Are you tired of your smartphone being smarter than you? The Eureka Public Library will hold workshops Feb. 13 to help people older than 50 operate their iPhones and androids.

STATE

New minimum wage debate expected

The Illinois Senate is expected this week to start discussing a new plan to raise the state’s minimum wage to $15 an hour.

Supporters of the measure were working on details with business interests and other business and government entities that would be affected by having to pay a higher wage.

The last increase in the state’s minimum wage went into effect in 2010 when it was increased to $8.25 an hour. It was the last of a series of increases approved in 2006. The federal minimum wage continues to be $7.25 an hour.

Negotiations would arrange for the state’s new minimum wage to be phased in over several years.

In 2017, Illinois lawmakers approved legislation to raise the minimum wage to $15 an hour. However, then-Gov. Bruce Rauner vetoed the bill saying it would result in job losses at the low end of the wage scale and hurt the people the minimum wage is supposed to help.

Gov. JB Pritzker supports raising the minimum wage to $15 an hour.

Twenty-six states and the District of Columbia have a higher minimum wage than Illinois.

CENTRAL ILLINOIS

Frank Lloyd Wright’s interest in Japanese prints explored

“For the Love of Japanese Prints: Frank Lloyd Wright and the Art Institute of Chicago,” is the title of a lecture to be held Feb. 14 at the Peoria Riverfront Museum, 222 SW Washington, Peoria. The event will open with a social time at 9:30 a.m., followed by the program at 10 a.m. Admission is $12 for adults and $5 for students.

In this Fine Arts Society lecture, Janice A. Katz of the Art Institute of Chicago will describe Wright’s role in building the museum’s Japanese print collection, the landmark exhibition he designed in 1908, and the drawings done by Wright and his studio held by the museum. For more information, visit www.FineArts Society.net.

COUNTY

Food protection manager certification course offered

The Woodford County Health Department is offering a Certified Food Protection Manager Certification course March 5 and March 7. The 2017 FDA Food Code requires all Category 1 and Category 2 food establishments to have at least one person-in-charge per shift with this certification. This course is open to any person that requires certification. 

Course participants must attend both days of scheduled classes and pass an exam to qualify for certification. The cost of the course and accompanying exam is $150. Class materials will be provided. The deadline to register for this course is Feb. 15. Registration limited to 20 participants. 

This course, accredited by the American National Standards Institute, consists of two days of class and a two-hour exam. 

The course will be held in the Woodford County Health Department conference room, 1831 S. Main Street, Eureka. Participants are required to bring photo identification to verify attendance. Registration and non- refundable payment is due by Feb. 15. Visit the Woodford County Health Department website, woodfordhealth.org, for registration materials or call 309-467-3064.

EUREKA

Class helps the search for German ancestors

Have you discovered German ancestry in your family tree? Karen Heinrich, a professional genealogist with more than 20 years’ experience, will present a German genealogy program, “Germans to America,” at the Eureka Public Library, 202 S. Main St., at 10 a.m. Feb.16. During this workshop, Heinrich will discuss German history, German immigration patterns, and what resources are available to help participants find their German ancestors in the United States. This is a free program. Register by calling the library at 309-467-2922 by Feb. 14.

Class to guide older adults through smartphone settings

Instructor Nancy Komlanc will be at the Eureka Public Library, 202 S. Main St., for two workshops Feb. 13 to explain how to adjust settings for iPhone and android smartphones. The android smartphone workshop will be held at 10 a.m. and the iPhone workshop will be held at 1 p.m.

Komlanc will take participants step-by-step through the process to increase icon size, personalize the screen’s background with a photo, change the ringtones for specific contacts, adjust screen light-up time, and more.

This workshop is geared for people older than 50, and participants will receive step-by-step instructions to take home. Workshop fee is $15. Participants should bring their phones to the workshop to make these phone adjustments. Class size is limited. Call the library at 309-467-2922 to register.

–Woodford County News Briefs–