111524 7AM Friday Byers and Co

Half mile turkey tot trot for ages 12 and under. Late registrations are online only at run sign up dot com by the 17th. Check in an hour before your race or online the night before. More at now Decatur dot com.

Brilliant or dangerous? I'm Chris Foster, Fox News. There is mixed reaction to Robert F. Kennedy Jr. being chosen as President-elect Trump's nominee for Health and Human Services Secretary. There's plenty of support for some of his ideas, like making food healthier, but he will face questions from Senators voting on his confirmation.

about things like vaccine skepticism and drug regulation. Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s nomination comes as no surprise. There were reports during the campaign that Kennedy could play a role in Trump's administration if he endorsed the former president, who is of course now the president-elect.

President-elect Trump also picked former Georgia Congressman Doug Collins as Secretary of Veterans Affairs, his defense lawyer Todd Blanche as Deputy Attorney General, and North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum as Interior Secretary. The House Ethics Committee has canceled today's planned vote on whether to release its report on now former Congressman Matt Gates' investigation is ended by his resignation from Congress after being announced as President-elect Trump's Attorney General nominee.

Committee Democrats and some senators who vote on confirmation say they want the report released. The trial starts this morning in Athens, Georgia, for the man accused of Lake and Riley's murder. Jose Ibera, a Venezuelan national, has pled not guilty to multiple charges opting for a bench trial set to begin today in the high profile murder of Lake and Riley, the University of Georgia nursing student who was killed in February.

Riley's murder was highlighted during now President-elect Donald Trump's 2024 campaign. He was an illegal migrant and he shouldn't have been in our country and he never would have been under the Trump policy. Ibera reportedly crossed into the U.S. in Texas in 2022 and now faces life in prison, if convicted.

Jeff Minaso, Fox News. He's really military launches more air strikes than an area south of Beirut, Lebanon, targeting Hezbollah. No intense US ambassador to Lebanon. Lisa Johnson is involved in ceasefire talks. America is listening to Fox News.

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at Henry USA one word dot com for free gift guide and decals Henry USA dot com. You're going to love this company. I love this company. Another small spike reported in military suicides. The Pentagon released a new report Thursday indicating suicides in the military have increased. There were 523 suicides last year, 30 more than the prior year. Pentagon's spokeswoman Sabrina Singh says Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin prioritized suicide prevention and is implemented

dozens of recommendations from the suicide prevention committee he established a couple years ago. While some progress has been made, Secretary Austin has been clear that there is still much work to do and he won't let up. The report also finds the suicide rate among active duty service members in particular was up nine percent. Among active duty members, the Army and Air Force saw the largest increases in their suicide rate, the reserves saw an increase, the National Guard saw slight decline.

Jessica Brosenthal Fox News. The federal government's making recommendations when it comes to using artificial intelligence for critical infrastructure. The Biden administration now has guidelines for using AI to manage power grids and water systems and, yes, even air traffic.

When they come from the Department of Homeland Security through their artificial intelligence safety and security board, the framework recommends that AI developers evaluate their creations for dangerous capabilities, assure that users maintain privacy, and that the AI adopt human-centric values. And these rules extend to the cloud computing infrastructure that powers artificial intelligence, ensuring that all hardware vendors

are properly vetted for security risks. Evan Brown Fox News looks like Florida is off the hook, avoiding a late season tropical storm next week. Tropical Storm Sarah making landfall across Central America and will likely dissipate over the mountains, which means it will not have any direct impacts on the US.

Fox meteorologist Janice Dean, unless it's somehow killed in the courts or by the new Trump administration or Congress, New York City will be the first in the country with what's called congestion pricing, charging a $9 toll to drive into the busiest part of Manhattan on Chris Foster Fox News. It's that time again where we choose who we think is the best candidate for office. It's a difficult decision that requires the evaluation of contenders

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While you're thinking about that really big decision, rest assured that any other hiring decision will be much easier when you use ZipperKruder. And right now, you can try it for free at zipperkruder.com slash free. Once again, that's zipperkruder.com slash free.

Here's a look at your news. Channel 20 storm team forecast today. It's going to be mostly cloudy. A high of 54 tonight, mostly cloudy and a low around 41. For Saturday, cloudy, then sunny, high of 60 and then Sunday, partly sunny with a high near 64. Current temperature in downtown Decatur, 43 degrees. Your WSOI time is 706.

Good morning and welcome to the Friday edition of Buyers and Company each and every Friday at 7 a.m. We visit with folks from District 61. We do a little spotlight. Get a learn about schools. I learned something today, Nick. I don't know if you know what the Franklin Grove mascot name is. Tell you next. Buyers and Company W. S. O. Y. 13 40 a. M. 103. 3 F. M.

It's a little hazy. Look great. But I'll tell you what, I'll take mid 50s in November any day of the week. We are now officially halfway through Thanksgiving's right around the corner. It'll be Christmas New Year's and let's just get the spring. I hate winter so much. We are back here in the studios. The tornadoes. I didn't know this. You have Franklin school and you had Oak Grove school that came together. Do you know when exactly?

twenty twenty one. Okay. I need those microphones turned up twenty twenty one. Okay. No, no, not yours. That's for Nick back there. We've got Heather, the principal of the school. It was twenty twenty one. I believe so. Those are one of those things like you could have told me 10 years ago, 20 years ago. You're right. And it is. And were there were there tornadoes before that? Or was that the name that was chosen when the schools combined? No, Franklin. What were the Jaguars? Okay. And I don't remember what Grove was.

And I was not there during the merger, but yes, then I believe the community voted. They had a vote to pick the tornadoes. I don't know what the other options were, but that's what was picked. Oh, see, the irony there. I've never put these two things together was that Ravina Park in 1996, which is where the schools right off of was literally destroyed by a tornado and back-to-back tornadoes in the community that happened on a Friday night and a Saturday night.

