Got questions about Pekin and Tazewell County? Mike Kramer will find the answers
When I was growing up in Creve Coeur, I couldn’t wait to leave central Illinois.
Let me explain.
I have never hated the greater Peoria area, which was the scene of many fond childhood memories.
I went to see fireworks every Fourth of July either at Mineral Springs Park in Pekin or with family friends in Eureka. I played Little League baseball on the fields next to Lasalle Elementary School and Parkview Middle School in Creve Coeur, and rode in a parade float during a local United States bicentennial celebration. Good times, all of them.
But as Belle sang in Disney’s “Beauty and the Beast,” “there must be something more than this provincial life.” I joined the service to find it, and chose the Navy because it seemed like the branch that offered the most travel opportunities. So, I left central Illinois because I was a young man with a young man's sense of adventure.
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My experiences beyond Illinois
I have traveled to wherever the U.S. Navy took me. I have toured the Alhambra, eaten fried locusts and watched a group of cheetahs in something that looked like a football huddle planning their play against a herd of antelope.
Those experiences have given me perspective I’ve been able to apply to my local reporting since I started working for the Pekin Daily Times seven years ago.
I came back because I was a middle-aged man with family and friends in the area. And because this was where I found work.
So, for the last 15 years, my Life After the Navy has happened in Tazewell County.
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Your questions are important
I've developed an appreciation for local history I did not have when I left. I enjoy the people-watching opportunities at events like Morton's Pumpkin Festival, Tremont's Turkey Festival and Pekin's Marigold Festival. I find myself rooting for the success of new events like the inaugural Pekin bathtub races four years ago.
But what I want is perspective from area readers.
Do you want to know what's going on at a new construction site? Are you looking for an update on a previous news story or on someone who was recently in the news? Would you like to know the history behind a local building? Do you see something around town that puzzles you or catches your eye?
In short, I want to know what readers are curious about. Let me know at mkramer@gannett.com.