PRAIRIE DU SAC, Wis. - December 2, 2013 - On Wednesday, December 11, 74 participating Culver's restaurants in Illinois and Indiana will donate 10% of sales to the American Red Cross to help communities recently devastated by tornados and severe storms. The donation enables the Red Cross to help affected communities and individuals recover from the disasters.

"We're happy to support the Red Cross's efforts to aid relief and rebuilding efforts in Indiana and Illinois," says Craig Culver, co-founder of the restaurant chain. "Our hearts go out to everyone affected by the severe storms."

If you can't attend Culver's fundraiser on December 11, you can help by visiting www.redcross.org, calling 1-800-RED CROSS, or texting the word REDCROSS to 90999 to make a $10 donation. Your donation helps provide food, shelter and emotional support to those affected by disasters.

Participating area Culver's restaurants in Illinois: Addison, Arlington Heights, Belvidere, Bloomington, Bolingbrook, Bourbonnais, Buffalo Grove, Carol Stream, Carpentersville, Champaign, Crete, Crystal Lake, Danville, Darien, Downers Grove, East Peoria, Edwardsville, Frankfort, Freeport, Geneseo, Grayslake Homewood, Huntley, Island Lake, Lansing, Libertyville, Lincoln, Lombard, Matteson, McHenry, Monee, Morris, Morton, Morton Grove, Mt. Prospect, Mundelein, New Lenox, Orland Park, Ottawa, Palatine, Pekin, Peoria, Peru, Plainfield, Rockford, Romeoville, Rosemont, Roscoe, Schaumburg, South Elgin, Springfield (Wabash), St. Charles, Sycamore, Tinley Park, Winnebago, Woodstock, and Yorkville.

Participating area Culver's restaurants in Indiana: Anderson, Crawfordsville, Fort Wayne, Highland, Kokomo, Merrillville, Portage, Schererville, and Valparaiso.

About Culver's:

Culver's serves fresh food, always cooked to order, with genuine family values to each and every guest. Culver's is an expanding franchise system with nearly 500 independently owned and operated restaurants in 21 states. The restaurants' award-winning customer service is based on small-town, Midwestern values, genuine friendliness and an unwavering commitment to quality and freshness. Signature items include the ButterBurger, made from fresh, never frozen Midwest-raised beef, and Fresh Frozen Custard, including the famous Flavor of the Day program. For more information, visit www.culvers.com, www.culvers.com/facebook or www.twitter.com/culvers.

Declares Sunday "Chad Pregracke Day" to Honor Illinois River Advocate

CHICAGO - Governor Pat Quinn declared today "Chad Pregracke Day" to salute the East Moline man who was named "CNN Hero of the Year" for his efforts to clean up America's waterways. Chad Pregracke will be honored in a CNN broadcast hosted by Anderson Cooper tonight at 7:00 p.m.

"Chad Pregracke personifies stewardship of our rivers, a 'roll-up-your-sleeves' tenacity and the volunteer spirit that makes Illinois special," Governor Quinn said. "Having known Chad for years, I believe CNN made the ideal choice for 'Hero of the Year'. This man has truly made a difference and we are extremely proud of him."

Governor Quinn noted that in an act of uncommon generosity, Pregracke said he will share part of his $300,000 prize with the other nine finalists of the CNN Heroes initiative.

A former commercial shell diver, Pregracke founded Living Lands & Waters in 1998 to remove mounds of debris he saw on the river bottom near the Quad Cities. Since then, he has been responsible for removing 7 million tons of trash from 23 waterways including the Illinois, Mississippi and Ohio Rivers. In 2005, he partnered with then-Lieutenant Governor Quinn to clean up the Illinois River's Plum Island, now an eagle sanctuary.

"I am honored to have a day named after me," Pregracke said. "I don't know who is more excited, me or my Mom! I think one my biggest accomplishment is encouraging others that they can make a big difference in this world. I am proud to say I'm from Illinois, and want to thank all the people of Illinois that voted for me and cleaner rivers. This has allowed me the privilege and opportunity to be named 2013 CNN Hero."

