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G olden E cho SECTION INSIDE
Burial site gets TLC LOCAL, A3
THAT’S A WRAP ON THE TRACK SEASON
BOYS STATE FINALS, B4-5
TELEGRAPH Tuesday, May 31, 2016 ■ SERVING DIXON AND THE SURROUNDING AREA SINCE 1851
ILLINOIS LEGISLATURE | STATE BUDGET
DIXON HONORS THE FALLEN
Wait until next year? This year’s session ends today, with no budget deal in sight BY IVAN MORENO Associated Press
SPRINGFIELD – Illinois is hurtling toward another fiscal year without a budget as lawmakers and the governor appear no closer to a deal with one day left before a key deadline. Leaders from both parties met Monday with Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner and exited his office with comments that all but guarantee the 11-month standoff will extend through the summer and possibly the November elections.
Republican leaders from the House and Senate say Democrats don’t intend to pass a bipartisan budget before lawmakers Gov. Bruce adjourn their spring Rauner session by midnight Wednesday. Democrats, meanwhile, say they plan to be in “continuous session” and work once a week in June if no deal is done. That has caused anxiety at
public schools, where officials worry they won’t have funding to open this fall. Social service providers and higher education institutions are bracing for another year in which they’ll be forced to make cuts because they won’t have state support. About 90 percent of state’s spending is on autopilot because of court orders requiring funds for crucial services such as Medicaid and salaries for state workers. BUDGET CONTINUED ON A4
Alex T. Paschal/apaschal@saukvalley.com
A member of the Illinois National Guard from the Dixon Armory salutes during the playing of taps Monday at Oakwood Cemetery. More photos from Memorial Day services in Dixon, Rock Falls and Sterling are on Pages A12 & A14.
CLASS OF 2016 GRADUATES | ROCK FALLS AND STERLING HIGH SCHOOLS
‘It doesn’t stop here’ Rock Falls grads take step forward BY RACHEL RODGERS rrodgers@saukvalley.com 815-625-3600, ext. 5529 @rj_rodgers
ROCK FALLS – For some, graduating high school is about going through the motions to take a step closer to adulthood. It was much more than that for Rock Falls High School graduate Oceanna Olroyd. It meant staying true to a promise 4 years in the making. “Before she died, I promised my mom I would finish high school,” she said. Walking across Hinders Field with a pink ribbon and “I did it mom” painted across her mortar board, Olroyd fulfilled that promise. Her mother, Amber Sheridan-Olroyd, died in 2012 of breast cancer. She was 33. Her mom would have been crying had she been able to Philip Marruffo/pmarruffo@saukvalley.com see Sunday’s graduation cerFelicia Aldrich celebrates after receiving her diploma Sunday afternoon as the Rock Falls High School class of 2016 graduates emony. at Hinders Field. ROCK FALLS CONTINUED ON A11
Sterling seniors exit in a sea of blue BY RACHEL RODGERS rrodgers@saukvalley.com 815-625-3600, ext. 5529 @rj_rodgers
Online extras Click on these stories at saukvalley. com to see videos from Sunday’s graduation ceremonies at Sterling and Rock Falls high schools.
STERLING – Memorial Day weekend and Sterling High School’s graduation ceremony proved a good pairing for Naykahil Edwards on Sunday. It gave him a fitting connection between his past efforts to excel in education, his present accomplishment of graduating, and his future plan to join the Army. Grasping that diploma at Roscoe Eades Stadium was a moment he wasn’t always sure of achieving. Edwards transferred to Sterling High School 3 and a half years ago from a difficult environment in Dixon. STERLING CONTINUED ON A11
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TODAY’S EDITION: 24 PAGES 2 SECTIONS VOL. 166 ISSUE 21
INDEX
Philip Marruffo/pmarruffo@saukvalley.com
Members of the Sterling High School class of 2016 do the dab during commencement Sunday afternoon.
ABBY ................... A7 COMICS ............... A8 CROSSWORD....B12
DEAR ABBY ......... A7 LIFESTYLE ........... A7 LOTTERY ............. A2
OBITUARIES ........ A4 OPINION .............. A6 SCOREBOARD ....B6
Today’s weather High 84. Low 63. More on A3.
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