Regional Media Podcast Network

Kewanee Mayor Gary Moore joined Wake Up Tri-Counties on Tuesday morning, January 23rd, 2024. The Mayor was on hand to wrap up Monday's Kewanee City Council Meeting. During our conversation the Mayor discussed the decision to join up with the all new Henry County Tourism Board. The collapse of the previous Tourism Board came shortly after Kewanee pulled out over questions regarding why Kewanee wasn't more prominently featured in tourism campaigns. Mayor Moore tells WKEI that this time, with representation at Tourism Board Meetings, he's convinced that Kewanee will get fair treatment by the Tourism Board. Also on Monday night, Kewanee renewed a contract to provide Ambulance Service to Neponset, and the City Council declared excess Police Radios that have since been entirely replaced by StarComm Radios.

Nan Crossman returns to chat with Sparks about the upcoming Battle of the Brushes painting competition at the Macomb Arts Center on Saturday, January 27th. This is the sixth time the MAC has held the event, and this year's competition comes with a twist as competitors will be painting in teams through each round they're in. 

In addition to viewing the painters as they create their pieces, attendees will be able to enjoy food, partake in the cash bar, and get entered for raffles to win the artwork being created during the competition. 

Tickets for the Battle of the Brushes are available for pre-order now through Thursday at macombartscenter.org/events for $25, or will be available for purchase at the door for $30. 

For more information, visit the Macomb Arts Center website or their Facebook page.

Are you looking to volunteer at a place where you can make a big difference? Perhaps you are retired and looking for volunteer work to enrich your time? OSF Volunteer Services has volunteer opportunities in a number of areas at both OSF Saint Luke Medical Center and OSF Saint Clair Medical Center in Princeton. Brenda Streit and Samantha Rux, along with a special guest volunteer, joined Wake Up Tri-Counties on Monday, January 22nd, to talk about volunteer services at OSF Healthcare. You can volunteer immediately by contacting either OSF location and asking for Volunteer Services.

The Superintendent of Kewanee School District, Dr. Chris Sullens joined Wake Up Tri-Counties on Thursday, January 18th, to look back on Tuesday's Kewanee School Board Meeting. Among the topics of conversation were the Kewanee FFA Chapter which was in attendance on Tuesday and praised for the remarkable successes they've had during the 2023-2024 school year. Also on hand and honored at Tuesday's meeting were members of the KHS Drama Department who were praised for their rousing performances of Spongebob Squarepants The Musical over the weekend, a show that was highly praised by everyone who saw it.

Though bad weather prevented the Kewanee Public Library from hosting their Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day celebration as planned on Dr. King's Birthday, January 15th, it's not stopping the celebration. Etta La Flora with Sunshine Community Services joined Wake Up Tri-Counties to let everyone know that the celebration planned for the 15th is now happening on Saturday, January 20th, 2024. The public, and especially the kids, are invited to the library to hear about the remarkable work of Dr. King, enjoy a cake in Dr. King's honor, and receive take home crafts to help kids learn more about Dr. King. The celebration of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr will take place from 10:30 until 12 Noon at the Kewanee Public Library on Saturday, January 20th.

It's Radon Awareness Month and the Henry and Stark County Health Department have Radon Detectors available at their locations in Kewanee, Colona and Toulon, Radon is second leading cause of Lung Cancer behind smoking and because it is odorless it can exist in your home undetected. A radon detection kit can help you find out if you have Radon in your home ad the Health Department has resources for you if you do find Radon in your home. RaeAnn Tucker from the Henry and Stark County Health Department talked about Radon with us in this Wake Up Tri-Counties interview along with Season Affective Disorder or SAD, a common occurrence during the winter months that can be helped with the aid of Behavioral Health Specialists at First Choice Healthcare.

Katie Laleman from the Henry County Farm Bureau was our guest this week on Wake Up Tri-Counties to talk about Bushels for Hunger. Total donations for this year's Bushels for Hunger campaign are set to be announced soon and these numbers demonstrate what we have always known, our farmers are some of the most generous people we know. Katie also talk about Ag in the Classroom and a special movie presentation from the Farm Bureau. The movie Silo is about a grain bin rescue and the film has been hailed by many for it's accuracy in portraying what a rescue from a grain bin would look like. The free screening of Silo will take place on February 8th at 6:30 PM at the Geneseo High School Performing Arts Center.

Kewanee Third Grader Jailynn Perez joined Wake Up Tri-Counties with The Good News about No Name Calling Week.