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THE REGIONA EGIONAL L NEWS Named best small weekly in Illinois five times by the Illinois Press Association
Thursday, December 25, 2014
73rd Year, NO. 52 • 3 Sections
Serving Palos, Orland and Worth townships and neighboring communities
Music for the soul of the season After many years of encouragement, a children’s worship leader from Palos Heights records a CD of her music with her church kids as choir.
By Tim Hadac • Staff reporter
F
or years, people who heard Marjie Coleman’s original music in church and vacation Bible school have urged her to record it and share with a broader audience. Those fans of gentle yet inspirational Christian music had their wish granted this year, in time for the Christmas season. “Jump Up and Shout it!” by Marjie Coleman and the Children of Hope Church is now available on CD for $10 at Mona Lisa Boutique, 12330 S. Harlem Ave., Palos Heights. “Well, it’s been on my bucket list for a long time,” Coleman said last week in
a conversation at Mona Lisa. “I’ve been writing songs for a long time, for many years now. I finally put them all on a CD.” One side of the work is a collection of catchy, fun songs for children, sung by VBS students at Hope Christian Reformed Church in Oak Forest, where Coleman, a Palos Heights resident, serves as the Children in Worship director. Those songs “are for kids. It’s a collection of songs I’ve written for vacation Bible school for our church over the years,” Coleman said. “The kids have gotten to Photo by Tim Hadac know more and more of my songs. So Simple songs of joy and inspiration by Marjie Coleman, recorded with her this year it was just my stuff, so they vacation Bible school students at Hope Christian Reformed Church, sit See MUSIC, Page 2
among the lavish, festive displays of merchandise and good cheer that are a holiday staple at Mona Lisa Boutique, 12330 S. Harlem Ave., Palos Heights.
Candidates file to run in April elections By Tim Hadac
Palos Heights
Staff reporter
Photo by Tim Hadac
St. Spyridon heralds Christmas
Accompanied by her father, Aris, Palos Park resident Mariam Halikias, 2, wears her heart near her sleeve and charms Santa Claus at last Friday night’s Christmas celebration at Saint Spyridon Hellenic Orthodox Church in Palos Heights. More scenes from the event: Page 2.
Candidates for local public offices serving Palos Heights, Palos Park and Orland Park have filed their nominating petitions for the April 7 Consolidated Election. Monday was the deadline for hopefuls to file the required petition signatures and other legal documents required of candidates to run for local municipal, public library, public school and fire protection district governing boards on the April 7, 2015 election ballot. Trustees for the Palos Fire Protection District are appointed by the Palos Township Board of Trustees. Palos Heights and Palos Park library board members are appointed by their respective city and village councils. The last day to file a legal objection against a candidate’s nominating petition is Tuesday, Dec. 30, at 5 p.m.
Correspondent
Tuition increases are set to take place at Moraine Valley Community College but most officials insist attending the school is still a bargain in an expensive collegiate landscape. School officials voted to increase tuition for the next three fall semesters at the Dec. 17 board meeting. Tuition will increase two dollars per credit hour for the fall semester of 2015, three dollars per credit hour for the fall of 2016, and three dollars per credit hour for the fall semester of 2017. Total tuition and fees for fall 2015 will be $133 per credit hour ($116 for tuition and $17 for fees); tuition in 2016 will rise to $136 per credit hour ($119
for tuition and $17 for fees), and in 2017 tuition will rise again to $139 per credit hour ($122 for tuition and $17 for fees). The vote passed, 6-1, leaving one trustee questioning the increase. “I wonder if the tuition increase will affect our enrollment.” Trustee Eileen O’Sullivan said. “I want to make sure our college is as affordable as possible to our community members,” she said, “Any rise in tuition might steer students away. I fear any rise in tuition might prevent students from enrolling or continuing to attend Moraine Valley.” O’Sullivan said withh tuition increases and the cost of health insurance rising, families might be having a difficult time affording college for their children. See MVCC, Page 2
Palos Park
Mayor John Mahoney, Clerk Marie Arrigoni, and Commissioners Nicole Milovich-Walters, Dan Polk, Darryl Reed, and Jim Pavlatos have all filed for re-election to four-year terms. No challengers have filed petitions.
Orland Park
Three trustees are up for re-election to four-year terms: Patricia Gira, Edward G. Shussler III, and Carole Griffin Ruzich. See CANDIDATES, Page 2
Driver who killed nuns was drunk
MVCC tuition rising; president says school is still ‘a bargain’ By Kelly White
Incumbent Aldermen Jeffrey M. Key (1st Ward), Robert Basso (2nd Ward), Alan Fulkerson (3rd Ward), and Michael McGrogan (4th Ward) have all filed for re-election to four-year terms. William Moran also has filed and will challenge Key in the 1st Ward.
By Bob Rakow Staff reporter
Feast of the Nativity
Photo by Tim Hadac
In a world awash with secular symbols of Christmas, a colorful manger scene casts a warm glow on a cold night near the rectory at Nativity BVM Ukrainian Catholic Church, 8530 W. 131st St., Palos Park.
I T’ S B E T T E R AT
B E T T E N HAU S EN
Since 1956
A Chicago man who killed two nuns when his pickup truck collided into their car at 95th Street and Cicero Avenue had a blood alcohol concentration more that twice the legal limit, the Cook County Medical Examiner has reported. Edward L. Carthans, 81, of Chicago had a BAC of .179 percent on Oct. 5 when his truck veered into the opposite lanes on 95th Street and slammed into a car occupied by three Little Company of Mary nuns, the medical examiner’s said Monday. The legal blood alcohol concentration limit in Illinois is .08 percent. Tests for the presence of benzoylecgonine (metabolite of cocaine), opiates and carbon monoxide were negative, the medical examiner’s office said. See CRASH, Page 2
From Our Family to Yours Merry Christmas and Happy New Year Bettenhausen Automotive
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2 Thursday, December 25, 2014
The Regional News
St. Spyridon fete heralds Christmas
Candidates
Continued from Page 1 Ruzich, Gira and challenger Michael F. Carroll will run under the First Orland Party banner. Shussler, dropped from the ticket supported by the mayor, will run as an independent. Freshman Trustee Daniel Calandriello, appointed in 2013 to fill a vacancy when Trustee Brad O’Halloran resigned last year, is running unopposed to fill the remaining two years of the term, also under the First Orland Party banner.
Orland Park Public Library
Two of the seven seats are up for election to six-year terms. Incumbents Beth Gierach and Dan Drew have not filed petitions. Christian J. Barcelona, Charles Jason Kaple, Joanna M. Liotine Leafblad, and Salvatore A. LoMonaco have filed to run for the seats.
Orland Fire Protection Dist.
Of the five trustees on the board, only OFPD President James P. Hickey’s seat is up next year. He has filed petitions and will run for re-election. No challengers have come forward, according to an
Busy hands were everywhere during last Friday’s Christmas celebration at Saint Spyridon Hellenic Orthodox Church, as children built their own gingerbread houses, supervised by Connie Papadatos, of Tinley Park. George Kottaras, 6, of Oak Lawn, stands firm under quizzing, in Greek, by Santa Claus and insists that he has been a good boy all year. Like the dozens of other children at last Friday’s Christmas celebration at Saint Spyridon Hellenic Orthodox Church, he was rewarded with a gift and hearty “Bravo!” from the jolly old elf.
Photos by Joan Hadac
Keeping the mood light at the event were those who answered the call to come dressed in ugly sweaters, including Orland Park resident Angela Evangelopoulos (from left), Demetra Mikroulis, of Lemont, and her daughter, Magdalene, 6, Palos Park resident Yianna Halikias, Homer Glen resident Mena Mastorakos and her daughter, Tara, 8.
Incumbent William Storrs has filed petitions to run for another six-year term. No challengers have filed.
Moraine Valley Community College
Two slots on the college’s board of trustees are up open. Each has a six-year term. Competing for them will be incumbent Tom Cunningham, of Orland Park, and challengers Kimberly Hastings, of Orland Hills, William “Bill” Christian, of Oak Lawn, James M. Talbot, of Crestwood, and Michael Murphy, of Evergreen Park. The two top vote-getters will be elected. Editor’s note: The elementary and high school district filings reported by the Cook County Clerk’s Office were not current as of late Monday, as The Regional News printing deadline approached. We plan to publish a complete list of those candidate filings in next Thursday’s edition of The Regional News. sion Chief Randy Palmer said. Witnesses told police they initially saw Carthans slumped over the wheel of the pickup truck at 95th Street and Western Avenue and asked if he needed assistance. Carthans declined help and drove away, police said. Moments later, Carthans was involved in a four-car accident at 95th Street and Keeler Avenue near Target. None of the drivers in the crash were seriously injured or transported to the hospital, officials said. Carthans then drove at a high rate of speed toward 95th Street and Cicero Avenue. As he approached the intersection, he crossed into the eastbound lanes, ran the red light and struck cars stopped at a traffic light on eastbound 95th Street, officials said.
File photo by Dermot Connolly
MVCC
Donning their Santa hats and preparing to sing Christmas carols, both in English and Greek, are Kosta Selimos, 9, of Oak Lawn (from left), his sister, Anna, 6, and George Mastorakos, 6, of Homer Glen.
Continued from Page 1 could record the songs with me.” That’s exactly what they did on a warm day last June, with the church doing double duty as a makeshift recording studio. The technician recording the songs, knowing he was dealing with a group of amateur child singers, predicted the group would get five songs recorded that day. The children, however, knew the songs so well that 11 made it onto the master recording. “I think people who buy this CD — if they have kids, their kids will just love the songs on the first side,” Coleman said. “Kids will listen and just start singing them and loving them. “That’s really fun,” she added, recalling the recording session. “That’s really gratifying to watch 100 kids singing your songs, smiling and having a good time.” The other side of “Jump Up” features songs by Coleman that are deeper and more introspective, suitable for adults. Those were also recorded in June at Hope Church. “The (recording technician) had a really good microphone, so I just sat in the pastor’s office and hoped people didn’t knock on the door,” she recalled with a smile. The songs are “quiet, introspective, centering,” Coleman added. “I have a friend who is not even really a Christian. She wouldn’t call
Continued from Page 1 Sister Jean Stickney, 86, and Sister Kab Kyoung Kim, 48, died at the scene after the car they were driving was struck by the pick-up truck. Carthans also was killed in the crash, in which the pickup he was driving veered in to the opposite of lanes of 95th Street, ran a red light and slammed into cars waiting at for the light to change, police said. The third person in the car, Sister Sharon Ann Walsh, survived the crash. Twenty-three people were treated at the scene and 11 were taken to area hospital, officials said. This investigation is now closed, Oak Lawn Police Divi-
Palos Heights Fire Protection Dist.
The driver who caused a tragic crash in Oak Lawn in October was ruled to be legally intoxicated at the time.
Below: The youngest children enjoyed the gaily decorated gymnasium, including Niko Bart, 17 months, of Lemont, who was there with his grandmother, Morfo Bountinas, of Orland Park.
Music
Crash
OFPD spokesman.
herself a Christian, yet she loves the CD. She says it helps her quiet her soul.” She does not count any contemporary Christian recording artists as big influences, and says that her music’s inspiration comes mostly “from prayer time and devotionals, things like that.” Coleman grew up in Northbrook and was raised Methodist. Her mother was a piano teacher, “so there was always music in our house,” she recalled. While she sang in church as a youngster, she was also attracted to secular music. As a teen, she was a fan of John Denver, and with her first guitar played a lot of country tunes. “I knew every song of John Denver,” Coleman said. “I mean, it was junior high, and he was big then. He had a great voice and he wrote simple, beautiful melodies. It probably has influenced me over the years, really, when you think about it. He wasn’t a complicated guy, but he wrote beautiful songs.” Locally, she served as associate pastor, “many years ago at the Palos Heights Reformed Church on 127th Street,” she said with a chuckle. “I was in charge of all educational aspects for adults and children, and I led worship,” she recalled. “I didn’t preach, but I did basically anything else. I did some pastoral counseling and handled the programs that were held during the week. I did all that. “It was a busy job, really busy,” she contin-
Continued from Page 1 College President Sylvia Jenkins told O’Sullivan enrollment would not be affected by the tuition increase. “Tuition for one year of courses at Moraine Valley costs less than $5,000,” Jenkins said. “This is a very good bargain compared to most colleges and universities in our surrounding area. Some colleges rise tuition as much as $18 or $19.” Student Trustee Eamon Almiladi chimed in. saying Moraine’s students do not seem to mind the slight tuition increase over the next three years either. “Students are OK with the increase,” he said, “They are very happy with the services available on campus and with our staff. We have a very beautiful campus here at Moraine Valley and this is a very conservative increase.” Chief Financial Officer Robert Sterkowitz said the board approved the increase early to help students and the college with future planning. Any rise in tuition goes to benefit the col-
ued. “They hired two full-time people when I left [to raise a family], so if that gives you any indication. But it was a great experience, just one it became impossible to do once I had kids.” Before she started her duties on 127th Street, “I didn’t even know Palos Heights existed, never knew where this was, never knew anything about it,” she said. “But we moved here, and now my family has been here for 20 years. We love Palos Heights.” Her love of music has been passed on to her three children. Her daughter is a junior at the Chicago Conservatory of Performing Arts, and her sons, both students at Stagg High School, are musicians, as well. Their reaction to “Jump Up” has been supportive. “My sons laughed [at first],” Coleman recalled with a laugh of her own. “Well, I don’t know. They’re high school boys. My son is currently recording music and he was just like, ‘Really?’ when I told him. My daughter is extremely excited, and she has given [the CD] to people. My husband has been very happy. “This has been a rewarding experience, a good thing to do,” she concluded. “So many times over the years, I’ve written songs on scraps of paper and maybe lost or forgotten them. To get them recorded and on a CD, a hard copy I can hold in my hand, that’s a good feeling.”
lege’s new facilities, classrooms and towards the additional staff members necessary to run these buildings. “In order to maintain and continue to provide all student services which the college currently offers, as well as meet all current and future contractual agreements of the college, this small tuition increase is needed in order to continue to develop a balanced operating budget each fiscal year,” he said. O’Sullivan was still not convinced the increase was justified, however, her motion to table the increase was denied by the rest of the board. Sterkowitz informed the board the approved three year increase is the lowest tuition increase the college has ever seen. “Moraine Valley continues to be an excellent value for students who are seeking an associate’s degree or certificate, especially when you compare our tuition to four-year private or public colleges and universities and to proprietary institutions,” Jenkins said, “Our graduates also tell us that in surveys.”
The Regional News
Thursday, December 25, 2014
3
Dist. 230 OKs flat tax levy two years in row By Tim Hadac Staff reporter
“Don’t blame us” was the answer that High School District 230 officials gave last Thursday to homeowners frustrated by ballooning property tax bills. “When you take your tax bill from this year and last year, there is an increase, but it’s not us,” said board member Kathy Quilty, addressing a complaint she said she received via email from a local taxpayer. “It’s the way that Cook County calculates it, and that’s what the lady was upset about, that it appears on your bill that taxes are going up, but that we’re claiming a zero-percent [increase].” Quilty’s explanation came during the board’s monthly meeting, held at Sandburg High School, where board members unanimously approved a 2014 tax levy of nearly $104.5 million, identical to what the district received in the 2013 tax extension. A year ago, board members approved a 2013 tax levy of nearly $102.3 million, identical to what the district received in the 2012 tax extension. The tax levy is the total dollar amount the district is seeking in real estate taxes for all taxable property within the district’s boundaries “This is not an easy task, to maintain a bal-
anced budget with no tax increases for two consecutive years. I think we should be proud of that collaborative process,” said board President Rick Nogal, who added that the board and district staff are “fiscally prudent” and “have financial integrity.” “It’s a team effort,” Nogal continued. “Our teachers, our support staff, our building maintenance people, our contractors—we try to watch every penny to be fair to our taxpayers.” “Even though we’re not increasing the levy, we’re not decreasing what we provide to the students,” added board member Tony Serratore. “We’re still providing the best possible opportunities for our students, yet not increasing taxes.”
Senate Bill 16 dead? Also last Thursday, board members expressed guarded optimism about the fate of Senate Bill 16, the School Funding Reform Act of 2014. Nogal noted that the bill was not brought for a vote in the recent lame duck session, which its opponents had feared and some had even predicted. SB 16, which passed the Illinois Senate late last May, could be considered by the state House of Representatives in the spring legislative session—although with the possible threat of a veto by a new Republican governor, its prospects
now appear to be slim. District officials would be even happier to hear Illinois Senate Minority Leader Christine Radogno’s prediction that “essentially Senate Bill 16 is dead” when she gave a talk to the Palos-Orland Area League of Women Voters on Dec. 5, at the group’s annual fireside dinner held at Lake Katherine’s Simpson Clubhouse. Passage of SB 16 would mean annual state aid losses of approximately $7 million for Consolidated High School District 230.
Final Four fundraiser A night of fun is planned by the District 230 Foundation, launching a new fundraiser in connection with the NCAA Final Four men’s basketball championship. The 21-and-up fundraising event is set for 4 p.m. Saturday, April 4 at Homewood Suites, 16245 S. La Grange Road, Orland Park, and is expected to last deep into the evening. Admission is $25 in advance, $30 at the door, and includes unlimited food and drinks, watching of the semifinal games that day on big-screen TVs, games, prizes, and a “super raffle” in which $22,500 in cash prizes will be awarded. Photo by Tim Hadac Tickets for $50 each. Top prize is $10,000, and District 230 Assistant Superintendent for Business Services Steve only 1,000 tickets will be sold. Tickets may be Langert (left) makes a point about the 2014 tax levy as board purchased online at d230foundation.org. members Susan Dalton (from left) and Melissa Gracias listen.
Stagg students sizzle in Iron Chef competition
Ellie Engel, Natalia Bryja and Kierstynn Hodgkinson team up to work on a dessert during Stagg’s Iron Chef competition.
Maciej Mucha, a sophomore, flips his toast during the Iron Chef competition at Stagg High School in Palos Hills. Senior Natalia Btyja puts the frosting on a red velvet creation during the Iron Chef competition at Stagg.
Photos by Jeff Vorva
High School District 230 Superintendent James Gay (left) was one of the guest judges during the Stagg Iron Chef competition on Dec. 16.
Dist. 218 officials flipping over flipped classrooms By Kelly White Correspondent High School District 218 has decided to flip its classrooms. “Flipping the classroom” has become something of a buzzword in the last several years, driven in part by stories in high profile publications such as the New York Times. Students learn content online by watching video lectures — usually at home — and homework is done in class with teachers and students discussing and solving questions. Teacher interaction with students is more personalized with guidance instead of lecturing. This is also known as backwards classroom, inverted classroom and reversed teaching. In 2011, Michigan’s Clintondale High School flipped every class. After 20 weeks flipped students were outperforming traditional students and no flipped student class scored lower than a C+. Not every classroom in District 218 has flipped, but Ryan reports several teachers are testing out the waters in the non-traditional teaching method. “This approach is far more labor intensive on the teacher’s part than traditional teaching,”
Michael Ryan, Director of Instructional Services for District 218, said at last week’s school board meeting. The traditional pattern of teaching has been to assign students to read textbooks and work on problem sets outside school, while listening to lectures and taking tests in class. “In the traditional classroom setting, the teacher will stand up in front of the students and lecture on a topic,” Ryan said, “This is not the case in a flipped classroom.” He admits there are both pros and cons to the new teaching approach. “It depends on the teacher, not just the concept of flipping the classroom,” he added, “The teacher will be the one to determine how successful it is.” With the flipping the classroom approach, students are doing the lower levels of cognitive work by gaining knowledge and comprehension outside of class. Is also focuses on the higher forms of cognitive work — application, analysis, synthesis and evaluation — in class, where they have the support of their peers and instructor. Flipped classrooms frees class
time for hands-on work. Students learn by doing and also by asking questions. Ryan said teachers can create or have students watch videos on websites at home, including YouTube, creating actual homework that does not feel like homework. “The only real problem with this method is just as how sometimes the students will not do their written homework at home, sometimes they will not want to watch a video at home if it is pertaining to school work,” he said. There is no written homework with a flipped classroom. Instead, all of the written assignments take place inside of the classroom. With a flipped classroom, teachers are also able to revisit concepts students do not understand more frequently than they would in a traditional classroom setting. After students watch video lessons at home, they can write down any questions they have and the teacher will review those questions with the student on an individual basis inside of the classroom. “This is a very interactive teaching approach for both the teachers and the students,” Ryan said.
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4 Thursday, December 25, 2014
INSIDE THE FIRST AMENDMENT
OPINION
The Regional News
Faith, not politics, keeps Christ in Christmas By Charles C. Haynes
I
f you ask me, America’s perennial turf battles over “Christ in Christmas” are about politics and power — and have little or nothing to do with authentic faith. Consider the Texas lawmakers who held a news conference earlier this month to remind people of their right to say “Merry Christmas” in public schools — thanks to the landmark “Merry Christmas law” they passed last year with great fanfare. The law isn’t really about protecting speech (since students and teachers already have the First Amendment right to say “Merry Christmas”); it’s about pushing back against the more inclusive “holiday” programs that are replacing the traditional Christmas celebrations in Texas schools. Meanwhile at the State Capitol in Lansing, Michigan, state officials have acknowledged — much to their chagrin — that the long-standing tradition of allowing Christians to put up a Nativity scene opens the door for other groups to put up their displays. As a result, this year’s Christian Nativity scene at the statehouse will be displayed next to a satanic exhibit erected by the Satanic Temple. Behind these and many similar Christmas controversies is the cultural shift, from a country where government promotes the majority faith to a country where government levels the playing field for people of all faiths and none. Living up to the First Amendment — the constitutional requirement that government not take sides in religion — isn’t easy after a long history of Protestant hegemony in the public square. The so-called “Christmas wars” are fueled by futile attempts to hold on to a bygone era. What many Christians will discover, if they haven’t already, is that loss of government endorsement is gain of spiritual power. The lessons of history are that when state and church are entangled, both are corrupted. And when the two are independent and autonomous, the church retains its prophetic voice for justice in a broken world. Putting Christ in Christmas, therefore, is a task for the faithful — not for public school officials or state lawmakers. Christians should welcome, not curse, the proliferation of “holiday trees” and the cries of “happy holidays.” If Christ is removed from the shopping mall “Christmas,” so much the better for preserving and celebrating the birth of Christ. To my Christian readers, I wish you a blessed Christmas. To all those putting gifts under trees and expecting Santa, I wish you a Merry Christmas. And to people of all faiths and none, I wish you peace and goodwill in this season of joy and light.
Charles C. Haynes is director of the Religious Freedom Center of the Newseum Institute, 555 Pennsylvania Ave., N.W., Washington, DC 20001. Web: www.religious freedomcenter.org Email: chaynes@newseum.org
Letters policy The Regional News encourages letters to the editor. Letters must be signed and the name of the writer will be published. Include your address and telephone number for verification purposes. Limit letters to no more than 300 words. We reserve the right to edit letters. E-mail letters to: theregional@comcast.net
THE THE
READERS WRITE Gratitude for our ‘Watchdog’
development programs for Palos Park Police Officers – programs that improve performance Dear Editor: and offer support to those risking their safety While reading last week’s lead article to ensure ours. The PPPF does not contribute on the subject of the Boardwalk [of Palos to department salaries, pensions, or overtime. Heights] project’s tax incentives, I wasn’t Its job is to close the gap when funding falls surprised to read Jim Pasquinelli’s active role short. in raising issues for our consideration. The Palos Park Police Foundation invests Jim is not a reactionary obstructionist in special equipment, advanced training, new against progress or development, rather a very technology, officer safety and wellness not concerned citizen who wants progress, but not covered in the department’s annual budget. mortgaging our community’s financial future. The PPPF exists to advance public safety for We are well served by Jim’s attention the Village of Palos Park and their contribuand activism, given his impressive resume, tions save lives and make Palos Park safer. which includes being a lawyer, professionThe PPPF has helped fund Tough Pad al engineer, builder, developer and former computers for our officers, ballistic shields, alderman, along with being a Palos Heights ballistic vests, night vision, portable radios, resident for more then 40 years. His comsituational virtual firearms training and camera ments for caution and due diligence reflects equipped Tasers. his affection for our community and desire — Joe Miller, for well-thought-out development. Chief of Police Personally at my retired stage of my life, I’m selfish with my time, unlike Jim who Have a truly blessed Christmas continues to devote his time for our commuDear Editor: nity’s interest. We often think of the Christmas season as This letter is simply expressing my respect a time for happy celebrations. There is usually and gratitude for our “Watchdog.” — Jim Keough, much in the way of feasting and fun includPalos Heights ing gifts, parties and get-togethers for family and friends. But it is so easy to get caught up in these pleasant activities and totally miss Thank you to Palos Park the heart of what makes Christmas the most Police Foundation celebrated time of the year. There is more, Dear Editor: so much more,for us to contemplate if we The sound of the heartbeats of our commu- take time to marvel over the mystery. There nity members who care, are a truly powerful is a depth and richness that was meant to be force. Thank you Palos Park Police Founexplored and savored if we will set aside a dation members for another great year and few moments to do so. yearend wrap-up meeting. When God spoke His Word, He meant A special thank you to our membership, for it to be taken seriously. What He says Lane Hensley, Melissa Gracias, Carolyn Baca, always comes to pass. The over 300 prophMke Sundermeier, Dan Polk Annette Mucha, ecies concerning the first coming of Jesus Ken Stoffel, Shirley Hulse, Barry Churin, to earth were all fulfilled in that stable in Don Mahoney, Arienne Jackiw and Dave Bethlehem over 2000 years ago. The mystery Glow. is why would God do this? Why would He Each of you shows the importance of care about mankind so much that He would business, philanthropy and government all sacrifice His one and only Son? Why would working together. Jesus be willing to leave the glory of Heaven The Palos Park Police Foundation strength- to descend to our destitute planet where He ens vital technological and professional faced rejection and certain death?
God’s Word opens up the mystery to us. “ For God so LOVED the world that He gave His one and only Son that whoever believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life. Here is love, that God loved us and sent His Son.” So Christmas is a celebration... of God’s love in action! Such love is beyond comprehension, but truly it is the best Gift we could ever desire or receive. God’s actions reveal His amazing love for all mankind, for each and every one of us! Linus, of Peanuts’ fame, explained this to his good friend when he quoted from the account of the first Christmas in Luke 2. The angel said to the shepherds, “Fear not, for I bring you good tidings of great joy to all people. For unto you is born this day, in the city of David, a Savior, which is Christ the Lord.” “That’s what Christmas is all about Charlie Brown!” Christ Jesus came down from Heaven to come to where we are, where we live. We are a broken and needy people in need of a savior. Love came down at Christmas. The mystery revealed does not take away from the beauty, the splendor, the absolutely breathtaking wonder of God’s love for us. The greatest of all gifts was when God gave Himself for a lost and undeserving world. It revealed the greatest love, met the greatest need, and had the greatest scope and purpose of any gift that could possibly be conceived in the heart of God. But a gift only becomes a gift when it is accepted, and the greatest of all tragedies is to see this greatest of all gifts ridiculed and scorned by humanity, or simply ignored by vast multitudes who need it so deeply. When the world turns down the perfect gift of Jesus, they are turning down the Source of all love, life and truth. God did all He could do when He gave His son to suffer and die in our place.When God’s free gift of everlasting life is refused, the end result is beyond tragic. Today He is extending this precious Present to each one of us. The choice is ours to accept or reject it. What joy to believe and receive His Gift, the Gift too wonderful for words! Have a truly blessed CHRISTmas! — Susan Tesauro, Palos Heights
REGIONAL NEWS NEWS REGIONAL
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theirlives lives to protect America’s their to protect America’s free-
Justin Hurst, Plainfield “A little bit of everyone. Cutler, the coach is soft and management should have stepped in a long time ago.”
Don Haberkorn, Oak Lawn “Jay Cutler. He’s performing terribly.”
Fred LaGiglia, Oak Lawn “All of the players. They’re not putting out.”
• Asked at the Oak Lawn Pavilion. Photos by Bob Rakow
George Coffey, Chicago “The owners. They are the worst in the NFL.”
Bill Foster, Evergreen Park “I’m going to say Jay Cutler. He needs to sit.”
The Regional News
Thursday, December 25, 2014
5
Heights police cracking down on drunken drivers Drive sober or get pulled over and arrested
Supplied photo
Orland Park Police Lt. Brian West (second from left) accepts the contribution for Safe Ride Home from John Gordon of the Michael P. Gordon Memorial Foundation. Other are Palos Heights police Sgt. Mike Yott, Mokena Cmdr. Dan Rankovich, Mokena Community Relations Officer Dennis Boardman and Tinley Park Community Relations Officer Perry Dubish. New Lenox is also participating in this year’s program providing free rides home on New Year’s Eve, so no one drinks and drives.
No excuse to get a New Year’s Eve DUI when suburbs here offer Safe Ride Home Orland Park, Palos Heights and Palos Park are among south suburbs again teaming up to reduce the number of drunk drivers traveling on New Year’s Eve. The village of Orland Park has offered the Safe Ride Home Program for nearly 20 years, with Palos Heights, Mokena, Tinley Park and New Lenox all coming on board over the last several years. Palos Park offers its own Safe Rides Home program, independent of the one offered jointly by the suburbs named above. “Safe Ride Home is a great example of area municipalities working together to keep the roads safer on New Year’s Eve,” said Orland Park Mayor Dan McLaughlin. “We’re grateful to our neighboring communities for joining us and are especially appreciative to the Michael P. Gordon Memorial Foundation for helping to make
this program possible for the last several years.” The program is funded by each of the participating municipalities and with a grant from the Michael P. Gordon Foundation. Chicago Police Officer Michael Gordon, age 30, was on patrol on Aug. 8, 2004 when, at 5:45 a.m., at the intersection of Jackson and Sacramento Boulevards in Chicago, his squad car was hit by an intoxicated, unlicensed driver who ran a red light, killing Officer Gordon and seriously injuring his partner. Michael Gordon was an Eagle Scout, who served in the United States Army in the late 1990s. When he was killed, he had been with the Chicago Police Department for two years. Further information about the Michael P. Gordon Foundation is available at www.michaelpgordon.org. Free rides home from estab-
lishments within the participating towns will be available beginning at 11 p.m. on Wednesday, Dec. 31 until 4 a.m. on Thursday, Jan. 1. Drivers will transport revelers home only and not to other establishments. “We had more than 200 people take advantage of this service last year,” said Orland Park Village Trustee Dan Calandriello, chairman of the Village Board’s Public Safety Committee. “People who know that they’re too impaired to drive on New Year’s Eve should leave their cars where they are and call for a ride,” he added. Residents of the participating towns may call Elite Chicago Limo at 1-312-201-1055 to arrange for a free ride home during the designated hours on New Year’s Eve. Callers must specify that they’re calling for the free “safe ride home.”
In Palos Park Palos Park residents may call the Police Department at 448-2191 or 259-1035 from 10 p.m. to 4 a.m. on New Year’s for a no-questionsasked ride home. The boundaries are confined to Palos Park, but officers will go slightly beyond the village to get a reveler home safely.
While at a community meeting recently, the question came up related to traffic stops (being pulled over) by an officer and the recommended safest way to deal with the traffic stop for all parties involved. This is what we suggest, should you find yourself in that position. A traffic stop is one of the most frequent encounters between citizens and police. Usually, police officers will pull a vehicle over if they have reason to believe that some offense has occurred. You may feel anxious, irritated at the delay, or concerned about a possible citation. However, officers are also concerned about possible threats to their personal safety while performing their duties. Don’t panic - You may feel confused, anxious, angry, or concerned about a possible traffic citation. No matter how long you’ve been driving, these feelings are natural and occur to almost everyone. • There are many reasons why a police officer might stop you. • The officer may want to warn you about a potentially dangerous situation. • You may have committed a traffic violation. • The vehicle you are driving may have an equipment violation. • The vehicle you are driving may match the description of a
vehicle used in a criminal act. Understand that each situation is unique and that an officer must alter his or her response to fit the circumstance. Not only does the officer have to think about the actions and behavior of the occupant(s) within the vehicle, he or she must also be cognizant of the other vehicles driving past on the roadway. What To Do If You Are Pulled Over: Pull over to the right side of the road - Use your directional signal while pulling over as soon as you can safely do so. Most officers will understand if you slowly drive a short distance to pull into a driveway, parking lot, side street, etc. Do not stop in the middle of the road and do not pull over to the left. Pulling over as far to the right is the safest place for you and the officer. Turn on the interior light - If the stop occurs between dusk and dawn, it is the law to turn on the interior light in your car. This is for the safety of you, the officer, and any passengers who may be in the vehicle. Keep your hands in plain view or on the steering wheel - This is for your safety and the safety of the officer. The officer will request to see your driver’s license, proof of insurance and sometimes the vehicle registration. Illinois law requires you to provide these items at the request of an officer. If the doc-
uments are out of reach, tell the officer where they are before you reach for them. Remain in your vehicle - After the officer gathers your documents, he or she will go back to their police cruiser. You should only get out of your vehicle if the officer asks you to. Ask for clarification if needed Depending on the reason for the traffic stop, you may be given a traffic citation. If the charge or the ticket is not clear, ask the officer for an explanation. If you receive a citation, the officer will give you a court diversion envelope or a summons with a court date on it. This allows you to contest the ticket and the opportunity to take your case before a judge. Merge back into traffic - Using your directional signal, merge with caution back into the flow of traffic. On limited access roadways, safely gain speed in the shoulder before entering fast moving traffic. Other things to keep in mind: Being stopped at night, particularly along a dark stretch of road, can heighten the tension for motorists and officers. Officers generally do not object to drivers proceeding to the nearest well lit area. Simply acknowledge the officer by turning on your flashers and drive at a reduced speed. Bright spotlights are used for the safety of all persons involved. They are not meant to intimidate or embarrass you.
