By David Blanchette/photos by David Blanchette One area college is completing its best-ever academic year with record enrollment, new majors and increased facility investments. Just over a mile away another college's board must decide if there is enough expected revenue to continue operating. This tale of two colleges is set in Jacksonville, where Illinois College, [...]
By Carey Smith/Photos by Sierra Smithers Springfield native Tiffany Mathis recently became the CEO and executive director of the Boys and Girls Clubs of Central Illinois (BGCCIL). Her passion and dedication are unmistakable. “I really love that I was able to work somewhere you can just be all in,” she said. Mathis was originally introduced [...]
By Dennis Thread How many times a day do you check the time? Under the influence of mobile phones, clocks are mere decorations and watches seemingly irrelevant. After all, the time is always there, insistently peaking at us from the top of our screens. But something strange has happened in the era of smart watches. [...]
By Lana Shovlin/Photos by Terry Farmer When I recently met with Sherry Barr in a secluded corner of a local coffee shop, the first thing both of us commented on was how strange it was that we couldn’t shake one another’s hand. We briefly spoke about how surreal life feels at this bizarre time. [...]
By Carey Smith Photos by Josh Catalano If you haven’t been to the Capitol complex recently, Andrea Aggertt, the new architect of the Capitol, would like to invite you to tour the Capitol and walk the campus. “There are going to be a lot of exciting things happening in the next five years,” she said. [...]
By Eric Woods Photo by Terry Farmer For more than 50 years, B&B Electric has been serving the needs of businesses in central Illinois. Todd Brinkman Sr. had been working for South Town Electric Radio & TV with his father, Fred Brinkman, when they decided to take a leap of faith and start their own [...]
By Eric Woods Photo by Terry Farmer Founded in 1828 by John Todd Stuart, the history surrounding Brown, Hay & Stephens (BHS) includes a young lawyer named Abraham Lincoln, who joined the firm nine years after its establishment. As the firm closes in on 200 years, employees have long enjoyed their careers at Brown, Hay [...]
By Eric Woods Photo by Terry Farmer Dan Deweese Painting and Wood Finishing began in November 2014 with only two employees. Within three months the business had five people on staff, and today the company employs 20 people including Deweese’s father, three siblings and a nephew. The employees are excited to work for such a [...]
By Eric Woods Photo by Terry Farmer Springfield Clinic, a staple in the community, just celebrated its 80th anniversary in 2019. The clinic was founded in 1939 by five physician partners in Springfield and is constantly growing and evolving. Not only are its physicians working to find new, innovative ways to better provide care [...]
By David Blanchette Numerous public schools in the Springfield area will soon receive needed upgrades as part of a School District 186 initiative to create better facilities and more secure learning environments while addressing needed maintenance and life/safety issues. A total of $40.9 million worth of work on schools is currently in the design phase, [...]
