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higher. Vaccines bring your risks down, so you can keep showing up. vaccines.gov
More “I’ll be there.”
Less “Where have you been?”
Happy Apple needs a new baker backer
After 8 years, founder is retiring and looking for a successor
By RISE SANDERS-WEIR Oak Park Eats Reporter
There’s a cheerful sign on the sidewalk outside of the Happy Apple Pie Shop, 226 Harrison St. in Oak Park. It reads, “Pie Today!” The question for owner Michelle Mascaro is whether there will be pie tomorrow. As she contemplates retiring, Mascaro is searching for a new owner to keep the dough rolling.
Mascaro opened the shop eight years ago. Her goal was not only delicious pie, but also a welcoming work environment for people with and without developmental and intellectual disabilities.
“We decided to start it because my oldest child, my daughter, has an intellectual disability and severe anxiety disorder,” Mascaro said. “Everybody has to learn how to have a job.”
At age 22 young people with disabilities age out of state-sponsored learning programs. Employment is the next challenge.
“We thought we’d start something she and her friends like to do. Like everyone, they like to make food,” she said.
Happy Apple’s opening was right before Thanksgiving. A perfect time for pie. The pastries were a hit from the very beginning.
Each day a variety of both sweet and savory pies are available for purchase by the slice or whole pie. Advance orders are accepted and appreciated. And catering orders are a big part of the business too.
Apple pie is always on the menu, but recent flavors have included chocolate chess and, for St. Patrick’s Day, chocolate Guinness. Fruit pies follow peak harvesting seasons, so no peach pie in the winter. Savory flavors can be seasonal too, like the recent corned beef pot pie. Chicken pot pie is always on the menu or customers get grumpy, according to Mascaro.
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“We built a wonderful community. I call it the pie community. We have some re gular people that come from Hyde Park, come from out in the western suburbs, up in the northern suburbs, and it’s just always nice to get to see them again and welcome people,” she said.
Matteo Tobin, Louise Blaue, Michelle Mascaro, Troy Hernandez
Her workforce is dedicated too
“I like to think of people with abilities who work here, because that’s really how we focus on what’s the ability,” Mascaro said. “I have staf f who say, this is the job I want for the rest of my life.”
Prep work is done during the day. Most employees work a two- or four-hour shift, depending on what is best for them. Pies are baked in the evenings. Like a lot of foods, pie is better when it’s had some time to set up for sale the next day.
Funnily enough, her daughter doesn’t work at the shop.
“Her attitude is -- you’ re my mother and I don’t want to work with you,”
Mascaro said. “That’s actually pretty ordinary, right? She works at the Park District of Oak Park.”
That understanding is a hallmark of everything Mascaro does. Lead with kindness is a mission.
T he reason for Mascaro’s retirement is doctor’s orders. It’s a good time to break from days and nights crafting pies and focus on other, less strenuous ideas that she has.
Happy Apple’s original re cipe apple pie
“I’m beyond retirement. I want to make sure that whoever takes this over has the capacity and the understanding to do this. And I think there are many creative ways to do it,” she said. “I want it to be that we started something that has a life and continues. That something was begun here, a network of kindness, community and good pie.”
Interested in a slice or the whole
happ yapplepie.co m
226 Harrison St., Oak Pa rk
RISÉ SANDERS-WEIR
RISÉ SANDERS-WEIR
Frustrations boil over in Scaman vs. Parakkat
Presidential candidates Vicki Scaman and Ravi Parakkat feel burned by each other after tough campaign
By BRENDAN HEFFERNAN Staff Reporter
Vicki Scaman and Ravi Parakkat describe each other’s behavior on the campaign trail the same way — “that’s not Oak Park.”
With the months-long campaign now less than a week from the finish line, both candidates for village president are saying that their opponent has not lived up to the village’s values. Oak Park politics watchers have observed a notably tense campaign for the village’s top job, as a long-term rift between the two village leaders plays out in public.
Both candidates, Parakkat a current village trustee and Scaman the incumbent board president, ag ree that their relationship had been fractured before either announced plans for seeking election.
“There are fault lines here”
The two have been on conflicting sides of several key issues including 2023’s local
migrant crisis and discussions of Parakkat’s idea to potentially develop the for mer Mohr Concrete site into a “sustainability incubator” in 2022.
Parakkat said that when Scaman called on sustainability professional Darnell Washington to comment on his Mohr site proposal during a board meeting, he felt he could no longer trust Scaman’s leadership.
“Thirty minutes before the board meeting, she calls me and says that she is bringing Darnell Johnson into this discussion because he’s got a perspective, ”
Parakkat said. “That was the start of me realizing, from a gover nance perspective, that there are f ault lines here. And I’ve seen that play out again and again with every subsequent decision.”
Scaman said that Parakkat’s reaction to Washington’s involvement went beyond the pale.
“He was abusive to me,” she said. “In that meeting, I think I cried. It was a Zoom meeting so I don’t know that anyone no- nue was eventually sold to a developer, but is now in foreclosure.
‘You can’t take back some of these words’
Scaman said she’s felt attacked by Parakkat in a way that she hasn’t seen occur in a village president’s election since she’s been involved in local government, and that the criticism hasn’t been in good faith or fair to the job she’s done as village president.
“In 2021, it was two women running and the biggest attack I received was my opponent saying that I was status quo, which is extremely mild compared to today’s situation,” Scaman said. “This is the first time since I’ve been paying attention to local politics, which is 20-something years, that there’s been the intention to spin stuf f. I don’t like to say my opponent is lying, but I think he’s been creatively misleading.”
“He doesn’t seem to think there’s anything wrong with how he’s putting information out there. He seems to see it as he’s got ambition, I see it as he’s being opportunistically misleading. So, we have different levels of integrity in our guts.”
Parakkat said he feels like he and his supporters have been the victim of toxic treatment by Scaman supporters, both online and in person. Parakkat said he’s heard from a business which told him they’d been told to take down the Parakkat sign in its
another resident who said she was afraid she’d lose her neighbors’ help with child care if she publicly suppor ted Parakkat.
Parakkat also said he was deeply hurt and personally offended by a comment in a private Facebook group that labeled him a miso gynist and a Hindu-supremacist. The comment came in the course of a back-andfor th between Scaman and a resident on March 13 discussing the village board declining to adopt a resolution calling for a ceasefire in Gaza.
Parakkat was especially hurt that Scaman had reacted to the comment with a heart emoji.
“This thing really hurt me personally,“ he said. “It is really disheartening for somebody who’s come from the other side of the world to come into this community, and then to be in this position. I’m here because I believe in Oak Park’s values.”
After several days of consideration, Parakkat posted a screenshot of the comment and Scaman’s emoji on his campaign Facebook. Scaman originally commented on the post accusing Parakkat of a “smear campaign,” but edited her comment and apolo gized.
“I do not embrace name calling. I was responding to a question. (the rest of my comment was not helpful and I apolo gize),” she said in her edited response.
Parakkat, commenting on the overall tone of the campaign, said, “It forgets the fact that we are all neighbors, that this is a
VICKI SC AMAN
RAVI PARAKK AT
Forces of nature: earth, wind, re and Jen Quinlan
Co-founder of Soup and Bread West never stops helping those in need
By JESSICA MACKINNON Contributing Reporter
Jennife r Malloy Quinlan is a force of nature – and when she’s on a mission, wh ich she usually is, heave help anyone who gets in her way.
L ast month she was crowned King of Hearts at Ro ert’s Westside in Fo rest Pa rk , a Valentine’s Day event d esigned to reco gnize local p eople who “spread lo and joy. ” Quinlan was honored primarily for her wo with S oup and Bread West, an initiative a ddressing loc al food i nsecurit y, but her impact extends throughout the c ommunity through many other organizations tha she help s.
“Jennifer is one of the most selfless p eople I’ve ev met,” said Donnie Biggins, owner of Ro be rt ’s Wests ide. “She always shows up for anyone in need. And she d oesn’t look at making it about herself, especially on social media. She just does the hard wo rk .”
Quinlan co-founded Soup and Bread West in 2023 with seve r al other local residents after pa rt icipating fo many years in Chicago’s S oup and Bread progr am at the H ideout. T he local progr am was launched at Exit Strateg y in Fo rest Pa rk but, when that establishment closed operations seamlessly shifted to Ro be rt ’s Westside.
Held the third T uesd ay of every month, the c ommunity meal features a variety of soups prep ared by volunteers and bread donated by local businesses. The progr am typically collects about $1,000 in donations, wh ic are p assed on to nonprofits including Beyond Hunger Austin Eats and the Migr ant Ministr y.
“We really j ust fly by the seat of our p ants,” said Quinlan. “We usually have about 10-15 crockpots of soup We do n’ t plan and we do n’ t count, and it continues to wo rk We always seem to have something for everyone. It ’s li ke the loaves and fishes.”
Quinlan has also been ve ry involved with YEMBA, an Oak Pa rk nonprofit serving youth through mentorshi p, tutoring and b asketball. S he g ot involved when her son was welcomed i nto the progr am after not making hi s sixth- gr ade basketball team.
“Wi lliam was devastated – the rejection by the c oach was not handled well. I was livid! But YEMBA provide d him with the o pportunity to pl ay and he really thr ived,” Quinlan said. “A t the end-of-year awards ceremony, when I saw how much the progr am meant to all the k ids, in a ddition to Wi lliam, I j ust marched up to [Executive Director Edward] Mr. Re dd and said, ‘Listen, I do n’ t have money but I c an c onnect you to p eople in the c ommunity and if I can ever do anything for you, I will.’”
“He has taken me at my wo rd,” she said, laughing A Car thage C olle ge student with p lans to become a m iddle school gy m teacher, Wi lliam is now a YEMBA mentor wo rk ing with students at Oak Pa rk ’s m iddl e
schools, r unning b asketball drills and helping with homewo rk
“That’s the f ull circle of volunteering. YEMBA save d Wi lliam and he understands the importance of givin g back. In my f amily, service is j ust pa rt of the rent yo u pay, ” Quinlan said.
Said Co rn ick Harris, philanthropy officer for YEMBA: “Jen has b een with us through every step of our growth. Her whole family is involved, collecting and delive ring personal care products for our under privil eg ed k ids, handing out flye rs, and filling backpacks for our annual Back-to-School event. S he is so g enerous with her servic e, time and her family.”
Quinlan i nsists that she is j ust carrying forward what she learned as a child, the product of progr essive pa r-
ents who created a l ifestyle in wh ich volunteering was expected. Both her parents we re Chicago Public Schools teachers for a time; her father was a reading specialist for disadvantaged students and a dele gate for the teachers’ union, and her mother was a social wo rker and union dele gate for city wo rker s.
At Chicago’s Academy of the Sacred Heart, Quinlan co-founded a social j ustice club, a ccompanied the nuns to p eace marches and volunteered at a d omesti c violence shelter. During Christmas breaks, she volunteered at Rape Vi ctim Advo cates, where her mother was a b oard member, answe ring p hones and learning about wh at happened to women who went to the hospital or we re interviewed by police after being raped.
“It made me realize, at a young ag e, the importance of
TODD BANNOR
Jennifer Malloy Quinlan at the Soup and Bread event at Robert’s Westside on Tuesday March 18.
Brook eld’s food pantry bene ts from Soup and Bread
By TRENT BROWN Staff Reporter
This month’s Soup and Bread event benefitted Brookfield’s Share Food Share Love food pantry at 9030 Brookfield Ave. Administrat ive Director John Dumas said the event raised about $800 for the nonprofit
“I couldn’ t stay the whole time because I had to g et back to the food pantry, but I was there for the first almost hour or so, and it’s really a pretty good thing. I’d actually never heard of it until they said they wanted to do it on our behalf,” he said. “It was really great, and it was very well [attended]. T hey had a lot more people come in, I know, after I left, but they were still coming in when I left, and they had live music, and it was really neat. It’s really a
great thing that they do; it ’s just a c hance for people to g et to g ether in a social gathering but then to do something good for their community as well.”
While the pantry hasn’t made plans to work with Soup and Bread again, Dumas said he would “absolutely” be interested “It was a great group, and Jennifer is amazing. She was very communicative with me and worked to g ether with us really well, and it was a real pleasure doing that with them,” he said. “She’s very well org anized, and she has everything put to g ether in such a way that it goes very smoothly. I went around to the tables and talked to everybody who was there, just to say thank you and to let them know how much we appreciated it, and they were all very nice and very enthusiastic about the event.”
being an a dvo cate,” she said.
Quinlan was pa rt icularly i nspired by Sister Monica Cahill, who founded Taproots, an outreach progr am for adolesc ent mothers on the west side
“She didn’t j ust take care of the k ids, she g ot the mothers diapers, helped them obtain birth ce rt ificates, enrolled their children in school and g ot them lawyers if there we re c ustody or d omestic violence i ssues. S he did all the stuf f to change young women’s lives that no one talks about or sees,” Quinlan said.
Her father, who p assed aw ay last year, also ser ve d as a role model. S he remembers once walking with him on Michig an Avenue and r unning i nto a professional-looking young man who asked , with great reve renc e, if her father was his for mer teacher.
“He told my dad that he had given hi m his first b ook and that he changed hi s l ife. My dad kind of c ollapsed i nto hi s arms and they hugged each other for a long time. Th at image has b een stuck in my head since the 1990s. I realized that my dad did something for another ki d that he also did for me,” Quinlan said. Fo r many year s, Quinlan has ser ve d as a mother figure to a p assel of k ids who are not biologically her s. S he is known as “Mama Jen” to two boys bo rn i nto tumultuous f amily situations and adopted by Oak Pa rkers Bryan and Mark Gr ay son. S he refers to them as
the “boys of my hear t. ”
“The day we brought a new fouryear old i nto our home, Jen was on our d oorstep with Le g os and clothes and supplies for a month. S he did the same thing when we brought home a newbo rn couple a fe w years later. She’s just ir re p laceable in b oth of their live s, ” said Bryan.
“There is Earth, Wi nd and Fire – and Jen Quinlan,” said Mark. “We are a f amily with a target on our back – gay, with A frican A merican and Hispanic k ids, k ids with special need s. Je n shields p eople li ke us. S he will be the reason our f amily survives this admini stration. ”
Quinlan has also taken in youth wh o have needed temporary homes, including Maura, the child of a friend of her s whose tattoos and piercings and bright hair made her stand out in her small, c onservative town in Arkansas. Her f amily also sheltered a young transgender male whose parents left the local area during the pandemic.
“We have a houseful of k ids and they ’re all pa rt of the f amily. I’ve learned that there’s always more to share. I do n’ t do ‘just sufficient.’ Remarkably, I neve r run out of stuf f. I ca n give it all aw ay and still find more, ” Quinlan said.
Just li ke the loaves and fishes
TODD BANNOR
Volunteers serve soup at the Soup and Bread event at Robert’s Westside on Tuesday March 18.
Jennifer Malloy Quinlan with her family
THE BEST ELECTION COVERAGE IN OAK PARK & RIVER FOREST Time to connect to Wednesday Journal. Time to connect to Oak Park and River Forest
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Need to know more about the contested races before you vote?
