By David Blanchette A Pleasant Plains brother and sister had big ambitions 65 years ago when they founded what became one of central Illinois’ largest agricultural businesses. “Early on I decided we wanted to be the General Motors of the fertilizer business,” said 91-year-old Glen Brandt, the co-founder of BRANDT. “But I never dreamed that […]
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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County Market parent company celebrates its centennial
BY DAVID BLANCHETTE Quincy-based Niemann Foods turned 100 this year, and although nearly half of its 6,000 employees are associate owners, for the past century everyone at the company has known who the real bosses are. “Our boss is every customer that we either have in the stores or we are trying to attract,” said […]
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Gases fuel profits at ILMO Products – A family company pulling business out of thin air for 104 years
BY DAVID BLANCHETTE A Jacksonville-based family company has been pulling business out of thin air for 104 years. But they are not just sitting on their gases. They continue to add product lines and find new uses for existing ones. ILMO Products Company is a distributor of industrial, laboratory, medical, cryogenic and propane gases in […]
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‘This could only happen in Springfield’ – ALPLM designer speaks on 10th anniversary
By David Blanchette The Abraham Lincoln Presidential Museum “redefines what is possible in a history museum,” said BRC Imagination Arts founder and CEO Bob Rogers, the museum’s designer. “There really is something different going on here. Instead of visitors touching it, it touches them.” Rogers was in Springfield recently as part of the Presidential Museum’s […]