One on the east end of town, one on the west end of town, Hillard Clinton came to the town. It looked like a movie scene. It was a big deal. Well, you got to own that stuff sometimes, I guess, like go tornadoes. Tell me you made a presentation. We're going to introduce a couple of your teachers, long-term subs that are in your building, and there's an interesting conversation to have in and around that. But you recently presented to the Board of Education some of the highlights of what you guys have been doing recently.

Yeah, we try to focus on community and family. Some of the things we presented at the board meeting. We talked about our grandparents say that we had to become an annual tradition that we have. This year we had 269 adults and 226 students participate. That's a lot. It was, yes. Grandparents came in, they got to do a craft with their grandchild. A coloring sheet, we had a photo booth, props for them to use.

they got breakfast with their grandchild. So, you know, we focus a lot on parents during the school year, but this was specifically for grandparents. And in today's society, grandparents play sometimes a very, very large role, even in young kids' lives. You know, so it's great that you're including everybody and

How hard is that today to get people into your school? You know, I mean, the parents, grandparents, family members, people to support. I feel like public education, you know, and this goes back to Columbine, you know, a long time ago, the mood was locked the front door, don't let anybody in. And we kind of sent that message and then realized, well, wait a minute, you know, bad actors, yeah, we got to keep them out, but we need the rest of the community to be a part of our school.

absolutely. And we do want people in our school and we do it safely. We have a raptor system where, of course, and if you've ever been in one, you know what this is. It gets you pictures, got your driver's license picture on it and you check everybody. Yes, absolutely. And a lot of our big events that we hold in the gymnasium.

they come right into the gymnasium. We're not just letting people out into the schools. Again, unless they're wrapped in. We had a

And that was another event that we had where we ran it out. Scoville Zoo in September. And all the families, everyone got in free. They got to ride the train for free, the carousel. And that was just a really fun event as well, too. But we do like to include family. We do like to have them in the building and we try to come up with events where we can do it in a safe way and know who's in the building. The zoo is so different after five o'clock. Isn't it? If you ever get a chance to go to the zoo at night, it is a way different experience than it is like the two o'clock in the afternoon.

So do you have any idea how many people participated in that? I do not. It was packed. Yes. Yes. We had a lot and I don't have the numbers on that, but it was and it was fun just to see the families out having fun. Yes.

teachers came out with their families, everybody. So you truly had a blended sort of everybody there together in one event. We did, we did, yes. And who doesn't love the zoo? Right, right. So when you think about today and so much is made about public education, we were having this conversation in meetings yesterday and yeah, we all, we need better math scores and we need better reading scores and we need to up the game.

But there are so many challenges that you face as a principal today that maybe a principal didn't face. I mean, some of the stuff's been around for 100 years that you face, but there's so many new things and teachers have to be so where so many hats today, maybe than they did 50 years ago. And it's tougher. So how do you keep the positivity? How do you build a culture in your building? What's your philosophy on that?

Well, we try to offer a lot of wraparound services. So as a family is having a hard time getting a student to school, we try to figure out why that's happening. What can we do? Can we send our parent liaison out to pick up that student? Can we arrange transportation?

What is the reasoning behind that? So a lot of what we do really has nothing to do with the education part of it. It's figuring out what can we do to help that family? What services can we give them to get to the starting point? Yes, yes. And you know, we have a lot of community resources. DPS actually has a new program called Cartwheel.

which is an online counseling service that offers wrap around services for families because we know our community resources are wonderful here, but they do get bogged down and you know, they're short of staff too. So, you know, we're looking at other ways that we can help the families. OK, well, introduce your two teachers. Robin and I know each other for a while now. When did you guys come to town? Robin Valdez 2016.

you can tell me 10 years ago, 15 years ago. It's pretty amazing. Now you are a music teacher and what's designated a long term sub. What does that mean exactly? And long term sub fills the vacancy of a teacher that does

It feels the vacancy. Okay. So we would have thought of a substitute teacher when I was in school, you know, we get some guy or some gal comes in for a day because the teacher was sick, right? I mean, that would have been the old way of looking at it. Now in education, it's not unusual all to have substitute teachers. And this isn't just district 61. It's sort of nationwide doing long stints. Correct. Yes. So

She comes in every single day. So it's basically like having a sub every single day. But that become, you know, you build a relationship with that person and that, you know, in time becomes, you know, like their teacher. And I, you know, can speak to both of our long term subs we have here today. They do a wonderful job. Robin teaches K through three music. And Mary Jenkins is a fourth grade teacher and going to be a full time teacher soon.

All right, so tell me, so you're taking the sub status and deciding, well, no, I'm going to become full-time. Yeah, I love my students. I come from a health care background after COVID. I kind of was looking for a career change. Always have been interested in education. Heather Redch out to me. I'm so glad for her giving me the opportunity. She was actually my kid's fourth grade teacher. All right, go back a little bit. Yeah.

full circle. Yeah, she was my kid's work. Great teacher. And I stepped into the long term vacancy and I just realized how much I lived in. I'm like, yeah, this is what I want to do. I'm going to go ahead and go to school and become a teacher full time. OK, we talked about it a little off there. But what does that process look like for you? How long does that take? So it'd be a two to your process for me. But you get the teacher credentialing halfway through where you become a certified teacher. So it's to your process. But in a year into that, you can have the credentials to be a full-time teacher and get all the benefits. Yeah.

So what do you like about the fourth grade? Um, the kids like I love building the relation. They're so funny. So I love building the relationships with them. I love the relationships I've built with the parents, grandparents, family members. I'm able to reach out to a lot of them about the students if I need to. And then just watching the kids like get it. I think that's like my best part of teaching what kind of sold me on like, yeah, I don't want to just come in and then be gone in a year.

