PEORIA - Alaina Teplitz was right in the midst of bombings of churches and hotels in Sri Lanka that killed more than 200 people on Easter Sunday.

SPRINGFIELD - Since March 2014, 20 state-licensed skilled-care nursing homes have closed for financial reasons, while many of those continuing to serve the state's neediest elderly populations face staffing shortages and operating deficits caused by diminishing state government investment.

Sometimes parents send their kids to kindergarten at the relatively advanced age of 6 because they hope their children will enjoy an athletic or academic advantage over younger classmates.