Developer and restaurateur Steve Zhao has lived in Springfield for more than two decades and during that time has been involved in projects across the city and beyond. He’s developed multiple retail strip centers, often anchored by a restaurant in which he is involved. In addition to projects in Springfield, he’s also built shopping centers […]
David Blanchette
David Blanchette has been involved in journalism since 1979, first as an award-winning broadcaster, then a state government spokesperson, and now as a freelance writer and photographer. He was involved in the development of the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum and more recently the Jacksonville Area Museum. David and his wife, Sue, live in Petersburg.
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Q&A With Brian Brennan
Brian Brennan has now been at the helm of HSHS St. John’s Hospital in Springfield for a year, having been named HSHS Central Illinois market president and CEO, as well as president and CEO of St John’s, in May of last year. As market president, he oversees strategic and financial operations at HSHS hospitals in […]
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Q&A with Gordon Gates
Gordon Gates is the managing partner of Springfield law firm Gates, Wise, Schlosser & Goebel and plans to retire at the end of May. He has a degree in business from University of Iowa and a juris doctorate from Northern Illinois University College of Law. Gates moved to Springfield following his law school graduation in […]
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Q&A With Jerry Kruse
Dr. Jerry Kruse joined the SIU School of Medicine faculty in 1984 and has served the organization in many leadership roles, including the past 10 years as dean and provost of Springfield-based Southern Illinois University School of Medicine and president and CEO of SIU Medicine, the medical school’s multispecialty group practice of doctors. Kruse has […]
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Urban League has ambitious development plans
“At a time when it’s easy to take a step back, the Urban League is stepping up.” Those were the words of Springfield Urban League President and CEO Dr. Marcus Johnson during a Dec. 2 Springfield City Council meeting. Johnson was trying to convince the alderpersons to sell eight city-owned parcels of land on Springfield’s […]
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Q&A with Candace Silas
Candace Silas is a Springfield native who has spent her professional career uplifting and empowering others. In September, she was named the new executive director of Habitat for Humanity of Sangamon County. Prior to that, she worked at Lincoln Land Community College, serving as director of the Workforce Empowerment Initiative, the Pipeline for the Advancement […]
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Q&A with Sara Vanhala
Sara Vanhala has worked for Growth Corp for nearly 20 years and assumed the role of president Jan. 1, succeeding Doug Kinley after his 35-year tenure. She currently chairs the board of the National Association of Development Companies and leads Growth Corp’s annual delegation to Washington, D.C., to collaborate with policymakers and SBA officials. Vanhala […]
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Q&A with Phil Martin
Phil Martin started working on job sites with his father, Russ Martin, at a young age and graduated from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 1984 with a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering. After starting his career with Turner Construction Company in Chicago, he returned to Springfield in 1991 to work at Martin Engineering Company, […]
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Q&A With Marion Richter
Marion Richter moved to Springfield in 1973 and began her long career at Springfield Marine Bank. When Bank One purchased Springfield Marine she was named community market retail manager for the Illinois, Indiana and Wisconsin area before becoming city executive for the Springfield offices in 1998. She retired from that position in 2001, which was […]
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Q&A with Mandy Eaton
Dr. Mandy Eaton became president and chief executive officer of Memorial Health on April 1, succeeding Ed Curtis following his retirement. She previously served as executive vice president and chief operating officer of Cone Health, a nonprofit health care organization that includes five hospitals and numerous outpatient locations serving a five-county area in North Carolina. […]
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A civic center for Jacksonville
A Jacksonville organization has signed an option to purchase the historic Illinois Theater building in the city’s downtown and has embarked on an ambitious three-month, $8.8 million fundraising campaign to finance the purchase and pay for the building’s transformation into a new multipurpose civic center. “This civic center will become not only a cultural hub […]
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Q&A with Sheila Feipel
After graduating from University of Illinois-Champaign, Sheila Feipel moved to France for two years and later worked as a French teacher. She switched to the technology industry in 2000 and has been the Springfield branch manager for Heart Technologies since 2015. Feipel is extensively involved in the Springfield community and has been a mentor with […]