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 Lastly, my greatest wish for the children of Lincoln is that they
always try to make good choices because good things happen when they
make good choices.
Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!
- Lincoln Police Chief Ken Greenslate
For our seniors
The Oasis Senior Center hopes to bring services with even more
health related and educational components to Logan County during the
New Year.
We want to promote a healthier lifestyle. Along with the standard
Oasis services such as blood pressure clinics and foot care, we wish
to embark on additional health services, which will include
walking/biking trails; dancing lessons including, but not limited to
line and square dancing; plus Senior Fit, Tai Chi and Yoga wellness
classes. We also hope to have a continued increase in the number of
people using our new Wellness Center.
 We also want to promote healthy minds, not just healthy bodies with
the educational classes we offer at the Oasis. Gardening classes are
being planned, which will be used hand-in-hand to landscape the
Oasis’ new outdoor property. We will offer computer classes again
for those who want to learn about the Internet, Word documents and
other social media. Fun and crafty classes such as cake decorating,
and intellectual groups such as the newly formed Oasis Book Club
should help round out our members’ wellbeing.
- Oasis director, Dom Dalpoas
For the health of all our citizens
Healthy Communities Partnerships is a community coalition in Logan
County. Funded by the Abraham Lincoln Healthcare Foundation and
powered by its members, we look forward to a healthier Logan County
in 2015.
The 5-2-1-0 campaign promotes 5 fruits and vegetables, no more than
2 hours of screen time, at least 1 hour of activity, and 0
sugar-sweetened beverages to address the county’s high obesity rate.
We provide educational events about illegal drugs, the dangers of
driving under the influence, and provide free rides home during
holidays to discourage drunk driving.
And HCP will continue to partner with the Logan County Regional
Planning Commission to bring outdoor trails to our community.
Overall, we look forward to creating a Logan County that celebrates
healthy choices and values opportunities for movement.
A collaborative assessment with the Logan County Department of
Public Health is underway and expected to be completed by summer
2015. The result will be identified health needs that we will
address over the next 3-5 years.
To learn more about our efforts, “like” HCP on Facebook or visit
www.healthycommunties
partnership.com.
- Angie Stoltzenburg
For strength through community involvement
As we enter 2015 we should take a moment to think about our future
as a community. Although the times remain difficult and the future
is uncertain, Lincoln and Logan County both have the opportunity to
chart a new direction, one that takes advantage of our assets, our
strengths, and the resolve of our fellow citizens. Economic
prosperity and civic involvement do not come easy. They occur when a
community comes together through a common purpose and exploits all
of its unique resources for the good of all concerned.
As citizens of Lincoln and Logan County, we are the masters of our
fate, the ones obligated to determine the economic future for our
loved ones and ourselves.
It is through the cooperation of our local institutions and agencies
that we can significantly improve our chances for economic and
cultural success.
The Lincoln Public Library District stands ready to serve as a
partner in realizing that success. Let ‘s prove to the world that
our community is open for business, our community is a great place
to live and raise a family, and we are ready to do whatever it takes
to make that declaration a reality.
- Richard Sumrall, Lincoln Public Library District
For unity of economic strengths
My holiday wish for Lincoln and Logan County would be for the
success of the new organization formed by combining the Chamber of
Commerce, Logan County Tourism, and Main Street Lincoln. That
success will ultimately have to be driven by support from the
community.
Just yesterday I heard someone say that the best time to makeup your
mind about someone, is never. I found that interesting and think it
will have to apply as we look for ways to improve our community and
make it stronger.
As I've said before, I think personal differences have been the main
obstacle in bringing everyone together to form this new
organization. But at the end of the day, the process yielded a
well-rounded seven member board of directors to guide the new
organization. In fact, of the seven newly elected board members, six
served on the boards of the three participating legacy organizations
- two from each board.
 Our community faces many challenges to thrive in this changing
world. I believe we have put in place a structure to help us
effectively meet those challenges.
The question now is whether we will be able to set aside our
differences and embrace the opportunities in front of us. Will we
come together and move forward in the focused, positive, optimistic
manner needed for meaningful progress? My hope is that we will.
- Eric Graue, an actively engaged community leader
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To steadfastly seek and maintain economic opportunities for Logan
County with regional strength
Our Lincoln/Logan County Development Partnership office would like
to extend a Happy New Year to all the people and organizations we
serve: our local manufacturers, retailers, small business owners,
farmers and others involved in ag-related businesses, municipal
governments, community organizations, and private citizens. We’d
also like to thank everyone who has helped in any way with the
various projects our office has worked on throughout 2014. It has
been a productive year, and we look forward to continuing our work
in 2015. Economic development can mean different things to
different people. It can take different forms and be measured in
different ways. Sometimes it involves big, new industrial or
business projects. More often than not, it involves a good deal of
detailed work, extensive research, and network building designed to
create a foundation for long-term success. Often times, this latter
form of economic development is not very visible - let alone very
exciting - but it is a valuable investment in our future.
We only mention this because economic development is sometimes measured by how
many new, large businesses, industries, or projects are done in an area within a
given time. It is good, of course, when something large is accomplished, but in
today’s economic climate such occurrences are not the norm. When large projects
present themselves, it’s great, but in the meantime there is much to be done to
build our county’s economic base.
Looking ahead our office sees opportunities to continue some of the grass-roots
efforts we began in 2014 and initiate new ones in the coming year. In particular
we will focus on building upon the success of the workforce training program put
into place as a result of the partnership created between our office, Heartland
Community College, the Land of Lincoln Workforce Alliance, and the Accelerated
Training in Manufacturing program.
In addition to creating training opportunities that are helping meet the needs
of our local manufacturers, in this new year we will focus on putting together
resources designed to meet workforce needs of businesses and individuals
involved in the agricultural sector of our county’s economy.
We’re also going to see if we can put into practice that old saying about how it
is better to teach a person to fish, rather than give him a fish. Our plan is to
see if we can help communities throughout the county establish individual
economic development commissions, created via the passage of a local ordinance.
When like-minded folks join together to work on behalf of their own communities,
the results are often much better than when a centralized organization tries to
step in and assist.
Finally, we will continue to expand our involvement with the five-county
Economic Development District (EDD) of which Logan County is a member (and which
also includes Peoria, Tazwell, Woodford, and Mason counties). Membership in the
EDD affords our county the best opportunity for success when seeking federal
resources and assistance for local projects.
We’ll do our best to keep you informed of what we are working on and what
projects get accomplished throughout 2015.
In the meantime, we again thank you for all your past support and encourage you
to contact our office (217-732-8739) with any questions you may have.
Happy New Year!
-Bill Thomas, executive director for the Lincoln/Logan County Development
Partnership
To Lincolnites and beyond
For 2015, I wish a nice helping of "P's" for our community:
For our businesses, Prosperity;
For those who feel challenged, Perseverance;
For our families, Playfulness;
For those who feel they are without opportunities, Possibilities;
For our City, Progress;
For those who feel anxious, Patience; and
For all of us, Peace.
- Lincoln Mayor Keith Snyder
For Logan County citizens and beyond
It has been an honor and privilege to serve Logan County as a County Board
member for the past twelve years, and serving as Chairman for six years.
May all leaders continue their work in providing leadership for the betterment
of our communities.
My wish for Logan County for the New Year would be that all the communities also
join in a work together for the better good of Logan County – to make it a
prosperous year.
Wishing all a happy holiday season enjoying family and friends!!!!
Merry Christmas!
- 2014 Logan County Board Chairman Robert Farmer
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