I want to see them go through fifth grade, sixth grade, hopefully get invited to their high school graduation, college graduation. You see, when people have passion, you can see it, right? I mean, she just lights up when she talks about this, and I know there's a lot of headaches, and I know that being a teacher today is...

probably harder than it's ever been, just because of all those roles you have to play. But I love when you meet people who are just, I mean, their eyes light up and when they talk about how they care about those kids, it just shows, right? And I believe you got a whole building full of people like that. We do. We have fantastic teachers. All right. Well, personally, thank you guys for supporting the WSOY Community Food Drive. You collected 359 pounds of food, which is amazing.

What did you guys do to do that? I know you had some events wrapped around it.

we did. We weren't sure how it was going to go because the food drive had not been here for the last several years. And since I've been principal, there we had not done it. So we've really had no expectations from the ground up. Yes. Yes. So our parent liaison came up with some different days. We had like a hat day. Anytime kids can wear their hats and hoodies at school, they are so happy. And we said, bring in a canned item. It's that day. Now, even if students didn't bring in an item, we still let them

you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know, you know

staff members vehicles and they were taking them over here. Just looking at the pictures from the presentation, tables and tables full of food. So you basically did this from September 30th all the way up to October 4th. You had every day you had something different to get the kids involved. Yes, we talked about it on announcements. We really pumped it up for the kiddos. And how important is it, you know, to

to give those lifelong lessons about giving back and empowering kids and community. That's what it's all about. Right. And we do a lot of that at Franklin Grove with community. The W. S. O. Y. Food Drive. Our kids have made placemats for meals on wheels at Thanksgiving time. We try to have different community events so that they can see about giving back to the community because I

really feel that's important and still in our kiddos. It's everything. I mean, we got to all be in this together. And I think the more you reach out, the more there is coming back in and you've got great partners for sure. And how do when I was looking through, I know you guys did benches from bottle caps to collected 400 pounds of bottle caps and which equates to two benches, which is great. I love when there's outcomes, you know, show here's what the work we did. And there it is.

But when I look at these community partners, you know, GT Church and Golden Kwanis and the Beta Sigma chapter of Delta Kappa Gamma and Alpha Kappa Alpha and Hopeful Heart Ministries, Jimmy John's Northwest Christian Church, how do these form? So last year DPS had a event where community agencies could come and sign up and kind of adopt a school. So we got a lot of our community agencies through them.

And some of it is just our staff members are involved in something. And then they bring them in. And I mean, they're vital to our school. We have volunteers that come in weekly and you see them working with kiddos and going through sight words and multiplication facts and making sounds for phonics out in the hallway. And we just need all the people we can get.

So how does that happen then? I mean, you know, I'm always thinking about, you know, if somebody's out there and they're listening, maybe they own a business, maybe they're part of an organization, they just don't even know how to start that conversation, right? They may not know the names or who to talk to, you know, Kyle buildings over there. That's kind of like, who do we call? How does that begin? Give us a call at Franklin Grove. You can ask for Heather England. We can get you a volunteer form to fill out.

get that sent in and then it does not take very long. And then we can arrange, you know, if there's a grade level that they want to work with, whether it's the littles and kindergarten or first grade or, you know, the older kids in sixth grade, our teachers have needs and we, you know,

put bring them together and then usually they come up with a schedule or if it's just for a certain project, you know, it kind of depends on the need of the volunteer and the teacher. What they're interested in, what they can commit to. So you guys are just K through six. Correct. Most of this stuff is now going K through eight. Is there a benefit or an advantage to being K through six?

Not necessarily. I mean, it was a norm when I was a kid. Right. Right. But now there's a lot of this K through eight. And then I know we're still dealing with post COVID and transitions and conditioning and people's socialization skills and all that. Are you still seeing those ramifications? Yes, I would say that we are. Attendant rates, I would say, are still affected by some of the COVID.

But I would say being a K through six building, it's just smaller. It's.

It's just nice, you know, a lot of our sixth graders will go down to like kindergarten rooms and read with them. And we just don't have that middle school portion in our school. Okay, not as high on the high and age wise as well. So fourth grade, that's going to be you for a while. Even when you get your permanent degree ready to go. Work great as well. What are the ages of your students in the fourth grade? Eight to 10. Eight to 10. All right. And what's your favorite part about your day?

Oh, recess to get out against the mayor. Well, it's been OK for so far, right? All the way through November. Well, thank you again for the donation to the food drive Tuesday.

This coming Tuesday will be handing out all the money and checks and support for that too. I believe it's 19 different checks to food pantries and organizations that are doing their cause. But if you would mind taking our personal thanks back to all the kids and teachers there for supporting the cause, we really appreciate it. Absolutely. And we'll be back next year. So you'll have a whole year to plan for what's next. We're helping to beat our 359 pounds for next year.

Well, I love the fact that you get everybody involved. You get the kids some extra incentive to do it. And maybe we can get them out next year and be a part of it. That'd be very cool. Nick, you got anything before we get out of here for a teacher to teacher? I spent some time as a long term sub. And when it's either for you or it's not. And you don't end up being a long term sub.

unless you really need money or you like what you're doing. And so it's really cool to see you go, you know what, I really do like this. And I want to go a step further and thank you for stepping in where somebody's obviously needed and making a difference. Thank you very much. Yeah, I don't know what public education would do right now without long term stops. I mean, and I'm not trying to make it sound dire. I'm just saying it's a recruiting problem and it's not unique to District 61. And I don't know how you'd fill the gaps, do you?

