Passenger Link – January 2025

Santa Claus Parade

CityLink was happy to provide bus #2240 to help promote PCCEO’s Head Start Birth to Five Program, for the 137th annual Santa Claus Parade on November 29, 2024. Several Head Start families and staff members from PCCEO walked ahead of the bus during the parade route, bringing festive cheer to those in attendance.

The Santa Claus Parade is the longest running holiday parade in the country and is a tradition many Peorians look forward to when kicking off the holiday season. This year’s theme was Hometown Holidays. The Grand Marshal was 2024 Olympic silver medalist Anna Peplowski, silver medalist member of the U.S. women’s 4×200-meter freestyle relay team.

Historical Holiday Home Tours

On December 8th, 2024, a CityLink van helped the Peoria Historical Society with their Holiday Home Tours, featuring two historic homes. The John C. Flanagan House Museum, built in 1837 and located at 942 NE Glen Oak Avenue, and the Pettengill-Morron House Museum, built in 1868 at 1212 W. Moss Avenue, were both part of the tour. As a special addition, a 1929 Ford Tudor was displayed at the Flanagan House for the day, offering visitors a unique historical experience. The Peoria Historical Society executive board and team members are grateful for CityLink’s assistance, as CityLink transported 15 of their customers for this annual holiday event.

 Community Engagement

On December 19, 2024, the Marketing and Community Engagement Team attended a press conference at General Wayne A. Downing Peoria International Airport, where Airport Director, Gene Olson unveiled exciting news: United Airlines will begin offering daily flights to Denver, Colorado starting in March of 2025. The flights will depart Peoria at 8:50 a.m. and return the same day at 8:50 p.m., providing Peoria residents with convenient access to one of the largest travel hubs in the U.S., where they can connect to flights around the world. CityLink’s fixed-route #7 John Gwynn service offers affordable transportation to and from the airport, making it easy for both visitors and locals to avoid parking at the airport.

New Year Traditions Around the World

The New Year is a time for fresh starts and celebration across the globe. While many of us are familiar with fireworks and resolutions, people around the world have unique traditions to mark the occasion. Here are a few fascinating ways the New Year is celebrated in different cultures:

· Spain: On New Year’s Eve, Spaniards eat 12 grapes at the stroke of midnight, one for each chime of the clock. This tradition, known as “las doce uvas,” is believed to bring good luck for each month of the year.

· Japan: The Japanese celebrate Oshogatsu by ringing temple bells 108 times to cleanse the sins of the past year and eating osechi ryori, special dishes symbolizing prosperity, health, and happiness.

· Scotland: In Scotland, Hogmanay is celebrated with the tradition of “first footing,” where the first person to enter a home after midnight brings gifts like coal, bread, or whisky to symbolize warmth, food, and good cheer.

· Brazil: On New Year’s Eve, Brazilians wear white for peace and prosperity and often jump over seven waves in the ocean, making a wish for each one.

· South Africa: In Cape Town, the Kaapse Klopse (Cape Town Minstrel Carnival) takes place, featuring colorful costumes, music, and parades to ring in the New Year.

Healthier Eating Habits

As many Americans look forward to eating healthier in the New Year, here are 10 surprising vegetable trivia facts to inspire you and some new resolutions:

· Did you know that the tomato is actually a fruit, not a vegetable?

· The potato is the most widely grown vegetable in the world, with over 300 million tons produced each year.

· Carrots were originally grown for their aromatic leaves and seeds, not their roots.

· The sweet potato is not related to the potato, despite their similar names and appearance.

· The humble onion is actually a member of the lily family, which also includes garlic and shallots.

· The green bean is a type of legume and is also known as a string bean or snap bean.

· The eggplant is a nightshade vegetable and is closely related to tomatoes and potatoes.

· The bell pepper is actually a fruit but is commonly referred to as a vegetable due to its savory flavor.

· The cabbage is a cruciferous vegetable, which is known for its numerous health benefits.

CityLink Chef

Something is being cooked up at CityLink, and it’s none other than Stephanie Alexander’s catering business, Smothers!

Stephanie’s passion for cooking has been with her since childhood. At just five years old, her mother introduced her to the kitchen, sparking a lifelong journey with food. The first dish she remembers making was
cornbread, and from that moment on, she has been crafting delicious meals for friends and family.

Growing up, her mother often smothered a lot of her dishes in gravy or sauces. With this as Stephanie’s inspiration, she created Smothers in 2021. Stephanie has spent four years working in the catering industry, providing services for various events, often on weekends. These include special occasions, funerals, celebrations, and more.

Currently, Stephanie is working on writing a cookbook to share some of her favorite recipes. Her end goal is to one day have either a sauce, spice or seasoning available to purchase in stores. She measures with her heart and cooks with love, and if you’ve ever been lucky enough to taste her food, you know how true that is.

You can hire Smothers for your catering needs by giving Stephanie Alexander a call at
309-648-3392, or emailing her at smothers21@yahoo.com. You can also follow Stephanie along her culinary journey on Facebook at Smothers Caters to You.