Communicate your actions in advance by telling the officer what you will be doing before you move. The officer doesn’t know anything about you or your intentions. They are just trying to keep everyone involved in the situation safe. Avoid making any sudden movements that might be interpreted by the officer as you hiding or reaching for something. Do not assume that the officer knows that you are a perfect, law-abiding citizen. Law enforcement can be dangerous work. Officers must be cautious at all times. If you are issued a citation as of Jan. 1, 2015 you will be asked to sign for it. Signing is not an admission of guilt, but an acknowledgment that you have received the citation. While you may wish to clarify the circumstances of the citation, keep in mind that your guilt or innocence can only be dealt with in a court of law. If you feel there is a problem, ask to talk to someone in charge of the shift or after the encounter make an appointment to speak with the commander or chief. All the records and log associated with the stop can be reviewed and if something with the stop is found to be askew, we are not afraid of admitting we make mistakes. This setting allows for all parties to calmly talk and seek reasonable solutions.
POLICE BLOTTER: ORLAND PARK Store manager charged with felony theft Orland Park police charged Seon O. Brown, 30, of Chicago Heights, with felony theft after he allegedly used his position as a manager at a department store in Orland Square Mall to steal more than $3,300. Brown Store security told police that Brown arranged 26 fraudulent merchandise purchases between June 1 and Nov. 25, when he was taken into custody, police said. Brown would then use the bogus purchases to issue refunds to himself, according to the police report. Bond was set at $50,000, and Brown was scheduled to appear in court in Bridgeview on Tuesday.
Chgo. Ridge woman allegedly stashes merchandise in stroller
Police charged Hala Abu-Shaqra, 35, of Chicago Ridge, with retail theft after she allegedly stole more than $500 worth of clothing from a department store in Orland Square Mall at 5:50 p.m. Nov. 19. Police said that while she shopped in the store with young children, she stuffed a number of items of clothing in a stroller she was pushing. Abu-Shaqra was due at a bond hearing on Nov. 20.
Shopper’s car window smashed
A woman returning to her car after shopping at Macy’s in Orland Square Mall found that a vandal had smashed the vehicle’s rear window. The crime was discovered at 8:40 p.m. Nov. 28 in a lower level parking lot, according to police.
Charged with DUI Police charged Jamie L. Oswood, 48, of Lemont, with DUI, speeding, possession of drug paraphernalia, and illegal transportation of alcohol. Police curbed her car in the 9500 block of West 143rd Street at 12:10 a.m. Dec. 10, after it was spotted traveling at 55 mph, 20 mph over the posted limit, according to the police report. A search of the vehicle yielded a half-empty bottle of Jack Daniel’s whiskey, a Led Zeppelin hitter box, and a smaller hitter box in Oswood’s purse, police added. She is set to appear in court in Bridgeview on Jan. 8. Phillip L. Jorgensen, 51, of Stickney, was charged with DUI, speeding, improper lane usage, and no proof of insurance after his pickup truck was stopped by police in the 13100 block of South La Grange Road at 1:41 a.m. Nov. 30. His vehicle was traveling at 55 mph, 20 mph over the posted limit, according to the police report, which did not mention a court date. Police charged William Kocsis, 44, of Orland Hills, with DUI, improper lane usage,
and those not observing seat belt laws will be ticketed,” said Deputy Chief William Czajkowski. Deputy Chief Czajkowski noted that being arrested for driving drunk brings a wide range of negative consequences into one’s life. Drunk drivers face jail time, loss of their driver licenses, and steep financial consequences such as higher insurance rates, attorney fees, court costs, lost time at work and the potential loss of employment. “Driving drunk is simply not worth the risk. So don’t take the chance. Remember, we will be out in force and we will be watching, so Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over,” said Deputy Chief Czajkowski. The law enforcement crackdown is funded by federal traffic safety funds through the Illinois Department of Transportation. —Palos Heights Police Department
POLICE BLOTTER: PALOS HEIGHTS Hickory Hills woman charged with aggravated DUI
Palos Heights police charged Teresa A. Hall, 53, of Hickory Hills, with aggravated DUI, “If you’ve had too much to driving on a revoked license, and failure to dim drink on New Year’s Eve, Safe headlights after they curbed her vehicle in the Ride Home will do just that — 12400 block of South Harlem Avenue at 8:43 get you home safely,” said Orland p.m. Dec. 17. Bond was set at $150,000, and Park Police Chief Tim McCarthy. Hall is currently in custody of the Cook County The chief added, “Plan ahead now. Department of Corrections. Her next court date is Designate a driver for your holiHall set for Jan. 8 in Bridgeview. day celebrations or if you know you’re not able to drive on New Year’s Eve, call the number. Tell Accused drunken driver them you’re calling for a free safe also charged with speeding Police charged Hernan Garcia, 46, of Beloit, Wis., with DUI and ride home. No questions asked. Just don’t get behind the wheel speeding after his vehicle was stopped in the 13000 block of South Harlem Avenue at 1:28 a.m. Saturday. Police said his vehicle was of a car.” traveling at 81 mph, more than double the posted limit. Bond was set at $3,000, and Garcia was given a court date of Feb. 5 in Bridgeview.
Traffic stops: What to do if pulled over by the police From Palos Park Police Chief Joe Miller
Since Dec. 19 through Jan. 4 of the New Year, the Palos Heights Police Department will be out in force as part of the annual Illinois “Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over” crackdown on drunken drivers. The statewide crackdown will include high-visibility alcohol and belt enforcement throughout the Palos Heights area. The statewide crackdown will also be supported by national and state paid advertising, creating a comprehensive campaign to curb drunk driving during the holiday season. Palos Heights police officers will be aggressively looking for drunk drivers during the crackdown and will arrest anyone caught driving drunk. In addition, front and back seat belt law violators will be ticketed. Palos Heights police are giving fair warning to all partygoers. “You’ll see us out there during this highly visible enforcement period. Drunk drivers will be arrested
and failure to signal a turn after they curbed his pickup truck near 94th Avenue and Sunrise Lane at 8:24 p.m. Dec. 5. The vehicle was towed and impounded, and Kocsis was due in court in Bridgeview on Tuesday, police said. Daniel A. Armbruster, 30, of Orland Park, was charged with DUI, improper lane usage, failure to reduce speed to avoid an accident, driving without a valid license, and no proof of insurance, as police investigated a multi-vehicle crash near Southwest Highway and Wolf Road at 12:02 a.m. Dec. 7. His vehicle was towed and impounded, and Armbruster was given a court date of Jan. 20 in Bridgeview.
Speeding leads to cannabis possession charge, police say
Police charged Ian I. O’Connor, 24, of Orland Park, with speeding, possession of cannabis, and making an improper turn after they stopped his SUV in the 14400 block of South La Grange Road at 1:18 a.m. Nov. 29. O’Connor’s vehicle was traveling at 43 mph, 13 mph over the posted limit, police said. A search of the SUV yielded a plastic bag containing cannabis, according to the police report. O’Connor is set to appear at a hearing at the Orland Park Civic Center on Jan. 13 to respond to the drug-related charge. The police report gave no information on when O’Connor would appear in court in Bridgeview to respond to the traffic-related charges.
Driver allegedly gives false name to police
Seaf M. Zayed, 19, of Tinley Park, was charged with obstructing a peace officer after he allegedly refused to provide his name and then later provided a false name to a police officer during a traffic stop in the 13100 block of South Harlem Avenue at 8:41 p.m. Saturday. After police learned his identity later at Palos Heights police headquarters via a fingerprint check, Zayed allegedly said he lied about his name because he was wanted on a warrant from Will County. Bond was set at $1,500, and he is due in court in Bridgeview on Feb. 5.
Markham man charged with leaving scene of accident
Police charged Martin Garnes, 30, of Markham, with leaving the scene of a property-damage accident, failure to reduce speed to avoid an accident, and no proof of insurance. Police said they apprehended him shortly after he fled the scene of the incident, 7607 W. College Drive, at 11:03 a.m. Dec. 15. The police report did not say what property was damaged or to what extent. Bond was set at $2,000, and Garnes is set to appear in court in Bridgeview on Jan. 13.
Driver charged with aggravated speeding
Vincent M. Meltzer, 25, of Bradford, Ill., was charged with aggravated speeding after police stopped his vehicle in the 12900 block of South Harlem Avenue at 11:45 p.m. Dec. 15. Police said they spotted the vehicle traveling at 65 mph, 30 mph over the posted limit. Bond was set at $2,000, and Meltzer is scheduled to appear in court in Bridgeview on Monday.
Man charged with DUI after crash Police charged Mohammad S. Elmatari, 19, of Tinley Park, with DUI (drugs), possession of drug paraphernalia, improper use of motor vehicle registration, and failure to reduce speed to avoid an accident. Police investigating a traffic crash in the 12700 block of South Harlem Avenue at 5:31 a.m. Dec. 16 said that they found drug paraphernalia in the vehicle and another vehicle’s plate affixed to it. The police report did not specify what kind of paraphernalia was said to have been found or what kind of drugs were allegedly found in Elmatari’s system. Bond was set at $1,000, and he is set to appear in court in Bridgeview on Jan. 28.
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SCHOOLS VIEW TRINITY
6 Thursday, December 25, 2014
The Regional News
FROM
Supplied photo
Shepard High School teacher Erin McLean organizes gifts brought by students for the Adopt-a-Family project.
Astros help make holidays brighter for needy families By Bob McParland
High School Dist. 218 Like every student and adults who gives to Adopt-a-Family at Shepard High School, special education teacher Kris LaRocco seeks no attention. People rarely give to charity to receive recognition. They like joining their friends to help the needy. They like feeling part of something larger than themselves. Or they like how it feels to give. For teachers, they also like getting kids involved in works that benefit others. Whatever the reason, those who organize philanthropies tend to shy away from cameras. LaRocco, then, offered a typical portrait of people who help Adopt-a-Family succeed: Alone listening to holiday music, she folded gently used clothes that families would receive
the following day. She stopped only when a camera bag appeared. “You’re not taking my picture, right?” she asked, laughing. After the day’s final bell, teachers and students streamed into the room with boxes of food and bags of presents. Before leaving for the staff holiday party, LaRocco and fellow teachers Erin McLean and Brad Fisher and National Honor Society students organized all the donations. Teacher Erin Quinlan and her students baked cookies. But not for the volunteers – families coming to pick up donations would get the treats and some hot chocolate. In all, the scene could not have captured the season much better. Nice people doing something nice, getting teenagers involved, and continuing a school tradition of three decades.
Submitted photo
Students from the first graduating class of Trinity Christian College’s master of arts in Counseling Psychology program are Shane Villanueva (from left), Jeannette Kiser, Betty Vander Laan, Mary Proby, Lisa Kuiper, Terese Jones and Kelsey Barnett.
Signs of Christmas abound around us Signs of Christmas surround us. At Trinity Christian College, final exams are completed and the campus is quiet. The College held commencement on Dec. 13, celebrating with joy the graduation of many students. Families and friends were present for this significant event, which symbolizes both the completion of a program and the commencing, or beginning, of the work of the graduate. Of particular significance was the first graduating class from our master’s degree in counseling psychology program. In addition, Trinity students recently shared their musical talents and gifts at our annual Christmas concert, Christmastide.
DR. LIZ RUDENGA
Interim President • Trinity Christian College The variety of songs from the three choirs – Gospel, Honors, and Concert – was incredible, as was the performance of instrumental groups. The event included readings from Scripture, poetry interpretations, and alumni and audience participation in selected songs. As my husband and I walk around the
lovely neighborhood that encircles our campus, we admire the festive lights and decorations on our neighbors’ homes. From the end of semester events to the touching manager scenes displayed on front lawns, all of these sights tell us that Christmas is a time of celebration. Just as the star in the night sky led the shepherds to the lowly birthplace of Jesus, may all of the signs that surround us this season help us embrace the joy of Christmas now and throughout the New Year. Dr. Liz Rudenga is the interim president of Trinity Christian College in Palos Heights.
SCHOOL NOTES Supplied photo
National Honor Society members from Shepard High School sort food for the Adopt-a-Family project.
STUDENT NEWS Colleen Ward, of Palos Heights, was among 12 St. Norbert College students chosen to visit Milwaukee to learn about urban education as part of the TRIPS alternative break service program. While there, they worked side by side with St. Norbert College alumni teachers in classroom teaching experiences, while learning about the school choice system in Milwaukee. *** Cynthia Chibe, of Palos Park, was inducted into the Alpha Iota Lambda Chapter of Phi Theta Kappa at Moraine Valley Community College on Nov. 11. Chibe is majoring in Health Related Professions. Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society is the largest honor society in American higher education with 1,280 chapters. *** Justine Johnson of Palos Park received the doctor of chiropractic degree from National University of Health Sciences in Lombard on Dec. 11. While completing the degree at NUHS, Johnson also served a one-year clinical internship with a special focus on integrative medicine. Before entering the doctor of chiropractic program at NUHS,
she completed an undergraduate degree at Bradley University. *** Mother McAuley Liberal Arts High School announced that 34 students from the graduating class of 2015 have been recognized as Illinois State Scholars. Orland Park residents Julianna Magnan, Mallory Miller and Jessica Pedroza; Palos Heights residents Maureen Berglind, Tara Duffy and Kristin Galvin; and Palos Park resident Colleen Romano received the honor. Illinois State Scholars represent approximately the top 10 percent of high school seniors, hailing from 671 different high schools across the state. Selection is based on SAT, ACT or Prairie State Achievement Exam scores, and/or class rank at the end of the junior year. *** Marist High School’s Illinois State Scholars, representing the top 10 percent of high school seniors in the state, are listed as follows: Ben Alvarado, Amanda Apato, Kelly Barker, Christina Brooks, John Carroll, Fiona Clair, Sarah D’Astice, Grace Enright, Elizabeth Finn, Emma Flosi, Clare Gilligan, Kevin Griffith, Tom Hampston, Cameron Heppeler, Ryan Higgins, Anne Hynes; Ashley Kaczorowski, Lauren Kapa, Madeline Kelly, Tara Kelly, Joe Kezon, Lauren Kirwan, Samantha Kliros, Michelle Krzemien, John LaMantia, (4th Row) Ryan Loizzo, Gabriella LynchShaw, Andrew Mack, Catherine Mahoney, Katie McGrath, Mary McIntyre; Tim O’Connell, Sky Patterson, Rosemary Peck, Simon Rafacz, Colleen Reilly, Kristen Roszak, Marty Ryan, Kaylie Sampson, Mitch Schroeder, Gabriela Scott, Michael Serwetnyk, (5th Row) Briana Sheehy, Taylor Sonntag, Matt Spinazzola, Elizabeth St. Lawrence, Patrick Sweeney, Anna Thomas, Lucie Tolan, Bridget Trainor, Sarah Valek, and Brooke Wilson, Brian Canchola, Alex Gattone, Alexa Maisenbach and Liz St. Lawrence.
Classes offered at Moraine Valley’s Tinley Park campus Moraine Valley Community College will offer more than 50 classes, beginning Jan. 20 and later, at its Southwest Education Center (SWEC), 17900 S. 94th Ave. in Tinley Park. Some credit classes include Composition I and II, Keyboarding I, Art Appreciation, Principles of Management, Calculus I/Analytic Geometry, Introduction to Psychology, Medical Terminology, General Sociology, Introduction to Earth Science, and Music Appreciation. There are also several noncredit classes offered at SWEC including 50 Plus Computer Basics, 50 Plus Computer Basics Cont., Medicare Workshop, Business Start-Up and Management Part 1, Hiring Employees, Laws Affecting Employees, Terminating Employees, “Reel” Classic Films, Fit for Life, Motivation for Life, Positive Thinking for Life, Beginning Conversational Italian, Beginning Conversational Spanish, and Intro to Mindful Meditation. Some programs for children and teens include Kooky Krazy Kollage, Beginning Spanish and math tutoring sessions. A complete list of credit and noncredit classes can be found in the spring 2015 class schedule or online at morainevalley.edu. Registration is ongoing. Tuition is $114 per credit hour plus fees and books. Students who have applied to the college can register in the Registration Office, located on campus in the Student Services Center (Building S), 9000 W. College Pkwy. in Palos Hills; by phone at 974-2110 (TTY 711); or online at morainevalley.edu.
Chicago Christian High School to host alumni hoops game Chicago Christian High School in Palos Heights will host an alumni basketball game on Saturday, Jan. 17, from 4 to 5 p.m. The game will take place before the boys’ basketball games that evening. Any former Knight player interested in playing in the game, should contact Tim Schnyders at 388-7656 or email him at tschnyders@swchristian.org. “Come out for a great night of
fun and fellowship,” he said.
Chicago Christian H.S. to host open house Chicago Christian High School will host an open house on Thursday, Jan. 22, at 6:45 p.m., at the school, 12001 S. Oak Park Ave. in Palos Heights. Chicago Christian High School is part of the Southwest Chicago Christian School Association, serving Christian families since 1900. Its vision is to be a Christ-centered learning community intent on restoring God’s world. The open house will provide an opportunity to meet the faculty and coaches and attend a variety of sectionals covering topics such as the school’s STEM programs, tuition assistance, and co-curriculars. Everyone is welcome; no need to register for the event. For more information, contact Wilma Persenaire at 388-7656 or visit www. swchristian.org/admissions.
Moraine Valley spring signup Moraine Valley Community College registration is underway for the spring 2015 semester, which starts Jan. 12 with on-campus credit classes. Off-campus credit classes and on-campus continuing education classes begin January 20 while off-campus continuing education classes start Jan. 26. Moraine Valley offers classes for those interested in transferring to four-year colleges or universities by earning associate’s degrees in Arts, Fine Arts or Science. Students also can choose from several career programs offered at the college including Allied Health and Nursing, Business and Computer Sciences, Industrial Technology, and Public Service. The college also offers noncredit programs, courses, workshops, and seminars. Some of the college’s courses are offered in different formats to accommodate student needs, making it easy for people to fit college classes into their life. These flexible learning options include evening, off-campus, one-day-aweek, online, weekend, and shortterm classes. A complete list of credit and noncredit classes can be found in the spring 2015 class schedule or online at morainevalley.edu. Registration is ongoing. Tuition is
$114 per credit hour plus fees and books. Students who have applied to the college can register in the Registration Office, located on campus in the Student Services Center (Building S), 9000 W. College Pkwy. in Palos Hills; by phone at 974-2110 (TTY 711); or online at morainevalley.edu.
Online and Internet hybrid learning at Moraine Valley Moraine Valley Community College’s online and Internet hybrid courses number more than 300 classes offered during the 2015 spring semester. Online classes are taught primarily over the Internet, while Internet hybrid courses are taught through a combination of classroom and Web-based instruction. Both types allow for students to attend all or part of their class via the Internet with the ability to access the instructor, classmates and course materials. Access to a Web-equipped computer is required. Some of the online and Web-assisted classes this spring include Arabic, General Sociology, World Religions, Music Appreciation, Beginning Algebra, Western Civilization I and II, Medical Terminology, Composition I and II, and General Biology, among others. A complete list of credit and noncredit classes can be found in the spring 2015 class schedule or online at morainevalley.edu. Registration is ongoing. Tuition is $114 per credit hour plus fees and books. Students who have applied to the college can register in the Registration Office, located on campus in the Student Services Center (Building S), 9000 W. College Pkwy. in Palos Hills; by phone at 974-2110 (TTY 711); or online at morainevalley.edu.
Weekend classes at Moraine Valley Are you looking for classes that don’t interfere with a hectic weekly schedule? Moraine Valley Community College offers weekend classes during the spring 2015 semester. Classes are available to suit an individual student’s needs, including: • Fridays only—Automotive Brake Systems, Electrical/Electronic Systems II, Basic Nurse
Assistant Training, Human Anatomy and Physiology I, General Biology I, Introductory Microbiology, Fundamentals of Chemistry, Composition I and II, Speech Fundamentals, Computer Graphics I, Introduction to Earth Science, Introduction to American Music, Human Anatomy and Physiology I and II, College: Changes, Challenges, Choices, Introduction to Marine Biology, Basic Service Procedures, Illinois and Local History, Internet Basics • Friday/Saturday/Sunday— Principles of Micro-Economics, Principles of Micro-Economics, Western Civilization I, American History I, A Healthy Lifestyle and You, First Aid, American National Government, General Sociology, Introduction to Psychology • Friday/Saturday—Job Skills for Competitive Advantage, Cargo Security • Friday/Sunday—Introductory Microbiology • Saturdays only— College: Changes, Challenges, Choices, Digital Portfolio Development, Art Appreciation, Human Anatomy and Physiology I, Introduction to Automotive Technology, Manual Transmission and Drivelines, Basic Nurse Assistant Training, General Biology I, Human Anatomy and Physiology I and II, Fundamentals of Chemistry, Speech Fundamentals, Introduction to Earth Science, Emergency Medical Technician, Medical Terminology, HVAC Troubleshooting, Personal Computer Basics, Security Awareness, Network Security Design, Developmental Math, Beginning Algebra, Intermediate Algebra • Saturday/Sunday—Fire Service Instructor II, Fire Fighting Tactics/Strategy II, Fire Service Leadership III and IV • Sunday—Basic Nurse Assistant Training, General Biology I, Basic Arc/Gas Welding I and II A complete list of credit and noncredit classes can be found in the spring 2015 class schedule or online at morainevalley.edu. Registration is ongoing. Tuition is $114 per credit hour plus fees and books. Students who have applied to the college can register in the Registration Office, located on campus in the Student Services Center (Building S), 9000 W. College Pkwy. in Palos Hills; by phone at 974-2110 (TTY 711); or online at morainevalley.edu.
COMMUNITY NEWS
The Regional News
Thursday, December 25, 2014
The Ozinga Chapel was alive with pomp and ceremonial as Trinity Christian College in Palos Heights observed its December commencement earlier this month.
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Submitted photo
Trinity marks new master’s degree milestone at commencement The Trinity Christian College community celebrated the commencement of 84 baccalaureate, Adult Studies, and graduate students at an annual ceremony held Dec. 13.
And celebrating a first, the Counseling Psychology Graduate Studies program recognized its first graduating class, with eight students receiving their master of arts degrees.
“I have long imagined and prayed for this day, and I am so very proud of each of these eight students, their professors, administrators, and staff who took this
LIBRARY NOTES Heights library upcoming programs Palos Heights Library closed Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and will close New Year’s Eve, Wednesday, Dec. 31; and New Year’s Day, Thursday, Jan. 1. Featured Database/Product – NoveList Plus is the premiere database of reading recommendations, available through libraries around the world. It is a comprehensive source of information about books that includes expert recommendations, reviews, articles, lists and more. The following clubs meet at the Palos Heights Public Library, 12501 S. 71st Ave. No registration necessary. Needle Club – Bring your projects to the Needle Club, and enjoy the company of others while working, on Tuesday, Dec. 30, from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. New members always welcome. Mah jongg – Meet at the Library and bring your game to play American Mah Jongg on Tuesday, Dec. 30 at 1 p.m. Novice and experienced players welcome.
vision and made it a reality,” said Dr. Michael DeVries, of Tinley Park, longtime Trinity professor and director of the counseling psychology graduate program. “This is
ga Chapel Auditorium to witness the presentation of the diplomas. DeVries delivered the commencement address on the campus in Palos Heights.
COMMUNITY NOTES Movies that Focus on the Fifties – the library will show movies from the 1950s this week. Pat and Mike this Saturday, Dec. 27; All About Eve on Sunday, Dec. 28; and Harvey on Monday, Dec. 29. All showings will be at 2 p.m. No registration required. For information on upcoming programs, visit our website at www.palosheightslibrary.org and view our online calendar. All programs are free and open to the public unless otherwise noted.
Heights library youth programs • Gaming for Teens – Four game dates: Monday, Dec. 22, 6-8 p.m., Fridays, Dec. 26, and Jan. 2, 2-4:30 p.m. and Tuesday, Dec. 30, 3:30-5:30 p.m., at the Palos Heights Public Library, 12501 S. 71st Ave. Get out of the house and play video games on the big screen in the young adult area. Must be 6th grade or older, no registration required. • Winter Break Family Movie Watch “Maleficent” (rated PG, 97 minutes) on the big screen Friday,
Dec. 26, at 2 p.m. • Read to the Dogs - Ages 6 and up are invited to cuddle up and read with a trained therapy dog on Monday, Dec. 29 at 2 p.m. Each child will get 15 minutes. Space is limited, register early. • Happy Noon Year Party - Ages 3 and up are welcome to say goodbye to the old year and welcome the new one with stories, games, and more as we countdown to the noon year on Tuesday, Dec. 30, at 11 a.m. Registration is appreciated. • Teen Time - Good Bye 2014! Students 6th grade and older are invited to this first end-of-year celebration. Wacky games, challenges and treats for all on Tuesday, Dec. 30, from 2-3:30 p.m. Registration is appreciated. • Check out our teen blog at http://phplya.blogspot.com. Find out what’s happening at the library, and read reviews of books and movies. Users’ feedback is sought. All programs are free and open to everyone at the library. For more information or to register for a program, visit www.palosheightslibrary.org, call 448-1473, or stop by the Youth Services desk.
SENIOR NOTES
Orland Theater Troupe auditions for USO show The Orland Park Theater Troupe will hold auditions early in the New Year for its next production, A USO Tribute. Singers, dancers and comedians ages 16 and older may audition on Monday and Tuesday, Jan. 5 and 6, from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m., at the Old Village Hall, 14413 S. Beacon Ave. The show will include memorable musical pieces from war eras with favorite music from fa-
Each session will have a specific focus, including financial and legal assistance, building relationships, and caring for oneself along the PLOWS Council on Aging of- way. Knowledgeable and experifers a six-session support group for enced guest speakers will provide grandparents raising grandchildren additional information and guidance. starting in January. The first session will be at 11
a.m. Wednesday, Jan. 14, at the Palos Township office, 10802 S. Roberts Road, Palos Hills. PLOWS encourages all grandparents raising grandchildren to take advantage of this opportunity. Call PLOWS to register for the sessions or with questions, 361-0219.
The Palos Heights Woman’s Club The Palos Heights Woman’s Club will next meet on Saturday, Jan. 10, at 11 a.m., at Capri Ristorante, at 123rd Street and Harlem Avenue, Palos Heights. Lunch will be served at about noon, followed by entertainment. For more information or reservations, call Kara at 361-0029.
The Center Toastmasters Club will meet at 7 p.m. Wednesdays, Jan. 7 and 21, at 12700 Southwest Highway, Palos Park. Toastmasters is an organization for people interested in improving and practicing their public speaking skills. Members take turns leading the meetings and giving
Orland offers new video tour of houses of worship in village in learning about the different faith communities. “Most people only know about their own houses of worship and these video tours will help them learn about the others in town. It’s a nice way to see what other faith communities offer without having to travel to find out.” Divided into four parts, the tour of Orland Park’s faith community is available on the village’s YouTube channel at www.youtube. com/VillageofOrlandPark. The four videos appear in the playlist called “Houses of Worship,” visible on the left margin of the opening page. It is also airing on the village’s cable television channel, Orland Park Comcast Channel 4 and
U-Verse Channel 99. All four parts air consecutively on Saturday and Sunday, beginning at 9 a.m. Part I, featuring St. Francis of Assisi Roman Catholic, Eagle Rock, Annunciation Byzantine, Calvary and Faith United Methodist Churches, airs on Monday at 8 a.m. and 8 p.m. Part 2, featuring visits to All Saints Lutheran, Ashburn Baptist, Our Lady of the Woods, Christian Hills Church and the Orland Park Prayer Center, airs on Tuesdays at 8 a.m. and 8 p.m. Part 3 includes Orland Park Christian Reformed Church, St. Michael, Hope Covenant, Christ Lutheran, Covenant Orthodox Presbyterian and St. Julie Billiart
mous performers including Bing Crosby, the Andrew Sisters, Bob Hope, Judy Garland, Glenn Miller, George Carroll, Dean Martin, Frank Sinatra and more. Those auditioning must bring a prepared piece of music with at least 16 measures to sing. Once cast, members must pay a registration fee. The USO Show will be performed Feb. 27, 28 and March 1 at the Orland Park Civic Center. For more information, call the village Recreation Department at 403-PARK.
CLUB ACTIVITIES
Toastmasters Club
Grandparents raising grandchildren PLOWS support group
More than 20 Orland Park area houses of worship are featured in a new village video titled “Video Tour of Orland Park’s Faith Community.” “There are more than 20 houses of worship that serve Orland Park and we want people to know about all that our community offers,” said Mayor Dan McLaughlin. McLaughlin proposed the video series having been invited to programs at many of Orland Park’s religious facilities. “Over the years, I’ve been invited to celebrations and events at our different houses of worship and learned more and more about religions other than my own,” the mayor said. “I thought the citizens of Orland Park would find value
a great moment in Trinity’s history and a highlight of my career as a Trinity professor.” Families and friends of all the graduates gathered in the Ozin-
Church and airs on Wednesdays at 8 a.m. and 8 p.m. Orland Park houses of worship included in Part 4 of the series include SouthBridge, St. Elizabeth Seton, Stone Church, Living Word Lutheran, Parkview Christian and the Presbyterian Church in Orland Park. Part IV airs at 8 a.m. and 8 p.m. on Thursdays. “We’re very proud of all of the faith communities that serve Orland Park,” McLaughlin said, adding, “And, while their services and administrations are different, many of their programs are very similar. This is a nice tool for new residents to find out which will best serve their needs.” — Village of Orland Park
speeches, gaining confidence from the encouragement of each other. The Center Toastmasters meet on the first and third Wednesdays of every month. New members and guests are always welcome. For more information, call Dave Sanders or Lois Lauer at The Center at 361-3650. ALSAC/St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital® Memorial and Honor P.O. Box 1000 Dept. 174 Memphis, TN 38148-0174 800-276-8340 www.stjude.org/tribute
HEALTHY EYES WEAR SUNGLASSES Every day that you’re outside, you’re exposed to dangerous, but invisible, ultraviolet (UV) sunlight. Left unprotected, prolonged exposure to UV radiation can seriously damage the eye, leading to cataracts, skin cancer around the eyelid and other eye disorders. Protecting your eyes is important to maintaining eye health now and in the future. Shield your eyes (and your family’s eyes) from harmful UV rays. Wear sunglasses with maximum UV protection. For more information, visit www.thevisioncouncil.org/ consumers/sunglasses. A public service message from The Vision Council.
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HEALTH & FITNESS
8 Thursday, December 25, 2014
PICK OF THE LITTER
The Regional News
A dog often rubbing eyes may have eyelid condition JOHN FLEMING
New Year
DVM • PrairieStateVet.com
Submitted photo
New boys volleyball coach Jordan Vidovic helps a grade school improve his skills. Several coaches and staff members will be on hand for Marist’s open gym on Friday, Jan. 2.
Marist invites all grade schoolers to open gym event for fun, fitness Submitted photo
A big thank you to those of you who have donated gloves and coats to the mission my daughter is helping. Here Paula is shown with a few of the 10 bags collected so far. If you have any such items you would like to donate please feel free to drop them off at the clinic (100 Ravinia Place in Orland Park next to the police station).
sutured closed, the eyelid rolls outward. Until he extends the circle of compassion to all living things, man will not himself find peace. —Albert Schweitzer
Marist High School will hold gym shoes. Enter at the main gym day, contact Pat Hogan at hogan. an open gym event for all grade doors. patrick@marist.net or 773-881school students on Friday, Jan. For more information about the 5302. 2, from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Marist is at 4200 W. 115th St. in Chicago. Coaches and staff will be on hand at this free event to supervise games and fun in all three of the school’s gyms. Lunch will be served. Register in advance at www. marist.net. Students should wear comfortable athletic clothing and Peace, Harmony, Good Health and
New Year
Dear Dr. Fleming, I have a 3-year-old Collie, Mindy, who has been rubbing at her eyes for some months now. I took her to a vet. She says that Mindy has “curling-in eyelids” on her lower eyelid and says she needs a $600 surgery to reconstruct her eyelid. Do you think I should do this? Mark, Alsip Dear Mark, If Mindy has permanent entropion you should definitely have it fixed. Otherwise, she is going to be in chronic pain/discomfort. You can, however, find a vet to do the surgery for much less than that. Look around. Indeed, entropion, which is an inward rolling of all or part of the eyelid, creates pain when the lid rubs on the cornea. Entropion may be inherited or it may be acquired. The clinical signs are quite variable and may include mild tearing, squinting and blinking, and production of large amounts of thick discharge. Some animals find it hard to keep their eyes open and may paw at the eyes (due to pain). The eye may be red, and the cornea may be ulcerated, inflamed, and cloudy. The first thing you need to do Mark is to make sure that the entropion is not temporary. This temporary, or acquired, entropion may develop following inflammation or trauma or may be due to one of many conditions which produce chronic eye pain which, in turn, cause spastic entropion which resolves when the underlying condition improves. If Mindy has no underlying problem causing spastic entropion then you most likely will need to pursue surgery. Simple entropion is often corrected by making parallel elliptical incisions in the skin of the affected portion of the lid. The skin between the incisions is removed and when the defect is
Happy New Year! Happiness be yours throughout the year.