No, I mean, they're vital to us running our building and having our building filled with teachers. Yeah. And then it doesn't district 61 work with you if you want to get to the next level. I mean, there's a pathway and some help and some assistance as well. Yeah. What about the state of music today? How many students are you teaching on a weekly basis, Robin? Hi. How many are in K? I teach K through three and there's three

Three classes of each and we're now working on our Christmas program. And I absolutely love it. Alright, when's the Christmas program? I usually get rehearsing quite a bit. Oh yeah, December 12th. Alright, so parents and grandparents and family members will be out to celebrate that whole thing. That sounds fun. Guys, thank you for what you do. I know you don't get nearly enough thanks and I know people like to concentrate on every negative thing that happens, but I'm telling you

If you spend some time within the walls of what's going on in these schools, you'll see some miraculous people doing unbelievable things with kids every day. And for us, that's news. It doesn't just have to be the bad stuff. There's 99% more of the good stuff. So thank you and the tornadoes. I learned something that I had no idea. And so if it was 2021, it had to be after the tornadoes. Maybe they just decided to own it. There we go. Guys, we appreciate it. Thank you very much. We'll take a break. Nick's got your three day forecast. We'll be back with more right after this.

Today, it's going to be mostly cloudy. High near 54 tonight. Mostly cloudy low around 41 for Saturday. Cloudy and sunny high near 60 and Sunday, partly sunny high near 63 current temperature in downtown Decator 43 degrees. Your WSOI time is 724.

Football season is here and returning for year three is the United Way NFL Challenge, courtesy of Dale Southlake Pharmacy, Coley's quarter drugs, BackTech, Goodfellas on Merchant, and Buick Real Estate's Cole Babcock. For a $5 donation each week, pick a winner in the NFL games. Pick the most right in a week, win $100, pick the most right for the season, and win even more cash, and join Johnny Asherman and Lance Amos in the Champions Club.

Visit uwdecatur.org or United Way of Decatur's Facebook page for the weekly game card. Year three of the United Way NFL Challenge. What use some money? Ladies and gentlemen, your Decatur Blaze are ready to lace up for a fight against cancer. Join us Sunday, November 17th, for our annual hockey fights cancer game. The Blaze wants to help shine a light on the fight against cancer, honoring those affected and supporting research for a cure. Come share on the Blaze as we unite with hockey communities nationwide to support cancer research and local patients.

Together, we can make a powerful impact. Visit our Facebook page where Decaturblaze.com for details. Help Blaze a path for a cure. Dorns open at 4.30. Decaturblaze hockey. Fire on ice.

Milliken University awards more than $27 million in scholarships and aid each year. Students should apply by December 1st to receive the most scholarship opportunities. If you've worked hard crafting your musical, artistic, or theatrical talent, are interested in the sciences, or are committed to promoting diversity and inclusion, visit milliken.edu slash scholarships to see how you can be rewarded. Submit the free application for admission by December 1st to meet scholarship deadlines. Apply now at milliken.edu slash apply.

Hi, JR from Speedloop here again, reminding all of our clients how much we appreciate you, and the services we provide that others may not. Here at Speedloop, you have the choice to stay in your vehicle or wait in our lobby while we perform the service for you. Our full service includes a multi-point inspection that entails checking differential and transfer case fluids, along with all the other vital fluids underneath the hood. We also vacuum the floorboards, wash the exterior windows, and correct your tire inflation. All of this while providing a premium, pin-soil product. Thank you, Decatur, and surrounding areas for your 43-plus years of patronage. We look forward to seeing you again.

You're listening to Buyers & Company, streaming live at nowdecatur.com.

back here on a Friday. Hope you're having a great start to your day. Once again, just a quick reminder tomorrow on W. D. Z. You can find the Illinois game here on W. S. O. Y. That pregame show from W. D. W. S is 11 30. Michigan State of the line at football 12 30 pregame and then Quincy Notre Dame.

Uh, Admiral Forsyth 145 pregame right after that game, Mount Zion at Breeze Central with a four 45 pregame. Or if there's an overtime or something crazy or whatever, it might be a little bit delayed, but you're going to get both of them back to back. Now, Maros at home, Mount Zion is on the road. So a lot of Mount Zion fans are going to want to be able to tune in. No question about that. A great day of sports. Yeah. Excited.

can I can I hijack this segment another weekend of sports? OK, this is a big deal. Tell me if you're in on this. OK, the quote about this event is we'll have people on the ground talking to players, talking to people that are there. We pride ourselves on the personal stories. Twenty five staffers going to be on the ground, including Hall of Famers going to cover this thing. And it is going to be broadcast, simulcast on multiple channels, a website built out with merchandise and all of that that's happening this weekend.

on QVC and QVC 2 and the Home Shopping Network Plus if you have streaming.

And that is the pickleball championship, national championship for pickleball. They have created a broadcast deal. No, look, look, it's wildly popular. But you know what's really weird? I used to feel like I knew what QVC and home shopping network was, and I don't anymore. Their programming is so... It's mostly still what you think, you know? Okay, but that's not what I'm seeing what they're throwing at me because one of the

one of the teen sensations from the 90s. Was it one of the Phillips kid, not the ones in the band, but the other one? Is it be you? Yeah. Has her own.

talk show okay that I for whatever I'm getting fed ads like digital ads or and I don't know why but I mean so I've been seeing this QVC home shopping network thing and I've been asking myself it's like okay well that's that's not what I think that is they generally tied to back end of product so maybe it's yeah this is like a talk show for women about women

And it probably has like the Dr. Gadget type stuff that is the financial part of. Hey, and just can buy that here. Interesting that you mentioned that because I've been seeing that what I thought was a brand previewing stuff that didn't necessarily fit into what I thought it was at his pickleball. All in. There you have it. Send them the whole truth. All right. We've got to take a break for the bottom of the hour stories and news. When we get back here, Mark Topper and Topper on sports and then the Brink Otter home highlight. This is RJ Chris with your stories.

