SPlog

If you are a new, current, or prospective board member for a nonprofit organization, The Center for Nonprofit Excellence at the Community Foundation of East Central Illinois encourages you to attend their Board Bootcamp, a …

Yes, you…the person who is reading this Splog. Smile Politely is and always has been a community magazine, and the articles that you read week to week are written by community members just like you. Some …

Plant Mode, the delicious plant store in Champaign, will find a temporary home at 113 N Walnut St, formerly occupied by Bacaro. Building repairs at the Chester St location means you can pick up your …

As we watch the snow fall today, it seems like a good time for a reminder of the C-U Safe Routes to School and MTD Snow Angel Program. Just as this weather creates a dangerous …

Champaign-Urbana based band Nim & The Diablos have released a new song — and accompanying music video — titled “Seasons.” The track is a departure from the band’s usual punk rock tunes, with “Seasons” opting for acoustic …

Champaign Public Library is hosting a virtual evening with Madeline Miller on March 3rd. The event is from 7 to 8 p.m. and free; you can register here. Miller is the author of the New …

Six years after opening its doors on Neil Street in Downtown Champaign, Watson’s Shack and Rail is now more than just a brick and mortar. The restaurant has unveiled its new food truck, which you …

Editor’s Note: The original opening date (February 3rd) has been postponed to due to weather. Artists strive to explore the depths of their surroundings. For Shannon Batman Percoco, the goal is finding beauty even in …

The University of Illinois and C-U have produced some stellar athletes in wheelchair and other adaptive sports. Many have represented at Paralympic Games, and brought home medals. Even so, there are plenty of people in …

Lunar New Year is Tuesday, February 1st; it’s the year of the tiger. How are you choosing to celebrate? Celebrating with food is the easiest — we have so many delicious options for many Asian …

Every year the Urbana Park District and Champaign County Camera Club invite amateur photographers to submit their best work to be judged. From February 5-13, you can view the Best in Show winners on display …

If you are someone who engages with businesses in Downtown, Midtown, and Campustown in Champaign, then Champaign Center Partnership is looking for your input. We are still dealing with the effects of COVID in 2022, …

Over 90% of members of the Champaign Federation of Teachers, the union representing teachers in Unit 4, voted Wednesday to authorized a strike. Teachers in Unit 4 have been working without a contract since June, …

Sessions seems like a perfectly normal and fun pick for a keynote speaker on the first day of Black History Month. Here’s a good recap of his career-long committment to upholding white supremacy.  The keynote …

Formed at the Chanute Airfield in Rantoul in 1941, the 99th Pursuit Squadron, now more commonly known as the Tuskegee Airmen, made history as a prominent all-Black military aviation unit in World War II. To …

If you’ve been participating in the Parable of the Sower community read or any other parts of the Parable Path CU, Smile Politely‘s art section wants to hear from you. Email arts@smilepolitely.com and share your …

As the new semester begins, Spurlock Museum has two new exhibits for you to explore, and both have opening events coming up. On January 30th, from 1 to 3:30 p.m., there will be a public …

It’s freaking freezing out, but these made-in-house hot cocoa bombs are a great winter treat to warm you up. Photo by Alyssa Buckley. I bought two of Farren’s hot cocoa bombs for $10, and they …

The cities of Urbana and Champaign and the University of Illinois are participating in the commemoration of International Holocaust Remembrance Day at 2 p.m. on Thursday, January 27th. The virtual program is organized and hosted …

McKinley Foundation is accepting applications for their new grant program to help fund community social justice projects. After many years of recognizing community members and organizations at their annual Social Justice Awards, they wanted to …

Are you ready to join The Recreation Club? This fab downtown Champaign spot is currently accepting artists, makers and shakers for their upcoming pop-up shops. Open dates include February 28th and 29th, and March 18th …

Every year, CU Schools Foundation honors Unit 4 and District 116 alumni who have gone on to make an impact in the community and beyond. Today they’ve announced this year’s recipients: Sue Grey, a 1979 …

