Fussy and grunting in his mother arms, Isaiah Chism was somewhat uncomfortable at the start of class.

But after one hour of massage with the lights dimmed and soothing music in the background, the 6-week-old of East Peoria was silent and appeared to be at peace.

Not only did these three friends jump into 36-degree water for charity, they did so in style.
Standing in a rowdy line at the ninth annual Polar Ice Plunge Friday, Ricky Wood, 25, of East Peoria, along with his best friends, Scott Hay, 26, of Clinton, and Kris Schmidt, 27, of Champaign, each sported a black suit and sombrero — representing three famous characters.

Linda Tosch braves the cold each Tuesday for the four-legged creatures at the Tazewell Animal Protective Society’s no-kill shelter in Pekin.

This volunteer dog walker from East Peoria said she does not do it for money, but for the love of the more than 200 animals at the organization.

Monica Ray of East Peoria turned 21 years old this year, but she seems hard pressed to even find the spare time in her busy schedule to have celebrated.

Ray is now a sophomore at Bradley University and was recruited last January to join the American Red Cross board of directors.

When she was a little girl, Tessa Colburn watched “The Wizard of Oz” with her grandmother. Last week, her grandmother watched Tessa in the Broadway production.

Growing up, Dan Lybarger listened to stories his great-uncle told him at the “talking tree” in front of his grandmother’s home in Canton. The stories were about Lybarger’s Native American relatives and the hardships they endured.

A fundraising event to benefit The Beacon Teen Center at the Glad Tidings Church will take place from 3 to 7 p.m. Oct. 24.

Frank Larkin is a familiar face at Illinois Central College’s Performing Arts Center. For the past 20 years, he has supervised the ushers and coordinated the efforts of the box office staff.

At the age of 87, Larkin is not ready to retire anytime soon.

The American Cancer Society is hosting a new event in East Peoria to honor an often-overlooked caregiver: dogs.

Fon du Lac Park District director Brad Smith wants to get the word out to people who love rollerblade hockey that they have a venue for their sport again in East Peoria.

Music has always been a large part of 21-year-old Aaron Buehrer’s life, so keeping a beat and dancing came naturally for him.

However, learning break dance moves took some time.

A more fitting name for Champ Walker would be “Champ Biker.”

The 60-year-old Washington resident and retired East Peoria Community High School history teacher recently finished a 3,415-mile trek on two wheels from the West Coast to the East Coast.

While it was no easy journey, he said it was worth the work.

With the second day of summer comes a pastime opportunity in East Peoria that many of all ages enjoy — fishing.

With the theme of staycations in Central Illinois this summer, more residents may choose to go camping close to home.

Local residents have a new option for camping at Spindler Marina in East Peoria.

My experience all started with a simple yearly checkup with a new doctor.