Burglar in Henry accused of stealing Christmas deliveries off porch

A grinch apparently tried stealing someone’s Christmas in Henry.

The police department put out a message saying they are looking for a cash register and men’s boots that were pitched after an overnight burglary. They say to check your dumpsters, garbage cans and yards. If you find the boots and or cash register, don’t touch them, just call 309-364-3933.

The message goes on to say the suspect in the burglary took Christmas deliveries off someone’s porch. Officers have a Carhartt sweatshirt and Seattle Seahawk item that are waiting to be identified and picked up.

Bureau County Board spending money to support countywide transportation

Christmas is coming early for folks who run and use “B-PART” or Bureau-Putnam Area Rural Transit.

According to the NewsTribune, the Bureau County Board is buying property in Wyanet to house vehicles used by the transportation service. The board will use $125,000 out of their capital projects fund to buy the property.

The county board also passed a resolution approving a grant that provides funding for the transportation service.

Wind Chill Advisory issued for the Illinois Valley

When the weather service starts talking about hypothermia and frost bite you know it’s cold.

A Wind Chill Advisory takes effect in the Illinois Valley at 9 Wednesday night and lasts through 10 Thursday morning. During that time, the wind chill could dip from 15 to 30 below zero.

If you’re going to be outside for any length of time, make sure to bundle up as much as possible. The frigid temperatures are expected to stick around through the weekend.

Warming centers available during frigid weather

With below zero wind chills the next couple of days make sure you have a warm place to go.

Illinois Valley Community Hospital in Peru is again opening its cafeteria as a warming center. To escape the cold overnight at the hospital make sure you enter thru the emergency department.

Department of Human Services offices are also open as warming centers during regular business hours. You can find DHS offices on Second Street in La Salle, on Backbone Road in Princeton and along First Avenue in Ottawa.

Heating Help is Available as Brutal Cold Bears Down

Colder winter weather is here. If you need help heating your home, here’s something that could be of assistance.

If it’s a struggle to pay winter heating bills and you have children six years old or younger, you can now apply for heating assistance through the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program or LIHEAP. To qualify, a single person must make $1,485 a month or less. A family of four is eligible if your income is below $3,038 a month.

Applications for this help officially opened November 1^st. Besides families with young children, senior citizens and people with disabilities can also now apply for LIHEAP funds.

Beards Bring in the Bucks for Sixth Year in Peru

Are you a fan of beards? You only have a few more days to cast your vote in an annual best beard contest.

It’s the 6^th annual Beards for Christmas fundraiser at Maze Lumber. Spokesman for the event Chad Errio says they recently passed last year’s total, and they’re on track to hit their goal of $3,200.

If you want to have a say in whose beard is best, you have until Friday to cast your vote at Maze. Every vote cost a dollar which will go to the Illinois Valley Marine Corps League’s Christmas for Kids. If you just want to donate to the cause you can by checking out their  GoFundMe page.

The beard contest has raised over $11,000 in its first five years.

 

 

 

 

Plea Expected in Case of Man who Allegedly Brought Brass Knuckles to Rumble

The man accused of bringing brass knuckles to a brawl in Peru earlier this year may have reached an agreement with prosecutors.

Floyd Campbell was back in an Ottawa courtroom Friday. The 21-year old is accused of bringing brass knuckles to a fight, which took place at 28^th Street Park back in June.

Lawyers asked that the trial, which was set to begin Monday, be pushed back. The reason being they wanted to set a date for a possible guilty plea.  Campbell has been charged with unlawful possession of a weapon by a felon, and mob action.

Another man, Mitchell Hampton, was arrested after allegedly firing a gun during that same brawl. Hampton pled guilty in November to reckless discharge of a firearm and an unrelated charge. He was sentenced to 2.5 years in prison.

Campbell, meanwhile, remains in custody, unable to come up with the $10,000 needed to be released. His next court date was set for January 6^th.

Oglesby skating rink opens up

Getting the itch to lace up the ice skates?

With frigid weather settling in, the Oglesby Parks Department has opened the city ice rink. The rink is on Walnut Street, just east of city hall.

It’s free to skate and you can play hockey on the rink as long as no ice skaters are around on Tuesday and Thursdays from 3 until 5. The rink stays open until 10 at night.

You need to provide your own skates.

Law enforcement from the Illinois Valley help children in need

Besides patrolling the streets, men and women in blue in the Illinois Valley have also been shopping for the less fortunate.

Organizers with both the Christmas 4 Kids program and Blue and Red Christmas for Kids put out messages on Facebook that they had successful shopping trips in the past week. The Christmas 4 Kids involved La Salle County deputies shopping for nearly 60 children while Blue and Red Christmas involved about 30 children and members of the Peru Police and Fire Departments.

Some of the children helped are involved with the Youth Service Bureau and DCFS.

Westclox developers getting helping hand from Peru City Council

The storefront or façade of a building can go a long ways in making a good impression. The Peru City Council is looking to offer more cash to its businesses wanting to improve their building’s appearance.

Alderman Dave Potthoff says in the future the city would like to double the amount of money they have available for façade improvements to businesses along Route 6 and Peoria Street. Right now the city’s façade improvement fund totals $50,000 a year.

As it stands right now, there is $33,000 left in that fund for the current year. The council is looking to give that money to the owners of the Westclox building so they can put in new windows and entry ways.