STOCK UP ON GOOD HEALTH
Enjoying our first stress-free Christmas in sunny Arizona
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Colleen Grant schumann, Supervisor Jane nolan, Clerk • Robert E. Maloney, Assessor Gene adams, Highway Commissioner 2#
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sharon Brannigan • Michael lebarre Richard C. Riley • Brent woods
2x3 #2 ST. LAURENCE HIGH SCHOOL 12-26-13 #2 Leadership Begins Where
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Orland Township to host monthly immunization clinic Orland Township is hosting its monthly immunization clinic on Saturday, Jan. 3, from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m., at the township building, 14807 S. Ravinia Ave. Free vaccines are available to township children 18 and under. Some eligibility restrictions apply. For children residing outside of the township’s boundaries, a $20 administration fee per vaccine will be charged (does not apply to those with Medicaid/All Kids). An upto-date shot record is mandatory to receive any vaccine, and children must be accompanied by a parent or legal guardian. Children’s vaccines that are available include DTaP, DTaP-Hep B-IPV, DTaP-IPV-Hib, DTaP-IPV,
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New Year
As a major part of its mission, NAMI (National Alliance on Mental Illness) offers a six- week course in the south suburbs for family and friends of persons who are living with a mental illness. This course is free, but prior registration is required. Call Len at 310-2038.
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Dee Woods can be reached at deewoods10@icloud.com.
NAMI course for family and friends
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Hep A, Hep B, Hep B-Hib, HPV, Meningococcal, MMR, IPV, Pneumococcal, Rotavirus, Tdap and Varicella. Adult vaccines that are available include HPV, Pneumococcal, Hep A, Tuberculosis, Hep B, Tdap, IPV, Meningococcal, Hep A-Hep B, MMR, Typhoid, Varicella and Shingles. For additional clinic dates and adult immunization prices, visit www.orlandtwp.org.
Donald Bylut and Jeffrey Key – Ward 1 Jack Clifford and Robert Basso – Ward 2 Alan Fulkerson and Dolores Kramarski – Ward 3 Michael McGrogan and Jerry McGovern – Ward 4
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Nervousness and mild anxiety can be caused by depletion of nutrients such as magnesium, B-Complex and other deficiencies. For those presently on medications, many times medications rob the body of nutrients, creating other issues. It’s important to talk with your doctor about any nutrients you may be taking because some may interfere with medications. There are websites throughout the internet and a wonderful book by pharmacist, Suze Cohen, called “Drug Muggers,” that might help determine which drugs mug which nutrients and what to do to correct the situation. She also suggests various nutrients. Having said that, there are simple things like brewing a cup of chamomile tea, Rooibos tea, or another relaxing tea that can take the edge off. Then, if your stress is a bit more involved, there’s nothing like lemon balm and L-theanine to settle you down. Lemon balm is a natural relaxant and actually contains anti-viral qualities. Consider-
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Orland Township, 14807 S. Ravinia Ave., will hold free CPR classes for both seniors and adults ages 16-54 on Tuesday, Jan. 6, at 6:30 p.m. (adults) and Tuesday, Jan. 20 at 1 p.m. (seniors). The classes will be led by instructors from the Orland Fire Protection District, and certificates will be distributed upon completion. Additional classes, including health-care provider CPR, which includes a certification card, are also held monthly at the fire department’s Station 3. Dates and times are at www. orlandfire.org. Registration is required. Call 403-4222.
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Mayor Robert Straz City Clerk Thomas Kantas Treasurer Frank Oswald Aldermen
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Free CPR classes at Orland Township
The City of Palos Heights
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HEALTH BEAT
DEE WOODS
ing everyone seems to have come down with something this year—and considering that flu shot you took won’t work on the most prevalent virus out there, you might want to include lemon balm as a bit of protection as well. Lemon balm is also considered to be a mood-elevator. L-theanine is one of my favorites and I’ve written about in the past. L-theanine is considered to be neuro-protective and calming at the same time. For situational depression, St. John’s Wort is another relaxing herb used very frequently in Europe—but must first be cleared with your physician because there are certain meds and foods that should not be taken with it. Another suggestion is to take a warm bath with a cup or two of magnesium sulfate (Epsom salts). I add lavender to mine and relax with an LED candle. Some of the magnesium is absorbed to help us relax. The warm water along with the magnesium can be quite a helpful mood soother. But please, people, keep in mind this wondrous event as a promise from God, not an insane gifting holiday with little meaning. Remember: Christmas, like life…is empty without Christ. Merry Christmas!
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Can it be? Christmas is almost here? Every year it seems to come sooner. I don’t quite know how that works. What I do know is Americans are undergoing even more tremendous stress than in the last few years. Stress seems to have an ability to magnify itself around the Christmas holidays. Years ago, I decided to remove myself from the Habitrail known as the Christmas rush. It just seemed so wrong to me. You can keep your Black Friday events. People are always getting trampled and the fighting begin. Thieves are out in force and the mood is generally neither happy nor healthy. In fact, I rarely shop around Christmas, except for food. What I do enjoy is decorating the house. It makes me feel warm and joyful. This is our first Arizona Christmas in our home and it’s weird, I confess. It’s a great deal easier to decorate when the temps are hovering around 70, it just seems so odd. I hear the temperatures in Chicago are not bad at all and I’m happy for Illinois residents after last year’s deep freeze. I generally attempt to share ideas on how to relax while enjoying the wondrous and glorious birth of Christ—just in case anyone forgot—that’s what this holiday is really about. Well, there are things you can do to keep your sanity while enjoying the season.
BUSINESS FINANCIAL FOCUS
The Regional News
Section 1-A
Thursday, December 25, 2014
9
Time for a family meeting to discuss financial preparations?
Photo by Waldemar Reichert
Smith Crossing residents join in 10-year fete
Smith Crossing, a continuing care retirement community at 10501 Emilie Lane in Orland Park, recently celebrated its 10th year. Participating in the festivities were Lorraine Kane, originally from Orland Park, Dorothy Gierach, from Palos Heights, and Ann Hullinger. Built on a 32-acre landscaped campus, Smith Crossing set a new standard for the quality of residences and range of programs for older adults in the Orland Park community and its surrounds. The positive response from older adults and their families provided the impetus for a $37 million expansion, completed a year ago January, which increased capacity by 60 percent.
Moraine Valley offers help to job seekers over age 50 Moraine Valley Community College is kicking off the second year of the Back to Work 50+ program by assembling its fourth cohort of job seekers age 50 and over. An information session is scheduled for Wednesday, Jan.7, for job seekers age 50 and up to learn how the program connects them with local employers who have open positions. The program assists low-income, older adults with obtaining good jobs in their communities, increasing their financial capability and avoiding becoming a victim of financial fraud and abuse. Moraine Valley is one of 15 community colleges selected nationally by AARP Foundation, in collaboration with the American Association of Community Col-
leges, to administer BACK TO WORK 50+ in its communities. The college will connect 50+ job candidates to specific in-demand jobs in the home health care, retail and call center industries. The BTW 50+ program teaches participants the “necessary skills to be successful and advance themselves in key industries, and program participants were very successful in landing employment in our communities. We expect to build on the success of the program’s first year,” said Lisa Bly, assistant dean of Corporate, Community and Continuing Education at Moraine Valley and project director. Job candidates aged 50 and over can register at 1-855-850-2525 (select option 2) to attend an information session and receive job search
AREA PROPERTY TRANSFERS Following are the property transfers in the area, according to the latest report, as received from the Cook County Recorder of Deeds Office. The Regional News does not attempt to correct errors made by that office.
Orland Park
Chicago Title Land Trust Co Tr to Horsch Megan, 8912 W 140th St, Unit #3M, $103,500; Czoski Edward to Czoski Robert M, 8330 W 137th St, $250,000; Federal Home Loan Mtg Corp to Zapala Kartarzyna, 7804 158th Ct, $150,000; Lara LLC to Rowan Brian, 13949 Apache Ln, $450,000; Rickus Faye E to Williams Michael, 9913 Shady Ln, Unit #23, $155,000; Gilarski Robert Tr to Rapata Rosanne M, 9750 Koch Ct, Unit #3G, $132,500; Shalabi Raed to Swietoslawaski Ada, 17400 110th Ave, $165,000; Judicial Sales Corp to North Shore Holdings Ltd, 15511 Westminster Dr, Unit #65B, $24,000;
Koehler William IV to Lille William E, 9220 Woodbury Ct, Unit #404, $153,000; Lysen Loren L to Chicago Title Land Trust Co Tr, 9260 143rd St, $187,500; Mcknight Paula M Tr to Ofinn Kelly Ann, 15318 Saint Andrews Dr, $306,500; Jacobowski Eugenia Tr to Casillas John, 9750 Koch Ct, Unit #1G, $131,500; Niemeyer Eric M Tr to Wlodarski Jennifer, 7619 157th St, $273,000; Sokol Richard T Tr to Zavala Jose F, 15328 Orchard Ln, $225,000; Joseph A Barrett Sr Trust No 9821 to Gavoni Maureen M, 10552 Lynn Dr, Unit #165, $174,000; JP Morgan Chase Bk to Walsh Katherine, 10740 Raccoon Curve, $440,000; First Midwest Bk Tr to Sink Catherine M, 15700 86th Ave, Unit #104, $95,000.
Palos Heights
Davidge G Brian H to Capuano
Mortgage Rates Around the Area First Midwest Bank (as of Dec. 22) 30-year fixed 15-year fixed 30-year fixed Jumbo
RATES 4.000 3.375 4.250
APR 4.047 3.644 4.295
POINTS 0 0 0
APR 4.011 3.286 3.042
POINTS 0 0 0
APR 4.038 3.802 3.314
POINTS .25 .25 .25
United Trust Bank (as of Dec. 16) 30-year fixed 15-year fixed 10-year fixed
RATES 3.990 3.250 2.990
Prospect Federal (as of Dec. 22) 30-year fixed 20-year fixed 15-year fixed
RATES 4.000 3.750 3.250
All rates subject to change daily. Equal opportunity lenders.
information. The first session in 2015 will be in Building M at Moraine Valley, 9000 W. College Pkwy., Palos Hills, on Wednesday, Jan. 7, from 9 to 11 a.m. During this session, candidates will learn how the Back to Work 50+ at Moraine Valley Coaching Program can help them update their personal marketing tools and networking strategies, target their job searches, get job leads, and find resources and training to help them stay strong while they are looking for their next full-time job. In addition to career specific training, the program includes ongoing coaching until program participants secure a position with a local business.
During the holiday season, you no doubt have a lot going on in your life — work functions, gatherings with friends and neighbors, tracking down the elusive “perfect gift,” etc. But you may find it valuable to add one more event to your calendar: a family meeting to discuss those financial preparations that affect you and your loved ones. Of course, the scope of your meeting will depend on your age and the age of your children, and on whether you have elderly parents. So, let’s look at one family meeting scenario that would work under two different sets of circumstances: you are meeting with your own grown children or you are meeting with your elderly parents. In either case, you’ll want to review the following areas: • Investment information — It’s a good idea to let your grown children know where you (and your spouse, if still living) keep your investments and what sort of investments and retirement accounts you own, such as your IRA, 401(k), and so on. You should also provide your children with the name of your financial advisor. And talk to your parents about their investments. You might think that this could be challenging topic to bring up, but you might be surprised at their willingness to talk. • Estate planning documents — Comprehensive estate planning can involve a variety of legal documents, such as a will, a living trust, power of attorney, etc. If you have already created these documents, you need to share both their location and their intent with your grown children, who will be active players in carrying out your estate plans. The same is true with your elderly parents — try to encourage them to share all their estate-planning documents with you, especially if they will be counting on you for their care. • Names of professional advisors — As you put together your estate plans, you will likely need to work with a team of financial, tax and legal advisors. Make sure your grown children know the names of
JIM VAN HOWE
Edward Jones Investments these professionals and how to contact them. Similarly, seek the same information from your parents. • Wishes for future living arrangements — It’s certainly possible that you will be able to live independently your whole life. On the other hand, you may eventually need some type of long-term care, such as that provided in a nursing home or an assisted-living residence. Let your children know what your feelings are about such a possibility, and what preparations you have made. And try to elicit the same information from your own parents. • Funeral or burial instructions — Admittedly, you can probably find topics that are more pleasant to discuss than funeral plans. Yet, if you make your own burial or cremation plans in advance, and possibly even prepay for them, you will be taking a tremendous burden off the shoulders of your loved ones, who won’t be forced to make difficult decisions — or scramble for money at short notice — during a highly emotional time in their lives. Once again, you’ll also want to learn about your parents’ desires for their final arrangements, and what steps they may have already taken in this area. By holding a family meeting about these issues today, you can avoid a lot of stress and misunderstandings in the future. So bring out the coffee and cookies — and start talking. Jim Van Howe is a financial advisor with Edward Jones Investments, in Palos Heights. His office is at 7001 W. 127th St. He can be reached at 361-3400. This article was written by Edward Jones for use by your local Edward Jones Financial Advisor.
COMINGS & GOINGS
Grant’s starts liquidation sale
Grant's Appliances was expected to reopen three of its stores to begin a court-ordered liquidation sale. Stores at 14704 S. LaGrange Road in Orland Park, 331 S. Route 59 in Aurora and 321 Republic Avenue in Joliet will be open for the sale. Merchandise from the other stores will be moved for the sale. The sale will be conducted by Wood Dale-based HyperAMS for High Ridge Partners Inc., which was appointed assignee for Grant's assets. Joliet-based Grant's closed its five stores without warning in October. Dozens of customers were left without appliances they had paid for and no way to get refunds. The Illinois Attorney General's Office announced in November the company was undergoing a process similar to bankruptcy and that High Ridge Partners Inc., would distribute assets to pay off creditors. — Moraine Valley Anyone who's owed money for a purchase that was Community College never delivered can file a claim to try to recover a portion of their loss with Assignee Patrick Cavanaugh at High Ridge Partners Inc., 140 S. Dearborn St., Chicago, IL 60603.
Patrick T, 12222 S Harold Ave, $351,000; Valach George to Farrell Elise, 7839 Arquilla Dr, Unit #78392B, $168,000; Carlson Edward M to Atkin John, 5957 W 127th St, $85,000; Jun Koo Y to Siepak Rick, 12802 Ponderosa Dr, $206,000.
Palos Park
Doyle John to Korte Craig, 8201 W 118th St, $625,000; Obrien James P to Burton Robert M, 8450 116th St, $379,000; Felice Rose M Tr to Mitchell Joseph, 12411 91st Ave, $345,000.
First Midwest takes over Great Lakes
First Midwest Bank completed its acquisition of Great Lakes Bank and absorbed all seven Great Lakes locations into the First Midwest network. Great Lakes customers will still be able to use their old checks and debit cards for the time being. Former Great Lakes locations that made the conversion are in Lansing, Blue Island, Mokena, Homewood, Matteson, Flossmoor and Alsip.
Karen’s Cards retirement sale
Karen’s Cards & Gifts is in the final days of its retirement store closing sale at its Palos Heights location at 6433 W. 127th St. The store will close Jan. 3 or earlier if everything is sold. The Merrionette Park location was closed in October and its inventory was moved to the Palos Heights store for the retirement sale.
BOB BONG
Photo by Bob Bong
Grant’s is holding a court-ordered liquidation sale in three locations, including Orland Park.
Remaining merchandise has already been reduced by 50 percent or more. Owners Karen and Melvin Schroeder are 75 years old and decided it was time to retire. The stores opened 26 years ago. Store hours are 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday to Saturday and from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday. If you see a new business in town or wonder what happened to an old favorite, drop me a line at bobbong@hotmail.com. You can also catch up on Comings & Goings in other parts of the Southland at www.southlandbusinessnews.com and www.southlandsavvy.blogspot.com
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10 Thursday, December 25, 2014
Section 1-A
The Regional News
Margaret ‘Mickey’ Nydam, beloved Palos Clubwoman by Tim Hadac staff reporter
Margaret J. “Mickey” Nydam, of Palos Park, the only woman to serve as president of both the Palos Park and Palos Heights woman’s clubs, died Dec. 15 at Palos Community Hospital. She was 87. “Mickey was very, very active in everything in Palos,” said her friend and fellow club member, Nancy Mitchell. “We joined the Palos Heights Woman’s Club at about the same time in 1989. She never missed a meeting, and you could always count on her to be there.” Mrs. Nydam served as PHWC president from 1992-94 and president of the Palos Park Woman’s Club from 2006-14, Mitchell said. In 2008 she was voted Clubwoman of the Year by the Illinois unit of the General Federation of Women’s Clubs. “Mickey was gracious, helpful and supportive always,” added her friend, Celeste Kappel, who succeeded her as president of the Palos Heights Woman’s Club, and served 1994-96. “That’s just the type of person she was.” Mrs. Nydam was also known for the cheerful way she answered a telephone, using “Good morning,” “Good afternoon” and “Good evening” as a salutation instead of the common “Hello?” “She also had a wonderful, infectious smile,” Kappel added.
DEATH NOTICES James E. Buhe
James E. Buhe, of Palos Park, Master Sergeant with the Illinois State Police and member of the Fraternal Order of Police. Beloved husband of Nancy (nee Johnson) Buhe. Loving father of Timothy (Sharon) Buhe & Jennifer (Dennis) Connelly. Proud grandfather of eight. Devoted son of Dorothy (nee Klien) & the late Charles Buhe. Dear brother of Steven (Kathy) Buhe & Kathy (Bernie) Roche. Kind uncle of many. Visitation will be held Sunday, Dec. 28, from 1 until 7 p.m. Chapel prayers Monday, Dec. 29, 9:45 a.m. at the Kerry Funeral Home, 7020 W. 127th St., Palos Heights proceeding to Saint Michael Church, Orland Park, Mass 10:30 a.m. Interment Holy Sepulchre Cemetery.
Supplied photo
Margaret ‘Mickey’ Nydam (left) smiled as she handed over her gavel of office Romie J. Palmer Romie J. Palmer, retired judge earlier this year to her successor after serving as the president of the Palos Park Woman’s Club from 2006-14. of the Cook County Circuit Court,
“She was a pleasure to be around.” Newcomers to the Palos area could always count on a warm welcome from Mrs. Nydam, her friends added. She struggled with health concerns for years, but was known for carrying herself through it with stoicism and good cheer. “Mickey walked with a cane, but she did it in such a way that you almost didn’t notice it,” Kappel added. “She was always a lady, and she had more courage and dignity than anyone I know,” Mitchell agreed. Mrs. Nydam, nee Barwegen, was preceded in death by her husband,
the late Maurice “Moe” Nydam. She is survived by her sons, Scott (Judy) Bovenkerk and Bruce (Kathleen) Bovenkerk; daughter, Dawn (Michael) Cizmar; grandchildren, Greg (Laura), Michelle, Christopher, Tamara (Adam), Tanya (Tom), Bradley and Ashley; and nine great-grandchildren. She also was a special aunt to Cindy and Nancy. Visitation was held last Thursday at Kerry Funeral Home, Palos Heights. A funeral service was held Friday at Colonial Chapel, Orland Park. Interment was at Chapel Hill Gardens South, Oak Lawn.
died on Dec. 16 at Alden Nursing Center in Orland Park. He was 93. Visitation was held at Colonial Chapel funeral home in Orland Park on Dec. 19. A funeral service was held at Christ Lutheran Church in Orland Park on Dec. 20. Interment was held at First Evangelical Lutheran Cemetery in Alsip. Judge Palmer is survived by his wife, Ruth (nee Hoffman), his daughters, Marsha Palmer and Linnea O’Neill; his son, Lyle; stepson, Harold Nauseda; step-daughter, Cynthia Christie; seven grandchildren and one great-grandchild. Mr. Palmer was born in Pon-
Michael J. Cotter
Michael J. Cotter passed away in Hazel Crest Illinois on December 11, 2014 at the age of 51. Mr. Cotter is survived by his daughter Katie Cotter and grandson Noah Michael Fagan; brothers Bernard Cotter (Chris), Mark Cotter (Elizabeth); sisters Monica Stopka (John), Christine Weiss and his lady friend Janet. He is preceded in death by his father Bernard T. Cotter and mother Hannelore Cotter. A church memorial service will be held Saturday, December 27, at 9:00 a.m. at Trinity Lutheran Church, 6850 W 159 St, Tinley Park IL. Mike was a dedicated truck driver, over the road for many years and local lately. He loved good music, was an awesome cook, loved to work with wood and collected wood carvings. He lived most of his life in Country Club Hills Il. He will be missed. totoc, Miss.
Dorothy Pondelicek
Dorothy Pondelicek, nee McConnell, 92, formerly of Orland Park, died on Dec. 17 at Bridgeview Health Care. Visitation was held at Colonial Chapel funeral home in Orland Park on Dec. 19. A funeral service
was held at All Saints Lutheran Church in Orland Park on Dec. 20. Interment was held at Holy Sepulchre Cemetery in Worth. Mrs. Pondelicek is survived by her son, Jack; and her daughters, Wendy Naughton and Susan Gallovitch. Mrs. Pondelicek was born in Chicago. She was a homemaker.
Submitted photo
Students created more than 100 dishes using groceries from Together We Cope’s food pantry at the 2013 Food Pantry Challenge at Robert Morris University’s Orland Park campus.
Kopeikin-Jacobsen
Supplied photo
Mr. and Mrs. Richard Kopeikin, of Orland Park, are pleased to announce the engagement of their daughter, Joy Olivia, to Adam Jacobsen, son of Jeff and Linda Jacobsen, of Oak Forest. Joy is a CPA and Adam is an electrician. A May 2015 wedding is planned at County Line Orchard in Hobart, Ind.
HOUSES OF WORSHIP Christ Lutheran Church, Orland Park The church’s holiday worship schedule concludes with New Year’s Eve on Wednesday, Dec. 31, at 6 p.m., Holy Communion.
Regular worship schedule resumes Saturday, Jan. 3, worship at 5 p.m. Sunday worship 8 a.m., 9:30 a.m. and 11a.m. Sunday school/ Christian education hour at 9:30 a.m. The church is at 14700 S. 94th Ave., Orland Park. (349-0431)
Student chefs turn to food pantry for ingredients in cook-off ahead The most creative cook would struggle to make a great dinner from wax beans or sardines packed in soybean oil. If you’re a food pantry client, you may have plenty of nutritious ingredients like these on hand, but it can be challenging to feed your family with foods you haven’t chosen. To help these clients, 18 culinary students will create great dishes using only food pantry staples for a panel of professional chef judges at the Food Pantry Challenge at 7 p.m. on Monday, Jan. 26, at Robert Morris University, 82 Orland Park Drive, Orland Park. The cook-off is hosted by Together We Cope (TWC), a home-
lessness prevention agency that serves 80 families every weekday at its food pantry in Tinley Park, to generate recipes for its clients. “Everyone who has worked in the pantry has, at some point, come across a donation – something packaged, or a vegetable, or meat – and we’ve asked each other, ‘What would you do with this?’” said Kathryn Straniero, executive director at TWC. This is the second year for the event, which in 2013 generated 50 recipes including chicken tetrazzini, gumbo, and fried ravioli. TWC handed out the resulting cookbook to food pantry clients, who said they appreciated a novel twist
on staples like canned pumpkin, which students used to create sloppy joes and brownies. This year, clients said they’re looking for more vegetable-based recipes and help using beans including lima, kidney and pinto varieties. Based on the success of the inaugural event, RMU turned the competition into a for-credit course in 2014. Working in teams of three, the student chefts will spend 10 weeks developing recipes to be judged in each of five categories: 30-minute meal, child-friendly dish, great leftovers, key ingredient, and chef’s specialty. “This is a great partnership for RMU,” said Mark Wroczynski, chef instructor.
“The ingredients are challenging for our students, and they know the recipes can make a real difference for the clients at Together We Cope.” Together We Cope is a nonprofit agency based in Tinley Park that serves families in temporary crisis from 26 southwest suburban communities through a food pantry, resale shop and financial aid for costs like rent and utility bills. TWC this year received its fourth four-star rating from Charity Navigator for sound fiscal management. Further information is at www. togetherwecope.org. —Together We Cope
Advent tradition at St. Alexander St Alexander School in Palos Heights celebrated the season of Advent with a performance of the Nativity story last Friday in the church. A cherished annual tradition at St. Alexander, the play is performed by students in preschool through 3rd grade. The church was filled with the entire student body, parents, grandparents and faculty. The delighted crowd enjoyed the Christmas story, featuring songs such as “Hark the Herald Angles Sing” and “The Little Drummer Boy.” Top, the Three Wise Men prepared to meet the baby Jesus. Right, pupils portray the Holy Family and humble shepherds.
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The Regional News
Thursday, December 25, 2014
PHOTO MEMORIES FROM THE REGIONAL ARCHIVE
11
CROSSWORD PUZZLE "Christmas Team"
40 Years Ago This Week
File photo from Dec. 26, 1974
An abandoned house off 131st Street just north of the Sandburg High School campus burned to the ground on Thanksgiving eve under the watchful eye of the Palos Park fire department. The house had been abandoned since an earlier fire in 1971. Carla Kjellberg, now a Sandburg senior, rescued her mother and two younger brothers from that blaze at their home, and was commended by the White House for her heroic action. The two-story frame house was built sometime in 1890 on what was the Jedlicka farm. The site will now be used by Sandburg for expanded outdoor physical education activities or possibly a driving range.
Across 1 Creepy sort 6 It sounds the same as B 11 Thing to shoot for 14 Potato State 15 Last stand fortress 16 Cereal box abbr. 17 *Foxy lady 18 *Night sky streaker 19 You may bookmark it 20 Summer, in Paris 21 Fundamental beliefs 23 Prepare a present 24 *Short distance runner 26 Vehicle pulled by the team in the starred clues 28 Sport-___ (common vehicle) 29 Kiddie lit brat 31 "Come Fly With Me" lyricist 34 Structural bar 35 Big gun lobby: Abbr. 38 *Lightning, in German 41 *Frisky type 43 Frat letter, briefly 44 Put in a chip 46 Big British refs. 47 Persisted 49 Capture a gold 51 *"Lethal Weapon" director 53 *Ballerina 56 Melville work 57 "___ are saying is give..." 58 Realm of beauty 61 On Soc. Sec., say 62 *Boy with a bow 64 26-Across driver 66 Carnival guess 67 Clear wrongs 68 Milk producer 69 Shell offering 70 Gradually narrow down 71 Maker of Schlitz beer
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Down 1 Subsist 2 Cut a scene 3 Strained 4 Fidel's associate 5 Square 6 Hidden trove 7 Hardwood user 8 Escapes, slangily 9 Rosemary Clooney's "Botch-___" 10 Playground user 11 Lustful longing 12 "What ___!" ("Bummer!") 13 Designer Lauren 22 Index omission 23 Horrormeister Craven
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25 Family gathering visitor 26 Québec evening 27 Kedrova of "Torn Curtain" 30 Lt. Columbo's employer 31 "Survivor" station 32 ___ Baba 33 Soprano's range 34 Two prepositions in one 36 Suggestion by a sommelier 37 "___ poetica": Horace 39 Grey of the "Purple Sage" 40 Art print, briefly 42 Fewer than few 45 Court limit
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48 Big-selling card game 49 Weather vane dir. 50 Gets slippery, as a road 51 Hood in the 'hood? 52 Alpha opposite 54 Carving wood 55 Soul predecessor 57 Each, in pricing 59 66 and others 60 Acidic 62 Mouse chaser 63 Hagen on the stage 65 Org. on a toothpaste box
(Answers on page 12)
Sudoku Puzzle #3261-M
40 Years Ago This Week
File photo from Dec. 26, 1974
Christmas present on wheels: The sisters at Incarnation School received a very special Christmas present from the parishioners of the Palos Heights church – a new car. Presenting the keys to Sister Mary Lorraine are Ed Stevens, past president of the Incarnation school board (from left); pastor the Rev. William Lynch and Joseph Marshall, school board president.
3 1 2 4 5 2 6 7 6 4 8 1 4 8 5 6 3 1 7 9 7 3 8 9 9 3 6 2 4 5 9 1 © 2009 Hometown Content
The object of the game is to fill all the blank squares with the correct numbers. Each row of 9 numbers must include all digits 1 through 9 in any order. Each column of 9 numbers must include all digits 1 through 9 in any order. Each 3 by 3 subsection of the 9 by 9 square must include all digits 1 through 9. (Answers on page 12)
Medium
IMPRESSIONS
White’s Christmas photo shoot was my favorite moment of 2014 While I was working as a sportswriter at a local daily paper, someone had the bright idea to end the year by having each one of us write about a certain moment or behind-the-scenes occurrence from that year. The idea was to capture moments of something cool that didn’t make the paper. One year, I did a silly piece about Cubs catcher Michael Barrett accidentally using a double-entendre after he suffered a groin injury that also included a tale about the expert belching abilities of pitcher Todd Wellemeyer. Another year, I did a piece on how right after the All-Star game, the Cubs had media accessibility and my trials and tribulations of covering that and trying to race home to see my son T.J.’s All-Star game. And one other time, I wrote about a moment after Bloom’s football team qualified for the playoffs for the first time in a loooooong time on a rainy night. Some of the big linemen celebrated by jumping into a mud puddle, splashed around and hooted and hollered like they were little kids again and got really dirty. The coach was hopping mad but I thought that in a time when teenagers act too cool to show emotion, this was something unique. It’s been awhile since I got a chance to reflect on moments like that. I missed writing those stories. Then, I slapped myself hard on the head and said “Wait a minute, dummy. YOU are the editor. YOU can write what you want!’’ So, here is my great moment of 2014 and it happened on Dec. 12. A little background, first… Last week, we ran a story written by our 76-year-old history columnist, Don C. White, about complications from his open heart surgery. Granted, not a lot of people want to read about some old guy’s operation, but when he incorporated his grandson into the mix, it became a sweet tale. Two years ago his grandson, Samuel, was eight and asked Don C. if he would still be around when he grows up. Don C. said he told the kid he would do everything he could to be there for him. Two years later, Don C. is shaking hands with his surgeon thanking him for allowing him to fulfill his wish. Great stuff. Hopefully people who read it either felt real-
JEFF VORVA ly good, or they wanted to reach for a Kleenex to blow their nose. I knew I wanted this column on our front page and I knew I wanted a special photo to go with his wonderful prose. Our window was limited because of Don’s schedule, my schedule and Samuel’s schedule. I went out to Joliet, where Samuel lives, on that Friday night to get their photo together. We took darn near 100 shots from various angles to get what I thought was the killer shot for the front page of grandfather and grandson toasting with lemonade. A couple of times during the shoot, Don said “I love you Samuel.’’ I darn near needed to find a box of Kleenex after that. What a moment. This may not be the best photo I ever took. It may never win any awards. But every time I see it, I’m going to remember the 76-year-old’s heartfelt verbal display of love to his grandson.
Photo by Jeff Vorva
The byplay between Don C. White, left, and his grandson during the shooting of this photo, was Vorva’s favorite moment of 2014.
I hated the guy’s opinions and I vowed that when I grew up, I would not be that guy. So when Pinto sent his top 5 movies to me, I was looking for some of the old classics and when I saw Harold and Kumar instead of “White Christmas” or Wonderful Life I was rubbing my palms together ready to give some friendly jabs. And I had some good one-liners lined up. But I will resist. I’m not going to be that guy. If the new generation sees Harold and Kumar as a classic, who am I to argue? I’m Harold and Kumar? sure back in the old days, Laurel and Hardy I almost threw our young movie reviewer, and the Three Stooges were not universally Tony Pinto, under the sleigh when he came accepted by the more sophisticated set at the up with his top 5 Christmas movie list and it time they were making moving pictures. And didn’t feature “It’s a Wonderful Life’’ but did they had pretty good careers. put in “A Very Harold & Kumar 3D ChristAnd “It’s a Wonderful Life” was not a mas.’’ blockbuster when it first appeared in 1946. Then I reflected on my own youth. A New York Times reviewer ripped it for When I was in high school, my musical being too sentimental and “its illusionary contastes were vast, but my acts of choice were cept of life” that reflected “theatrical attitudes headbangers Ted Nugent, Black Sabbath and rather than average realities.’’ Led Zeppelin. It didn’t take off until it came into the public I used to listen to this guy on a Joliet radio domain and was shown on TV seemingly 24 station who would give a weekly entertainment hours a day. Then it became larger than life for report and pretty much bash any music that a couple of new generations. wasn’t done in the vein of Frank Sinatra, Tony Maybe Tony is ahead of his time and Bennett or Dean Martin. Anything that resem- Harold and Kumar may become as iconic as bled rock and roll was garbage in his book. George Bailey and Mr. Potter. As an aside, he was a big Bill Cosby fan, We have to keep a mind that is more open but I’ll just leave it at that. than the Grand Canyon for that to happen.
WHOIZIT?
Photo by Jeff Vorva
We have Forrest Gumps, whose lives were like a box of cherries after getting last week’s WHATIZIT? correct. It was a can of cherries. We may also have Forrest Grumps, for those who got it wrong. And there is also Forrest Mumps in the NHL, but that’s a different story. Worth’s George and Theresa Rebersky was the first in line with the right answer. Others who were cheery over cherries were Worth’s E.J. Oahueke, Robert Solner, Donna Hirsch and Gene Sikora, Oak Lawn’s Jane Foley, Chicago Ridge’s Rick Towner and Patty Vandenberg, Evergreen Park’s Bernadette Pratl, Jen Merchantz, Rich Rahn, Hickory Hills’ Betty Beegle, Palos Heights’ Walter Mlynarski, Orland Park’s Tom Novak, the Friday Night Ladies Poker and Cherry Tart Lovers Club from the O-Towns — Oak Lawn, Orland Park and Oak Forest and Jim Cap from parts unknown. Incorrect answers were black olives and plums. This week, we shift from what to who. Who is this person? The clue is that it’s a shame his sleeve is covering up his cheap watch. Send those guesses to thereporter@ comcast.net with WHATIZIT in the subject line by SUNDAY (we have those rotten holiday deadlines) . Don’t forget your name and hometown.
