January 11, 2026 Local Stories in and Around St. Joseph, Illinois

Parade to raise money for food pantry

Boy Scout Troop 40 wants to celebrate America while helping the community.


During the annual Fourth of July parade, Troop 40 will be collecting food and monetary donations for Feed the Need.

Troop 40 Committee Chair Jeremy Yohnka said that the parade has grown from its original form.


In 2020, Mayor Tami Fruhling-Voges organized a safe, socially distance parade and asked Troop 40 to lead the parade, Yohnka said.


The second year of the parade Troop 40 did a fundraiser to purchase new American Flags for the High School. 

“We received a lot of donations for flags, so we decided for the following year to collect food and money for the food pantry,” Yohnka said.


For years, the Cub Scout Pack has for done a yearly food collection at one of their pack meetings. 
So the Troop decided to do the same during a 4th of July parade. 


This will be the 4th year for collecting food and money for the food pantry.


“The Troop has averaged between $300-$400 in donations each year, along with food donations,” Yohnka said.


Yohnka said it is important for the community to keep this tradition alive.


“The food pantry provides such a great service to the community, to ensure food is on the table for families,” he said. “I have a personal connection to this service.  So as long as I’m able to, there will be a 4th of July parade.  Not only to celebrate the birth of our nation, but to collect donations for the food pantry.”


Anyone wanting to participate in the parade needs to line up at 6 p.m. at St. Joseph Middle School.


The parade will take 45 minutes to complete.


The parade will have 3 awards: “Most Patriotic,” “Best Golf Cart” and “Best Overall”.


Winners will receive a gift card to a local business. In addition, Any American Flags that need to be retired will be collected as well during the parade.

Banner
Related Posts

Village looking at options to sell wastewater system

December 2, 2025

December 2, 2025

 The Village of St. Joseph is exploring options to sell its wastewater system.  At a special meeting on Nov. 18,...

Library to hold book sale

April 7, 2025

April 7, 2025

The St. Joseph Township-Swearingen Memorial Library, 201 N. Third Street, St. Joseph, IL 61873 announces its Spring Used Book Sale....

Challenging schedule testing SJO girls’ basketball early on

December 16, 2024

December 16, 2024

The first month of the season for the St. Joseph-Ogden girls’ basketball has featured a challenging schedule and some quality...

Get to know our Little Prince and Princess Candidates : Will Peters

August 10, 2024

August 10, 2024

What is your favorite part of summer?Staying at my grandparents house and having more time with mom and dad. What...

5 questions with Michelle Wagner

December 15, 2024

December 15, 2024

1. What is your favorite childhood holiday memory?My favorite childhood memory is Christmas Eve. Our family would go out to...

Kicking it off: SJO football starts another season with lofty expectations

August 29, 2025

August 29, 2025

The playoff streak is at six seasons. Nowhere near close to the record-setting 26 straight seasons with a postseason appearance...

Fruhling-Voges to retire from public office, endorses Page for Mayor

September 2, 2024

September 2, 2024

Tami Fruhling-Voges has announced she will not be running for re-election as Mayor of St. Joseph. “I am ready to...

Live at St. Joseph Village Board, May 13, 2025

May 13, 2025

May 13, 2025

I am here so you don’t have to be. It’s Mayor Tami Fruhling-Voges’ last meeting and Jim Page’s first meeting...

SJO falls to Tolono, will take on BCC at home

April 16, 2021

April 16, 2021

St. Joseph-Ogden dropped a 48-16 contest to their long-time rival Unity Rockets in an Illini Prairie Conference tilt at Hicks...

McKinney leads unbeaten SJO football into showdown with rival Unity

September 19, 2025

September 19, 2025

The atmosphere will have the feel of a playoff game. It always does. Even if it’s a Week 4 kickoff...

Earley, Altenbaumer help SJO baseball off to solid start

April 1, 2025

April 1, 2025

Playing a difficult schedule is a staple of the St. Joseph-Ogden baseball program under coach Josh Haley. So is winning...

Live at St. Joseph Village Board July 8, 2025

July 8, 2025

July 8, 2025

We are discussing the community festival and fee structures tonight. There are no public comments. Asking for some details on...

Village moves forward with TIF process

February 11, 2025

February 11, 2025

The Village of St. Joseph is moving forward with the process to form a TIF District. Tonight at 7 p.m.,...

Comments
Leave a Reply