
GoFundMe set up for families of fatal crash in Rushville

American Legion to host fish fry benefit for Troop 40

Savoy church to hosts Thanksgiving basket fundraiser this Saturday

With Arms Open Wide benefit concert at the Rose Bowl
Crisis Nursery to host Pinwheel Garden for fundraiser
SJO FFA to host auction fundraiser this Saturday
Fundraiser for future local Olympic figure skater ends next week
Girl Scout cookies are coming and Troop 2945 is ready
Girl Scout Troop 2945
GoFundMe campaign established for St. Joseph veteran who lost home to fire
Troop 1956 offering holiday Candy Cane Hunts
Spartan volleyball team to host scholarship fundraiser at October 5 home match

Join us on October 5th, as our program raises money to continue Coach Duval’s legacy and passion for the success of student-athletes.@SagesAthletics @SJOsports #MakeItCount #DoItForDuval pic.twitter.com/HnuQwWqmXu
— SJO Volleyball (@SJOVolleyball) September 9, 2021
SJO FFA plant sale coming soon
"We chose to push it back a week from last year to allow us to get a little closer to our Illinois frost free days, and because I have students this year that are working the greenhouse," wrote FAA faculty advisor Darcy Nekolny on Facebook. "We look forward to seeing everyone in two weeks!"
This will be the organizations third installment of the plant sale. It is a chance for students at SJO to get practical horticultural experience. Proceeds from the sale is to support the school's greenhouse operation help expand students practical knowledge on agriculture and growing practices.
Vegetables that will be available include San Marzano Roma tomatoes, Better Boy tomatoes, a yellow tomatoes, jalapeno peppers, cucumbers, broccoli and cauliflower. There will also be a selection of herbs including red basil, basil, rosemary, thyme, and spearmint.
Decorative flower and ornamental for sale include coneflowers, daylilies, hostas, begonias, impatiens and more.
Credit card only pre-orders will be taken via the same ChedderUp platform used last year. Shoppers can purchase plant in-person with cash or check only.
More information will be available on the FFA's Facebook page.
Village Crier: Youth summer sport programs open for registration
Summer softball registration in St. Joseph closes soon
St. Joseph Summer Softball is now underway. This year's registration fee will include the $5 village fee. Parents will to register online with a credit card.
The program will not have a separate age division for girls four years-old or in kindergarten this year. The organization is encouraging parents with kids in the age group to play Bitty Ball or T-Ball through the St. Joseph Youth Baseball program.
Questions can be sent by email to stjosephsummersoftball@gmail.com. Registration closes on February 21.
Unity FFA pork chop lunch next week
The Unity FFA is celebrating FFA Week next week with their annual pork chop lunch. The drive through service will take place on the UHS east drive on Wednesday, February 24 from 11:00am - 12:45pm. Pork chop sandwiches are $5 each with proceeds going toward supporting the FFA program. Customers can get a meal deal for an additional $2, which will include chips, drink, and cookies.
Sidney summer ball sign up this weekend
Sidney Baseball/Softball/Tball signups will be held this Saturday from 10am to 12pm at the new Sidney Community Building located at 211 E Main Street in Sidney. An additional sign up day is scheduled for February 22 from 5:30-7:30pm. Ages groups are ages five and six for T-Ball and ages 7-15 for baseball and softball athletes. Registration cost is $55.
Questions or if parents are unable to make it to the in-person registration dates, they are encouraged to send a message to (217)649-7450.
Annual Chili Dinner in Sidney next week
The Sidney Fire Protection District will host its annual chili dinner on February 27 at the new community building, located at 211 East Main, from 4-7pm. The dinner will be available only through drive-through service. Toppings, hotdogs and drinks will be provided with the meal.
Sidney Fire Department cancer awareness shirts will also be available for purchase. Donations help support the local district's firefighter association.
Spots still available in Tolono virtual raffle
The Tolono Firefighters Association is doing a virtual raffle for a $500 Allen Meats Gift Card. Tickets for the drawing are $10 a piece and limited to the first 100 sold. Tickets can be purchased through Venmo or PayPal.
As of yesterday there were 34 tickets still available for the drawing. For more information visit the Tolono Firefighters Association page on Facebook.
Area COVID cases dips to 3-month low
Yesterday there were just 46 active Coronavirus cases across the six villages The Sentinel covers. The last time there fewer than 50 active cases in our area was back on November 13 of last year. A day later, that number surged to 60 and continued to rise from there to a peak of 142 active cases on several days.
The Champaign-Urbana Public Health District reported the number of cases rose by five today.
The agency's dashboard now includes mortality data for Champaign County. Out of the 1,427 cases identified in our area, eight individuals lost their lives to the virus. Two individuals from Ogden, four from Tolono along with one resident from Sidney and St. Joseph succumbed after being infected. As of today, 123 county residents have died from the viral infection since March of 2020.
Put it On The Market
Do you have a home for sale in one of our six communities? The Sentinel would like to highlight it in the upcoming new local real estate feature called On The Market.
Each calendar week our online paper will pick a residential property from those submitted for consideration to promote to our audience. With over 700 readers daily, The Sentinel hopes the new section will direct more potential buyers and competitive offers to sellers in our area. For more submission information, sellers and agents can contact us at editor@oursentinel.com.
Show us your art
We know there are more artists in our area. We just haven't met you yet but would enjoy seeing fruits of your creativity. If you paint, draw, sculpt or do metal work, The Sentinel would love to feature your work and share your artistic talent. Do you spend hours at the potter's wheel, dabble in mixed-media, do glass-work or design jewelry pieces? We would like to hear from you.
If you are interested in having your work featured in a story, please send a brief bio in an email with a link to your website or a online gallery featuring your work to editor@oursentinel.com. We very much look forward to sharing your passion and vision with our readers.
As time and space allows we will publish details for upcoming community events. Please send your business, social or community organization's press release or event information at least four days in advance to The Sentinel at editor@oursentinel.com.
Photo of the Day - January 9, 2021
Village Crier: December 23, 2020

