School Board President Mark Hayes and representatives of the Illinois Federation of Teachers Macoupin County Local 528 disclosed Monday night that they will seek federal mediation to conclude negotiations on a new teachers’ contract. The union rejected the board’s initial offer last month alleging the offer did not meet expectations to meet cost of living […]
Retired Illinois State Policeman releases second novel
Much of Book is Set in Macoupin County Towns During a long career in law enforcement, Ed Traylor never thought he would become a novelist. “It never crossed my mind,” laughed Traylor, who spent twenty-nine years with the Illinois State Police. “I had too many other things to think about.” Traylor, who lives near Waggoner, […]
First Lady of Illinois visits MAC in Staunton
MK Pritzker, the First Lady of Illinois, recently heard about the Macoupin Art Collective (the MAC) and visited the studio to see and learn more about the wide variety of classes offered to kids and adults. Marcella Cloud and Trinity Bray-Jett spent the hour showing the different areas of workspace and teaching space and explaining how […]
Timeline set to fill school board vacancy
A new member of the Community Unit School District 7 Board of Education is likely to be named and seated Wednesday night, Aug. 4, after the board meets in special session to interview candidates interested in filling the seat vacated as a result of board member Don Dobrino’s death. Dobrino, a former Gillespie High School […]
Illinois fully aligns with new CDC masking recommendations
SPRINGFIELD – The Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) announced on Tuesday it is fully adopting updated Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) masking recommendations to protect against COVID-19 and the Delta variant. CDC recommends that everyone, including fully vaccinated individuals, wear a mask in public indoor setting in areas with substantial and high transmission. […]
Cemetery brick project recognizes donors
The Gillespie City Cemetery with the help of the Gillespie Public Library has raised over $1000 for the “Brick Project” with the help of trivia participants and kindly donors. Donors contributing to the brick project include: Scott Joyce trivia table Carol Miller trivia table Roger and Colleen Fritz Klayton Buhs Rusty Fredericks Norm Emmons Wendell […]
Benld Council tightens mobile home regulations, approves resolution to launch sewer improvements
Members of the Benld City Council on Monday night voted unanimously to approve an ordinance calling for an update to the city code regarding mobile homes located within the city limits and approved a resolution committing local funds for construction costs associated with a proposed sanitary sewer project. The ordinance to amend the city code […]
State-supported Amtrak passenger trains to resume full-service July 19
The Illinois Department of Transportation announced today that the Lincoln Service, Carl Sandburg/Illinois Zephyr and Illini/Saluki state-supported Amtrak trains will resume full-service effective July 19. Service levels had been reduced by half due to the COVID-19 pandemic. With the resumption of a full schedule, there will be five daily roundtrips between Chicago and St. Louis […]
City Council offers Ambulance Service one-year agreement for dispatching services
The Gillespie City Council on Monday night voted unanimously to offer a one-year dispatching services agreement for the Gillespie-Benld Ambulance Service at a cost of $12,000. The measure is subject to approval by the Ambulance Service Board of Trustees later this month. If approved by the Ambulance Board, the council could finalize the agreement as […]
Two vehicle accident in Benld injures two motorcyclists
Two Benld residents had to be airlifted to area hospitals following a two-vehicle accident Sunday afternoon on Illinois Route 138 in Benld. Illinois State Police said Monday Delmar VanHuss, 57 of Benld, and his passenger, Katherine McCoig, 54 of Benld, were flown to area hospitals after being struck by a Pontiac Grand Prix while driving […]
County’s first positive West Nile Virus mosquito pool in 2021 found in Girard
The Macoupin County Public Health Department (MCPHD) has confirmed the first positive pool for West Nile Virus in Macoupin County for 2021. A pool of mosquitoes found in Girard tested positive for West Nile Virus (WNV) on July 9, 2021. The Macoupin County Public Health Department will continue surveillance and testing mosquito pools from across […]
BenGil students graduate from LLCC
SPRINGFIELD — Lincoln Land Community College conferred more than 1,400 degrees and certificates at the college’s virtual commencement ceremony Friday, May 14. The graduate list below is in alphabetical order by hometown and includes degrees and certificates conferred. One asterisk indicates a graduate with honors (3.50-3.74 grade point average). Two asterisks indicate a graduate with high honors (3.75 […]
CUSD 7 teachers reject contract offer
Members of the Community Unit School District 7 teachers union have rejected the school board’s initial contract offer as the current contract ticks down to its final days. About 50 district school teachers, many wearing union t-shirts, attended Monday night’s regular monthly meeting of the board in a show of solidarity in support of the […]
Grow Gillespie to host Labor Day 5K, craft fest
Grow Gillespie will host its third annual all-ages Labor Day 5K followed by a craft festival on Saturday, Sept. 4, at the intersection of Chestnut and Montgomery Streets in Gillespie adjacent to the Colonial Giving Garden and Illinois Coal Museum. The in-person 5K which is the second part of the “two-fer” that began with the […]
Build Benld donates to Veterans Park
Build Benld donated $500 to the City of Benld last week to help with Veterans’ Park summer improvements and projects. The organization is vital in helping spruce up the city and pitching it wherever they can. Last month the group painted tractor tires and the climbing bars at the Veterans Park in Benld. Last year […]
Gillespie Council approves $7.2 million appropriation ordinance, debates ambulance dispatching counteroffer
Members of the Gillespie City Council voted unanimously Monday night to adopt a new appropriations ordinance to govern spending during the current fiscal year. Though not a budgetary document, the state-mandated annual appropriations ordinance sets spending ceilings for specific line items for the fiscal year. This year’s ordinance authorizes expenditures of $7.2 million, compared with […]
Gillespie City Cemetery plotted by high school students, library
There has always been a need to identify who is buried where at the Gillespie City Cemetery and nearly all the work is now finished thanks to the high school’s current events class and the Gillespie Public Library. The last step of the project is to purchase brick markers for the cemetery. The cost is […]
County launches financial disclosures online database
Macoupin County Clerk Pete Duncan recently launched a new online database for the over 700 Statements of Economic Interests filed by elected officials and public employees in Macoupin County. The website is part Duncan’s ongoing effort to increase transparency and shed light on how government works. “We’ve moved from an old-fashioned paper system to online […]
Gillespie Police Report: May 23-29, 2021
SUNDAY, MAY 23, 2021 An officer was dispatched to Route 4 and Route 138 regarding a road rage complaint. An officer was dispatched to the 700 block of North 6th Street Benld regarding a suicidal subject. An officer was dispatched to the 300 block of Osie Street regarding a death investigation. An officer was dispatched to […]
Bus driver urges higher pay for drivers, board authorizes sale of residential lots
Former district teacher Steve Joyce made an impassioned plea to the Community Unit School District 7 Board of Education on Monday night urging the board to consider higher pay for bus drivers. Since retiring from teaching, Joyce has been employed as the Gillespie Public Library librarian and also drives a full bus route for the […]
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