Historical Calendars

The 2025 CityLink Historical Calendar is now available! This year’s calendar focuses on arts and culture, and includes vintage photographs from local libraries, parks, theaters, and more. The arts are such an important part of our area’s history, which is why this year, we have expanded to share the history of Peoria, East Peoria, West Peoria, Peoria Heights and Pekin, as they are a part of CityLink’s area of service.

Some of the locations featured in the calendar are still in operation today, providing a place for arts and culture to continue to thrive in the 21st century. The desire to cultivate locations for citizens to experience the beauty of nature and art in our own cities is akin to human nature. We are proud to feature these organizations and destinations in our calendar to continue to grow the culture in our community. Therefore, CityLink would like to thank all our partners who are featured within, for taking the time to provide their history and share the photos for this year’s 2025 Historical Calendar.

The 2025 Historical Calendar is available for a suggested donation of $5.00 at the CityLink
Administrative Office (2105 NE Jefferson) and the CityLink Transit Center (407 SW Adams) during designated Customer Service hours.

All proceeds collected will be donated to the Peoria Friendship House of Christian Service.

National Blood Donor Month

As we step into 2025, and we start making our New Year’s resolutions, consider the life-saving resolution of donating blood. January is National Blood Donor Month and donating blood is one of the most impactful ways to start the year with purpose. 6.8 million Americans donate blood every year, and January is the perfect time to honor the people who help others through the simple act of giving blood.

Donating blood takes just a little time but can make a world of difference to someone in need. Every 2 seconds, someone in the world needs blood. Approximately 36,000 units of red blood cells are needed every day in the United States alone. Whether it’s in an emergency, during surgery, or for those with chronic conditions, your donation could be the lifeline they’re waiting for.

Blood consists of several components. Those most needed by patients are:

· Whole Blood contains red cells, white cells, and platelets suspends in plasma. Used most often in major trauma situations or in surgery. You can donate whole blood every 56 days, and have a 42 day shelf life.

· Red Blood Cells carry hemoglobin, which are essential for oxygen exchange in the lungs. Red blood cells help with anemia, surgical blood loss, and chemotherapy.  Double red blood cells can be donated every 112 days, and have a 42 day shelf life.

· Platelets are small cell fragments whose main function is to interact with drifting proteins to stop or prevent bleeding. Platelets can be donated up to 24 times a year, and have a 5 day shelf life.

· Plasma is a fluid, comprised of about 92% water and 8% proteins, minerals, salts, sugars, fats, hormones and vitamins. Plasma helps with liver disease, burn victims, and bleeding disorders. Plasma can be donated every 28 days, and can last up to one year when frozen.

Having a diverse blood supply is important to meet the medical needs of an increasing diverse population. Blood given to patients with rare blood types of conditions such as sickle cell disease must be matched closely to avoid complications. A patient is more likely to find a compatible blood match from a donor of the same race or a similar ethnic group. By indicating your race when you donate, you can help the Red Cross best meet the growing need of patients from all backgrounds.

To learn more about donating blood, or to find the nearest blood drive, call 1-800-RED-CROSS (733-27677) or visit www.redcrossblood.org.

Making a New Year’s Resolution? Here’s How to Keep a Promise to You!

An age old tradition at the start of a new year is to reflect on the previous year and consider any changes one would like to make in the coming months. The “New Year’s Resolution” is essentially a promise to yourself to make a change for the better, which often is a commitment to start a new habit in the name of wellness.

The HABIT© Healthy Action to Benefit Independence in Thinking program Mayo Clinic staff is experienced in helping people with Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI) and their support partners make healthy lifestyle changes in a way that is likely to stick. We work with people to come up with ideas for how to get into the habit of getting regular physical exercise, cognitive exercise, coping with stress, incorporating aspects of the MIND or Mediterranean Diets (more on this below!), and get a better night’s sleep.

In embarking on ANY lifestyle change, your mantra should be “slow and steady makes the habit.” One of the most common pitfalls people looking to make a new year’s resolution make is changing too much, too fast. We wrote about how to use a slow and steady approach to getting physical exercise a few months ago. For other changes, you can
follow a similar approach.

· Identify the broad goal or change you want to make. For example, “eat healthier.”

· Break this big idea down into specific, clear goals that are small and manageable. You can always build on these after establishing success with the initial changes. So, you could look at a Mediterranean Diet guide and choose 2 changes to make that seem reasonable and appealing. (For example, Eat nuts 3 times per week, eat fish 2 times per week).

· Using a calendar/planner/journal, write down and schedule your goals for the coming months. (On Friday, January 17th, you might write – “make grilled salmon for dinner”, On Saturday, January 18th, you could pencil in “eat almonds for a snack”, and so on, making sure you hit the weekly targets you set).

· Plan ahead for any preparatory tasks you need to do to be successful. In our nutrition example, you’d need to schedule in grocery shopping for the items you want to consume, and may need to schedule the task of looking up a recipe for that grilled salmon.

· Check off the tasks you complete, and review your progress at the end of the month so you can remember what you’ve accomplished.

· Set new goals or write in a continuation of the previous goals before the next month begins.

Be sure to give yourself credit (even just verbally acknowledging to yourself can help) for the progress you make!