Formal presentation of seniors a highlight of annual Beaux Arts Ball:
Four young men and women are preparing to participate in the 2025 Beaux Arts Ball, “A Stroll Through the English Countryside,” on Saturday, April 26, as senior maids and gentlemen. The 68th annual fundraiser for The Art Association of Jacksonville is a derivative of the traditional debutante ball at which young men and ladies are formally presented to society. As is tradition, the senior maids will perform a full bow to the floor after being presented by their father.
This year’s senior maids and gentlemen include:
Ella Marie Rajaguru, daughter of Elam and Jeni Rajaguru of Jacksonville and granddaughter of David and Joyce Thompson of Jacksonville and the late Tamilarasi Pathak;
Marley Van Aken, daughter of Ryan and Sarah (Pollock) Van Aken of Jacksonville and granddaughter of Bill and Gayle Clark of Jacksonville, the late Paul Pollock and Linda Van Aken and the late David Van Aken of Jacksonville;
Cody Symons, son of Stephen and Cammie Symons of Jacksonville, grandson of the late Jerry and Sharon Symons of Jacksonville and Pam Sprout, Toulon and the late Bill Andrew;
Isla Ann Willis, daughter of Allen and Janean Mays of Jacksonville, granddaughter of Joyce Linson and the late Jim Linson and Sandra Mays and the late Allen Mays of Jacksonville.
Patron and general tickets will be available online at strawnartgallery.org and at Annie Merner Chapel prior to the Beaux Arts Ball on Saturday, April 26, where the coronation will begin at 7 p.m. Immediately following the coronation at Annie Merner Chapel, there will be entertainment by Trio De Groove and hors d’oeuvres at the Jacksonville Country Club. Patron tickets are $50 and include admission to the reception, coronation and dance, while general tickets are $10 and include the coronation and champagne reception. An interpreter will be available upon request at the coronation for persons who are Deaf or hard of hearing; there will also be accessible seating available. Call The David Strawn Art Gallery office at 217-243-9390 or visit strawnartgallery.org for more information.
Follow “The Art Association of Jacksonville” on Facebook for more information about The David Strawn Art Gallery and the Beaux Arts Ball.
J’ettes, JHS FFA meet with State Representatives at the Illinois Capitol:
The Jacksonville J’ettes and the Jacksonville High School FFA Chapter met with their local representatives at the Illinois Capitol in Springfield the week of April 11. State Representative Kyle Moore of the 99th District and 100th District Representative C.D. Davidsmeyer stopped to meet with both groups during bill deadline week.
Local historian giving cemetery walk as part of Jacksonville’s bicentennial celebration:
Some of Jacksonville’s earliest and prominent residents will be the focus of a presentation on Sunday, April 27, at Jacksonville East Cemetery. Local historian and Jacksonville Bicentennial Planning Committee member Greg Olson will lead the walking tour of the cemetery.
Olson will provide a brief history of the cemetery, provide information about types and styles of gravestones, and talk about historical figures including Col. John J. Hardin, the Rev. Andrew Jackson, Gen. Benjamin Grierson and former heavyweight boxing champion Ken Norton.
The cemetery tour, which is free and open to the public, begins at 2 p.m. at the east end of the cemetery and is being sponsored by the Morgan County Historical Society and the Jacksonville Area Museum in celebration of the City of Jacksonville’s Bicentennial Celebration.
In addition, Olson is slated to lead tours of Calvary Cemetery on Sunday, June 29, and Diamond Grove Cemetery on Sunday, September 28.
Crisis Center holding 4th annual Easter Egg Hunt:
The Crisis Center Foundation will hold their 4th annual Easter Egg Hunt at Minnie Barr Park, located at 300 East Walnut Street, on Saturday, April 26. The event is free for all children 0-12. The hunt will start at 11 a.m. There will also be raffles, food and music provided. In case of inclement weather, the hunt will be held at the Spirit of Faith Soup Kitchen at 105 East Dunlap St.
The event is being brought to the community by the Morgan County Family Violence Council, Hy-Vee, Jacksonville Memorial Hospital, the Jacksonville Police Department, Humble Horizons and the Crisis Center Foundation.
Winchester 4-H Club hosting pancake and sausage dinner to benefit Land of Lincoln Honor Flight:
Neighborhood Guys and Gals 4-H Club of Winchester will have a drive-through pancake and sausage supper from 4:30-6:30 p.m. on April 27 at the Nimrod Funk Building, located at 401 North Walnut St. in Winchester.
