Rochelle Foods recently presented a $5,000 donation to the Rochelle Christian Food Pantry.

Northern Rehab Physical Therapy Specialists will host a coat drive this month to collect items for the Sycamore United Methodist Church Coat Ministry. The coat drive runs through Oct. 17.

The Illinois Department of Transportation has announced that U.S. 6 and 34 at the BNSF railroad crossing in Wyanet will be closed for repairs beginning Monday, Oct. 6, 2025.

John Combs, a 24-year-old lineman from Rochelle, died after being struck by a train in Montgomery, Alabama, on Oct. 4, 2024. A year later, his family is still searching for answers about the circumstances surrounding his death

The Seebach family has been growing and selling pumpkins in Flagg Center just outside Rochelle for the past 44 years. Seebach’s Pumpkins at 5498 S. Center Road opened for the season Sept. 13.

The Stillman Valley National Honor Society is hosting a community blood drive from 1-6 p.m. Oct. 21 at Stillman Valley High School.

The 10,000-square-foot, award-winning Insanity Haunted House in Peru features over 40 actors and different themes in each room.

Schmeling Construction Company started the process of closing the entrance to the Health & Wellness Center from Second Street. As of Wednesday, Oct. 1, 2025, that entrance is now closed.

The Rochelle Police Department has launched its Pink Patch Project fundraiser in honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month and Tammy Kovacs, the late mother of RPD Officer Ryan Kovacs.

The attorney of an animal rights activist accused in Ogle County of falsely reporting a shooting in May at a rodeo near Rochelle is looking to set a February trial date.

Rochelle Township High School had its grant approved to purchase four additional drones for its career and technical education department. Ashton-Franklin Center will receive a grant for temperature probes, sensors and charging stations.

Rochelle Mayor John Bearrows presented a $500 check to Brent Ohlinger, the winner of the Blood Draw raffle that took place at the city’s Fly-in Drive-in event at the Rochelle Municipal Airport on Aug. 10.

The Rochelle Christian Food Pantry at 770 Lincoln Ave. set a record for families served in August 2025, RCFP Board Member Cal Jacobs said Sept. 25, 2025.

A man is hospitalized after he was struck by a train in downtown Rochelle on Wednesday night, Oct. 1, 2025, a Rochelle Police Department news release said.

Here's a list of Lee County property transfers for Sept. 22-26, 2025.

Northern Rehab Physical Therapy Specialists is collecting donations for the Sycamore United Methodist Church Coat Ministry. Needed items include new and gently-used coats, boots, mittens, scarves, and other winter accessories.

The City of Rochelle recently released information on its 2025 Halloween festivities. Community-wide trick-or-treat hours will be 5-8 p.m. Friday, Oct. 31.

Fiegenschuh: Over the past eight years as Rochelle’s city manager, I have had the privilege of working alongside an extraordinary team of elected officials, department heads, and employees who are deeply committed to serving our community.

The City of Rochelle will be moving forward with a second phase of downtown-area improvements that will include a stage and public restrooms structure off North Main Street.

The Rochelle Rotary Club presented a $3,500 donation to the Rochelle Community Action Network on Sept. 23, 2025.

The Rochelle Township High School Education Foundation will host its second annual trivia night Wednesday, Oct. 15, 2025, at Rochelle VFW Post 3878.

Rochelle Foods presented a donation of $5,000 to the Rochelle Area Community Foundation on Tuesday, Sept. 23, 2025.

Changes Counseling will offer free depression screenings Oct. 6 at the Flagg-Rochelle Public Library at 619 Fourth Ave. in Rochelle.

The Rochelle Chamber of Commerce presented its Lawn of the Week award for the week of Sept. 24, 2025, to Noah and Raegan Carmichael.

Anthony Rowley, a Rochelle Edward Jones financial adviser, is supporting the Marine Corps Reserves Toys for Tots program by using his office as a drop-off location for this year’s toy drive.

Bearrows: As we transition into the vibrant season of fall, we are experiencing a bustling period here in Rochelle.

