Go Jump In A Lake! For A Good Cause, Of Course

While the recent snowy and cold weather may not exactly have you thinking about swimming, you can jump into a lake in a few weeks for a good cause.

It’s officially called the Law Enforcement Torch Run Polar Plunge, and it will have plungers jumping into Yorkville’s Loon Lake on March 6^th to raise money for Special Olympics athletes with intellectual disabilities in seven counties.

All plungers are asked to raise a minimum of $100 each. If you’re looking to take the plunge you’re being encouraged to form a team and come in costume.

Prizes will be given to groups that raise the most and there will be divisions for schools, colleges, and businesses as well. You can register at www.plungeillinois.com

Fuel Change and Maintenance Underway At One Of Exelon’s Marseilles Reactors

Just like how you get your car’s oil changed after several thousand miles, workers at the Exelon plant in Marseilles are busy changing the fuel there.

The two reactors at the LaSalle County Generating Station each need to have their fuel changed once every two years. Workers Monday morning began the complex job of changing out one-third of the fuel in one of the reactors.

Much like how mechanics inspect your car after changing the oil, Exelon is doing something similar as well, only it takes more than a few mechanics. The station has brought in more than 1,400 nuclear workers in addition to the 800 who are already there. That’s because they need to use the reactor’s downtime to do about 14,000 maintenance activities that can’t be done when it’s up and running.

At full power, the plant is able to power more than 2 million homes. The second reactor is continuing to run while the first is down, and ComEd is not reporting any outages as a result of the refueling.

Vote happening Tuesday on approving an ER in Streator

The next hurdle to jump over for Streator to have an emergency room comes Tuesday.

The Illinois Health Facilities and Services Review Board will vote on whether or not to allow a freestanding emergency room in the old St. Mary’s Hospital. OSF HealthCare took over the old hospital and wants to have only outpatient care in Streator at a yet to be built outpatient clinic. For emergencies they’ve agreed to pursue an ER in the old St. Mary’s.

To get this far the House and Senate and eventually the governor all had to agree to a bill that made an exception for Streator to have a stand alone ER. If the facilities board approves the idea Tuesday, the next step is for the Illinois Department of Public Health to license the ER.

Democrat Skoog hosting event promoting the 2nd Amendment

Even though he’s a Democrat, State Representative Andy Skoog doesn’t want to take your guns away. In fact he’s doing what he can to protect Second Amendment Rights.

Skoog is hosting a forum on the 2nd Amendment Thursday, February 25th at the Bone Shed in Ottawa. Joining him will be Rich Pearson with the Illinois State Rifle Association along with conservation officers.

Skoog will take your questions or concerns about laws that he is backing or fighting against.

Volunteers needed to help upkeep at Marseilles memorial

If you’re searching for a way to honor men and women who have fought to protect their country, there’s a golden opportunity to make a difference in Marseilles.

The Middle East Conflict Memorial Wall Tribute Committee is seeking volunteers for the day-to-day maintenance of the wall along the Illinois River. The wall is open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year and takes some maintenance especially with the ongoing threat of flooding.

If you can donate some of your time to the memorial honoring soldiers killed in Middle East conflicts, call the Marseilles City Hall at 795-2133.

Spring Valley woman selling cupcakes for cancer victims

Cancer is anything but sweet. However a college senior from the Illinois Valley is turning her talent in baking sweets into a fundraiser to help cancer victims.

Carlie Quinn is selling cupcakes for a dollar apiece with all the proceeds going to Cops 4 Cancer. Quinn set out with a goal of selling a thousand cupcakes but word has spread to bring her total to over 1,500.

Quinn says she’s been baking since she was five and thinks it’s great that she can put that talent to a charitable cause. This is Quinn’s third year of selling cupcakes to benefit Cops 4 Cancer and Boob-a-Palooza. She plans to bake, frost, and package all the cupcakes with the help of some friends and family this Friday and Saturday. The owner of Celebrations 150 is letting Quinn use their kitchen.

Pickup of the cupcakes is set for Saturday, February 27th at Celebrations. If you want to order cupcakes to benefit Cops 4 Cancer and Boob-a-Palooza, click Quinn Cupcake Sales

Valentine’s Day snow wreaks havoc on Illinois Valley roads

Hopefully Monday is a much quieter day on the roads than Valentine’s Day was.
Tow truck drivers and police officers in the Illinois Valley spent most of their day responding to weather-related crashes.

The La Salle County Sheriff’s Office responded to at least a half dozen crashes. One that happened on Route 251 sent a 17-year-old boy to Illinois Valley Community Hospital.

One person was sent to the hospital after a crash along Route 6 in Peru while another driver was taken to IVCH in Peru after a crash on Interstate 39 near Tonica.

On Interstate 80 just west of the Quad Cities, there was a 30-car pile up which included three separate crashes.

Video gaming starts strong in 2016

The January numbers are in. Gamblers wagered over a million dollars in gaming machines last month in Ottawa, Streator, La Salle and Peru.

According to the state numbers, Ottawa led the way in January with $1.5 million wagered into video gaming machines. A little over $1.1 million was paid out. Gamblers in Streator wagered $1.4 million last month with $1.1 million being cashed out.

In Peru, $1.1 million was played in machines last month with the payout being $919 thousand dollars. La Salle businesses saw a million dollars played last month in gaming machines. Over 760 thousand dollars was cashed out in La Salle machines.

Statewide, over $311 million was played in video gaming machines last month.