Catch up on the Journal’s three election forums which we’ve held at the Oak Park library in recent weeks. Here are the links to the recordings:
Select your pr screen to begi Candidates a displayed on t Find “Oak Par School Distric screen, and p A keyboard wi “Dave S on-screen key Press "OK" wh Dave’s name e, in
Type “DaveSchaafsma” usingthe on-screenkeyboard Press"OK"whenyoufinishtyping
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nto the machine to eferred language on the n voting nd ballot measures are he touch screen k and River Forest High t 200” on the voting ress the "write-in" option ll appear on the screen chaafsma” using the board en you finish typing
Oak Park’s light touch on food trucks may get stronger
Village board hears recommendations from sta on how it might put limits on where food trucks can operate
By BRENDAN HEFFERNAN Staff Re
Oak Pa rk has few restrictions on w food trucks can sell their but that may be changing.
Oak Park’s village ommendations from how it might respond to brick-and-mortar r about mobile food vendors poaching busi ness. T he discussion had forward by trustees Ravi Lucia Robinson.
“While I certainly am in market, we re gulate our tricts, and we do so for Robinson said. “This idea of not to compromise our and our brick-and mortar stores is a wa that this type of re gulation could help T he discussion be g ments from Karla Linar cos ‘76 on Madison Street, her business had been a taco truck parked a few shop’s front door. Linar she complained to the truck’s owner, they told her they weren’ t breaking any r ules laid out in the village code.
re gulation puts brick-and-mortars at a disadvantage.”
Linarez said the village needs to re gulate mobile food vendors to protect small businesses like her’s
“While I welcome food trucks and the diversity they bring, our brick-and-mortar businesses are the backbone of our local economy and operate under higher standards,” Linarez said. “That lack of
Presently, mobile food vendors do need to secure a license from the village and pass a health inspection, but there are no restrictions on where they can operat e, so long as they obey parking laws, according to Village Management Analyst Noemy Diaz.
Diaz explained three potential ordi-
nances for the bord to consider related to food trucks. One idea was to ban food trucks from operating within 250 feet of a restaurant, another would confine food trucks to residential streets by banning them from operating in any of the village ’s 12 business districts and another suggestion would create special districts where mobile food vendors would be al-
wed to operat e.
“Village staf f support any of the three suggestions that the board would like to pursue,” Diaz said.
T he potential ordinances would not apply to mobile food vendors participating in special village events, Diaz said.
Board members did not reach a consensus on supporting any of the recommendations, but did dig into the potential impacts of each suggestion, and gave eedback on how the staf f could tailor the suggestions to meet business owner’s speific concerns. Edited recommendations will be brought sometime after a new village board is seated on May 6.
“What we’ve done is help frame the discussion,” said Village Manager Kevin Jackson. “What we’re looking for is feedback from the board, so that we can brin g something back that is responsive of all the board’s interests.”
Trustee Brian Straw said the board needs to make sure that any ordinance the village adopts balances making things fair for brick-and-mortar businesses with maintaining an environment where mobile food vendors can still earn a living in Oak Park
“I think there’s a b alance to be found , because I know there’s a lot of brickand-mortar restaurants that we re able to make those brick-and-mortar dreams c ome true because they started with a food truck,” Straw said. “I want to make sure we ’re finding b alance with the lightest touch p ossible that also protects the absolutely vital small business c ommunity that we have.”
Oak Park to honor Transgender Day of Visibility
As the village o ers public suppor t, questions about what more can Oak Park do
By BRENDAN HEFFERNAN Staff Reporter
Supporters packed Oak Park’s village board chambers on March 18 as trustees passed a resolution honoring Transgender Day of Visibility.
The trustees heard from several community members about what the resolution meant to them, including a statement from Mike Johnson, the parent of a transgender child who had moved back to Oak Park so that their daughter could live in a more welcoming community.
“My daughter is absolutely thriving now that she’s back up in Oak Park,” Johnson said during the meeting. “We had a place that we knew we could return to, but a lot of people don’t know about Oak Park.”
Transgender Day of Visibility has been celebrated internationally on March 31 since 2010. It is meant to “celebrate the lives and contributions of trans people, while also drawing attention to the disproportionate levels of poverty, discrimination, and violence the community faces,” according to GLAAD.
ington D.C. on March 31, as President Donald Trump’s administration has taken a firm stance against support for transgender and gender-nonconforming people.
Trump signed an executi the first day of his new term ordering that the federal gover nment only reco sexes and eliminate any materials that “promote gender ideolo gy.” As a result of this and other executive orders transgender people haven’t been able ports that correspond with their gender identity, transgender veterans ha denied coverage for gender affirming and mentions of transgender people ha been scrubbed from federal we
In this climat
“Everybody deserves to choose what kind of future they want. It ’s important to emphasize and reframe the idea that it ’s the fundamental human rights.”
AARON MCMANUS Oak Parker
There will be a Transgender Day of Visibility celebration in Oak Park this year at Scoville Park from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday, March 30.
This year, the occasion will be the backdrop for many protests and rallies in the United States, including one scheduled at the Federal Plaza in Chicago on March 30 and another at the National Mall in Wash-
As Village Trustee and Founder of Takeout 25, Ravi was instrumental in saving Oak Park restaurants during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Critical times need a critical thinker.
Critical times need a critical thinker.
Critical times need a critical thinker.
Parker Aaron McManus, one of the org anizers Scoville Park ev the board on March consider adopting another resolution that would declare Oak Park a “transgender sanctuary city.”
“It’s a signal to people in the community that may be on fence about is it okay to be accepting of trans people,” McManus said. “We want to move in people who will really celebrate that.”
Several cities around the country have taken that ste p in recent years, including Kansas City, MO and Worcester, MA. McManus, who is nonbinary, said that such a resolution could potentially raise the village’s profile in a way that would bring people into Oak Pa rk looking to relocate from places that pass anti-transgender legislation.
“Everybody deserves to choose what kind of future they want,” they said. “It’s important to emphasize and reframe the idea that it’s the fundamental human rights of self-expression and self-determination that are what are framed as trans rights.”
Critical times need a critical thinker.
to Oak Park, having lived here for 19 wholeheartedly believes in our shared progressive values that form the fabric diverse community. As an immigrant, committed to working collaboratively voices to bring meaningful solutions decisions that impact us all.
Ravi is a neighbor and leader deeply committed to Oak Park, having lived here for 19 years. He wholeheartedly believes in our shared progressive values that form the fabric of our diverse community. As an immigrant, he is equally committed to working collaboratively with all voices to bring meaningful solutions to the decisions that impact us all.
Critical times need a critical thinker.
Critical times need a critical thinker.
Critical times need a critical thinker.
Ravi is a neighbor and leader deeply committed to Oak Park, having lived here for 19 years. He wholeheartedly believes in our shared progressive values that form the fabric of our diverse community. As an immigrant, he is equally committed to working collaboratively with all voices to bring meaningful solutions to the decisions that impact us all.
Vote
Ravi is a neighbor and leader deeply committed to Oak Park, having lived here for 19 years. He wholeheartedly believes in our shared progressive values that form the fabric of our diverse community. As an immigrant, he is equally committed to working collaboratively with all voices to bring meaningful solutions to the decisions that impact us all.
Ravi is a neighbor and leader deeply committed to Oak Park, having lived here for 19 years. He wholeheartedly believes in our shared of our community. committed to with all voices to bring meaningful solutions to the decisions that impact us all.
Ravi is a neighbor and leader deeply committed to Oak Park, having lived here for 19 years. He wholeheartedly believes in our shared progressive values that form the fabric of our diverse community. As an immigrant, he is equally committed to working collaboratively with all voices to bring meaningful solutions to the decisions that impact us all.
Ravi is a neighbor and leader deeply committed to Oak Park, having lived here for 19 years. He wholeheartedly believes in our shared progressive values that form the fabric of our diverse community. As an immigrant, he is equally committed to working collaboratively with all voices to bring meaningful solutions to the decisions that impact us all.
Ravi is a neighbor and leader deeply committed to Oak Park, having lived here for 19 years. He wholeheartedly believes in our shared progressive values that form the fabric of our diverse community. As an immigrant, he is equally committed to working collaboratively with all voices to bring meaningful solutions to the decisions that impact us all.
Vote
Vote
Vote
Vote
Ravi Parakkat’s initiative Takeout 25 has saved local restaurants in Oak Park.
- Chicago
Ravi Parakkat’s initiative Takeout saved local restaurants in Oak - Chicago
Ravi Parakkat’s initiative Takeout 25 has saved local restaurants in Oak Park.
Ravi Parakkat’s initiative Takeout 25 has saved local restaurants in Oak Park.
- Chicago Tribune
Ravi Parakkat’s initiative Takeout 25 has saved local restaurants in Oak Park. - Chicago Tribune
Early voting March 17-31 Election day April
Early voting March 17-31 Election
Early voting March 17-31 Election day April 1
Early voting March 17-31 Election day April 1
Saturday, March 29th 9am-11am
As Village Trustee and Founder of Takeout 25, Ravi was instrumental in saving Oak Park restaurants during the COVID-19 pandemic.
As Village Trustee and Founder of Takeout 25, Ravi was instrumental in saving Oak Park restaurants during the COVID-19 pandemic.
As Village Trustee and Founder of Takeout 25, Ravi was instrumental in saving Oak Park restaurants during the COVID-19 pandemic.
As Village Trustee and Founder of Takeout 25, Ravi was instrumental in saving Oak Park restaurants during the COVID-19 pandemic.
As Village Trustee and Founder of Takeout 25, Ravi was instrumental in saving Oak Park restaurants during the COVID-19 pandemic.
As Village Trustee and Founder of Takeout 25, Ravi was instrumental in saving Oak Park restaurants during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Celebrate with Dan! 70 for 70!
Mr. Haley’s Opus
This week, we celebrate a remarkable milestone— our founder, Dan Haley, turns 70!
Back in July 1980, with a bold vision and two partners by his side, Dan launched the Wednesday Journal of Oak Park and River Forest. Since then, Dan and the team have provided continuous coverage of local people, places, and issues in Oak Park and River Forest, in Austin through the Austin Weekly News, in Forest Park through the Forest Park Review, and in Riverside and Brookfield through the Riverside-Brookfield Landmark.
While other local news sources faded, Dan doubled down on his commitment, founding Growing Community Media (GCM) – a nonprofit newsroom. Growing Community Media was Illinois’ first nonprofit community news organization, and its creation ensures that our communities will have a voice for generations to come.
The stories of us, of our neighborhoods, our people and our shared history, have truly been “Mr. Haley’s Opus”.
Join us in saluting Dan with a $70 gift to GCM in honor of his 70th birthday. Your gift extends the gift Dan’s life’s work has given all our communities.
CTA boosts Blue Line frequency and eed Fore
Thir ty extra train trips will be added to weekday ser on the Blue Line to Forest Park starting April 20
By MACK LIEDERMAN Block Club Chicago
The CTA will run a new train schedule starting April 20 that plans for more Blue Line trips and faster frequency from the Forest Park ter minus, particularly evenings.
The Blue Line schedule will include 30 extra trips on weekdays, 17 more trips Saturdays and two new trips Sundays.
That should shrink wait times for Line Forest Park trains from 15 minutes to seven and a half minutes for service 6:30 p.m.-midnight weekdays and 9 p.m.-midnight Saturdays, according to the CTA.
The Blue Line currently schedules 410 daily weekday trips, 366 Saturday trips and 318 Sunday trips, according to a train tracker maintained by Brandon McFadden, a cybersecurity analyst and member of transit advocacy group Commuters Take Action.
better qualified and found her to be passionate about her hometown. We have no doubt about her ability to bring people together. She describes herself as “a unique mix of progressive and pragmatic,” which seems exactly like what Oak Park wants and needs.
Vicki Scaman is endorsed.
Chicago Tribune Editorial Board, March 20, 2025
The Blue Line averaged 282 daily train trips last week, fulfilling about 72 percent of its scheduled service, according to Mc-
e Forest Park Blue Line CTA station
Wait, isn’t that the Cereal Buddy on a bus bench on Harlem?
Why, yes, the mural character makes latest appearance for Pace
By DAN HALEY Senior Advisor and Interim Editor
Waiting for a bus along Harlem near the Ike. That’s the latest place to spot The Cereal Buddy. In this incarnation, the blue boxy fellow graces a bus bench. But you can also catch him among the wall of murals on South Boulevard. And in Berwyn, on Michig an Avenue, in Lakeview, Pilsen, Logan Square and Lincoln Park. Among other places.
For a box with spindly legs, the Cereal Buddy gets around.
He is the creation of Vanessa Garza (Nez), an Oak Park artist who has been painting murals since 2020. Garza is also an editorial page designer for Gr owing
Community Media.
In fact, you’ll spot this fellow on the Circle Avenue bridge in Forest Park after we asked Garza to paint the Forest Park Review’s contribution to the mural covered overpass.
You can also see her murals on the Metra embankment near Oak Park Avenue.
Garza said the inspiration for her character came from other Chicago-based muralists with recur ring characters including Sentrock and JC Rivera.
The bus bench on Harlem was commissioned by Pace, the suburban bus company, in honor of its
PROVIDED
Bus buddy: Artist Vanessa Garza (her artist name is Nez) with her creation at the Harlem 307 Pace bus stop in Oak Park.
Rendering design of the Cereal Buddy.
Vanessa (Nez) Garza paints a mural on South Boulevard in Oak Park.
Oak Park police respond to shooting on Roosevelt
One victim was taken to the hospital with gunshot wounds, according to police
By BRENDAN HEFFERNAN Staff Reporter
One person was shot near the border of Oak Park and Berwyn on March 19, according to Oak Park officials.
Oak Park and Berwyn police responded to re ports of shots fired near the intersection of Roosevelt Road and Ridgeland Avenue around 1:40 p.m. where they learned that a man had been shot in the chest. The victim was transported to Loyola Medical Center with serious, but not life-threatening injuries, according to a statement released by Berwyn police.
The shooting caused damage to several vehicles and one home in the area, according to police.
Investigators believe that the shooting was an isolated incident that stemmed from a “dispute” that began in Chicago before it spilled out into Oak Park and Berwyn, according to the Berwyn police’s statement.
Officers at the Berwyn Police Department will take the lead on the investigation, with Oak Park police supporting them, according to Oak Pa rk spokesperson Dan Yopchick
Battery to police o cer arrest
Police arrested a 46-year-old woman in the 200 block of Madison Street at 9:35 p.m. on Friday, March 21 on charges of aggravated unlawful use of a weapon, aggravated battery to a police officer, and resisting arrest, according to police.
Aggravated assault
A Berwyn resident honked his horn at a man, driving a black sedan while driving in the 1000 block of South Boulevard shortly before 3 p.m. Saturday, March 22. The man then drove up next to the victim, pointed a firearm at him and made a verbal threat before driving away westbound on South Boulevard, according to police.