Donations will be accepted, with all proceeds benefiting Land of Lincoln Honor Flight. Winchester 4-H Club members will deliver the meals to diners’ cars. The Honor Flight held its first mission earlier this month. Mission #73 served 93 veterans including 11 Korean War veterans 82 Vietnam War veterans from 41 Illinois towns including Jacksonville, Waverly and Winchester on April 15. During an honor flight, the veterans, along with care guardians, go on a whirlwind trip around Washington D.C., visiting the World War II, Korean and Vietnam War Memorials as well as Arlington National Cemetery Tomb of the Unknowns, the Lincoln Memorial, the National Air and Space Museum in Chantilly, Virginia, the US Marine Corps Memorial and the US Air Force Memorial. This day of honor is provided at absolutely no cost to veterans and is completely funded by donations from the general public through initiatives like the pancake and sausage supper.
Three more flights are planned for this year: June 3, September 9 and October 21. Veteran and Guardian applications are still being accepted and may be obtained at LandofLincolnHonorFlight.org by clicking on the “Applications” tab.
Shawna Roberts celebrates 30th anniversary at Ace Hardware:
Jacksonville Ace Hardware assistant manager Shawna Roberts celebrated her 30th work anniversary with the store on April 15. Roberts was greeted with cake and refreshments to share with patrons.
South Jacksonville garden plots open:
Village of South Jacksonville officials are seeing more engagement this year with the community garden plots. The plots are located south of the police department on Sequoia Drive. Village Police Chief Eric Hansell says the plots will be ready to go for planting soon, with tilling starting in the next 3-4 days depending upon the weather. Two plots have already been taken by outside agencies in the community. Hansell says a large sweet corn plot has also been marked off.
“Pretty much anytime the weather is good, we are ready for people to start planting,” Hansell says, “Then, eventually they can come and start harvesting and consuming some of the food.”
Parties interested in speaking up for a plot can call 217-245-9222 and speak with Chief Hansell or Sheryl Dossett. Hansell says you do not have to be from the village or have a plot to harvest food when it’s ready, but Hansell asks that you be respectful and allow everyone to have a little bit of what is grown.
New guidelines for 8-1-1:
Ameren-Illinois has announced new guidelines for homeowners when they call 8-1-1 before they dig. The new addition is the requirement to pre-mark the work area. According to the updated language in the act, all locate requests will require pre-marking, by physically marking the proposed excavation or route, electronic white lining (when available) or with verbal pre-marking when the description provided is explicit enough to limit markings to the actual excavation area. The other three amendments include a change to notification times, positive response and reasonable control measures.
To learn more about these amendments, visit Illinois1call.com. “The new amendment to pre-marking adds another safety layer for the home or business owner,” said Jake Dukett, supervisor of Natural Gas Public Awareness for Ameren Illinois. “It will help locators understand where the actual worksite is located on the property.”
Eric Kozak, vice president of natural gas operations and distribution for Ameren-Illinois says it’s also crucial to get your yard re-marked every time you have a new project. Illinois: “The lines may have shifted due to erosion and root growth since the last project. Calling 811 is free and easy, so keep your home and neighborhood safe by calling first.” For further questions, call Ameren at 800-755-5000.
LLCC offering free healthcare summer and fall class:
Lincoln Land Community College is offering Introduction to Health Care Professions (HLT 110) free this summer and fall as part of the Connect 2 Health Care (C2HC) program for those 18-24 years old. The class offers students the opportunity to learn from classroom, lab and job shadowing opportunities in various health care fields such as nursing, surgical technology, sonography, radiography, respiratory care, neurodiagnostic technology, occupational therapy assistant and emergency medical services. Participants will receive free tuition, books, uniforms and transportation assistance.
The course also provides points on LLCC Health Professions applications that assign scores to factors such as GPA, coursework completion and relevant experiences in applicant evaluation. “It is a great opportunity to learn about a variety of health care professions before deciding on a training program,” said Dr. Cynthia Maskey, dean of LLCC Health Professions. “Participants will also gain essential skills, participate in job shadowing in clinical settings and network with health care professionals.”
The three-credit class can be taken in the summer, June 9-July 29 on Tuesdays and Thursdays, 10 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. or during the fall semester, August 23-December 17 on Fridays, noon to 4 p.m. During the summer session, lunch will be provided. The program is made possible by a grant from the Illinois Community College Board. Learn more and apply to the Connect 2 Health Care program at www.llcc.edu/C2HC.
Morton Ave Misfits warning community about fraudsters:
The Morton Ave Misfits have warned the community about fraudsters attempting to defraud others by pretending to be a part of the Morton Ave Misfits and “selling” people vendor spots for their car show events. The group asks that you not give these pretenders any information or money outside of direct contact with a member of the Morton Ave Misfits group or their Facebook page. The only person outside of the group authorized to handle vendor information is Kristen Buchanan. If you have any questions, contact the Morton Ave Misfits Facebook page directly or visit their website at mortonavemisfits.com for more information. The 29th annual Downtown Plaza Car Show is scheduled for June 14.