Dairy Barn pick up December 28
The Sidney Dairy Barn online shop is open for business at sidneydairybarn.com. While the location is closed for indoor dining, new online orders will be available on Monday, December 28, from 3-6pm. Tire Swings, Tornado home kits, freezes, shakes and more are available.Go-Fund-Me to help April set up
Subway manager Adam Porter created a GoFundMe page for assistant manager April Patton, who suffered a stroke last week. "I started this campaign because I know she is going to miss a lot of work and I wanted to try to relieve some of the stress financially," Porter said. "I hope that we are able to help reduce some of her stress and help out her family." Contributions and donation to help the mother of three while she is unable to work and for medical expenses can be made here: April Patton GoFundMe.Lil Buford's Wednesday's special
Today's special is a breaded or grilled tenderloins with hand cut fries at the 102 N Long location in Tolono. Meals are available for dine in or carry out. Call for more information at 217-485-5500.Tolono garbage pick-up will run as scheduled
Chris' Service Company be picking up on Friday, Christmas Day, as normal. For more route information call (217) 684-2465.RC Fest set for next summer
RC FEST: CREATORS OF CHAOS will be held at Tolono's East Side Park July 31 through August 1. The event features radio controlled car races to raise awareness for donating blood. All proceeds goes to Community Blood Services of Illinois. 2020 was the tenth year of the event created by Tolono resident Adam Munds. "I got the idea because there was a need for a RC event and I needed platelets when I was born. So blood donation was very close to me," Munds said. Munds' event this year had 186 entries. With competitors coming from Detroit, Michigan and North Carolina. He said he is expecting teams from Massachusetts, North Carolina and South Dakota to take part in this summer's fest.Mean Mugz Bar & Grill offering spicy deal
Mean Mugz at 121 Sout East Ave in Ogden has a hearty Po'Boy meal deal for today and tomorrow, December 24. Order a Classic or Cajun burger, a chicken or steak Philly sandwich, or a catfish and a 64oz Rigg's Growler-to-Go for just $20. Call (217) 582-8029 to order for carryout or more information.Health permits suspended
Permits for two Sentinel area eateries were suspended by Champaign County public health officials for operating in defiance of the state's pandemic mitigation efforts. Lil Buford’s at 102 N. Long in Tolono, and Billy Bob’s at 105 E. Broadway in Ogden join Merry-Ann’s Dinner in Champaign; the American Legion Post 71 in Urbana; Apple Dumplin’ at 2014 N. High Cross Road, U; Not Too Far Bar at 203 Chapin St., Ivesdale; and Red Wheel restaurant at 741 Broadmeadow in Rantoul on a list of county bar and restaurant operations cited for continuing indoor service despite warnings multiple warnings.Philo Tav announces holiday hours
The Philo Tavern will be closed for Christmas Eve and Christmas but reopen for normal business hours on Saturday. According to their Facebook page "... due to COVID and public health regulations, we are unable to provide our usual Christmas Eve special of free fried chicken. This was hard for us to do, as this year is the year that our customers deserve THE MOST appreciation for all you’ve done for us." "We know that without you, we wouldn’t exist and for that, we sincerely thank all of you and wish you all to have a fun and safe holiday!"SJCOC to hold Christmas Eve services
The St. Joseph Church of Christ host Christmas Eve services at 4:00p, 6:00p, and 11:00p. Each serivce will include a candlelight ceremony in the service. Masks are strongly encouraged, especially as you are making your way to your seat, and seating will be at recommended social distance. The 4:00p service is almost full, according to the latest post on Facebook. There is still ample space in the 6:00p and 11:00p services. The 6:00 services will be live streamed. Interested worshipers can find the link on the SJCOC Facebook page.Subway manager starts GoFundMe campaign to help employee
With Christmas just around the corner and learning that she would not be able to return to work until the doctors find out why the nine-year veteran at the sandwich shop suffered the medical episode, Porter started an effort to help the mother of three financially.
"We, as a team, decided to donate all of our tips to her from this pay period, which ended up being around $250 for her," Porter said, who learned during the interview that Patton won’t be able to work for over a month according to her doctors. "She’s really great to work with because she is super hard working, she does everything perfectly and puts effort into all aspects of the job. She’s such a caring person who wants the best for everyone and always has a positive attitude."
Porter, who started managing the St. Joseph location five months ago, has known Patton for three years. He said she and two of her children, who also work at Subway, are like family to him.
Realizing his star employee will be overwhelmed with medical expenses, he decided to create a GoFundMe campaign to help Patton and her family.
"I started this campaign because I know she is going to miss a lot of work and I wanted to try to relieve some of the stress financially," Porter said. "I hope that we are able to help reduce some of her stress and help out her family."
In his campaign pitch he wrote: "She is a great employee and deserves the world and every little donation helps. The doctors are still running more tests to try to figure out what exactly happened. She can’t work while she is in the hospital, and I wish she can focus on her recovery rather than financial issues since she will be out of work for a period of time that is not yet known."
In less than 24 hours the campaign has received $360 of the $3,000 goal. Residents and customers who would like to contribute to the fund or would like more information can follow this like to the GoFundMe campaign.
SJO senior organizing a holiday parade for Dec. 19