Car theft
Introduction to Centering Prayer Workshop
Sat urdayMorning
8:30am
Saturday Morning, March 29 • 8:30am-12:00pm St. Edmund Murphy Hall • 188 S. Oak Park Ave.
Sat urdayMorning , March 29 8:30am - 12:00pm St Edmund M urphy Hall
Introduction to Centering Prayer Workshop
Contemplative prayer allows the hunger and thirst for God to well up.
St Edmund 188 S Oak Contemplative prayer and thirst for
Deepen your relationship with God consenting to God’s presence and healing action within us. basics of a centuries opening your mind
eepen your relationship with God consenting to God’s presence and old method of heart to wordless . Donations
Deepen your relationship with God Centering Prayer is a silent method consenting to God’s presence and healing action within us. the basics of a centuries sitting with God while opening y
rbrtgorman@protonmail.com
Register at 8:15. No charge. Donations welcome. Register by sending an email to rbrtgorman@protonmail.com Walk-
Police are investigating the theft of a 2016 Honda Accord from the 600 block of East Avenue, which occurred sometime during the afternoon of Saturday, March 22. The value of the victim’s loss is estimated at $25,000, according to police.
Register at 8:15 No charge. Donations welcome. Register by sending an email to rbrtgorman@protonmail.com
You are encouraged to attend four follow Wednesday evenings in April from 7:00 to 8:30 pm
Bob and Kathleen Gorman of Oak Park commissioned presenters of the Centering Prayer method a facilitate silent retreats for Contemplative Outreach.
These items were obtained from Oak Park Police Department reports dated March 18–March 21 and represent a portion of the incidents to which police responded. Anyone named in these reports has only been charged with a crime and cases have not yet been adjudicated.
You are encouraged to attend four evenings from 7:00 to 8:30
You are encouraged to attend four up Wednesday evenings from 7:00 to 8:30 pm on Zoom
Bob and Kathleen Gorman of Oak Centering Prayer method a facilitate
Sponsored by Spirit and Light: A Catholic Collaborative for Living Fatih
Sponsored by Spirit and Light: A Catholic
Bob and Kathleen Gorman commissioned presenters of the Centering Prayer method a facilitate silent retreats for Contemplative Outreach.
Sponsored by Spirit and Light: A Catholic Collaborative for Living Fatih
Banking starts comeback in Austin a er decades
Chicago’s West Side has been underbanked for half a century, but it’s nally starting to see mor investment from nancial institutions
By JESSICA MORDACQ Staff Reporter
There are only four financial institutions in Austin, serving over 90,000 residents: The Great Lakes Credit Union at Leaders Network Financial on Madison Street, a BMO Bank and the Old Second National Bank on North Avenue, and a U.S. Bank branch on Madison Street.
“I would say, for at least 10 years, there’ been one bank in Austin, which is ridiculous,” Austin native Michelle Collins told Austin Weekly News of the U.S. Bank facility Collins is a retired community development banker, who helped give home and commercial loans to Austin residents over 25 years. She was also instrumental in getting the Great Lakes Credit Union Leaders Network branch to open last year. Just west of Austin Boulevard, ti n’s wester n border, Oak Pa rk has a U. S. Bank and the S elf-Help Fe deral Credit Union. T hese i nstitutions c ontribute to Oak Pa rk having about three times more b anks than Austin, for j ust over 50,000 Oak Pa rk residents.
“Austin is very underbanked,” Athena Williams, executive director of the Oak Park Regional Housing Center, told Austin Weekly News. Williams was born and raised on the West Side and initially part of the Leaders Network committee to get the Great Lakes Credit Union to come to Austin.
“Not just Austin, but West Garfield, North Lawndale – they’re all financial deserts,” Collins said.
That’s because, for better the better part of 50 years, Austin has been actively disinvested from by many sectors, including banks. Also, while Austin is one of the largest Chicago neighborhoods, it is not as densely populated as others.
But more b anking options are on the horizon.
Forty Acres Fresh Market, expected to
open this year, plans to include a PNC Bank branch. BMO Bank plans to be a tenant in the Aspire Center for Workforce Innovation, which will have its grand opening later this year.
And the Oak Park Re gional Housing Center has had several banks submit letters of intent, wanting to move into the development at the old Laramie Stat e Bank. Construction to develop the lot’s apar tment buildings is underway and expected to wrap next Februar y. T he original bank building, which will include office and retail space, is expected to open after the apar tments do and will include a financial institution.
Doubling Austin’s banking options within the next year is something that the community has been working toward for a long time
“The future now looks brighter than it has looked in the last 10 years,” Collins said.
“Banks are starting to show an interest in being located on the West Side,” said Darnell Shields, executive director of nonprofit Austin Coming To gether and board member of Growing Community Media, the parent company of Austin Weekly News. “In the last, I would say five years, we’ve seen more banks have a greater presence in the community of Austin.”
Shields said he recently heard from people at Wintrust that the bank is interested in having a presence on the West Side, and he said that JP Morgan Chase may be interested as well. He largely chalks that up to work that’s been done in the community to attract developers and those who want to invest in the West Side.
“Having a lot of economic activity and economic growth will help convince banks that they ought to be located in the Austin community,” said Ed Coleman, for mer CEO of Bethel New Life and West Side Forward, who was recently named executive director of the Austin Chamber of Commerce.
As with any business, Coleman added, it’s necessary to show banks that there’s a market in Austin, “that there are people and businesses with the resources that will make it worth their while to open up a facility.”
What does a community lose in a nancial desert?
“The greatest source of wealth is basically access to capital,” Collins said. And without enough banks and credit unions, Austin residents don’t have access to that capital.
PROVIDED
Darnell Shields and Athena Williams talk about the redevelopment of the Laramie State Bank building during an Austin community tour for the MacArthur Foundation.
Collins added that, if people don’t have a place to save and borrow money, or have a debit or credit card, it ’s dif ficult to buy a home or get a car loan.
Because of Austin’s lack of financial institutions, residents who use banks and credit unions often go to neighboring communities, saving and spending their money elsewhere.
“When people go to the bank, they ’re going to naturally spend their money near where they’re banking,” Williams said. “We have a huge situation where a lot of the residual income from Austin goes to Oak Park.”
Aside from kee ping money within the community, having more banks in Austin would increase equitable access to financial institutions on the West Side
“You shouldn’t have to have a car and drive some place that is maybe unfamiliar to you and where you don’t feel welcome,” Collins said. “You want to be able to walk from your apar tment or your home, drive right around the corner and get to know your local banker.”
While Austin has been underbanked for decades, it became especially apparent during the pandemic, according to Coleman.
support businesses in particular is a gr thing to have,” Coleman said.
How to get more nancial institutions in Austin
Though there’s a handful of banks that plan to have an Austin presence within the next year, local shareholders say they must continue partnering and having conversations with financial institutions if they want more of them in their communities.
“We can’t just sit back and hope some bank will say, ‘I think I’ll go to Austin,’ or ‘I think I’ll go to Garfield,’ or ‘I think I’ll go to Lawndale,’” Collins said.
Instead, organizations and shareholders need to come together to get these institutions to the West Side. It’s what Austin is currently seeing as the Leaders Network partnered with the Great Lakes Credit Union, and with the three banks moving into Austin within the next year.
“When he went to the bank, the whole family went to the bank,” Williams said. “A family that banks together, grows wealth together.”
“We’ re saying, ‘We’ re here. This matters to us. Let me show you the value of coming to bring these services,’” Collins said.
In 2021, the gover nment launched the Paycheck Protection Program to give federal grants to businesses that were struggling after Covid-19. Coleman said he saw many large banks that administered PPP loans weren’ t very rece ptive to engaging with local business owners, preferring to support their existing clients or larger ones Coleman said that could partially be because some smaller local businesses aren’t operating with all the necessary documents – something he saw often at Bethel New Life and West Side Forward.
ATHENA
WILLIAMS Executive direc tor, Oak Park Regional Housing
“I think what would really help some of the bank partners become even more intentional about investing in communities is being able to understand where the opportunities are for their shareholders and their services that they provide,” Shields said. He added that they can learn about where there is land or vacant building space by talking with those in the community.
But there’s also an onus on Austin residents to get more banks in their neighborhood.
“We have to make sure we use the banks, and we have to make sure that we support the banks to keep them in our communities,” Williams said.
“They need to have records and paperwork and all the things that these institutions are requesting,” Coleman said. He added that, as a part of the Austin Chamber of Commerce, he plans to work with these businesses so they have the necessary documents to apply for future grants. And that local financial institutions will be necessary if there’s another widespread sickness like Covid-19.
“If anything like a pandemic were to hit, having community banks available to
Collins said parents can help with this ef fort by starting their children out with student accounts, teaching them how to manage money and access capital at a young age.
Williams said that’s what her parents did when she was young, and her father took her with him to go to the bank.
“When he went to the bank, the whole family went to the bank,” Williams said. “A family that banks together, grows wealth together.”
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Oak Park president candidates re ect on election’s eve
Vicki
Scaman
and Ravi Parakkat re s most important to them ahead of April 1’s election.
By BRENDAN HEFFERNAN Staff Reporter
Parakkat ’s transformation
Ravi Parakkat said that his time on the village board has completely changed him.
After more than two decades in the corporate world, Para kkat said he made a decision to fundamentally change the things he devoted his time to. That change led him to found Takeout 25, and to run for a seat on Oak Park’s village boar as part of living a more purpose-driven life
“I have changed so significantly in the last four years no you should probably talk to my wife to see how much I ha changed,” Parakkat said. “When somebody asked me whether I’d like to run for local office, I just saw that as a vehicle to have an impact on people’s lives.”
Now, he said the decision to spend even more of that time on a run for Oak Park’s top job is firmly rooted in those ne priorities.
“It’s a thankless role and, you know, I’d have to give a lot of time and I have a young family, but I feel called to do it, right now,” he said. “But I would re gret not doing it, just based on who I am today.”
Running on a platform based on attracting investment
VICKI VS. RAVI
A bruising campai gn
from page 4
small community, that our kids go to school together and you can’t take back some of these words, you can’t undo these actions,” Parakkat said. “Those divisions that are driven in the name of an election cycle can create lasting damage That is the problem I see with the tone of this election.”
‘It ’s not what anyone seated at the board table wants to do’
Scaman said Parakkat has built the core of his electoral strategy around misleading voters about what the forthcoming village hall renovation and construction of a new police station will cost, mischaracterizing her and other current trustee’s positions in the process. Scaman maintains it is her will now, and the will of the entire board, that the entire combined project be completed for as close to $100 million as possible, and that she would reject a proposal from the architectural firm working on the project that comes in
“The first four years have really felt like setting the foundation,” she said.
too high.
“To say ‘village hall’ but not include the words ‘police department’ into the math and let people believe that $80 million of it isn’t for a new police station, that it’s $150 million for this legacy project for village hall, it’s instilling fear in people,” Scaman said. “To claim that one of the candidates is going to so irresponsibly throw money at something without the proper analysis, the spirit of that is not Oak Park. And it’s not what anyone seated at the board table wants to do.”
Parakkat has said Scaman will push for a $140 to $150 million project to rebuild village hall and build a stand alone police station on the patch of greenspace across the parking lot from village hall. He said that with construction and interest that final costs are likely to balloon to nearly $200 million. He said that Scaman is the one misleading voters by flipflopping ahead of the election.
“People are changing their positions for the convenience of an election that’s around the corner,” he said. “Even then, at face value, $100 million translates to $180 million by the time you’re paying interest plus everything else that goes along with that. You’re still looking at a $200 million project, and I don’t subscribe to that.”
idst of the COVID pandemic, er her first in-person board meeting nto her tenure. She’d spent a term as winning election in 2021 and said that en her a good perspective on what had driven oard and how she could help the
pproaches in leadership styles that were respond to that moment, , empathetic leadership style willing to listen to both sides lap.”
Scaman said that with the nationwide upheaval caused election, the Oak Park village moil.
that our implementation , especially since we don’t know ue sources are going to change with the way olitical direction is going,” Scaman said. responsive to the times ommunity needs to come together alues are what makes Oak Park ry, easy to lose sight of that. Elected officials need to feel the weight on their shoulders of what it means to be elected.
Part of this conflict stems from different interpretations of the significance of the July 5, 2023 board vote that set the stage for the next two-and-a-half years of back-andforth between the village and its architect, and much of the bitterness of this campaign That night, the board was to determine how the village would plan to move forward with providing the Oak Park Police Department new accommodations, as the board had reached consensus that officers were working in abominable conditions in village hall’s windowless basement.
The board considered five options that night. They ranged from demolition of the current village hall and construction of a new municipal building and police station to a new police station and renovation of village hall’s lower level, to building a new police station and not renovating village hall. Price ranges presented by the architectural fir m stretched from $70 million to $138 million.
The costliest option, demolition and new construction, won out that evening with Scaman and Trustees Lucia Robinson, Cory Wesley and Chibuike Enyia supporting the proposal for a new village hall alongside a brand new police station on the same property. The vote set the vision for the project, although
trustees described that preliminary step as a limited action that gave room for the village to react to resident perspectives, as Robinson articulated that night.
“This discussion is limited in just moving to the next step,” Robinson said.
In Scaman’s view, that’s exactly what’s happened, as the board has pushed its architect JLK, which is a different firm from the one that provided the cost estimates in 2023, to bring the cost of the project down from that 2023 estimate. Demolition of the village hall has also been taken off the table, in favor of renovation.
Parakkat still believes that selecting the most expensive option on the table that night damned the village to overspend on the project and is still a key example of Scaman’s “poor governance.”
When the firm’s representatives were last in front of the board in December, their projected cost for the entire project was around $120 million. They were supposed to speak before the board again on March 18, but that discussion has been pushed to a lame duck session after village staff wanted more time to review the JLK proposal.
Voters will have to go to the polls without the benefit of those insights
TODD BANNOR
Village President Vicki Scaman, her challenger Ravi Parakkat at the Oak Park Candidate Forum on Feb. 24.
to welcome successors,” Foran said. “Absent that willingness, term limits provide the structure by which new perspectives can be included in board deliberations.”
As worded, the referendum is clear on its aims:
“Shall the Village of River Forest, after the April 1, 2025, Consolidated Election, enact term limits for the elected offices of Village President, Village Clerk, and the six (6) Village Trustees for no more than two (2) four-year (4year) terms total as follows: for each of three (3) Trustees beginning with the April 3, 2027, Consolidated election, and for the Village President, Village Clerk, and three (3) Trustees starting with the April 6, 2029, Consolidated election?”
“You want that healthy mix of experienced candidates and new candidates. If you prohibit someone [from] running for a third term, it creates more concern and confusion over time.”
CATHY ADDUCI River Forest village president
On April 1, incumbent village president Cathy Adduci is running unopposed. Incumbent trustees Lisa Gillis and Respicio F. Vazquez are running for three trustee seats, with newcomer Megan Keskitalo also running. Incumbent trustee Ken Johnson is not running. Rosa Castellano is running unopposed for village clerk after Jonathan Keller moved out of the
rpose of you trust the voter in undergoing on in the community work.”
