The National Weather Service is calling for ‘moderate’ risk of severe weather on Thursday.
Below are two links that will carry updates throughout the day.
WSIL weather is here.
National Weather Service out of Paducah is here.
‘Moderate’ risk of severe weather on Thursday in Southern Illinois
April 18, 2013 By Leave a Comment
Salukis to play first-ever college football game at Busch Stadium
April 16, 2013 By Leave a Comment
ST. LOUIS – Southern Illinois will play Southeast Missouri State at Busch Stadium on Saturday, Sept. 21, marking the first football game in the storied tradition of that stadium and giving St. Louis-area fans and alumni of the two schools an opportunity to see the teams in their own backyard.
Dale Lennon speaks at Busch Stadium on Monday.
The official announcement of the game took place during a press conference on Monday and is the culmination of months of behind-the-scenes work between officials at SIU, SEMO and the Major League Baseball Cardinals. The pro franchise will rent-out the facility for the day while their team is out of town for a week during the regular season.
“We are thrilled to host our first football game in Busch Stadium with two great schools that have such a large following in St. Louis,” said Bill DeWitt III, President of the Cardinals. “We are excited to showcase the versatility of Busch Stadium as a multi-use venue ideally suited for special football games like this historic game between two longstanding rivals.”
SIU Chancellor Dr. Rita Cheng lauded the cooperation between the schools as a key factor in securing the agreement to play the non-conference game at a neutral site.
“We have a great rivalry on the field, but off the field, we share the commitment to student success and the success of our communities,” Cheng said. “It’s fitting that we should have this historic event in this beautiful stadium.”
Combined, the two University have approximately 40,000 alumni in the St. Louis area, plus thousands of current students.
“Nearly 40 percent of this year’s freshman class at Southeast is from the greater St. Louis region,” said Kenneth W. Dobbins, President of Southeast Missouri State University. “Playing this game at Busch Stadium is exciting for all our students and great exposure for our University and the Redhawk football program.”
The 80-game series between two schools separated by just 45 miles dates all the way back to 1909. While the Redhawks hold a 39-33-8 advantage overall, Southern has won six of the last seven meetings.
“It’s intense — it’s what you want in a rivalry,” said SIU head coach Dale Lennon. “Now you put it in the city of St. Louis where both programs recruit heavily, you have the alumni bases that are very strong in the community — I hope we can make something special.”
Tickets will go on sale June 3 and prices start at $5 for students and $10 for adults. Fans will be able to purchase seats through the Cardinals website at Cardinals.com/football, and each school will have blocks of tickets to sell on consignment.
“This game can only be a success if our fans rally behind it and support this,” said SIU Deputy AD Chet Savage. “I make an open call to Saluki Nation — whether you’re in the St. Louis area or Metro-East, Carbondale and beyond, we’d love to see you here September 21st at Busch Stadium for a first-class event.”
Doug Collins to step down as 76ers coach at end of season
April 15, 2013 By Leave a Comment
Multiple news sources reporting that Benton native Doug Collins will step down from coaching the Philadelphia 76ers at the end of the season. Here’s the link at ESPN.
Benton police make weekend arrests
April 15, 2013 By Leave a Comment
Benton police make weekend arrests:
On April 13, 2013 Benton Police arrested Shannon L. Brake, age 34, of Benton on an active Jefferson County warrant for failure to appear. Brake was transported to the Franklin County Jail for further processing.
On April 13, 2013 Benton Police arrested David P. Gosnell, age 32, of Benton for unlawful possession of drug paraphernalia. Gosnell was charged and transported to the Franklin County Jail for further processing.
RLC’s Macklin named to NJCAA All-American team
April 12, 2013 By Leave a Comment
INA, Ill. (April 11, 2013) – Cortez Macklin has been named a Division II Second-Team All-American in basketball by the National Junior College Athletic Association.
Macklin is a 6-3, 175-pound, guard from Louisville, Ky. As the Warriors’ scoring leader (13.1 ppg), he played a pivotal role in Rend Lake’s wildly successful season – 30 wins and the program’s first national championship, as well as the 2013 Great Rivers Athletic Conference Championship (14-2) and NJCAA DII Region XXIV Championship.
He finished his freshman year with 379 points and averages of 43.9 percent from the field, 32.5 percent from three-point range, and 66.9 percent from the free-throw line. He also averaged 3.3 rebounds and 1.7 assists per game. True to form, Macklin led the Warriors with 19 points in its 87-69 national championship win over Moraine Valley Community College on March 23. His season high of 28 came in RLC’s first game on the schedule – a 102-87 finish over Southern Institute. He had 27 on Jan. 19 at Wabash Valley College.
