Pekin Park District offers summer camps for kids that start May 30 and end Aug.16, and is open Monday through Friday from 6:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.  (Photo courtesy of Pekin Park District)

East Peoria

Vendors needed for Farmers Market

Vendors are sought for the 2017 East Peoria Farmers Market, which will run from 3-6 p.m. every Friday June 2-Sept. 22 in The Levee District shopping area. All items must be Midwest grown and regionally produced. Vendors can pay for the entire season or by the week.

Pekin

Park District offers summer camps for kids

Summer day camps offered by Pekin Park District will have children swimming at

DragonLand, hiking at McNaughton Park, fishing, building forts in the woods, completing art

projects and learning about other countries.

The district offers two different camps to give children the camp experience while being able to return home every night. Fun field trips will turn the lazy days of summer into making memories with new friends and fueling imaginations.

Camps start May 30 and end Aug.16, and is open Monday through Friday from 6:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.

Arena Day Camp home base for drop off and pick up is in the Veteran’s Memorial

Ice Arena and is for children who have completed Kindergarten up to 10 years old.

Camp Soldwedel home base is at Soldwedel Program Center at McNaughton Park and is for children aged 10 – 13 years.

Cost is $34 per day or $120 per week with a $3 per day non-resident fee.

For more information, the 2017 Spring/Summer brochure can be located at http://www.pekinparkdistrict.org/program.pdf. To register, visit the registration office located in the Veteran’s Memorial Ice Arena, Red Bud  Drive. Contact Dawn Wilde-Burgess at 201-4006 or e-mail dwilde@pekinparkdistrict.or with questions.

Andrew Thornton, new president and CEO of the Greater Peoria YMCA

Region

Greater Peoria Family YMCA announces new CEO

Greater Peoria Family YMCA announced that T. Andrew “Andy” Thornton will serve as its new president and Chief Executive Officer, effective June 05. He will succeed Dan Chonowski who had served as CEO for 17 years before retiring at the end of October.

Thornton currently serves as CEO at the Sterling-Rock Falls YMCA, a position he has held since 2010, and has more than 19 years of experience in Y work. Thornton’s impressive track record of executing significant initiatives that seek to improve local communities made him an ideal choice to lead the Greater Peoria Family YMCA.

“We are privileged to welcome Andy to our YMCA,” said Todd Huson, chairman of the Board of Directors of the Greater Peoria Family YMCA.

“I am grateful for the opportunity to lead an organization that has such a meaningful impact on the lives of families,” said Thornton. “The YMCA has consistently found innovative ways to address critical social needs, and I look forward to continuing that vital work back home serving the Greater Peoria region. “

A native of Mapleton and graduate of Illini Bluffs High School, Thornton began his Y career in 1995 as program director of the now-closed downtown location of the Greater Peoria Family YMCA. He has served the Sterling-Rock Falls Family YMCA in Illinois as CEO since 2010.

Under his leadership, the Y’s budget grew from $1.7M to $2.6M; total contributions grew 55 percent or $210,000, including the annual campaign that increased by more than $100,000. Membership and program revenue also saw significant increases, as well.

Thornton and his wife, Dawn, with their 4 children, will be relocating to the Peoria area.

ICC softball and men’s golf teams take regionals

The Illinois Central College softball and men’s golf teams are Region 24 Champions.

The Softball Team upset the number 3 and top seeds to win the Region 24 Title. The Lady Cougars will go to the NJCAA National Championship in Clinton, Miss. May 17- 20.

Those ICC team members named to the All-Region Team are Madisyn McCoy and Cassie Shaw.

Those Lady Cougars named to the All-Tournament Team are Madyson Fox, Abrianna Hale, Abby Jacques, Madisyn McCoy

Cassie Shaw was named the tournament MVP and Heather Doty was named the Coach of the Year.

The men’s golf team fought out a close Round 3 with runner-up Parkland, but would come in 4 strokes ahead with a team score of 918 Sunday afternoon. The Cougars will travel to the NJCAA National Championship in Mesa, Ariz. May 23-26.

Making that All-Region Team are Jake Plummer, Jordan Perry, Chase Picken, and Seth Rebbe.

OSF HealthCare in top 20 percent in country

For the third year in a row, OSF HealthCare has been named one of the top performing healthcare systems in the country by Truven, an independent healthcare analytics research company. OSF HealthCare is ranked in the top 20 percent of large healthcare systems in the United

States, and is one of only three in that category from Illinois.

The 2017 study analyzed 109 large systems, using unbiased, impartial, public data sources. The rankings are updated annually. Winners consistently set industry benchmarks for critical performance measures like 30-day readmissions, mortality rates, customer perception of care, and more. Hospital systems are categorized by financial size so comparison is fair.

“Our vision is to transform health care to improve the lives of those we serve,” said Kevin Schoeplein, OSF HealthCare CEO. “To achieve this recognition is something that takes teamwork across all of our regions and facilities, with a deep commitment from each of our co-workers. That is what makes this so special to me. It’s an acknowledgement that working together we are making a difference in the health of our communities and lives of our patients.”

Five components of hospital performance were measured, including inpatient outcomes, process of care, extended outcomes, efficiency, and patient experience. Those found to be top performing systems saved more lives and caused fewer patient complications, followed industry-recommended standards of care more closely, released patients from the hospital sooner, readmitted patients less frequently, had shorter wait times in their emergency departments, and scored higher on patient overall ratings of care.

OSF HealthCare serves nearly three million people through its 115 locations, including 11 hospitals throughout Illinois and Michigan.

–Tazewell County News Briefs–