Rock Falls

Held at the Rock Falls American Legion, the Thursday night event sold out at 450 tickets and gave away loads of prize baskets and gifts cards donated from local businesses.

The ninth annual End Polio Now Walk was sponsored this year by Rotary clubs of the Sauk Valley area, including the Dixon, Morrison, Rock Falls, Sterling Noon and Twin Cities Sunrise clubs.

To kick off Rock Falls' Hometown Holidays weekend, the Rock Falls Chamber of Commerce held its popular bingo event Thursday, Nov. 21, 2024, at the American Legion.

The Rock Falls City Council heard a report Tuesday night about the consequences of a failed referendum that would have instated a 0.5% sales tax throughout Whiteside County to help fund emergency dispatch services.

Several road closures in and around the downtown Rock Falls area are planned for Friday, Nov. 22, because of events surrounding the Rock Falls Chamber Hometown Holidays.

Events in Sterling, Rock Falls, Dixon and Morrison listed.

Twin City Conservatives is free to the public to attend.

McKenzie Woodard plans to attend a four-year college and major in middle-level teacher education.

Steven W. Coleman, 45, was sentenced Oct. 17 to three consecutive life sentences and another 105 years in prison for setting a fatal fire at the Western Apartments in Sterling. He was in court Thursday asking for that sentence to be reconsidered.

The center will bring 55 full-time jobs and amenities that include gas stations, electric vehicle charging stations, a restaurant, convenience store and over 80 short-term overnight parking spaces for long-haul truckers.

Harrison Webb, charged with attempted murder, is accused of walking from his Rock Falls home to Sterling, going into the restaurant’s kitchen, and with less than two feet separating them, shooting a 17-year-old worker in the back of the neck.

Third-grade students from Montmorency school in Rock Falls presented thank-you letters Thursday to local veterans during their monthly breakfast at the Whiteside County Senior Center in Sterling.

Local communities gearing up for Christmas walks later this month and into December.

Frank Harts was recently awarded “Best Narrative Short” for his film, “Be True to Your School,” at the Raindance Film Festival in New York. Harts graduated from Rock Falls High School in 1998, where he was later inducted into the school’s Performing Arts Hall of Fame in 2022.

Due to the smoke plume, the Illinois Emergency Management Agency will be monitoring air quality and will follow up with a report through the EPA.

The Rock Falls City Council could have an almost entirely new group of leaders after the April 1, 2025, election.

“The Nutcracker” will be performed at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 23, and at 2 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 24, at Centennial Auditorium, Sterling High School.

The Valor Support Project takes requests for assistance from veterans in the Sauk Valley. Headed up by retired Army Sgt. Floyd Dunn of Sterling, it is a non-profit organization aimed at assisting veterans facing financial, physical and mental health challenges.

The 17-year-old boy, whose name was not released by authorities because he is a juvenile, also is charged with aggravated battery with a firearm, felony burglary and unlawful possession of a stolen firearm.

The event raised funds for the local Youth Outlook program, which supports LGBTQ+ youths ages 12-20; college scholarships for high school seniors; and PFLAG programs throughout the year.

A Rock Falls teen was treated at a local hospital and released after he was shot in the neck Wednesday night at Sterling’s Pizza Ranch, police say.

Sheriff: Measure will be on the April 2025 ballot.

On Monday, Nov. 11, customers can help support the Whiteside County Honor Flight program when they make a purchase from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. at Culver’s, 1901 Harley Davidson Drive in Rock Falls.

Love Lights the Way to Hometown Holidays is Nov. 21-23 in Rock Falls; Organ concert is Nov. 24 at St. Paul Lutheran in Dixon.

Johnathon P. Parker, 40, was taken into custody Saturday night, Nov. 2, 2024, in the 1600 block of Riverdale Road, Rock Falls, after a 10-hour standoff over two days with police, according to Whiteside County Sheriff John Booker.

Johnathon P. Parker is being held in the Whiteside County Jail.

Rock Falls is inviting Sauk Valley residents to experience the magic of its 37th annual Hometown Holidays from Nov. 21-23.

Sutherland self-published his first book, “Rusty and Rita: Bus Friends Forever,” in November 2019.

Pam Erby was the first woman invited into Rock Falls Rotary in 1989 when Rotary was opened to female membership.

As students across Illinois are starting to bounce back from pandemic disruptions in 2020, Rock Falls’ elementary and secondary school districts are standing out, with students showing the highest increase in English language arts proficiency.

Harmon church's soup supper is next week, Rock Falls' Love Lights the Way to Hometown Holidays set for Nov. 21-23

Search our table to see what designation your Carroll, Lee, Ogle or Whiteside county school received on the 2024 school report card.

This week, the Illinois State Board of Education released school- and district-level data showing what percentage of Carroll, Lee, Ogle or Whiteside county students were considered proficient in math and reading last year. Check out this chart to see if that's an improvement.

Wednesday morning's fire damage was limited to Country Inn and Suites' room 102, with water damage reaching the hallway.

Johnathon P. Parker, 40, is wanted for one count of aggravated battery with a firearm, according to a news release.

Police were called shortly after 2:15 a.m. to the 900 block of West Fifth Street for a report of a person who had been shot. When officers arrived, they located a man with a gunshot wound inside a residence.

Although the candidate roster won’t be complete until nominating petitions are turned in before the Nov. 18 deadline, two familiar faces have told Shaw Local they will be in the running for mayor in April.

The Rock Falls Facade Improvement Committee presented 7:24 Fitness on the Rock a check for $5,000 for their recent facade improvements, which included a new sign, new windows and doors, and paint.

Haunted Haven now set up near Dixon, is rebounding this season after a May fire burned its Rock Falls site to the ground.

Steven Coleman was sentenced Oct. 17 to three consecutive life sentences and another 105 years in prison for fire that killed 3 at Sterling’s Western Apartments

Halloween decorating is second to none (sorry Christmas), because the creativity knows no bounds. Christmas pretty much has one linear theme: Santa, lights, maybe a Grinch, some sort of glitzed-up tree. But with Halloween, all bets are off.

Biz Boo! Trick-or-Treat planned in Rock Falls, Halloween Town in Sterling, and parade and Treat Street in Dixon.

Newman Central Catholic High School recently released its first-quarter honor roll for the 2024-2025 school year.

Hundreds hit the downtown Friday, Oct. 25, 2024, for the annual Biz Boo Trick or Treat in Rock Falls.

A total of 1,465 students at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater were recipients of scholarships for the 2024-25 academic year.

The Whiteside County Health Department and Community Health Clinic has announced its new addition, which includes an expansion and added optometry services, is expected to be completed by the end of October with services beginning Nov. 4.

Check out some scary home decor around the Sauk Valley.

Here's a list of trick-or-treat hours, parades and trunk or treats on tap to celebrate the spooky season.

The Coqui Comfort food truck is opening a brick-and-mortar location Nov.7 at 110 W. Second St. in Rock Falls.

The dean’s list honors students with a semester grade-point average of 3.5 or higher.