Pregracke and his crew spend nine months a year living and working on a barge, organizing riverbank cleanups, watershed conservation initiatives and invasive plant removal. He is halfway to his goal of planting one million trees along Midwestern shorelines.

Pregracke is instilling a passion for stewardship to a younger generation, as well, with an "Alternative Spring Break" and "Floating Classrooms." In 2013, Floating Classrooms were conducted on Living Lands & Waters' boats moored at Alton, Cave-in-Rock, Chester, Grafton, Quincy, Rock Island and other Illinois riverfront communities.

During the past 15 years, more than 70,000 volunteers have participated in Pregracke's projects. The Living Lands & Waters staff has grown to 12, and its fleet includes 15 boats, six trucks and a crane. Pregracke has been called "the garbageman of the rivers", and Living Lands & Waters is known as the most "industrial strength" river recovery project on earth.

In his Proclamation, Governor Quinn said that Pregracke is a model for the 3,000 AmeriCorps members in Illinois and embodies the mission of the Governor's Serve Illinois Commission to instill an ethic of service.

This is the 7th year CNN has conducted its search for "CNN Heroes." This year's top ten were nominated by a global audience and profiled earlier this year on CNN. Pregracke received the most votes in the five-week online election. Other 2013 "Hero" finalists included an Iraq war vet who builds homes for other disabled veterans, an urban gardener who created an oasis in a food desert and a Florida retiree who invested her savings into transforming a bus into a mobile computer lab for inner city children.

A free viewing party for the airing of CNN Heroes: An All Star Tribute will be held tonight at the Quad Cities Waterfront Convention Center beginning at 6:00 p.m.

To learn more about Chad Pregracke or to volunteer on a Living Lands & Waters project, visit www.livinglandsandwaters.org.

MOLINE, Ill. (November 29, 2013) - Jeff Lee and Thomas Frazee- who also picked up an assist apiece- scored 18 seconds apart late in the third perIod to propel the host Quad City Mallards to a come-from-behind 4-3 win over the St. Charles Chill Friday night.

After the Mallards' Jim McKenzie knotted the score at two from point blank range at 10:21 of the third period, Lee broke the deadlock at 16:48 with a backhander from the slot. Lee's goal set the stage for Frazee to score what proved to be the game winner from the left wing circle at 17:06. Frazee's strike proved especially vital just 12 seconds later when the Chill's Steve Makway scored his second goal of the night from the the top of the left wing circle.

The Mallards found themselves in need of a third period comeback after Makway snapped a 1-1 tie by rifling in a rebound from the slot at 13:25 of the second period.

It was the Mallards who had first grabbed the lead when Mike Stinziani one-timed Mike Hellyer's cross-ice feed home from the right wing circle at 15:16 of the first period. That advantage lasted less than three minutes before Kyle O'Kane buried a rebound to even the score at 18:34 of the first.

The Mallards return to action at home tomorrow night at 7:05 p.m. against the Tulsa Oilers. The Teddy Bear Toss will make its annual return tomorrow night. Fans are encouraged to bring new, unwrapped stuffed animals to the game and throw them on the ice immediately after the Mallards' first goal. Those teddy bears will then be donated to Family Resources and distributed to children in need in the Quad Cities area just in time for the holidays. Tomorrow evening will also see  the Mallards team with Great Clips to benefit the Ronald McDonald House of Western Illinois and Eastern Iowa. Great Clips stylists will provide haircuts for fans attending the game against the Oilers throughout that contest. All proceeds from the cost of those haircuts will be donated to the Ronald McDonald House of Western Illinois and Eastern Iowa.