Now, Milliken's most beloved holiday event, Vespers, returns December 7th and 8th to Kirkwin Fine Arts Center. Performances will be on the 7th at 2 and 7th at 2. Tickets are $12 to $16 and are available at the Kirkwin Fine Arts Ticket Office. Tickets can then be purchased online by phone or in person during regular hours between noon and 4.30 Tuesday through Friday.

And tickets are still available for the Chamber of Commerce's 71st annual Thanksgiving luncheon on the 26th. This year's speaker is Milliken's Lori Kerns delivering the time honored message for this. We give thanks. The event is at the Decatur Conference Center and Hotel. Doors open at 1115 with the lunch and program at noon. Tickets are $25 per person with tables of 10 available. You can make reservations at now Decatur.com.

In other news, it's Friday. More stories, podcasts, and videos at nowdecatur.com.

Fox News. I'm CJ Papa, the family of 22 year old Lincoln Riley and a Georgia courtroom this morning for the trial of her leg killer and illegal migrant from Venezuela. Prosecutors begin presenting evidence of how the nursing student was viciously attacked while out on a run the morning of February 22nd, 2023. The defendant Jose Yabara has pleaded not guilty to 10 counts, including Malice murder, felony murder, kidnapping, aggravated assault, with intent to rape among other charges.

Fox's Chanley painter and other defendant weighed his right to a jury trail. President-elect Trump and Mar-a-Lago praising his cabinet choices including former Congressman Tulsi Gabbard. A woman who was a Democrat and was an independent and last week she said, I want to be a Republican because this is what I stand for and I've always admired her. She's up for Director of National Intelligence. America's listening to Fox News.

Fall is in the air. Soon our focus will be on football, fall colors, and family gatherings for the holidays. Do you or a loved one in your life need help preparing for or accompanying to a local event? Whether it's transportation to an event, meal preparation, or simply companionship, call Synergy Home Care to help. At Synergy Home Care, we understand that people are happiest and healthiest where they're most comfortable in their own home. Google Synergy Home Care today to learn more. Synergy Home Care.

Home care, care for everyone. Transfer Portal, NIL Recruiting, Game Previews and Recaps. Get the best in-depth coverage of what's going on with fighting Alainai athletics at alainaihq.com. For under 17 cents per day, Alainai HQ digital subscribers have access to breaking news, articles and information from Scott Ritchie, Matt Daniels, Bob Osmasen, and of course, Lauren Tate.

visit AlainiHQ.com and click on subscribe today for access to the latest with all of your favorite Illinois athletic teams AlainiHQ.com

The Symphony Orchestra Guild of Decatur invites you to join in celebrating their 50th anniversary of supporting music in Decatur at the Golden Holiday Gala. Join the celebration with an elegant dinner, fine wine, auctions, and music by Terry Brennan and Friends on Friday, December 6 at the Country Club of Decatur. Proceeds support the Milliken Decatur Symphony Orchestra and music education. For reservations, go to symphonyorchestraguildofdecatur.org or call the Decatur Area Arts Council.

2 1 7 4 2 3 31 89. Here's a look at your news channel. Tony Stone King forecast today. Mostly cloudy, high of 54 tonight. Mostly cloudy low around 41 for Saturday, cloudy, then sunny, high near 60 and then Sunday, partly sunny, high near 63.

current temperature in downtown Decatur 43 degrees, your WSLI time is 733.

on sports on W. S. O. Y. 13 40 a.m. And 103.3 f.m. Streaming live at now. Decatur dot com. Each and every weekday morning. We check in with Mark Tupper and Tupper on sports. Last home game for the line. I football team.

Indeed, tomorrow at 130 Memorial Stadium. I'll put televised on FS1. Listen to it here on WSOI. Illinois six and three, Michigan State four and five. Illinois favored by two and a half. I think a little bit of pressure on breath be able to win this game and properly finish off what has been a good season. You know, the Minnesota lost

just felt like it bled all the joy out of things. And it coincided with the start of basketball season. And Illinois is a basketball school. There's no way around it. And so people could quickly shift gears and shift focus to the other side of the street there and keep an eye on basketball. But I think tomorrow they come out in this final home game. I still think Luke Altmer's got some good football to be played. And I think some of these

guys who are in their final home games of their careers will be inspired to play a little bit. I like Illinois in this game and two games to note.

from the National College tomorrow. Northwestern is hosting Ohio State and that game will be played at Rigley Field 11 in the morning. I'm interested to see it simply because if you remember when Illinois played Northwestern up at Rigley a number of years ago they could not get that field configured properly and they ruled that the end zone that bumped up against the right field wall of Rigley Field was too close and therefore unsafe and so both teams had to switch

And every, every offensive drive headed toward the first base side of things. And they have reconfigured it now. And they have that going in. And the reason that's important is because Illinois is going to play there at Wrigley Field, the final game of the season, the Saturday after Thanksgiving. Indiana, 10-0 off this week in then Ohio State. And finally, Illinois women's basketball. They won big over Eastern last night. That was the secondary story, the main story.

is that their head coach Shawna Green received a two-year contract extension and in 2028 she will make a million dollars a year and that's sort of a big deal threshold for any women's college head basketball coach. I know there's a

a financial inequity between what is paid to men and what is paid to women. But there's also a lot of attendance differences and things too, but good for her. That's a neat thing that she's being recognized by athletic director Josh Whitman. No doubt about it. This look at Tupper on Sports brought to you by First National Bank, the quality bank serving five communities and

the name that people have known in Decatur for decades. It has stood for quality automotive service for over 75 years. When we decided to expand our operation to include a brand new travel center, it had to be done right. With the project of that skill, we turned to First National Bank of Decatur to help us navigate the complicated financial aspects. With First National Bank's help, we are happy to announce we are now open at 301 North Bikles Road. I'm Myra Billingsley, and on behalf of the Billingsley family, I want to thank First National Bank. First National Bank, the Quality Bank, member FDIC, fmbquality.bank.

