Dan Brannan is Content Director of RiverBender and EdGlenToday.com. Dan started at Riverbender.com/Edglentoday.com in December 2014. He is a graduate of Eastern Illinois University in Charleston, IL with degrees in Journalism and Psychology. Having previously served as the Executive Editor of The Telegraph in Alton, his 17-year tenure led the paper to over 350 awards including several General Excellence awards in the Illinois Press Association, Illinois Associated Press, Freedom Communications, Southern Illinois Editorial Association and Journal Register Company contests. Brannan was chosen to lead Freedom Communications' national pilot on social media.
He is the author of eight nonfiction books including: "The Courage to Live," a biography about Donna Gustavel, a young woman with multiple disabilities; "Everyday Angels," an inspirational book of moving human interest stories; "Live Life to the Fullest: Stories of People Coping With Diabetes" which is endorsed by the American Diabetes Association; "Boy Giant: The Story of Robert Wadlow The World's Tallest Man;" "Damn Cold and Starving" written with Sgt. Marion Ray; "You Can't Kill the Dream" co-written with fellow journalist Ande Yakstis; and "A Life in Parts," the story of Loretta Goebel and endorsed by Beatle Paul McCartney.
Dan, an avid exercise enthusiast, is a member of the American Diabetes Association and lives in Maryville. Dan has two children in college - Savannah and Sierra.
CAHOKIA MOUNDS/COLLINSVILLE - Collinsville Police are asking for the public’s help after a newborn infant was found abandoned Sunday night in a car seat in the Cahokia Mounds parking lot in Collinsville. At 8:35 p.m. on Sunday, June 7, 2026, the Collinsville Police Department responded to the...
ALTON — The Rockin' With Robert Concert scheduled for Tuesday, June 9, 2026, at the Robert Wadlow Statue on College Avenue in Alton has been canceled because of hot weather conditions. The No. 4 Combo had been set to perform at the concert, Debbie Frakes, an organizer of the weekly summer series,...
EDWARDSVILLE - Members of the Edwardsville Police Department participated on Tuesday, June 9, 2026, in the Illinois Law Enforcement Torch Run for Special Olympics. The officers carried the torch, traveling from the Montclaire Shopping Center on Troy Road to Busey Bank on West Vandalia...
ALTON - Clayton McCormick got the start on the mound and threw four solid innings, striking out four, while a six-run Alton third inning spelled the difference as the Post 126 junior American Legion baseball team defeated Eureka, Mo. Post 177 8-3 in a game played Monday evening at Lloyd Hopkins...
BELLEVILLE/SWANSEA - Belleville and Swansea police departments took part in the Annual 2026 Illinois Law Enforcement Torch Run for Special Olympics, with Belleville officers completing their leg of the run and passing the torch to the Swansea Police Department. The event moved...
ST. LOUIS - Steve Holley, the longtime executive director of St. Louis Guns ’N Hoses, has died at age 70, according to an announcement from St. Louis Metropolitan Police Chief Robert Tracy and a statement from the organization’s president. Holley was remembered as a leading...
ST. LOUIS - The Saint Louis Zoo announced on Tuesday, June 9, 2026, that Merah, a 57-year-old Sumatran orangutan and one of the oldest of her species in North America, died on Wednesday morning, June 3, 2026. The zoo said Merah was the second-oldest Sumatran orangutan in North America at the...
FAIRVIEW HEIGHTS - The Fairview Heights Police Department said officers responded Friday, June 5, 2026, to a report of a suspicious incident at First Community Credit Union in Fairview Heights, where investigators later determined there was no actual threat after a man entered the bank, raised...
SOUTH ROXANA — Flash flooding in South Roxana on Monday morning, June 8, 2026, was isolated to one intersection, Police Chief Bob Coles said late Monday morning, as authorities urged people to avoid the area until the water recedes. Coles said the flooding was at Madison Street...
ST. LOUIS COUNTY - A 60-year-old St. Louis man died after a motorcycle crash Saturday evening, June 6, 2026, near the intersection of Lemay Ferry Road and Telegraph Road, where St. Louis County police said a motorcyclist collided with a pickup truck making a left turn. Authorities...
Did you know Riverbender.com is free for you thanks to our awesome advertisers? We noticed you're using an ad block software. Please give our sponsors some exposure by disabling your ad blocking service for Riverbender.com.
