Pet adoption is on the rise across Central Illinois, as one animal shelter recorded significant amounts of pet adoptions last month.… MORE
Category Archives: WJBC’s Top Stories
Bloomington-Normal hospitals nearing capacity; officials report 35 new cases of COVID-19
McLean County hospitals are nearing capacity, as health officials report 32 McLean County residents are hospitalized with COVID-19.… MORE
Illinois House lawmakers debating clean energy proposal
House lawmakers are discussing a new clean energy proposal.… MORE
Bloomington Fire Dept. holding 9/11 memorial on Saturday honoring the 20-year anniversary
Saturday marks 20-years since the terror attacks on Sept. 11, 2001, and Bloomington’s Fire Chief wants the younger generation to remember those who lost their lives.… MORE
Annual music festival returns to Uptown Normal
By Neil Doyle NORMAL – Make Music Normal is making its return this weekend with multiples stages and regional acts spanning all genres. The event kicks off Friday from 5-10 p.m. in Uptown Normal. It also runs Saturday from 1-10 p.m. Town of Normal Civic Arts Manager Adam Fox spoke with WJBC’s Scott Miller. “We want…… MORE
Leader of McLean County’s largest school district gets 4% pay raise
By HOI ABC NORMAL – The Unit 5 School Board is extending the contract of Superintendent Kristen Weikle and also giving her a 4% raise after she received a positive performance review. Weikle has been on the job since early 2020 and has had to guide the district through the COVID-19 pandemic. For her efforts, the…… MORE
Former Governor Bruce Rauner back in Springfield for a visit
By Dave Dahl SPRINGFIELD – He is not governor anymore and does not even live in Illinois anymore. But Bruce Rauner does visit Springfield occasionally to see friends and go hunting – doves, this week. In what he says is his first interview since leaving office in 2019, he tells WJBC News why he thinks…… MORE
Former Normal Community football coach Dick Tharp has died
By Neil Doyle NORMAL – Former Normal Community football coach Dick Tharp, the school’s winningest coach with 158 victories, passed away Tuesday at the age of 90. Unit 5 made the announcement Wednesday in a social media post. Tharp was in attendance last week as the school renamed the football field in his honor. He spoke…… MORE
Armyworms invading Central Illinois yards
Large groups of worms called “armyworms” are overtaking yards in central Illinois, leaving grass and plants dead in their path.… MORE
Statue of Ronald Reagan could join others outside the statehouse
A young Abraham Lincoln stands watch over Second Street in front of the state Capitol, but he was not born in Illinois. Ronald Reagan was. And it’s possible a young Reagan could join Lincoln and others outside the statehouse.… MORE
Blogs
Labor Day – Expanding voting rights for all
By Mike Matejka Because of COVID, there is no Labor Day Parade this year. It’s always a great event for our everyday workers to march proudly down the street and enjoys the festive crowd. If there had been a parade, this year’s Labor Day theme was to be “150 years of struggle: your right to vote.” …
Is federal mobilization the answer?
By Mike Matejka As President Donald Trump threatens to send federal marshals into Chicago, over the objections of Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker, recall another Illinois Governor who protested the incursion of armed federal personnel into the city. Those federal troops, rather than calming, escalated the situation, leading to deaths and violence. Illinois poet Vachel Lindsay…
In these troubled times, to my fellow white Americans
By Mike Matejka Our nation is at a unique watershed in human relations. African-Americans have been killed too many times in the past before George Floyd, but the response to this man’s death is international and all-encompassing. I was a grade-schooler during the Civil Rights 1960s. I watched Birmingham demonstrators hosed and the Selma – Montgomery…
Workers’ Memorial Day – Remember those whose job took their life
Looking around our community, when we say employer, most will respond to State Farm, Country, or Illinois State University. We too often forget those who are building our roads, serving our food, or our public employees. COVID-19 has made us more aware of the risk. Going to work every day for some people means…