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April 2008

Chester High School 3^rd Quarter Honor Roll

HIGH HONORS

Michelle Belton, MacKenzie Bradley, Joseph Brooks, Jessica Courier, Tiffany Cowan, Christian Fenner, Heather Fraembs, Aaron Grah, Megan Hecht, Suz Hohgrefe, Lloyd Huey, Kevin Koeneman, Mollie Laramore, Laura Liefer, Alexandra Link, Jamie Long, Jamie McAdams, Christine McClure, Jessica Presutti, Nicole Search, Katie Strickler, Patrick Strickler, Bryan Welge, Lauriel Wingerter, Jillian Yankey, Rachel Young.

HONORS

Ashley Andrews, Amy Araiza, Megan Atchison, Brett Barthol, Frank Barthol, Sam Barton, John Baughman, Ron Baughman, Dustin Beatty, Genie Bedwell, Jeffrey Beers, Clint Bert, Kellie Bert, Hilary Best, Rachel Bierman, Arik Browning, Alex Buck, Nathaniel Buckley, Alyssa Chambers, Jamie Chambers, Matt Chandler, Joel Clements, Jordan Clendenin, Caleb Courier, Cori Cowan, Taylor Crum, Yasmin Darwish, Adam Deceker, Tiffany Donahue, Dustin Eastwood, Andrew Fehsenfeld, Zach Fields, Kraiten Franklin, Rachelle Fricke, Tiffany Fricke, Ariel Gales, Logan Handel, Thad Hardy, Sara Harris, Heather Hartman, Ashley Helmers, Molly Herschbach, Ashley Horn, Staci Jany, Jade Jolly, Matthias Kasper, MinJi Kim, Hanna Knop, Chad Koenegstein, Chelsy Kumke, Shane Lawrence, Sarah Liefer, Ashley Lindsay, Zach Lochhead, Geanene Lutman, Adam Lutz, Shelly Lyons, Christopher Mackey, Amber Marchildon, Ross Marcinkowska, Tiffani Marshall, Ryan Martin, Jessica McAdams, Austin McLean, Allison Miller, Addie Mitchell, Eric Morrison, Annaleigh Myers, Derek Niermann, Kaitlin Nordmeyer, Melonie Oliver, Richard Parker, Lee Petrowske, Mallory Poole, Justin Ramsey, Madine Rosendohl, Joshua Ruch, Brittany Rucker, Davi Sampaio, Kurt Schroeder, Rachel Sheely, Curtis Siegfried, Zach Slavens, Jayson Stevens, Codey Stewart, Brandon Straight, Kacie Straight, Denis Tikhonov, Jeremy Wahl, Stephen Wallace, Daysha Westerman, Charles Wiggs, Alyssa Wilson, David Winters, Victoria Worthen, Ashley Yankey, Lenzi Yankey, Rebecca Young.

February 2008

Chesteryellowjackets.com has recently adopted a new notification system that enables the school to send urgent news to your cell phone.

Once you sign up for the service, the school can text your cell phone with timely information about emergencies, class cancellations, sports news, or campus reminders such as a registration deadline.

Depending on your personal cell phone plan, there may be a nominal fee from your carrier to receive text messages, but there is no charge from the school to use the service.

The service is available to all current students, faculty, alumni, parents and staff of Chester High School. To learn more or to sign up, go to chesteryellowjackets.com and click on the link titled, "txtCHS".

The new system, powered by e2Campus, enables school officials to send instant alerts directly to registered subscribers’ email accounts and mobile phones via SMS text messages. You can also receive the alerts via RSS, wireless PDA, and your "My Yahoo", "My AOL", or personalized iGoogle home page.

"Once students, parents or alumni sign up, the alerts go right to their cell phones the minute the news happens," explains Brian "Gritty" Snider, webmaster for chesteryellowjackets.com "It’s a real convenient system for everyone, because it reaches people whether they are on campus or off campus. We know how students and parents love their cell phones, so now we can reach them with important information."

The notification system will be used to communicate important information during any potential emergency, such as a snow delay or closing, or other event. It can also be used to announce school sports scores, registration deadlines, and campus life activities.

A Chester High School senior has been honored with a President's Volunteer Service Award. Senior Yasmin Darwish, daughter of Susan Darwish was honored for her volunteer service.

