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GHNS Illinois Budget (2/20/08)

Posted February 19, 2008 10:00 pm

Here are the top Illinois stories coming today from GateHouse News Service.

Stories are available at www.gatehousenewsservice.com. Please check

www.gatehousenewsservice.com/regional_news/midwest/illinois/news in the

evening for changes to story lineup, including breaking news.

If your paper has a story, digest item, opinion piece or standalone photo to

share, please e-mail it to Illinois@gatehousemedia.com.

Contacts:

- Casey Laughman: 217-816-3343, claughman@gatehousemedia.com

- Jean Hodges: 630-348-3350, 630-956-8834, jhodges@gatehousemedia.com

TODAY'S SPOTLIGHTS:

STATE OF THE STATE: SPRINGFIELD - Coverage of Gov. Blagojevich's State of the State and budget speeches this afternoon.

- What the budget means. By Doug Finke of the Statehouse bureau.

- Budget highlights. By the Statehouse bureau staff.

SHE KNEW KAZMIERCZAK: SPRINGFIELD - Megan Bergschneider owes a lot to a killer. Last spring, during Bergschneider's senior year at Northern Illinois University, a class on quantitative statistics was proving too much. She wasn't much good at math, and she had put the statistics course off until the end of her college career. Finally, she turned to Steven Kazmierczak, who put NIU in the national spotlight last week by shooting five students to death in a lecture class before turning a gun on himself. By Bruce Rushton of the State Journal-Register.

http://www.gatehousenewsservice.com/regional_news/midwest/illinois/x1382800930

ILLINOIS NEWS

http://www.gatehousenewsservice.com/regional_news/midwest/illinois/news

STATE BRIEFS: News from around the state. Will be posted by 5 p.m.

GEHANT FUNERAL: MENDOTA - NIU shooting victim Julianna Gehant, a 32-year-old mother who spent 12 years in the Army Corps of Engineers, was buried with full military honors Wednesday. By Sarah Roberts of the Rockford Register Star. Moving this evening.

GUARD DEPLOYMENT: SPRINGFIELD - A 2,700-member national guard brigade made up of units from around the state is training for deployment to Afghanistan. By John Reynolds of the State Journal-Register.

ONLINE HEALTHCARE: Methodist hospital in Peoria is offering patients a new, online service to communicate with their doctor and take care of non-urgent medical needs. Among other things, patients can schedule appointments and get prescriptions filled. By Frank Radosevich of the Peoria Journal Star. Moving this evening.

ILLINOIS OPINIONS

http://www.gatehousenewsservice.com/regional_news/midwest/illinois/opinions

BRITT: Toon on Obama's lead over Clinton. Will be posted this afternoon.

PHIL LUCIANO: Resorting to weird weaponry

The Peoria man that threw a frozen hunk of meat at his fiancée last week was just carrying on a Peoria-area tradition of settling disputes with odd projectiles.

MICHELLE TEHEUX: My name is Michelle, and I'm a bad consumer

Michelle Teheux is anxiously awaiting her stimulus check -- so she can spend it outside of the country.

http://www.gatehousenewsservice.com/regional_news/midwest/illinois/opinions/x774165270

EDITH WEBSTER: Bishop calls on people of faith after NIU campus shootings

Northern Illinois Synod Bishop Gary Wollersheim was one of many religious leaders who led vigils, services and other gatherings of support after a gunman killed five people Feb. 14 on the Northern Illinois University campus.

http://www.gatehousenewsservice.com/regional_news/midwest/illinois/opinions/x565319616

ILLINOIS FEATURES:

ED GRIMLEY LIVES: Whether you love him as the endearing, nonsensical Ed Grimley, with pants hiked up to his elbows, the fluttering dance walk and pointy hair, as Jack Frost in "The Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause," as Ned Nederlander in "The Three Amigos" or for one of his many other characters or impersonations, you are in for a real treat and, maybe, a few surprises. Martin Short will appear at the Arcada Theatre in St. Charles Friday evening. By Deborah L. Kunesh of the St. Charles Republican.

http://www.gatehousenewsservice.com/regional_news/midwest/illinois/news/x1907840299

HOODIE WHAT? HOODIE HOO: February 20 is Hoodie Hoo day. Don't know what that is? Why, it's when you go outside at noon, wave your hands over your head and chant "Hoodie Hoo" to chase winter away, of course. Moving this evening. By Mike Maciag of the Peoria Journal Star.

ILLINOIS SPORTS

http://www.gatehousenewsservice.com/regional_news/midwest/illinois/sports

MIKE NADEL: TUCSON, Ariz. - Can extreme humiliation overcome old age, a wretched recent history and questionable mental toughness? For the sake of their 2008 season, the White Sox sure hope that's the case with Jose Contreras. Moving this evening.

ILLINI: CHAMPAIGN - Illinois takes on No. 11 Wisconsin. Tipoff is at 8 p.m. First story at 10:30. Writethru with quotes and report card at 11:40. By John Supinie.

CARPING ABOUT CARP: Spring Valley Walleye Club director Mike Hurle says that Asian carp could cause trouble for the Cabela's Masters Walleye Circuit. By Catherine Hopkins of the Peoria Journal Star.

FOR THE WEEKEND:

Buckle up, it's going to be one bumpy ride

Rockford: City of potholes. The Register Star's Sadie Gurman goes for a ride on the torn-up streets and lives to tell about it -- even if her coffee doesn't. Will be posted Friday afternoon for use in weekend editions.

Who needs Hollywood? Teen trio finds a niche with offbeat productions

Jake Reeder, Riley Johnson and Trent Benedict make movies. And thanks to Web-era delivery systems like MySpace.com and YouTube, the Knoxville teenagers have reached an audience outside the confines of the bedroom community six miles southeast of Galesburg. Will be posted Friday afternoon for use in weekend editions. By Tom Loewy of the Galesburg Register-Mail.

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