By Ingrid Gay Dear Generation Z: Lazy, apathetic, and obsessed with our phones. That is how many older generations view my generation, Gen Z. We are perceived as not caring about issues, having neither drive nor work ethic, and always on our phone. Students marched for civil rights in the 1950s and ’60s and protested […]
Accepting Tim’s challenge for better lodging options In his Oct. 5 Letter to the Editor, Tim Davis of Bethesda, Md., challenged Woodstock to provide better lodging accommodations. I agree that our hotels are marginal at best, a situation that is in the process of being rectified. But today, Woodstock does, in fact, boast two terrific […]
Democracy is a wonderful system for us regular folks. No, not the democratic republic form of our government that allows us to vote a couple of times a year for our political leaders. We’re talking about the privilege we have now, unleashed in this digital age with its various forms of social media, to give […]
Rest assured, dear readers. The Independent’s editor has maintained his mental faculties … so far. During a recent annual exam, the medical folks decided it was finally time they tested my cognitive abilities. Not sure why. I showed up on time and was fully dressed. But I always enjoyed a pop quiz. The nurse said […]
Overnight visitor offers challenge to Woodstock Woodstock, wake up and get some decent accommodations for visitors to stay. Our family has been traveling to and visiting friends in Woodstock for over 30 years. On one occasion, we made a mistake and stay in [a certain local motel], which we found to be outdated, rundown, and […]
How do you think Woodstock could be a better place to live or work? What do you like about our community? What one word – other than “community,” “family,” or “home” – might you use to describe Woodstock? North Star, a branding and marketing consulting firm out of Nashville, Tenn., and Jacksonville, Fla., hired by […]
When is a truck stop not a truck stop? Woodstock found out in early 2020 when the City Council, in a 5-2 vote, cleared the way for a 4,500-square-foot Thorntons convenience store with gas station and car wash at the former Shop Fresh shopping center at Route 47 and Irving Avenue. Then-Mayor Brian Sager insisted […]
By Cheryl Wormley Benjamin Franklin supposedly said, “If you want a job done, give it to a busy person,” We at The Independent have been looking for months for a couple of people to meet with businesses, groups, and individuals about advertising to our readers – people who really want to do business in Woodstock. […]
By Sue Dobbe-Leahy Speaking of the importance of storytelling in suicide prevention, Sally Spencer-Thomas, Psy.D., president of United Suicide Survivors International, shared strategies for cultural change in her keynote at the McHenry County Suicide Prevention and Mental Health Recovery Conference. The annual conference on Sept. 9 at McHenry County College was hosted by McHenry County […]
How did Woodstock get so lucky, people might think. We get $57 million from the Build Illinois fund for the widening and improvement (upgraded lighting and landscaping) of more than 2 miles of Route 47 through the city, the first of a two-phase project that will make a better state highway through Woodstock from U.S. […]
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.