Adduci said candidates that serve concreates a healthy mix of experi-
the ballot after village resident Foran filed 63 petition sheets containing 564 signatures in late December. The required number of signatures was 396. By state statute, the number of signatures required is not less than 8% of the number of total votes cast in the previous gubernatorial election. In 2022, 4,941 votes were case in River Forest in that election.
Fellow resident and referendum supporter Deborah Borman said that “serving an extensive length of time reduces constituent involvement and encourages voter malaise.
“A village president with entrenched power, who handselects and appoints all the commissioners and committee members, recruits and grooms trustee candidates, and controls the majority of the trustee votes, greatly hamstrings robust public debate on all important constituent issues,” Borman said.
Adduci is running unopposed for her fourth consecutive term as village president. She noted that her first and third times running she defeated an opponent.
“We have it in D90 and D200,” she said. “You want that healthy mix of experienced candidates and new candidates. If you prohibit someone [from] running for a third term, it creates more concern and confusion over time.”
As far as what could happen April 1, Adduci said she’s voting no on the referendum, but she added she doesn’t have a bead on what is going to happen.
“I hope the village of River Forest residents know the question and understand the ramifications,” she said.
Bachner said she is “for the referendum as stated,” but she ag reed with Adduci on one thing:
I have spoken with did not want to run against an incumbent who had quite a bit of political power.”
Brennan said that if the referendum passes, “100% it would affect me.” But to her, there is a bigger picture to consider.
“I want to bring in new, fresh ideas. That ’s what I ran on the rst time. Folks who have really great ideas who I have spoken with did not want to run against an incumbent who had quite a bit of political power.”
ERIKA BACHNER
River Forest village trusteee
“I think a lot of it is how eng aged our folks are on this issue,” she said. “Not having eng agement in this issue would not surprise me. We have so many uncontested elections this year, which could prove another challenge.”
But what about the fact that if the referendum passes, it would hypothetically impact her in the future?
That’s fine, she said.
“Lack of term limits affords a strategic advantage to long-term incumbent office holders who want to keep serving year after year and term after term,” she said. “I think term limits helps with that trust and transparency and curbs situations that could be damaging.”
Keskitalo, an anthropologist and research director at a marketing company, views the issue from a different lens.
“I think the one thing that stands out to me about the issue, both sides have identified the same core problem,” she said. “We’ re not attracting enough candidates.”
She said she has spoken to community members who weren’ t sure they were ready to run, and others that were ready to run, but felt the political climate was too ne gative. Thus, creating a diverse pool of applications will help ensure local elections “are run fairly and kindly
“I see the problem existing whether the ballot initiative passes,” she said. “We have to create a culture where people feel comfortable running so we get the diversity of voices in all boards and commissions.”
DEBORAH BORMAN ERIKA BACHNER
CATHY ADDUCI
KATIE BRENNAN
Homes
By LACEY SIKORA Contributing Reporter
Since the 2020 pandemic, prices have been on the rise in local real estate. Higher interest rates have ke pt some homeowners in their homes longer than expected and made it harder for new buyers to get into the market. Fewer people selling means more competition for buyers who are offering higher prices to get into a home.
In 2024, Chicago-area single-family home
Buzzword in house prices? Higher
Sale prices jump 19% to 24% in tri-village area in 2024
prices rose 8% areawide, but that increase was a lot larger in Oak Park, River Forest and Forest Park. The Oak Park Area Association of Realtors (OPAAR) and Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices’ Vice President and Designated Managing Broker John Lawrence provided a screenshot into local statistics.
River Forest saw the biggest surge in singlefamily homes pricing, with an increase of 24.05% to a median of $980,000. Oak Park saw an increase of 18.67%, with a median sales price in 2024 of $623,000. Forest Park recorded
an increase of 19.4% and a median single-family home price of $400,000.
Attached homes, or condominiums and townhomes, also saw increases across the three suburbs. River Forest attached housing increased 8.57% in 2024, with a median price of $260,000. Oak Park attached housing saw a 9.5% price increase and a median sales price of $213,500. Forest Park’s attached housing increased 13.42% and had a median price of $179,000.
HOUSE PRICES
Rising and rising
from page 24
Linda Rooney, of Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Chicago and vice president of the local Realtor’s group, said that across all types of properties, Oak Park has seen a 33% price increase over the past decade. She notes that so far, 2025 looks a lot like 2024 and says, “We’ re still seeing low inventory and higher interest rates. Also, people are kind of nervous about the economy in general. It’s kind of a crazy year.”
While Realtors enerally agree that the high interest rates of the past few years might be ping long-ter m homeowners with low rates in their homes, Rooney says the interest rate environment is no longer an impediment for first-time buyers
“People, especially first-time buyers, are okay with interest rates around 6%,” she said.
“Everyone is fighting it out over homes in the $450,000 to $670,000 range,” she said. Homes priced in this range are often sold with multiple offers. In recent weeks, Rooney has seen two houses sell with multiple offers: one gar nered 12 offers and another 14. She said this is reflective of a very apparent lack of inventory in the middle range of houses This perception of the “missing middle”
is something that Rooney and current local board president Cynthia Howe-Gajewski of Beyond Properties Realty Group, recently covered in a presentation for the Village of Oak Park.
Howe-Gajewski said lack of supply combined with a healthy demand contributes to the issue. This imbalance means that prices continue to go up, affecting the affordability of Oak Park and the surrounding areas
“We have a lot of downsizers and upsizers who want to stay in the village but can’t find what they are looking for. It’s creating a bit
of a logjam,” she said.
Oak Park currently has a 1.4-month supply of available houses. That tight market drives up prices. A representative of the Illinois Board of Realtors recently told the Oak Park village board that it takes a 6-month inventory to result in only moderate price increases
Like Rooney, Howe-Gajewski is seeing a lot of anxiety in the market over the current political situation. People are concerned about the stock market, tariffs and the possibility of recession.
She thinks those fears might be overblown in Oak Pa where the majority of housing stock is existing homes. “Because we’re in a very desirable location, with proximity to the city, that urban/suburban vibe and access to two train lines, we’re always going to be a little more resistant to the bigger swings,” she said.
making it hard to find savings in real estate across the board.
Both Rooney and Howe-Gajewski said it’s a tough time to be a buyer’s agent. Their clients often have to look at, and bid on, a larger number of homes before finding the right one. Rooney sees some first-time buyers expanding their searches from Oak Park to areas like Elmwood Park and Galewood Howe-Gajewski said that people with roots in Oak Park and River Forest are more likely to want to stay in the area when they downsize or upsize, noting parents are especially reluctant to move their children to a different school system.
T here are some upsides to the situation. Howe-Gajewski said. “If you have the ability to sell and rent while you look for a new home, now’s a great time to cash out your equity.”
One area she thinks will bear the brunt of the political climate is new construction. “Tariffs will make new construction more expensive and those homes will be less affordable,” she said noting this applies to both newly built homes and renovations.
Howe-Gajewski pointed out the price increase has also hit local rental markets,
After years of buyers being focused on move-in ready homes, Rooney said some buyers are “starting to come back to the idea of doing work on a house.”
She said that is a positive change: “It’s like when we moved here 20 years ago, and we looked for houses with good bones. I kind of feel like that mindset is coming back. I’m hopeful. We have to just meet people where they are.”
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Shrubtown: The Price is Right p. 29
DISTRIC T 90 SCHOOL BO ARD C ANDID AT E
Why I’m running for re-election
Iam running for re-election to the District 90 Board of Education because I love our schools and I am proud of our schools. I am proud of our amazing teachers. I am proud of our committed administrators and eng aged parents. I am proud of our excellent support I am proud of our students who show up every day
I am proud all three of our schools received the “exemplary” designation this past year. For those who know me, you are likely aware that I am not one overly caught up in these designations. I have always known that we have exemplary things happening in our schools, especially around teaching and learning, as well as our ef for ts to create a welcoming and inclusive community. However, it is notable that all three of our schools received this designation and gives us much to celebrate. Of course, exemplary doesn’t mean perfect. I am running for re-election because I want to continue the work We have many kids who are thriving in D90, but there are areas where we can do better in meeting the needs of our students.
I have three kids who have very different academic and social emotional needs. My oldest received special education services while in D90 and currently attends Triton. My middle child is a sophomore at OPRF and is more of a typical high-achieving student. My youngest is in eighth g rade at Roosevelt. While she finds success in school, she has dealt with significant mental health challenges over the last three years.
Being the parent of kids with very different needs means I can understand the cross-section of experiences of our families and students in our district. I am running for re-election because my voice and perspective remain valuable and relevant as we look to pursue our district’s mission: to inspire and empower all learners to achieve their personal best.
VIEWPOINTS
PRO & CO N: TERM LIMITS FOR RIVER FOREST
Term limits needed for RF Village Board
Incumbency advantage is a course topic in AP U.S. Gover nment. It refers to “the benefits that current officeholders have over challengers in elections, making it easier for them to win re-election. This advantage stems from factors such as name recognition, established donor networks, and the ability to leverage their position to gain media attention and engage constituents” (https://library. fiveable.me/key-ter ms/ap-gov/incumbency-advantage).
This known advantage tur ns the old saying that “you can just vote someone out of office” on its head when an incumbent has this force behind them.
What does this look like in River Forest?
Name recognition: Village newsletters, delivered to resident in-boxes, include the names of current board members. That drip-drip of name placement between elections is significant.
Established donor networks: in 2021, over $32,000 was spent on the village president election, $5,000 by my campaign. In 2025, nearly $29,000 has been raised to date in an uncontested election. (These figures are from the Illinois State Board of Elections candidate financial closure statements). Does a municipality of 11,000 people warrant expenditures of this level?
Are we comfortable that expenditures of this level will preclude viable candidates from running?
Leverage to gain media attention: Village staf f issue press releases to local media on a regular basis, and these releases are often printed.
Term limits level the playing field in this sometimes daunting run for of fice. They’re embraced by communities such as Skokie, Downers Grove and Broadview.
According to Broadview Mayor Katrina Thompson (Village Free Press, “Broadview Voters To Weigh In On Term Limit Referendum,” March 8, 2022), “Let’s face it, defeating incumbents is hard, and with term limits in place, political mobility is guaranteed to generate new leaders and new ideas in the future.”
In River Forest, with the failed development at Lake & Lathrop and the neutered Ethics Commission, we desperately need new leaders to save our tax base from the pitfalls of entrenched power.
Do we as a community need to do a better job recruiting and suppo rting candidates to run for of fice? Absolutely. Enacting term limits is one step in the process to broaden community representation and bring fresh ideas.
Patty Henek River Forest
Why we’re voting No for term limits
We are against ter m limits because it is about limiting our voice, our choice and our vote in future elections. It is a bad policy for a village of our size. It is not and should not be about any one person in office today or in the future.
We already have term limits; they are called elections. We have a limited talent pool from which to source qualified candidates for office. River Forest has about 11,227 people of which 7,849 are over the age of 18 (source: Census.gov). This is a very small pool from which to source qualified candidates for political office. We cannot af ford to limit that talent pool in any way. Note that five elections over the past 20 years, including the April 2025 election, have been non-contested.
Term Limits reduce the collective experience and institutional knowledge of our elected officials. Why would you want to force a “brain drain”?
Term Limits incentivize short-term thinking versus the long game. We need to govern with an eye toward the needs of River Forest today as well as tomor row.
The president, village clerk and village board all volunteer their services, without pay or benefits of any kind. This is not the case for other municipalities across the Chicago area, including Broadview and Skokie. I mention these two towns because each has been used as examples of towns with term limits. Some have suggested on Facebook that we need term limits in River Forest because incumbents have an advantage over newcomers to elections but a review of recent elections shows that, at least where the village president of fice is concerned, that is not the case. The cur rent village president has faced opposition in two elections (2013 and 2021). In both elections, the two challengers were villa ge trustees who were well known by the electorate. These were not newcomers who were disadvantaged by being new to village politics.
Please read this white paper about term limits from the University of Chicago Center for Effective Government: https://effective gov.uchicago.edu/primers/ term-limits.
We encourage you to Vote No to term limits in River Forest.
OUR VIEWS
Oak Park’s bitter race
In candid interviews with the Journal late last week both Vicki Scaman and Ravi Parakkat, the candidates for Oak Park village president in next week’s election, acknowledged that this campaign has been bruising and that the tensions in the race trace back to distrust and rifts that developed over the past four years as they have served together on the village board.
There is a level of personal animus at work in the campaign that does feel different than past campaigns for Oak Park village president. In the post-Village Manager Association (VMA) era, decades when there was essentially one-party rule in Oak Park, there have been contested races for the top job that brought intensity and clear differences on some issues. But this feels more personal.
Is it fueled by personality dif ferences that influence approaches to governance, by an active and sometimes harsh social media environment or is it some leakage of national political toxicity into local elections?
Whatever the root of the suspicion and disdain that Parakkat and Scaman acknowledge feeling, it is a race that all parties involved are ready to see come to a close.
There are real issues that will need to be addressed by the next village board. Hard choices on building a new police station and updating village hall at a price that is reasonable top the list. But also issues of af fordability, spurring economic development, property tax saturation, coping with coming budget cuts out of the Trump administration, continuing to evolve public safety while restocking a depleted police department …
There is lots to do. And Oak Park needs to forge a path of active board debate and decisions without the unproductive tensions.
Visible and welcome
In another notable moment of leadership reflecting basic Oak Park values, the village board last week chose to honor Transgender Day of Visibility on March 31. The village government will also be involved in an event this Sunday (March 30) celebrating the moment in Scoville Park
There was a large crowd in the council chambers at village hall last week when the vote was taken. Comments were passionate and affirming of the value of every person and the rights of each person to live safely and proudly in a community. Aaron McManus, a social justice advocate for inclusion, took it a step further when they urged the village to consider becoming a transgender sanctuary city.
There will be rallies across the nation on behalf of transgender visibility next week. All this in response to the hate-filled actions of the Trump administration in attempting to squelch the rights and very identity of the trans community.
Oak Park’s response is both essential and gratifying.
A light in the darkness
Ev erybody knows the war is over / Everybody knows the good guys lost / Ev erybody knows the fight was fix ed / The poor stay poor, the rich get rich / Everybody knows the boat is leaking / Everybody knows the captain lied / Ev erybody’s got this brok en feeling / Like their father or their dog just died … / And ev erybody knows the Plague is coming / Everybody knows it’s moving fast … / That’s how it goes / Ev erybody knows. (Leonard Cohen, “Everybody Knows”)
BKEN TRAINOR
ack in 2000, history professor Morris Berman published a book titled, The Twilight of American Culture, which turned out to be dead on. It starts with a couple of pointed quotes:
“No people can be both ignorant and free.” (Thomas Jefferson)
“When a population becomes distracted by trivia, when cultural life is redefined as a perpetual round of entertainments, when, in short, a people become an audience and their public business a vaudeville act, then a nation finds itself at risk; culture-death is a clear possibility.” (Neil Postman, Amusing Ourselves to Death)
America has entered the Dark Age that Berman predicted. We hoped 2016 was an aber ration. Surely we learned our lesson. We did not — 2024 was confirmation.