back here with Mark Tupper and Tupper on sports. All right. Let's start with the boxing match tonight. Well, I just, you know, I think if Mike Tyson's going to win, it has to happen in the first round. I think if Jake Paul can dance away and play defense in round one, I would bet that Mike Tyson tires quickly. And the thing about Jake Paul is

He picks on old people. He lines up these fights against washed up fighters. I think AARP should show up before the fight and slap the cuffs on this guy. I really do. I remember a guy who is not much difference in age than Mike Tyson is Kendall Deal, the former fly in a line. I think he's 56 maybe. And he trains all the time as a boxer.

And he has said that he, I don't know if this is true, but he has said that he would beat Jake Paul easily. But he points out that he very carefully picks these matches with these people that have a lot of eye appeal, but really aren't fair in the long run. So I hope Tyson can land a

Crusher do his midsection early in the in the first 30 seconds buckle him over and finish him off on the upper cut. I think that'd be pretty cool, but I'm betting that doesn't happen. And I think it goes past the first round. He turns into a geriatric punching bag. I feel guilty for wanting to see this, but I really do. And the other guy that's kind of a curiosity is this University of Florida freshman basketball player Oliver Ryu, who's seven foot nine.

a freshman. They're going to red shirt him. They finally announced he is unbelievably tall. When you watch him, I believe he can dunk without his feet leaving the ground.

which seems somehow illegal. But they got to, you know, garbage time in their game the other night, and everybody in the crowd is screaming for this kid to get in the game, and they never played him, and they hadn't announced anything about a red shirt, and they finally felt like they were kind of compelled to answer it. But it's a sort of probable red shirt, because the kid could still say, you know what? I want to play, and in which case they'll play him. He's not particularly skilled.

But not only is he tall, he's really tall, seven foot nine, when he plays, would be the tallest college basketball player to ever play the game.

That's amazing. Mark. Have a great weekend. Enjoy the fight tonight. We'll have a lot to talk about Monday morning. Mark Tupper. Who's the tallest guy to ever play in the NBA? George Mirasan, seven foot eight. Seven seven is what they're listening to. Sean Bradley and the minute bowl, both at that. Sean Bradley was seven six. Yeah, the seven seven is what they list. Manute bowl and Mirasan as as the tie for the title of being the tallest player ever in the NBA. Those two.

Yeah. Okay. So 79, um, you just wonder, like, is the body made, you know, for any sort of length at that height to be able to be a professional athlete? I mean, just injuries and stuff. And, you know, I don't know, in most cases, no, that's why Shaq was so freakish because he had the, it's

You're top heavy and you're putting a lot of strain on everything down below because all the weights weigh up higher. And they're usually thinner. Yeah. And Shaq was just muscular all the way to bottom. Now he uses icy hot. Give him. He has the general for insurance. But I mean, no, not by and large. OK.

some big guys like Mark Eaton that were big and stout and robust played for the jazz during the Malone and Stockton times. Yeah, but he wasn't seven. He's like seven, two, seven, three. There seems to be that that that that is sort of the upper end of that like have a long career kind of thing. Now you've got the, the, you know, Victor at what at all is he a lemon yama six, seven, six. Yeah, he's very tall. He had 50 points the other night. That's what I mean. See really seven, six listed. I think so. Well, hey, three.

as of 2024 was according to wiki. So take it for a twenty eight players have been listed at seven foot three inches tall. And that includes Victor, Zach Edie. Zach Edie is a pretty big guy. So there's that. Yao Ming, Ralph Sampson, Sabonis, the dad. Sabonis, right? Arvedus. Yeah. The only seven foot three inches or taller selected to the Hall of Fame. I mean, that category. Are you just a bonus? Yeah. Yeah.

So yeah, it's I don't know, you know, human evolution and all this stuff. Seven. I just seems ridiculous. It's way out there. That's way. I mean, not in a bad way. Just now crazy. Really big. We see people that are like six, eight and go, Oh my gosh, are you in the NBA? And that's a whole other age. I mean, it's very tall. It's huge. Right. It's huge. There's a Japanese player.

Uh, who's seven foot eight that was, uh, well, it was in the 1981 draft, the Golden Warriors, tallest player to be drafted ever in the NBA, but never played in the NBA. Yeah. Well, there you go. Um, seven foot nine. All right, break out our home highlight. Yeah, this house, I think is sneaky.

I think it's sneaky because my favorite feature you wouldn't even know. I love it. I do too. My word for this house would be character. Yeah. Yeah. That's a good word. Twenty five dollar gift card to South Shore's Pizza Factory. All right. We're going to South Shore's. That's right. We're going to one of my favorite areas in South Shore's. And the listing is at 465 Shoreline Drive if you want to play at home. Get to our Facebook page right now. We get back on the other side of the break. We're going to go into detail about this.

the suite. I just man, it's room to room, just full of character. Tell you all about it on the other side. Stay tuned. Bob writing's Lincoln indicator has one of the largest selections of Lincoln inventory in Illinois with over 100 link is available. Come see why we're central Illinois premiere Lincoln dealer with over 3000 five star customer reviews and recommendations across from Caterpillar and above writing cedar dot com. Every holiday season, St. Mary's Hospital lights up the night sky with our Christmas star.

Each light on the star honors a loved one. On Thursday, December 5th at 6 p.m., we'll gather for a special evening at St. Mary's Hospital. Names of those being honored will be read. We'll share in prayer and song. And you can purchase a light on the Christmas star at nowdecatur.com. We hope you'll join us as we celebrate this holiday tradition, community tradition, family tradition. The St. Mary's Christmas Star. One in four Americans have a disability.

