The Pekin Park District will be having food vendors in Mineral Springs Park near the Pavilion on Fridays from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. this summer. (Photo courtesy of Pekin Park Dist.)

 BLOOMINGTON

Car show festival for British auto enthusiasts

The Champagne British Car Festival Show will be held Sunday June 2 on the grounds of the David Davis Mansion in Bloomington, but there will be a full weekend of British car activities.  This will be the 28th anniversary of the festival.

The featured marque for 2019 is Lotus but there will be great examples of just about any British car.  Last year, there were more than 100 cars and motorcycles at the event and the organizers expect even more this year. The Premier Class, by invitation, is open to any of the 2018 class winners or other exceptional cars.

Weekend festivities kickoff with a Friday evening gathering at the host hotel.

On Saturday, the mansion will host a drive, lunch and visit to a collection of impressive cars.

The poplar banquet and entertainment will return on Saturday night.

Are you an early riser? The “Dawn Patrollers” will once again be doing a pre-show Rally on Sunday for Natter ‘n Noggin.

Check the website, http://www.cbcf-bloomington.com, occasionally to get updates with more details about the weekend.

EAST PEORIA

Dispatch center has new home with consolidation

The East Peoria dispatch center has moved from the Public Safety Building at 201 W. Washington St.

As of May 20, the operation is now located in the Morton Police Department facility.

East Peoria’s dispatch center is part of Tazewell County Consolidated Communications, also known as TC3. The consolidation of telecommunication centers throughout the state was mandated by the State of Illinois, and East Peoria consolidated with the dispatch centers in Morton and Washington.

There is a tan phone in the Public Safety Building on the right side of the lobby. This phone is a direct contact to the new telecommunication center in Morton. The caller will tell their issue to the telecommunicator on the other end of the phone line.

The telecommunicator will then send an East Peoria Police officer or Fire Department officer to the Public Safety Building to meet with the person.

People needing police or fire reports and commercial burn permits related to construction will need to come to the Public Safety Building between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday. There will be signs in the lobby directing how to contact police and fire department personnel.

MORTON

Chamber’s Fourth Fridays program expands to county

The Morton Chamber of Commerce reminds residents to come out to local businesses, restaurants, art galleries and more from 5 to 8 p.m. this Friday, May 24 for the Fourth Friday events.

The Fourth Fridays are held between April and August.

During that time, each will celebrate every interpretation of the arts through locally made goodies, creative activities, artisan markets, visual art displays, specialty food and drink items, music and more.

There will be something for the entire community to enjoy each Fourth Friday.  Participants can also participate in free activities, complementary exercise classes, kids’ activities, activated streetscapes, pop up concerts, beverage tastings and more.

This year the program is adding the Tazewell Art Loop Passport.

The Tazewell Art Loop is a guide to the #shoplocal365 shops in Tazewell County that are locally owned and feature local makers in their shops.  Participants can navigate the Tazewell Art Loop at their own pace using a Passport sponsored by Unland.

Participants that collect a sticker, stamp or other store authorized indication that you visited every stop on the Tazewell Art Loop between April and August will be invited to return their finished booklets to the Chamber of Commerce by Thursday, Aug. 22 to be eligible for a grand prize drawing on August Fourth Friday.  The winner will be announced on the Tazewell Art Loop Facebook page in August.

PEKIN

Top global issues part of library discussion series

The Pekin Public Library announces the 2019 Great Decisions Programming and Discussion Series, an open discussion group that focuses on a wide range of global topics provided by the Foreign Policy Association.

The programs will take place on Tuesdays, June 4-July 23 at 6:30 p.m. in the library’s Community Room.  Read the Great Decisions briefing book at home, then come and watch a short DVD and discuss the most critical global issues facing America today.

Weekly series of 8 sessions, each with a different topic.  Registration is encouraged, but walk-ins are welcome.  The schedule for the Great Decisions Programming and Discussion Series is:

• Refugees and Global Migration

Tuesday, June 4 at 6:30 p.m.

• The Middle East: Regional Disorder

Tuesday, June 11 at 6:30 p.m.

• Nuclear Negotiations: Back to the Future?

Tuesday, June 18 at 6:30 p.m.

• The Rise of Populism in Europe

Tuesday, June 25 at 6:30 p.m.

• Decoding U.S.-China Trade

Tuesday, July 2 at 6:30 p.m.

• Cyber Conflict and Geopolitics

Tuesday, July 9 at 6:30 p.m.

• The United States and Mexico: Partnership Tested

Tuesday, July 16 at 6:30 p.m.

• State of the State Department and Diplomacy

Tuesday, July 23 at 6:30 p.m.

All programs are free and open to the public.   For more information or to register, please call the library at 309-347-7111.

Sign up to be summer food vendor in the park

Pekin Park District will be inviting food vendors to set up in Mineral Springs Park near the Pavilion on Fridays from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. beginning June 7 through Aug. 30.

To be considered, complete an application found on the park district’s Facebook page, www.facebook.com/ppdrecreation/, and return to Pekin Park District Recreation Department, Attn: MSP Food Vendor Application, 1701 Court St. Pekin, IL 61554 or email to Shawn Powers at spowers@pekinparkdistrict.org

Contact the Recreation Department Office at 347-7275 with any questions.

WASHINGTON

City, VFW hosting annual Memorial Day parade

Washington VFW Post 9016 and the City of Washington would like to invite all veterans to join in the Monday, May 27 Memorial Day Parade.

Veterans interested in participating in the parade should call the Washington VFW Post 9016 at 309-444-9016. Leave your name and phone number, and a member of the VFW Memorial Day Parade committee will contact you with the details.

REGIONAL

Heart of Illinois Chorus at ICC seeks new members

The Heart of Illinois Chorus, in residence at Illinois Central College, will host a free open house for three consecutive Tuesdays starting May 21 at 6 p.m. in the ICC Performing Arts Center, located on the East Peoria Campus.

The event is being offered to area females interested in singing and learning more about the four-part barbershop style of harmony. The other sessions will take place May 28 and June 4. All begin at 6 p.m. and last until 9 p.m. Advance registration is not required. Interested females are encouraged to attend all three sessions but can attend fewer, if only able to do so.

The Heart of Illinois Chorus was founded in 1982 and is a member of Sweet Adelines International, a worldwide non-profit organization dedicated to women’s a cappella four-part harmony arranged in a barbershop style.

The group has won regional championships four times, earning the right to compete internationally those four years.

For more information about this event or the organization, contact the Heart of Illinois Chorus through its web site, HOIChorus.com or by email at admin@hoichorus.com.