“As the 21st century dawns,” Berman wrote [a quarter-century ago], “American culture is, quite simply, in a mess. … Every civilization has its twilight period, said Spengler, during which it hardens into a classical phase, preserving the form of its central Idea [in this case democracy, everyone created equal], but losing the content, the essential spirit. … This crisis is the logical culmination of a certain historical process that beg an in Europe at the end of the Middle Ages, expanded during the Scientific and Industrial Revolutions, and finally climaxed in our own time.”
Unlike Leonard Cohen’s much darker song, Berman’s book finds hope in the monastic model of the Middle Ages: small enclaves of light surviving in a sea of darkness, wherein monks copied the great works of Greco-Roman culture, which eventually fueled a new dawn for Western Civilization. The monks (yes, literally) saved civilization.
For our Dark Age, Berman looks to a secular version of this: enclaves that preserve our ideals against the encroaching darkness. He quotes English novelist E.M. Forster, who, in the deepening gloom before WWII, wrote, “I believe in aristocracy Not an aristocracy of power, based upon rank and influence, but an aristocracy of the sensitive, the considerate and the plucky. Its members are to be
found in all nations and classes, and all through the ages, and there is a secret understanding between them when they meet. They re present the true human tradition, the one permanent victory of our queer race over cruelty and chaos.”
In his “monastic option,” Berman includes groups, small institutions, and communities, whose contributions are invaluable, even when their idealism seems quixotic. And to those who would brand the new monasticism “elitist,” Berman answers that there are two kinds — elitism for the few and elitism for all. His definition of democracy is “elitism for everybody,” alluding to the University of Chicago’s Robert Maynard Hutchins, founder of the Great Books program, who said, “The best education for the best is the best education for all.”
Oak Park and River Forest should be one of those enclaves of light. Yet many here are frustrated and confused about what to do We feel helpless watching from afar as elitist oligarchs run amuck (or amusk), dismantling the government, not because the government doesn’t work, but precisely because government does work, and it does not advantage “elitism for the few.” Truly democratic government aims to achieve “elitism for all,” and the Musks and Trumps of the world cannot abide that.
At this point, there is not much we can do on the national level to counter their cruelty and chaos (though boycotting Tesla and Amazon is a nice start). Things can, however, be enacted on the local level.
In fact, we’re already doing something important. It’s called “the freshman curriculum” at OPRF High School, an idealistic yet pragmatic attempt to take a positive step toward educational excellence — for all, not just the few. It is an ef fort to level the playing field while keeping academic standards high, a creative experiment to get more students of color involved in honors and AP level classes as they move forward through high school.
But if you’ve been reading the Viewpoints section lately, you know there is a vocal movement trying to discredit this program. These critics proclaimed it a “failure” right out of the gate (exposing their questionable motives). They have no interest in improving this experiment. They want to trash it and retur n to the for mer white-dominant “elitism for the few.”
If you’ re looking for a way to be a light in the current darkness, supporting the freshman curriculum is an excellent place to start.
OPRF’s motto is the Greek “Ta Garista,” which translates as “The best.” It should be translated, “All that is best for all.” Do your best by all the rest. Shouldn’t that be our motto too?
Don’t just be a member of the audience. Be the light. Step up. At the very least, vote.
Harmon endorses Vicki Scaman Taglia will help shape our future
As your state senator, I view my job as re presenting Oak Park’s interests in state government. I traditionally let our local elected officials lead the way on municipal issues and let them present their ideas or accomplishments to you free from my commentary.
The rare cases in which I’ve shared my preference has been when I believe an incumbent village president has done a good job of representing Oak Park beyond the four corners of our village, while still responsibly managing our hometown.
I will be casting my vote for Village President Vicki Scaman because she has been as effective a leader as I’ve served with in the past two decades.
Her work on climate change advocacy in particular and partnership with neighboring communities that may have more immediate challenges than we — Maywood, Broadview, and Bellwood — has been groundbreaking.
Oak Parkers hold public officials to a high standard of service. That is a good thing, particularly at a historically divisive and difficult time in our world. Vicki Scaman works well with colleagues, she collaborates with stakeholders to find paths, her door has always been open to feedback
She is the type of leader I believe we need and she has ear ned my vote for re-election.
Don Harmon
Illinois State Senate president, Oak Park
Mellman endorses Mellman & Gertz
I spent two years attending nearly every OPRF school board meeting before I graduated in 2022. I saw what makes an effective board member. Josh Gertz and my dad, Nate Mellman, are the best people for the job. A great board member puts students first. That means ensuring OPRF stays focused on its core mission: education. But recent trends concern me. My dad and Josh will make sure OPRF’s resources are used wisely. A great board member also listens to all perspectives. Here, I can speak personally. The only place with a heartier debate than an Oak Park Facebook page is the Mellman family dinner table. My dad taught my sisters and me to debate passionately but respectfully — to back our arguments
Re-elect
I had the privile ge of serving alongside Jim Taglia on the Oak Park Village Board, and I saw firsthand the qualities that make him an exceptional trustee — his preparation, thoughtfulness, and ability to bring people together. Now, after four years of f the board, Jim is running again, and I strongly encourage Oak Park voters to support him.
Jim is a CPA, a business owner, and a lifelong Oak Park resident. He and his wife, Anneka, raised their five children here, and his deep roots in the community, combined with his financial expertise, make him uniquely qualified to help navig ate the challenges our village faces.
Jim has always been a steady presence in board discussions, ensuring that all perspectives are considered. He is the glue that keeps board members working together productively, even in the most
difficult debates. A strong advocate for public safety, a budget expert, and a business-minded problem-solver, he brings the kind of leadership that is critical for effective governance.
With rising costs, infrastructure needs, and public safety concer ns, Oak Park needs experienced, level-headed leadership to move forward. Jim has already demonstrated his ability to lead, listen, and make infor med decisions that serve the best interests of our residents. His retur n to the board comes at a time when Oak Park needs stability, fiscal responsibility, and pragmatic leadership the most.
On Election Day, vote for Jim Taglia for village trustee. His experience, integrity, and commitment to Oak Park will make a real difference in shaping our future.
Anan Abu-Taleb Village president, 2013 to 2021
with facts, but listen when evidence says we may be wrong. The OPRF board needs new, diverse perspectives, and my dad will bring exactly that. But just as importantly, he will listen and work with everyone to find real solutions.
Every mor ning before school, my dad left my sisters and me with one piece of advice: “Ask good questions.” Always implied was Step 2: listen to the answers. He and Josh know the right questions to ask, and they’re committed to acting on the answers. That’s why I’m proud to support them — because OPRF students deserve a board that will fight for their success.
Tim Mellman River Forest
Lucia Robinson, a proven leader
My parents moved our family to Oak Park in 1972 and after graduating from OPRF, I chose to make Oak Park my home as well. My son attended Oak Park public schools from kindergarten through 12th grade. I am proud to be part of a community that strives to be inclusive, safe, and responsive to its residents.
I have personally known Lucia Ro binson for many years and can confidently say she shares the same values. Li ke me, Lucia also raised her family in Oak Pa rk and truly loves the community. S he brings to the role of trustee an exce ptional combination of compassion, i nte g rity and le g al exper tise. Her ability
to thoughtfully listen to all sides of an i ssue and wo rk tirelessly to move our village forward is exactly the leadership Oak Pa rk needs during these challenging times
Oak Pa rk deserves leaders wh o embody compassion, inte g rity and unwave ring dedication. Lucia Ro binson is that leader. I am gr ateful that Lucia is willing and ready to ser ve another ter m, and I wholehear tedly suppo rt her re-election. I hope you will join me in reelecting Lucia Ro binson to the Oak Pa rk Vi llage Board.
Shira Slack Oak Park
Taglia represents excellence
On April 1, I urge you to vote for Jim Ta glia for the Oak Pa rk Village Board of Trustees. He has a wealth of experience, having previously served six years as a village trustee and six years as a township trustee. Jim has demonstrated proven leadership to tackle problems with careful thought and common sense. As a CPA, he is fiscally responsible, capable of sound judgment in making business decisions and understanding how decisions impact an organization’s financial health.
April is also the advent of the tulip season. Tulips were my father’s favorite flowers, once planting 10,000 tulips by himself! As children, we weren’ t allowed to pick the tulips without his supervision and never allowed to pick the front ones that were visible to passersby.
My dad’s tulips prompted lasting memories for Jim Taglia. When he was 9, he and his 12-year-old brother, wanting to give their mom a bouquet for Mother ’s Day, decided to reach through the spaces in our wrought iron fence and pick the tulips growing in the front.
My dad caught them, re porting their transgression to their mother. She asked my dad what w ould he consider an appropriate punishment for the boys. His response was to have each of them write an essay on “World Peace.” Although it was the Era of the Vietnam War, one wonders
what would a 9-year-old boy know about world peace?
Jim learned invaluable lessons on that tulip-picking day.
Today I think of him as a peacemaker. He is a staunch believer in world peace and in cultivating peace within our village He believes mutual understanding is the key to resolving conflicts, and that progress results when we listen to one another. This philosophy fosters reconciliation among board members with differing opinions, yet keeps the focus on resolving essential issues.
Jim is a humanitarian. He is open-minded, kind and empathetic. He listens carefully to people, always willing to help them. This was evident when he was contacted by Heritage House, a low-income housing center for senior citizens, where the neglected conditions ran amok with bed bugs, ventilation and heating problems, and overall deterioration. He got the village manager, staff, and HUD all involved, requiring more than a year to make renovations
Heritage House is an example of Jim’s immediate response to a problem, and his tenacity to stay with it until it’s resolved Jim is a valued friend and neighbor, exhibiting kindness, loyalty, and generosity. A vote for Jim is a vote for quality representation and leadership.
Faith R. Julian Perc y Julian’s daughter
SHRUB
TO
WN by Marc Stopeck
Filing season for tax ex emptions
The annual filing season for money-saving property tax exemptions is now open. There are several types of exemptions for owner-occupied homes, but most property owners who received exemptions last year will not have to file anything during this year’s filing season. This is because most exemptions are renewed automatically each year.
Homeowners in the following categories will have to file new exemption applications or renew prior-year exemptions during the filing season:
■ Senior citizens (65 years and up) with annual household income of $65,000 or less who received the Senior Free ze Exemption last year.
■ Senior homeowners who purchased their homes in 2024 or turned 65 in 2024.
■ Homeowners who are not senior citizens and purchased their homes in 2023.
■ Most disabled veterans who received the Disabled Veterans Exemption last year.
■ Homeowners who were diagnosed with a qualifying disability in 2024.
■ 2024 homeowners who are World War II veterans (this is a new exemption).
Paper application for ms are expected to be mailed later in March, but residents can file online now through the Cook County Assessor’s website or with the help of the Oak Park Township Assessor’s Office.
The Oak Pa rk Township Assessor’s Office is experienced in using the online filing system to help residents file for exemptions and can help residents understand the proof and qualifications required for obtaining exemptions. The township can also check to see if taxpayers are eligible for refunds from missing exemptions for prior years. Residents seeking help to call the of fice for an appointment (708-383-8005 x110).
The deadline for filing exemptions has not yet been set, but it is likely to be in mid- to late-April. Taxpayers who apply for exemptions before then should see the exemptions on their second installment tax bills, which should be mailed in the summer.
Ali ElSa ar Oak Park Township Assessor
WEDNESD AY
JOURNAL
of Oak Park and River Forest
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Scaman’s creative, strategic skills
It is with great enthusiasm that I support Vicki Scaman for re-election as Oak Park village president. She is the unique leader that brings together creative, tactical, and strategic skills to get things done. Want receipts? Her ef forts to foster relationships at the federal, state, and local level helped return millions of dollars to Oak Park, mitigating the migrant and climate crisis. Why would we turn that over to anyone who does not have those built-in relationships, especially during the era of Trump and Musk?
President Scaman accomplishes this with a collaborative and respectful governing style. She offers straight talk, admits when she’s wrong, and doesn’t propagate misleading claims
As it relates to a new police facility and accessibility at village hall, President Scaman is the first Oak Park president to make real progress on a decades-old challenge. I served Oak Park for 12 years as a trustee and can only point to a police space needs study as an “accomplishment.” That wasn’t real progress
I find it rather ironic that for mer president Abu-Taleb and Trustee Parakkat now criticize President Scaman for her
leadership on this issue. At the same time, they throw out inflated project numbers to scare voters, knowing full well the entire village board direction is to work toward a project of $100 million or less.
When the police move out, there will be unutilized space at village hall. President Scaman talks about the potential to creatively use that space for nonprofits, ar ts and culture, other governmental entities, or a cafe, and she is again criticized by her opponents. Those alternate uses open the door for grants to further offset taxpayer impact.
I close with this point; I’ve worked with President Scaman for almost 20 years — from her time on the Liquor Control Review Board when she creatively opened up Oak Park liquor ordinances, spurring small business expansion, to today, where she has led through the pandemic, a migrant crisis, and is on the cusp of solving critical public safety space issues.
President Scaman ear ned my support to continue the progress. I encourage all citizens to keep moving Oak Park forward with your vote and support for President Scaman.
Ray Johnson Village trustee, 2003 - 2014
Restore resp onsible library governance
The upcoming library board election is the most critical in many years. A majority of the board seats are up for election, following a tumultuous year in which the library board fired the nationally regarded BIPOC executive director, Joslyn Bowling Dixon, whom they’d unanimously hired a little over a year earlier.
In 2023, a current board member wrote: “One of my proudest moments was voting in favor of Joslyn Bowling Dixon as the executive director. Her leadership has already made a positive impact on the library and its community.” Yet Joslyn was fired, apparently without a written evaluation during her first year as director, without a promised staff survey, and with community input suppressed by firing Joslyn prior to allowing public comment at a hastily called “special” board meeting.
I write as a longtime for mer Oak Park library board member. I was recognized as Illinois Library Trustee of the Year and I served as board president for multiple terms with boards that reflected our community’s diversity. The firing of Joslyn last
Parakkat will make a better president
In a recent interview with the Chicago Tribune, Vicki Scaman stated that “my opponent has not learned the art of securing four votes” on the Oak Park Board of Trustees. That statement is hypocritical: in the face of significant opposition by residents, Ms. Scaman backtracked from the ordinance mandating leaf bagging that she had introduced on March 12, 2024. The board did not follow her withdrawal request and approved the unpopular ordinance over her objection. That
e pisode is illustrative of Scaman’s style of governance: start a project without full consideration of its consequences, and when things take a bad tur n, pull back and disavow responsibility for the outcome By contrast, Ravi Parakkat is very careful in analyzing all implications of a project, especially the financial ones, before endorsing it. He deserves to be the next president of Oak Park
Joan Suchomel Oak Park
A modest proposal
The park district should buy the now vacant Mohr property. This will allow them to build their long desired indoor pool with plenty of room for parking. In addition, the village could close one block of Lexington Street and Maple Park could be expanded to the nor th. The Pa rk District is always reminding us that we need more parks.
