Hello, my name is Laura Wilhite and I am the new Quill Reporter at the La Harpe office. Most of you probably knew my Grandpa Bob Cratsenberg.
The Hancock-Henderson Quill, Inc.
Hello, my name is Laura Wilhite and I am the new Quill Reporter at the La Harpe office. Most of you probably knew my Grandpa Bob Cratsenberg.
He owned stores on Main Street for most of his life. One of my earliest memories was my Grandpa holding the door shut at his store, Nothin’ New, as a storm blew through town.
I can still see the trees almost touching the ground across the street at the park as my Grandma ran around the store trying to find bowls to catch the rainwater that was leaking from the ceiling.
It has been close to thirty years since that storm came through town. My Grandparents have both passed on but I think they would both be thrilled that I am working on Main Street.
I have called the La Harpe area home for most of my life. I attended La Harpe Elementary as well as La Harpe Junior High school and graduated from Illini West High School in 2014. During college I was active in youth ministry.
It became apparent that children were needing more support in schools when it came to their mental health. I decided that I wanted to become a school social worker. In 2018 I graduated from Western Illinois University with a Bachelor’s degree in Social Work.
I graduated with a Master’s in Social Work from Illinois State University in May of 2020. I worked as a school social worker for two years before resigning.
I became burnt out rather quickly during the pandemic so I decided to take a break. Since then I have had jobs that have fed my soul from teaching, to running social media pages for small businesses, to working in youth ministry.
It has been a blessing to be able to use the gifts God has given me in unexpected ways. For the past year I have worked at Blandinsville Christian Church as their youth minister.
I also have a photography business that I started in the fall of 2024. I have always loved writing and taking pictures so I am excited to start this new chapter at The Quill!
Please stop in and say hello during our office hours. I hope to see you soon!