The award recognizes Americans of all ages who have volunteered significant amounts of time to serve their communities and their country. It was presented by the Prudential Spirit of Community Awards program which she participated in this year as a representative of CHS. The award was presented on behalf of the President's Council on Service and Civic Participation.

Yasmin started an Environmental Club as one of her activities, which helped her earn her award and she organized the placement of recycling bins, which are located at each of Chester's schools for the collection of paper products. The schools receive $25.00 for each full bin and those payments can be used for activities and projects at each respective school. The recycling effort helps save energy too as the paper products collected by the recycling company uses the goods to make insulation.

Chester High School Seniors and their parents are planning a formal dress consignment sale to benefit Project Graduation.

This event will be held in the Daniel Colbert Memorial Gymnasium lobby at Chester High School on Saturday, February 23 from 12 noon until 3:00pm.

All area teenage girls and their parents are invited to take advantage of this opportunity to shop a large selection of very nice, slightly used formal dresses at great prices.

Attendance prizes will be given out and dressing rooms will be available. Cash or checks only will be accepted to purchase dresses and all garments will be sold "as is" with all sales final.

If you have a dress or dresses to sell, you can drop them off at the gym lobby on Saturday February 23, between 8:00 am and 11:00 am. A display fee of $3.00 will be charged for each dress and unsold dresses must be picked up between 3:30 pm and 5:00 pm that same day.

If you need more information, you can phone Kim Hecht at 826-4908 or Dianne Hecht at 826-4940.

Chester High School seniors want to remind you that it's never too early to start shopping for your special prom or homecoming dress.

Secretary of State and State Librarian Jesse White has awarded Fiscal Year 2008 school library per capita grants totaling almost $1.4 million to 718 public school districts. The funds will help provide important library services to nearly 2 million students in more than 3,400 school libraries.

White said studies have proven conclusively that student achievement is positively impacted by the presence of libraries in schools. Students with access to better-staffed libraries, computers connected to library catalogs and databases, and larger, more current book collections do better on tests and have higher test scores.

The grant funds must be used to support the services of the district's school library media program. Funds may not be used for capital improvements such as shelving or wiring. This year's grants provide $0.72 per student to support school library services. Grants are available to tax supported public school districts that are members of one of Illinois' regional library systems.

For the 975 students in Chester Unit School District #139 public schools, the school district will be receiving a grant in the amount of $705.22

January 2008

The candidates for the upcoming Chester High School Sweetheart Dance were announced by the school this morning.

All 10 candidates are seniors which includes five girls and five boys.

The Queen candidates are Michelle Belton, Ally Link, Christine McClure, Nicole Search and Katie Strickler.

The King candidates are Clint Bert, Chris Kern, Kevin Koeneman, Lee Petrowske and Marcus Pitts.

The retiring King is Derek Buatte and the retiring Queen is Sarah Roth.

The dance will be held in Juergens Gym at Chester High School on Saturday, February 16 from 8pm to 11:30pm.

Photos from last year’s dance are available at chesteryellowjackets.com.

Ronald Baughman, Rachel Bierman, Joseph Brooks, Kristin Brown, Jamie Chambers, Jessica Courier, Tiffany Cowan, Christian Fenner, Aaron Grah, Lloyd Huey, Kevin Koeneman, Mollie Laramore, Laura Liefer, Alexandra Link, Jamie Long, Jamie McAdams, Christine McClure, Rachel Sheely, Zachary Slavens, Brandon Straight, Katie Strickler, Denis Tikhonov, Lauriel Wingerter, David Winters, Jillian Yankey, Rachel Young.