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You listen to buyers and company streaming live at now, Decatur.com. One of my favorite pieces of architecture ever as we head into the Brink Otter home highlight is the use of an atrium which goes back to ancient Roman dwellings. Yep. It's so unique.

And if you like outdoors, but you like the privacy of this is like having the outdoors indoors. It's not I'm not kidding. You look at it from the curb. You don't know that thing exists. It is my favorite feature in this house by a country mile.

And it's a feature that if I'm building a home right now, I absolutely from scratch would include this. And then it's rare. Yeah. And then do it in the way that the the inside can interact with the outside like this home. It's all space. I mean, it's all like continual. So let's do this. Let's give you the basics and the low down for 65 shoreline drive indicator, one of my favorite neighborhoods in all of the

you have now. It's mature enough that it's almost kind of like the charm of the West end. Yet you get that beautiful drive along the lake to and from everywhere, every day of your life. It's off the beaten path. It's not a lot of traffic. You know, just through there.

It's really it's kind of like living out a little bit, even though you're five minutes from downtown Decatur. Right. And one minute away from your grocery store. Yeah. I mean, it's all literally. Yeah, you get the mature trees and all the stuff that you would think about the West. And this feels like a West in house to me. Yeah. Like the style, the feel, you know, everything just has a little bit of character. And I love the overhead drone shot, which captures this atrium beautifully. Like,

It's like, well, there's this big roof and there's this house and there's this little sweet spot right in the middle that's nature. Yeah, your neighbors may not even know that exists until you show them your drone shot. I mean, it is that private. It is that secluded. That's why I called it sneaky. Yeah. Yeah. I like a side front door. You don't see that all the time as well, meaning that the house comes out and there's a door like into the alcove into the house rather than just right flat in the middle of the front.

Yeah, character. Yeah. The way this house is sitting, it's on a little bit of a hill. And so you have to kind of go, your garage pulls right into your house, right? So it's quote, unquote, an underground garage is what it sort of looks like. Then you go up some stairs and you've got a nice cracker barrel porch right there. You put how many rockers? Eight probably right there. But and then that little side door that brings you right in like Brian said, so you're getting your character

from the second you pull up and with the fall leaves. Yeah, it's very pretty. Tell you some recent pictures. The architecture is unique. There are several features throughout the house that make it feel. And you know what I also like about this? I know that we've all gone to this open concept.

But this is showing you like old school character in a home where the rooms feel big. But it's not just this wide open apartment feel. You know what? That is that's perfect. A lot of times in movies, they will pick those where it's the

They do the one camera shot through the house where the guy wakes up and then he walks through the house and gets the coffee. This house is that flow house where you're going room to room, but it flows and you're not in this just it was planned. I mean, it was this is not just floating a table in the middle of a way to big room and that that hallway down the atrium, you know, where it looks like they've got a treadmill where you can watch the sun come up or go down and do your thing. It is gorgeous, mature trees, beautiful trees, the leaves look gorgeous. The

Kelly Kerr. I'm not sure how her name is pronounced. K-E-R-R is the agent. You can get her information right there on the link on our Facebook page. Not a cater Facebook page. We have a $25 gift card.

to South Shore's pizza factory. So you can literally go see this house, get a pizza at home. Yeah, order the two cows own special and you won't need it. Anything over your gift card. There you go. Yeah, do it. And literally all you have to do is like comment and feel free to share. Let's go through some of the features. This is first and foremost, $224,900. What does that break down? $87 a square foot. I can't even believe that. Three bedrooms.

three bass, two full bass at a half, right? You've got 2,571 finished square feet. You also have a basement, like there's play big enough for storage and a workout area, whatever you want. That's exactly right. You only have about a quarter of an acre of land to take care of because you got all the land you need inside the house. That's right.

And nothing too big to manage. Lots of trees that there's a drone shot that is out from the street. Yeah. And you can sort of look over your land and go, I can, that's enough yard, but not a lot of work. And you know, you get that outdoor alcove, but then over on your side yard and stuff, you also get some trees, some shade and some other outdoor experiences. It seems like it's just right sized.

There's features in this house that, like, you could see it being up in the hills of Los Angeles, like in a Harry Potter show, you know, with that atrium and the design and the architecture and the flow of the rooms and the glass. Yeah. I mean, that's exactly what I mean. You've seen the inside of this house in Hollywood. You have absolutely seen it. And I got to tell you,

She should have probably listed how many closets there are in this house. If you go through the picture, another feature for like when you think about when this was built is as unusual. So, so many different closets of different size and different locations. Look at the master bedroom. Oh, beautiful.

And then some of the rooms, we're talking about less than 3,000 square feet, so smaller footprint. But every room, including the bathrooms that when you add up the square foot, they don't, they kind of flow long. Almost all of them have a nice flow, including where the washer and dryer does it too. Even the little side porch looks like it has a flow to it. It's very well right on about the full gym and the basement. I just now got to that picture. That's like a whole like literally.

But this atrium. Oh, that's a premium feature. You can't add that's a feature you really can't add without building. No, you can't. That's not one you could retrofit. No, you get to build a new house. And the idea that I mean, I love being outside. You know, there's we enjoy our patio just sitting out there. I mean, then think about having that just literally accessible from the inside of your house.

the furniture and they've got a grill and a whole gigantic couch. They've got it's good size. I will tell you this right now without exaggerating. This is an absolute testimonial. If you would take and double that size of their atrium, just double it, make it twice as long.