View Macklin’s complete 2012-13 stats online at http://stats.njcaa.org/sports/mbkb/2012-13/div2/players/cortezmackling7t2.
View the complete All-American list at http://www.njcaa.org/sports_awards.cfm?category=Award%20Winners&sid=5&divid=2&slid=2.
Fundraiser planned in Zeigler
April 12, 2013 By Leave a Comment
By Bruce A. Fasol
The Zeigler Women’s Civic Club has a fundraiser planned for this Saturday, April 13th. They will be hosting a chicken and dumplings lunch, at the Six Mile Township Building on the Circle in Zeigler.
Food will be available from 11 a.m until 1 p.m on Saurday. The meal consists of chicken and dumplings, green beans,slaw, dessert, and drink. Cost is $12 for adults, and $3 for children under age 12. Dine in, or carry-outs will be available. Also, the chicken and dumplings may be purchased by the quart.
Proceeds from the lunch will help toward continuing the many programs in the community that are presented by the club. The Zeigler Women’s Civic Club hosts the Halloween costume contest, the Home Lighting contest, and many other events.
Franklin County Farm Bureau News
April 11, 2013 By Leave a Comment
By J. Larry Miller
Spring has surely arrived as warmer temperatures have caused grass and fields to have greener color. I noticed that the zoysia grass has started to come to life. Zoysia is the first grass to turn brown in the fall and the last grass to turn green in the spring.
Larry Miller, executive director Franklin County Farm Bureau
Some corn has been planted in the county but most are waiting to see if heavy rain will fall into the night on Wednesday and early Thursday. Field work has been limited but if this rain passes without much accumulation work will pickup next week.
Corn and soybeans have taken a negative posture because of higher inventories and lower usage. With a lower crop in 2012, we certainly have found a ceiling on corn prices. We reached $8 corn last fall but it seems that everything now causes a downward slide in new crop prices. How low can prices go with an average crop this year? I do not know but I am betting on lower prices rather than higher and $5 corn this fall should cause farmers to lock in some corn at that price. As a matter of reality, grain prices have a lot of negative possibilities.
As grain prices plateau, there is a question of what will happen to land prices? If the sall of farmland in Perry County on Tuesday evening is any indication, it certainly is not trending lower or leveling off. The Perry County land was 156 acres of which 150 was tillable sold for $7500 per acre. If the bubble pops it will be a loud noise.
American Farm Bureau Federation sent a farm bill proposal to Capitol Hill Monday. Approved this weekend by the AFBF board of directors, the proposal offers a diverse mix of risk management and safety net tools to benefit a wide range of farms and it saves $23 billion compared to the cost of continuing the current program.
Illinoisans struggling to make mortgage payments because their income recently dropped now may find it easier to qualify for a government emergency loan program. Beginning April 1, federal and state agencies raised the total loan assistance cap on the Illinois Hardest Hit Program from $20,000 or $25,000 per family (depending on the county) to $35,000. The program offers temporary mortgage payment assistance to families whose income has fallen at least 20 percent because of recent unemployment or underemployment. For more information www.illinoishardesthit.org is the OFFICIAL website for the Illinois Hardest Hit Fund Program. APPLYING IS FREE. You will not be asked to pay for any services related to this application.
Recent figures from the Center for Disease Control seem to show that our food is getting safer. For 2009-2010, the number of food borne illness outbreaks had decreased by 32% when compared to the previous five years.
We would like to remind everyone that the Franklin County Farm Bureau takes pictures and aids in filling out Firearm Owners Identification Card Applications. The new FOID Cards are good for 10 years but when applying it is taking approximately 90 days once you have sent off your application. For more information call 435-3616.
Remember we are farmers working together. If we can help let us know.
Trivia Night to Benefit Arthritis Foundation
April 11, 2013 By Leave a Comment
Staff Report
It’s time to put your heads together for a good cause. The Arthritis Walk Team from Southern Illinois Healthcare (SIH) will host a trivia night on Friday, April 19, at the American Legion in Murphysboro. All proceeds will benefit the Arthritis Foundation.
The cost per eight member team is $100 in advance, $125 at the door. There will be cash team prizes. Doors will open at 6 p.m. and play will begin at 7 p.m. Participants are welcome to bring their own snacks and a cash bar will be available.
For more information please call Petra Massetto at 1-877-480-4040.
