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SATURDAY DECEMBER 14 | SUNDAY DECEMBER 15 2019
SUNDAY BREAKFAST
A New Trier teacher and coach discusses his motivational methods. P26
SPORTS
Trevians nearly top Titans in boys hoops thriller. P24
SOCIAL SCENE
JCC Chicago honors leaders and volunteers at its annual celebration. P13 FOLLOW US:
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NEWS
Let’s Get Lit HANUKKAH CELEBRATIONS ARE SET TO BEGIN ON THE NORTH SHORE. EDITED BY DEBBIE LEE THE NORTH SHORE WEEKEND
Loosen a notch on your belt—it’s that time of year for binging on latkes and jelly doughnuts with friends and family. Hanukkah doesn’t officially begin until December 22, but pre-gaming has commenced. Throughout the North Shore, synagogues and community centers are hosting special holiday events, and there’s something for everyone.
Saturday, Dec. 14 Families with Littles Hanukkah Celebration Featuring a havdalah ceremony to end the Sabbath followed by candle lighting and songs, a pizza and pasta dinner with Hanukkah gelt, crafts, and a great magic show! For families with children 6 and under. Beth Hillel Bnai Emunah. 3220 Big Tree Lane, Wilmette. 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. Free. RSVP to bhbe.org/littles or contact Aaron Frankel at 847-256-1213 Sunday, Dec. 15 Bubbles & Latkes The Jewish United Fund Russian Jewish Continued on PG 10
THE LITTLE CLOSET THAT COULD MIDWEST VETERANS CLOSET IS EXPANDING TO BETTER SERVICE VETERANS AND ACTIVE DUTY MILITARY. BY MONICA KASS ROGERS THE NORTH SHORE WEEKEND
North Chicago’s Mary Carmody stands in the middle of a tangled field of grasses, with wooded acreage beyond. To her right, a clapboard farmhouse looms near a copse of oak trees. There are weathered outbuildings and broad stretches of cracked concrete pads in between. But next year, says Carmody, Executive Director of the Midwest Veterans Closet (MVC), this vista is set to dramatically change. “That’s when we plan to break ground to build our new facility,” she says. The rambling acreage was purchased on Green Bay Road a few months ago with a $500,000 state grant. The site will be built out to become the 501(c)3 organization’s much-needed new home, expanding what has virtually been a rented closet into a bigger, better-equipped space for the multitude of free goods and services MVC provides to active duty military, and veterans. Currently operating out of a rental unit four blocks south, MVC has been a reliedupon source for food, clothing, shoes, household goods, and furniture since it opened in 2014. Carmody, named the American Red Cross of Chicago & Northern Illinois’ 2019 Military Hero of the Year for her work at MVC, says she has been grateful for the space. But the warren of rooms are tiny, difficult to access (especially for veterans in wheelchairs), and lack adequate storage space. All problematic—especially given the volume of goods that flow to veterans, and military through MVC. “In the last six months, we have given out 28,453 pounds of food,” says Carmody. “But need goes far beyond that. Each month 550 individuals—about half active duty military, and half veterans—come to us for one or more of our services.” That could be anything from new shoes or a winter coat, to basic computer training and job-search
Mary Carmody, executive director of Midwest Veterans Closet, surveys the North Chicago site for the organization’s soon-to-come new facility. PHOTOGRAPHY BY MONICA KASS ROGERS
assistance. MVC even provides business attire for job interviews. The planned new facility will not only expand MVC’s space by 500 percent to 10,000 square feet—it will add new services. Perhaps most exciting, “We are adding
a commercial kitchen, and have plans to provide basic culinary training and jobs to a group of female veterans,” says Carmody. “Our hope is to convert the farmhouse on the property to become a residential facilContinued on PG 10
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