According to the Journal article [Mohr Concrete site in foreclosure, News, March 19], the cost of the Mohr property should only be around $4,000,000. This is a large amount, but it is surely less than it would cost to build anywhere else unless they use property they already own.
Stanley Birnbaum Oak Park
How about Mohr Aquatic Park?
March violated the trust that the community placed in the board and created harmful divisions in the community and among staff. We deserve better
I trust Megan Butman, Bruce Brigell, and Daniel Suber to restore responsible library governance, ensure intellectual freedom, and pursue openness and healing. Bruce is a retired librarian who worked in a busy public library serving a diverse community Megan is a law librarian who knows and believes in the value of collaboration. She can help the board quickly develop a sound system of feedback and evaluation for the new executive director. That system was sorely lacking in the current board. And Daniel brings longtime experience as a lawyer, knowledge of due process, and public service on Oak Park’s Liquor Control Review Board.
As a for mer board member whom the community trusted and reelected many times, I urge you to vote for Megan, Bruce, and Daniel to bring back the library that we love and that welcomes all of us
Janet Kelenson, Oak Park
Something this village has long needed is an indoor pool that is operated by the park district, making it af fordable to the whole community. The Mohr Concrete parcel would be the perfect site for a year-round aquatics facility with lot or garage parking, and would greatly enhance the south side of Oak Park. It has long been a ne glected area and treated
as the other side of the tracks (I-290). Being adjacent to Maple Pa rk is an added advantage. And if you have been to any indoor aquatics centers in the greater Chicago area for team meets, parties, lessons, etc., the potential for income is substantial. Mohr Aquatic Pa rk anyone (versus Scaman Village Hall ...) ?
Maureen Darc y, Oak Park
Why we’re voting for Lucia Robinson
We’re voting for Lucia Robinson for three reasons:
1) Proven leadership - As an incumbent, she has proven herself as a trusted voice putting the best interests of the village first.
2) Fiscal responsibility - Sure, it would be great if there was enough money to fund every worthy project and position; however, realities necessitate hard choices about how Oak Pa rk raises and spends revenue.
3) Careful decision making - Lucia has
a proven track record of doing her homework, understanding the issues from all perspectives, and she approaches each vote with care. She asks tough questions and isn’ t afraid to vote ag ainst the pack when necessary.
If you haven’ t yet decided on which candidate to support for trustee, please join us in voting to re-elect Lucia Robinson as a trusted, proven advocate for Oak Park
Kurt & Lee-Ann Roskopf Oak Park
How Taglia helps
I am writing to express my strong support for Jim Taglia in his campaign for Oak Park village trustee. Jim deeply cares about the community and is not only a great listener, but takes decisive action. For example, when he heard about the gunfire outside of my house, he responded to my pleas for help immediately when no one else would. We had been having issues with the patrons of a Berwyn-based bar parking in front of our homes and causing violence for years.
He suggested setting up a meeting with him and my neighbors so he could help us come up with a solution to this decadeslong issue we had been dealing with. Jim listened intently, assisted us in problemsolving our issues, and gave us pragmatic tips in terms of how to move forward with our safety concerns. Over the next several months, Jim worked with Oak Park Police
Chief Shatonya Johnson and my neighbors and me to finally get a tow zone in front of our homes. I cannot truly express the extent of relief my neighbors and I felt after years of having no one listen to us. And we will forever be grateful to Jim Taglia.
He also has the experience to help our community thrive. He has 12 years of combined experience as an Oak Park village trustee and with the Oak Pa rk Township Board. He also has 15 years of experience as the treasurer of the Historical Society of Oak Park-River Forest. Jim Taglia is invaluable to the Oak Park community. His deep commitment to the community and its safety, and his results-driven approach to local issues make him an extraordinary candidate.
Stacey Hendricks Oak Pa
Vote Fred Arkin for D200 board
I strongly urge the people of Oak Park and River Forest to vote for Fred Arkin for the District 200 high school board. I first came to know Fred in 2015 when we campaigned for seats on the D200 board. Over the four years that we served on the board together, I saw that Fred is hard working, dedicated, and determined to ensure that all students receive a stellar education at Oak Park and River Forest High School. No one is better suited for re-election to the D200 board than Fred. He knows this community. He has volunteered as a wrestling coach and founded the girls wrestling program at OPRF. He knows the OPRF culture and knows what the high
KATHLEEN AVALOS
from page 26
I am running for re-election because experience matters. The next iteration of D90’s board of education will hire our new superintendent and oversee the next strategic planning process. During this time of transition, it is critical to have someone who understands the history of how we got to where we are, so we can be thoughtful about where we want to go.
I am excited about the future of D90 and
school needs to keep the institution moving forward.
Fred has served with distinction on the board. His experience with board governance is an asset as OPRF continues its first major capital improvement project in decades. Fred supports high academic standards and expectations for all students. He also believes in fiscal disciplin Parents and taxpayers alike can trust him to make decisions in the best interests of OPRF’s most important stakeholders — the students.
Vote Fred Arkin for D200 school board. Jennifer Cassell Oak Park
the opportunities that exist to build on our strong foundation. Even though this year’s race is uncontested, I hope you will consider voting for me and encouraging others to do the same. While voting can seem less important when a race is uncontested, it is a way to show support for the type of leadership you, as a community member, would like to see re presenting River Forest.
It has been an honor to serve River Forest over the last six years and I look forward to the next four years. Please feel free to reach out: avalosford90@gmail.com
Jenna for Oak Park trustee
Jenna Leving Jacobson should have your vote. She has the qualities of exceptional value for an Oak Park village trustee:
■ Vision for a vibrant, dynamic community with oppor tunity for all, nur turing health and safety, and reducing bar riers
■ Passion and ef fective strategies to bring it to fruition
■ Skilled leadership with proven ef fectiveness
■ An approach seeking respectful understanding of the complex context of creating change
■ A leadership style that engages others in the work, increasing the breadth of ef fectiveness
Jenna is driven by a vision for the future of Oak Park, and for a vision of the community/world she desires for her children. She is strategic and practical. When she sees a need, she asks herself, “What can I do to make a difference?” and “With whom can I work to make effective progress?”
Recognizing the increasing threat of gun violence in our communities, she saw the opportunity to join Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America, and became the local leader. Under her leadership, this group has become an effective team advocating for policy changes that are increasing safety in Oak Park, programs to care for those affected by violence. She was instrumental in raising awareness of safe storage of guns
It’s in this context that I got to know Jenna and have seen her leadership in action. Oak Park-Austin Moms Demand Action fosters care for survivors and survivors’ families, engages in the Health Dept. IPLAN, and prompts schools to educate parents in practices that increase safety in the community. Jenna’s skills of effective leadership, navigating partner relationships respectfully, creating an effective team and promoting community have prepared her for an effective role as VOP trustee
Jenna’s track record makes her an ideal candidate for the Oak Park Village Board. She’s ready to tackle the vision stated in her platform priorities for access to care and mental health, climate justice, affordable housing, strong local democracy, and of course, gun violence prevention. Check out the details at Jenna4optrustee.com.
Mellman & Gertz will
ask critical questions
I am writing to endorse Nate Mellman and Josh Ger tz for the District 200 high school board. Their commitment to our students and community makes them the ideal candidates to lead our district forward.
Mellman and Ger tz focus on three critical issues: kee ping our kids safe, challenging all students academically, and safeguarding tax dollars. Their prioritie s reflect a genuine concer n for our children’s well-being and future.
Nate Mellman’s back ground as an administrat ive law judge and his service on the OPRF Community Council have equipped him with the skills to ask thoughtful, critical questions. Josh Ger tz, with his experience in employee benefits law, brings a unique perspective to managing the district’s resources ef ficiently. To g ether, they of fer a balanced and fiscally responsible approach to school gover nance.
T he current board has faced criticism for its lack of transparency and accountability, particularly in assessing policies like detracking. Mellman and Ger tz have shown a willingness to challenge the status quo and demand better oversight. Their inde pendent thinking and commitment to data-driven decision-making are exactly what our district needs.
Time for a change in River Forest
Much has been said and written re garding the upcoming referendum in River Forest that appears on the ballot. Some for; some against. We have been residents in River Forest since 1987; educated our four sons here.
We absolutely love our town.
This referendum isn’ t only about ter m limits. It’s about the lack of economic development and vision from our elected of ficials.
Cur rently, there are vacant lots: 1) Ashland and Madison, 2) Lake and Lathrop, 3) Lake & Park, which plague our current village
The apat hy and lack of knowledge from the residents is embar rassing. It’s time for a change.
Bill Iannessa Ri v er Forest
Sound the alarm
Park
Lois Love Oak
Re-elect Lucia Robinson
I am writing to express my enthusiastic support for Lucia Robinson in her re-election campaign for village trustee. As a resident of Oak Park for the past 30 years, where I have raised my children and built a life, I can say with confidence that Lucia is the kind of leader our community needs.
I have had the privilege of knowing Lucia since 2007, and her dee p roots in our village are evident in everything she does. Having grown up here and raised her own children in this community, she understands the values, challenges, and aspirations that define Oak Park. This personal connection drives her commitment to making decisions that benefit us all.
Lucia approaches our village’s budget with care and foresight, ensuring that our resources are used wisely and sustainably. Equally impor tant, she is a leader who listens. I’ve seen her eng age with residents, take their feedback seriously, and respond with thoughtful solutions that reflect our collective needs.
Oak Park thrives because of dedicated individuals like Lucia, who bring both experience and hear t to their service. I wholehear tedly suppor t her re-election as village trustee
Linda Skitka, Oak Park
Moreover, their emphasis on safety in our schools is crucial. Every parent wants to know their child is in a secure environment where they can focus on lear ning. Mellman and Ger tz understand this and are committed to implementing measures that will enhance student safety I urge all voters in District 200 to support Nate Mellman and Josh Ger tz. Their leadership will bring a fresh perspective and critical thinking to the board, prioritizing our children’s education and future.
Matthew Tushman District 200 parent
Endorsing Ravi for village president
All things being fair, both of the candidates running for president of Oak Park are qualified and wonderful people. But as a senior citizen, I have to think about the rising costs of taxation. There are so many of us seniors still living in this high-priced suburb, and we don’t want to get more priced out!
Ravi Parakkat has questioned high expenditures. He thinks about the economic viability of our businesses and wants to decrease the tax burden on all of us
Please vote for Ravi Parakkat. I know I will because I care about our economic survival in these precarious times.
Mila Tellez
Oak Park
As an elder, I’ve lived through many political crises in this country — but I have never seen an attack on our democracy like this. In the past, there was bipartisan opposition to lawlessness Today, the guardrails are being dismantled before our eyes, and we must sound the alar m. This country is in crisis and it’s time fo r everyone to ste p up to save our democracy and our way of life by opposing the dictator wannabes Trump and Musk and their enablers.
Erik Sk amser Oak Park
River Forest needs newcomers
I suppor t ter m limits. I’ve been living in River Forest for 28+ years, and I’ve seen how dif ficult it is to get an incumbent voted out of of fice. I appreciate all that our voted-in trustees have done but also appreciate newcomers to the position. It needs to be more accessible to get new individuals on the board.
Mary Jo Taira Ri v er Forest
Term limits are the right move
Did you know incumbents win almost every election in this country? How can we justify such an overwhelming advantage when it’s clear we don’t have nearly perfect re presentation?
Incumbents have numerous builtin advantage s, but one in particular overshadows the rest: name reco gnition. Overcoming this advantage requires an enormous marketing ef fort (leading to huge required campaign spending), creating a substantial bar rier for fresh, talented candidates who wish to contribute to our communities
In other areas of society, we re gularly acknowledge and correct inefficiencies through thoughtful re gulation. We have zoning laws to manage land use, environmental laws to protect resources, and market re gulations to ensure fairness and competition. Why then should our electoral process be exempt? Some argue that term limits restrict voters’ freedom
to choose the representatives they want. However, this argument falls flat as it mi rrors the objections raised against virtually all for ms of re gulation, objections that few, if any, genuinely support.
Term limits directly address this inefficiency in our democratic system, leveling the playing field and ensuring true re presentation by enabling diverse, innovative voices to be heard. This isn’t an indictment of incumbents’ performance; rather, it’s an acknowledgment that our community is brimming with capable individuals whose ideas and contributions deserve the opportunity to flourish.
I strongly support implementing term limits at all levels of government to encourage fresh perspectives, foster healthy competition, and strengthen the foundation of our democracy. Term limits are the right move for River Forest.
Will & Amy Hansmann River Forest
Lack of cost estimates disappoints
I just read in the March 19 edition of Wednesday Journal that the final cost estimates for the remodeling of village hall will not be available to the voters until after the April 1, 2025, election. This means voters will not be able to judge the candidates for village president or village trustee on their positions on what could be one of the most (or the most) expensive municipal projects in Oak Park history.
President Scaman said the scheduling change was “disappointing.” However, she had the authority to write a “due date” into the cost estimates contract to make sure this information arrived and was
availab le to the voter s, existing trustees, and trustee candidates before the election. Her failure to do so is an example of her lack of leadership and competent p lanning. At wo rs e, it could be downright nefarious; she would not be the first politician to hide bad news until after the election.
The end result is the same: we will not know until after the election how many cups of coffee Vickie Scaman planned to sell in her proposed “village hall cafe” to pay for the village hall renovation.
Alan Krause
Oak Park
Vote for Vanderberg for OP board
I am voting for Josh Vanderberg for Oak Park village trustee. Josh brings skills to the board that will be needed to move our village successfully into the future. He is currently on the Civic Information Systems Commission and is ready to join the board and hit the ground running. He shares our local values, including affordable housing, economic development,
A Memorial Day milestone parade
This year’s Memorial Day commemoration marks a very special milestone — celebrating its 100th anniversary! On this day, residents of River Forest and nearby areas come to g ether for what has become one of our most cherished traditions. This is a day when we honor those who have given their lives for our freedoms in service to our great country.
Each year, we pay tribute to veterans and active military personnel with the Memorial Day Honor Roll, a special ceremony following the parade. I encourage residents to register our brave men and women currently serving, or who have served, to be reco gnized . T hose interested in participating in the parade are also invited to get involved Let’s make this year a true standout as we honor a century of this impor tant le gacy for our community. Nominate a member of our ar med services or re gister to be in the parade at rfpa rks.com/ memorial-day-celebration.
In addition to the parade and ceremony, I’m thrilled to announce that, in par tnership with the Oak Pa rk-
River Forest Chamber of Commerce, Keystone Pa rk will host the inaugural small business vendor fair. This fair aims to highlight our small businesses and emphasize the value of shopping locally. The Kiwanis Club and Boy Scouts will generously be of fering their classic free hot do gs for everyone to enjoy, and food trucks will be in the park as well. A local band will be holding a concer t following the Memorial Day Ceremony.
Please mark your calendar for Monday, May 26 with the parade star ting at 9:30 a.m., and join to g ether with your f amilies, friends and neighbors, and bring your flags, and your voices to celebrate this monumental 100th anniversary. Let’s ensure the le gacy of those who serve is car ried forward, not just in memory, but in action.