Back in the AFL – Nick Hill will play in Tampa on Friday night
April 11, 2013 By Leave a Comment
By Jim Muir
Nick Hill is going to be racking up some frequent flyer miles.
Confirming what was reported by multiple news outlets on Wednesday, Hill said on Thursday morning that he has signed with the San Antonio Talons of the Arena Football League to play quarterback and replace injured starter John Dutton.
After a serious ankle injury last year Hill said he was through playing and turned down numerous offers to play for other AFL teams.
“Things just worked out with the San Antonio offer,” said Hill. “I can do this but still keep my commitment to coach high school football in Southern Illinois.”
Hill and his wife Alecia recently purchased a home in Carterville and he was hired as offensive coordinator and associate head coach at Carbondale Community High School. Alecia has enrolled at SIU to finish work on her master’s degree. And despite the frantic schedule he will be facing, all of that is still in place, Hill said.
When contacted on Thursday morning Hill was in Orlando and had just completed a physical for the Talons and was traveling later in the day to Tampa to meet his new teammates who are flying in from San Antonio tonight for a game against Tampa Bay on Friday night.
“I will meet the team, and I will have a walk through with them,” Hill said. “Then I will play on Friday night in Tampa … without any practice.”
After the game in Tampa Bay Hill and the Talons will travel to Phoenix, Arizona on April 20 and then to Pittsburgh on April 28.
“We close on our house on April 19, so I will fly from Orlando to St. Louis, drive to Carterville and then fly to Phoenix for a game the next day,” Hill said.
The AFL regular season ends on July 27 and Hill said he plans to keep his commitment to Carbondale football, commuting between San Antonio and Carterville each week.
“I really thought I was through playing but they (San Antonio) presented a great opportunity and I’m excited to be back in the AFL,” said Hill. “And I’m also very excited to be back in Southern Illinois coaching high school football.”
Below is a link to the San Antonio Talons schedule:
www.sanantoniotalons.com/2013-schedule/
Also a link to the Talons website:
Tried every diet plan? Call Holly at American Fitness for the right plan!
April 10, 2013 By Leave a Comment
In a fast-paced world of multi-tasking, activity overload, and drive-thru meals, our society as a whole has grown more and more overweight. While diet and weight loss programs, videos, books, and supplements are a multi-million dollar industry, most offer only a temporary solution at best. Most people who lose weight on one of those programs gain it back, along with several other unwanted pounds, as soon as they go off the program.
If you are one of those people who have tried every diet and every exercise you can imagine, and you have a busy schedule, but need to lose some weight, then what you need is Holly Wangler! Holly is a Health Fitness Specialist from Sesser, IL. She works with clients at American Fitness in Christopher.
Holly offers a customized plan to help you get fit and lose weight the healthy way. On Holly’s plan, there are no fad diets allowed, only healthy eating and regular exercise. Although she starts the same with each client — calculating body fat percentage, and recording weight and measurements – that’s where the similarities end. When asked why she is so successful with her clients, Holly states “Everybody is different. No two people have bodies that respond the same way, so I individualize their training to meet each client’s goals.”
Holly not only helps her clients set their daily caloric goal, but also offers personal training advice to make sure they are getting the most from their daily routines. Her basic nutritional plan is ‘clean eating.’ This simply means to eat food the way nature created it. “Quality, not only quantity, of calories is important. No boxed or frozen meals. Nothing man has had his hands on. No preservatives. Fresh fruits, veggies, whole grains, eggs, nuts, etc. All the things you can grow yourself,” is the way Holly describes the ideal way to eat. She also recommends weaning yourself off diet soda, simply because it isn’t good for you.
To really get an idea of the success possible with Holly as your trainer, we talked with one of her clients. Missy Montgomery has been a client of Holly’s since May of 2011 and has lost over 70 pounds. Hearing Missy talk about Holly seemed like someone talking about their closest personal friend. It was obvious how she feels about Holly. Missy told us how Holly offered her a personal service that was just for her, not the same canned program that she gives everyone.
The accountability of having Holly as your trainer is one of the keys to success. Missy talked about receiving text messages offering nutrition advice, recommending certain products, and even checking in regarding what she had eaten that day. She stated, “I had not been able to do this on my own in the past. It is wonderful to have Holly as a resource and accountability partner. I have grown to think of her not only as a trainer, but as a friend of mine.” She continued, “It is more about a relationship than a quick fix.”
For more information, or to contact Holly about her services, contact American Fitness at 724-4000.
