No one is in The Zone, St. Joseph business closed with TRO

Yesterday, The Zone open its doors for the first time after the Governor J.B. Pritzker issued an executive order temporarily closing all "non-essential" business. Today, upon receipt of a temporary restraining order, the business is closed.

The Zone is being assisted in reopening with the help of attorney Thomas DeVore, who gained recent notoriety after obtaining an exemption from the states shelter-in-place order for State Representative Darren Bailey. DeVore's plate is full as he navigates the state attempting to help small businesses in more than 30 counties reopen in opposition to the governor's executive order.

He sent a letter to Champaign-Urbana Public Health District on May 6 stating that the gym was planning to reopen if they did not take formal, legal action against it by Wednesday.

The CUPHD promptly responded with a cease and desist letter taped to workout facility's door sometime on Tuesday. To the delight of members, The Zone's Facebook page announced the reopening at 8:00 a.m. on Wednesday to the public. Meanwhile, the Champaign County State's Attorney office worked to obtain the TRO.

Erik Hyam, an attorney from the Silver Lake Group, the law firm handling the next stage of The Zone's fight, followed up with a letter to CUPHD administrator Julie Pryde yesterday.

2020.05.13 Letter to Champa... by MarissaMiller on Scribd

Today, around 3:45, about 31 hours into their revival while nearly a dozen clients were working out, The Zone was served with the TRO issued by Champaign County Judge Tom Difanis. According to WAND-TV, patrons were escorted out and the doors locked.

A hearing before Difanis is on the docket for May 21 at 9 am. State’s Attorney Julia Rietz indicated should the business attempt to reopen between now and the court date, the gym could be in contempt of court and suffer civil and criminal penalties.

The Sentinel attempted to reached out to the business owner for comment, but has not received a response.

The Zone also operates gym facilities in Greenville, Metropolis, Shelbyville, Virden and Pana.

The Big Picture: SJO baseball bounces back with 9-4 win over Westville

After dropping a non-conference game against Centennial at home 24 hours earlier, the St. Joseph-Ogden baseball team hosted the Tigers from Westville in Illini Prairie vs Vermilion Valley Conference showdown. The Spartans rolled to a 9-4 win with juniors Joey Acton and Drew Coursey taking turns on the hill.

As we said in our first Big Picture photo page, we were lucky to captured a number of really nice action and feature photos of juniors and a few sophomores that were on the varsity roster last year. The Sentinel is happy to present this page feature members from this year's Class of 2020. This page is sponsored by an anonymous donor.

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This page is sponsored by an anonymous donor. Athletes and parents feel free to download any image on this page to share on your social media platforms, with family and friend or to save with your family memorabilia for generations to come by clicking on any photo you want. The Sentinel is looking for another sponsor for this page. Help us add ten additional images from this game on this Big Picture page. Sponsors will also receive special recognition at the top and bottom of the page so readers know who to thank for their generosity. Ready to sponsor? Click here . . .

2014 SJO graduate Logan DeWeese promoted while working on MBA

Logan DeWeese, a 2014 graduate from St. Joseph-Ogden High School, was recently promoted to Inventory Specialist for College of Engineering at the University of Illinois.

His new duties includes completing property accounting and business-related tasks for the college, inventory processing for required reporting, maintaining updates as well as revising inventory and equipment records.

Concurrently, DeWeese is also work on his MBA through an executive program through SIU-E. His area of concentration is business analytics and he will finish the program this August.

"I felt this masters degree would give me a wide range of business career opportunities in the business environment," he said. "Also data analytics are a growing industry that I have a strong interest in."

His program has a 15 credit hour limit per semester and is designed to accommodate working professionals. There is no mandatory meeting times.

Due to the U of I campus closing down due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Deweese said he was only on campus with his new job for about two months before the shutdown.

"I have been working home for about two months now," he explained. "Certainly one challenge is getting to know all the staff, and the other would be remembering where all the buildings are."

After leaving SJO when he graduated, DeWeese attended Parkland College for two years. Earning an Associates degree in General Studies, he transferred to Eastern Illinois University to continues his studies picking up a Bachelor of Science in Management Information Systems.

For student who want to go to college but may not have the resources to for a four-year institution, he says they should consider starting with at two-year program.

