Theresa Crystal of Rochelle served in the United States Army from 1978-1982. 

On Saturday, the Cinco de Mayo Rochelle festival was held in the downtown area. The event, presented by Rochelle's Hispanic Community Association, was free to enter and featured live music, dancing, children's activities, Ballet Folklorico, a petting zoo, craft vendors, food vendors, DJ Sanchez Mix and a Quince Pageant.

Local taxing bodies have had recent conversations about a potential incentive program to help with a shortage of homes in the area, Rochelle Mayor John Bearrows said April 17.

The Rochelle Municipal Utilities electric department was recently recognized by the American Public Power Association (APPA) for achieving exceptional electric reliability in 2023. 

At the end of the school year, Rochelle Township High School School Psychologist Chris Roberts will retire after serving at the school since 2007. 

The Lee-Ogle Transportation is currently conducting a study on the feasibility of a potential scheduled bus route in the City of Rochelle and has been holding public meetings and gathering survey feedback on the topic. City of Rochelle Mayor John Bearrows and City Manager Jeff Fiegenschuh spoke with the News-Leader on April 17 and said they hope to see the fixed bus route come to fruition in Rochelle.

On April 16, City of Rochelle officials attended Lobby Day in Springfield and met with legislators on potential bills that could impact it in the future. 

The grants were awarded at RACF’s Granting Futures event, hosted April 24 at Luna. 

On Tuesday, City of Rochelle staff took part in crisis communication training, which included hearing a presentation, learning about case studies and best practices for social media, and a mock press conference.

The Rochelle Moose Lodge will celebrate its 95th anniversary on May 27. The Rochelle Moose Family Center at 311 N. Main St. houses the Loyal Order of Moose Lodge 903 and Women of The Moose Chapter 438. The Rochelle Moose Lodge was instituted on May 27, 1929.

Terry Camplain will retire at the end of the school year after 20 years as principal at the Chana Education Center and 33 overall with the Ogle County Educational Cooperative. Before his time as principal, he was a school psychologist in Rochelle for 13 years. 

John Kisner of Rochelle served in the United States Army in the Vietnam War in The 196th Infantry Brigade. 

At its meeting Monday, the Rochelle City Council heard a presentation on and discussed future downtown work that will take place as a result of receipt of a $1.151 million grant, including a potential new stage, bathrooms and storage structure in the former gazebo area.

An Art Show was held during the open house and book fair night at all three Rochelle elementary schools on Thursday and featured a total of over 1,000 student art works, Rochelle District 231 Art Teacher Cassie Inman said. 

On Monday, a ribbon cutting ceremony was held at the City of Rochelle’s Rochelle Intermodal Transload Center to inaugurate the process of transloading locally-grown regenified corn.

On Wednesday, the Lee-Ogle Transportation System hosted two public meetings in Rochelle concerning its ongoing work on studying the feasibility of a potential scheduled bus route in the city.

After a 52-year career with Rochelle Schools, first as a teacher and later on as a bus driver, Sally Sawicki officially retired from the transportation department in early April. 

At its monthly meeting Tuesday, the Ogle County Board unanimously denied a special use permit for one solar project, and unanimously approved another.

At its monthly meeting Monday, the Flagg-Rochelle Community Park District Board of Commissioners heard an update from Executive Director Jackee Ohlinger on its Helms Park project. 

At its monthly meeting Monday, the Rochelle Township High School Board of Education unanimously approved lunch price changes for 2024-2025. Five menu items went up 10 cents in price, while all others remained the same.

Rochelle Township High School has established an emergency crisis response team due to a rise in out-of-hospital emergencies nationwide. 

At its monthly meeting Tuesday, the Rochelle Elementary School District Board of Education unanimously approved a resolution of intent to issue $4 million in working cash fund bonds related to upcoming work at Tilton Elementary School.

At its monthly meeting Wednesday, the Hillcrest Village Board heard an engineering update from Village President Rick Rhoads. The village has a number of ongoing engineering-related projects including a water main project, a lead service line inventory, and this summer's chip seal work. 

The Vince Carney Community Theater will present its production of “Leaving Iowa” on Friday, April 19 & 26 at 7 p.m.; Saturday, April 20 & 27 at 7 p.m. and Sunday, April 21 at 2 p.m.

At its meeting Monday, the Rochelle City Council unanimously approved a $1.276 million construction contract with Neumann Brothers Contractors for painting and rehabilitation of the water tower off the Illinois Route 251 overpass.