MEET ME ON MADISON – Amy Tomblin recently opened her new eatery Meet me on Madison in the old Smoking Pleasure space in the Twin Towers Plaza in Downtown Peoria.
MEET ME ON MADISON – Open from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m., Meet me on Madison offers coffee, sandwiches and baked goods for both breakfast and lunch.
MEET ME ON MADISON – Amy Tomblin has renovated and redesigned the old Smoking Pleasure space, adding new flooring, wall designs and solid wooden tables built by her husband Shane.
CITY GOLF – Ryan Julius watches his drive from the fairway during the Peoria Men’s City golf championships Saturday, Aug. 7, at Newman Golf Course in Peoria.
CITY GOLF – Reggie Livingston eyes his chip shot onto the green on No. 18 during the Peoria Men’s City golf championships Saturday, Aug. 7, at Newman Golf Course in Peoria. Livingston battled Skeeter Miller in the A Flight championship match.
CITY GOLF – Brien Davis tees off on No. 6 during the Peoria Men’s City golf championships Saturday, Aug. 7, at Newman Golf Course in Peoria. Davis defeated Ryan Julius for the title.
DAY ONE – The Eureka Hornets practice their footwork during a drill Monday, Aug. 9, on the opening day of football practice at Eureka High School.
DAY ONE – Peoria High football players try to knock each other down from a push-up position in a game of strength and speed on the official opening day of prep football practice Monday, Aug. 9, at Peoria High School.
DAY ONE – Washington’s Keegan Ingham (99) practices kicking field goals with holder Jay Wireman and snapper Tyler Richardson on the official opening day of high school football practice Monday, Aug. 9, at Washington Community High School.
DAY ONE – A Eureka player listens as a coach explains a drill on the official opening day of prep football practice Monday, Aug. 9, at Eureka High School.
DAY ONE – Peoria High School players practice their tackling skills on each other on the opening day of prep football practice Monday, Aug. 9, at the school.
DAY ONE – A Washington football player snags a reception during passing drills on the official opening day of prep football practice Monday, Aug. 9, at Washington Community High School.
DAY ONE – Eureka football players run back onto the field after a water break during the opening day of prep football practice Monday, Aug. 9, at Eureka High School.
BARN HOME – Mike and Diane Sanna stand on the shaded deck of their iconic brick barn home, built in 1928, at 1451 Highview Road in East Peoria. Diane Sanna bought the dilapidated structure in 1985 and brought it back to life as a family home. Now the couple have decided to downsize and have put the property up for sale.
BARN HOME – Diane Sanna clicks on a grow light in a heated “she-shed” she uses to winter her plants.
BARN HOME – The barn loft includes two identical bedrooms and a third above them, plus a large open space used for entertaining.
BARN HOME – The East Peoria barn once housed dairy cows on 160 acres of land. The metal roof is new but the cupolas on top are original to the historic structure.
FEMALE FOOTBALL PLAYER – Pekin Community High School placekicker Mylee Hansen chats with assistant coach Zac Williams after a scimmage Friday, Aug. 20, at Memorial Stadium. Hansen is the first female football player in the history of the school.
FEMALE FOOTBALL PLAYER – Pekin Community High School placekicker Mylee Hansen boots a kickoff during a scrimmage Friday, Aug. 20, at Memorial Stadium.
SUMMER CAMP RETURNS – Kelly Liesendahl of Denver and her friends groove to the sound of Manic Science during the Summer Camp Music Festival on Friday, Aug. 20, at Three Sisters Park in Chillicothe.
SUMMER CAMP RETURNS – Nick Brown of the Quad Cities and Heather Wamsley of Davenport create some giant bubbles as they take a moe. concert Friday, Aug. 20, during the Summer Camp Music Festival at Three Sisters Park in Chillicothe.
SUMMER CAMP RETURNS – Vocalist and keyboard player Spaz of Here Come the Mummies performs with the band Friday, Aug. 20, at the Summer Camp Music Festival at Three Sisters Park in Chillicothe.
SUMMER CAMP RETURNS – Sophie Raffen of Denver, Colorado works on her hooping skills during a moe. concert Friday, Aug. 20, at the Summer Camp Music Festival at Three Sisters Park in Chillicothe.
WILDLIFE PRAIRIE PARK TOURS – Visitors check out a herd of elk in the distance from the comfort of a bus on Wildlife Prairie Park’s Adventure Trek, a guided behind-the-scenes tour of the park including access inside the bison and elk enclosure.
WILDLIFE PRAIRIE PARK TOURS – Addy Schupp, 3, braves the large tongue of Big Mike the bison to feed him a treat with help from her grandmother Diane Page and lead animal keeper Calli Dicks during a behind-the-scenes tour aboard Wildlife Prairie Park’s Adventure Trek bus.
WILDLIFE PRAIRIE PARK TOURS – A bison calf nurses while other bison graze at Wildlife Prairie Park in Hanna City.
WILDLIFE PRAIRIE PARK TOURS – A red-tailed hawk watches from its enclosure at Wildlife Prairie Park in Hanna City.
WILDLIFE PRAIRIE PARK TOURS – A sign urges visitors to refrain from petting and feeding a pair of Texas Longhorn cattle at Wildlife Prairie Park in Hanna City.
WILDLIFE PRAIRIE PARK TOURS – A young opossum wanders around its enclosure at Wildlife Prairie Park in Hanna City.
A view up Court Street in downtown Pekin. The small city lost 2,363 residents according to the 2020 census, more than Peoria, which is four times larger and only lost 1,857 residents. Pekin’s population now stands at 31,731 and Peoria’s at 113,15. The reason folks are leaving? Better opportunities, more amenities in larger urban areas? City officials and residents can only speculate.
