BY PATRICK YEAGLE Like many inventions, Barnabas Helmy’s Puck began with a problem. Helmy’s daughter, two years old at the time, ruined the remote control for their home’s Apple TV by chewing on it. “They’re expensive, and it’s not even that functional of a remote,” Helmy said, sharing a story he has told dozens of [...]
BY MONICA STABILE The Illinois General Assembly’s approval last month of a measure to increase the minimum wage to $15 per hour over a five-year period has drawn mixed reviews among the business community. Warning that a potential increase in the minimum wage could lead to Illinois becoming less competitive, some business groups say employers [...]
Security Bank and Springfield Business Journal are proud to bring you the 14th annual Women of Influence. This program honors local women for their contributions to the Springfield area community. Selected by their peers through submitted nominations, all have made important contributions to the community at large. You are invited to join us in celebrating [...]
On March 13, Sacred Heart-Griffin High School named Kara Rapacz as its next principal and its first lay principal. Katherine O’Connor, president and interim principal of SHG, said the school examined several qualified candidates from around the nation, but Rapacz, who currently serves as assistant principal, was clearly the best fit. “This is an exciting [...]
By Patrick Yeagle Inside a nondescript brick building in Springfield’s South Town business district, a wall covered with clear acrylic instead of drywall illustrates various tools and electrical wiring standards. Between the wooden studs, next to lineman pliers and a conduit bender, are inspirational messages about leadership and discipline. Calvin Pitts built the wall as [...]
By Rhonda Buckhold Freelance Contributor Pivotal moments in life often present as hard decisions– to do one thing or another, which will ultimately change life as you know it. Charles Davis realized he’d had that moment when he graduated from the Illinois Department of Transportation’s Highway Construction Careers Training Program in 2007 at the age [...]
An architect reflects on the 1960s Old State Capitol facelift By Catherine O’Connor Freelance Contributor In the early 1960s, the capital city’s downtown corridor was the home to bustling shops of all kinds, including the Hub Clothiers, Fishman’s Sporting Goods, Black’s Hardware store, Myers Brother’s, Bressmer’s, and S.A. Barker’s department stores, Shadid’s book store, various [...]
By Colin Patrick Brady Freelance contributor . . “Our business is to build business,” says Paul Ellis, who assumed the post of president of the Jacksonville Regional Economic Development Corporation in August. Ellis was born on the West Coast and spent many of his formative years in the Seattle-Tacoma region, where he found work as a [...]