St. Joseph resident creates fund to help front-line, essential workers

SJO Fan Club fundraiser orders due November 24
"It's the only fundraiser fan club is doing this year. Because of Covid and the uncertainty of sports seasons, there was no good way to do the all athletic fundraisers that we've done the past few years," Tammy Vallee said. "I know I'd never be able to complete the list of what the funds are spent on, but each sport receives funds to spend on items they need. The fan club purchases larger items as they become needed as well, such as weight room updates and equipment that were added this past year."
With Christmas just around the corner, Spartan fans can email their name, email address, cell phone number and shirt sizes to tammyvallee@comcast.net or via Facebook Messenger. Payment can then be mailed or dropped off at 800 East Lincoln, St Joseph, IL, 61873. Checks must be made payable to SJO Fan Club. All payment and orders must be received by Tuesday, November 24.
Shirts can also be ordered with a student at the high school, who can submit orders and deposit payments at the check-in doors when they arrive at school in the morning.
The fan club expects T-shirt orders to be available for pickup the week of December 14.
The $10 T-shirts are available in sizes from youth through adult XL are available for $10 each. Extended sizes are also available at slightly higher prices with 2XL at $12 each and 3XL at $13 apiece. The fan club reminds fans who order to make sure to specify YOUTH in their email or messages when ordering a children's sizes.
The SJO Fan Club is an organization of parents, staff and community members who actively help every athletic program at the high school with fundraising and volunteers when needed.
More Sentinel Stories
I worked hard my whole career and retired feeling secure. Then I lost every last dime in a scam. I was left with $1,300 a month in Social Security benefits to live on in an area where monthly expenses run about $3,700.
I’m a smart woman, but scams against older Americans are increasing in number and sophistication. Whether through scams, strained savings, or costs of living going up, half of older Americans — that’s 27 million households — can’t afford their basic needs.
- Recipe: Irresistible Red Wine Braised Beef Short Rib Ragu
- Six ways to make this Valentine's Day super special
- Luscious Red Velvet for your Valentine sweetheart
- 5 timeless Valentine's Day gift ideas
- It's no secret, our readers chime in on where to go for a romantic Valentine's Day rendezvous
- Share Valentine's Day treats with the flavor of love
I find myself in dire need of sincere counsel, as I am increasingly convinced that my romantic life has taken on the unfortunate semblance of a rom-com wherein I alone remain bereft of the script. I'm 31, will defend my thesis this May, and have a great job lined-up.


Renovating your home can be affordable with the right approach. Simple changes, like repainting walls or updating fixtures, can create a fresh, modern look without a high price tag. Whether you’re improving outdated spaces or enhancing functionality, these budget-friendly renovation ideas to modernize your home will help you achieve a stylish, updated space while staying within your budget.


Death, taxes and body odor.
They’re things we can all expect in life, no matter how clean you are. But health care providers want you to know when body odor is a sign of a more serious health problem.
B.O. basics
Luis Garcia, MD, an OSF HealthCare pediatrician, says sweat and bacteria are the main culprits behind body odor. Warmth and moisture in parts of the body (like your armpits and feet), plus going through puberty and general poor hygiene, can make the smell worse.