To g ether, let’s make this Memorial Day a time to make memories. Please plan on staying after the presentation for some family fun. Bring your chairs and blankets, too!
Cathy Adduci Ri ver Forest villa ge president
River Forest needs a change in thinking
I’m adding my voice to the growing number of River Forest residents who want term limits for elected officials.
I can trace this belief to 1974, when we moved here and discovered how River Foresters defined the ter m “newcomer” — i.e., anyone who wasn’t born here. Live here 20 years? You’re still a newcomer We soon saw that folks who belong to a certain club or a cer tain church wield the power.
improvements in safety, Vision Zero, and responsibly addressing village facilities among others. Josh has the ability to work successfully with the other board members. He will be a great asset to the board and Oak Park. Please consider voting for Josh Vanderberg.
Marty Bernstein Oak Park
And here’s what happens when the same group remains in office term after term. People with the desire to contribute and the energy and creativity to make a difference (plus the time and money required to mount a campaign) soon realize their participation is not only not wanted, it’s not welcome. It’s easy to drift into apathy when a few insiders are running things and groupthink is the norm. Low voter turnout here should come as no surprise. Why vote, when nothing will change?
Let’s face it: an incumbent benefits from an uneven playing field. Even when malfeasance has occur red — as we’ve
seen in another Chicago suburb — only a concerted ef fort can unseat an incumbent who has betrayed the public trust. In fact, the issue of trust surfaced in our focus groups last year. Who would deny that this village leadership grossly mishandled the Lake and Lathrop property? Years after a series of bad decisions, we have our own Stankus hole as a reminder. There’s deep unhappiness here and, yes, downright anger re garding this failure of leadership.
Whether this bungled decision-making was the result of entrenched leadership, nepotism, or groupthink (or some combination thereof), we need a change in how River Forest is governed. Enacting term limits is a step in that direction. And to those who believe their right to vote would be restricted by establishing term limits, I say “Nobody likes change but a wet baby.” Term limits bring about change — and a change in thinking is precisely what River Forest needs.
Kathryn Jandeska River Forest
D200 board & the science debacle
T he new science cur riculum at OPRF needs a hard look by a new board. In 2020, the D200 board approved a plan to overhaul freshman science. The reasons we re to align with new state standards (NGSS), to of fer “honors fo r all,” and to have all freshmen take the same science course
You might have expected all incoming freshmen to take “honors for all” Biolo gy. Biolo gy is the most common science discipline taught in ninth gr ade (1) (2) and was the most common OPRF freshman science course through 2021, when it was of fere d on three “tracks.” (3) Instead, OPRF totally realigned the science course progr ession.
Cu rrent juniors are the first class on this path, and they are feeling its pain s. While Illinois mandates only two years’ lab science for gr aduation (4), many colle g es require three or even four. From Au bu rn to Wi lliams and everything in between, colle ge s want a year of biolo gy, a year of chemi str y, and a year of physic s. (5) OPRF’s freshman science (split between Physics and Chemistry) makes this unduly hard for the 83% of its students, wh o are colle ge bound. (6)
After freshman year, our students take a year of Biolo gy (reg ular or PreA P). Things get frustrating after that. C olle ge-bound juniors are stuck with an extreme binary. Honors scienc e classes we re eliminated in this ne w scheme. Juniors can now take a nonhonors semester of Physics and/or semester of Chemistry (a demotion from ninth- gr ade honors), or they can jump to a full year of AP Chemistry and / or AP Physic s. (7) Having two standalone science semesters freshman year
is a problem for their transcripts and schedules. Upperclassmen lose two semesters that could have been spent exploring Computer Scienc e, Economic s, or any number of great elective s because they have to take three semesters of Physics and three semesters of C hemistry to complete the coursewo rk c olle g es expect to see
Don’t even ask about families wh o leave the district. Good luck transfer ring credits, when most districts reco gnize/of fer only year- long scienc e classes. OPRF has 6% mobilit y, wh ich means that 194 students move in or out of D200 in a year (8).
How many more stakeholders need to be har med before D200 says “enough” with this failed experiment?
Elise Dysar t & Krista Lambe D200 parents, one River Forest, one Oak Park
No more le ist beliefs
For far too long Oak Park has been governed by trustees of a political persuasion where they at times abuse their position trying to interject their leftist beliefs into village policies. This goes beyond their purview and what their focus should be as a trustee of a local community to protect and provide efficient services for their constituents. Providing police and fire protection. Upholding zoning laws and building ordinances. Good sanitation and water. Maintaining street and parkway infrastructure. And similar. None of the candidates are perfect, but I would vote for Parakkat, Taglia and Vanderberg.
Steve Citko
Oak Park
Vicki’s compassion and vision
I am writing to endorse Vicki Scaman for another four years as village president. Her leadership exemplifies the values and traits we need for our community’s future. In these challenging times, she stands out through her collaboration, vision, and compassion.
She builds trust through a commitment to honesty and transparency, ensuring that every voice in our community is heard. This inclusiveness fosters strong relationships, critical for ef fective governance and rebuilds trust in our community’s re presentatives.
Her adaptability to change allows her to navig ate transitions compassionately and inspire innovation. Vicki encour ages new ideas and approaches, understanding that progress hinges on a willingness to evolve and an understanding that gives and gets along the way.
Empathy is central to Vicki’s approach. She genuinely cares about her constituents’ needs and listens to their perspectives, allowing her to make infor med decisions that benefit the community Above all, her inte g rity inspires confidence in her leadership. She consistently upholds high ethical standards and makes choices that positively impact our present and future.
Her compassionate leadership and clear vision for inclusion will help our community move forward. Supporting her will ensure we actively approach today’s challenges and build a better future. Please vote on April 1 and choose Vicki Scaman as villa ge president to uphold inte g rity and provide strong leadership at the board table.
Joe Raschke Oak Park
For Maya Ganguly, plus some thoughts
I believe Maya Ganguly is the best choice for Oak Park Library Board trustee.
Now that I’ve gotten that out of the way, some thoughts on local politics:
About 30,000 people voted in the last national election in Oak Park - 66% of all eligible voters.
About 24,000 people voted for gover nor in the last gubernatorial election - 45% of all eligible voters.
About 7,000 people voted in the last consolidated election - 18% of all eligible voters.
According to our voting habits, over 80% of voters aren’t interested in who runs the village they live in.
Politics is more than a popularity contest and liking a candidate because of glitzy promises and sound bites. It is thoughtful gover nance of real issues. It’s taking difficult circumstances and navigating the nuance of situations in order to come to the best outcome for all involved. It’s putting aside personal differences and overcoming biases in order to reach across to people with differing opinions in order to compromise, and seeing new perspectives that make each other better
I’ve known Maya for 17 years. She’s shown herself time and time again to be
reasonable, thoughtful, careful, and dedicated to doing what’s best in the public interest. She’s shown that in her work with the public at the state of Illinois, in her board work with Brent House on University of Chicago campus, as a current library trustee, and in her personal life I have been known to be a one-issue voter when it comes to the library (more hoopla checkouts, please?), but when it c omes to local candidates, I ask the following questions:
Wi ll this person be able to navig ate b oth calm and turbulent waters?
Wi ll this person be able to make hard decisions no matter how unpopular and necessary?
Wi ll this person be able to wo rk with p eople of all walks and back grounds?
Maya checks every box for me. I want to live in a place where reason reigns. I want people to gove rn with one eye fixed on the future. And most impor tantly, I want people to gove rn on behalf of the p eople — all people, moving forward. Fo r that reason, I believe Maya Ganguly is the best choice for Oak Pa rk L ibrary Board trustee
James Robinson-Parran Oak Park
Gertz & Mellman will ask questions
There’s longstanding, powerful pressure on District 200 board members to fall in line on spending. Josh Gertz and Nate Mellman question things like the increase in spending for high school administrators. [1] Incumbent candidates Arkin and Williams-Lee lack this critical budgetary thinking. Arkin broke his promise not to approve non-referendum Project 2 bonds. [2] Both voted twice to overtax us by $10-11 million. [3]
Gertz and Mellman are concer ned that the Black-white achievement gap hasn’t nar rowed, Hispanic students’ English scores have worsened, and neither academically accomplished nor struggling students are well-supported. As D200 board members, they’ll ask tough questions about such issues. They want all students to be appropriately challenged and advocate proven approaches. [4]
Keeping all students safe is a GertzMellman priority. They’re troubled that more students have engaged in physical violence this year, and some are afraid to use the bathrooms or walk the hallways. As board members, they’ll ask questions about such matters and seek student discipline improvements
Josh Gertz and Nate Mellman have the
Oh,
Mr. Trainor!
Ken Trainor, many of your columns leave me in a veritable swirl of emotions — laughter, concern, intrigue and nostalgia being the most common. But last week’s offering (Blessing the space between us, Viewpoints, March 19) left me confused. For space considerations, I’ll focus on the two issues that particularly confused me.
First, you, above almost anyone I know, place a premium on democracy. Currently, Oak Park is blessed with two qualified people, both willing to take on the largely thankless task of leading the village as president. Isn’t that what we want in a democracy, an open choice between qualified candidates, both earnest and hardworking, presenting real, attainable, alternative visions? Doesn’t open choice among real alternative candidates define democracy? You should be celebrating both Ms. Scaman and Mr. Parakkat for their readiness to serve. Instead, you define Oak Park as suffering “a rift” and a “sack of fractured sides.” Would you prefer that only one candidate run?
Second, as you are aware, Wednesday
experience to ask the right questions, including Gertz’s years working with schools and Mellman’s service on the OPRF High School Community Council. Both seek an OPRF that meets the highest standards at the lowest possible cost in the safest environment possible.
[2] 3/4/19; D200 candidate forum (Fred Arkin: “If we issue bonds, I will pledge that I will vote to have a referendum. Period…” On 4/27/23, Arkin voted to bypass a referendum. https://youtu.be/ K4afkgWjdVM?feature=shared, starting at 4:04
[4] OPRF’s discontinued Project Scholar program proved the ef fectiveness of intensive tutoring. https://www. oakpark.com/2012/09/04/the-otherstudent-achievement-network
Judith Alexander Oak Park
Journal is a component of Growing Community Media, a 501(c)(3) charitable organization. One of the many restrictions placed on such organizations is that it cannot “participate in, or intervene in (including the publishing or distributing of statements) any political campaign on behalf of (or in opposition to) any candidate for public office.” While you wisely chose not to mention either Ms. Scaman or Mr. Parakkat by name, what could descriptions like “(a)n incumbent president who is a collaborator and facilitator … or a critic who is a loner on the village board of trustees” otherwise be than intervening in a political campaign in opposition to a candidate for public office? While application of this federal law is not well settled as to the relative recent phenomenon of tax-exempt newspapers, one nonprofit newspaper, the Pleasanton Weekly, was so concerned over this restriction that it ceased publishing letters to the editor favoring one candidate over another (1) If letters to the editor are not clearly allowed under this federal law, what do we make of the Viewpoints Editor being compensated to provide partisan commentary on national and local elections?
Tom Healey, Oak Park
Tra c safety study should be automatic
I urge readers to contact their state legislators to support IL Senate Bill 1559. This bill would require the state to conduct a traffic study following any crash involving a pedestrian fatality at an intersection of a state highway. My mother Lynn Leinartas was a pedestrian who was hit and ultimately killed by a car while crossing the intersection of Clinton and Lexington.
My family was able to petition the village of Oak Park to initiate a safety study at the location of the accident. This involved going door-to-door to gather signatures for the petition.
While we were eventually successful, no family should have to go through this additional ste p to review the safety of an accident site. The goal is to create a safer community and to prevent future deaths. One death is far too many and an automatic safety study after a pedestrian death is a minimal response.
Ananda Loconsole Berwyn
A response: Tom, rest easy. I was not making any endorsement in this race or any other. If I were making an endorsement, belie ve me, there would be no confusion about it. And ev en then it would only be my opinion, as the writer of a personal opinion column — not the official editorial position of this newspaper (an important distinction). Your confusion may result from cherry-picking a few lines from a column that argues quite clearly against “either/or” and in favor of “both/and.”
As I wrote (which you may have missed), “We want a strong economy and a strong ecology. We want to be safe and secure and li ve our values. If we focus enti rely on taxes and spending and ignore the values that got us where we are, we run the risk of losing ev erything we have been. Can we have it all? Is that too much to ask of our next leader?” In other words, I wasn’t endorsing either candidate. I was endorsing a leader who is able to mana ge both. I hope that resolves some of your confusion, though you will probably be confused by my column this week also, judging by your reaction to this one. I would be happy to explain that one also.
Back to basics
We need new trustees on the village board, trustees who heed public outcry, are serious about limiting proper ty tax increases, and focus on providing basic services.
In the course of a few meetings, current trustees quickly moved toward tearing down our architecturally landmark village hall; tossing out a 3% cap on levy increases; and forcing residents to star t bagging leaves. After public outcry, the board decided to reconsider its plans for village hall, but not even public outcry stopped it from instituting leaf bagging. Trustee Cory Wesley said at the time that he was “one million percent against a referendum for leaves … it should be the decision of this board and not the community telling us what we can do with our leaves.” [1] We need trustees who give weight to community wishes.
Af fordable housing has rightfully become a big issue. But when trustees toss out a cap on property tax levy increases, they have forgotten that af fordable property taxes make for affordable housing
The village pursues a lot of laudable endeavors: helping migrants, green energ y, sustainability, diversity, economic development. It gave tax incentives for a grocery chain to build a new store. It gave $1 million for the Percy Julian residence. It greenlights new residential highrises, which put more demand on village services. But I’ve been waiting 30 years for it to fix our alley, and after every big rainstorm my neighbors pump out ponds in our flooded backyards. Trustees need to focus on providing basic services
This is why I’m voting for new trustees James Taglia and Joshua Vanderberg, incumbent Chibuike Enyia, and Trustee Ravi Parakkat as new board president. A for mer trustee, Taglia pushed for the 3% cap on levy increases. Joshua Vanderberg is the only candidate I see who promises to accelerate sewer upgrades to prevent flooding and fast-track the alley rebuilding program. Enyia heeded public outcry and voted for a referendum on leaf bagging. And Parakkat stood up early, forcefully, against an expensive new village hall, against eliminating the 3% cap on levy increases, and against leaf bagging.
Source:
[1] Minutes of the June 18, 2024 Village of Oak Park Board Meeting. Mark Wallace Oak Park
Give blood, save lives, strengthen community
A donation of blood is a gift of one’s self to another human being they will likely never meet.
On April 5, St. Christopher’s Episcopal Church will join forces with Moms Demand Action, an advocacy group that seeks to end gun violence, and Versiti Blood Center of Illinois, to hold a blood drive from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the church, 545 S. East Ave., Oak Park.
Blood transfusions are especially crucial for victims of gun violence as well as patients with sickle cell disease. According to
the American Red Cross, every two seconds, someone in the U.S. needs blood and or platelets. Consider these facts:
• Approximately 29,000 units of red blood cells are needed every day in the U.S.
