Decatur was recently named as the best metro area in the country for jobs in agriculture by Business Facilities Magazine.

The national publication ranked American cities in a variety of areas that include solar energy, economic growth potential and cost of living. The magazine also based their ranking on agricultural feedstock employment leaders from the 2018 Biotechnology Innovation Organization report.

The city has twice the number of people employed in the feedstock and biosciences subsector compared to Houston, Texas and three times that of Chicago.

Decatur is also home to global companies like ADM, one the world’s largest agricultural processors and food ingredient providers, and Tate & Lyle, a multinational agribusiness.

To see the full list of rankings, click here.

John G. Shedd Aquarium, currently Shedd Aquarium, is an indoor public aquarium that opened in Chicago Illinois in 1930. The aquarium has up to 1,500 different species of not only aquatic animals but other species such as birds, snakes, amphibians and insects. It had the first inland aquarium with a saltwater fish collection.

Shedd Aquarium was designed by one of Chicago’s most prestigious architectural firms, Graham Anderson, Probst & White. The firm has created buildings such as the iconic Terminal Tower in Cleveland and Federal Reserve Bank in Kansas City. The design of the aquarium was in the Beaux-Arts style, with elements of classical Greek architecture to make it a better structural match with the neighboring Field Museum.

It was the most visited aquarium in the U.S in 2005 and in 2007. It is now a National Historic Landmark because of its expansions and additions. These expansions included exhibits such as vast habitats for marine animals and large sharks and rays.

For More information on this amazing aquarium and its legacy Click Here

Kas King of Belleville is the July artist of the month. He’s a painter who mainly uses acrylics and spray paint.

How long have you been an artist or when did you start? Was there a single incident or moment when you realized this was your passion? If so, tell us about it.

I’ve been creating my entire life. I started painting all of three years ago! The moment I knew was when I gave up my love for sports to take on my artistry during high school.

Illinois has been factored into your work in the past. What does being able to live and work in Illinois mean to you? 

Up until the age of 27, Illinois is all I’ve ever known. With Chicago and the Metro East being such a major art hubs, the arts are more vibrant than ever.

What opportunities does Illinois present for local artists?

What Illinois offers is a place where artists can find themselves eventually branching out and bringing those influences back.

What do you like about Illinois?

What I like most about Illinois is that it’s literally in the center of the country; we have the opportunity to take influence from either coast.

What is your favorite medium to work in?

My favorite medium would be acrylics and spray paint.

Where can people view and purchase your work?

With my website not being complete, I am available as Kas King on Facebook. You can like my Magnify Art Gallery page for updates with shows and events at my gallery. I am also on Instagram at BlakkBobbRoss.

What artist inspires you and why?

Bob Ross, Jean Michel Basquiat, KAWS, King Saladeen and Alec Monopoly inspire me. Each of these artists single-handedly blazed their own paths into being household names within the art world.

With the recent rescue of the boys’ soccer team and their coach in Thailand, a new hero from Marion, Illinois emerges. Southern Illinoisan Thanet Natisri was at the center of the rescue operation.

Natisri is a groundwater expert and was called upon by the Thai government while already in the country working to bring people clean drinking water. His part in the operation included maintaining and lowering the water levels inside of the cave the soccer team was trapped in.

With a big storm expected to come in on Wednesday and possibly flood the cave more than it already was, his task was critically important. Natisri had to first search miles through mountains to find and stop the sources of water from getting into the cave, pump water out of the cave and also stop water from getting in.

The boys’ soccer team, the Wild Boars, was trapped in the cave with their soccer coach for 18 days. Although the team and coach were all accounted for and safe on Tuesday, there was one casualty. A former Thai Navy SEAL who volunteered to deliver supplies to the group passed away due to lack of oxygen.

Now that the rescue mission is over, Natisri’s wife, Yaha, is excited for her husband to return next Wednesday. The couple owns and runs a Thai restaurant in Marion together.