was a wedding ceremony last Saturday. And while the days of being a participant are well and gone for me, I was still caught off guard when my loving wife began to present her list of things I needed to do leading up to it. “Get a haircut.” Now, being told on Saturday that I needed a haircut before the following Saturday seemed like a relatively easy task. But when I still hadn’t done it by Tuesday, I could tell she was getting a little flustered. She never said anything, but … trust m...
Before going into their Regional championship game against Rockford Lutheran, Panther head coach, Nick Werhane, gave a brief scouting report on what he hoped to see. "Well, I know their starting pitcher is a little erratic," he explained. "So we're going to try and see a lot of pitches, crowd the plate, make him work, and hopefully we'll be able to get him out of the game early." By the second inning, Werhane needed to apply for prophet status. The Panthers loaded the bases in the bottom of the...
Apparently, I am not the only one completely frustrated by the lack of preparation by some members of the Freeport City Council, as tempers flared, accusations were openly stated, and it all culminated with the dropping of an exasperated f-bomb directed at Larry Sanders. (And, no, the 'F' did not stand for Freeport) At last week's Committee of the Whole meeting, there was a presentation made by Maguire – a consulting firm, that had been arranged by Mayor Miller and City Manager Boyer. "I had a...
For the second year in a row, the Orangeville Broncos took on the Lena-Winslow Panthers in the Regional championship - this time at their own house. And while there were differences to both contests, for the second year in a row the Broncos squeaked out a one run victory to claim the title. But this year, was different. In 2023, down in Lanark, the Broncos had to hold on and fight off a late Panther rally to claim the win. But last Friday it was the Panthers who were in control most of the...
Baseball and Softball Regionals get underway this week, so it's time to try and guess who we think might be holding up a Regional plaque by Saturday. Baseball Baseball is the hardest one to figure out because so much of it depends on pitching, and with the pitch count rules and limited 1A rosters ... a team can be a world beater with their ace on the mound, and struggle mightily when he's not. So, when faced with a very difficult decision, I went to the tried and true method of flipping a coin....
“Why do I have to learn this stuff? I’m never going to use it.” You hear that question in almost every Algebra and high level math class across the country, and students have been asking it for decades. I was no different. When I was a student, I never asked that question - but I thought about it - A LOT. I’m sure we all did at one time or another. In our teenage years, when we’re trying to assert your adulthood, rebellion is natural, and if we didn’t see the value in something ... why were we...
When last week's Freeport City Council meeting was finally over, the unofficial scorecard read – 18 important agenda items, 21 inane, pointless or flat-out stupid questions, and one mic drop stunner at the very end. But when all was said and done, they actually got some things accomplished. First the important stuff: The proposal to allow the Lindo Theater to serve alcohol was approved by a 5-2 vote with Sellers and Stacey being the only two council members to vote against it. (For the r...
Aquin had planned, and hoped, on continuing to function next year, but the Rockford Diocese had other plans. With only 18 students planning on attending Aquin High School next year, and having run at a deficit for multiple years, the Diocese stepped in and announced at a meeting last Wednesday that Aquin High School was done. In its place, the plan is to still accommodate the Pre-K through 8th grade enrollment in what is being called Aquin Micro Academy. "We thought we would be allowed to functi...
For reasons that defy explanation, some members of the Freeport City Council just appear incapable of following simple instructions. Anyone who holds a public office, is required to fill out and file with the County Clerk, a Statement of Financial interest – SFI. Simply put, it is where the office holder lets it be known if there might be an issue in which they would have to abstain from voting because they had a financial interest in the matter being voted on. For example, I own a newspaper, s...
Like other Spring sports, area track teams had to battle the weather and Mother Nature more often than compete against each other, but last week Lena-Winslow's most anticipated meet of the season was able to be held. "There are a lot of really fast teams here today," said Panther head coach Austin Rickles. "Just look at the 4x100, we've got three of the top five state finishers from last year here today." The Galena co-op came in as the favorite, as their combination of East Dubuque, Galena and...
Show me an arrogant man, and I’ll show you a bachelor. Now, I’m not saying that cocky men can never get married. No, I am simply uttering one of the universal truths that all married men find out the hard way – a wife strips a man of his ego. I tend to sleep later than my wife – but I also stay up much later, so it all evens out. Still, I can’t afford to be a slug – especially on Sundays, because I need to finish that week’s paper. Anyway, I heard my wife come into the room while I was still i...
The Freeport City Council meetings just never seem capable of being able to run without some form of controversy ... or incompetence. At 7:20, a phone went off, and many people were looking around the room trying to make sure it wasn't theirs and to see where it was coming from. It turned out it was Council Member Larry Sanders who's phone rang, but ... in a move that seems to boggle the mind, he not only answered it, but then proceeded to text on it while the meeting was going on. Now,...
Nobody ever likes being sick, but … on occasion … there are some benefits. Big bought with the flu? You end up losing a few pounds. Stuffed up nose? You miss out on some of the uglier smells our world has to offer. Anyway, For almost a month I had been dealing with what – at this point – my wife and I are convinced was probably Covid. Massive chest congestion, that has improved a great deal, but is still not totally gone. Part of the “illness” was a massive amount of nasal congestion,...
Once again, what was scheduled to be a Pre-trial hearing turned into a continuance in the Stephanie Broshous trial in Stephenson County. Only this time, it was the prosecution looking for more time as additional interviews need to be scheduled, and financial records examined – all of which will take some time as the process is slowly grinding its’ way to an actual trial. The next status hearing is now scheduled for July 25th, but trial dates are expected to be set at that time. We’ll keep you p...