The Rochelle Township High School Theater Department will present its fall play, “The Brothers Grimm Spectaculathon” by Don Zolidis, Thursday-Saturday, Oct. 2-4, at 7:30 p.m. each night in the RTHS Auditorium. Entry for adults is $5 and student entry is $3.

Rochelle's boys golf team placed second at the Interstate 8 Conference meet and the girls golf team was fifth. That and more in the Rochelle News Leader high school sports roundup.

The Rochelle City Council voted 4-3 on Monday, Sept. 22, 2025, to accept a $3,127,095 bid from DPI Construction, Inc. for phase two of its Rebuild Downtown & Main Street Grant Project.

On Thursday, Sept. 25, 2025, Rochelle Township High School's Homecoming parade was held and made its way through the downtown area and the city. Students from sports teams and school organizations took part in the parade. Retiring RTHS golf coach and teacher Glen Mehrings was the parade's grand marshal. RTHS will take on LaSalle-Peru on Friday in its Homecoming game.

Dr. Christina Edlebeck recently joined Rochelle Veterinary Hospital as its newest veterinarian on July 21, 2025.

It’s very interesting that our current President gets away with bypassing the Constitution, ignoring our legal system, and even demanding that our United States attorney general pursue a particular case or what to pursue in a case.

Rochelle will begin providing leaf vacuuming services for residents on Oct. 20, 2025. The vacuuming service will end Dec. 1 or upon an accumulating snowfall, whichever occurs first.

A grand opening was held for U.S. Silica’s Rochelle Innovation Center on Thursday, Sept. 18, 2025, at 1951 S. Steward Road in Rochelle.

The United Women of Faith of the Ashton Methodist Church are hosting a kuchen coffee and bake sale Saturday, Oct.18, 2025.

Here's a list of Ogle County property transfers for Sept. 15-19, 2025.

Thursday, Sept. 11, 2025, was Rochelle City Manager Jeff Fiegenschuh’s eighth anniversary of being hired to his position. His current contract runs through May 2027.

An open house and ribboncutting were held for Northern Rehab Physical Therapy Specialists’ newly expanded space Thursday, Sept. 18, 2025, at 1211 Currency Court, Suite 1 in Rochelle.

It has been a wonderful summer at the library! We have finished with all of our summer programming and moved right into fall.

September is National Senior Center Month. The Hub City Senior Center at 401 Cherry Ave. in Rochelle provides community, exercise, transportation and more to area seniors to improve their quality of life, HCSC Executive Director Diana King said.

Ninth Street between First Avenue and Lincoln Avenue in Rochelle will be closed for one week for railroad quiet zone crossing repairs and an underground utility project.

The Rochelle Area Community Foundation has accepted a donation of $1,085 from multiple area organizations.

McDermott: It is not possible to tell the complete life story of anyone in 1,000 words, much less two life stories. But let’s take a glimpse into two amazing people that not only were artists but spent much of their lives creating more artists.

The Flagg-Rochelle Community Park District Board of Commissioners heard an update Monday, Sept. 15, 2025, from Executive Director Jackee Ohlinger on plans to apply for an Open Space Lands Acquisition Development grant for a project at Tilton Park.

Rochelle volleyball won two matches at the Byron Invite and Rochelle runner Tyler Johnson took 35th at the First to the Finish Invitational.

At its monthly meeting Monday, Sept. 15, 2025, the Rochelle Township High School District Board of Education held a public hearing for and unanimously approved its fiscal 2026 budget.

Rochelle Township High School recently named its 2025 Homecoming Court candidates. Winners will be crowned at the pep rally and coronation on Sept. 25, 2025.

La Fiesta Hispana de Rochelle was held Saturday, Sept. 13, 2025, in downtown Rochelle to mark the start of Hispanic Heritage Month. The event included music, dancing, food, a craft and vendor fair, bounce houses and more.

Rochelle Township High School hosted a ribboncutting for its recently remodeled library media center Monday, Sept. 15, 2025.

Sixto Xavier Valdivieso of Rochelle graduated from Lee University during the 194th commencement exercises Aug. 2, 2025.