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Find out how the Rockford Raptors soccer club finished up nationally, and internationally
Three of the Rockford Raptors boys soccer teams recently hit the road for big tournaments — two of them traveled internationally, and one just saw its bid for a national championship come to a close. That closes out another powerful season for the local soccer club. More Raptors soccer: Rockford Raptors U15 boys...
USA BMX Midwest Nationals to come to Rockford
ROCKFORD, Ill. (WIFR) - BMX bike riders come to Rockford for the upcoming USA BMX Midwest Nationals this week. The competition takes place every day from Friday to Sunday at Rockford BMX, 4950 Safford Road, Rockford. Professional and amateur BMX riders will participate. The races begin 1:30 p.m. Friday; 9...
Rockford storm waste to be collected during normal garbage pickup
ROCKFORD, Ill. (WTVO) — The City of Rockford says flood waste will be collected this week and next week during normal trash collection schedules. Three nights of heavy rains and high winds battered the city, causing flash flooding and damage. The City said residents should fill the city-provided garbage cans first, before putting excess waste […]
Trees uprooted, roofs torn off in Rockford neighborhoods hit hard by storm
ROCKFORD, Ill. (WTVO) — Tonya Prine heard a loud bang on the back of her house as a tree, uprooted in Monday night’s storms, fell against her house. “I thought, ‘I probably lost my porch,'” she recalled. She did, it turned out. Her neighbors lost their roof. Prine said she was in the basement with […]
Cherry Valley to pick up fallen branches from storms
CHERRY VALLEY, Ill. (WIFR) - Following multiple days of severe weather, the Village of Cherry Valley says its Public Works Department will start picking up fallen tree branches. Pick-up begins at 8 a.m. Wednesday, July 17 and continues through 3:30 p.m. Thursday, July 18. City officials say the service is...
YWCA Northwestern Illinois awarded $100K grant
ROCKFORD, Ill. (WIFR) - The YWCA Northwestern Illinois receives a $100,000 grant to create more opportunities for people in the Information Technology field. Northern Illinois Community Initiatives presented the grant on July 16 to support YWCA’s TechLab program. The TechLab is meant to increase access to digital skills for...
Authorities identify Rockford man who died in flood as Vietnam War veteran
Authorities have identified the man killed in floodwaters over the weekend as Dean Gulbranson, 76, of Rockford. Preliminary autopsy results show Gulbranson drown, pending toxicology test results, according to information from the Winnebago County Coroner's office. Gulbranson grew up on a farm near Spring Grove and later Harmony, Minnesota, as one of 10 siblings...
M. Hitchins to celebrate 98th birthday on July 30
PERU – Myrtle Hitchins of Peru, formerly of rural Mendota and Bloomington, will be celebrating her 98th birthday on Tuesday, July 30, 2024. Myrtle Harriett Setchell was born July 30, 1926, in Mendota to her parents, Clifford and Ethel Setchell. Myrtle married Joseph Wayne Hitchins of Mendota on April...
Byron unveils new mural called ‘Remain in Light’
The mural, called “Remain in Light,” is painted on the front of the city hall building at 232 W. Second Street. The artist of the mural, Brett Whitacre, says, “I just love the feel that it gives when you stand in front of it or drive by. I know how it resonates on a community, this kind of attention to detail and this addition of color. It just feels good. It feels good and positive. Who couldn’t use a bunch of color around them?”
Contestants practicing for SCF Queen Pageant
MENDOTA – Fourteen young women are busily preparing for this year’s Sweet Corn Festival Queen Pageant, which will be held on Friday, Aug. 9 beginning at 7:30 p.m. The pageant will take place on the First State Bank stage on Washington Street in downtown Mendota. Queen Pageant practices...
Burglary And Meth Arrest Made In Ottawa
An Earlville man is back behind bars after finding trouble again. Police in Ottawa on Monday arrested 31-year-old Lynnard Farley at Walgreens for burglary and possession of methamphetamine. Farley appeared in front of a judge Tuesday and the prosecution filed petitions to revoke his pretrial release and drug court terms for 2023 felony charges of dealing meth and theft. Farley is due back in an Ottawa courtroom Wednesday afternoon.
Residents escape from fire at Rockford apartment building
ROCKFORD, Ill. (WTVO) — The residents of an 18-unit apartment building all managed to escape safely after a fire broke out Tuesday morning. According to the Rockford Fire Department, around 2:08 a.m., firefighters responded to a fire alarm at 1118 Furman Street and found smoke coming from a first floor apartment. It took about 10 […]
Soldiers from U.S. Army camp in Kuwait send thanks to 95.3 The Bull, Rockford for care packages
ROCKFORD — Soldiers stationed at a U.S. Army camp shared their thanks with Rockford and listeners of 95.3 The Bull for the Shoeboxes for Soldiers care packages that arrived this week. More than 300 care packages are being delivered to deployed troops around the world thanks to the Shoeboxes...
Freeport man charged in knife fight
FREEPORT, Ill. (WTVO) — Police have arrested Jeremy Alspaugh, 42, for allegedly engaging in a bloody knife fight with another man during an argument on Sunday. According to Freeport Police, around 2:30 p.m. in the 600 block of N. Walnut Avenue, Alspaugh was involved in an argument outside of the building with another man. He […]
Second suspect in Rockford’s Haskell Avenue murder captured
ROCKFORD, Ill. (WTVO) — Rockford Police announced the apprehension of Timothy Chatman, 42, one of the suspects in the killing of Marquell Reddic, 29, on Haskell Avenue on June 26th. Authorities said officers were called to a residence in the 1000 block of Haskell around 6:11 p.m. on Wednesday, June 26th for reports of a […]
Local seniors and farmers markets benefit from Senior Farmers Market Nutrition Program
ROCKFORD, Ill. (WIFR) - Farmers market season is in full swing and older adults may be able to get help buying fresh, local produce thanks to a new program giving seniors greater access to healthy foods. The Senior Farmers Market Nutrition Program (SFMNP), a joint initiative by the Illinois Department...
Family-owned taqueria Marrufo’s Tacos opens in south Rockford
ROCKFORD — A local family that built a following for its California burrito and award-winning tacos has opened its first brick-and-mortar restaurant. Marrufo’s Tacos, 3222 S. Alpine Road, fills the former Ana’s Mexican Restaurant space next to the former Subway south of Sandy Hollow Road. Owners Emily and Jesus Marrufo built a following over the past four years with Sabores Mobile Kitchen, a trailer and then food truck that twice won the title for best tacos at the annual Tamale Fest in Rockford.
Illinois’ Operation Fallen Flags Properly Retires U.S. Flags
The members of "Operation Fallen Flag" with the help of the "Glory Truck" assist Rockford, Illinois area residents in properly retiring their American flags. Operation Fallen Flags And The Glory Truck In Illinois. I will go out of my way to support certain types of benefits. Right there around the...
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