12 Thursday, December 25, 2014
The Regional News
Aglow with the lights of Christmastime
Artisan’s work in Thompson Center display
Photo by Tim Hadac
The month-long display of the work of wood artisan Leonard Vitacca, of Orland Park, which includes inlayed frames and clocks, has just three days left in the Illinois Artisans store, located on the second floor of the Thompson Center, 100 W. Randolph St., Chicago. Viewing hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Wednesday. Vitacca started his art career at his father’s old oak workbench and last year produced his 1,000th frame. He uses a variety of wood from forests around the world.
The trees are aglow with color at the Palos Park home of Bill Williams, winner of the village’s 2014 holiday house decorating contest. Located in the 8700 block of West 119th Street, the grounds of the residence glow with a predominantly blue hue after dusk. Contest judges called it a “magnificent display,” according to Palos Park Commissioner Nicole Milovich-Walters, who presented Williams with an award at a Village Council meeting earlier this month.
FASHION CHAT
Fashion strives to bring joy to the world ‘Tis the season for charitable actions and perpetuating good will towards man. Live Out Loud Charity’s second annual Chicago Fashion Show was held Wednesday last week at Castle Nightclub. The huge cast of designers, models, makeup artists, hair stylists and photographers turned out in support of this fundraiser for the awareness and prevention of youth suicide. I walked the runway for Benjamin Cottrell in his new jewelry line, LOST. The models were dressed in an all-white palette to highlight his pieces, which are comprised of one-of-a-kind found objects, mostly organically shaped reclaimed glass collected from our very own Lake Michigan. Cottrell’s keen eye paired the rugged glass – some with pieces of metal or stones formed intriguingly within the glass, with dainty gold, silver and copper chains. Some items of the collection include wide and thin metal links to join the pendants to the chains. The contrast of the raw glass with the controlled and dainty chains and links was nothing less than poetic. After soft launching this month, Cottrell and his collaborating partner Alex Agudo will fully launch the collection in January with over 150 unique pieces. Earlier this season, Bavaro Salon held its holiday party on Dec. 12. That night also saw the unveiling of the salon’s wall art for the New Year. Stylist Gino Bavaro and the rest of the salon staff will now welcome clients with images taken at our October photo shoot. The highlight of the joyful festivity was the presentation of a giant check from Bavaro Salon donated to the noble charity, Feed Our Starving Children. During a recent fundraising event, Bavaro Salon raised $600 to fund the cause. A representative from the charity spoke in gratitude and detailed the extent to which the funds will be beneficial. Every 22 cents of the donation will provide a hand-packed meal specifically formulated for malnourished children to nearly 70 countries around the world. All in attendance were full of
CAROLINE FOREMAN
Submitted photos
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Gino Bavaro presented a donation to Feed My Starving Children.
joy and merriment in celebration of Gino’s brilliant hair accomplishments, new visual displays and the gracious and highly worthwhile donation. The spirit of the Christmas season was thoroughly expressed through these impactful events.
There will be Financial Assistance Presentation in the Dining Hall at 10:30 am on January 10th. Parents are invited to attend.
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Step into a world of possibilities
Photo courtesy of Michael Delott
Bavaro Salon presented new wall images and a charitable donation at their recent holiday festivities
Sudoku
(Puzzle on page 11)
Sudoku Solution #3261-M
7 2 4 3 8 6 1 4 8 9 9 5 3 1 6 2 7 5
8 4 7 5 2 3
1 3 9 7 6 8
2 5 6 9 4 1
6 1 5 4 9 7 2 8 3
3 9 8 1 5 2 7 6 4
4 6 1 8 7 5 3 2 9
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The Regional News - The Reporter
Ken Karrson, Sports Editor
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Thursday, December 25, 2014 Section 2 Page 1
Getting national notice
Show Time at Moraine Area college plays host to ESPN2 event
By Jeff Vorva and Tom Bunch The gym was rocking and fans were hollering, which made the scene resemble ones found at many other high school basketball games. What made it different was that cameras were rolling, too. But these weren’t just Momand-Dad-are-videotaping-it recording devices, but the kind that can present an event to a nationwide audience. And they were set up at Moraine Valley Community College Friday night. The Palos Hills school played host to a hoops contest between St. Rita and Simeon that was broadcast nationally by ESPN2. And as one Mustangs fan wrote on a poster: It was “Show Time” at Moraine Valley. The game was big enough to entice University of Kentucky coach John Calipari to attend. Calipari, in town with the No. 1-ranked Wildcats for last Saturday’s inaugural CBS Sports Classic at the United Center, was getting a firsthand look at St. Rita’s Charles Matthews, a Kentucky recruit. And Matthews didn’t disappoint either his future coach or the Mustangs backers in the crowd as he helped his team defeat the Wolverines 51-46. Matthews finished with a double-double of 17 points and 13 rebounds in front of 2,600 fans. While the game at Moraine’s new Health and Fitness Center began at 5:30 p.m., preparations for it started well before that. “It’s been a six-week process,” Moraine Athletic Director Bill Finn said during a Friday inter-
Photos by Jeff Vorva
St. Rita’s Charles Matthews, a University of Kentucky recruit, gives out a yell after scoring a basket while Simeon’s D.J. Williams looks disgusted after the play. The Mustangs knocked off the Wolverines 51-46 in the ESPN2-televised game at Moraine Valley College. view. “We had to make sure we got the game [and] we had to prove to them that we can handle it with the staff. [There was] a crew of around 40 people [to] set up the cameras, the microphones, cabling and other intricate stuff. “The main challenge for the school at this point is to make sure the facility is clean, staffed and that there is enough change
for those who are buying tickets.” Pre-broadcast work got underway Thursday night and continued in earnest on Friday morning. “I’ve been working here since 10 a.m.,” Moraine Valley student worker Richard Gregg Jr. said on Friday afternoon. “It’s a big game. I’m an athlete myself so it’s exciting that ESPN is here.” Moraine officials said the game
was a boon to the school, which got a chance to show off its sleek athletic facility that opened in March. “Our [men’s basketball] games usually attract between 150 and 250 people, but this game should have at least 2,000 people watching as well as a national audience,” Finn said hours before tip-off. Neither he nor anyone else at Moraine went away disappointed.
St. Rita fans were ready for a show in Palos Hills and they got one as the Mustangs upset Simeon 51-46 Friday night in a game at Moraine Valley Community College that was broadcast across the nation on ESPN2. For more photos see page 6.
An awarding experience Christian grad Vander Laan wins Harlon Hill Trophy By Tim Cronin
Photo by Jeff Vorva
Heartbreaker
Brother Rice freshman Jake Kosakowski’s attempt to block Darias Oliver’s shot resulted in a foul and sent the Leo player to the freethrow line Friday night. A late basket handed the Lions a 55-53 victory in a Chicago Catholic League game played at St. Xavier University. Story on page 3.
Rapids to watch a webcast on a big screen to see if his name It wasn’t announced in a plush would be called from among nine theater just off Times Square, but nominees. for Jason Vander Laan a Buffa“I didn’t know how to feel going lo Wild Wings in Grand Rapids, into this because I don’t necessariMich., worked out just fine. ly like everything being about me, That’s where the Ferris State but I just want to thank everyone College junior quarterback and for coming out and supporting former Chicago Christian player me,” Vander Laan told the 100 heard his name announced Friday or so people on hand. as the 2014 winner of the Harlon “It’s a different feeling. The last Hill Trophy. Vander Laan, who time I can remember something got the news while sitting with like this was when I graduated teammates and family members, high school [and] everyone was was chosen for NCAA Division II’s coming to celebrate something equivalent of the Heisman Tro- just for you. So it is a little weird.” phy following his 50-touchdown Weird but earned. This fall season for the Bulldogs. Vander Laan led the Bulldogs “I want all of you to know I to an undefeated regular seacouldn’t have done any of this son and their first Great Lakes without any of you, especially my Conference title in 15 years. The linemen,” Vander Laan said, ac- only blemish in an 11-1 campaign cording to a Grand Rapids Press came in the playoffs, where Ferris report. “I love you guys and it State — making its first postseawas a great year. son appearance in 18 years — “With all of our coaches helping was upset by Ohio Dominican. me and supporting me and all you Vander Laan totaled 3,847 yards guys who got my back, I just can’t in 2014, which were broken down say how thankful [I am] for you as follows: 2,381 passing and 1,466 guys being a part of my life and rushing. Of his 50 touchdowns, 30 celebrating this with me.” came through the air while Vander With Ferris State on Christ- Laan scored the other 20 on the mas break, Vander Laan was back ground. That versatility helped home in Frankfort, but on Friday Ferris State to the No. 1 posimorning he decided to join the tion in Division II total offense. Photo courtesy of Ferris State watch party with teammates and The vote wasn’t a walkover. college friends. So he, his parents Vander Laan finished with 152 Chicago Christian graduate Jason VanderLaan received the Harlon Ken and Cindy and the rest of Hill Trophy Saturday for being the top play in NCAA Division II the family motored up to Grand football. (Continued on page 2)
2 Section 2 Thursday, December 25, 2014
The Regional News - The Reporter
BARTOSH
Doggone, what a race From March 24, 2005 Any of you who saw the movie “Snow Dogs” probably thinks the Iditarod isn’t really such a big deal. After all, it’s obvious the dogs do the work while their owners go along for a ride. How tough is that? Hey, if Cuba Gooding Jr. and James Coburn could handle it, so can we. Of course, Coburn has since died. His character did get a broken leg in “Snow Dogs” and probably would have suffered from hypothermia as well if the director would have waited much longer to end the scene where Coburn was stuck in a fake cave that was buried in ersatz snow. But chances are, the veteran actor perished for reasons not found in the script. My point is, Hollywood has a way of placing everything in a nice, neat package and tying up loose ends in a most unrealistic way. That’s especially true in sports films. For instance, how is it that Rocky Balboa could absorb more of a pounding in one bout than Joe Louis did in an entire career and remain coherent enough to finish off Mr. T or Carl Weathers or whatever foe du jour pops up in that particular edition of the Sylvester Stallone moneymakers? Yes, Rocky’s speech is somewhat garbled, but that’s due less to any celluloid-related beating than Mr. Stallone’s thespian shortcomings. Movie magic made Anthony Perkins look like a ballplayer when we all know, in reality, he was a deranged motel operator. And how many pint-sized kids have been shown making basketball shots Michael Jordan only wished he could, even in his prime?
So despite its entertainment value, don’t take “Snow Dogs” as a serious look at dog sledding. The real Iditarod is a taught struggle between animal and nature, with man thrown in to accept the congratulations and endorse the $72,000 check should his canines bring him across the finish line first. That prize money is actually paltry when balanced against what must be done to successfully navigate the race course, which stretches 1,100 miles and is housed in what could conservatively be called the “Ice Age for the New Millennium.” If competitors are lucky, the temperature might approach freezing; it could drop as low as minus-40 degrees. So why would anyone involve themselves and their dogs in such a grueling endeavor? After all, it’s not as if fame and notoriety automatically attach themselves to the triumphant team — can any of you name even one past champion, human or canine? I didn’t think so. According to those who’ve done it, the thrill of the chase is the lure. I’ll take their word on that, seeing as how that’s the closest I’ll ever come to participating since cats aren’t equipped for such — or any — work. My felines might, if the mood strikes them, bat an ice cube across the kitchen floor, but romping in the snow is out of the question. Without question, though, the most fascinating part of the Iditarod experience isn’t the people, but the well-conditioned animals that make it all possible. Animal-rights groups decry the event, citing the seemingly cruel conditions, but mushers counter with the argument that the dogs are really treated quite well except
for those times when they’re being driven to exhaustion. As one competitor put it when interviewed by an Associated Press reporter, “If the dogs don’t have adequate food and shelter and don’t feel good mentally, then they aren’t going to work and you’re going to lose. That’s the bottom line. Dogs that are abused don’t perform. It would never pay to abuse them.” It certainly wouldn’t pay $72,000. But there’s no doubt the Iditarod will continue as a source of debate for some time to come. That’s to be expected whenever perils are a regular part of any activity. Even if the sled dogs are well-fed and cared for away from the race, during the race they run the risk of encountering larger predators or falling into bodies of icy water, where all but salmon fear to swim. According to one report, 120 dogs have died since the Iditarod’s inception in 1973. That’s an average of only about four a year, but critics say that’s four too many. Perhaps they’re right. Instead of the Iditarod, maybe these dogs should take part in that Olympic-style competition I watched on TV several months ago. There were a variety of activities, including an obstacle course, in which pooches could potentially excel. Talent would be highlighted without terror being attached. Or the dogs could simply do nothing more taxing than catch a Frisbee in the park, just like the lazier factions of their species. There, the biggest danger would be stepping in feces deposited by other members of that species. And even if such a thing happened, at least the dogs could clean themselves without worrying about their tongues freezing onto another body part.
The garden of even
Knights’ .500 record provides a lift By Ken Karrson Chicago Christian coach Kevin Pittman is not at odds with being even. In fact, the veteran leader set that as one of the Knights’ two goals last week. The other was to out-rebound both of their Metro Suburban Conference opponents. The aspirations were rather modest, to be sure, but achieving them wasn’t that easy. Christian needed an extra period to vanquish Guerin Prep on Friday, which it did by a 60-55 count, and then it had to overcome a modest shooting percentage on Saturday versus Timothy Christian. That, too, was realized and after the Trojans were defeated 43-32 the Knights had squared their season record at 5-5 and improved their conference mark to 3-2. All of the league victories have come on the road. “We won two and I’m pretty happy we accomplished our goals,” Pittman said. “Winning that [Friday] game was a step in the right direction because it’s you down the stretch being in a close game.” Christian was up 44-36 early in the fourth period and appeared ready to shift into cruise control, but the Gators had other ideas. When Rich Zacharias (16 points, five 3s) nailed a shot from behind the arc, it gave Guerin nine straight points and eased it into a 45-44 lead. But Bradford Fitzpatrick responded with a jumper for the Knights and then Trevor Wolterink hit two close-in buckets to restore order for the locals – for a couple moments anyway. Before Christian could close the lid on the Gators in regulation, the latter pulled into a 51-all tie and Darius Parker’s final shot for the Knights was off-target. Christian might not have had momentum entering overtime, but Wolterink, Fitzpatrick and Daylon Washington all sank
Award
(Continued from page 1)
points to Henderson State quarterback Kevin Rodgers’ 143 in a vote of sports information directors. Other finalists included quarterbacks Mark Miller (Ohio Dominican), Anthony Abenoja (Pittsburg State), Tyler Sullivan (Delta State), Steven Laurino (Long Island University) and Sean McCartney (West Chester) and running back Andy Hibbett (Carson-Newman). “He’s an amazing young man that
Girls’ basketball roundup
After rough start, Eagles are soaring By Anthony Nasella After dropping its first two games to start the season, Sandburg has literally been unbeatable. With three victories last week at the Oak Lawn Holiday Tournament — which placed it in Saturday’s championship game against Lincoln-Way North — the Eagles had rolled off 10 straight wins and displayed no signs of slowing down. Sandburg started the week at Oak Lawn with a 58-26 triumph over De La Salle on Monday. That was followed by a thrilling 45-38 conquest of the host Spartans on Wednesday and topped off with a 55-45 victory over Joliet Central on Thursday. Suddenly those first two setbacks seem like a lifetime ago. “Winning 10 games in a row is very exciting,” Eagles coach Chris Hellrung said. “We didn’t play well in the first loss but played pretty good against a tough opponent in our second game. We were in the game the whole time, but they just beat us in the end. “Since then we’ve really played well. We’ve been sharing the ball real well on offense and our rebounding, which we were missing in the first few games, has really been solid. Defensively, we’re playing tough and making other teams work for their scores.” Victoria Stavropoulos tossed in 16 points to propel Sandburg past De La Salle. Rachel Distor and Laine Mackle added 10 points each for the Eagles. Stavropoulos (12 points), Sam Youngwirth (10) and Lauren O’Leary (eight points, seven rebounds) joined forces to carry Sandburg past Oak Lawn. The Spartans made a run late, however, by shaving a 15-point deficit to five with 2 ½ minutes to go. But steals by O’Leary and Youngwirth, plus 5-of-6 foul shooting in the final minute preserved the Eagles’ unbeaten streak. “Oak Lawn came out and played well,” Hellrung said. “They’re a solid team with a good coach [in Mark Sevedge] and they run a good motion offense. We switched to a 1-2-2 [zone defense] that held them in check and we made some good shots and really ran our offense well — [we were] getting easy baskets going to the basket.” In the 10-point win over Joliet Central, Sandburg held a double-digit lead throughout the contest. It was ahead by as many
Sandburg’s Jessica Merino brings the ball upcourt last Wednesday against Oak Lawn in a pool-play game at the latter’s holiday tournament. as 16 at one juncture. Not only have the Eagles been succeeding as a unit offensively, the improved rebounding has come from an unlikely source: the 5-foot-4 O’Leary, who is pulling down six per game as Sandburg’s starting point guard. “Lauren O’Leary is our smallest player on the court and she’s leading our team in rebounding,” Hellrung said. “She’s really a defensive stopper for us and one of the better rebounding guards in the area. She’s really doing a great job. “She’s a really good athlete — she’s fast and jumps well. But it’s more than just effort and heart. She just wants the ball more than anyone else on the court.” Hellrung said his entire squad has been reliable so far. “Taylor McGiles and Grace Bauer have been solid off the bench,” he said. “It’s been a team winning streak and not just one [player]. All 10 are sharing the load and making this whole thing go.
“It’s good to see the girls having some success.” RICHARDS The Bulldogs beat TF North in a South Suburban Conference crossover game last week, but that was their lone win in four tries. Getting the better of Richards were cross-town neighbor Oak Lawn, Lincoln-Way North and Romeoville. The Spartans topped the Bulldogs 59-42 last Monday as Brianna Markusic piled up 29 points and grabbed six rebounds. It took two Richards players to equal Markusic’s scoring as Sydni Tears notched 18 points and Takesha Powell added 11. Tears also had four rebounds and three steals, while Powell passed out three assists. Dominique Miller provided four points and six rebounds for the Bulldogs and Andy Sonichsen gathered in seven rebounds. The Bulldogs were ahead 1510 after one quarter, but Oak Lawn held sway after that. The Spartans owned a 30-25 lead at intermission and a 48-37 edge after three stanzas. “I thought we came out ready to play,” Richards coach Jeff Kortz said. “In the second quarter they did some things and we didn’t capitalize on them. We were a little stubborn in a few things we tried to do. [In the] third quarter we just got out of our comfort zone and didn’t respond the way we had hoped. “Brianna Markusic was very tough to stop around the basket and on the boards. Mark did a great job of getting her the ball and their guards made some shots to get them going. “Give them credit — they made plays to get ahead and they played very well. Mark does a nice job coaching them and they responded.” *** Tears poured in game-high 23 points and added six rebounds on Tuesday as the Bulldogs defeated TF North 59-38. Miller (11 points, nine rebounds), Powell (10 points, four assists, four steals) and Kennedy Brister (six rebounds) all contributed for Richards, which led at every quarter stop. “They were very athletic and Sandburg’s Sam Youngwirth waits for an official to confirm that her basket counted and she was fouled on the same play last wanted to run the floor, but I was Wednesday at the Oak Lawn Tournament. Youngwirth and the (Continued on page 4) Eagles beat the host Spartans 45-38 in pool play.
baskets to give it some juice. Wolterink wound up with 17 points, Fitzpatrick supplied a double-double of 15 points and 15 rebounds, Parker finished with 11 points and Jay Spencer pulled down 12 rebounds. “To come back says a little bit about our kids and where they’re going,” Pittman said. Pittman was not easy on his charges during practices earlier in the week, but he felt some important groundwork was laid in regard to the Knights becoming better on the glass. And that was the case here as they out-rebounded Guerin 41-32 overall and 16-8 on the offensive side. “That was kind of nice to see,” Pittman said. “Rebounding is a physical act but not something foreign to them that they’re unable to do.” Christian’s marksmanship wasn’t particularly great on this occasion, but its stout board work gave it 14 more attempts from the field than the Gators had. The Knights assisted on half of their 24 buckets and made only 13 turnovers. “When we had good ball movement and good rotations, we got any shot we wanted,” Pittman said. “But there were times we would try to jam the ball in places where we knew it couldn’t go.” Although not always aesthetically pleasing, Pittman was glad his squad’s performance was decent enough to get the job done against Guerin. “That’s not an easy place to play,” he said. “Perennially they have not been very good, but they’ve been markedly better the past couple years.” Chicago Christian 43 Timothy Christian 32 While Saturday’s matchup between the Knights and Trojans didn’t exactly harken back to the peach-basket era, it also didn’t possess many of the offensive dynamics evident in much of today’s basketball.
The only uprising of any consequence belonged to Chicago Christian, which outscored Timothy Christian 22-6 during one stretch of the opening half. Parker (12 points on four 3-pointers) and Wolterink (11 points) were the ringleaders as the Knights drilled six 3s in 10 tries to rupture the hosts’ zone defense. “Zone can make you look pretty good if you’re hitting your shots,” Pittman said. “Once we got our footing we basically took control of that game. It didn’t even seem like [the Trojans] were that close.” Timothy Christian was within 26-18 at halftime, but its 10-of44 showing from the field wasn’t the kind of thing that sparks a comeback. Indeed, the Trojans managed just single-digit scoring in each of the last periods and quietly went down to defeat against their longtime rival. Chicago Christian held 32-26 edge on the boards and, most important to Pittman, kept its miscues to a dozen. That cost the coach money as he had promised pizza to his players if they ever committed 12 or fewer turnovers. The Knights travel to Romeoville on Friday to begin play in that school’s holiday tournament.
is so deserving of this honor, not only for his tremendous achievements on the field but also for what he has accomplished in the classroom, as an ambassador for our program in the community and based on the outstanding leadership he has shown for our team,” Ferris State coach Tony Annese said in a news release. “Jason is such a humble individual who has represented our program in a first-class manner. There’s not a finer or better person who could have been selected.” Vander Laan is the first Hill Trophy winner from the Great Lakes
Conference since 2009 when Joique Bell, currently with the Detroit Lions, won it while at Wayne State. Vander Laan had already been named the conference’s Player of the Year and was the only Hill finalist to make the All-America Division II first team. Vander Laan will have a chance in 2015 to become just the fourth multiple winner of the Hill Trophy and the first since Chadron State’s Danny Woodhead in 2006 and 2007. First, though, comes an awards luncheon Jan. 9 in Florence, Ala., the home of the University of In the midst of several players, Oak Lawn’s Kara Melvin has the ball and drives toward the basket North Alabama, Hill’s alma mater. last Wednesday versus Sandburg.
Statistics Chgo. Christian 11 14 14 12 9 – 60 Guerin Prep 13 8 15 15 6 – 55 Chicago Christian Scoring: Wolterink 17, Fitzpatrick 15, Parker 11, Washington 8, Spencer 6, Mayberry 3. Rebounds: Fitzpatrick 15, Spencer 12. Assists: Parker 4, Washington 4. Chicago Christian 10 16 10 7 — 43 Timothy Christian 9 9 5 9 — 32 Chicago Christian Scoring: Parker 12, Wolterink 11, Spencer 7, Washington 7, Winchester 4, Fitzpatrick 2. Rebounds: Fitzpatrick 8, Washington 7. Assists: Washington 4
The Regional News - The Reporter
Thursday, December 25, 2014 Section 2
Taking a winter’s fall After beating Manteno, Astros tumble vs. Hawks By Ken Karrson It wasn’t a fall that matched those of the Roman Empire or Humpty Dumpty in noteworthiness, but that didn’t mean the landing was any softer for Shepard. After seemingly gaining momentum off a crisp performance at Manteno last Tuesday, the Astros saw every shred of it disappear beneath a relentless assault from Hillcrest on Friday. Forty-five first-half points by the Hawks pretty much told the tale as that outburst staked them to a mammoth 30-point lead. And the situation grew even worse after the break as Shepard mustered just 16 additional points and wound up on the receiving end of an 82-31 beatdown. That came on the heels of a 47-40 victory at Manteno. As pleased as Astros coach Tony Chiuccariello was about his team’s exhibition versus the Panthers, he was equally perplexed when he thought about Shepard’s Friday flameout. What made it rather maddening to him was that the Astros have competed well with Hillcrest in the past -- a 2007-08 meeting, for example, came down to the last shot and the Hawks needed a 3-pointer to force overtime a few years later, where they ultimately prevailed. “They’re good,” Chiuccariello said of Hillcrest’s current squad. “But how much of [what happened] was them being good and how much was us not doing the fundamental things? I think it was the worst loss of my career. “We used to see this [caliber of opponent] in the SICA East week in and week out. But even if you’re way overmatched, you should be trailing by maybe 10 at halftime and then you talk about the things you have to fix. When you’re down 30, you
can’t fix it on the fly and win the game.” The statistics were every bit as lopsided as the score itself. Shepard (3-6, 0-4) shot 30 percent lower than Hillcrest (2757), got out-rebounded (40-14) and was guilty of twice as many turnovers (22-11). “[With] too many numbers [against you], it equals trouble without a doubt,” Chiuccariello said. “Even when we got the ball out of traps, I thought our shots were rushed. It was a timid mind-set versus an aggressive mind-set.” Among the few instances when the Astros threw caution to the winds were two possessions at the beginning of the third stanza. Both Marlon Perkins and Zack Haxel drove to the rim for layups, the latter augmenting his with a free throw to complete a three-point play. However, that 5-0 run didn’t get extended and Shepard’s mini-uprising was soon forgotten by the Hawks. Perkins and Kenjrick Watson both tallied 10 points and Kyle Longfield added seven for the locals. Only five of the 14 Astros who saw action reached the scoring column. Chiuccariello said he had full attendance at a Saturday-morning practice and, while he admitted “some guys were in loss hangover and the energy level wasn’t what it should have been,” believes Shepard is ready to move forward. “It’s one loss and we took what we could learn from it,” he said. “Now we’re putting Hillcrest in the rearview mirror and we’re in building mode.” The Astros will compete in a holiday tournament at Romeoville starting Friday. Shepard 47 Manteno 40 A 16-8 scoring edge in the fourth quarter lifted the Astros
past the Panthers on Tuesday. Shepard was behind by three points near the end of the third period, but Perkins gave his team some juice with a steal and layup. From there the Astros continued to heat up as Kyrun Heard deposited two 3-pointers and Watson supplied one in a brief span of the final frame to boost Shepard into a 40-32 lead. Manteno wrapped a couple baskets around a missed 3-point shot by the Astros and then tallied again after a Shepard miscue. But the visitors extended their two-point edge on Longfield’s bucket and stretched it out to six on two Kenny Gorski free throws, which followed a defensive stop by the Astros. “That’s what was fun basketball,” Chiuccariello said. “It was good team basketball and it was nice to see. If you play like that, you have a chance to win.” Shepard did so here thanks to 14 points from Watson and Longfield’s double-double of 10 points and 10 rebounds. Three other players netted at least six points as Shepard went 7-of-18 from beyond the arc and shot 40 percent overall. While not terrific, that effort was four points better than Manteno mustered Brother Rice’s Josh Niego tries to get around a Leo defender Friday night at St. Xavier University. from the floor. The Astros also topped their foe in rebounding (31-21), assists (10-7) and made free throws (8-2). That allowed Shepard to survive 15 turnovers, seven more than the Panthers committed.
An unhappy ending
Statistics Shepard Manteno
12 6 13 16 — 47 12 11 9 8 — 40
Shepard Scoring: Watson 14, Longfield 10, Gorski 8, Heard 7, Haxel 6, Ogungbemi 2. Rebounds: Longfield 10. Assists: Heard 2, Ogungbemi 2, Watson 2. Hillcrest Shepard
20 25 21 16 — 82 5 10 13 3 — 31
Shepard Scoring: Perkins 10, Watson 10, Longfield 7, Haxel 3, Hampton 1. Rebounds: Haxel 3, Heard 3, Longfield 3, Perkins 3. Assists: Newhall 3.
Slowed to a stop Deliberate Porters slip past Eagles By Ken Karrson
“We would have liked to have taken care of our home court betTaking things slow is sound ter,” Allen said. “It wasn’t anyadvice when building relation- thing glaring that was terrible [for ships, but it doesn’t do much us]. They made one more play for building momentum on the than we did to win the game.” basketball court. Neither team ever led by more And that’s especially so when than five in the second half, alone of the parties involved is though as Allen pointed out being coming off a game of the break- down by even that margin in a neck-pace variety. contest of this nature made him Sandburg fared well under the begin “thinking we’re really going latter conditions on Dec. 12 when to have to work [to come back].” it handled Joliet Central’s pre- Five points separated the club in ferred up-tempo style adequately the last 10 seconds, but Alec Marenough to collect a 10-point win. tinez reduced the Eagles’ deficit But when the Eagles returned to by sinking a 3-pointer. the SouthWest Suburban ConferThen Sandburg (3-4, 1-1) ence Blue schedule last Tuesday caught a break after it fouled a versus Lockport, the circumstanc- Porter to stop the clock as that es had changed dramatically. player misfired twice at the line. Unlike Joliet, the Porters fa- The Eagles got the ball to 6-foot-7 vor methodical play to the point Tommy Demogerontas, who drew where virtually every possession is a foul of his own with 1.4 seconds important. After getting 76 turns remaining. He missed the first with the ball against the Steelmen, and then intentionally missed the Sandburg saw that number sliced second, but Sandburg was unable in half versus Lockport. to corral the rebound. “It’s worse than going to the Demogerontas managed just dentist,” Eagles coach Todd Allen eight points on the evening and joked. “It was the kind of game only Niko Kogionis reached douwe expected. I don’t know what ble figures for the Eagles. The they do, but they always keep it senior guard totaled 20 points, low-scoring [and this was] another 18 of which were supplied on grind-em-put game.” 3-point baskets. With Kogionis as The Porters have a sub-.500 led- its trigger man, Sandburg held ger this season, but Allen pointed leads after each of the first two out that they have played several quarters, but Allen cited the end opponents tough. Lockport went of the second period as “kind of one better than that, though, a turning point.” against Sandburg as it captured The Eagles were ahead 21-16 a 45-43 victory in Orland Park. with five seconds left, but that
3
was enough time for Lockport to drill a 3. Then the Porters opened the third stanza with another long ball that inched them in front and left Sandburg to chase for all but a brief portion of the final 16 minutes. “It’s an adjustment,” Allen said of having to adapt to Lockport’s pace. “You’re playing defense a minute-and-a-half each possession, so your kids have to be patient. In a low-possession game every mistake is magnified. “And it was a tight offensive game. We had 11 turnovers [and] we couldn’t get anything going [for a sustained period].” Thanks to Kogionis’ handiwork, the Eagles were a very respectable 9-of-19 from 3-point range. However, they took only 12 shots from inside the arc and made five. Sandburg also missed a total of five charity tosses. The Eagles squared off with Lincoln-Way East this past Monday at the United Center in another conference game. Sandburg will take part in a holiday tournament at York starting the day after Christmas.
Statistics Lockport Sandburg
8 11 13 1 3 — 45 13 8 11 11 — 43
Sandburg Scoring: Kogionis 20, T. Demogerontas 8, Martinez 7, Paxinos 6, Razik 2. Rebounds: T. Demogerontas 3, Kogionis 3. Assists: Martinez 5.
Leo rallies from big deficit to beat Rice By Ken Karrson
Life is not a fairy tale. If it were, there’d be nothing but happy endings ever realized. And for Brother Rice that was definitely not the case at St. Xavier University Friday night. Using the Cougars’ facility to host Leo, the Crusaders enjoyed all the comforts of home at the outset. A 15-1 fueled by 10 points from sophomore Mike Shepski closed out the first quarter for Rice and handed it a 20-8 lead over the visitors. The Lions eventually slipped behind by as many as 16, that coming less than a minute into the final period when Connor Finn converted a steal into a layup. But from there everything went due south for the Crusaders. Only two baskets were netted in the remaining time, a scoring lapse made all the more pronounced by seven Rice turnovers. The Crusaders also misfired four times from the foul line in nine chances, two of those being on the front end of 1-and-1s. But none of that would have mattered had Kewan Smith not buried a jumper with 2.6 seconds left. That bucket proved the difference for Leo, which captured the Chicago Catholic League game by a 55-53 score. “To be honest, we just kind of blew it,” Rice coach Rick Harrigan said. “With a young team it’s about putting a whole game together. The game’s 32 minutes and we played 27 really good minutes. “We’re trying to do all the right things [and] we’re trying hard, but I don’t know if we’ve put 32 minutes of good decision-making together.” With a week to prepare for the Lions, Harrigan had his guys work on fine-tuning their execution in a half-court offense during practice sessions. The result was the aforementioned 20-point opening frame that Shepski (19 points, six rebounds) led. Finn (13 points, three assists) and freshman Jake Kosakowski (11 points, six re-
Brother Rice’s Joe Ruzevich dribbles into the frontcourt against Leo Friday night at St. Xavier University. bounds) also made their presences felt, and the threesome wound up with eight 3s between them in 17 attempts. Shepski wasn’t around at the end, though, as he fouled out with under two minutes remaining in the game. “There were some encouraging things,” Harrigan said. “Shepski continues to play well for us and Jake Kosakowski did a nice job. [But] we’d make a [good] play and then two bad ones.” Leo narrowed the halftime gap to seven by holding the Crusaders (3-6, 0-4) to six second-quarter points, but the latter erupted for 18 in the third and were ahead 42-27 with 3:17 left in the session. That differential pretty much remained unchanged until the Lions caught fire in the fourth period behind Darias Oliver (22 points, 11 in the quarter) and Smith (12, six in the fourth). “Desperation basketball is a big thing,” Harrigan said. “When you’re down 15 and your coach is all over you, you start playing with [the idea of having] nothing to lose.” As would befit a contest that was so competitive, little separated Rice and Leo statistically. Both teams sank 17 buckets, but the Lions did so in three fewer tries to post a field-goal percentage three points higher than the Crusaders’ (44-41). Leo did not have any 3-pointers, so it lost out badly in that category, but 10 more made free
throws compensated somewhat for the shortcoming. Rice won the battle of the boards (28-24) and dished out six more assists (11-5) but committed one more turnover. While Harrigan liked several aspects of the Crusaders’ performance, he reiterated that coming close without winning is not acceptable for anyone within the program. “Consolation victories are fine and dandy, but in the Catholic League and in and around the city that’s not good enough,” Harrigan said. “[The kids] have a good attitude, and if that continues we’ll continue to get better. But nobody’s going to feel sorry for us, give us anything or take it easy on us.” Rice is headed to Luther North for the first time for holiday-tournament play. The Crusaders meet Hubbard on Friday. “It’s just a changing of the guard,” Harrigan said when asked why Rice took on the new challenge. “We’ll give it our best shot.”
