Rockford Mayor Tom McNamara joins Steve Summers on This Week in the Stateline to talk about the future of Davis Park, the 11-day visit to Rockford by students from Ukraine and more going before City Council on Monday.
ROCKFORD — Work is underway to bring a holiday tradition back to Sinnissippi Park, where thousands of cars tour through a drive illuminated by decorative lights.
The annual Festival of Lights is scheduled to debut on Friday, Nov. 26 — the day after Thanksgiving — and runs on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays through New Year's Eve. There are extended hours closer to Christmas.
There will be about 85 displays this year, including about 10 fully lit character displays that stand roughly 15-feet tall.
"There's a lot of new stuff that's going to be out there this year. We have to keep trying to make it bigger every year," Ted O'Donnell, co-chairman of the festival, told Steve Summers on This Week in the Stateline. "We gotta go all out."
O'Donnell, along with co-chairman and cousin Tom Luepkes and a small team of volunteers, puts together the annual lights display.
"It is very gratifying to see the cars come through, finally, when you click the lights on and see the faces pressed against the window," O'Donnell said. "It makes us feel like, yes, all these hours away from our families on top of working our regular job, it's worth it. It's absolutely worth it."
Last year, with the coronavirus pandemic shutting down many other festivities, approximately 104,000 people went through the display. O'Donnell said about 90,000 are expected this year.
The Festival of Lights debuts the day before Stroll on State, a one-day holiday tradition in the city, and the two events can compliment each other.
"People after Stroll, if they want, on their way out of downtown they can swing by the park, wave to us, we'll be out there working it," O'Donnell said.
The festival is free to go through. It's funded by donations and sponsorship.
Listen to the full interview below. The full episode of This Week in the Stateline airs on Saturday on 95.3 The Bull, a partner of the Rock River Current.
Bill Grennell of The Literacy Council discusses the mission and details their partnership with Jersey Mike's Subs in March for their Month of Giving. Bill also outlines the challenges of connecting with clients during COVID-19 - and the need for volunteers.
Runtime: 8 minutes
Rock River Current
ROCKFORD — The two-year coronavirus pandemic has created a steady stream of new scams trying to separate you from your money and personal information, according the head of the local branch of the Better Business Bureau.
From pop-up testing sites that rip people off, to counterfeit masks, counterfeit vaccine cards and other methods, the pandemic has created new reasons for consumers to be wary, said Dennis Horton, director of the Rockford Regional Office of the Better Business Bureau.
“Since the pandemic hit, we’ve had nothing but a steady stream, a river I should say, of pandemic scams,” he said on This Week in the Stateline. “We’ve taken to calling them scam variants because there are so many of them.”
The most common scam revolves around online purchasing, with phishing tactics seeking personal information being the second most common, he said.
“There’s always something new," he said. "I’m frequently amazed at the brilliance of these con-artists and crooks."
Last week, Horton's office issued a warning surrounding quizzes on Facebook and other social media. Those quizzes can ask personal questions like “what high school did you attend” and “what is your mother’s maiden name” — the same type of questions you may use to protect bank accounts and other crucial data.
“I’m not saying all the quizzes you find on Facebook are data collection scams, but that’s how they begin,” Horton said. “They’re collecting this information and they can now build a profile about you and, frankly, steal your identity.”
He said always take a skeptical approach to anything asking for personal information online, and keep strong passwords.
“We’re telling people way too much about ourselves while we’re online,” Horton said.
Lastly, don't be embarrassed if you are conned. Contact the Better Business Bureau for help if you're the victim of a scam, he said.
Listen to the full interview below:
