Basil and other herbs are at the peak of their growing season. University of Illinois Extension Woodford County Master Gardeners will talk about the benefits of herbs and share recipes in “It’s a Culinary Delight!,” from 7-8 p.m. Aug. 22 at the Heartline and Heart House, 200 Reagan Drive, Eureka.

STATE

16-year-olds can be organ donors

A new state law allows 16- and 17-year-olds to join the statewide registry for organ and tissue donations.

Gov. Bruce Rauner signed the law last week. The Drive for Life Act allows anyone 16 or older to join the organ and tissue donor registry when he or she gets a driver’s license or state ID. Parents and guardians have the right to revoke consent until a teen is 18.

The governor’s office says there are more than 4,700 people in Illinois alone awaiting organ transplants. About 300 a year die waiting.

COUNTY

Master Gardeners program gives tips, recipes for herbs

University of Illinois Extension Woodford County Master Gardeners are adding some celebration to their summer with the sweet aroma and culinary delight of herbs from the garden in a program entitled, “It’s a Culinary Delight!,” from 7-8 p.m. Aug. 22 at the Heartline and Heart House, 200 Reagan Drive, Eureka. 

The Master Gardeners will share the harvest of herbs they planted in raised beds at Heartline and Heart House. They will teach how to grow herbs, taste treats created by the Master Gardener team and discover new ways to use herbs. University of Illinois Extension horticulture educator Kelly Allsup will bring her basil lemonade and mint and lime water. Participants will receive handouts and a recipe book. 

There is no cost or registration. For questions or if you need a reasonable accommodation to participate, call (309) 663-8306 or email kallsup@illinois.edu. 

Nature preserve is county’s first to have developed trail system

Southeastern Woodford County is the location for the newest addition to a collection of nature preserves containing hiking trails through an upland oak-hickory forest and the flood plain along the Mackinaw River.

The new area has been nurtured by the ParkLands Foundation, a private, nonprofit organization that is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year. The foundation has several preserves in Woodford and MacLean counties. But the newly acquired Hayes Woods Nature Preserve will be the first in Woodford County to have a developed trail system.

ParkLands Foundation’s mission is to preserve, protect and ecologically restore historic natural lands in the middle and upper Mackinaw Valley watershed.

When it comes to ParkLands, people are most familiar with the Merwin Preserve, along the Mackinaw River northeast of Lake Bloomington, and its trails. The new trail will be similar to Merwin’s quality of trails. It was established by the former owner, Richard Hayes, who protected the area’s environment. The 69-acre parcel, which includes 0.68 of a mile along the Mackinaw River, was purchased with the assistance of grants from the Illinois Clean Energy Community Foundation and the Grand Victoria Foundation’s Vital Lands program.

EUREKA

Advocate hospitals contribute millions in care

Advocate Eureka Hospital, Eureka, and Advocate BroMenn Medical Center, Normal, played an integral role in Advocate Health Care’s $692 million contribution in charitable care and community services in 2016, up $6 million from the previous year. 

The hospitals, in addition to providing free and subsidized care, offered programs and services that respond to the needs of Eureka and surrounding communities, as determined through the hospitals’ community health needs assessments. 

Focusing primarily on mental health and obesity, BroMenn Medical Center, among other efforts:

• Trained 309 community members of McLean or Woodford Counties in mental health first aid and 112 in youth mental health first aid through the mental health first aid collaborative, of which the hospital is a key organization.
• Contributed $5,000 to Project Oz’s Ending the Silence, a mental health awareness and suicide prevention program aimed at junior high and high school students;

Eureka Hospital also focused on mental health, hosting mental health first aid classes and providing office space for psychiatric and counseling services, in collaboration with Tazwood Wellness Center. 

Also, approximately 1,239 high school students were screened in 2016 by BroMenn Medical Center and Eureka Hospital physicians in Woodford, McLean and Livingston counties at no cost for unidentified genetic disorders that place them at high risk for sudden cardiac death.

–Woodford County News Briefs–