(113), Tom Slattery (160) and Cole Bateman (195). The Eagles, who had 13 wrestlers earn place medals at Hinsdale, were runner-up in the team standings to defending Class 3A state champion Oak Park River Forest. Defending 2A champion Montini took third. *** Reavis beat Shepard (44-21) and Hillcrest (63-17) in an SSC triad on Thursday. Peter Radev won by decision at 145 pounds, but that was one of the only bright spots for Stagg in its 57-12 SWSC Blue loss to Lincoln-Way East on Friday.
200-individual medley (2:13.06) to guide the host Astros last Tuesday. Yu also helped Shepard post the top times in the 200-medley (1:51.84) and 400-freestyle (4:07.46) relays. Joining Yu in the shorter race were Hayden Wiest, Jeremy Schultz and Andrew Choragwicki. Wiest, Schultz and Mike Graham teamed with Yu in the free relay. Graham also won the 50free (25.46), while Schultz set the pace in the 100-butterfly (1:04.29). Schultz and Graham partnered with Mike Jokubauskas, and John Wolniak to capture the 400-free relay (4:07.46).
BOYS’ SWIMMING Shepard defeated Evergreen Park 132-48 in an SSC Red dual as Sanders Yu prevailed in the 100-yard breaststroke (1 minute, 6.23 seconds) and
Producing the Astros’ remaining victories were Jokubauskas in the 200-free (2:15.55), Brendan Kachnowski in the 500-free (6:09.08) and diver Tyler Timmer (219.95 points).
Statistics Leo Brother Rice
8 11 13 23 — 55 20 6 18 9 — 53
Brother Rice Scoring: Shepski 19, Finn 13, Kosakowski 11, Badali 4, Ruzevich 3, Mahay 2, Webster 1. Rebounds: Ruzevich 7, Kosakowski 6, Shepski 6. Assists: Finn 3. Steals: Kosakowski 1, Niego 1, Shepski 1. Blocks: Badali 1, Finn 1, Ruzevich 1, Shepski 1.
Sports Wrap By Anthony Nasella
series last Tuesday that helped the Astros claim a 2,914-2,873 SSC When assessing the progress of crossover win over Lemont at his boys’ bowling team, Shepard Centennial Lanes. His 264 game coach Simeon Shama is quite and 641 series also paced Shepard pleased with the stability shown in an SSC crossover victory over by his top four players. TF North. But in order for the Astros to Walters, meanwhile, has postbecome a force in upcoming tour- ed the Astros’ highest individual naments and the South Suburban average. His scores greatly conConference meet, a steady fifth tributed to recent triumphs over contributor will be a necessity. Bremen, Oak Forest and Hinsdale “That has been our Achilles heel South. Walters rolled a 226 high so far,” Shama said. “It’s been game and 429 series versus the our struggle, [but] if we can fill Braves. in a consistent fifth bowler we’ll “We’re expecting big things really be doing well and have a from Eric in our tournaments and shot. We’ve got a pretty good core as an individual bowler,” Shama group of guys. As far as starters, said. “He’s our big man.” everyone has been performing up Noftz, who came up to the varto or beyond expectations.” sity last season as a freshman, Senior Matt Shaw, junior Eric bowled a 268 against Chicago Walters, sophomore Jordan Noftz Christian and had a 242 game and freshman Trevor Lorek have and 629 series opposite Hinsdale led Shepard to a 7-6 record. It South. was Lorek’s 234 game and 645 “Jordan made a big impact as
a freshman and he’s continuing to have impact as a sophomore,” Shama said. After Christmas break Shepard will take part in the Southland College Prep Tournament at Lakewood Bowl and Tinley Park Tournament at Centennial Lanes. “We only have a few matches after that and then we move to conference,” Shama said. “We’re just hoping for that fifth bowler to emerge. [Two] seniors averaged some real good scores in a tournament at Oak Lawn, [so] we’re going to keep at it.” *** Lockport defeated Sandburg 2,085-1,904 in a SouthWest Suburban Conference Blue dual at Orland Bowl last Tuesday.
Shepard dropped a 1,555-994 decision to Bremen in an SSC crossover at Centennial Lanes on Thursday. Sophomore Kailey Hurwitz had games of 114 and 125 for the Astros.
WRESTLING Already an Illinois state champion, Sandburg junior Rudy Yates captured a 12-6 decision at 126 pounds against Montini’s Jimmy Pawelski to give him his third tournament title at Hinsdale Central’s perennially tough Whitlatch Invitational. Yates also registered two pins and a technical fall in improving his season record to 18-0. Sandburg’s Louie Hayes (106), Brian Krasowski (170 and GIRLS’ BOWLING Patrick Brucki (182) all reached Lincoln-Way West beat Stagg title matches at their weights 1,695-1,233 in an SWSC crossover and placed second. Collecting at Laraway Lanes last Monday. third places were Robbie Precin
4 Section 2 Thursday, December 25, 2014 The Regional News - The Reporter Basketball roundup
A losing proposition
Vikings, Mustangs fall to defeat on Friday By Ken Karrson Friday was a lost cause for both St. Laurence and Evergreen Park. What made it unique for the former was the response generated by coach Jim Maley in the aftermath. Having experienced defeat just one other time this season, the Vikings’ first-year leader wouldn’t appear to have too much about which to quibble, especially since this latest setback was administered by a solid Hales Franciscan club. “If you’d have told me before the season that we’d be 7-2 going into Christmas, I’d have been happy,” Maley said. “But now that I’ve seen us play expectations have changed, not only in myself but with the kids, too. I was pretty mad after this game and that shows what I think of our guys. “In the past this [79-71 loss] might have been where we’re happy to be competitive against a good team, but [our players] realize they can play with just about anybody. I think they believe like I do.” Had St. Laurence (7-2, 2-1) gotten off to a typical start against the Spartans, things might have unfolded differently. But the Vikings were fighting an uphill battle right away as they spotted Hales a 14-2 lead. “We’re down 12 and we lose by eight -- that’s the game right there,” Maley said. “This was the first game all year we didn’t seem ready to play. We calmed down [later], but we seemed a little nervous at the very beginning.” There was no giant surge that brought St. Laurence back into the hunt, just a systematic return to the Vikings’ more familiar brand of play. Behind Matt Gurgone’s 24 points St. Laurence not only expunged the Spartans’ lead, it took one of its own late in the third period. The Vikings couldn’t hold it, but they remained within three points midway through the final
quarter before Hales finally distanced itself a bit. The Spartans had three players tally between 14 and 18 points. “I don’t think we ran out of gas,” said Maley, who felt his squad had grown tired down the stretch in its previous loss against Marist. “We made a couple of turnovers that kind of got us at the end.” Christian Ferrer added 12 points for St. Laurence and Brett Risley tossed in 11, but production wasn’t the Vikings’ primary issue. “We can score,” Maley said. “But we’ve kind of been relying on our defense and giving up 79 points was too many.” *** In its other outing of the week St. Laurence routed Solorio Academy 69-46 behind double-figure scoring from Gurgone (16 points) and Dan Cummings (12). Passing out four assists apiece were Risley, Quentin Forberg and Miguel Delvillar. Lemont 53 Evergreen Park 37 The Indians handcuffed Mustangs star Isaac Matthews Friday night, holding him to a season-low five points. Jordan Brown picked up some of the slack with a solid 20-point, 12-rebound exhibition, but it wasn’t enough to prevent Evergreen from absorbing a South Suburban Conference crossover defeat. “We got the secondary scoring [we’ve been seeking],” Mustangs coach Pat Flannigan said. “But this time we didn’t get the primary scoring. We think that’s what Brown can do [on a steady basis]. We’ve got to get them [both] going on the same night.” Even with so little input from Matthews, Evergreen (3-6, 0-4) was pretty much in step with Lemont through the first half. The Indians, however, gave themselves some breathing room in the third stanza by outscoring the Mustangs 18-8. “That was pretty typical [for us]
-- in the third quarter we struggled because we got away from the things we were doing good,” Flannigan said. “We followed the game plan for a while but didn’t stick with it. Some things I can’t explain.” Flannigan referred to a few instances when players made 3-point baskets and then weren’t heard from again. One of those was newcomer Declan Smythe. “Three different times that happened,” Flannigan said. “We told them, ‘This is the shot that’s going to be open,’ and one kid hits a 3, but we don’t look for him after that. Our kids aren’t selfish, so I think it’s a basketball IQ thing.” Evergreen was credited with only seven assists, four of them being distributed by Joe Moran. The Mustangs’ shooting percentage languished in the mid-30s and their turnover total was at 23. “We had some ‘weight-room turnovers’ as we call them,” Flannigan said. “We lost a lot of 50-50 balls. They were literally taking the ball from us because they were more physical.” Supplying a defensive highlight was Darren Pritchett, who continued being a shot-blocking machine. He recorded nine here, including three on a single Lemont possession. Evergreen heads to Immaculate Conception to participate in a Christmas tournament starting Friday. “It’s been pretty much the same scenario as last year so far,” Flannigan said. “But we’ll get better I promise you.”
Statistics Lemont Evergreen Park
7 12 18 16 — 53 8 8 8 13 — 37
Evergreen Park Scoring: Brown 20, Matthews 5, Horton 3, Smith 3, Sorbellini 3, Pritchett 2, Moran 1. Rebounds: Brown 12. Assists: Moran 4. Steals: Matthews 2. Blocks: Pritchett 9.
Raiders of the lost cause Bolingbrook overwhelms Chargers in SWSC Blue game By Ken Karrson
since I’ve been here [and] they’re a team that can go downstate.” John Daniels summed up his Ringleaders for the Raiders feelings about last Tuesday’s were Colorado State Universimatchup with Bolingbrook in ty-bound Prentiss Nixon and Wisunmistakable fashion: consin-Green Bay-bound Julian “You know those days when Torres. Daniels was impressed you say you should have stayed with how Nixon tallied 17 points in bed?” the Stagg coach said. in three periods despite being the “That was one of them.” specific focus of Stagg’s defense. What made Daniels long for the “We tagged him,” Daniels said, comforts of mattress and pillow “and normally when we do that was the discomfort the Raiders we keep guys from hurting us made his team experience in a very much.” SouthWest Suburban Conference As for Torres, his “ginormous” Blue meeting. Having already tan- size alone was enough to make the gled with perennial conference Chargers miserable. The 6-foot-9, contender Homewood-Flossmoor, 320-pound Torres finished with the Chargers might have figured 12 points and eight rebounds as things couldn’t get any worse for Bolingbrook “just destroyed us them. inside.” Twelve of the Raiders’ They were wrong. 21 points in the second quarter After staying within six of Boling- came off shots in the paint. brook in the opening quarter, Stagg Josh Strama and Joe Zaremba had its legs taken out from under it. scored 14 and 10 points, respecEight first-half turnovers certainly tively, for Stagg (2-8, 1-2), but didn’t help, but harming the Char- the visitors made no second-half gers even more was the Raiders’ headway. In fact, Bolingbrook rebounding dominance, especially outpointed the Chargers by 10 on the offensive glass. during the third quarter to go up The hosts grabbed 15 boards that by 25 and signal the entrance of extended possessions — three were the reserves. responsible for six points in the And even that didn’t slow the first frame — and used those to onslaught as the Raiders’ subs construct a hefty 35-20 halftime went on a 17-5 run over the last advantage. And the downhill ride eight minutes. Stagg committed a continued when play resumed as total of 18 turnovers in the game. Bolingbrook wound up winning by “They didn’t run it up,” Dan37 points, 75-38. iels said of Bolingbrook. “They “That’s 23 extra possessions,” beat us in the JV [portion of the] Daniels said, referring the turn- game, too.” overs-offensive rebounding combo Lake Park 57 that worked against his squad. Stagg 42 “You’re lucky they let you back Although the Chargers also lost in the gym after that. last Monday, their performance “Our kids didn’t quit; they against the Lancers garnered played their [tails] off, but [the praise from Daniels. Raiders] have all the tools. “We have to get better at little 4.25" They’re going to win the league things, but the effort was there — I don’t know how they lost and they’re listening [to the to Joliet [Central]. They’re the coaches],” he said. “Lake Park best Bolingbrook team I’ve seen was better than us.”
Not in the opening half, however, as the two teams were deadlocked at 22 after 16 minutes. No Stagg players ended up in double digits scoring-wise, but there was a degree of balance as Jeff Goral had nine points and three of his teammates netted six. Two of them, senior Brett Stratinsky and sophomore Tom Kazanecki, also pulled down seven rebounds between them. John Contant dished out a team-high five assists and five of the Chargers’ first-half baskets were directly set up with a pass. Eight players eventually reached the scoring column. “When we had good possessions, we had good results,” Daniels said. “You get high-percentage shots early in a possession because the defense isn’t set or at the end of a possession if you move the ball around because the defense starts to break down. “The key is to not be down in the fourth quarter.” That wasn’t the case here as Lake Park established a seven-point lead during the third stanza. The Lancers were unintentionally aided by an increase in Stagg miscues – after having only three first-half turnovers the Chargers made nine over the last two quarters, several of which led to Lake Park buckets, including three layups. Stagg also undercut itself by scoring only one point over a five-minute span that bridged the third and fourth quarters. The drought began at the 3:23 mark of the third period when the squads were tied at 33. “We started making some mistakes against their [defensive] pressure and the turnovers wound up being points,” Daniels said. “We weren’t out of the game, but we have had a hard time getting back into games.” The Chargers were slated to make up a game against Universal this past Saturday. They’ll join Sandburg in York’s holiday tournament that gets underway the day after Christmas.
Statistics Lake Park Stagg
10 12 19 16 — 57 11 11 12 8 — 42
3.5"
tagg Scoring: Goral 9, T. Kazenecki S 6, Strama 6, Stratinsky 6, Contant 4, Zaremba 4, Liput 3, Mohan 2, Worst 2. Rebounds: Stratinsky 4. Assists: Contant 5.
Nicole Rodriguez was killed by a drunk driver while walking next door to play with her friend. What should you do to stop a friend from driving drunk? Whatever you have to. Friends don’t let friends drive drunk.
Stagg Bolingbrook
8 12 13 5 — 38 14 21 23 17 — 75
tagg Scoring: Strama 14, Zaremba 10, S Goral 5, Contant 4, Foster 3, Stratinsky 2. Rebounds: Contant 3, Stratinsky 3. Assists: Contant 3.
Photo by Jeff Vorva
Richards’ Andy Sonnichsen fires a pass to a teammate during the Bulldogs’ 87-27 loss to LincolnWay North in pool play last Wednesday at the Oak Lawn Tournament.
Girls Basketball
(Continued from page 2) very proud of the girls for fighting all night,” Kortz said. The story was vastly different against Lincoln-Way North, which hammered the Bulldogs into submission. The Phoenix were ahead by 22 points after one quarter, 41 after two and 52 after three. Tears had 15 points and seven rebounds, but that mattered little. Miller’s four points and five boards were Richards’ other notable stats. “Lincoln-Way North is a very, very good team,” Kortz said. “They get everyone involved and they run. They were on fire from the start, outside and inside. They hit a school-record 17 3-point shots and we never recovered. “They put pressure on us at both ends of the floor and we didn’t respond well. I think we were a little tired and leg-weary, but I don’t want to take anything away from how they played.” Tears’ 21 points and seven rebounds weren’t enough to lift the Bulldogs (5-6, 3-1) past Romeoville. Powell (nine points, five assists), Briana Kuchenny (six points, nine rebounds) and Sonichsen (six points, six rebounds) also played well in a losing cause. “I thought both teams came out a little sluggish playing at 10:30 Saturday morning,” Kortz said. “I thought we did a good job of fighting back to get close at halftime. We came out in the second half and changed a few things, [but] they took advantage of them and we got down and tried to dig ourselves out of the hole. “I was and am very proud of the effort. We get after it, but we have to do a better job of fundamentals. We get some time off [now] and we will work on that and improve. “But I thought we never quit and kept getting after it. Overall we played very hard in every game.” OAK LAWN Richards wasn’t the only team to feel the wrath of Markusic last week, although the Bulldogs were the lone opponent to come up short against the Spartans. Sandburg survived Markusic’s 18-point, eight-rebound effort, Romeoville beat Oak Lawn 37-35 despite Markusic’s 14 points and 13 rebounds, and the senior’s 21 points versus Riverside-Brookfield as the Bulldogs collected a 61-50 triumph on Saturday. STAGG The Chargers split a pair of contests last week as they dropped a 52-42 SWSC Blue verdict to Lincoln-Way East on the road last Monday before bating Queen of Peace 46-20 on Saturday.
While Monday’s score was relatively close throughout the game, the Griffins held a significant rebounding advantage that proved the difference. “We did not do a very good job on the defensive boards and were out-rebounded 35-16 by a much more aggressive team,” Stagg coach Bill Turner said. “I give our opponent a lot of credit for attacking the glass the way they did. “Especially disturbing was the 14 offensive rebounds we allowed in the first half — seven of those boards resulted in Lincoln-Way East points. I thought we were fortunate to be down by only nine points (29-20) at the half.” Senior guard Alex Abed led the Chargers with 19 points, three rebounds and three steals while going a perfect 10-of-10 from the free-throw line. Senior forward Mia DiGiacomo added seven points and four rebounds. “Alex played a nice game for us, but getting more scoring from some other players is also something we are going to need moving forward,” Turner said. “We have found ourselves playing more zone early on this season and need to figure out rebounding assignments. “We gave up a couple of easy baskets in transition defense [by] failing to get back quickly enough. We will keep working to improve in those areas.” Turner said playing a Saturday home game against a nonconference opponent was exactly what Stagg needed to secure its first victory of the season. The Chargers led the game from the opening tip and dominated on the glass against the Pride as they held a 36-22 rebounding edge. Abed again paced Stagg with nine points, but this time 10 other Chargers scored as well. Senior forward Katie Dwyer led the rebounding with six boards, while DiGiacomo, Hayley Gartner and Erin O’Leary each collected five. “What a difference from our prior game in terms of rebounding,” Turner said. “It was nice to get everyone involved on the offensive end and get them some significant playing time. Freshman guard Jaime Ryan scored points in her varsity debut and should really help us out [by] putting the ball in the net.” Stagg went 14-of-19 at the freethrow line and has been better with dribble penetration into the lane the last couple of games. “Hopefully, we can continue on with this type of effort on both ends of the floor at the upcoming Hillcrest Holiday Classic,” Turner said. Kara Shimko led Peace with 13 points and Allie Herman tossed in four.
QUEEN OF PEACE Besides their loss to Stagg, the Pride also fell to Reavis (66-43) last Monday. They did, however, slip past De La Salle (34-26) in a Tuesday Girls Catholic Athletic Conference contest. Herman (13 points, 11 rebounds) and Shimko (11 points) were Peace’s leaders versus the Rams. The Pride trailed 23-2 at the outset but climbed back to within 28-15 midway through the second quarter. The height supplied by the 6-foot Herman and 5-10 Erin Foley (five rebounds) helped spur the comeback although Peace could never overtake Reavis. Shimko’s five 3s and 19 points were the catalysts for the Pride (4-8) against the Meteors. Coach George Shimko also credited a couple other players for filling key roles. “Abby Bennett, our starting point guard, did a great job of providing tempo and playing excellent defense against DLS’s formidable point guard,” he said. “Mary Keenan battled all night long against DLS’s 6-7 center, grabbing clutch rebounds and loose basketballs against a young lady who weighed twice as much as her.” Herman contributed six points for Peace and Sarah Spencer came off the bench to energize the Pride on defense while scoring four points on two layups. Peace received additional help from Ashley Murphy, Amber Andersen and Ciarra Juggan. CHICAGO CHRISTIAN The Knights captured two Metro Suburban Conference victories last week to improve to 6-0 in league play while upping their season record to 7-4. Chicago Christian defeated Elmwood Park 35-27 last Tuesday as Emily Lemmenes (nine points) and Leah Kamp (eight) were the primary scorers. In the team’s 48-38 win over Timothy Christian on Saturday, Lemmenes poured in 17 points to lead the way. MARIST Dajae Black netted 13 points and Julia Ruzevich scored 12 to boost the RedHawks to a thrilling 56-52 overtime win over Resurrection last Monday. Marist improved to 8-3 with the triumph. SHEPARD Hillcrest handed the Astros a 65-27 setback in the South Suburban Conference crossover on Thursday. Abby Newsome had eight points for Shepard (2-7, 1-3). EVERGREEN PARK Lemont beat the Mustangs 39-29 in an SSC crossover last Thursday.
Moraine athletics wrap
Cyclones get it Wright By Maura Vizza Wright College proved to be the right stuff for Moraine Valley College when it came to the latter enjoying pre-holiday success. Both Cyclones basketball teams faced off against the Rams last Thursday and each emerged triumphant. For the women a 79-69 victory meant they could put behind them a loss to Malcolm X College the previous week in which Moraine had early control of the game before faltering. In the win over Wright College -- a future regional playoff opponent -- Moraine wasted no time establishing itself as it raced out to a 21-2 lead. The Rams recovered from the early blast
but still trailed by 15 (38-23) at the contest’s midway point. They never got closer than seven points over the last 20 minutes. Sandburg graduate Rachel Ruzevich had been mired in a shooting slump, but no signs of that were evident here as she hit 5-of-10 3-point shots and finished with a team-high 21 points. Nariman Jaber added a double-double of 18 points and 14 rebounds and also blocked three shots. Getting her first start after coming over from the volleyball squad, Jessica Chaput nearly posted her own double-double before settling for a 15-point, nine-rebound stat line. She also rejected a Wright College shot. Sharnita Breeze supplied the Cyclones with a fourth double-digit
scorer as she tossed in 10 points to go along with seven boards. MEN’S BASKETBALL The Cyclones had stopped a slide by beating Malcolm X the week before and they started an actual winning streak by downing Wright College 71-64 last Thursday behind another strong performance from Evergreen Park alumnus Brian Townsend (15 points, nine rebounds, three steals). Backing Townsend in a balanced Moraine attack were Sandburg product Niko Cahue (14 points, five rebounds), DJ Deere (10 points, six assists, two steals), Nick Bal (nine points, two assists, two steals) and Ermias Nega (seven points, six rebounds, three assists).
The Regional News - The Reporter
Trinity sports report
Trolls stuck in downward cycle By Amy Strong The Christmas break may be a more welcome sight than usual for some Trinity Christian College athletes. Besides basking in the joy of the holiday season, the Trolls are probably happy to be stepping away from the recent pain of the basketball season. As Trinity entered a brief down period it did so on a downward cycle as both its men’s and women’s teams went 0-3 in recent encounters, four of the defeats coming against Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference foes. Neither team got embarrassed; in fact five of the six losses were by single digits. That included the Trolls men’s 70-61 setback versus NAIA Division II No. 22-ranked Cardinal Stritch last Tuesday at DeVos Gymnasium. The Wolves women, ranked sixth in the country, produced the only wide margin of victory as they rolled over Trinity 59-40 that same night. The Trolls men were fighting an uphill battle as they trailed by 15 at halftime before narrowing the gap when the second half commenced. Stritch, which closed the opening half with a 13-2 run, dominated inside with a total of 40 points tallied in the paint and the visitors also prospered at the foul line, where they outpointed Trinity by 18. The Trolls avoided a blowout by connecting 13 times from behind the 3-point arc. Six of those were delivered in the first 10 minutes of the second half and drew Trinity within 47-44. The Wolves recovered from the blitz, however, and eventually rebuilt their lead to double figures. Two Jared Jones free throws had the Trolls back within seven in the final minute, but the score would get no closer. Those were the only points Jones didn’t score from 3-point territory as he nailed six long balls and ended with a team-high 20 points. Cody Rhorer (13 points, five rebounds) and Trey Johnson (10 points) were Trinity’s other primary scorers. Logan Vos’ six boards paced the rebounding effort. The Trolls actually outshot Stritch from the field (46 percent to 39), but the Wolves were superior at the stripe (75 percent to 55). *** In its final outing before Christmas Trinity (5-10, 1-4) got tagged with a 70-63 loss by Judson University last Thursday in Elgin. The game essentially was a tale of two halves, the first of which was controlled by the Eagles, who constructed a 20-point halftime cushion. The Trolls netted just two points in the first five minutes, slipped behind by 10 and closed out the 20-minute session with only 20 points. After Judson began the second half with a basket, Trinity caught fire and went on an 18-6 tear. With 6:50 to go the differential was single digits, but a three-minute dry spell proved costly to the Trolls as they soon were chasing 12 points. However, Trinity refused to go down without a fight and it was back to within two (62-60) at the 1:30 mark before the rally died out. The Trolls remained in the hunt despite hitting just 43 percent of their field-goal attempts, compared to the Eagles’ 54 percent success rate. Trinity also got out-rebounded (32-18), although it was slightly better at the free-throw line (73 percent to 71). Rhorer was the Trolls’ ringleader with 20 points and seven steals. Jones tossed in 12 points and Ryan Tubbs’ four rebounds was Trinity’s top performance in that category. *** The Saturday before the Trolls fell short of Spring Arbor (Mich.) in a nonconference road game. Trinity lost 69-64. Five ties occurred in the first eight minutes, but Spring Arbor was ahead 32-29 at the break. The Trolls broke from the second-half gate with a 13-3 charge, but the Cougars answered with a run of their own that created another deadlock at 45-all. After Spring Arbor constructed a nine-point edge, two Trinity 3s drew the visitors within four with under two minutes remaining. A pair of Jones free throws kept the margin at four at the 28-second
mark and Caleb Jonkman followed with a 3-pointer, but the Cougars sank two charity tosses of their own to hang on for the victory. Jones had 14 points for Trinity, which hit 12-of-30 from 3-point territory but posted an overall field-goal percentage of just 42. It hit 72 percent of its foul shots. Johnson totaled 13 points and eight rebounds, Jonkman scored 11 points, Tubbs distributed eight assists and Joe Hehir set up four other Trolls baskets. Trinity’s next game is a CCAC clash at Purdue University-North central on Jan. 3 at 3 p.m. WOMEN’S BASKETBALL The Trolls’ experience with Cardinal Stritch was made more difficult by a 29 percent success rate from the field, which rendered somewhat meaningless Trinity’s own good defense that held the Wolves to 37 percent shooting. The Trolls (6-9, 2-3) bettered Stritch at the foul line (75 percent to 67). The two teams jockeyed for position over the first 13 minutes before the Wolves used a 13-3 run to break free. Stritch was up 31-21 at intermission and then benefited from a Trinity dry spell -- the Trolls netted only five more points in the first nine minutes of the second half and fell in arrears by 21. Rebecca DeHaan tallied 10 points and Caitlin Cody added seven points and five rebounds for Trinity in a losing cause. Kelsie Foster matched Cody’s effort on the glass while scoring five points. *** The Trolls were within a point of Judson with a minute to go last Thursday but were unable to sink another shot. The Eagles nailed one free throw to finalize a 67-65 verdict in their favor. Trinity fell into three double-digit holes during the opening half -- two of them 12-point deficits -- but were within seven (39-32) by halftime. Four minutes into the second half the Trolls were in front, thanks to a 10-0 surge. Over the ensuing 13 minutes there were several ties and neither club enjoyed much of an advantage. Cody (17 points, five rebounds, four assists), Foster (11 points) and Maria Reinhard (10) were the top performers for Trinity, which shot 38 percent from the floor and 67 percent at the line compared to Judson’s respective figures of 36 and 71. The key statistic was rebounding, where the Eagles held a decisive 47-32 edge. *** Trinity’s nonconference loss was doled out by Goshen (Ind.) College, which collected a 7770 triumph on Dec. 13 in Palos Heights. Outside of holding an early 7-5 lead, the Trolls were pretty much in chase mode the entire evening. They trailed by 13 following a three-minute scoring drought, but Trinity’s defense stepped forward to limit the Maple Leafs to five points over the last six minutes of the first half and prevent the visitors from running away and hiding. Goshen was up 40-32 at halftime and used a 7-2 spurt to increase its lead, but with four double-digit scorers in their midst the Trolls weren’t going to just fade away. Trinity got within 59-57 at the seven-minute mark, then bit into a 70-60 Maple Leafs advantage with nine unanswered points, six of them delivered by Foster on a pair of long-range baskets. Goshen, though, buried some free throws near the end to seal the deal for itself. Foster finished with 15 points on five 3s and grabbed six rebounds. Also chipping in for the Trolls were Lauren Stokes (12 points, five rebounds), Celina Wanta (11 points, six rebounds), Olivia Schipper (10 points), DeHaan (eight rebounds, five assists) and Holly Boetsma (five assists). The Trolls struggled from both the field (36 percent) and the stripe (57 percent) and got out-rebounded by five (46-41). The Maple Leafs hit 43 percent of their field-goal tries and 79 percent of their free throws. Trinity returns to action Jan. 7 when it hosts St. Xavier University in a CCAC matchup.
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Thursday, December 25, 2014 Section 2
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Chock full of success RedHawks make most of jam-packed slate By Ken Karrson Nine games between Dec. 2 and Dec. 19. To many, such a schedule might seem to border on insanity. Detractors would claim basketball is not a sport designed to be played in bunches, at least not if success means anything. Marist coach Gene Nolan, however, doesn’t agree with that sentiment. And as proof it can be done without consequences he need look no further than his own team. The RedHawks weren’t perfect while making their way through that jam-packed schedule, but they weren’t far off, either. Only two losses were suffered, neither of them happening last week as Marist won three times, including once in East Suburban Catholic Conference play. That Friday night meeting with ESCC newcomer Marian Central Catholic in Woodstock definitely tested the RedHawks’ mettle, though. Not only did Marist have a long journey to make, but it was operating in depleted form at crunch time as Jeremiah Ferguson was weakened by illness and Chamar Hawkins was the victim of a fifth foul. Without their two top scorers and defenders and facing a slight deficit, the RedHawks’ prospects did not look good. But Marist managed to tally the game’s final eight points and register a hard-fought 54-50 victory. That followed two more wins in the RedHawks’ holiday tournament: 62-38 over Gage Park on Tuesday and 55-39 over Leyden on Wednesday. But it was the conquest of the Hurricanes that most impressed Nolan. “It’s great for a team when you can learn how to win in a variety of ways,” he said. “I thought we were outstanding defensively late in the game.” Actually, Marist (11-2, 2-0) was pretty good in that regard throughout the evening. Evidence of that could be found in the point totals of Marian Central guards Adam Pischke and Wyatt Lindell, who had torched Marian Catholic with a combined 57 points in a 12-point Hurri-
canes victory one week earlier and sunk 60 3-pointers between them in their team’s first eight contests. Against the RedHawks those numbers dropped to 25 combined points and two 3s. “The best way to predict future performance is by past performances,” Nolan said. “You want to take away the knowns and let the unknowns [try to] beat you.” That nearly happened as Marian Central overcame the scoring drop-off from its backcourt to be tied at halftime and ahead 37-31 heading into the final stanza. The Hurricanes were in decent shape even though they had watched Marist open the game with 3-point baskets from five different players during the first quarter. Hawkins was not one of those players and he was held to two points through three periods, but he finally came to life in the fourth as he racked up 13 points before fouling out. Two three-point plays were part of his production, as was a 3point bucket. After he departed, Malik Parker hit a floater to bring the RedHawks within a deuce and then Brian Barry drilled a go-ahead 3-ball after Maurice Commander drew a double-team and then got the ball to his teammate. Commander joined Hawkins in double figures with 12 points, 10 of which were provided before halftime. Marist shot 45 percent from the field and 40 percent from behind the arc. Although it’d be easy to say the RedHawks handled all their assignments well enough to win far more often than not, Nolan admitted he wondered whether he should have called more practices and opted for a few less games. He doesn’t regret dealing with the hectic schedule, however. “I always feel games are a great learning tool because you can go back and see what you did [in a competitive setting],” Nolan said. “This year was different, but I’ve always said if you’ve got a group of kids who can bring it, they’re going to bring it, whether it’s 14 days [off between games] or backto-back-to-back nights. “It was a good start to the first
semester and I think we’ve developed some mental toughness that’s going to help us down the road.” Marist finally got a break as it doesn’t begin play in the Centralia Tournament until Monday. Marist 62 Gage Park 38 Tuesday’s game was over almost immediately as the RedHawks outscored the Owls 19-0 in the first quarter and never wavered. Marist forced nine turnovers in those eight minutes. “We played a very good quarter defensively,” Nolan said. “When you win that [turnover] battle, especially early in the game, it’s good.” So, too, was the involvement of everybody on the roster, save for Ferguson, who sat out because of the flu. Every other RedHawk scored. “We always say, ‘Good teams have good players, but great teams have great teammates,’” Nolan said. “We use terms like ‘we,’ ‘us’ and ‘ours,’ and we try to promote teamwork. Games like this do make us better [in that respect].” Nolan was as thrilled with the camaraderie shown as he was the win itself. He pointed to the way his regulars cheered Marist’s subs when they were on the court and how the former got a greater feel for what it’s like watching game action from the bench. “It connects you in terms of developing your team,” Nolan said. Only Kyle Reynolds (11 points, nine rebounds) tallied in double digits, but Commander and Andre Hardin both contributed nine points and Hawkins finished with eight, all of them in the first half. Hawkins and Commander also combined for six steals. Marist shot 54 percent and was guilty of just 10 miscues, 13 fewer than the Owls. Marist 55 Leyden 39 Never before Wednesday had a Nolan-coached club squared off with the Eagles, but Marist asserted itself with a 19-4 run that bridged the first and second periods. The first part of that blitz was a 7-0 surge that concluded the
opening frame and featured two Hawkins steals and a pair of assists as Ferguson and Reynolds both scored after them. A later 8-0 spurt was highlighted by a couple of on-the-ball steals by Commander, both of which he turned into layups for himself. Leyden was within eight by the end of the third quarter but would get no closer, thanks to Marist’s 62 percent shooting over the last eight minutes. “We had great, long possessions,” Nolan said. “The longer the possessions, [the more] their principals defensively are going to break down. I felt if we could get the lead in double digits in the fourth quarter, it would seem like more [to the Eagles].” Hawkins notched nine of his 11 points in the fourth period. He complemented his scoring with eight rebounds and four steals. Commander added 11 point and four assists, while Reynolds pitched in with 10 points and six boards. Marist wound up with 11 turnovers, eight fewer than Leyden. Nine of the Eagles’ mistakes occurred in the second stanza.
