Coal City Unit 1 announced Thursday that Amanda Herrera-Ford will be its new Director of Business Services starting July 1.

In this week's column, Dennis Marek asks a very simply question: Can the American way of life be saved?

A group of Dwight-area business owners and operators are re-establishing the Dwight Area Chamber of Commerce.

A list of recent births at Riverside Medical Center.

All three All-City schools are sending a girls bowler to the sectional round, Momence won in the first round of the River Valley Conference Boys Basketball Tournament and more in Friday's Daily Journal roundup.

Bishop McNamara ramped things up both offensively and defensively in the second half of Friday's 70-54 win over Chicagoland Christian Conference opponent Aurora Christian.

From Capitol News Illinois: A federal judge on Friday granted a preliminary injunction in the case concerning the Trump administration’s freeze on $10 billion in child care and family planning funding to five blue states, including Illinois

From Capitol News Illinois: Marimar Martinez, the Chicago teacher shot five times by Border Patrol agents last fall, was granted permission Friday by a judge to release certain evidence from her case

Coal City emerged victorious over Yorkville Christian in the IHSA Class 1A Dual Team Sectional on Thursday, Feb. 5, 2026, to advance to team state finals for the fourth year in a row with a 56-14 win.

Manteno Board voted against paying for installation of turf on the Square on Second

Bourbonnais trustees approved a four-year contract with Fraternal Order of Police Lodge No. 64 Patrol Unit.

Kashus D. Vanderbilt, of Bourbonnais, was arrested by Kankakee police Jan. 31 following a shots fired incident in the 200 block of North Evergreen Avenue.

An Indian cuisine restaurant is set for Kankakee County.

Over the next few weeks, Shaw Local will evaluate how each position group from the 2025 Chicago Bears did over the past season and start looking toward the offseason. Here’s a look at the cornerback room.

Grant Park's Taylor Panozzo recorded a unique triple double in a win over Gardner-South Wilmington, Watseka/Milford's Christa Holohan and Reed-Custer's Alyssa Wollenzein each hit 1,000 career points and more in Thursday's Daily Journal roundup.

Chicago Bears left guard Joe Thuney won the NFL’s inaugural Protector of the Year award Thursday night. The Bears also won the NFL's moments of the year while head coach Ben Johnson took fourth in Coach of the Year voting.

From Capitol News Illinois: The attorney general’s office won the first-ever civil hate crime lawsuit brought by the state under a 2018 law. Two white residents of Carroll County were charged with intimidation and hate crimes against their neighbor, who is Black

A La Salle County judge has been appointed to a domestic battery case against attorney Chuck Bretz. A defense motion has been filed for a protective order on sensitive materials in the case.

Julius E. Burkes Jr., the man accused of killing Courtney M. Drysdale earlier this week, on Wednesday waived extradition from Indiana.

In this week’s “A Taylor-Made Life,” Taylor Leddin-McMaster reflects on the comedic genius of Catherine O'Hara, who passed away recently at the age of 71.

Downstate lawmakers haven’t moved an inch for a variety of reasons, none of which is good enough to not get this done immediately. And because of this, Illinois has allowed the state of Indiana to enter the game as a real player for the Bears stadium, Marc Silverman writes

This ordinance would clarify that village-owned property should not be used for civil immigration enforcement activities.

The Bradley-Bourbonnais boys basketball team snapped an 11-game losing streak with its first conference win, the Kankakee girls blew out Thornwood to secure a 20-win season and more in Wednesday's Daily Journal roundup.

Bradley-Bourbonnais claimed the All-Area title during the girls bowling meet with Kankakee, Bishop McNamara and Peotone on Wednesday, Feb. 4, 2026, at Brookmont Bowling Center.

From Capitol News Illinois: As the U.S. sheds manufacturing jobs, Illinois is accepting applications for $24 million in grant funding to establish training facilities at community colleges aimed at bolstering the state’s manufacturing labor pool

From Capitol News Illinois: The Chicago woman who Border Patrol agents shot five times last October called the incident an attempted “execution.” Court documents state Martinez’s vehicle collided with a federal agent’s although it is undetermined which vehicle initiated the crash

At Monday’s Manteno Village Board meeting trustees voted 3-2 to deny the request for a liquor license that also included a gaming provision.

In this week's column, Toby Moore explains there are different type of praise and trust, but while some are genuine, others come with strings attached.

Zonta Party Gras will be held Saturday, Feb. 7 at the Kankakee Knights of Columbus Hall.

As the Bears’ stadium flirtation with Indiana heats up, backers of the team’s relocation to Arlington Heights plan to rally the troops next week to keep the NFL franchise on this side of the state line

Over the next few weeks, Shaw Local will evaluate how each position group from the 2025 Chicago Bears did over the past season and start looking toward the offseason. Here’s a look at the linebacker room.

Reed-Custer sophomore guard Matt Kuban finished with a team-high 17 points for the Comets in their 59-57 overtime victory against Streator on Tuesday night.

Kankakee clinched the Southland Athletic Conference title outright with a 20-point road win over Crete-Monee, its 15th win in a row, and more in Tuesday's Daily Journal roundup.

From Capitol News Illinois: Gov. JB Pritzker said he will push forward on his 2024 proposal to fully fund pensions and address other funding issues. Illinois remains a long way off from the 2045 target, but there have been small signs of progress in recent years

From Capitol News Illinois: JB Pritzker announced Illinois will join the World Health Organization’s Global Outbreak Alert and Response Network, allowing the state to receive information about diseases and how to respond to them

The Chicago Bears made major strides offensively in 2025. Shaw Local's Michal Dwojak and Joe Aguilar look back at those strides and the challenges coming up during the offseason

On Tuesday, Kankakee County Sheriff’s Police released photos of a person of interest in the homicide of 30-year-old Courtney M. Drysdale.

From Capitol News Illinois: Federal judges have twice issued temporary restraining orders on the freeze. The current order will end Friday, Feb. 6

Over the next few weeks, Shaw Local will evaluate how each position group from the 2025 Chicago Bears did over the past season and start looking toward the offseason. Here’s a look at the defensive line room.

Reed-Custer earned a 45-42 upset victory over Manteno on Monday, Feb. 2, 2026.

From Capitol News Illinois: Gov. JB Pritzker donated $5 million in December to a political action committee supporting Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton’s U.S. Senate bid, according to federal campaign finance records filed over the weekend

Meet the Daily Journal's Athlete of the Week, Kankakee boys wrestler Jacob Vinardi.

From Capitol News Illinois: The comptroller does not directly deal with the legislative process of approving a budget, but the candidates had plenty of ideas on how the state should manage its finances

Over the next few weeks, Shaw Local will evaluate how each position group from the 2025 Chicago Bears did over the past season and start looking toward the offseason. Here’s a look at the offensive line room.

From Capitol News Illinois: For the first time in five years, certain forms of student loan forgiveness will be taxable following a change in federal tax policy this year. And those tax implications could extend to Illinois state taxes as well unless lawmakers act

Bourbonnais Police Chief Dave Morefield swore in the department’s 28th officer during Monday’s village board meeting.

Applause and encouragement filled the gymnasium at Bishop McNamara as River Valley Special Rec hosted Lincolnway Special Recreation Association for their final basketball games of the season on Friday, Jan. 30, 2026.

An estimated one-in-four adults who check ICash discover they have missing money or other unclaimed property, the Illinois state treasurer’s office said.

Catch up on the week’s top Kankakee County news in minutes. Hear the week’s 5 most popular stories, read aloud for you, for the week of Jan. 25-31

Ring in the new year with events at Dwight’s library