Late last December, Editor Larry Lough invited each contributor and staff member of The Independent to make one resolution we could share with readers. In the first paper of 2023, he wrote, “Several brave souls responded to the request.” He then proceeded to share our resolutions. Of mine he wrote, “Publisher Cheryl Wormley wants to […]
Does gravestones mystery involve a haunted house? I read with interest the recent article by Eileen Millard titled “Let’s dig it up” in TheWoodstock Independent, Oct. 25. There is a similar story in my wife Sandra’s family about her great-great-grandmother Caroline Guse, who died in 1891 and was buried in Marengo City Cemetery. She ended […]
My young friend Mary is a single working mother, 65. Jake her son, is 11. Mary works just below the eligibility for health care. Her son is covered through CHIPS, the state insurance for kids. Life is tough for Mary. Currently she is paying more than 45 percent of her income for housing expenses. So […]
Any day now, The Independent expects the latest notification from the McHenry County Substance Abuse Coalition that warns about multiple overdose deaths that have occurred recently. Those are in addition to reports from local police departments of non-fatal overdoses that were reversed with high quantities of naloxone. “Those deaths have not been confirmed as opioid […]
By Cheryl Wormley I’ve been writing Declarations since Jan. 13, 1988, so, I’m close to wrapping up my 36th year. I estimate I wrote 50 a year for the first 35 years. Multiplied out that’s 1,750 columns. Depending on the number of Wednesdays in a given year; the remaining two or three were written by […]
Support productions of local high schools My wife and I had the opportunity to watch three very talented actresses perform a well-written and powerful drama, “Eleemosynary,” in the Casalino Black Box Theatre at Woodstock High School. Tochtli Olivas, Kennedy Treliving, and Jax Kozlak portrayed three generations of women in the Westbrook family showing the complicated […]
Greetings, friend. Thought we should get to know each other and so, I’ll start. … Fall has always been my favorite season. I enjoy the colorful display of the leaves on the trees, the Vs of geese flying south, unpacking my favorite sweaters, and sipping hot cider on the front porch. However, with the daylight […]
Questions about downtown development projects continue to evolve. From, How much is that Old Courthouse Center going to cost? To, When will that redevelopment agreement ever be negotiated for the Die Cast site? Plus, Who is going to move into those 370 apartments planned there? And, Where will they put a much-needed hotel for Woodstock? […]
Monday is production day each week at The Independent. That means a sometimes-hectic start to the week as we complete editing, designing, and digitally shipping pages to the printer. When the process goes smoothly, we’re usually finished early in the afternoon. Things were different Oct. 9. The paper was essentially done about 2:30 p.m., just […]
When you have the responsibility of writing a newspaper column every month, sometimes the most difficult aspect – at least in my case – is finding a topic, especially one that’s worthy of several hundred words and that I know enough about. This month, my thoughts are all over the place, so if this seems […]
Larry Lough is editor of The Independent and reports local news.
Janet Dovidio has been a freelance correspondent for The Independent for eight years.
Susan W. Murray wrote for The Independent, covering various beats, from 2005 to 2008.
Tricia Carzoli is a freelance writer and photographer that on community news.