Statistics Gage Park Marist
0 13 16 9 — 38 19 20 12 11 — 62
Marist Scoring: Reynolds 11, Commander 9, Hardin 9, Hawkins 8, Dunican 6, Lerma 6, Hill 5, Weaver 4, Parker 3, Barry 1. Rebounds: Reynolds 9. Assists: Commander 5. Assists: Commander 5. Steals: Commander 3, Hawkins 3, Lerma 3. Leyden Marist
9 7 12 11 — 39 12 15 9 19 — 55
Marist Scoring: Commander 11, Hawkins 11, Reynolds 10, Barry 6, Ferguson 6, Lerma 6, Hardin 2, Hill 2, Parker 1. Rebounds: Hawkins 8, Reynolds 6. Assists: Barry 4, Commander 4. Steals: Hill 3. Marist 19 6 6 23 — 54 Marian Central 15 10 12 13 — 50 Marist Scoring: Hawkins 15, Commander 12, Parker 7, Barry 6, Hill 5, Lerma 3, Reynolds 3, Weaver 3. Rebounds: Reynolds 9. Assists: Barry 3, Commander 3. Steals: Hawkins 3.
Positive reinforcements Catledge plays well in return to Bulldogs’ varsity By Ken Karrson
teors at 42-37. Three minutes were still left, Having gotten a substantial but TF North fended off the amount of varsity playing time comeback bid by nailing eight as a freshman, Jaylen Catledge free throws in the remaining likely expected to be part of time. Christian Johnson (19 Richards’ opening-night roster points, 13 rebounds), Sadiq this fall. Salisu (10 points) and Cecil First-year coach Jevon Ma- Williams all delivered at the mon had other ideas, however. stripe for the Meteors. “I felt it would be best for The foul shots helped pin a him, for some maturity rea- loss on the Bulldogs, but Masons and other things, to stay mon cited other contributors to with the sophomores,” Mamon the downfall. Richards’ 1-of-10 said. “Quite honestly, I don’t marksmanship from 3-point know how happy he was being land certainly didn’t help nor down on the sophomore level, did 20 turnovers. but he’s done everything we’ve Also harmful were two asked him to do. He’s here [now] lengthy scoreless stretches and going to work out [for us].” and TF North’s dominance on Catledge’s reintroduction to the offensive glass. That latvarsity play came Friday night ter area featured the Meteors against TF North. While his netting 10 second-chance points team-high eight points and six before halftime and gathering rebounds weren’t enough to in 11 more possession-extending save the Bulldogs from a 48- rebounds after the break. 37 South Suburban Conference “We’re a young team that’s crossover loss at D-Wade Court, still learning,” Mamon said. “We Catledge reminded everyone know it’s a process and it’s goof his athleticism by throwing ing to take some time [to make down a monstrous fourth-quar- every necessary improvement], ter dunk that brought Richards but we have to be more aggres(4-4, 1-3) within five of the Me- sive on the boards.”
As for the long dry spells, one that lasted over 4 ½ minutes during the second period prevented the Bulldogs from building on a 14-9 first-quarter lead. TF North outscored Richards 19-4 in the session to assume a 10-point advantage. “When we were attacking [on offense], we were much better,” Mamon said. “We would make those plays and it would feed our defensive energy. We had spurts where we defended well and got some points in transition. “I knew things wouldn’t [always] be fluid, but it has a lot to do with us not getting to our spots and executing. We’re still working on [developing] consistency and we just didn’t play as well we would have liked [overall]” The Bulldogs’ other drought bridged the third and fourth stanzas and lasted nearly five minutes. By the time Richards regrouped it was staring at a double-digit deficit that was unable to be completely erased. Senior Spencer Tears tossed in seven points for the Bulldogs, but Mamon said to expect
more from Catledge and fellow sophomore Aaron Smith, who was also called up for Friday’s contest. “I wasn’t shy about playing them at all,” Mamon said. “I’m not bringing these guys up to sit. They have to earn their playing time, but I think that will spark competition on the team and make guys work harder to stay on the floor.” Richards enters a tournament at Kankakee on Friday. While Mamon isn’t placing a lot of emphasis on the results there, he said the Bulldogs’ “best basketball is ahead of us.” “I remain confident in what we do,” he said. “And when it gets there look out. I think this group of kids has talent and we’re just ironing out the kinks.”
Statistics TF North Richards
9 19 10 1 0 — 48 14 4 7 12 — 37
Richards Scoring: Catledge 8, Tears 7. Rebounds: Catledge 6.
Community Sports News Marist holding baseball-football camp Marist will host a two-day combination baseball-football camp on Monday and Tuesday from 3-6 p.m. The free event is open to boys in grades 7 and 8. RedHawks baseball coach Kevin Sefcik will focus on batting while football coach Pat Dunne will work on speed and agility, plus position-specific skills. Sessions for each sport will run 90 minutes. Campers should wear comfortable athletic clothing and gym shoes and bring a water bottle. Parents should register their child in advance at www.marist.net. For more information, call Sefcik at (773) 881-5315 or Dunne at (773) 881-5332. Split decision for Evergreen bowlers Jacob Ottenfeld’s 245 high game and 468 series helped Evergreen Park’s boys’ bowling team defeat TF South 1,867-1,807 at Arena Lanes. The win over the Rebels,
who were paced by Andre Holden (212; 415), ensured the Mustangs of a break-even week. Richards beat Evergreen 1,9701,739 in a South Suburban Conference Red match at Arena Lanes. Shaun Quinn (244 high game, 434 series) topped the Mustangs while AJ Balich (228; 451) led the Bulldogs.
season and is accepting registration to fill them. For more information, contact Chris Bogner at bognerc@hotmail. com or Scott Ladewig at sladelaw@ sbcglobal.net or visit the PBO website.
top individual score. Shaun Quinn was Evergreen’s ringleader against the Argonauts as he claimed both high-series (445 for two games) and high-game (223) honors. Nick Tonika bowled a 205 high game and 353 series for Argo. Quinn also doubled up for the Evergreen bowlers Mustangs in their loss to the Rams take two of three as he finished with a 466 series and Three McAuley athletes After dropping an 88-pin South 253 high game. Reavis’ Jason Barmake college choices Suburban Conference Red verdict rios was five pins shy of matching Three Mother McAuley softball to Reavis last Tuesday at Arena Quinn’s best game, but the former players made their college choices Lanes, Evergreen Park’s boys’ rolled the top series with his 474. official in mid-December. bowling team rebounded to post Emily Rux will attend the Uni- a winning record for the week as Vikings join Bears’ Allen versity of Wisconsin-Whitewater, it defeated Hinsdale Central (2,724Members of St. Laurence’s footNicole Majewski is headed to Loras 2,609) and Argo (1,683-1,616). ball team recently joined Chicago College in Iowa and Worth resident The latter match, played at Arena Bears defensive lineman Jared AlMaryssa Vela plans to enroll at Wis- Lanes, was another SSC Red affair. len in volunteering their time for consin-Stevens Point next fall. Five The Red Devils were a nonconfer- veterans of armed services. other Mighty Macs student-athletes ence foe that met the Mustangs The meeting with St. Laurence announced their college intentions at Suburbanite Bowl in Westmont. students wasn’t Allen’s first. A few earlier in the fall. Jacob Ottenfeld paced Evergreen members of the school’s Sports versus Hinsdale as he rolled a 637 Management Club saw him at a PBO still accepting registration series. Producing the day’s high commercial shoot for Proctor and for 2015 game was the Mustangs’ Isaiah Gamble, where they also got a Palos Baseball Organization still Colon, who registered a 247, three behind-the-scenes look at how the has player openings for the 2015 pins better than the Red Devils’ commercial was made.
6 Section 2 Thursday, December 25, 2014 The Regional News - The Reporter SXU sports summary
Honors keep coming for football players
It’s fan-tastic The St. Rita student section was in a patriotic mood before the start of the game.
Calipari sighting The coach of the No. 1 men’s college basketball team in the nation, Kentucky’s John Calipari, stopped by the Moraine Valley gym to keep tabs on his recruit, Charles Matthews of St. Rita.
Photos by Jeff Vorva
Bench bunch The St. Rita bench was up and down Friday night during the Mustangs’ upset of Simeon.
You are here Moraine Valley College’s new Health and Fitness Center hosted a nationally televised basketball game between two of Illinois’ top high school teams Friday night.
Getting ready Mike Meyer of Palos Heights sets up a camera more than six hours before tip-off of Friday night’s ESPN2 game between Simeon and St. Rita.
While St. Xavier University didn’t play for the NAIA championship last weekend, members of its football team continued to be recognized for their efforts during the 2014 campaign. Once again senior defensive lineman Greg Hayward was feted, this time for both on-field play and academics. In regard to the former, the Oak Lawn alumnus earned a spot on the 25-member American Football Coaches Association NAIA Coaches All-America team. “Greg ranks as one of the very best defensive linemen in the history of our program and being named to the AFCA NAIA All-America team simply puts an exclamation point on a tremendous career,” Cougars coach Mike Feminis said. “He was an absolutely dominant player who brought an incredible work ethic and intensity every day to practice and then carried it through every Saturday. “However, as great as he was on the field Greg is also a fantastic student and character-wise as good as I’ve ever coached. He’s going to be nearly impossible to replace.” On the academic side Hayward joined senior linebacker Alex Walters and junior linebacker Jacek Wesolowski in being named a Daktronics-NAIA Scholar-Athlete. The trio was among 319 NAIA football players nationwide to receive the honor. To be considered for the Daktronics award a student-athlete must be nominated by his head coach or the school’s sports information director, have achieved at least junior academic status and maintain a minimum grade-point average of 3.5 on a 4.0 scale. Hayward has a 3.868 GPA while majoring in criminal justice, Walters carries a 3.67 GPA in finance and Wesolowski’s GPA is at 3.607 as he works toward a degree in nursing. “All three of these young men have my utmost respect,” Feminis said. “They possess the dedication and discipline it takes to excel both on the football field and in the classroom. They truly define the term ‘student-athlete’ and I’m very proud that they are being recognized for it.” *** Selected to the NAIA Coaches All-America second team were senior wide receiver Nick DeBenedetti and sophomore offensive lineman Kevin Lonergan (Oak Lawn). DeBenedetti finished the 2014 season with 82 catches for 990 yards and nine touchdowns. In addition, he was SXU’s top returning specialist this fall as he ran back 28 kickoffs for 593 yards (21.3-yard average) and 22 punts for 294 yards (13.4) and a touchdown. DeBenedetti finished third on the team in total scoring with 66 points with 11 TDs. For his career DeBenedetti ranks No. 5 all-time in Cougars annals with 218 receptions, No. 6 in touchdown catches (24) and No. 7 in receiving yards (2,591). Lonergan helped lead an explosive offense that ranked No. 6 in the NAIA in total offense (456.8 yards per game) and No. 8 nationally in points-pergame average (38.1). SXU also ranked No. 15 in the NAIA in fewest sacks allowed (1.2 per game).
had difficulty finding its range. While a 41 percent accuracy rate from the floor wasn’t terrible, the same couldn’t be said of a 2-of-20 showing from long distance. The Cougars had canned 14of-21 3s versus the Eagles. “We were not the same team,” said SXU coach Tom O’Malley, who suspected that his athletes were still savoring the conquest of Robert Morris a bit too much. “Roosevelt’s no slouch,” he said. “I think our kids look at certain things and count their chickens before they’re hatched. Our guys thought they were [very] good after beating Robert Morris, but we can’t afford to let down at any time [or] at any place.” When reminded that overconfidence is not unnatural among people following a significant achievement, O’Malley said the Cougars shouldn’t have fallen victim to it if that was indeed the case. “It’s not my human nature,” he said. “You look at every game as one you’ve got to play [well].” O’Malley could have lived with SXU’s sub-par shooting had the Lakers been cowed into some of their own. But while Roosevelt’s field-goal percentage stayed under 50, it was still superior to the Cougars’ by eight points. “You can always miss some shots, but you’ve got to be consistent on defense,” O’Malley said. “Roosevelt slowed it down and got everything they wanted.” The contest was a back-andforth affair early on. SXU used a 7-0 run that was capped by Tony Core’s layup to establish its first lead, then the hosts clawed their way back from an eight-point deficit to create a 32-all tie on Larry Motzius’ free throw with a minute to go before halftime. Tyree York’s 3-pointer handed the Lakers a 35-34 edge at the break, but neither club could gain much of a foothold through the first 13 minutes of the second half. Finally, two free throws by Joe Harks (game-high 27 points) snapped a 56-all tie with 7:01 remaining and put Roosevelt ahead to stay. Those charity tosses were the start of a 10-2 surge that seemingly put the visitors in control, but a layup by Stanley Moore (team-best 20 points, four assists, two steals) drew the Cougars within five with 2:43 left. SXU would get no closer, though, as the Lakers made the foul line their ally down the stretch by picking up 11 points from there in the last two minutes. Jack Krieger backed Moore with 18 points and six boards. While O’Malley admitted he was “kind of surprised” by the outcome, he felt SXU hurt itself by getting away from the things it did well in vanquishing Robert Morris. “I don’t think we ran the ball where we needed [to get the best shots],” O’Malley said. “I don’t think we took any bad shots, but we were quick to take them.” And when some of them didn’t fall, O’Malley said many of his “It’s a great honor for Nick key offensive players had trouand Kevin to receive All-Amerible shrugging off the misses. can recognition along with Greg “That starts playing with -- both are very deserving,” Femyour mind if you’re not making inis said. “Nick did everything them,” he said. “But anybody for us and we tried to get him that’s a shooter has to forget the ball as much as possible. He about it because you can’t go caught a ton of passes, ran reback. And if you’re thinking verses for us, threw a few passes about the last shot, probably and was also a dangerous punt the next one you take won’t and kick returner. About the be very good, either.” only thing he didn’t do was sell The Cougars began play in popcorn. “It’s hard to believe that Kev- their annual holiday tournain is only a sophomore because ment this past Sunday against he plays like a senior. Kevin No. 6-ranked Davenport (Mich.) started as a true freshman for University. Four other teams us and will just continue to get were part of the field and games better and better. We’re lucky were also scheduled for Monday to have him for another two and Tuesday at the Shannon Center. -- Ken Karrson years.”
coach Bob Hallberg. “We got off to very slow start and didn’t play anywhere close to our first win of the tournament [an 81-55 victory over Dickinson State University on Friday],” he said. “We played tentative and therefore put ourselves in a big hole. I needed to wake the troops up.” Whatever Hallberg said during the break made an impression as No. 4-ranked SXU bounced back in the second half and had opportunities to forge a tie in the final minute. It couldn’t complete the rally, however, and had to deal with an 83-77 loss to the Mustangs. But at least Hallberg was no longer discontent. “You have to take the positives out of a game like that,” he said. “We proved that we can not only play against a top-rated team but also that we’re capable of beating a top-rated team. This is a game that we needed to prepare us for what we will face at the national tournament. “It was a great comeback effort after being down [by] as much as 19 points in the first half. We played a much more effective second half with a much higher confidence level. We came all the way back against the No. 1 undefeated team, [so] we just have to continue to put it all together.” The Cougars (11-2) cut the lead to 79-77 on a pair of free throws by senior forward Morgan Stuut with 33 seconds to play and then got the ball back on a Morningside turnover. Unfortunately for SXU, its next two shot attempts did not fall and the Mustangs sealed the win with free throws. “We miss[ed] an uncontested layup that would have tied the game,” Hallberg said. “That’s how close the game was down the stretch.” The trio of Stuut, freshman Kara Krolicki and senior Suzie Broski carried the load for the Cougars. Stuut shot an impressive 9-of-13 from the field while leading all scorers with 21 points. Krolicki sank five 3-pointers en route to 19 points and Broski chipped in 14 points on 6-of-9 shooting. SXU clicked on 48 percent of its field-goal attempts, which included a 10-of-22 effort from beyond the arc. However, the Mustangs were dominant on the boards as they out-rebounded the Cougars 49-25. Twenty-four of Morningside’s rebounds came on the offensive end and resulted in 23 second-chance points for it. The loss snapped a nine-game win streak for SXU. *** On Friday the Cougars jumped out to a big lead early and never looked back as they defeated Dickinson State (N.D.) University. Krolicki had the hot hand for SXU as she used three 3s to key a 17-point output. The Cougars’ stout defensive effort helped construct their big advantage as they limited the Bluehawks to just 25 percent shooting and forced 18 turnovers, 14 of those coming off steals. SXU took over the game quickly as it tallied 28 of the first 34 points. Things didn’t get better for Dickinson State, either, as it managed only one field goal in the last seven minutes of the half and finished 4-of-28.
The Cougars were ahead 3914 at intermission and got up by as many as 39 points during the second half. Broski finished with 14 points, while sophomore guard Sidney Prasse chipped in 11. Junior forward Caitlin McMahon just missed a double-double effort with nine points and a teambest 11 rebounds. “Those are the games you enjoy, where you can get a lot of people playing time,” Hallberg said. “But you don’t learn as much out of a Dickerson State game as you do in a Morningside game [as far as] how to prepare to play great teams. “So far our only losses have been to the No. 1- and No. 3-ranked teams in the counWOMEN’S BASKETBALL MEN’S BASKETBALL try, so we have nothing to The Cougars couldn’t take be ashamed of right now. We A five-game, nearly monthlong unbeaten streak came to down No. 1, but they made learned so much from this trip an end last Thursday as the sure Morningside (Iowa) College -- some valuable lessons” NAIA No. 15-ranked Cougars sweated for reasons other than dropped a 76-64 Chicagoland the Hawaiian heat on Saturday. SXU doesn’t take the court SXU didn’t always hang with again until Sunday when it hosts Collegiate Athletic Conference St. Rita senior Myles Carter throws decision to Roosevelt University its top-ranked NAIA foe at the a two-day holiday tournament at down a dunk in his team’s win over at the Shannon Center. Hoop ‘N’ Surf Classic in Hono- the Shannon Center. The first Simeon Friday night in a game at Five days after scoring 115 lulu -- the Cougars, in fact, were game is against Viterbo (Wis.) Moraine Valley that was broadcast points to knock off Robert Mor- down 16 points at halftime. That University at 1 p.m. —Anthony on ESPN2. ris University, SXU (8-3, 3-2) was enough to upset even-keeled Nasella
Dunk you very much
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Thursday, December 25, 2014 Section 2
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IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF COOK COUNTY, I L L I N O I S COUNTY DEPARTMENT - CHANCERY DIVISION FIRST MIDWEST BANK, AS SUCCESSOR IN I N T E R E S T ) TO PALOS BANK AND TRUST COMPANY; Plaintiff, v s . STEVEN J. ZEBROWSKI, AN INDIVIDUAL; C A R O L Y N M. ZEBROWSKI, AN INDIVIDUAL; SKYLINE, INC., AN ILLINOIS CORPORATION; UNKNOWN OWNERS; NON RECORD CLAIMANTS; UNKNOWN TENANTS AND OCCUPANTS; Defendants, 13 CH 3828 NOTICE OF SALE PUBLIC NOTICE is hereby given that pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure entered in the above entitled cause Intercounty Judicial Sales Corporation will on Friday, January 16, 2015, at the hour of 11 a.m. in their office at 120 West Madison Street, Suite 718A, Chicago, Illinois, sell to the highest bidder for cash, the following described mortgaged real estate: Commonly known as 12920 South Mason Avenue, Palos Heights, IL 60463. P.I.N. 24-32-205-003-0000. The mortgaged real estate is a single family residence. If the subject mortgaged real estate is a unit of a common interest community, the purchaser of the unit other than a mortgagee shall pay the assessments required by subsection (g-1) of Section 18.5 of the Condominium Property Act. Sale terms: Bidders must present, at the time of sale, a cashier's or certified check for 10% of the successful bid amount. The balance of the successful bid shall be paid within 24 hours, by similar funds. The property will NOT be open for inspection. For information call Mr. Stephen G. Daday at Plaintiff's Attorney, Klein, Daday, Aretos & O'Donoghue, LLC, 2550 West Golf Road, Rolling Meadows, Illinois 60008. (847) 590-8700. INTERCOUNTY JUDICIAL SALES CORPORATION Selling Officer, (312) 444-1122 I637416
IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF COOK COUNTY, I L L I N O I S COUNTY DEPARTMENT - CHANCERY DIVISION U.S. BANK NATIONAL ASSOCIATION, AS T R U S T E E , SUCCESSOR IN INTEREST TO BANK OF A M E R I C A , NATIONAL ASSOCIATION AS TRUSTEE AS S U C C E S S O R BY MERGER TO LASALLE BANK NATIONAL ASSOCIATION, AS TRUSTEE FOR CERTIFICATEHOLDERS OF BEAR STEARNS A S S E T BACKED SECURITIES I LLC, ASSET BACKEDCERTIFICATES, SERIES 2006-EC1 Plaintiff, v s . THERESA POSPISIL; DAVID POSPISIL Defendants, 13 CH 18345 NOTICE OF SALE PUBLIC NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale entered in the above entitled cause Intercounty Judicial Sales Corporation will on Monday, January 12, 2015 at the hour of 11 a.m. in their office at 120 West Madison Street, Suite 718A, Chicago, Illinois, sell at public auction to the highest bidder for cash, as set forth below, the following described mortgaged real estate: Commonly known as 8812 West 103rd Place, Palos Hills, Il 60465. P.I.N. 23-15-202-008-0000. The mortgaged real estate is improved with a single family residence. If the subject mortgaged real estate is a unit of a common interest community, the purchaser of the unit other than a mortgagee shall pay the assessments required by subsection (g-1) of Section 18.5 of the Condominium Property Act. Sale terms: 10% down by certified funds, balance, by certified funds, within 24 hours. No refunds. The property will NOT be open for inspection For information call Sales Department at Plaintiff's Attorney, Manley Deas Kochalski, LLC, One East Wacker Drive, Chicago, Illinois 60601. (614) 220-5611. 1 3 0 2 2 4 5 1 INTERCOUNTY JUDICIAL SALES CORPORATION Selling Officer, (312) 444-1122 I637369
IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF Cook County, Illinois, County Department, Chancery Division. Nationstar Mortgage LLC P l a i n t i f f , v s . Tricia Bradley aka Tricia Lynn Skowron aka Tricia Lynn Bradley; Michael Bradley aka Michael O. Bradley aka Michael Oliver Bradley; The Crystal Hills Condominium Association; Unknown Owners and Non-Record C l a i m a n t s D e f e n d a n t s , 13 CH 18494 Sheriff's # 140772 F13070021 NSTR Pursuant to a Judgment made and entered by said Court in the above entitled cause, Thomas J. Dart, Sheriff of Cook County, Illinois, will on January 20, 2015, at 1pm in room LL06 of the Richard J. Daley Center, 50 West Washington Street, Chicago, Illinois, sell at public auction the following described premises and real estate mentioned in said Judgment: Common Address: 9120 West 95th Street, Apartment 3A, Hickory Hills, Illinois 60457 P.I.N: 23-03-400-037-1075 Improvements: This property consists of a Residential Condominium Unit. Sale shall be under the following terms: payment of not less than ten percent (10%) of the amount of the successful and highest bid to be paid to the Sheriff by cashier's check or certified funds at the sale; and the full remaining balance to be paid to the Sheriff by cashier's check or certified funds within twenty-four (24) hours after the sale. Sale shall be subject to general taxes, special a s s e s s m e n t s . Premise will NOT be open for inspection. The purchaser of a condominium unit, other than a mortgagee shall pay the assessments as required by 765 ILCS 605/18.5(g-1) For information, contact the sales department, FREEDMAN ANSELMO LINDBERG LLC, 1771 W. Diehl Road, Suite 120, NAPERVILLE, IL 60563, (630) 453-6960 For bidding instructions, visit www.fal-illinois.com. Please refer to file number F13100372 CHOH. For bidding instructions, visit w w w . f a l - i l l i n o i s . c o m This is an attempt to collect a debt pursuant to the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act and any information obtained will be used for that purpose. I631368
For Sale For Sale IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF COOK COUNTY, ILLINOIS COUNTY DEPARTMENT - CHANCERY DIVISION QUICKEN LOANS, INC. Plaintiff, -v.ODAI KHUFFASH, KERI A. MARTINEZ, WESTRIDGE CONDOMINIUM ASSOCIATION, UNKNOWN OWNERS AND NON-RECORD CLAIMANTS Defendants 14 CH 05576 9831 NOTTINGHAM AVENUE, UNIT 14 Chicago Ridge, IL 60415 NOTICE OF SALE PUBLIC NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale entered in the above cause on September 22, 2014, an agent for The Judicial Sales Corporation, will at 10:30 AM on January 14, 2015, at The Judicial Sales Corporation, One South Wacker Drive - 24th Floor, CHICAGO, IL, 60606, sell at public auction to the highest bidder, as set forth below, the following described real estate: Commonly known as 9831 NOTTINGHAM AVENUE, UNIT 14, Chicago Ridge, IL 60415 Property Index No. 24-07-113-028-1014. The real estate is improved with a condominium. The judgment amount was $148,675.04. Sale terms: 25% down of the highest bid by certiÂżHG IXQGV DW WKH FORVH RI WKH VDOH SD\DEOH WR 7KH Judicial Sales Corporation. No third party checks will be accepted. The balance, including the Judicial sale fee for Abandoned Residential Property Municipality Relief Fund, which is calculated on residential real estate at the rate of $1 for each $1,000 or fraction thereof of the amount paid by WKH SXUFKDVHU QRW WR H[FHHG LQ FHUWLÂżHG funds/or wire transfer, is due within twenty-four (24) hours. No fee shall be paid by the mortgagee acquiring the residential real estate pursuant to its credit bid at the sale or by any mortgagee, judgment creditor, or other lienor acquiring the residential real estate whose rights in and to the residential real estate arose prior to the sale. The subject property is subject to general real estate taxes, special assessments, or special taxes levied against said real estate and is offered for sale without any representation as to quality or quantity of title and without recourse to Plaintiff and in AS ,6 FRQGLWLRQ 7KH VDOH LV IXUWKHU VXEMHFW WR FRQÂżUmation by the court. Upon payment in full of the amount bid, the purFKDVHU ZLOO UHFHLYH D &HUWLÂżFDWH RI 6DOH WKDW ZLOO entitle the purchaser to a deed to the real estate DIWHU FRQÂżUPDWLRQ RI WKH VDOH The property will NOT be open for inspection and plaintiff makes no representation as to the condition of the property. Prospective bidders are DGPRQLVKHG WR FKHFN WKH FRXUW ÂżOH WR YHULI\ DOO LQformation. If this property is a condominium unit, the purchaser of the unit at the foreclosure sale, other than a mortgagee, shall pay the assessments and the legal fees required by The Condominium Property Act, 765 ILCS 605/9(g)(1) and (g)(4). If this property is a condominium unit which is part of a common interest community, the purchaser of the unit at the foreclosure sale other than a mortgagee shall pay the assessments required by The Condominium Property Act, 765 ILCS 605/18.5(g-1). IF YOU ARE THE MORTGAGOR (HOMEOWNER), YOU HAVE THE RIGHT TO REMAIN IN POSSESSION FOR 30 DAYS AFTER ENTRY OF AN ORDER OF POSSESSION, IN ACCORDANCE WITH SECTION 15-1701(C) OF THE ILLINOIS MORTGAGE FORECLOSURE LAW. <RX ZLOO QHHG D SKRWR LGHQWLÂżFDWLRQ LVVXHG E\ D government agency (driverâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s license, passport, etc.) in order to gain entry into our building and the foreclosure sale room in Cook County and the VDPH LGHQWLÂżFDWLRQ IRU VDOHV KHOG DW RWKHU FRXQW\ venues where The Judicial Sales Corporation conducts foreclosure sales. For information, contact Plaintiff s attorney: POTESTIVO & ASSOCIATES, P.C., 223 WEST JACKSON BLVD, STE 610, Chicago, IL 60606, 3OHDVH UHIHU WR ÂżOH QXPEHU & 98653. THE JUDICIAL SALES CORPORATION One South Wacker Drive, 24th Floor, Chicago, IL 60606-4650 (312) 236-SALE You can also visit The Judicial Sales Corporation at www.tjsc.com for a 7 day status report of pending sales. POTESTIVO & ASSOCIATES, P.C. 223 WEST JACKSON BLVD, STE 610 Chicago, IL 60606 (312) 263-0003 Attorney File No. C14-98653 Attorney Code. 43932 Case Number: 14 CH 05576 TJSC#: 34-17585 NOTE: Pursuant to the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, you are advised that Plaintiff s attorney is deemed to be a debt collector attempting to collect a debt and any information obtained will be used for that purpose.