Sarah Adams, Ashley Andrews, Megan Atchison, Brett Barthol, Frank Barthol, Samuel Barton, John Baughman, Dustin Beatty, Jeffery Beers, Michelle Belton, Clinton Bert, Kellie Bert, Hilary Best, Alex Buck, Nathaniel Buckley, Alexander Capps, Alyssa Chambers, Matthew Chandler, Jordan Clendenin, Caleb Courier, Cori Cowan, Ryan Cross, Taylor Crum, Yasmin Darwish, Rebecca Decker, Dustin Eastwood, Bradley Eggemeyer, Jeffrey Ehlers, Zachary Fields, Kraiten Franklin, Chelsea Gimber, Zachary Gross, Logan Handel, Sara Harris, Heather Hartman, Megan Hecht, Ashley Helmers, Danielle Helmers, Molly Herschbach, Samuel Higgerson, Rhett Holley, Staci Jany, Jade Jolly, Kaylee Jolly, Matthias Kasper, Christopher Kern, MinJi Kim, Hanna Knop, Chad Koenegstein, Shane Lawrence, Rebecca Lee, Sarah Liefer, Ashley Lindsay, Eathan Lindsay, Zachary Lochhead, Geanene Lutman, Adam Lutz, Melissa Lyons, Shelly Lyons, Christopher Mackey, Amber Marchildon, Ross Marcinkowska, Tiffani Marshall, Ryan Martin, Jessica McAdams, Michael McDonald, Brant McMillian, Allison Miller, Addie Mitchell, Annaleigh Myers, Blake Nanney, Derek Niermann, Mark Nordmeyer, Melonie Oliver, Angela Petrowske, Justin Ramsey, Garrett Rickenberg, Nadine Rosendohl, Josh Ruch, Brittany Rucker, Davi Sampaio, Amber Schicker, Samantha Schmerbauch, Britney Schroeder, Kurt Schroeder, Nicole Search, Curtis Siegfried, Jacob South, Jamie Springer, Kacie Straight, Patrick Strickler, Amy Tressler, Jean Weaver, Bryan Welge, Daysha Westerman, Charles Wiggs, Alyssa Wilson, Justin Woodward, Victoria Worthen, Lenzi Yankey, Rebecca Young.

Hundreds of Illinois students, including students at Chester High School, will have the opportunity to work on improving natural habitats outside of the classroom while supporting their studies thanks to grant funding from the Illinois Department of Natural Resources’ (IDNR) Division of Education Schoolyard Habitat Action Grant program.

Eighteen organizations are receiving almost $8,800 in funds to support prairie plots, butterfly gardens, rain gardens, stormwater wetlands and bird sanctuaries that students will develop and use for natural resources research.

Chester High School is one of the 18 organizations receiving a grant. CHS will use the award to design and plant a butterfly garden. The amount of the grant is $286.34.

Funding for the Schoolyard Habitat Action Grant program is provided through a donation by the Jadel Family Foundation and is administered by the Illinois Conservation Foundation. Since the program’s inception, more than $83,000 has been distributed.

A Chester High School senior was announced recently as one of nine winners of the 2008 ICF Youth Achievement Scholarships, an outreach program recognizing high school juniors and seniors in Illinois for their work in and dedication toward preserving, promoting, enhancing or supporting natural resources conservation.

Among the nine students is Chester High School senior Yasmin Darwish.

Each of the nine students selected for the awards will receive a $1,000 scholarship to be presented at the annual Illinois Outdoor Hall of Fame Banquet on February 9 at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Springfield. The scholarship program is supported through funds raised at the banquet.

The Illinois Outdoor Hall of Fame was initiated in 2002 to honor people who have made significant and lasting contributions in protecting and enhancing Illinois’ natural resources for future generations. Tickets for the banquet are available by contacting the ICF at 217/785-2003.

The Illinois Conservation Foundation, an IRS 501 (c)(3) not-for-profit corporation, supports programs of the Illinois Department of Natural Resources. Contributions are tax deductible to the fullest extent of the law.

For more information on the Illinois Outdoor Hall of Fame Banquet and the ICF Youth Achievement Scholarship Program, contact Greg Legan, Illinois Conservation Foundation, One Natural Resources Way, Springfield, IL 62702, phone 217/785-2003, or check the ICF web site at www.ilcf.org.

Two members of the Chester Yellow Jacket weight lifting team participating in the Kentucky State/Bluegrass Open Powerlifting Championships in Henderson, KY on Saturday, January 5.

Jayson Stevens (junior, left) and Chase Hecht (soph, right) represented Chester High School at this event, although it was not an official event for Chester High School. Stevens was invited to participate in this meet and asked Hecht to lift with him.

Before participating in the meet, the two had to join the USAPL and had to wear singlet uniforms which lifters from Harrisburg bought with them for the two Yellow Jackets to borrow.

A total of 70 participants participated in the meet held at the John F. Kennedy Community Center in Henderson, KY and was sponsored by USA Powerlifting.

There were a total of 11 weight classes for male lifters and 10 for females.

Hecht participated in the 114 lbs and under weight division and brought home the first place trophy in the Bluegrass Powerlifting which is a combination of deadlift, bench press and squats.