"Attending a community college like Parkland or others community colleges in the area, allows you to save money and isn't costly to change your major as it would be at a four year university or private school," he explained. "I highly advise that high school graduates who don't have a scholarship, financial aid assistance, or grants not go straight into a four-year university depending on your financial circumstances."

He said his involvement in high school sports has paid dividends.

"Playing football in high school really installed in me how to operate and function in a team mentality which can be very crucial in a workplace environment. Making sacrifices and adjustments are all part of the process," DeWeese said. It has helped him "to make sound decisions in any situation."

Prior to his acceptance into the MBA program and taking a position at the University, DeWeese was an Inventory Controller and Delivery Coordinator at Menards in Champaign nearly six years.

He's pumped to play college soccer, Spartan Spotlight with Brayden Grimsey

If you know Brayden Grimsey, sports, and more specifically soccer, is a huge part of his life. He loves the rush of dribbling and passing, mounting an offense attack while pushing the ball down the field.

The soccer, a sport he has been playing since the age of 5, will continue to be a large part of his life. For the next four years he will play at the collegiate lever at Illinois College starting this August.

But, when asked to choose between having a Prom, a spring sports season or graduation his senior year, sports took a back seat.

"Well, I wont lie," the player from last fall's soccer team that was probably most underappreciated asset on the pitch. Grimsey, who also runs track, was sentimental about his choice. "I want to say sports but there is nothing more important than graduation and walking across the stage with my class."

The St. Joseph native enjoys playing video games, being outside, and playing basketball and soccer. He also has a creative, artistic side, although he said he has done much with it other than what he has produced for his art classes at SJO.

Like most students at the high school, finishing his senior year at home through electronic conferencing was less than satisfying, certainly not ideal.

"I dont like it! (I) miss my teachers, friends and the atmosphere," he explained. "Being home is nice for a while because you can sleep in and do homework whenever."

Understandable. It is hard to make lasting teenage memories quasi-trapped in quarantine-like confinement.

His greatest memories at SJO include playing soccer with his friends on the field, going to home football games, and qualifying for the IHSA Track and Field State Competition during his junior year.

Hoping to make a repeat, consecutive trip to the state meet, Grimsey competed in three indoor meets this spring before the COVID-19 pandemic forced athletic events around the country to a unwelcomed halt. Out of the eight events he ran in his final season as a Spartan, his 4x200-meter relay squad placed first at the UNI Indoor meet on February 21.

Now that track is over and high school classes done for the semester today, he can focus on the next chapter of his life. He is jazzed about playing soccer at the next level.

"I'm PUMPED!" he exclaimed. "I'm looking forward to playing at this level, a dream of mine for a long time. I'm hoping to contribute to a new team and coach with a winning season."

You will be able to get a glimpse of Grimsley in his new uniform on August 23 in Decatur when the Blueboys take on Millikin University in a preseason scrimmage.

Majoring in Human Services, the two-sport athlete isn't sure what he will do after college.

"I hoping to be a a part of an athletic team," he said. "Graduate school is something I'm open to."

However, his dream job would working with a professional soccer team. He said it would be great to work around so many amazing players that he idolizes.

The four-year veteran has a little advice for teammates he leaving behind: "Keep your heads up, never give up and always play with your heart," he says. "I'll be back to watch!"

Meanwhile, for incoming freshmen students, he said they should enjoy their time in high school because it goes by so fast.

Grimsey's favorite classes at SJO were all of his science-related classes with Mrs. Jeanna Kerner and Mrs. Stacey Kietzman, two of his favorite teachers. He also enjoy every class he he ad with Mr. Don Beckett. He singled out Mrs. Kirk at St. Joseph Grade School and Mr. Steele at St. Joseph Middle School as two other teachers he really liked before entering high school.

"Mrs. Kietzman is a very sweet kind teacher who has always encouraged me and supported me," he said. "Mrs. Kerner, I wont lie she is pretty relaxed and very honest, and her sarcasm and humor matches mine."

As mentioned earlier, Grimsey like to play videos games in his free time. He likes Call of Duty, FIFA and NBA2K. If e-gaming was an IHSA sport and there was a state trophy at stake, he left no doubt his Spartan gaming team would bring home hardware like every other sport at SJO. With his five-man special ops team comprised of himself along with covert buddies Zac, Downing, Trevon, and Wes, they would be a superior gaming force for the competition to reckon with.

"We are Call of Duty gods. We'd take 'em down."