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Legendary Jazz drummer Louie Bellson has a few connections to Kewanee. First of all, his father, Louie Bellson Sr. owned a music shop in Kewanee in the 1930s and 40s. Also, Louie Bellson's little sister moved to Kewanee in the 1950s and spent the rest of her life in Kewanee. But the question that our friend Dave Clarke tried to answer on this edition of Kewanee Back When was whether or not Louie Bellson ever played a show in Kewanee? We know he played several shows in Rock Falls, where he was born, and in Moline where he grew up. But did he ever play a show in Kewanee? Dave has the answer in this edition of Kewanee Back When. 

Today is Juneteenth, June 19th, 2024 and on Wake Up Tri-Counties we were joined by members of the Kewanee Committee on Human Relations, Etta La Flora and Lakeshia Jones. They joined us for a history lesson on the origin of Juneteenth, the meaning behind the celebration, and the recent Juneteenth celebration that took place here in Kewanee over the weekend at the First Presbyterian Church in Kewanee. The Kewanee Commission on Human Relations is already planning for next year's Juneteenth Celebration as Juneteenth continues to grow as a recognized holiday.

Dr. Chris Sullens oversaw his last Kewanee School Board Meeting on Monday, June 17th. On Tuesday, Dr. Sullens joined Wake Up Tri-Counties to talk about the meeting, the Honors for Kewanee FFA at the FFA State meeting in Springfield last week and three Kewanee Track Athletes who made it to State this year. Later in the interview, Dr. Sullens reflected on his time as Kewanee School District Superintendent and offered a little advice to the new Superintendent Rebecca Baney. Dr. Chris Sullens joined us for the final time as Kewanee Superintendent on Wake Up Tri-Counties on Tuesday.

Mayor Inman returns to the K100 Studios to talk about City of Macomb business surrounding Chandler Park, including last Wednesday evening's Chandler Park Master Plan Public Survey meeting, as well as a look at the upcoming Heritage Days Festival and a special announcement of an event to celebrate Reverend Dr. C.T. Vivian's 100th birthday on Tuesday, July 30th. 
To submit your ideas or concerns regarding improvements for Chandler Park and the Master Plan, take the Chandler Park Master Plan survey. To stay up-to-date on City of Macomb Business, visit the City of Macomb Facebook page or cityofmacomb.com.