Our view: Thumbs up! To fall sports, community theater and giving season
THUMBS UP! To Pantagraph area fall sports. Both the football and volleyball state championships will be held on the campus of Illinois State University, and the Bloomington-Normal area will be well-represented. Central Catholic and El Paso-Gridley advanced to the IHSA Class 2A State Volleyball Tournament at Redbird Arena, with Normal West narrowly missing out in Class 4A. Though football teams still have two more wins to go to reach state, LeRoy, Gibson City-Melvin-Sibley, Normal Community, University High and Dwight are all still alive and will play in the quarterfinals on Saturday. Good luck to all of our area teams competing this weekend.
THUMBS UP! To looking forward. As we are all still catching our breath from a whirlwind presidential election, Central Illinoisans are now also turning their focus to the spring. Consolidated elections will be upon us soon, and we will have a chance to weigh in on more local races, selecting the people who represent you on the local school board, city council, park district and township boards and in the mayor's office. Here's hoping for a positive exchange of ideas from honest candidates looking out for local constituents and effecting change in the heartland.
A NOD, to the veto session. Illinois lawmakers returned to Springfield this week for the fall legislative session. Before the election, the agenda for this veto session was unclear, as Gov. JB Pritzker did not veto any bills this year. But the governor is now saying he hopes the General Assembly will use this time to address policies that could be affected by President-elect Donald Trump's return to the White House. The list of possibilities (including issues not related to federal influence) is long and the deficit significant, so it appears all are hoping for a productive, if brief, session.
THUMBS UP! To giving season. A chill in the air and sparkling lights beginning to appear — sure signs the season of giving is here. We are grateful so many Central Illinoisans take the holidays as an opportunity to give back, and there's no shortage of ways to do so. Donate your time, spirit, toys, shares, funds or food to help your fellow community members in need this season, and share a little holiday joy, too.
THUMBS UP! To community theater. Local community theater proves to us time and time again how lucky we are to have so many talented people on our local stages. They offer stellar performances throughout the year, but as we approach the holidays and an extra busy time, we are impressed by their hard work and dedication in bringing so many shows to our local audiences. Bravo!
