This week we are celebrating the retirement of Billie Cheek as an Alderman of the Atlanta City Council. Cheek has served on the council for 38 years. Aldermen help to govern the city, while making decisions and presentations for the betterment of Atlanta. Cheek has seen and worked on many changes throughout her time serving as an Alderman.

Atlanta’s Tourism Department’s goal is to drive tourists into Atlanta and have them spend significant time in the town. There are a couple different ways that the tourism department has been able to accomplish this goal. These different methods of driving tourism in Atlanta include outreach with Facebook groups, keeping good relationships with neighboring Route 66 communities, staying in touch with other tourism departments in the region, planning special events, maintaining social media presence, and keeping visitors and tourists connected to Atlanta. 

The traveling Culpepper and Merriweather Circus came to Atlanta, Illinois, on Thursday, September 2. This was a great event sponsored by the city of Atlanta for both the locals and tourists alike. The event was set up at the Atlanta ballfields in the morning. Guests were able to come by and see the raising the Big Top and then take a free tour learning all about the performers, the animals, and the history of the C&M Circus.

The Atlanta Fall Festival ran from September 9th-12th at the park. The festival is an annual event for all ages because it has many different activities to enjoy, including a parade, karaoke contest, rides, vendors, inflatables, games, food, bingo, and live music! 

Even though everyone celebrates Christmas differently, the town of Atlanta, Illinois had a fun event for people of all ages. The Atlanta Christmas Weekend festivities were held on November 27th and 28th. To start off the event, the Holiday Market was set up inside the Union Hall. Perfect for small businesses, there were booths that sold woodworking, crafts, jewelry, and more. Before the parade on the 28th, Santa came to visit the children and granted all of their holiday wishes! Also, guests enjoyed complimentary cookies and hot chocolate while waiting for the parade to start. The parade was held at 4:30 along Historic Route 66 and showcased many amazing floats and cars beautifully decorated with the Christmas spirit! Local businesses were invited to have a car or float, with a prize for the best decorated. The best float, a Christmas movie theme, was made by the Logan County APA, and the best car, a Grinch theme, was made by the Atlanta Public Library. Congratulations to these organizations!