This week on Sunshine Strategies Radio, Jen McMillin takes a trip to Wrigley Field — and comes home thinking about the Savannah Bananas. It's a story about joy, community, and what happens when institutions forget who they're really for. Along the way: Logan County's data center showdown moves toward a full board vote; two Normal firefighters receive Illinois's highest honor for a heartbreaking act of bravery; Decatur's Transfer House gets a limited-edition tribute; a decade-old community garden celebrates in Monticello; and May Days is back in Clinton. Democracy, like baseball, works best when everyone feels welcome — and this week's stories prove it.

Sunshine Strategies Radio covers local news across Macon, Piatt, DeWitt, Logan, McLean, and Christian Counties in central Illinois.

Macon County

• History of the Heartland (Transfer House models): https://www.historyoftheheartland.org
• Decatur Memorial Foundation Nursing Scholars Program: https://www.decaturmemorial.org/foundation

Logan County

• Logan County Board meeting info: https://www.co.logan.il.us
• America's Favorite Teacher — Vote for Tricia Campbell: (voting link — check show notes for current URL)

DeWitt County

• May Days Festival, Clinton IL: (check Clinton city/chamber site for details)
• Clinton Chamber of Commerce: https://www.clintonilchamber.com

McLean County

• Illinois Fire Service Medal of Valor: https://www.ilfirechief.org
• Route 66 Bike & Pedestrian Path / Illinois Commerce Commission: https://www.icc.illinois.gov

Piatt County

• Monticello Area Community Garden: (local parks & rec or city site)
• Rooted & Rising — Piatt County Women's Giving Circle: https://www.heartofillinois.org

Christian County

• Taylorville Daily News (Park Board / bike route coverage): https://www.taylorvilledailynews.com
• Lincoln Prairie Trails Conservancy: (search lincolnprairietrails.org)

This week on Sunshine Strategies Radio, Jen McMillin reflects on peonies, neglected places, and what it really means to “tend” to a community — from democracy to downtowns to the people around us.

🌸 In this episode:
• Decatur breaks ground on the new Clubhouse at Scovill Acres for seniors
• A historic downtown Decatur building gets new life with planned apartments
• Logan County’s controversial $5 billion data center proposal moves into another heated phase
• Mount Pulaski teacher Tricia Campbell reaches the national top 5 in America’s Favorite Teacher
• Clinton Lake fishing season heats up in DeWitt County
• Central Illinois dust storms remind everyone to stay weather aware
• Normal West principal Angie Codron wins a 2026 Golden Apple Award
• Community events, conservation programs, and Mother’s Day weekend happenings across Central Illinois

This week’s episode is about roots, resilience, and showing up — because surviving isn’t the same as thriving.

☀ Sunshine Strategies Radio covers Macon, Piatt, DeWitt, Logan, McLean, and Christian Counties with family-friendly local news, civic engagement, and stories that matter.

#CentralIllinois #IllinoisNews #DecaturIL #BloomingtonNormal #LoganCounty #Community #LocalNews #SunshineStrategies #CivicEngagement #Gardening #Democracy

Links:

https://www.wandtv.com/news/new-clubhouse-at-scovill-acres-breaks-ground-expanding-services-for-decatur-seniors/article_32ad5cad-2a02-4602-a398-21a830eb38ea.html

https://www.foxillinois.com/news/local/no-new-moratorium-but-no-data-center-either-for-logan-county/article_2feb7f42-1597-45aa-af0e-404b38d028bd.html

https://www.wandtv.com/news/education/logan-county-teacher-in-top-5-for-national-americas-favorite-teacher-contest/article_e840188a-6eb0-4f15-abec-6fe5fea46a38.html

https://taylorvilledailynews.com/local-news/915214

https://www.wandtv.com/weather/dust-storm-warning-issued-across-parts-of-central-illinois/article_fbc66dde-4971-49ec-be85-d92ed2f2c917.html

This week, Jen checks in on the ISU strike now in its fourth week — the longest in university history — with spring commencement days away and no resolution on the horizon. She also reflects on local accountability, a visit to a DeWitt County cemetery, and what it means to govern without gatekeeping.

County-by-county news covers Workers Memorial Day in Decatur, Millikin baseball's conference title, the Duck Derby fundraiser for the Children's Museum of Illinois, CAPCIL's 60th anniversary, a free veterans art program in Lincoln, and a milestone moment in Taylorville as Christian County welcomes its first CASA child advocates. Plus: more storms hit the region, and the Medicaid funding fight in Springfield gets closer to home.

Your Central Illinois wrap for the week of April 28, 2026.