Three Stark County residents have died from COVID-19 in just the last month. That's the word from the Henry and Stark County Health Department. It's a reminder that though the pandemic has peaked and is in decline in many ways, the virus still can be dangerous. That said, both Henry and Stark County remain at a low level for the number of infections and for the number of hospital beds needed for the care of COVID-19 patients. There is a new variant of the Omicron variation of COVID-19 but RaeAnn Tucker tells WKEI that the new variant, though highly transmissible, does not require any new warnings. Rather, the same ways of avoiding getting COVID-19 still apply. If you're concerned about catching COVID-19 you should avoid congregate indoor spaces, large outdoor crowds or you should consider wearing a mask in these situations. The best advice however, remains getting vaccinated. Vaccination is the one way you can avoid the worst of the dangers of COVID-19.

Holly Cronk is a member of the Nodaway County Fair Board. Holly joined me this morning to talk about what folks can expect at this years Nodaway County Fair!

Long time Kewanee Library Director Barbara Love has announced her retirement. Barbara will be stepping away at the end of July following a terrific tenure at the head of the library. In her time, Barbara led the way to modernizing the library, embracing social media, and creating as much community engagement as possible via various library programs. Her leadership at the library and as a volunteer with various other community projects has been invaluable to the entire community. On Wednesday, July 20th, at 2 Pm, the public is invited to wish Barbara Love well on her retirement and indulge in her love of outer space exploration. The Popular Astronomy Club of the Quad Cities will be on hand for a presentation that will include a solar filtered telescope and lessons on Solar Flares, Meteors and more. It's a favorite topic of Barbara's and following the presentation from 3 Pm to 6 Pm you can stay and mingle and thank Barbara while enjoying refreshments and taking part in space activities and crafts.

Katie Pratt-Lee County 4-H Fair and Jr. Show by Regional Media

The Henry County Farm Bureau Safety Committee will host Safety Starts on Your Farm event on July 21st, 2022. This free community event is focused on Safety. The event will be held in the parking lot of the Geneseo Brewing Company from 5 Pm to 7 Pm. The event will include several vendors and stations for Grain Bin Safety information, Groundwater Protection, ATV and Bicycle Safety, and the Ag Equipment Driving Simulator which allows users to experience what it is like to drive large farm equipment on the road. All are welcome to attend and the whole event is free of charge. Katie Laleman and Kate Huffman with the Henry County Farm Bureau were our guests on Wake Up Tri-Counties on WKEI.

Samantha Rux and Kathy Foes with OSF Healthcare joined Wake Up Tri-Counties this week. Kathy, with the OSF Foundation, wants you to know that you can help the OSF Healthcare Children's Hospital of Illinois. Contact the OSF Foundation if you'd like to set up a fundraiser to support the work of The Children's Hospital of Illinois. The OSF Healthcare Foundation has tips and help for you in setting up fundraisers to help OSF care for children at the Children's Hospital of Illinois. More on setting up fundraisers to support healthcare for children in our conversation with Samantha Rux and Kathy Foes.

Rock Falls Rotary on WSDR by Regional Media

Country music superstar Kip Moore is set to headline The Back Road Music Festival in Galva on August 13th. Moore leads a terrific lineup that includes rising stars Callista Clark and Jameson Rodgers and veteran country music star Jerrod Niemann. Kip Moore talked with Wake Up Tri-Counties this week about his remarkable career, his approach to writing songs, the remarkable diversity of his music and his incredibly loyal fanbase who never fail to turn out wherever Kip Moore is performing. Get your tickets for The back Road Music Festival online by going to TheBackRoadMusicFestival.com.

Chickens were on the menu... or rather, the agenda, for the Kewanee City Council on Monday, July 11th, 2022. There were only two items, both discussion only topics at the meeting and the one everyone is talking about today is Chickens and whether or not the City of Kewanee should allow for backyard Chickens in the City of Kewanee. 20 people, each claiming to be in favor of allowing backyard chickens in the City of Kewanee came to Monday night's meeting and called on the City Council to make raising chickens legal in the Kewanee City Limits. Also on the agenda was a discussion regarding a potential partnership between the City of Kewanee and Henry County regarding addressing the issues at the so called Boiler Property in Kewanee. Listen to our conversation with the Mayor of Kewanee on Tuesday's Wake Up Tri-Counties.

Jeanette co owner of Herbs N Whey (a privately owned natural supplement retail outlet in Maryville) stopped in to talk about their 25th Anniversary and the events at the store to celebrate it.