Stevens participated in the 123 lb division and brought home first place in the Bluegrass Powerlifting and 1^st place in the Bluegrass Bench Press.

After the meet, the Yellow Jacket duo was personally invited to a meet in April in Harrisburg, IL and was told they could bring a team with them if they wanted to. Hecht and Stevens are also planning on participating in a number of other meets too.

More information on the USAPL is available from their website, www.usaplnationals.com

Chester High School senior Chase Willison made his radio debut Thursday night during the Lady Jackets' home basketball game against New Athens.

Although the game didn't air live on the radio, the game did stream and is available in the archive section of JacketRadio.com.

The senior showed interest in sports broadcasting during last year's Job Shadowing day at Chester High School. Willison and recent CHS graduate Kendra Brown job shadowed Brian "Gritty" Snider at KSGM and KBDZ Radio.

Snider remembered the favor Willison asked last Spring and Thursday night, it was his show.

"I did the first quarter to get the broadcast going," said the 20-year veteran, "and then I turned the Play-By-Play duties over to Chase. I knew he was a little nervous but for his first time out, he did a great job."

Willison was behind the mic when the Lady Jackets snapped their five-game losing streak Thursday night, beating New Athens 45-44.

"His play by play got better as the game moved along," said Snider. "Everyone has to get their start somewhere and now he has that under his belt. I told him during the game that I still have a tape of my very first broadcast, a tape that I won't play for anyone. Chase did a better job than what I was expecting. I definitely think he has a future if he wants to pursue it."

"I remember my first broadcast and how someone took a chance on me," said Snider. "It was an honor for me to be able to return the favor to another student at CHS some 20 years later. For me, it all about giving back and helping the CHS students out anytime they need it."

The entire broadcast is available in the archive section at JacketRadio.com. The link is available at the bottom of the page.

December 2007

Another webtool in connection with ChesterYellowJackets.com went on-line late Wednesday night. The project is called StingerTV.

ChesterYellowJackets.com made a commitment at the beginning of the school year to add more photos to the website than ever before. Since August, the website has added more than 7,800 photos of school activities and sporting events.

The concept for StingerTV came after Lady Jacket volleyball coach Jennifer Rheinecker asked the website to produce a slideshow for her team’s banquet which was held earlier this month in the high school cafeteria.

Not only were videos produced for volleyball, but also for football, golf, cross country and one for the CHS cheerleaders.

Currently, the Jacket Country website is selling a DVD of the fall sports videos for $10 and a limited supply is still available at Treasured Memories in Chester.

In addition to the sports videos, three more school related videos have been added. Music videos added are from the 2007 CHS Homecoming Parade, the student’s Homecoming Dance and one featuring photos from the recent CHS Christmas Concert. Another one planned is from the Powder Puff football game, snake dance and homecoming bonfire.

More videos are planned for the future for teams from winter and spring sports at Chester High School along with year ending videos for graduation and project graduation. In addition, videos will also be produced for the Sweetheart Dance and Spring Prom and possibly for the upcoming school production of Beauty and the Beast.

Earlier this school year, ChesterYellowJackets.com rolled out another website called JacketRadio.com. Visitors outside of the Chester area can listen to live broadcast of Yellow Jacket sporting events. The on-line stream is a simulcast from KSGM AM 980 and KBDZ 93.1 FM.

To check out StingerTV, all you need to do is point your web browser to www.stingertv.com.

Five students at Chester High School have been named 2008 State Scholars by the Illinois Student Assistance Commission (ISAC). The State Scholar program recognizes Illinois high school students for outstanding academic achievement.

Students ranking in the top ten percent of the state’s 139,500 high school graduating seniors have been named State Scholars. Selection is based on SAT I and/or ACT test score results and/or the students’ class rank at the end of the junior year of high school. While the program does not provide a monetary award, qualified students are encouraged to list the honor on applications for college admissions and scholarships.

The five CHS students are Lloyd Michael Huey, Kevin Koeneman, Christine McClure, Katie Strickler and Lauriel Wingerter.

"Our State Scholars have worked so hard throughout their high school careers," said CHS Guidance Counselor Katie Hickam. "Their diligence is evident in their high achievement. Everyone at Chester High School is so proud of their accomplishments and joins me in wishing them continued success."

ISAC works with high school guidance counselors to provide list of each school’s State Scholar students to allow schools to appropriately recognize their students.

