by ReAnne Palmer, RLC Public Information

INA, IL – Join Rend Lake College on the trip of a lifetime. RLC has partnered with Collette Vacations to offer two unique travel opportunities in 2018. Sightsee through the United Kingdom (UK) by rail in March or tour the “old west” through the Colorado Rocky Mountains in July.

The UK by Rail trip is scheduled for Saturday, March 17, 2018, through Monday, March 26, 2018, with stops in three of the UK’s most iconic destinations: Edinburgh, York, and London. Begin the adventure in Edinburgh, touring the city’s castle and the nearby town of St. Andrews.

Participants will then take the train to York and spend two days exploring England’s medieval capital at Castle Howard and the market town of Helmsley. End the trip with a train ride to London and receive a tour from a local expert, including a stop at Windsor Castle.
The UK by Rail trip costs $4,099 per person, double occupancy. The costs include 10 days of stay and travel, and 12 meals.

Enjoy a scenic tour of Colorado and Utah with the Colorado Rockies trip, set for Friday, July 20, 2018, through Saturday, July 28, 2018. The tour begins in the “Mile High City” of Denver and consists of many stops on the nine-day journey, including four national parks.

Attendees will visit Rocky Mountain National Park and Colorado’s wine country, and will experience traditional cowboy entertainment and food. One highlight of the tour will be a visit to the historic Stanley Hotel, inspiration for Stephen King’s “The Shining.”
The Colorado Rockies trip costs $2,999 per person, double occupancy. The costs include nine days of stay and travel, and 12 meals.

Early booking discounts may apply to both trips, and single and triple rates available upon request.

An informational meeting will be held at 5 p.m. Monday, Oct. 2 at the RLC Historic Schoolhouse on the Ina campus to discuss the trips. Details on early booking discounts will also be available. To RSVP to the meeting, contact RLC’s Community and Corporate Education Division at 618-437-5321, Ext. 1714.

http://www.kfvs12.com/story/36129252/son-indicted-for-murder-in-connection-to-murphysboro-il-couples-death

MURPHYSBORO, IL – (Alicia Dombrick, KFVS-TV. Please click for the link for the full story.  Here is an excerpt below.)

A Grand Jury in Jackson County, Illinois has indicted a Murphysboro man on four counts of First Degree Murder in connection to the shooting deaths of his parents.

Keith R. Ritcheson, 40, is being held at the Jackson County Jail on $1 million bond. Court documents show that Ritcheson is accused of shooting his parents, Brenda and Burl Ritcheson in their rural Murphysboro home overnight between Sunday, Aug. 13 and Monday, Aug. 14.

According to the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office, an arrest warrant was issued for Keith Ritcheson on Thursday, Aug. 17 and he was arrested at 11 p.m.

Press release from the office of Governor Bruce Rauner

CHICAGO IL– Gov. Bruce Rauner today signed Executive Order 17-05, creating the governor’s Opioid Overdose Prevention and Intervention Task Force.

The task force will be co-chaired by Lt. Gov. Evelyn Sanguinetti and Dr. Nirav D. Shah, director of the Illinois Department of Public Health. The task force will look at strategies to prevent expansion of the opioid crisis, treat and promote the recovery of individuals with opioid-use disorder, and reduce the number of opioid overdose deaths.

“The opioid crisis in Illinois affects people from all walks of life ─ small towns and big cities, the wealthy and the poor, young and old. Without treatment, people suffering from opioid-use disorder risk dropping out of school, losing their job, becoming homeless, losing custody of their children, or getting arrested,” Gov. Rauner said.  “This is not a problem that government, health care, police, schools, communities or others can solve on their own. We must all work together. Today, I am creating and charging the Opioid Overdose Prevention and Intervention Task Force to develop a comprehensive strategy to stem the tide of the opioid crisis in Illinois.”

Since 2013, the number of heroin overdose deaths in Illinois has doubled, and the number of opioid overdose deaths has quadrupled. More than 1,900 people in Illinois are expected to die of opioid overdoses this year ─ more than one-and-a-half times the number of homicides and almost twice the number of fatal motor vehicle crashes. Between 2013 and 2016 in Illinois, total drug overdose deaths increased by almost 50 percent, overdose deaths involving opioids increased 76 percent, and overdose deaths involving synthetic opioids (such as fentanyl) increased 258 percent.

“The opioid epidemic knows no neighborhood, no color, and no class.  It is not confined to alleys in urban settings, nor isolated in rural communities,” Lt. Gov. Sanguinetti said. “Illinois needs a comprehensive opioid strategy that destigmatizes addiction and appropriately aligns resources across state agencies in partnership with community priorities.”

“The opioid crisis in Illinois is not something that we can arrest or even treat our way out of,” IDPH Director Shah said. “Active collaboration and engagement with state agencies, elected officials, the medical community, providers, insurers, educators, law enforcement, patient advocacy organizations, and the public will be critical to our success.”

The Task Force will look at how to increase the number of providers that use the Illinois Prescription Monitoring Program; reduce high-risk opioid prescribing; make information and resources more accessible to the public; strengthen data collection, analysis, and sharing; reduce the number of overdose deaths of individuals recently released from an institutional facility; and increase naloxone availability and training.

“It is time we understand and treat substance-use disorder as a chronic disease and eliminate the stigma that prevents individuals struggling with opioid use from seeking care,” Illinois Department of Human Services Secretary James Dimas said. “This epidemic impacts every community, every neighborhood, and, as a result, every home. With evidence from years of scientific research to support us, Illinois is ready to shatter the image of substance use disorder as a ‘moral failing’ and treat it as any other chronic illness.”

“As a family doctor at Lawndale Christian Health Center on the west side of Chicago, I am privileged and blessed to be on a team that tries to respond to the needs of our community. One of the greatest needs we see right now is preventing deaths from opioid overdose,” Dr. Thomas D. Huggett said.  “Medication assisted treatment, behavioral health counseling, and social support are vitally needed as we walk beside our patients who want to leave opioid-use disorder and heroin behind. We have already seen many success stories of those who are now feeling much better, working a job, and are reunited with their families, but there is much work left to do.”

Members of the Task Force will include officials from the Office of the Lieutenant Governor of Illinois, Law Enforcement Training and Standards Board, Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority, Illinois State Police, and from Illinois Departments of: Financial and Professional Regulation, Human Services, Public Health, Juvenile Justice, Insurance, Corrections, and Healthcare and Family Services.

From George O’ Connor, Communications Director, Congressman Mike Bost  

Washington, D.C. – U.S. Representative Mike Bost issued the following statement after the House passed a $7.85 billion disaster relief funding package for Hurricane Harvey recovery efforts:

“The sheer size and scope of devastation caused by Hurricane Harvey is difficult to comprehend. First responders, volunteer organizations, and federal, state, and local agencies have been working tirelessly to help those in need through search and rescue efforts, staffing emergency shelters, providing meals, and offering comfort. I am pleased that both parties in Congress acted quickly to provide Americans along the Gulf Coast the federal resources they need to begin a long recovery and help ensure that the federal response to Hurricane Irma is adequately prepared.”

Note: The bill contains the full amount requested by the Administration – totaling $7.85 billion in emergency funding, including $7.4 billion for FEMA’s Disaster Relief Fund (DRF). This will ensure FEMA can meet all current needs for response and recovery efforts, while also being prepared for any additional disasters that may arise. It also includes $450 million to support the Small Business Administration’s disaster loan program to assist small businesses and homeowners begin to rebuild.om George O’ Connor, Communications Director, Congressman Mike Bost