Peru's Pouncing Panthers 4-H Club got the city to "go green" for National 4-H Week. Club president Landon Uzumecki and vice president Abby Redmon asked the Peru City Council at its Sept. 21 meeting for permission to decorate two city landmarks, and the council approved displays at Maud Powell Plaza and the Peoria Street roundabout. Club members and younger Cloverbuds helped put the displays together, the Schneider family donated pumpkins and broom corn from their pumpkin stand, and Cloverbud Evan Parsons and his parents handed out 4-H suckers and pencils at the Illinois Valley YMCA's Trunk or Treat on Oct. 10. The club, active since the mid-1990s, is open to kids 8 to 18, with Cloverbuds for ages 5 to 7. It meets at 6:30 p.m. on the third Tuesday of each month at the First Congregational Church in Peru, and its next meeting will be a 4-H open house for the community.
Christmas at Canal Market is coming back to Utica on Saturday and Sunday, Nov. 28 and 29. Shoppers can stop by the Canal Market from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. both days to browse antiques, holiday decorations, custom T-shirts and more.
Peru's Halloween celebration drew a good crowd to Washington Park on Saturday, with mild weather helping turnout. Rides in an aerial truck were one of the biggest hits of the day, and families also found a ghost rider, an inflatable alien and plenty of treats to go around.
OSF HealthCare Saint Elizabeth Medical Center in Peru has expanded its automated breast ultrasound screening, known as ABUS, to five days a week, up from two days when the service started. The exam is meant for patients with dense breast tissue, which can hide cancer on a mammogram because dense tissue and tumors both show up white on the images. ABUS uses sound waves instead of radiation to build three-dimensional images, takes about 15 minutes and is done alongside a regular screening mammogram, not instead of one. OSF says that in the two years the Peru hospital has offered it, providers have found several breast cancers smaller than one centimeter that mammograms alone missed. Patients who have been told they have dense breasts are encouraged to ask their primary care provider whether ABUS is right for them. More information is at osfhealthcare.org/breast-health.
The annual Starved Rock Photography Show is back at the Starved Rock State Park Visitor Center. Photographers can turn in entries at the visitor center from Nov. 1 through Nov. 30. Photos must show North American wildlife, plants or landscapes, and entrants must be at least 18 years old. The entries will be displayed at the visitor center during December and judged Dec. 5, with an awards reception planned for Jan. 2.
The La Salle County Historical Society will hold "Lincoln's Carriage in the Snow," a paint night fundraiser, at 6 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 19, at the Heritage Center in Utica. Lucy of Painting Parties by Lucy will lead participants as they paint the carriage Abraham Lincoln rode to the debate site in Ottawa. The carriage itself is on display in the Historical Society's museum. The society calls it the first event of its kind it has held.
Financial Plus Credit Union has reopened its Peru branch at 2813 Plaza Drive after a renovation and marked the occasion with a ribbon cutting alongside the Illinois Valley Area Chamber of Commerce. The credit union said the remodel was meant to improve the experience for members, and it noted that it is a member-owned cooperative open to the community. The Peru branch is open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Friday, and 9 a.m. to noon Saturday. More information is available at financialplus.org.
The La Salle County Historical Society will host "The Day the Music Died" from 1 to 3 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 31, at the Heritage Center in Utica. Streator native Tommy Canale, author of "Shadows Over Clear Lake: The Tragic Tale of the 1959 Winter Dance Party," will talk about the plane crash that killed Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, the Big Bopper and their pilot. Since the program falls on Halloween, guests are encouraged to come in costume. The Historical Society is also holding a Military Exhibit Open House from 10 a.m. to noon Sunday, Nov. 1, at the Heritage Center, ahead of the Veterans Parade and Air Show that starts at 1 p.m., with goodie bags for veterans and light refreshments for visitors.
The 2027 Starved Rock and Matthiessen State Parks calendar is now on sale throughout Starved Rock Country and online. More than 350 photos were submitted by professional photographers, tourists and avid hikers, and the final calendar features images from 13 contributors, mixing recreation, landscapes, nature and wildlife. Tonti Canyon at Starved Rock is on the front cover. The calendar costs $25 at participating local retailers or $27 online through Starved Rock Hikers. All proceeds go to the Starved Rock Foundation to support projects, educational programs, visitor experiences and other needs at Starved Rock and Matthiessen State Parks.
OSF HealthCare Saint Paul Medical Center in Mendota will hold a free hands-only CPR class from 9:30 to 11 a.m. Monday, Nov. 16. The session is for people who want to learn CPR but don't need a job-required CPR eCard, and it teaches simple techniques that can help keep someone alive until emergency responders arrive. OSF says it's a good fit for new parents, grandparents, babysitters, coaches, community groups and anyone who wants to be ready to help in a cardiac emergency, and no experience is needed. The class meets in Conference Room C at the medical center, 1401 E. 12th St. in Mendota. It's free, but registration is required by emailing [email protected] or calling 815-431-5277. People who need CPR certification for work should ask Community Education about certification courses.
Restoring the pipe organ in La Salle-Peru Township High School's Matthiessen Auditorium is estimated to cost $500,000 to $550,000, and the L-P Foundation is expected to lead the fundraising. The 1929 Aeolian organ was described at the October board meeting as one of only about three of its kind still working in the United States, and the Building and Grounds Committee's report puts its value at about $1.75 million, though the district hasn't received the written valuation yet. Superintendent Clayton Theisinger said the district hasn't set aside money for the project and has no immediate plans to. The effort does have a head start: donations from a giving program started years ago are already earmarked for the organ, a new blower and blower room have been paid for, and a second organ of the same type in district storage could supply parts.
Illinois Valley Community College faculty will get a 5.5% total increase in the first year of a new two-year contract the IVCC Board approved Tuesday. The deal with Local 1810 of the American Federation of Teachers includes a 3.5% raise, matching increases elsewhere on campus, plus a 2% market adjustment in year one, followed by a 3.5% raise in year two. It also raises overload pay, adjusts the salary schedule for new hires and updates the voluntary retirement incentive program. In other business, the board authorized a $3.6 million general obligation bond issue to build up the district's working cash fund, started work on the 2026 tax levy, approved furniture and shelving for the renovated IT department and Academic Support Center, approved audio-visual upgrades for 10 classrooms, and set college calendars for 2027 through 2029.
