Travelers on Route 66 remind me of that timeless story of Dorothy and Toto as they set out on their Adventures to see what lied upon the horizon.  How ironic that a little girl buried on a Route 66 Cemetery would inspire such a story.  Dorothy Louise Gage the niece of L. Frank Baum who wrote the book, "The Wonderful Wizard of OZ" passed away before she was 6 months old. Her death would inspire him to name his main character in a book he was writing Dorothy.  The impact of his books and later a Movie would inspire generations to come.

A host of local dignitaries including current and former Lincoln mayors, railroad officials, transportation officials and representatives of elected state and federal officials were on hand for the ribbon cutting for the completion of renovations and opening of the historic Lincoln Dept in downtown Lincoln, IL (101 N. Chicago St). A large crowd was on-hand for the December 5, 2017 event. Lincoln Mayor Seth Goodman hosted the ceremony, which also included remarks from Illinois State Representative Tim Butler, and Hal Smith from Representative Darin LaHood's office.

When the wheels hit the road (bicycle wheels , that is) we were honored to travel the Illinois portion of Route 66 with Zdenek Jurasek and his 2 person film crew (Petra and Tomas) from the Czech Republic. Zdenek was attempting his second Route 66 trip from Chicago to Los Angeles on his mountain bike. The Solo Bicycle Ride trip was initiated on August 20th and completed on September 21st, 2016. The first encounter we had with our friend and his crew was in Braidwood, IL at the Polk-a-dot. That same evening we were invited to join him and distinguished citizens from Dwight at the world renowned Country Mansion Restaurant.