That would be what was the main photos of a specialty hotel I stayed at in downtown San Diego. Look at our area out there where you can lay on those couches or grill yourself if you'd like. Take a cocktail umbrella and they've got like mature trees inside. I would show you the picture and you'd be like, Oh my God. I've been to places like that. I know exactly what you're talking about. And it's the feature that they put on the brochure. Yeah. It's in your house. And it doesn't count as quote unquote square footage. It's just right there.

It's amazing.

And if it's raining, 21 by 19, I'm trying to, I was pulling up the, the blueprint of the atrium size. So I mean, to give you an idea of like what we're talking about and how you could furnish it and make it a part of just your everyday life. It's nice. Some nice plants out there. But if it's raining, you can still enjoy it. Ride your bike. Look out there. The big umbrella. Yeah, all of it room for it all. All right. Here's the deal. 465 shoreline drive. And it is really, really nice.

27 by about 20 is the atrium. I couldn't see that was 21 or 27. There's two also spacious living areas in this house. Like, you know, you would say a living room, a family room. This feels like two living rooms, like depending on what you want to do. One as a fireplace. Yeah. Yeah. That's kind of your entry point. But then there's another one that's just as special. And there's renovations, recent renovations to the kitchen and the bathrooms.

So those kind of things that you would be thinking about. Well, I've got to update, you know, here or there. Already done. What about windows? Can you count them? I don't think we have time in the segment because you have outdoor windows and indoor windows. You absolutely do. And you have a glass. One of your atrium sides is all glass. So you can enjoy it. And then do you like standing there washing your dishes and looking out the window? Yeah, they put one even right above the sink. That's what, you know,

Yeah. And the basement could be finished off too. I mean, they've got a whole, as you said, workout room, but there's that you could literally create. Yeah. Anything. Another space down there, whatever you want to do, theater room, whatever. I love this house. That's great. And the price, I got to be honest, this is on. We've been rolling out big time houses lately, one of which is already under contract from last week. Yeah. Yeah. This one isn't a price point that we haven't seen in a while. I can't imagine it's going to be there for very long. If you put 20% down,

And a 30 year mortgage at just say a six percent rate. Now that's not a guarantee for everybody. But just just that's a thousand seventy eight dollars a month. What do you rent for that? That's exactly right. What do you honestly? What are you going to rent if you can't afford that? You're not going to find anything that's got it. Literally. Yeah. That's amazing. I love this house. I just when I saw it and I looked at it yesterday, I thought I kept thinking Harry Bosch because he's got this really cool thing on the side with the stilts. But the inside feels this way.

Yeah, we watch these documentaries about the, you know, the rock stars up in the bird streets, you know, off of Hollywood. It's just got that. Yeah. But there's nothing dated about it.

And it's just interesting all the way around. All right. Check it out. We've had a $25 gift card we're giving away to South Shore's pizza factory courtesy of the folks at Brink Otter. All you have to do is like comment and feel free to share if you'd like on the Nada Keter Facebook page, the listing 1163 or I'm sorry that that's a 65 shoreline 1163 Wedgewood was last week, which is already under contract. Kelly Kurz the exactly 465 shoreline drive. Yeah, this is another good one. Good job team over there. Yes, for sure.

All right. It's got your three day forecast where we got in store for high school football playoffs this weekend. Today, it's going to be mostly cloudy with a high of 54. And tonight when you're inside watching Mike Tyson fight, it'll be mostly cloudy outside with a low of 41 for Saturday for football, cloudy and sunny high near 60. And for Sunday, partly sunny with a high near 63.

The current temperature in downtown Decatur 43 degrees, your WSLY time is 755. This look here weather brought to you by Brintlinger and Earl Funeral Homes.

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All right. Good morning and welcome. We're coming back here in just a few minutes. Angela in from the YMCA will give you some tips to get you through the holiday season because no one's going to be on diet between now and the end of the year, right? That's right. But I hear Turkey's supposed to be a good one to eat.

Well, the trip to, you know, you're going to nap, but you're going to callers while you're napping. Right. We'll get into that. Just how you can kind of like indulge, but not over and do some tips to kind of get you through the season because there's little things you can do. You can really enjoy yourself. And if you just kind of moderate over here or over here a little bit, it can make a big difference. So we'll talk about that.

And we have show and tell coming up as well. We it seems like Thanksgiving ought to be next week. It's not. It's all the way at the end of November. So we'll be back for a full week next week. And then then it will be Thanksgiving week that they just seem so late. But as long as it stays in the 50s, I'm good, right? We can do this all the way to March. Although I give it. I don't care about one snowflake falls on Central Illinois. I really don't.

I know everybody goes, well, I just like it for Christmas. It doesn't work that way. Stop. Get a snow globe. I said my atrium. I said my atrium. Yeah, I don't be out there shoveling the atrium. So check it out. The Brink Otter home highlight is up on our Facebook page. And once again, $25 gift card to the pizza factory in South Shore's. Good stuff. If you want to want to check that out, you can like comment. Feel free to share. When we get back, Angela from the YMCA, just like Jenny from the block, we'll be back. Stay tuned.

No matter where you are, we're there. WSOY Decatur, 1340 AM and 103.3 FM, streaming live at nowdecatur.com. This is RJ Christ with your stories. Now, the Salvation Army is kicking off its holiday campaign with the Decatur Unmasked Christmas Extravaganza on Sunday. In the past November brought a grand piano event

This year, the Christmas kickoff concert has three headliners and five individual singing with a mass singer theme. The event is Sunday at three at St. Paul's Lutheran Church. It's free. No tickets needed. There will be a chance to donate during intermission. Each dollar raised from a sponsor donation or given at the event will be matched up to $50,000.

S.A. Durban trucking will be hosting its second annual fill the trailer food drive today in tomorrow at Kroger at Airport Plaza. The company has partnered with the Northeast Community Fund and all donations collected will be delivered to any CF. The company hopes to