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Today's News

  • Suttons' story is perfect for Valentine's Day

    Marie Sutton is a familiar face in the area, as a local volunteer for causes such as Evergreen Outreach and a member of First United Methodist Church.

    Her manner is quiet, unassuming, gentle and kind, and her voice is soft with the charming accent of her native homeland, Czechoslovakia. She keeps busy and is always willing to lend a helping hand.

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  • Sweet 16

    "Here's your 16th, coach," Alex Foster said to Vandalia wrestling coach Jason Clay as he handed him the regional championship plaque on Saturday as the Vandals won their 16th consecutive regional championship.

    On Saturday at about 4 p.m. the Vandals were announced as champions of the Cumberland Regional with a total of 218 points, blowing out the competition, as the second-place school, Shelbyville, had 140.5.

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  • Thomason files suit against Tish alleging slander

    The St. Elmo man who served as that town’s police chief until being fired last November is suing the man who fired him.

    Ken Thomason, who was St. Elmo’s police chief for about 16 years, is alleging in a complaint filed last Thursday in Fayette County Circuit Court that Larry Tish slandered him a number of times.

    Thomason is suing Tish as an individual and not for any actions while serving as mayor of the community. He is alleging that Tish’s slanderous comments stem from his arrest by Thomason in the past.

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  • County OKs drug court partnership

    Fayette County will join Effingham County to comply with a new state law mandating a new way of handling many drug offenders.

    The county board on Tuesday approved Fayette County State’s Attorney Stephen Friedel’s recommendation to become a part of Effingham County’s existing Drug Court Program.

    Friedel explained to the county board that recent legislation mandates that each county have its own such program or partner with another county. He said the partnership with Effingham County seems to be this county’s best option.

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  • Lady Bombers upset SC, 50-46

    It may be a little premature to call Brownstown’s win over South Central on Monday the upset of the decade, but it certainly is the upset of the season, as the Lady Bombers took down the Lady Cougars in overtime, 50-46, in the first round of the regional tournament.

    South Central entered the season as the reigning regional champs with extremely-high expectations. The season started with a bang, but over the last four weeks or so, the Lady Cougars have struggled and their season came to an end with red eyes and sniffles as they left the gym on Monday night.

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  • Area games canceled

    All of Tuesday night's area basketball games have been canceled. 

    Vandalia vs. South Central has been rescheduled for Thursday, Feb. 18.

    St. Elmo at Christ Our Rock has been rescheduled for Thursday, Feb. 11.

    Regional tournament games at South Central will be played on Wednesday, Feb. 10. CHBC vs. Dieterich at 6 p.m. and Altamont vs. Brownstown at 8:10 p.m.

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  • Abe winners make others' lives better

    The Vandalia Chamber of Commerce each year picks two individuals to honor for their contributions to the chamber and the community. The two people picked this year represent what the Abe Award means.

    Sharon LaDage is probably most well-known as an educator. The Vandalia native taught English at the junior high and high school levels for 34 years, and also served as the Vandalia Community High School yearbook adviser and gifted coordinator for the Vandalia School District.

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  • Adelyn Connors returned to Vandalia roots

    It wasn’t a total surprise to see an obituary for Adelyn Meek Connors in The Leader-Union a few weeks back. Adelyn was 94 years old, having been born in Vandalia on Dec. 30, 1914, the youngest of six children of George and Dora Luker Meek.

    Ten years earlier, Adelyn had contacted me for information about her Meek family. Having left Vandalia when she was 18 to further her education at Northwestern University, Adelyn knew to whom she was related, but wanted to get the names organized so she could see the relationships more clearly.

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  • Abe Award a surprise ee" and a motivation

    There I was, minding my own business. Just doing my job.

    My task for the evening last Thursday was to cover the Vandalia Chamber of Commerce annual banquet.

    Several speakers took the stage. Outgoing president, Joanna Helm, talked about the accomplishments the chamber has made during the past year. Incoming president, Shaun Murray, outlined his goals for the coming year.

    And emcee Kevin Childers took on all comers with a barrage of jabs and jokes to keep the mood light – and to keep people running for cover.

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  • Nickels looks back on his 100th birthday

    He remembers the dirt road that the stagecoach ran on many years ago. What is now U.S. Route 185 south, was then a dirt road called Vincennes Road, “because it ran from Vincennes, Ind., to Vandalia, Ill.,” he said.

    “I traveled it a lot. The stagecoach would go through here from Vincennes, on the way to Vandalia, and would stop at the old brick house on (U.S.) Route 40. It was an inn, then,” he said.

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The Leader Union is your source for local news, sports, events and information in Vandalia, Il, and the surrounding area.