Settlement reached in lawsuit between St. Bede and suburban construction company

It looks like the book is finally shut on a failed senior living center at St. Bede Academy.

A press release Thursday from the Abbey says a lawsuit filed by M.R. Construction out of St. Charles has been dismissed and “all matters have been resolved and settled”. The construction company sued for unpaid construction fees, claiming a breach of contract when the Abbey Fields project was abruptly stopped by the Abbey in 2013. The Abbey put a stop to construction once problems arose with alleged lack of payments to construction crews from the Janko Financial Group.

Abbey Fields was supposed to be a $13 million development with over 60 rooms for seniors and 30 job openings. The settlement announcement from St. Bede didn’t mention details of the settlement.

Rain threat has La Salle County Relay for Life moving indoors

Mother Nature has caused a slight venue change for this weekend’s La Salle County Relay for Life.

Because of rain in the forecast, relay organizers are moving the event from the Streator High School football field to inside the high school. The 19th annual relay begins Friday night and ends the next morning.

So far based on online donations, over $94,000 has been raised for the 2015 relay. Money raised goes to the American Cancer Society.

Last year’s relay raised over $200,000.

Streator grad’s name is called in the MLB Draft

A Streator High School graduate has been drafted by a Major League Baseball team.

Class of 2012 alum Ryan Nagle was picked yesterday by the Pittsburgh Pirates in the 27th Round of the baseball draft. Nagle starred this past season with the University of Illinois.

Since he’s only a junior, Nagle could choose to come back and play at U of I for another year before turning pro.

Remembrance event for Lily Rosploch will give back to St. Jude’s Hospital

Lily Rosploch may have passed on, but her memory will never fade.

Lily’s parents, Mike and Maria Rosploch want to celebrate their daughter by holding a Rally for Lily Gala Friday, July 10th at Senica’s Oak Ridge. All proceeds will go towards buying iPads for the fourth floor at the St. Jude affiliate in Peoria, a place where Lily spent much of her time during her battle with cancer.

Tickets are $100 and include dinner, wine, beer and live music. You can get a ticket at the Illinois Valley Y or at the Oak Ridge Golf Course in La Salle.

Annual relay for life event returns to Henry

While they won’t be up all night, they’ll still be raising money for the American Cancer Society Saturday at Central Park in Henry.

The Marshall-Putnam County Relay for Life gets underway at 4 Saturday afternoon. A survivor and caregiver victory lap will take place at six followed by the miss relay contest at 6:30. Also on the agenda include a silent auction and karaoke contest. The relay ends with the luminaria ceremony starting at 9:15.

Over $61,000 has been raised for the event so far.

Hail, wind and heavy rain do damage across the Illinois Valley

It was a stormy night Wednesday night across the Illinois Valley, especially if you live in Putnam or Marshall County.

Storms hammered Putnam and Marshall County starting around 5 and not letting up until several hours later. Quarter size hail fell in Hennepin, golf ball size hail in McNabb. Winds reached 60 miles in hour in McNabb with large tree limbs knocked down in Lacon and around a dozen power poles snapping in Sparland. Two to three inches of rain also closed stretches of roads like Route 89 and Route 26.

The storms eventually moved their way east where softball size hail was reported in the Morris and Minooka area.