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IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF COOK COUNTY, ILLINOIS COUNTY DEPARTMENT - CHANCERY DIVISION BANKFINANCIAL, FSB Plaintiff, -v.LINDA JARINA, BANKFINANCIAL, F.S.B., PALOS PLACE CONDOMINIUM ASSOCIATION, UNKNOWN HEIRS AND LEGATEES OF JOYCE JARINA F/K/A JOYCE E. DAMON, LAURA ZOULEK, KEVIN R. JARINA, LENORE GOSLAWSKI, UNKNOWN HEIRS AND LEGATEES OF KENNETH J. JARINA, UNKNOWN OWNERS AND NONRECORD CLAIMANTS, WILLIAM P. BUTCHER, AS SPECIAL REPRESENTATIVE FOR JOYCE JARINA F/K/A JOYCE E. DAMON (DECEASED) Defendants 14 CH 005415 10561 PALOS PLACE UNIT C PALOS HILLS, IL 60465 NOTICE OF SALE PUBLIC NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale entered in the above cause on August 28, 2014, an agent for The Judicial Sales Corporation, will at 10:30 AM on January 6, 2015, at The Judicial Sales Corporation, One South Wacker Drive - 24th Floor, CHICAGO, IL, 60606, sell at public auction to the highest bidder, as set forth below, the following described real estate: Commonly known as 10561 PALOS PLACE UNIT C, PALOS HILLS, IL 60465 Property Index No. 23-13-103-030-1027. The real estate is improved with a condo/townhouse. Sale terms: 25% down RI WKH KLJKHVW ELG E\ FHUWLÂżHG IXQGV DW WKH FORVH of the sale payable to The Judicial Sales Corporation. No third party checks will be accepted. The balance, including the Judicial sale fee for Abandoned Residential Property Municipality Relief Fund, which is calculated on residential real estate at the rate of $1 for each $1,000 or fraction thereof of the amount paid by the purchaser not WR H[FHHG LQ FHUWLÂżHG IXQGV RU ZLUH WUDQVIHU is due within twenty-four (24) hours. No fee shall be paid by the mortgagee acquiring the residential real estate pursuant to its credit bid at the sale or by any mortgagee, judgment creditor, or other lienor acquiring the residential real estate whose rights in and to the residential real estate arose prior to the sale. The subject property is subject to general real estate taxes, special assessments, or special taxes levied against said real estate and is offered for sale without any representation as to quality or quantity of title and without recourse to Plaintiff and in â&#x20AC;&#x153;AS ISâ&#x20AC;? condition. The sale is IXUWKHU VXEMHFW WR FRQÂżUPDWLRQ E\ WKH FRXUW 8SRQ payment in full of the amount bid, the purchaser ZLOO UHFHLYH D &HUWLÂżFDWH RI 6DOH WKDW ZLOO HQWLWOH the purchaser to a deed to the real estate after FRQÂżUPDWLRQ RI WKH VDOH 7KH SURSHUW\ ZLOO 127 be open for inspection and plaintiff makes no representation as to the condition of the property. Prospective bidders are admonished to check the FRXUW ÂżOH WR YHULI\ DOO LQIRUPDWLRQ ,I WKLV SURSHUW\ is a condominium unit, the purchaser of the unit at the foreclosure sale, other than a mortgagee, shall pay the assessments and the legal fees required by The Condominium Property Act, 765 ILCS 605/9(g)(1) and (g)(4). If this property is a condominium unit which is part of a common interest community, the purchaser of the unit at the foreclosure sale other than a mortgagee shall pay the assessments required by The Condominium Property Act, 765 ILCS 605/18.5(g-1). IF YOU ARE THE MORTGAGOR (HOMEOWNER), YOU HAVE THE RIGHT TO REMAIN IN POSSESSION FOR 30 DAYS AFTER ENTRY OF AN ORDER OF POSSESSION, IN ACCORDANCE WITH SECTION 15-1701(C) OF THE ILLINOIS MORTGAGE FORECLOSURE LAW. You will need a photo idenWLÂżFDWLRQ LVVXHG E\ D JRYHUQPHQW DJHQF\ GULYHUÂśV license, passport, etc.) in order to gain entry into our building and the foreclosure sale room in Cook &RXQW\ DQG WKH VDPH LGHQWLÂżFDWLRQ IRU VDOHV KHOG at other county venues where The Judicial Sales Corporation conducts foreclosure sales. For inIRUPDWLRQ H[DPLQH WKH FRXUW ÂżOH RU FRQWDFW 3ODLQWLIIÂśV DWWRUQH\ &2',/,6 $662&,$7(6 3 & 15W030 NORTH FRONTAGE ROAD, SUITE 100, BURR RIDGE, IL 60527, (630) 794-9876 Please UHIHU WR ÂżOH QXPEHU 7+( -8',&,$/ SALES CORPORATION One South Wacker Drive, 24th Floor, Chicago, IL 60606-4650 (312) 236-SALE You can also visit The Judicial Sales Corporation at www.tjsc.com for a 7 day status reSRUW RI SHQGLQJ VDOHV &2',/,6 $662&,$7(6 P.C. 15W030 NORTH FRONTAGE ROAD, SUITE 100 BURR RIDGE, IL 60527 (630) 794-5300 Attorney File No. 14-14-04768 Attorney ARDC No. 00468002 Attorney Code. 21762 Case Number: 14 CH 005415 TJSC#: 34-15641 NOTE: Pursuant to the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, you are DGYLVHG WKDW 3ODLQWLIIÂśV DWWRUQH\ LV GHHPHG WR EH D debt collector attempting to collect a debt and any information obtained will be used for that purpose. I635915
For Sale IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF COOK COUNTY, ILLINOIS COUNTY DEPARTMENT - CHANCERY DIVISION JPMORGAN CHASE BANK, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION, AS SUCCESSOR BY MERGER TO CHASE HOME FINANCE, LLC Plaintiff, -v.JEROME F. SAULINSKI, THE FOREST RIDGE AT WESTGATE VALLEY ELITE HOMES CONDOMINIUM ASSOCIATION Defendants 10 CH 024099 13453 COVE COURT UNIT #52 PALOS HEIGHTS, IL 60463 NOTICE OF SALE PUBLIC NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale entered in the above cause on October 20, 2014, an agent for The Judicial Sales Corporation, will at 10:30 AM on January 22, 2015, at The Judicial Sales Corporation, One South Wacker Drive - 24th Floor, CHICAGO, IL, 60606, sell at public auction to the highest bidder, as set forth below, the following described real estate:Commonly known as 13453 COVE COURT UNIT #52, PALOS HEIGHTS, IL 60463 Property Index No. 24-32-300-063-1007, Property Index No. (24-32-300-057-1007 underlying). The real estate is improved with a condo/townhouse. Sale terms: 25% down of the highest bid by certified funds at the close of the sale payable to The Judicial Sales Corporation. No third party checks will be accepted. The balance, including the Judicial sale fee for Abandoned Residential Property Municipality Relief Fund, which is calculated on residential real estate at the rate of $1 for each $1,000 or fraction thereof of the amount paid by the purchaser not to exceed $300, in certified funds/or wire transfer, is due within twenty-four (24) hours. No fee shall be paid by the mortgagee acquiring the residential real estate pursuant to its credit bid at the sale or by any mortgagee, judgment creditor, or other lienor acquiring the residential real estate whose rights in and to the residential real estate arose prior to the sale. The subject property is subject to general real estate taxes, special assessments, or special taxes levied against said real estate and is offered for sale without any representation as to quality or quantity of title and without recourse to Plaintiff and in â&#x20AC;&#x153;AS ISâ&#x20AC;? condition. The sale is further subject to confirmation by the court. Upon payment in full of the amount bid, the purchaser will receive a Certificate of Sale that will entitle the purchaser to a deed to the real estate after confirmation of the sale. The property will NOT be open for inspection and plaintiff makes no representation as to the condition of the property. Prospective bidders are admonished to check the court file to verify all information. If this property is a condominium unit, the purchaser of the unit at the foreclosure sale, other than a mortgagee, shall pay the assessments and the legal fees required by The Condominium Property Act, 765 ILCS 605/9(g)(1) and (g)(4). If this property is a condominium unit which is part of a common interest community, the purchaser of the unit at the foreclosure sale other than a mortgagee shall pay the assessments required by The Condominium Property Act, 765 ILCS 605/18.5(g-1). IF YOU ARE THE MORTGAGOR (HOMEOWNER), YOU HAVE THE RIGHT TO REMAIN IN POSSESSION FOR 30 DAYS AFTER ENTRY OF AN ORDER OF POSSESSION, IN ACCORDANCE WITH SECTION 15-1701(C) OF THE ILLINOIS MORTGAGE FORECLOSURE LAW. You will need a photo identification issued by a government agency (driverâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s license, passport, etc.) in order to gain entry into our building and the foreclosure sale room in Cook County and the same identification for sales held at other county venues where The Judicial Sales Corporation conducts foreclosure sales. For information, examine the court file or contact Plaintiffâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s attorney: CODILIS & ASSOCIATES, P.C., 15W030 NORTH FRONTAGE ROAD, SUITE 100, BURR RIDGE, IL 60527, (630) 794-9876 Please refer to file number 14-10-04676. THE JUDICIAL SALES CORPORATION One South Wacker Drive, 24th Floor, Chicago, IL 60606-4650 (312) 236-SALE You can also visit The Judicial Sales Corporation at www.tjsc.com for a 7 day status report of pending sales. CODILIS & ASSOCIATES, P.C. 15W030 NORTH FRONTAGE ROAD, SUITE 100 BURR RIDGE, IL 60527 (630) 794-5300 Attorney File No. 14-10-04676 Attorney ARDC No. 00468002 Attorney Code. 21762 Case Number: 10 CH 024099 TJSC#: 34-18804 NOTE: Pursuant to the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, you are advised that Plaintiffâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s attorney is deemed to be a debt collector attempting to collect a debt and any information obtained will be used for that purpose. I638367
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â&#x20AC;&#x153;10 in the Parkâ&#x20AC;? For Sale IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF COOK COUNTY, ILLINOIS COUNTY DEPARTMENT - CHANCERY DIVISION WELLS FARGO BANK, N.A. SUCCESSOR BY MERGER TO WELLS FARGO BANK SOUTHWEST, N.A. FKA WACHOVIA MORTGAGE, FSB FKA WORLD SAVINGS BANK, FSB Plaintiff, -v.WILLIAM P. PALAIMA A/K/A WILLIAM PALAIMA, YORKSHIRE ESTATES CONDOMINIUMS ASSOCIATION Defendants 14 CH 10307 7955 WEST 90TH STREET UNIT 3B HICKORY HILLS, IL 60457 NOTICE OF SALE PUBLIC NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale entered in the above cause on October 3, 2014, an agent for The Judicial Sales Corporation, will at 10:30 AM on January 27, 2015, at The Judicial Sales Corporation, One South Wacker Drive - 24th Floor, CHICAGO, IL, 60606, sell at public auction to the highest bidder, as set forth below, the following described real estate: Commonly known as 7955 WEST 90TH STREET UNIT 3B, HICKORY HILLS, IL 60457 Property Index No. 23-01-107-026-1024, Property Index No. 23-01-107-026-1046. The real estate is improved with a two story single family home; detached one car garage. Sale terms: 25% down of the highest bid by certified funds at the close of the sale payable to The Judicial Sales Corporation. No third party checks will be accepted. The balance, including the Judicial sale fee for Abandoned Residential Property Municipality Relief Fund, which is calculated on residential real estate at the rate of $1 for each $1,000 or fraction thereof of the amount paid by the purchaser not to exceed $300, in certified funds/or wire transfer, is due within twenty-four (24) hours. No fee shall be paid by the mortgagee acquiring the residential real estate pursuant to its credit bid at the sale or by any mortgagee, judgment creditor, or other lienor acquiring the residential real estate whose rights in and to the residential real estate arose prior to the sale. The subject property is subject to general real estate taxes, special assessments, or special taxes levied against said real estate and is offered for sale without any representation as to quality or quantity of title and without recourse to Plaintiff and in â&#x20AC;&#x153;AS ISâ&#x20AC;? condition. The sale is further subject to confirmation by the court. Upon payment in full of the amount bid, the purchaser will receive a Certificate of Sale that will entitle the purchaser to a deed to the real estate after confirmation of the sale. The property will NOT be open for inspection and plaintiff makes no representation as to the condition of the property. Prospective bidders are admonished to check the court file to verify all information. If this property is a condominium unit, the purchaser of the unit at the foreclosure sale, other than a mortgagee, shall pay the assessments and the legal fees required by The Condominium Property Act, 765 ILCS 605/9(g)(1) and (g)(4). If this property is a condominium unit which is part of a common interest community, the purchaser of the unit at the foreclosure sale other than a mortgagee shall pay the assessments required by The Condominium Property Act, 765 ILCS 605/18.5(g-1). IF YOU ARE THE MORTGAGOR (HOMEOWNER), YOU HAVE THE RIGHT TO REMAIN IN POSSESSION FOR 30 DAYS AFTER ENTRY OF AN ORDER OF POSSESSION, IN ACCORDANCE WITH SECTION 15-1701(C) OF THE ILLINOIS MORTGAGE FORECLOSURE LAW. You will need a photo identification issued by a government agency (driverâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s license, passport, etc.) in order to gain entry into our building and the foreclosure sale room in Cook County and the same identification for sales held at other county venues where The Judicial Sales Corporation conducts foreclosure sales. For information: Visit our website at service. atty-pierce.com. between the hours of 3 and 5 pm. PIERCE & ASSOCIATES, Plaintiffâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Attorneys, One North Dearborn Street Suite 1300, CHICAGO, IL 60602. Tel No. (312) 476-5500. Please refer to file number PA1404607. THE JUDICIAL SALES CORPORATION One South Wacker Drive, 24th Floor, Chicago, IL 60606-4650 (312) 236-SALE You can also visit The Judicial Sales Corporation at www.tjsc.com for a 7 day status report of pending sales. PIERCE & ASSOCIATES One North Dearborn Street Suite 1300 CHICAGO, IL 60602 (312) 476-5500 Attorney File No. PA1404607 Attorney Code. 91220 Case Number: 14 CH 10307 TJSC#: 34-17473 I638014
For Sale IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF COOK COUNTY, Illinois, County Department, Chancery Division. Citizens Financial Bank, Plaintiff, vs. Wolf Properties, LLC, Fathi Abdallah, Ibtisam Abdallah, Hani F. Abdallah, Ali H. Kutom, Ghassan Abdallah, Unknown Owners, Unknown Occupants, Unknown Tenants, and Non-Record Claimants, Defendants. 13 CH 21751; Sheriff's No. 140858-001F. Pursuant to a Judgment made and entered by said
For Sale
For Sale
R e f . N o . 1 4 - 0 1 7 3 7 IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF C O O K C O U N T Y, I L L I N O I S COUNTY DEPARTMENT - CHANCERY DIVISION C I T I M O R T G A G E , I N C . , P l a i n t i f f , v s . MICHAEL R. WHALEY A/K/A MICHAEL REYNARD WHALEY AND KARLENE M. W H A L E Y A / K / A K A R L E N E M I C H E L L E W H A L E Y, C I T I B A N K , N . A . , D e f e n d a n t s , 1 4 C H 9 6 5 5 C a l e n d a r 6 0 N O T I C E O F S A L E PUBLIC NOTICE is hereby given that pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure entered in the above entitled cause on September 10, 2014, Intercounty Judicial Sales Corporation will on Monday, January 12, 2015, at the hour of 11 a.m. in their office at 120 West Madison Street, Suite 718A, Chicago, Illinois, sell to the highest bidder for cash, the following described mortgaged real estate: Commonly known as 6717 W. SHIAWASS I E D R . , PA L O S H E I G H T S , I L 6 0 4 6 3 . P. I . N . 24-30-415-015-0000. The mortgaged real estate is improved with a single family residence. If the subject mortgaged real estate is a unit of a common interest community, the purchaser of the unit other than a mortgagee shall pay the assessments required by subsection (g-1) of Section 18.5 of the Condominium Property Act. Sale terms: 10% down by certified funds, balance within 24 hours, by certified funds. No refunds. The property will NOT be open for inspection. For information call Mr. Ira T. Nevel at Plaintiffâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Attorney, Law Offices of Ira T. Nevel, 175 North Franklin Street, Chicago, Illinois 60606. (312) 357-1125. Ref. No. 14-01737 INTERCOUNTY JUDICIAL SALES CORPORATION S e l l i n g O ff i c e r, ( 3 1 2 ) 4 4 4 - 11 2 2
IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF COOK C O U N T Y, I L L I N O I S C O U N T Y D E PA R T M E N T - C H A N C E R Y D I V I S I O N WELLS FARGO BANK, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION, TRUSTEE FOR THE CERTIFICATEHOLDERS OF FIRST FRANKLIN MORTGAGE LOAN TRUST 2004-FF4, MORTGAGE PASSTHROUGH CERTIFICATES, SERIES 2004-FF4 P l a i n t i f f , v . SAWSON HADDAD A/K/A SAWSON R. HADDAD, RAJAEI HADDAD A/K/A RAJAEI J. HADDAD A/K/A RAY HADDAD, CHICAGO TITLE LAND TRUST COMPANY, AS TRUSTEE U/T/A DATED 1ST DAY OF APRIL, 1999 A/K/A TRUST NO. 1107004, INLAND BANK AND TRUST, MIDLAND FUNDING, LLC, INTEGRA BANK NATIONAL ASSOCIATION, STATE OF ILLINOIS, UNKNOWN BENEFICIARIES OF CHICAGO TITLE LAND TRUST COMPANY, AS TRUSTEE U/T/A DATED 1ST DAY OF APRIL, 1999 A/K/A TRUST NO. 1107004, UNKNOWN OWNERS AND NONRECORD CLAIMANTS D e f e n d a n t s 1 1 C H 0 2 8 0 5 5 17128 POINTE DRIVE ORLAND PARK, IL 60467 NOTICE OF SALE PUBLIC NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale entered in the above cause on November 15, 2012, an agent for The Judicial Sales Corporation, will at 10:30 AM on January 15, 2015, at The Judicial Sales Corporation, One South Wacker Drive - 24th Floor, CHICAGO, IL, 60606, sell at public auction to the highest bidder, as set forth below, the following described real estate: Commonly known as 17128 POINTE DRIVE, ORLAND PARK, IL 60467 Property Index No. 27-29-313-003. The real estate is improved with a single family residence. Sale terms: 25% down of the highest bid by certified funds at the close of the sale payable to The Judicial Sales Corporation. No third party checks will be accepted. The balance, including the Judicial sale fee for Abandoned Residential Property Municipality Relief Fund, which is calculated on residential real estate at the rate of $1 for each $1,000 or fraction thereof of the amount paid by the purchaser not to exceed $300, in certified funds/or wire transfer, is due within twenty-four (24) hours. No fee shall be paid by the mortgagee acquiring the residential real estate pursuant to its credit bid at the sale or by any mortgagee, judgment creditor, or other lienor acquiring the residential real estate whose rights in and to the residential real estate arose prior to the sale. The subject property is subject to general real estate taxes, special assessments, or special taxes levied against said real estate and is offered for sale without any representation as to quality or quantity of title and without recourse to Plaintiff and in â&#x20AC;&#x153;AS ISâ&#x20AC;? condition. The sale is further subject to confirmation by the court. Upon payment in full of the amount bid, the purchaser will receive a Certificate of Sale that will entitle the purchaser to a deed to the real estate after confirmation of the sale. The property will NOT be open for inspection and plaintiff makes no representation as to the condition of the property. Prospective bidders are admonished to check the court file to verify all information. If this property is a condominium unit, the purchaser of the unit at the foreclosure sale, other than a mortgagee, shall pay the assessments and the legal fees required by The Condominium Property Act, 765 ILCS 605/9(g)(1) and (g)(4). If this property is a condominium unit which is part of a common interest community, the purchaser of the unit at the foreclosure sale other than a mortgagee shall pay the assessments required by The Condominium Property Act, 765 ILCS 605/18.5(g-1). IF YOU ARE THE MORTGAGOR (HOMEOWNER), YOU HAVE THE RIGHT TO REMAIN IN POSSESSION FOR 30 DAYS AFTER ENTRY OF AN ORDER OF POSSESSION, IN ACCORDANCE WITH SECTION 15-1701(C) OF THE ILLINOIS MORTGAGE FORECLOSURE LAW. You will need a photo identification issued by a government agency (driverâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s license, passport, etc.) in order to gain entry into our building and the foreclosure sale room in Cook County and the same identification for sales held at other county venues where The Judicial Sales Corporation conducts foreclosure sales. For information, examine the court file or contact Plaintiffâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s attorney: CODILIS & ASSOCIATES, P.C., 15W030 NORTH FRONTAGE ROAD, SUITE 100, BURR RIDGE, IL 60527, (630) 794-9876 Please refer to file number 14-11-18640. THE JUDICIAL SALES CORPORATION One South Wacker Drive, 24th Floor, Chicago, IL 60606-4650 (312) 236-SALE You can also visit The Judicial Sales Corporation at www.tjsc.com for a 7 day status report of pending sales. CODILIS & ASSOCIATES, P.C. 15W030 NORTH FRONTAGE ROAD, SUITE 100 BURR RIDGE, IL 60527 (630) 794-5300 Attorney File No. 14-11-18640 Attorney ARDC No. 00468002 Attorney Code. 21762 Case Number: 11 CH 028055 TJSC#: 34-20866 NOTE: Pursuant to the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, you are advised that Plaintiffâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s attorney is deemed to be a debt collector attempting to collect a debt and any information obtained will be used for that purpose. I637239
For Sale IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF COOK COUNTY, I L L I N O I S COUNTY DEPARTMENT - CHANCERY DIVISION BANK OF AMERICA, N.A. P l a i n t i f f , v s . GHADA SHAABNAH; MORTGAGE ELECTRONIC REGISTRATION SYSTEMS, INC., AS NOMINEE F O R COUNTRYWIDE BANK, N.A.; D e f e n d a n t s , 10 CH 37060 NOTICE OF SALE PUBLIC NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale entered in the above entitled cause Intercounty Judicial Sales Corporation will on Friday, January 9, 2015 at the hour of 11 a.m. in their office at 120 West Madison Street, Suite 718A, Chicago, Illinois, sell at public auction to the highest bidder for cash, as set forth below, the following described mortgaged real estate: Commonly known as 10601 South 80th Court, Palos Hills, IL 60465. P.I.N. 23-14-217-037-0000. The mortgaged real estate is improved with a single family residence. If the subject mortgaged real estate is a unit of a common interest community, the purchaser of the unit other than a mortgagee shall pay the assessments required by subsection (g-1) of Section 18.5 of the Condominium Property Act. Sale terms: 10% down by certified funds, balance, by certified funds, within 24 hours. No refunds. The property will NOT be open for inspection For information call Sales Department at Plaintiff's Attorney, Manley Deas Kochalski, LLC, One East Wacker Drive, Chicago, Illinois 60601. (614) 220-5611. 1 0 2 0 6 1 8 INTERCOUNTY JUDICIAL SALES CORPORATION Selling Officer, (312) 444-1122 I636092
ATTENTION Real Estate Brokers and Private Parties! Reach thousands by advertising on this page.
PUBLISHERâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S NOTICE All Real Estate advertising in this newspaper is subject to the Fair Housing Act which makes it illegal to advertise â&#x20AC;&#x153;any preference, limitation or discrimination.â&#x20AC;? Familial status includes children under the age of 18 living with parents or legal custodians, pregnant women and people securing custody of children under 18.
Court in the above entitled cause, Thomas J. Dart, Sheriff of Cook County, Illinois, will on February 2, 2015, at 1:00 P.M. in Room LL06 of the Richard J. Daley Center, 50 W. Washington Street, Chicago, IL, sell at public auction the following described premises and real estate mentioned in said Judgment: P.I.N.:
Thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s something for everyone in the Classifieds!
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27-32-101-009-0000.Address: 17831-49 Wolf Road, Orland Park, IL 60467.Improvements: The Property is non-residential and consists of a commercial retail strip center.Sale shall be under the following terms: 10% down by certified funds, balance, by certified funds, within 24 hours. No refunds.Sale shall be subject to general taxes, special assessments, and prior first mortgages. Premises will NOT be open for inspection. For information: Bryan E. Jacobson, Chapman and Cutler LLP, Plaintiff's Attorneys, 111 W. Monroe St., Chicago, IL 60603, Tel. No. 312-845-3000.This is an attempt to collect a debt pursuant to the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act and any information obtained will be used for that purpose.I637689
This newspaper will not knowingly accept any advertising for real estate which is in violation of the law. Our readers are herby informed that all dwellings advertised in this newspaper are available on an equal opportunity basis. To complain of discrimination call HUD toll-free at 1 (800) 669-9777. The toll-free telephone number for the hearing impaired is: 1 (800) 927-9275.
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Section 2
Thursday, December 25, 2014
The Regional News - The Reporter
Real Estate
The Reporter Newspapers Deadline 5 p.m. Monday
For Sale
For Sale
Hours M-F 9 to 5 Sat. 9 to Noon
IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF COOK COUNTY, ILLINOIS COUNTY DEPARTMENT - CHANCERY DIVISION
IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF COOK COUNTY, ILLINOIS COUNTY DEPARTMENT - CHANCERY DIVISION FEDERAL NATIONAL MORTGAGE ASSOCIATION Plaintiff, -v.WALDEMAR DZBIK, MONIKA DZBIK, SOUTH CENTRAL BANK, N.A., M&I BANK FSB Defendants 09 CH 024952 9720 MAPLE CREST COURT PALOS HILLS, IL 60465 NOTICE OF SALE PUBLIC NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale entered in the above cause on October 7, 2014, an agent for The Judicial Sales Corporation, will at 10:30 AM on January 9, 2015, at The Judicial Sales Corporation, One South Wacker Drive - 24th Floor, CHICAGO, IL, 60606, sell at public auction to the highest bidder, as set forth below, the following described real estate: Commonly known as 9720 MAPLE CREST COURT, PALOS HILLS, IL 60465 Property Index No. 23-10-208-026. The real estate is improved with a residence. Sale terms: 25% down RI WKH KLJKHVW ELG E\ FHUWLÂżHG IXQGV DW WKH FORVH RI the sale payable to The Judicial Sales Corporation. No third party checks will be accepted. The balance, including the Judicial sale fee for Abandoned Residential Property Municipality Relief Fund, which is calculated on residential real estate at the rate of $1 for each $1,000 or fraction thereof of the amount paid by the purchaser not WR H[FHHG LQ FHUWLÂżHG IXQGV RU ZLUH WUDQVIHU is due within twenty-four (24) hours. No fee shall be paid by the mortgagee acquiring the residential real estate pursuant to its credit bid at the sale or by any mortgagee, judgment creditor, or other lienor acquiring the residential real estate whose rights in and to the residential real estate arose prior to the sale. The subject property is subject to general real estate taxes, special assessments, or special taxes levied against said real estate and is offered for sale without any representation as to quality or quantity of title and without recourse to Plaintiff and in â&#x20AC;&#x153;AS ISâ&#x20AC;? condition. The sale is IXUWKHU VXEMHFW WR FRQÂżUPDWLRQ E\ WKH FRXUW 8SRQ payment in full of the amount bid, the purchaser ZLOO UHFHLYH D &HUWLÂżFDWH RI 6DOH WKDW ZLOO HQWLWOH the purchaser to a deed to the real estate after FRQÂżUPDWLRQ RI WKH VDOH 7KH SURSHUW\ ZLOO 127 be open for inspection and plaintiff makes no representation as to the condition of the property. Prospective bidders are admonished to check the FRXUW ÂżOH WR YHULI\ DOO LQIRUPDWLRQ ,I WKLV SURSHUW\ is a condominium unit, the purchaser of the unit at the foreclosure sale, other than a mortgagee, shall pay the assessments and the legal fees required by The Condominium Property Act, 765 ,/&6 J DQG J ,I WKLV SURSHUW\ LV D condominium unit which is part of a common interest community, the purchaser of the unit at the foreclosure sale other than a mortgagee shall pay the assessments required by The Condominium 3URSHUW\ $FW ,/&6 J ,) <28 ARE THE MORTGAGOR (HOMEOWNER), YOU HAVE THE RIGHT TO REMAIN IN POSSESSION FOR 30 DAYS AFTER ENTRY OF AN ORDER OF POSSESSION, IN ACCORDANCE WITH SECTION 15-1701(C) OF THE ILLINOIS MORTGAGE FORECLOSURE LAW. You will need a photo idenWLÂżFDWLRQ LVVXHG E\ D JRYHUQPHQW DJHQF\ GULYHUÂśV license, passport, etc.) in order to gain entry into our building and the foreclosure sale room in Cook &RXQW\ DQG WKH VDPH LGHQWLÂżFDWLRQ IRU VDOHV KHOG at other county venues where The Judicial Sales Corporation conducts foreclosure sales. For inIRUPDWLRQ H[DPLQH WKH FRXUW ÂżOH RU FRQWDFW 3ODLQWLIIÂśV DWWRUQH\ &2',/,6 $662&,$7(6 3 & 15W030 NORTH FRONTAGE ROAD, SUITE 100, BURR RIDGE, IL 60527, (630) 794-9876 Please UHIHU WR ÂżOH QXPEHU 7+( -8',&,$/ SALES CORPORATION One South Wacker Drive, 24th Floor, Chicago, IL 60606-4650 (312) 236-SALE You can also visit The Judicial Sales Corporation at www.tjsc.com for a 7 day status report of pending sales. CODILIS & ASSOCIATES, P.C. 15W030 NORTH FRONTAGE ROAD, SUITE 100 BURR RIDGE, IL 60527 (630) 794-5300 Attorney File No. 14-09-16985 Attorney ARDC No. 00468002 Attorney Code. 21762 Case Number: 09 CH 024952 TJSC#: 34-18355 NOTE: Pursuant to the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, you are DGYLVHG WKDW 3ODLQWLIIÂśV DWWRUQH\ LV GHHPHG WR EH D debt collector attempting to collect a debt and any information obtained will be used for that purpose. I636450
WELLS FARGO BANK, N.A. Plaintiff, -v.JEFFREY M. THORNTON AKA JEFFREY THORNTON AKA JEFF M. THORNTON, SUSAN L. THORNTON AKA SUSAN THORNTON, BRIDGEVIEW BANK GROUP, CAPITAL ONE BANK (USA), N.A., UNKNOWN OWNERS AND NONRECORD CLAIMANTS Defendants 14 CH 8355 10108 SOUTH BUELL COURT Oak Lawn, IL 60453 NOTICE OF SALE PUBLIC NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale entered in the above cause on October 14, 2014, an agent for The Judicial Sales Corporation, will at 10:30 AM on January 15, 2015, at The Judicial Sales Corporation, One South Wacker Drive - 24th Floor, CHICAGO, IL, 60606, sell at public auction to the highest bidder, as set forth below, the following described real estate: Commonly known as 10108 SOUTH BUELL COURT, Oak Lawn, IL 60453 Property Index No. 24-09-315-031-0000. The real estate is improved with a single family residence. The judgment amount was $139,709.47. Sale terms: 25% down of the highest bid by certiÂżHG IXQGV DW WKH FORVH RI WKH VDOH SD\DEOH WR 7KH Judicial Sales Corporation. No third party checks will be accepted. The balance, including the Judicial sale fee for Abandoned Residential Property Municipality Relief Fund, which is calculated on residential real estate at the rate of $1 for each $1,000 or fraction thereof of the amount paid by WKH SXUFKDVHU QRW WR H[FHHG LQ FHUWLÂżHG funds/or wire transfer, is due within twenty-four (24) hours. No fee shall be paid by the mortgagee acquiring the residential real estate pursuant to its credit bid at the sale or by any mortgagee, judgment creditor, or other lienor acquiring the residential real estate whose rights in and to the residential real estate arose prior to the sale. The subject property is subject to general real estate taxes, special assessments, or special taxes levied against said real estate and is offered for sale without any representation as to quality or quantity of title and without recourse to Plaintiff and in AS ,6 FRQGLWLRQ 7KH VDOH LV IXUWKHU VXEMHFW WR FRQÂżUmation by the court. Upon payment in full of the amount bid, the purFKDVHU ZLOO UHFHLYH D &HUWLÂżFDWH RI 6DOH WKDW ZLOO entitle the purchaser to a deed to the real estate DIWHU FRQÂżUPDWLRQ RI WKH VDOH The property will NOT be open for inspection and plaintiff makes no representation as to the condition of the property. Prospective bidders are DGPRQLVKHG WR FKHFN WKH FRXUW ÂżOH WR YHULI\ DOO LQformation. If this property is a condominium unit, or a unit which is part of a common interest community, the purchaser of the unit at the foreclosure sale, other than a mortgagee, shall pay the assessments and the legal fees required by The Condominium Property Act, 765 ILCS 605/9(g)(1) and (g)(4). In accordance with 735 ILCS 5/15-1507(c)(1)(h-1) and (h-2), 765 ILCS 605/9(g)(5), and 765 ILCS J \RX DUH KHUHE\ QRWLÂżHG WKDW WKH purchaser of the property, other than a mortgagee, shall pay the assessments and legal fees required by subsections (g)(1) and (g)(4) of section 9 and the assessments required by subsection (g-1) of section 18.5 of the Illinois Condominium Property Act. IF YOU ARE THE MORTGAGOR (HOMEOWNER), YOU HAVE THE RIGHT TO REMAIN IN POSSESSION FOR 30 DAYS AFTER ENTRY OF AN ORDER OF POSSESSION, IN ACCORDANCE WITH SECTION 15-1701(C) OF THE ILLINOIS MORTGAGE FORECLOSURE LAW. <RX ZLOO QHHG D SKRWR LGHQWLÂżFDWLRQ LVVXHG E\ D government agency (driverâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s license, passport, etc.) in order to gain entry into our building and the foreclosure sale room in Cook County and the VDPH LGHQWLÂżFDWLRQ IRU VDOHV KHOG DW RWKHU FRXQW\ venues where The Judicial Sales Corporation conducts foreclosure sales. For information, contact the sales department, FREEDMAN ANSELMO LINDBERG LLC, 1771 W. Diehl Road, Suite 120, NAPERVILLE, IL 60563, (630) 453-6960 For bidding instructions, YLVLW ZZZ IDO LOOLQRLV FRP 3OHDVH UHIHU WR ÂżOH QXPber F14040007. ,I WKH VDOH LV QRW FRQÂżUPHG IRU DQ\ UHDVRQ WKH 3XUchaser at the sale may be entitled at most only to a return of the purchase price paid. The Purchaser shall have no further recourse against the Mortgagor, the Mortgagee, the Mortgagee s attorney, RU WKH FRXUW DSSRLQWHG VHOOLQJ RIÂżFHU THE JUDICIAL SALES CORPORATION One South Wacker Drive, 24th Floor, Chicago, IL 60606-4650 (312) 236-SALE You can also visit The Judicial Sales Corporation at www.tjsc.com for a 7 day status report of pending sales. FREEDMAN ANSELMO LINDBERG LLC 1771 W. Diehl Road, Suite 120 NAPERVILLE, IL 60563 (630) 453-6960 E-Mail: foreclosurenotice@fal-illinois.com Attorney File No. F14040007 Attorney ARDC No. 3126232 Attorney Code. 26122 Case Number: 14 CH 8355 TJSC#: 34-19107 NOTE: Pursuant to the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, you are advised that Plaintiff s attorney is deemed to be a debt collector attempting to collect a debt and any information obtained will be used for that purpose.
For Sale IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF COOK COUNTY, I L L I N O I S COUNTY DEPARTMENT - CHANCERY DIVISION BANK OF AMERICA, NA; SUCCESSOR BY MERGER TO BAC HOME LOANS SERVICING LP FKA C O U N T R Y W I D E HOME LOANS SERVICING, LP; P l a i n t i f f , v s . MOUNCEF ELALAMY; NADIA BOUKILI; TCF N A T I O N A L B A N K ; D e f e n d a n t s , 12 CH 7227 NOTICE OF SALE PUBLIC NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale entered in the above entitled cause Intercounty Judicial Sales Corporation will on Monday, January 12, 2015 at the hour of 11 a.m. in their office at 120 West Madison Street, Suite 718A, Chicago, Illinois, sell at public auction to the highest bidder for cash, as set forth below, the following described mortgaged real estate: Commonly known as 10300 South 83rd Avenue, Palos Hills, IL 60465. P.I.N. 23-14-219-054-0000. The mortgaged real estate is improved with a single family residence. If the subject mortgaged real estate is a unit of a common interest community, the purchaser of the unit other than a mortgagee shall pay the assessments required by subsection (g-1) of Section 18.5 of the Condominium Property Act. Sale terms: 10% down by certified funds, balance, by certified funds, within 24 hours. No refunds. The property will NOT be open for inspection For information call Sales Department at Plaintiff's Attorney, Manley Deas Kochalski, LLC, One East Wacker Drive, Chicago, Illinois 60601. (614) 220-5611. 1 4 0 1 7 3 5 5 INTERCOUNTY JUDICIAL SALES CORPORATION Selling Officer, (312) 444-1122 I637342
For Sale For Sale IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF COOK COUNTY, I L L I N O I S COUNTY DEPARTMENT - CHANCERY DIVISION HUDSON CITY SAVINGS BANK, FSB; P l a i n t i f f , v s . LISA BRANDAU; FREDERICK BRANDAU; J P M O R G A N CHASE BANK NA; Defendants, 12 CH 40831 NOTICE OF SALE PUBLIC NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale entered in the above entitled cause Intercounty Judicial Sales Corporation will on Wednesday, January 14, 2015 at the hour of 11 a.m. in their office at 120 West Madison Street, Suite 718A, Chicago, Illinois, sell at public auction to the highest bidder for cash, as set forth below, the following described mortgaged real estate: Commonly known as 12327 South 71st Court, Palos Heights, IL 60463. P.I.N. 24-30-301-003-0000. The mortgaged real estate is improved with a single family residence. If the subject mortgaged real estate is a unit of a common interest community, the purchaser of the unit other than a mortgagee shall pay the assessments required by subsection (g-1) of Section 18.5 of the Condominium Property Act. Sale terms: 10% down by certified funds, balance, by certified funds, within 24 hours. No refunds. The property will NOT be open for inspection For information call Sales Department at Plaintiff's Attorney, Manley Deas Kochalski, LLC, One East Wacker Drive, Chicago, Illinois 60601. (614) 220-5611. 1 2 0 2 6 4 5 7 INTERCOUNTY JUDICIAL SALES CORPORATION Selling Officer, (312) 444-1122 I637394
Thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s something for everyone in the Classifieds!