Fans can purchase a Holiday 4-Pack of four lower bowl seats to tomorrow night's game for just $40 at the iWireless Center box office while supplies last. Tickets for tomorrow night's game and all other Mallards regular season home games can be purchased at the iWireless Center ticket office as well as at Ticketmaster outlets, through ticketmaster.com or through Ticketmaster charge-by-phone toll free at 1-800-745-3000.  The ticket office is open weekdays from 10:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., on Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. and on game days from 10:00 a.m. until the start of the second period.

The Mallards return to action at home tomorrow night at 7:05 p.m. against the Tulsa Oilers. The Teddy Bear Toss will make its annual return tomorrow night. Fans are encouraged to bring new, unwrapped stuffed animals to the game and throw them on the ice immediately after the Mallards' first goal. Those teddy bears will then be donated to Family Resources and distributed to children in need in the Quad Cities area just in time for the holidays. Tomorrow evening will also see  the Mallards team with Great Clips to benefit the Ronald McDonald House of Western Illinois and Eastern Iowa. Great Clips stylists will provide haircuts for fans attending the Mallards' 7:05 p.m. game against the Tulsa Oilers throughout that contest. All proceeds from the cost of those haircuts will be donated to the Ronald McDonald House of Western Illinois and Eastern Iowa.

Fans can purchase a Holiday 4-Pack of four lower bowl seats to tomorrow night's game for just $40 at the iWireless Center box office while supplies last. Tickets for tomorrow night's game and all other Mallards regular season home games can be purchased at the iWireless Center ticket office as well as at Ticketmaster outlets, through ticketmaster.com or through Ticketmaster charge-by-phone toll free at 1-800-745-3000.  The ticket office is open weekdays from 10:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., on Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. and on game days from 10:00 a.m. until the start of the second period.

About the Quad City Mallards
A proud affiliate of the National Hockey League's Minnesota Wild and the American Hockey League's Iowa Wild, the Quad City Mallards are approaching their seventeenth season and their fourth in the Central Hockey League.  One of the winningest teams in all of minor league hockey, the Mallards competed in the United Hockey League from 1995 through 2007 and in the International Hockey League in 2009-10.  The Mallards' proud history has seen them capture the UHL's Colonial Cup Championship three times (1997, 1998, 2001) and secure that league's Tarry Cup four times (1998, 2000, 2001, 2002) for the best overall regular season record.  In 2001, the Mallards made professional hockey history, recording their sixth consecutive season with 50 or more wins, a feat that has yet to be matched.  The i wireless Center provides a unique environment for hockey and features one-of-a-kind seating areas such as the Nest for groups and functions and the exclusive Drake Club.  For more information on the Quad City Mallards or for Mallards tickets go to www.myqcmallards.com.  Fans can also follow the Mallards via Twitter at twitter.com/myqcmallards and on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/quadcitymallards.

CARBONDALE - Nov. 29, 2013. As ambassador to Illinois Main Street, Lt. Governor Sheila Simon is encouraging Illinois residents to participate in Small Business Saturday on Nov. 30 and shop local for holiday gifts.

"With communities starting to rebuild from the recent tornadoes and severe storms, it is even more important to focus on our local economies," Simon said. "Buying locally keeps money in our communities and helps our economies grow."

Small Business Saturday organizers tout the day as a way to celebrate small businesses in force, create more jobs and stimulate the economy. According to the Small Business Association, Illinois small businesses represent 98.3 percent of all employers, employ almost 48 percent of the private-sector labor force and employ over two million workers.

Last year on Small Business Saturday, Simon shopped at The Bookworm, an independent, locally-owned business in Carbondale, and she plans to pick up some locally-made Clay Lick Creek Pottery at shops in Makanda this holiday season. Shoppers should check out their Illinois Main Street shopping districts for special events, Simon said.

To learn more about Small Business Saturday, find participating small businesses, receive advice on how to prepare for the holiday season, market your small business, and much more, please visit http://www.sba.gov/about-sba/sba_initiatives/small_business_saturday_2013.