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.
SPRINGFIELD - Illinois has reported 309 confirmed and probable cases of Cyclospora as of 7 a.m. on July 17, 2026, including 24 hospitalizations and no deaths, according to the Illinois Department of Public Health, as national outbreaks have been linked to contaminated iceberg lettuce from Central Mexico...
ST. LOUIS - A woman believed to be in her 30s was struck and killed early Saturday, July 18, 2026, while crossing Gravois Avenue near Ohio, and Accident Reconstruction investigators are now leading the investigation, authorities said. St. Louis District 3 officers were called to the 2700 block of...
WOOD RIVER - Mikayla Miller, a junior volleyball player at East Alton-Wood River, has been recognized as a Midwest Members Credit Union Female Athlete Of The Month for the Oilers, an honor she said reflects years of work in the sport and support from her parents and coaches. Miller, who has played...
ST. LOUIS - St. Louis Metropolitan Police homicide detectives are investigating after skeletal remains were found Friday afternoon, July 17, 2026, behind the 5500 block of Genevieve or in the Walnut Park East neighborhood, authorities said. District 6 officers were called to the area at about 1:30...
EAST ST. LOUIS - Two East St. Louis Senior High School wide receivers, Skyler Wood and Jahzara Singleton, have earned full-ride scholarships to Millikin University in Decatur, Illinois, after the first year of the girls flag football program at their high school, marking a milestone for the newly...
EAST ALTON/WOOD RIVER - East Alton-Wood River High School senior Lilly Bock has been selected by the Riverbend East Rotary Club to participate in the Rotary Youth Exchange program and is scheduled to leave for Italy for her senior year. She has been involved in an ongoing fundraising effort and...
Taylor Fresh Foods is voluntarily recalling all iceberg lettuce sourced from central Mexico after a multistate Cyclospora outbreak, even as the Food and Drug Administration said Sunday that a lettuce sample previously believed to have tested positive was actually a false positive. The recall includes...
EDWARDSVILLE - The girls' team at Collinsville Swim Club swam very well and won their division over Montclaire Swim Club of Edwardsville at the annual Southwestern Illinois Swimming Association championship meet Sunday, July 19, 2026, with the Marlins hosting the meet at the Chuck Fruit Aquatic...
EDWARDSVILLE - The Madison County Sheriff’s Office announced six days ago that Abbie Hernandez, the daughter of Capt. T.J. Hernandez, has been selected to receive the Illinois Sheriffs’ Association Peacekeepers Scholarship, a $3,000 award for dependents of active-duty...
EDWARDSVILLE - Southern Illinois University Edwardsville will hold a memorial service honoring pianist Ruth Slenczynska Kerr at 3 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 30, 2026, in the Dunham Hall Theater at Katherine Dunham Hall, 50 Hairpin Drive, Edwardsville, Illinois. The service will feature recorded performances,...
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