R e f . N o . 1 2 - 0 2 4 5 6 IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF C O O K C O U N T Y, I L L I N O I S COUNTY DEPARTMENT - CHANCERY DIVISION U.S. BANK TRUST, N.A., AS TRUSTEE FOR LSF8 M A S T E R P A R T I C I P A T I O N T R U S T, P l a i n t i f f , v s . C A R O L E A . R A M E Y , D e f e n d a n t s , 1 2 C H 2 6 9 8 5 C a l e n d a r 6 0 N O T I C E O F S A L E PUBLIC NOTICE is hereby given that pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure entered in the above entitled cause on October 2, 2014, Intercounty Judicial Sales Corporation will on Tuesday, January 13, 2015, at the hour of 11 a.m. in their office at 120 West Madison Street, Suite 718A, Chicago, Illinois, sell to the highest bidder for cash, the following described mortgaged real estate: Commonly known as 9857 S. LAWNDALE AVE, EVERGREEN PARK, ILLINOIS 60805. P . I . N . 2 4 - 1 1 - 1 3 0 - 0 5 4 . The mortgaged real estate is improved with a single family residence. If the subject mortgaged real estate is a unit of a common interest community, the purchaser of the unit other than a mortgagee shall pay the assessments required by subsection (g-1) of Section 18.5 of the Condominium Property Act. Sale terms: 10% down by certified funds, balance within 24 hours, by certified funds. No refunds. The property will NOT be open for inspection. For information call Mr. Ira T. Nevel at Plaintiffâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Attorney, Law Offices of Ira T. Nevel, 175 North Franklin Street, Chicago, Illinois 60606. (312) 357-1125. Ref. No. 12-02456 INTERCOUNTY JUDICIAL SALES CORPORATION Selling Officer, (312) 444-1122
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For Sale IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF COOK COUNTY, ILLINOIS COUNTY DEPARTMENT - CHANCERY DIVISION INTERBANK MORTGAGE COMPANY Plaintiff, -v.TADEUSZ SZWAJNOS, IZABELA SZWAJNOS, CITIBANK, N.A. S/I/I TO CITIBANK (SOUTH DAKOTA), N.A. Defendants 12 CH 17271 8824 WEST 92ND PLACE HICKORY HILLS, IL 60457 NOTICE OF SALE PUBLIC NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale entered in the above cause on October 27, 2014, an agent for The Judicial Sales Corporation, will at 10:30 AM on January 28, 2015, at The Judicial Sales Corporation, One South Wacker Drive - 24th Floor, CHICAGO, IL, 60606, sell at public auction to the highest bidder, as set forth below, the following described real estate:Commonly known as 8824 WEST 92ND PLACE, HICKORY HILLS, IL 60457 Property Index No. 23-03-412-091-0000. The real estate is improved with a single family home with an attached 2 car garage. Sale terms: 25% down of the highest bid by certified funds at the close of the sale payable to The Judicial Sales Corporation. No third party checks will be accepted. The balance, including the Judicial sale fee for Abandoned Residential Property Municipality Relief Fund, which is calculated on residential real estate at the rate of $1 for each $1,000 or fraction thereof of the amount paid by the purchaser not to exceed $300, in certified funds/or wire transfer, is due within twenty-four (24) hours. No fee shall be paid by the mortgagee acquiring the residential real estate pursuant to its credit bid at the sale or by any mortgagee, judgment creditor, or other lienor acquiring the residential real estate whose rights in and to the residential real estate arose prior to the sale. The subject property is subject to general real estate taxes, special assessments, or special taxes levied against said real estate and is offered for sale without any representation as to quality or quantity of title and without recourse to Plaintiff and in â&#x20AC;&#x153;AS ISâ&#x20AC;? condition. The sale is further subject to confirmation by the court. Upon payment in full of the amount bid, the purchaser will receive a Certificate of Sale that will entitle the purchaser to a deed to the real estate after confirmation of the sale. The property will NOT be open for inspection and plaintiff makes no representation as to the condition of the property. Prospective bidders are admonished to check the court file to verify all information. If this property is a condominium unit, the purchaser of the unit at the foreclosure sale, other than a mortgagee, shall pay the assessments and the legal fees required by The Condominium Property Act, 765 ILCS 605/9(g)(1) and (g)(4). If this property is a condominium unit which is part of a common interest community, the purchaser of the unit at the foreclosure sale other than a mortgagee shall pay the assessments required by The Condominium Property Act, 765 ILCS 605/18.5(g-1). IF YOU ARE THE MORTGAGOR (HOMEOWNER), YOU HAVE THE RIGHT TO REMAIN IN POSSESSION FOR 30 DAYS AFTER ENTRY OF AN ORDER OF POSSESSION, IN ACCORDANCE WITH SECTION 15-1701(C) OF THE ILLINOIS MORTGAGE FORECLOSURE LAW. You will need a photo identification issued by a government agency (driverâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s license, passport, etc.) in order to gain entry into our building and the foreclosure sale room in Cook County and the same identification for sales held at other county venues where The Judicial Sales Corporation conducts foreclosure sales. For information: Visit our website at service. atty-pierce.com. between the hours of 3 and 5 pm. PIERCE & ASSOCIATES, Plaintiffâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Attorneys, One North Dearborn Street Suite 1300, CHICAGO, IL 60602. Tel No. (312) 476-5500. Please refer to file number PA1209222. THE JUDICIAL SALES CORPORATION One South Wacker Drive, 24th Floor, Chicago, IL 60606-4650 (312) 236-SALE You can also visit The Judicial Sales Corporation at www.tjsc.com for a 7 day status report of pending sales. PIERCE & ASSOCIATES One North Dearborn Street Suite 1300 CHICAGO, IL 60602 (312) 476-5500 Attorney File No. PA1209222 Attorney Code. 91220 Case Number: 12 CH 17271 TJSC#: 34-18808 I638396
For Sale IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF COOK C O U N T Y, I L L I N O I S C O U N T Y D E PA R T M E N T - C H A N C E R Y D I V I S I O N U.S. BANK, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION, AS TRUSTEE FOR THE HOLDERS OF MASTR ADJUSTABLE RATE MORTGAGES TRUST 2007-3 P l a i n t i f f , v . CHOUDHRY K. HUSSAIN AKA CHOUDRY K. HUSSAIN, SHAHIDA KAMRAM HUSSAIN D e f e n d a n t s 0 9 C H 4 0 7 9 8 8748 WEST 96TH PLACE PALOS HILLS, IL 60465 NOTICE OF SALE PUBLIC NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale entered in the above cause on October 16, 2014, an agent for The Judicial Sales Corporation, will at 10:30 AM on January 23, 2015, at The Judicial Sales Corporation, One South Wacker Drive - 24th Floor, CHICAGO, IL, 60606, sell at public auction to the highest bidder, as set forth below, the following described real estate: Commonly known as 8748 WEST 96TH PLACE, PALOS HILLS, IL 60465 Property Index No. 23-11-103-007-0000. The real estate is improved with a brick, single family home with a detached 2 car garage. Sale terms: 25% down of the highest bid by certified funds at the close of the sale payable to The Judicial Sales Corporation. No third party checks will be accepted. The balance, including the Judicial sale fee for Abandoned Residential Property Municipality Relief Fund, which is calculated on residential real estate at the rate of $1 for each $1,000 or fraction thereof of the amount paid by the purchaser not to exceed $300, in certified funds/or wire transfer, is due within twenty-four (24) hours. No fee shall be paid by the mortgagee acquiring the residential real estate pursuant to its credit bid at the sale or by any mortgagee, judgment creditor, or other lienor acquiring the residential real estate whose rights in and to the residential real estate arose prior to the sale. The subject property is subject to general real estate taxes, special assessments, or special taxes levied against said real estate and is offered for sale without any representation as to quality or quantity of title and without recourse to Plaintiff and in â&#x20AC;&#x153;AS ISâ&#x20AC;? condition. The sale is further subject to confirmation by the court. Upon payment in full of the amount bid, the purchaser will receive a Certificate of Sale that will entitle the purchaser to a deed to the real estate after confirmation of the sale. The property will NOT be open for inspection and plaintiff makes no representation as to the condition of the property. Prospective bidders are admonished to check the court file to verify all information. If this property is a condominium unit, the purchaser of the unit at the foreclosure sale, other than a mortgagee, shall pay the assessments and the legal fees required by The Condominium Property Act, 765 ILCS 605/9(g)(1) and (g)(4). If this property is a condominium unit which is part of a common interest community, the purchaser of the unit at the foreclosure sale other than a mortgagee shall pay the assessments required by The Condominium Property Act, 765 ILCS 605/18.5(g-1). IF YOU ARE THE MORTGAGOR (HOMEOWNER), YOU HAVE THE RIGHT TO REMAIN IN POSSESSION FOR 30 DAYS AFTER ENTRY OF AN ORDER OF POSSESSION, IN ACCORDANCE WITH SECTION 15-1701(C) OF THE ILLINOIS MORTGAGE FORECLOSURE LAW. You will need a photo identification issued by a government agency (driverâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s license, passport, etc.) in order to gain entry into our building and the foreclosure sale room in Cook County and the same identification for sales held at other county venues where The Judicial Sales Corporation conducts foreclosure sales. For information: Visit our website at service.atty-pierce.com. between the hours of 3 and 5 pm. PIERCE & ASSOCIATES, Plaintiffâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Attorneys, One North Dearborn Street Suite 1300, CHICAGO, IL 60602. Tel No. (312) 476-5500. Please refer to file number PA0924114. THE JUDICIAL SALES CORPORATION One South Wacker Drive, 24th Floor, Chicago, IL 60606-4650 (312) 236-SALE You can also visit The Judicial Sales Corporation at www.tjsc.com for a 7 day status report of pending sales. PIERCE & ASSOCIATES One North Dearborn Street Suite 1300 CHICAGO, IL 60602 (312) 476-5500 Attorney File No. PA0924114 Attorney Code. 91220 Case Number: 09 CH 40798 TJSC#: 34-18237 I637698
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The Regional News - The Reporter
Thursday, December 25, 2014 Section 2
Out & About
9
Your Guide to Arts and Events in the Southwest Suburbs and Beyond
Stay away from these six stinkers With 2014 coming to a close, it’s about time we look back at the year in movies. Next week you’ll hear about movies that you should actually watch. This week you get the bottom feeders — the movies that should have never been made and the all-around horrible films of 2014. With so many bad movies, five spots just wasn’t enough. Even 6 spots wasn’t enough so here are some un-honorable mentions: “Sex Tape,” “The Equalizer,” “Interstellar,” and “The November Man.” While staying away from those, don’t forget to stay away from these the bottom six of 2014.
6) Transformers: Age of Extinction
Pinto’s Popcorn Picks by Tony Pinto
don’t expect that from this. Here you have a movie about the NFL draft. You don’t really need any other reason not to watch. It’s a boring event to watch so a movie about the draft should have been sacked before kickoff. At least with the real draft we get to watch a real horror of whom the Bears waste a pick on.
4) Dracula Untold
Just what we needed — another movie in the Transformers franchise. This time we get a different cast led Mark Wahlburg. It’s a Michael Bay film that should mean something because at one point he directed good films such as “Armageddon” and “Pearl Harbor.” Transformers are getting hunted, the world’s failing to pieces, and buildings blow up for no reason. Stay far away or you just might get blown up.
5) Draft Day
If you want a real sports movie,
This film won’t be seen on too many year-end lists because most movie reviewers were smart enough not to watch it. Luckily for you, this writer wasn’t, so he can tell you from first-hand experience don’t waste your time. If you know the Dracula story this doesn’t stray far from the traditional story, so for being the untold story: what was new?
3) Transcendence
Even the biggest Johnny Depp fan will have trouble sitting through this over two hour film. A mad scientist creates artificial intelligence
that eventually tries to take over the world. In order to fully understand this mess you’ll need to watch it twice, but one watching is far more than this deserves.
2) A Million Ways to Die in the West
Written and directed by leading actor Seth MacFarlane, this film needs to die. The biggest mistake was giving MacFarlane the limelight. He is not an actor; he is a voiceover guy who is most famous for hosting the Oscars. Liam Nesson also stars in this suburban mall western. Hopefully Nesson’s payday was good because this film sure wasn’t.
1) Dumb and Dumber To
A mere 20 years after the original, we get this mess. Two bumbling idiots played by Jim Carrey, 52, and Jeff Daniels, 59, are way too old to be in this kind of film. This is basically just an unfunny rehashing of the first film. Anything positive said about this movie would be a complete lie. These are the worst of the year, the films that don’t even deserve even the dollar rental from your local Redbox machine. Stay away from these films and wait until next week when you get to see the top films of the year.
Broaden Your Horizons This Week Bridge Teen Center New Year’s Eve party The Bridge Teen Center, 15555 S. 71st Court, Orland Park, will host a New Year’s Eve Party from 9:30 p.m. to 12:30 a.m. on Wednesday, Dec. 31, with live music from the Protest and free food from Famous Dave’s and Giordano’s. Instead of paying admission, students can donate Clorox wipes, paper towels or toilet paper that will help to support The Bridge Teen Center’s free programs and events. Every student that attends will get a free T-shirt, prizes and a midnight countdown. RSVP is required. Sign up online and pick up your ticket at The Bridge. This free event is for teens in 7th through 12th grade. For more information call 532-0500.
Upcoming Labyrinth Group labyrinth walks will be held on New Year’s Day, Thursday, Jan. 1, at 10:30 a.m., and on Saturday morning, Jan. 3, at 8 a.m., at The Center, 12700 Southwest Highway, Palos Park. The labyrinth, a new large circular stone path for spiritual meditation is located at the north end of The Center parking lot. In addition to the group walks focused on welcoming in the New Year, the labyrinth is available for individual walks at any time during the month. There is no cost to those wish-
ing to walk the labyrinth and no reservations are necessary. The walks will take place rain or shine. For information, call Pastor Chris Hopkins 361-3650.
calligraphy students learn the uncial, italic, and book-hand styles of writing. They also create a small handmade book to which they add lettering and other decorations. The class meets every Monday for six sessions and costs $110. A Laughter Circle list of required supplies is available A monthly Laughter Circle at The Center. Advance registrameets at 6 p.m. this Sunday, Jan. tion is required. Call 361-3650. 4, at The Center, 12700 Southwest Highway, Palos Park. Knitting classes Laughter leader Kathy O’Brien brings laughter and all its benefits The Log Cabin Center for the to the Laughter Circle program. Arts, 12700 Southwest Highway, What’s a laughter circle? It’s Palos Park, will offer six week a group of people who want to knitting classes on Monday eveLAUGH! Not from jokes or come- nings beginning Jan. 5, 6:30 to dy routines, but rather from laugh- 8:30 p.m. and on Friday mornings, ter for its own sake. Research beginning Jan. 9, from 9:30 to shows that laughter strengthens 11:30 a.m. the immune system, reduces stress Master knitter Georgann Ring and anxiety, alleviates pain, and welcomes both beginners and exhelps people get along better. perienced knitters to her classes. O’Brien is a registered nurse Beginners will learn to use the and an Advanced Certified Laugh- knit and purl stitches, to cast on ter Leader. O’Brien welcomes and bind off, to manage simple innewcomers the laughter circle creases and decreases, and to read at any time. a simple pattern while competing The cost of the laughter circle their first two knitting projects, a is $5, which O’Brien donates to dishcloth and then a scarf. Ring The Center. Registration is ap- will help those with experience preciated. Call The Center at to choose individual projects and 361-3650. to learn more advanced knitting skills. The class fee is $90. Beginning Calligraphy classes students should bring a ball of A new session of Calligraphy Sugar n’ Cream yarn in a light classes begins at The Log Cabin solid color and a pair of 10-inch Center for the Arts on Monday, size US 9/5.5mm, preferably aluJan. 5, from 1 to 3:30 p.m., at minum, knitting needles to the 12700 Southwest Highway in first class. After the first project, students will purchase yarns and Palos Park. Led by artist Marge Boyd of patterns after consultation with Frankfort, calligraphy students the instructor. Registration is required. Call learn the beautiful art of fine lettering. In the course of a year, The Center: 361-3650.
Wolfgang Puck’s Kitchen by Wolfgang Puck
This year, enjoy your holiday chestnuts simmering in an open pot If you grew up almost anywhere cold in North America or Europe, one of the most evocative sensations of the holiday season is the smoky-sweet smell of chestnuts, roasting irresistibly on charcoalfueled street-corner stands. I’ll bet right now, at that very thought, you’re hearing in your head the famous lyrics of “The Christmas Song,” written and sung by the late Mel Torme, who dined often at my Spago restaurant in Beverly Hills. Both music and foods have an uncanny power to spark our memories. And chestnuts are among those ingredients that capture the holiday spirit. That’s been true now for centuries, with chestnuts figuring prominently in celebrations grand and humble across the Western world. How many times have you read or heard Charles Dickens’ description of the Cratchit family’s modest festivities in “A Christmas Carol,” when “apples and oranges were put upon the table, and a shovelful of chestnuts on the fire”? Nowadays, many home cooks hesitate to roast their own chestnuts, whether because they lack a fireplace or they simply don’t want to go through the time and bother of scoring an X in the hard, shiny shell of each nut, then cooking them in the oven, and finally peeling off those bothersome shells. Fortunately, you can now find whole already-cooked chestnuts, peeled and sealed in jars, ready to use. Imported from France or Italy, they’re available at this time of year in many gourmet food stores, Italian delis, and wellstocked supermarkets, as well as online. I love to use these chestnuts in two of my favorite holiday dishes: a silky, smooth chestnut soup to start a special meal, and a luxuriously thick puree to accompany a festive roast. The recipes share many similarities, particularly simmering the chestnuts with broth and some Port wine, and then pureeing them, using a blender for the soup and a hand-operated ricer for the much thicker side dish. Whichever you choose to prepare (and there’s nothing that says you can’t try both recipes, one for Christmas and one for New Year’s Eve), there’s another benefit of chestnuts that’s well worth celebrating: They’re a good dietary choice. Unlike most nuts, which are very high in fat, chestnuts get only about 7 percent of their calories from fat, so the rela-
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One serving of chestnut soup delivers a remarkable 62 percent of the recommended daily allowance for Vitamin C, possibly helping you ward off winter colds. tively small amounts of butter and cream in the recipes don’t impact them much. One serving delivers a remarkable 62 percent of the recommended daily allowance for Vitamin C, possibly helping you ward off winter colds. They’re also a good source of dietary fiber, so you’ll feel fuller before you get to those holiday desserts. Who knew that chestnuts could actually help you get a jump on the most popular New Year’s resolution: to eat more healthily?
CHESTNUT SOUP
Serves 6 • 4 tablespoons unsalted butter • 1 medium organic carrot, finely chopped • 1 celery stalk, finely chopped • ½ medium yellow onion, finely chopped • 2 cups (500 ml) cooked chestnuts, from one 14.8-ounce (420-g)
vacuum-packed jar • 1 cup ruby port • 1 thyme sprig • 3 cups (750 ml) organic, low-sodium chicken broth • ½ cup (125 ml) heavy cream • Kosher salt • Freshly ground black pepper • Finely chopped fresh Italian parsley or chives, for garnish In a medium saucepan over medium-low heat, melt the butter. Add the carrot, celery, and onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 10 minutes. Add the chestnuts and cook, stirring, for 4 minutes longer. Add the port and thyme, raise the heat to medium-high, and cook, stirring frequently, until the port has reduced by half, about 4 minutes. Add the broth and bring to a boil. Partially cover the pan, (Continued on page 10)
Mayor
John F. Mahoney
Videoview
Village Clerk
Marie Arrigoni
by Jay Bobbin (NOTICE: Ratings for each film begin with a ‘star’ rating — one star meaning ‘poor,’ four meaning ‘excellent’ — followed by the Motion Picture Association of America rating, and then by a family-viewing guide, the key for which appears below.) STARTING THIS WEEK: “THE GOOD LIE”: Reese Witherspoon spent this movie year in different types of roles, one example being this moving, factinspired drama about the Lost
Boys, youths from Sudan who fled their country’s civil war to seek safe refuge. It was found by the young people at this story’s heart in Kansas, where an emotionally guarded social worker (Witherspoon) tries to place them in jobs, though their skills and knowledge of the outside world are extremely limited. Corey Stoll (“House of Cards”) plays her boss, and the cast also includes several of the real-life Lost Boys. The screenplay is by Margaret Nagle, who
Commissioners
also developed television’s current “Red Band Society.” DVD extras: “making-of” documentary; deleted scenes. *** (PG-13: AS, P, V) (Also on Blu-ray and On Demand) “PRIDE”: A remarkable show of support — which occurred in real life — is spotlighted in this tale of a group of gay activists that took definite, demonstrable action to help striking miners and their
WE’RE PART OF YOUR COMMUNITY We understand what this community means to you and your family. It means Security, Togetherness, Strength, Caring and Friendship. This community is a place where you matter. This community is where you make a difference in peoples’ lives. We share these values. It’s our job to make sure you understand what’s happening in your community by bringing the issues that matter most to you clearly and responsibly. It’s a job we take seriously. We’re proud to be a part of your community and prouder still to call you our neighbor.
Season Greetings, Neighbor!
(Continued on page 10)
James Pavlatos Dan Polk Nicole Milovich-Walters G. Darryl Reed Richard Boehm, Village Manager Barbara Maziarek, Finance Director/Treasurer Joseph Miller, Chief of Police Lori Sommers, Community Development Director Michael Sibrava, Public Works Director Theresa Tevsh, Recreation & Parks Director www.palospark.org
10
Section 2
Thursday, December 25, 2014
The Regional News - The Reporter
Out & About
Your Guide to Arts and Events in the Southwest Suburbs and Beyond
Omarr’s Weekly Astrological Forecast
Top DVD Rentals
by Jeraldine Saunders ARIES (March 21-April 19): This week, your networking skills allow you to bubble with brilliance. Take the lead and others will follow. Delegate intricate organizational details, such as filing paperwork. TAURUS (April 20-May 20): Find a spot under the mistletoe in the week ahead. Someone special wants an excuse to get a bit closer whenever possible. You may have a secret admirer who’s looking for a way to get your attention. GEMINI (May 21-June 20): Scatter happiness as you prepare for holiday happenings this week. The longest night of the year is at hand and this could be the perfect time for lovers to snuggle in front of a fire and get closer. CANCER (June 21-July 22):
The New Moon highlights your most important relationships. As the week unfolds, you find proof that your significant other is also your best friend. You could be invited to enjoy holiday celebrations with new friends. LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): Duty calls in the week ahead. A long list of business obligations might require the organizational skills of a drill sergeant. Family and friends look to you for good advice, helpful referrals and knowledge of new technologies. VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): Show someone how much you care in ways that aren’t measured in dollars and cents. Compliment cooks, praise parents, or flatter friends this week. Everyone deserves a chance to feel loved and
appreciated. LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): Extra patience pays off in the week to come. Take care of extraneous holiday obligations. Find the time to contact distant relatives or family members who are sometimes exasperating but lovable anyway. SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): Deadlines may put you under the gun. Be creative about scheduling this week so everything gets done on time. Most people will be delighted to cooperate and help out if you discuss your needs frankly. SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22Dec. 21): Use a practical touch to create joy for others in the week ahead. You may be the person elected to read the directions or put together a new bike to go
under the tree. Find ways to create magic moments. CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): Get in the holiday mood early this week. Sing carols in duet with a significant other and make some beautiful music together. Be prepared to discuss new ideas. AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): The busiest bees end up with the most honey. Concentrate on the business at hand as this week starts off to head off complications. Use foresight to avoid scheduling conflicts at home. PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): Make spreading season’s greetings a priority this week. Call loved ones far away, or use helpful stars that enhance your presentation skills to touch base with prospective clients.
Wolfgang Puck’s Kitchen (Continued from page 9)
or chives before serving.
reduce the heat to low, and sim- BRAISED mer until the ingredients are CHESTNUTS OR tender, and 30 minutes. Discard CHESTNUT PUREE the thyme sprig. Yield: Serves 6 Remove the pan from the heat • 2 tablespoons and stir the cream into the soup. vegetable oil Working in batches, puree the soup • 2 tablespoons in a blender, following the manufacunsalted butter turer’s instructions to avoid splat- • ½ cup (125 ml) finely tering the hot liquid, and pouring chopped yellow onion each pureed batch into a large bowl. • 1 cup (250 ml) Return all of the puree to the sauceruby port pan, return the pan to medium-low • 4 cups (1 l) cooked heat, and bring the soup to a simmer. chestnuts, from two Season to taste with salt and pepper. 14.8-ounce (420-g) Ladle the soup into heated servvacuum-packed jars ing bowls, garnishing with parsley • 3 cups (750 ml) organic,
low-sodium chicken broth • 2 sprigs fresh thyme • Kosher salt • Freshly ground black pepper • Finely chopped parsley or chives Heat a heavy saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the oil, butter and chopped onion. Saute, stirring frequently, until the onion turns a light golden brown, 5 to 7 minutes. Add the port and stir and scrape with a wooden spoon to deglaze the pan deposits. Add the chestnuts, broth, thyme, and a little salt and pepper. Bring the liquid to a boil, stirring occasionally. Then, cover the pan,
reduce the heat to maintain a simmer, and cook until the chestnuts are tender and have absorbed most but not all of the liquid, about 30 minutes, checking occasionally to stir and to make sure the liquid hasn’t completely evaporated. Remove and discard the thyme. Offer as whole braised chestnuts. Or pass the chestnuts in batches through a ricer into a heated bowl, stirring in the remaining liquid from the pan, to make a puree. Season to taste, as necessary, with a little more salt and pepper. Serve the whole or pureed chestnuts garnished with chopped parsley or chives.
Videoview (Continued from page 9) families in the United Kingdom of the mid-1980s. They raised money for some of those affected, then traveled from London to Wales to present the funds. Bill Nighy, Imelda Staunton and Dominic West (“The Affair”) are in the cast. DVD extras: “making-of” documentary; deleted and extended scenes. *** (R: AS, P) (Also on Blu-ray) “THE TRIP TO ITALY”: “The Trip” was just the beginning for British humorists Steve Coogan (“Philomena”) and Rob Brydon, who reunite for another journey in this largely improvised comedy, though director Michael Winterbottom did provide them with the outline of a script. The duo travels along the coast of Italy, conversing about a broad variety of subjects while sampling food and lodging for columns they’re meant to write ... and trying to keep from getting on each other’s nerves. The film is excerpted from a longer series that was televised by England’s BBC. *** (Also on Blu-ray.) New releases are on the light side this holiday week, so here’s a look at several seasonal classics: “IT’S A WONDERFUL LIFE”: Upon its release, this Frank Capra-directed 1946 classic
had a lukewarm box-office performance upon its release that gave no indication it would become as popular as it long as it has been ... its plentiful television exposure being a huge factor. James Stewart makes the perfect George Bailey, the hapless Bedford Falls citizen whose experience of seeing how life would be without him has been echoed by countless TV-series episodes. Donna Reed, Lionel Barrymore and — as wing-earning angel Clarence — Henry Travers lend great support. DVD extras: theatrical trailer; “making-of” documentary. **** (Not rated) (Also on Blu-ray) “WHITE CHRISTMAS”: As comfortable as an active fireplace on a cold winter’s night, this tuneful 1954 retooling of the 12-years-earlier “Holiday Inn” — now available in a “Diamond Anniversary Edition” — makes great use of its Irving Berlin score. Bing Crosby and Danny Kaye make an ideal team as military veterans who become successful entertainment partners, then use their talents to help their former commander (Dean Jagger) reenergize his failing resort. Rosemary Clooney — aunt of George — and Vera-Ellen are charmers as the siblings who distract the guys. DVD extras (“Anniversary Edition”): two theatrical trailers;
audio commentary by Clooney; seven “making-of” documentaries; Christmas television-show appearances by Crosby and Kaye; photo galleries. **** (Not rated) (Also on Blu-ray) “A CHRISTMAS STORY”: There’s never a doubt this holiday favorite will come back around, thanks to its annual 24-hour marathon on television. Anyone who ever desired that one special holiday gift can empathize with Ralphie (Peter Billingsley), author-narrator Jean Shepherd’s young alias who desperately wants a Red Ryder BB gun — the one his mother (Melinda Dillon) warns will “shoot your eye out.” Always deserving of citing is Darren McGavin as the gruff dad who never actually curses, though it sure sounds like it. DVD extras: theatrical trailer; three “making-of” documentaries; audio commentary by Billingsley and director and co-writer Bob Clark. *** (PG: P) (Also on Blu-ray) COMING SOON: “THE EQUALIZER” (Dec. 30): Denzel Washington reinvents Edward Woodward’s television role as Robert McCall, a former government agent who uses his skills to help people in trouble. (R: AS, P, V) “GET ON UP” (Jan. 6): Chadwick Boseman plays James Brown, the music icon who chan-
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neled his energy and ambition to become known as “the hardest working man in show business.” (PG-13: AS, P, V) “NO GOOD DEED” (Jan. 6): A family woman (Taraji P. Henson) comes to regret giving assistance to a stranger (Idris Elba) who turns out to be an escaped convict. (PG-13: AS, P, V) “A WALK AMONG THE TOMBSTONES” (Jan. 13): A former cop turned private detective (Liam Neeson) becomes involved in a drug dealer’s (Dan Stevens) plight. (R: AS, N, P, V) “ANNABELLE” (Jan. 20): The spirit within a vintage doll makes things tough for the cultists who invade its new owners’ (Annabelle Wallis, John Gordon) home. (R: AS, P, V) “LUCY” (Jan. 20): An innocent woman (Scarlett Johansson) is transformed into a furious warrior by an untested drug in writer-director Luc Besson’s sci-fiadventure; Morgan Freeman also stars. (R: AS, P, V) FAMILY-VIEWING GUIDE KEY: AS, adult situations; N, nudity; P, profanity; V, violence; GV, particularly graphic violence.
1. Let’s Be Cops, 20th Century Fox, R 2. Tammy, Warner Bros., R 3. How to Train Your Dragon 2, DreamWorks Animation, PG 4. Guardians of the Galaxy, Marvel Studios, PG-13 5. When a Flame Stands Still, Indie film, not rated
6. 22 Jumpstreet, Columbia Pictures, R 7. The Expendables, Lionsgate, PG-13 8. Tyler Perry’s A Madea Christmas, Lionsgate, PG-13 9. Maleficent, Walt Disney Pictures, PG 10. The Giver, The Weinstein Company, PG-13
Top Country Albums 1. Man Against Machine, Garth Brooks, Sony Music Nashville 2. Old Boots, New Dirt, Jason Aldean, Broken Bow 3. Home for the Holidays, Darius Rucker, Universal Nashville 4. Anything Goes, Florida Georgia Line, Big Machine Records 5. The Cowboy Rides Away: Live From AT&T Stadium,
George Strait, Universal Nashville 6. Montevallo, Sam Hunt, MCA 7. Crash My Party, Luke Bryan, Capitol Nashville 8. Christmas With Nashville, Various Artists, Big Machine Records 9. BRINGING BACK THE SUNSHINE, Blake Shelton, Warner Bros. 10. 747, Lady Antebellum, Capitol Nashville (Universal)
Top Pop Albums 1. 1989, Taylor Swift, Big Machine Records 2. That’s Christmas to Me, Pentatonix, RCA 3. Rock Or Bust, AC/DC, Columbia 4. In the Lonely Hour, Sam Smith, Capitol Records (Universal) 5. Four, One Direction, Columbia
6. Holiday Wishes, Idina Menzel, Warner Bros. 7. Christmas, Michael Buble, Reprise 8. Man Against Machine, Garth Brooks, Sony Music Nashville 9. The London Sessions, Mary J. Blige, Capitol 10. Frozen, Soundtrack, Walt Disney Records
Palos Heights Parks & Recreation will be offering FREE Group Fitness Classes Monday January 5 - Saturday January 10 Classes will be held at the Palos Heights Recreation Center 6601 W. 127th Street, Palos Heights Try as many free classes as you like and receive a $5.00 off coupon to use toward the 8-week session starting January 12 For any questions call 708-361-1807
Child care will be available for AM classes (excluding Spinning) For a list of classes visit www.palosheightsrec.org and click on the online brochure – page 44 is the Group Fitness Calendar
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