Jacksonville Memorial Hospital holds flag-raising ceremony to signify importance of organ donation:
Jacksonville Memorial Hospital hosted a flag-raising ceremony on Monday, April 21, to call attention to the importance of organ and tissue donation. The ceremony at the hospital’s main entrance highlighted the need for organ and tissue donation as nearly 5,000 Illinoisans are currently waiting for an organ transplant. April is National Donate Life Month,” said Carrie Carls, chief nursing officer at JMH. “We hold the flag-raising ceremony each year as a way to honor organ and tissue donors for giving the gift of life to others.” The ceremony featured remarks by officials from Memorial Health, Saving Sight and Gift of Hope. JMH staff was available in the hospital lobby to register new donors. Similar ceremonies are planned at the other four Memorial Health hospitals in central Illinois.
Local Sons of the American Revolution President honors first responders who saved his wife’s life:
Two members of the Jacksonville community and three members of the Jacksonville Fire Department were honored by Jacksonville’s Captain Elijah Smith Chapter of the Sons of the American Revolution on Monday night at the Jacksonville City Council meeting. S.A.R. President Sid Welles presented community member Steve Gilbreth, Walmart employee Tory Bowen, firefighter Dan Hirter, firefighter Pat Longmeyer and Jacksonville Fire Department Lieutenant Curt Rueter with distinguished service awards for saving the life of his wife Evelyn at Walmart on September 20, 2024 after she had collapsed and gone into cardiac arrest.
Gilbreth administered CPR while Bowen made the initial call to 9-1-1. Lieutenant Rueter says that Gilbreth went above and beyond to save Mrs. Welles’ life: “In this circumstance, we were dispatched at 7:27 and arrived on scene four minutes later at 7:31. When we made patient contact with Mrs. Welles, Mr. Gilbreth was obviously exhausted but still performing life-saving CPR. For perspective, we are trained to switch out every two minutes during CPR because it is exhausting. What Mr. Gilbreth did was above and beyond what we ask our EMS providers.”
Rueter stressed to the capacity crowd that bystander CPR is essential in preserving life. Each member of the group received a token and special certificate for playing a crucial role in saving Evelyn Welles’ life.
PHOTO CAPTION — Sid Welles (right) presents certificates and awards to the first responders to his wife’s cardiac arrest at Walmart on Sept. 20, 2024. Standing, from left to right: Walmart employee Tory Bowen, Steve Gilbreth, Jacksonville firefighter Patrick Longmeyer, firefighter Dan Hirter and Jacksonville Fire Department Lieutenant Curt Rueter.
Illinois Reading Council hosting 2025 Illinois Reads Book Festival in Jacksonville on April 26:
The Illinois Reading Council (IRC) will host the 2025 Illinois Reads Book Festival from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. on Saturday, April 26 at the Midwest Athletic Center, 409 Hardin Ave. Readers throughout Illinois are invited to this fun and free family event.
The authors of the following 2025 Illinois Reads books will be attending and sharing their books at the book festival:
• Birth to Age 4 — “Sleepy: Surprising Ways Animals Snooze” by Jennifer Ward
• Grades K-2 — “Bats Beneath the Bridge” by Janet Nolan, “Somebody Needs to Do Something About That Monster!” by Doug Cenko, “The Ghost Who Was Afraid of Everything” by Nadia Ahmed, “Umami” by Jacob Grant
• Grades 3-5 — “One Cool Duck #1: King of Cool” by Mike Petrik, “The Great Lakes: Our Freshwater Treasure” by Barb Rosenstock
• Grades 6-8 — “I Felt Myself Slipping” by Ray Nadine
• Grades 9-12 — “This Night Is Ours” by Ronni Davis
Illinois Reads is a statewide literacy program provided by the IRC, a nonprofit organization with 2,000+ members across the State of Illinois. The mission of the IRC is to provide support and leadership to all who promote and teach lifelong literacy. With the Illinois Reads Program, IRC promotes reading for all Illinois citizens each year by promoting six books in six different age bands by authors and illustrators who have ties to Illinois. The books range from read-to books for infants to books for adult readers. Bookmarks and posters highlighting the Illinois Reads books are also available to order for free online and will also be available at the upcoming book festival. Book lists from 2013 to 2025 may be found on the Illinois Reads website. For more information, visit IllinoisReads.org and IllinoisReadingCouncil.org