November 2007

Christ Our Savior Lutheran High School Math team competed in the Southwest Mathematics Conference this fall. There were four math competitions held on September 17, October 1, October 15, and October 29. There is an individual test that all grade levels take and a team test for each competition. COSLHS students did very well in the competitions.

Freshmen Ben Laufer placed 3rd in the 2nd competition and 2nd in the 4th competition.

Sophomores Zander Yu placed 1st in all four competitions. Zander also had the highest score in our division for the 4th test.

Juniors Tim Laufer placed 5th in the 2nd competition and 6th in the fourth competition. Fiona Morton placed 4th in the 3rd competition.

Seniors Mi Youn Shin placed 2nd in the first and second competition and 4th in the 3rd competition. Jack Pham placed 6th in the 2nd competition and 5th in the 4th competition.

The team also placed 3rd in the first competition and 1st in the 3rd competition.

Christ Our Savior Lutheran took home the 2nd place trophy for their overall score in the four competitions.

Grade 9 – Jamie Liefer, Jamie McAdams, Brandon Straight, Jillian Yankey

Grade 10 – Bridget Brown, Jamie Chambers, Aaron Grah, Mollie Laramore, Jamie Long, Denis Tikhonov, Rachel Young

Grade 11 – Rachel Bierman, Jessica Courier, Tiffany Cowan, Christian Fenner, Zach Slavens

Grade 12 – Joseph Brooks, Lloyd Huey, Kevin Koeneman, Alexandra Link, Christine McClure, Rebecca Strickler, Lauriel Wingerter, Victoria Worthen.

Grade 9 – Ashley Andrews, John Baughman, Hilary Best, Matthew Chandler, Jordan Clendenin, Margurite Colvis, Brandy Compton, Taylor Crum, Rebecca Decker, Bradley Eggemeyer, Zachary Fields, Ariel Gales, Logan Handel, Ashley Horn, Nathan Hubert, Seth Johnson, Jade Jolly, Hanna Knop, Amelia Koeneman, Eathan Lindsay, Zachary Lochhead, Shelly Lyons, Tiffani Marshall, William McLean, Blake Nanney, Derek Niermann, Melonie Oliver, Justin Ramsey, Britney Schroeder, Rachel Sheely, Curtis Siegfried, Jacob South, Shawna Stanley, Kacie Straight, Jeremy Wahl, Ceirra Watkins, Jean Weaver, Charles Wiggs, Justin Woodward.

Grade 10 – Megan Atchison, Brett Barthol, Samuel Barton, Jeffrey Beers, Kellie Bert, Nicholas Bert, Caleb Courier, Cori Cowan, Dakota Crawford, Chelsea Gimber, Sara Harris, Ashley Helmers, Molly Herschbach, Samuel Higgerson, Kyeong Kim, MinJi Kim, Chad Koenegstein, Ashley Lindsay, Travis Lott, Geanene Lutman, Brant McMillan, Allison Miller, Addie Mitchel, Annaleigh Myers, Ericca Parker, Richard Parker, Joshua Ruch, Patrick Strickler, Daysha Westerman, Lacey Willison.

Grade 11 – Ronald Baughman, Samantha Donahue, Daniel Dortch, Dustin Eastwood, Erin Eggemeyer, Jeffery Ehlers, Kraitin Franklin, Danielle Helmers, Staci Jany, Matthias Kasper, Chelsy Kumke, Shane Lawrence, Rebecca Lee, Sarah Liefer, Adam Lutz, Melissa Lyons, Heather McDaniel, Paige Nanney, Ashley Page, Angela Petrowske, Garrett Rickenberg, Nadine Rosendohl, Amber Schicker, Samantha Schmerbauch, Kurt Schroeder, Jayson Stevens, Amy Tressler, Mitchell Walls, David Winters.

Grade 12 – Frank Barthol, Dustin Beatty, Michelle Belton, Clinton Bert, Kristin Brown, Alex Buck, Nathaniel Buckley, Alexander Capps, Alyssa Chamber, Yasmin Darwish, Adam Goodwin, Zachary Gross, Heather Hartman, Jacey Hecht, Megan Hecht, Christopher Kern, Amber Marchildon, Ross Marcinkowska, Ryan Martin, Jessica McAdams, Mark Nordmeyer, Lee Petrowske, Marcus Pitts, Brittany Rucker, Nicole Search, Codey Stewart, Bryan Welge, Lenzi Yankey, Elizabeth Young.