A team including Beckman researcher Brian Cunningham and Nantao Li, a grad student in electrical and computer engineering have developed a new method for detecting SARS-CoV-2 viral load using saliva or exhaled breath.  The method streamlines …

The duo famous for craft hot sauces will soon open the Weird Meat Boyz Kitchen and cook food Thursday, Friday, and Saturday nights in Champaign. The Weird Meat Boyz Kitchen will serve a rotating small …

After closing in late 2020, and auctioning off the remainder of their merchandise, one of the iconic fixtures atop the Dallas and Company building is gone.  A crew was seen working on the roof earlier …

Prism Studios will be hosting a four-week series of Thursday night “Paint at Your Pace” events at Brew Lab Coffee in Campustown. There will be four chances to explore painting at a comfortable pace with …

Royse + Brinkmeyer Apartments want to make sure that their residents have all the warm winter clothing they need during these cold months, so they are collecting coats, gloves, hats, and scarves that are clean and …

The Virginia Theatre recently announced that the Lucinda Williams concert — originally scheduled for February 15th — has been rescheduled to Saturday, April 9th. If you had purchased tickets for the February performance, they will still be …

As someone who has done a lot of take out meals for four people over the course of the last two years, I’m pretty impressed by what you can get in these Hamilton Walker’s family meals. …

In the past, Lincoln Square Mall has been an easy target for jokes about churches, mall walkers, and the death of the American mall. All of that has changed in the last couple years.  You …

This Friday, Restaurant Week 2022 kicks off with nine days of special offers at 35 participating restaurants. There are specials for breakfast donuts and coffee, deals on three course dinners, brand new sandwiches, tacos for …

WCIA Chief Meteorologist Kevin Lighty defined good sport for this segment last night. Let me start by saying I have no context to why they were there doing a weather forecast, but honestly, I don’t …

If you are looking to learn to make a new dish or improve your cooking skills, look no further than the Common Ground’s monthly cooking class. For the month of February, the class will be …

Here is the latest info on hospitalized COVID-19 patients at Carle facilities: CU Public Health has vaccination appointments every Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. They have Moderna, Pfizer, and Johnson & …

A building project that will result in major renovations for the Undergraduate and Main Libraries has the all clear from the Board of Trustees.  From the University Library website: Phase One of the building project …

The University of Illinois’ student concert committee Star Course has announced their newest concert — bbno$. He will be performing on Saturday, February 5th at 7 p.m. at Foellinger Auditorium.  Pronounced “baby no money,” the …

Cafe Kopi announced a new morning special: in the first hour, any breakfast sandwich and a coffee is $3.50. The catch is that you have to be there before 8 a.m. Oof, that’s hard to …

The Champaign Park District is offering need-based scholarships for youth recreation programs. Find out how to apply on their website. You can also get information about scholarships for adults and families here.  Top image from the …

While this has been the deal on busses for quite a while, MTD recently expanded their smoke and tobacco policy to include bus shelters, outdoor waiting areas at Illinois Terminal, bus benches (owned by MTD) and …

United Way of Champaign County is in search of 50 young professionals who are interested in learning about nonprofit volunteerism. The Emerging Community Leaders program happens annually, and is geared towards people aged 21 to …

This Saturday, January 22nd, Director Chelsea Collier is looking for 20 to 25 performers to cast in Parkland Theater’s Spongebob the Musical which will be showing at Parkland’s Harold and Jean Miner Theatre from April …

Whether you are headed there for breakfast, lunch, dinner, or brunch, you’ll find some new options on the menus at Everyday Kitchen, like that tasty looking winter salad with butternut squash and pomegranates and goat …

Make all of your zine dreams come true this Saturday at an online workshop sponsored by the Urbana-Champaign Independent Media Center and the Urbana Free Library. Pick up tricks and trips for making your homemade …

According to Coldwell Banker Devonshire Realty, Walnut Street Tea Company will soon occupy the space that housed Pie’s the Limit at The Crossing in Southwest Champaign. The Downtown Champaign location has been around since 1981. …

Back in November, we learned that the Thomasboro school board was kind of maybe thinking about asking people to vote on removing a racist mascot. Well reader, after an hour of public comment, last night …