HORSE RIDING TEACHER – Brock Reinebach shows off some of the fancy footwork of his world champion horse, a 2-year-old Palomino named Stetson.
HORSE RIDING TEACHER – Brock Reinebach, right, helps Maddy Munaco, 13, take out the braids on her horse Swag, a 7-year-old Quarterhorse, after some riding at of B&B Reinebach riding stable near Princeville. Brock and his wife Brittany teach horseback riding for both casual and competitive riders.
HORSE RIDING TEACHER – Brock Reinebach helps Ellie Munaco, 9, get situated before riding Thunder, a 24-year-old Tennessee Walking Horse, at the B&B Reinebach horse ranch near Princeville.
HORSE RIDING TEACHER – Brock Reinebach wears the championship belt buckle he won this year for his work with his 2-year-old Palomino named Stetson at the B&B Reinebach riding stables near Princeville.
HORSE RIDING TEACHER – Sisters Ellie Munaco, left, 9, and Maddie Munaco, 13, take Thunder and Swag on a short trail ride on the B&B Reinebach property near Princeville. At 24 years old, Thunder is the ranch’s go-to horse for beginning riding lessons because of his easygoing manner.
HORSE RIDING TEACHER – A horse eyes Brittany Reinebach as she cleans out a stall next door at the B&B riding stables near Princeville.
HORSE RIDING TEACHER – Ellie Munaco, 9, washes down Thunder after a ride in the hot sun at the B&B Reinebach riding stables near Princeville.
SEASON OPENER – A line of fans stretches out to the parking lot before the start of the season opener between Richwoods and Peoria High on Friday, Aug. 27, at Richwoods High School. The Lions defeated the Knights 62-27.
SEASON OPENER – Peoria’s Eddie Clark, right, and NeSha Robertson celebrate a first-half touchdown Friday, Aug. 27, at Richwoods High School. The Lions defeated the Knights 62-57.
SEASON OPENER – Peoria’s Xavier Blake (99) takes down Richwoods’ Cory Wysinger in the first half Friday, Aug. 27, at Richwoods High School. The Lions defeated the Knights 62-27.
SEASON OPENER – Peoria’s Eddie Clark (3) slips by Richwoods’ T.J. Smith in the first half Friday, Aug. 27, at Richwoods High School. The Lions defeated the Knights 62-27.
SEASON OPENER – Peoria’s Kenny Rutherford, left, tries to intercept a pass intended for Richwoods’ Cory Wysinger in the first half Friday, Aug. 27, at Richwoods High School. The Lions defeated the Knights 62-27.
METAMORA VS. NOTRE DAME – Metamora’s Kam Davis slams into Peoria Notre Dame’s William Tangel, but loses his grip on the ball in the second half Friday, Aug. 27, in Metamora. The Redbirds ended up defeating a powerful Irish team 28-15.
METAMORA VS. NOTRE DAME – Peoria Notre Dame fans celebrate a Metamora turnover in the second half Friday, Aug. 27, in Metamora. The Redbirds defeated the Irish 28-15.
METAMORA VS. NOTRE DAME – Metamora’s Kam Davis runs into the endzone for a touchdown against Peoria Notre Dame in the second half Friday, Aug. 27, in Metamora. The Redbirds defeated the Irish 28-15.
METAMORA VS. NOTRE DAME – Peoria Notre Dame quarterback Evan Elward tries to eat a pickle to help ward off cramps during a break in the action against Metamora on Friday, Aug. 27, in Metamora. The Redbirds defeated the Irish 28-15.
METAMORA VS. NOTRE DAME – Metamora’s Ben Wallace (73) hugs quarterback Connor Willerton after Willerton ran in a touchdown in the final minutes to seal a 28-15 victory over Peoria Notre Dame on Friday, Aug. 27, in Metamora.
METAMORA VS. NOTRE DAME – Metamora head coach Jared Grebner breaks up the huddle after speaking to his team at the end of their 28-16 victory over Peoria Notre Dame in the season opener Friday, Aug. 27, in Metamora.
CAT RESCUER – Eryn Pearson of Cats of Woodford County pulls an angry stray kitten from under a deck at a home in Roanoke.
CAT RESCUER – Stray cats hide under the deck of a home in Roanoke. Eryn Pearson and her rescue group Cats of Woodford County will rescue the cats, give them medical attention and shelter, and put them up for adoption.
CAT RESCUER – Eryn Pearson, left, and Heather Leman of Cats of Woodford County load a stray kitten into a carrier after pulling it out from under a deck along with three others at a home in Roanoke.
CAT RESCUER – A stray kitten makes its displeasure known to Heather Leman of Cats of Woodford County after Leman and Eryn Pearson rescued a litter from underneath a deck on a home in Roanoke.
CAT RESCUER – Eryn Pearson, right, of Cats of Woodford County counts the cats in traps and carriers that she is transporting to a vet in Lowpoint. Nichole Arbogast, left, trapped a feral mother cat and her litter that had been spotted around the fields and dumpsters around Cornerstone Restaurant in Eureka.
CAT RESCUER – Dr. Tom McKenna in Washburn treats a rescued stray kitten riddled with worms and fleas and afflicted with distemper. Eryn Pearson of Cats of Woodford County routinely brings rescued cats to see the vet.
CAT RESCUER – Eryn Pearson of Cats of Woodford County dons a pair of protective gloves in preparation for removing a feral cat from a trap and placing it in a cage in the garage at her Germantown Hills home. Pearson has converted the garage into a temporary cat shelter.
CAT RESCUER – Woodford County Deputy Eryn Pearson holds the first cat she saved after organizing Cats of Woodford County, a rescue operation aimed at helping feral cats. The Woodford County animal control service does not extend to cats, so Pearson turned her basement and garage into a temporary shelter for wayward felines until they can be adopted.