October 2007

Fund raising events are already underway for the 2008 edition of Chester High School’s Project Graduation.

A number of fund raising events are in the planning stage, but members of the Class of 2008 at CHS are taking orders for BBQ and Pork Butts according to Project Graduation coordinator Dr. Jim Beers.

"The first fund raiser is the Ricky Rover BBQ sale," said Beers. "Also, another parent (Tate Search) stepped up by himself and is selling pork butts. He is just doing that on his own out at the (Chester Chrysler Center). He pulls a couple of his friends in and they are cooking 73 pork butts for us. That sale is going on right now and if anyone needs anything that can contact Tate. The seniors have order forms for Ricky Rover BBQ right now."

Beers says they even have a fund raiser underway to help residents with that Thanksgiving meal.

"This year, our chairman Kenny Welge and he has made a special deal with Ricky Rover," said Beers. "They are going to be doing fried turkeys, smoked turkeys and smoked ham. Mr. Rickenberg is going to deliver those the night before Thanksgiving. So in addition to getting your ribs, chicken and pulled pork on November 17, a week later, they are going to deliver the turkeys so you can open those up the next morning and use those for Thanksgiving dinner."

To place an order for any of the food fund raisers or to make a donation to Project Graduation, you can phone Beers at Chester High School at 826-2302, ext. 200.

The Chester High School Class of 2008 Senior Superlatives was announced this morning by the high school. The categories were chosen by and votes were cast by members of the Class of 2008.

Best Laugh – Adam Goodwin & Michelle Belton

Best Smile – Lee Petrowske & Ally Link

Biggest Blonde – Brandon Wham & Elizabeth Young

Biggest Flirt – Clint Bert & Jacey Hecht

Class Clown – Ryan Martin & Brittany Rucker

Drama King & Queen – Joel Clements & Lenzi Yankey

Most Athletic – Chris Kern & Nicole Search

Most Changed – Bryan Welge, Jenn Gonzalez & Katie Strickler

Most Likely to Be Remembered – Alex Nordmeyer & Yasmin Darwish

Most Likely to Brighten Your Day – Alex Capps & Christine McClure

Who Should Have Been a Couple – Kevin Koeneman & Yasmin Darwish

Worst Driver – Chase Willison & Lauriel Wingerter

Congratulations to the winners.

September 2007

If you a recent graduate from Chester High School within the past 20 year and would like an additional copy of a yearbook, you should contact the Summit Staff to inquire about one.

Summit Staff Sponsor Brenda Coop says the yearbook staff is selling off extra copies of old yearbooks, some which date back to 1988.

Copies of the 1988 and 1989 yearbooks are available for only $5 each with a limited amount available.

Copies of the 1990, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1998 and 1999 yearbooks are available for $10 each.

Yearbooks from 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003 and 2005 are $30 each while 2006 yearbooks are $40.

For more information about purchasing an old yearbook, you can phone Brenda Coop at Chester High School at 826-2302.

August 2007

A Chester High School senior has been selected as a winner in a Youth Salute leadership program. Yasmin Darwish is a winner in the greater Belleville Area Youth Leadership Salute.

The Youth Salute program honors outstanding high school seniors who maintain a high scholastic average and have demonstrated leadership ability in church, school and community.

In our complex and ever changing global village, many challenges must be met. To confront and tackle these challenges, we need strong leaders.

Solutions to the energy situation, economic stability, consumer pressures, environmental questions, medical challenges, world conflict, the balance of power and technological demands are in the future. Who are the people who will spearhead advances in these areas? They are the young people in our community today.

To stimulate talented young people to develop and meet tomorrow’s demands, we must give them the recognition and support they deserve from their family, peers and community.

The program has been placed on the National Advisory List of Contests and Activities by the National Association of Secondary School Principals.

There were 189 entrants for the program from a number of high schools in the Metro East from the town of Belleville, Cahokia, Collinsville, Freeburg, Granite City, Highland, Marissa, Mascoutah, Breese, New Athens, O’ Fallon, Okawville, Red Bud, Triad, Valmeyer and Waterloo.

Southwestern Illinois College is one of the main sponsors of the Greater Belleville Area Youth Leadership Salute.

Yasmin is the daughter of Susan Darwish of Chester, IL.