• Gunshot victims require 10 times more blood units than people seriously injured by non-gun assaults
• A single car accident victim can require as many as 100 units of blood.
• Sickle cell disease affects 90,000 to 100,000 people in the U.S. About 1,000 babies are born with this disease each year. Sickle
cell patients can require blood transfusions throughout their lives.
You never know when you might need a blood transfusion. So join us, re gister to give blood today. Go to https://donateblood.versiti.org and search by zip code 60304 to register for the St. Christopher ’s Church/Moms Demand Action Blood Drive on April 5.
Jenna Leving Jacobson President, Moms Demand Action Rev. George Arceneaux IV Rector, St. Christopher’s Church
Sticking with Vicki
The Journal ar ticle about the developer of the for mer Mohr Concrete site being in default on its financing could result in additional criticism of the incumbent Village President Vicki Scaman for what is perceived as lackluster community and economic development in Oak Park over the last four years.
Her comments that “concepts like an apartment complex or hotel don’t fit the neighborhood” and her observation that the neighborhood at Harlem and Garfield doesn’t support that “level of density” both reinforce my decision to vote for Vicki Scaman to retain the position as Oak Park’s village board president.
Some critics of President Scaman seem to forget that when she was first elected, the village — indeed the nation — was just coming out of the COVID pandemic, which had caused several existing small local businesses to close. What followed has been higher inflation and interest rates on financing, which may have persuaded surviving and prospective new businesses to hedge their bets for incurring new debt The office of village president could not be held responsible for failures to expand or launch against those tides.
Another criticism of President Scaman has been the demise of the Oak Park Economic Development Corporation (OPEDC). This too is unfair. It has been reported, rightfully, that the OPEDC over-relied on the village for funding its operations.
What the OPEDC did not do was create other revenue streams, as do other similar organizations. For comparison, the Berwyn Development Corporation website lists a plethora of that organization’s programs and services for businesses of various sizes which enable the BDC to generate revenue for operations. The OPEDC was not as prolific in its operations, and that is not the fault of President Scaman.
I do have my own complaints about the village, especially about the Planned Development Process overstepping the Zoning Ordinance. I have to admit I, too, have been perturbed by the discontinuation of the leaf collection service, but I’m over it. Those issues are not enough to persuade me to change village leadership at this time, so I’m sticking with Vicki.
Chris
Donovan Oak Park
Why I’m voting for Vicki
Oak Park is a diverse community of various races, ethnicities, family structures, incomes, religions, ages, and perspectives. As such, it is a challenge to manage To manage it well and with inte g rity requires someone who will approach it from a service-minded perspective.
We all have opinions and prefer red issues, but that’s not leadership. Vicki is a leader who understands that village gover nment isn’ t just about a few controversial issues. It’s about the range of skills, experience, and relationships that can be brought to bear to address the known and unknown, the planned and unplanned, and the prefer red and everything else
Most of us have no idea of all of the areas of village gover nment that function to give us the life we have here. Vicki does and has worked tirelessly to make sure that all of it has the attention it needs. She has led strat egic plans to address community safety, traf fic, economic vitality, af fordable housing, and sustainability. She works closely with village staf f to make sure that board meetings are run ef fectively and efficiently and is always well-prepared.
Oak Park does not exist in a vacuum. Vicki has developed strong relationships with the leaders and constituents of neighboring communities For example,
she helped to secure considerable funding re gionally for climate change. When migrants ar rived on our doorste p, it was Vicki who got out of bed, found temporary shelter, and stayed at the church to make sure they were cared for and that the church partner was not left to shoulder their care. She secured funding fo r the crisis and responded to my concer ns and issues.
She has a deep knowledge and a working relationship with much of the nongover nmental organizational (NGO) work that have been so crucial to village success. She has used this knowledge to build tr usting partnerships with numerous businesses and nonprofits. She led on Enga ging Community Health Outcomes (ECHO) — alter native responses to behavioral health crisis, homelessness, and non-emergency calls. The impact of her Liquor Board leadership was also felt as liquor licenses were opened for outdoor cafes, microbrews, and community events
As you make your voting decision for village president, please choose the candidate who will lead for all of their constituency and on all of the issues – President Vicki Scaman is that person.
Linda Francis Oak Park
Support for Jenna Leving Jacobson
As a mother of two elementary-ag e children in Oak Pa rk, I care de eply about housing af fordabilit y, climate justice, and the safety of our community. That’s why I’m supporting Jenna Leving Jacobson for villa ge trustee. Jenna is a proven leader who listens, collaborates, and takes action when she sees an opportunity for positive change.
I first saw Jenna’s leadership in action through her work with Moms Demand Action. She spent years working with the Oak Park Department of Public Health, the village board, and our school districts to promote secure gun storage. Thanks to her perseverance, Oak Park now provides free gun locks at village hall, has an ordinance requiring safe firear m storage, and ensures that local schools inform families about the role of secure gun storage in school safety. This work was not easy — but Jenna has grit, and she gets things done.
Keep Oak Park moving for ward
Chibuike Enyia and Jenna Leving Jacobson will keep Oak Park moving forward and deserve your vote on April 1.
Four years ago, when Chibuike Enyia ran for village trustee, he campaigned on the urgency of affordable housing and the need for an innovative approach to community safety. His time on the board has been defined by these issues
Trustee Enyia played a central role in advancing the Strate gic Vision fo r Housing Plan adopted by the village board. This plan, however, is meaningless without champions who will continually push to ensure that it is implemented. Trustee Enyia is one of those champions.
In addition, Trustee Enyia has been a leader on identifying and implementing innovative measures to advance community safety, ranging from Vision Zero to Oak Park’s ECHO program which provides for alter native responses to calls for service. Most recently, Trustee Enyia led the charge on ensuring that children will no longer have access to Delta-8 THC products in Oak Park
Jenna Leving Jacobson has long been
a leader in Oak Pa rk on progressive issues — including in her role with Moms Demand Action. I experienced her collaborative approach working with her to pass Oak Pa rk’s secure storage ordinance to ensure that children do not have access to unlocked firear ms in the home
Leving Jacobson’s policy approach brings a focus on equity and justice that will be vital as Oak Pa rk responds to the challenges presented by the Trump administr ation. I know that she will consistently act to protect the most vulnerable members of our community. While I am only endorsing two candidates, Josh Vanderberg deserves serious consideration. During my time as trustee, Vanderberg has been a consistent advocate for smart, data-driven approaches on key issues confronting Oak Park. He has spoken out in favor of zoning refor ms that will lead to the development of missing middle housing and a progressive approach to cyclist and pedestrian-friendly infrastructure.
Brian Straw Oak Park Villa ge Trustee
Unequivocally for Vicki
Jenna is exactly the kind of leader Oak Pa rk need s. She approaches challenges with empat hy and pers everanc e, taking the time to listen and eng age in dif ficult but productive co nversations without alienating others. Her platfo rm reflects the priorities that matter to me as a parent: advo cating for housing affordabilit y, strengthening mental health suppo rt through our Public Health Depar tment, and continuing ef for ts to prevent gun violenc e.
I want Oak Park to be a safe, welcoming, and vibrant community for my children to grow up in. I trust Jenna to help make that a reality. I urge my fellow Oak Parkers to join me in voting for Jenna Leving Jacobson for villa ge trustee on April 1 at your local polling place, or March 17-31 at village hall.
Rebecc a Ho Oak Park
Having served on the Oak Pa rk Village Board for over nine years, I have a well-infor med view of what makes for ef fective board leadership. I unequivocally endorse and encourage you to vote for Vicki Scaman for villa ge president.
I have known Vicki and watched her work on behalf of our community fo r over 15 years. What I have observed is someone who has an impressive rang e of knowledge, re garding both our history and our challenges; deep longstanding relationships with a diverse citizenry; unrelenting energy to bring to any task; true respect for dif ferences; and the ability to bring those with different opinions, info rmation or resources to g ether to advance any goal that improves our village. In addition she is a pragmatic problem-solver who can break a goal into achievable action ste ps and get things done! Her first term is full of examples of how this unique combination of skill
sets has moved our village forward. She worked closely with staf f, local, and state partners to address the immediate and long-lasting impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. She led Oak Park as it worked with the city of Chicago, nonprofit org anizations, and volunteers to address the need for an org anized and humane response to the migrant crisis. She has been even-handed as she creates a process to address the complex needs that require building a police station that supports staf f to do their job. And yes, she knew our village well enough to know that changing how fall leaves are disposed of was a bad idea.
T he national political environment is in chaos. That chaos will inevitably impact our state and our village. In these unsettling times, demonstrated effective leadership is called fo r. Vote for Vicki Scaman for villa ge president. Colette Lueck Oak Park
A book to change your view of things
I’m writing to advise of the publication in English translation — recently completed by me — of a new book that so impressed me when I read it, I concluded it had to have the much wider readership it could get in English than it ever would have in the Italian original, and led me, with the author’s blessing, to undertake the translation myself.
FRANK STACHYRA
One
View
Alex Zanotelli’s latest book is now available in English at its publisher ’s website — Orbis Books — before general release on April 2, when it will be available via Amazon and all other outlets.
Alex Zanotelli is a Catholic priest (he goes by “Alex” rather than “Father”) and a member of the Comboni Missionary Order, whom I first met when he, while carrying a full load in his second of four years of theological studies, was assigned to teach a high school sophomore World History course to seminary students who were eight years his junior. He was one of the best teachers I ever had. I next met him in person only 60 years later, and when I did, I quickly realized I was in the presence of a great man. He had led a remarkable life in the interval, some of which he narrates in the book. Born and raised in Italy, educated in the U.S., he spent decades both in Muslim/Arab and sub-Saharan Africa and, in between, a dozen years as editor of an Italian Catholic magazine, where his crusades and criticisms against the Africa policies of the Italian government led the gover nment to pressure the Vatican to have him dismissed.
From there he was “exiled” to Nairobi, Kenya, where he did as no other NGO participant had ever done: choosing to live in a shantytown shack among the poorest and most desperate of slums anywhere in the world, some details of which he narrates, and which can — and did — move one to tears. His experiences there did nothing less than re-shape his entire worldview and, profoundly moved, to “re-think” everything. Since then, he has chosen to live his final decades in the poorest district of Naples, addressing the profound social problems of, and in service to, marginalized communities ther He has been called one of the most charismatic figures in Italian Catholicism, and has a public prominence in Italy that far surpasses his Catholic community, in his continuing activism in social justice, at age 86. https://www. google.com/search?client=firefox-b-1d&q=Alex+Zanotelli
After such experiences, his last book is written as if it were his end-of-life le gacy Entitled, “Letter to the White World,” I like to think of it as being about racism — writ large, i.e., historically — going back over 500 years of history, to the “Age of Discovery” and continuing forward to today — and geographically, practically worldwide, or at least as far as white Europeans have spread and dominated. And it is about the current legacy of that history — white supremacy and the radical right ascendancy that has come with it — which could hardly make it more timely in the context of the
e author, Alex Zanotelli, with Pope Francis
events of the day throughout the geographical origins of the readership it addresses Although it is explicitly addressed to the “white world,” and is guaranteed to make those of us with that skin color think dee ply about things we probably have never thought about before, even to the point of personal discomfort, I would think it would be of interest, and inspirational, to persons of all colors.
Perhaps you’d like your very own copy to read, to pass on to your friends, and/ or to recommend to everyone you know, which you can get before general release, at its publishers website: https://orbisbooks.com/products/ letter-to-white-tribe (It’s also available on pre-order, in print or eBook edition, at Amazon Books).
Frank Stachyra is an Oak Park resident.
af blower ban depends on enforcement
The annoying sound of leaf blowers in my neighborhood reminds me that the Oak Park ban on gas-powered ers goes into effect on June 1.
But the ban is only going to be as good as the enforceve been taken to advise or remind residents and lawn services alike that the ban is at ste ps will actually be taken to enforce it? Are police officers prepared to start writing ll they? Can they and will they respond to before the offending noisy lawn es on to their next location?
There is reason to doubt that the ban will do any good. The reality is that Oak Park has had an anti-noise ordinance that is broadly-worded enough to prohibit the
use of leaf blowers for a long time. But it hasn’t been enforced. It could have been, but it hasn’t. Is there reason to think the new ordinance will be enforced?
Part of my tre pidation comes from an article in Wednesday Journal some time ago reporting that in Oak Park, noise complaints are handled by urging citizens to eng age in self-enforcement; that is, the Oak Park policy is that residents should take it upon themselves to raise complaints with their neighbors if they think the neighbors are being too noisy. Will that continue to be the policy?
Hopefully the passage of the anti-leaf blower ordinance will have some effect. But I am not holding my breath. Charles Watkins Oak Park
Ravi makes sense, Vicki not so much
At the last village board meeting on March 18, President Scaman was asked what specifically made her flip her stance re garding the demolition of village hall. Her response was, after meeting with the Facilities Committee, “They really did have me appreciating the beauty of this building.” Really, Honestly! She has been in and out of that building for the last 14 years as president, village clerk and liquor commissioner. She never noticed? We should all be glad that after years of discussion, President Scaman found time to collaborate and communicate with the Facilities Committee
Vicki Scaman has been the spearhead authorizing and approving the spending of large sums to architectural firms that have gotten us nowhere. What was the point, to gather information that might convince residents that demolishing a building designed by noted Chicago architect Har ry Weese and listed in the National Re gister of Historic Places made sense?
By the way, if you happen to go into our welcoming village hall today you will find that approximately 1,000 square feet of its 70,000 has been open to the public since 2021 — the overwhelming majority
More ideas for Mohr
Two options for the Mohr Concrete site: 1. Some of the park property may need to be added to the property if it is not large enough. A building, maybe even over the 20-story size, much like the “milk car ton” building out by Oak Brook of f Roosevelt Road would be great. The location by the el and expressway would make it a good location for many businesses. Two or three floors could even be the “new” village hall.
2. A self-storage operation could be built there and, being right across from the Self Store being built by U-Haul, that intersection could become the Self S tore intersection for Fo r est Pa rk and Oak Pa rk
Michael Papierniak Oak Pa
of all resident services are being handled in a space no bigger than a large currency exchange. (https://www.oak-park.us/ Gover nment/Information-and-Resources/About-the-Village/Village-Hall)
The existing building cost $4,500,000 in 1975, that’s $26,500,000 today. Who is going to pay the bill for this boondoggle?
Residents, business owners and landlords/renters, that’s who. Does this help af fordability, economic development and diversity? To renovate, millions less has been estimated. I’ll take that all day and you get the building for free. Carbon footprint, what’s that?
The second part of the speaker’s question at the board meeting Monday was “should you win the election, what will prevent your stance from flopping once the scrutiny of an upcoming election is no longer a factor in your decision?”
President Scaman, now that you’ve had your e piphany on village hall, with dollars wasted, hours spent and no decision on starting the unanimously approved and much needed police station, I’m just waiting for your “Sorry, my bad.”
Vote for Ravi, he makes sense.
Dan Sullivan
Oak Park
Vicki Gloor, 82
One of a kind
It is with heavy hearts and fond memories that we announce the passing of our beloved mother, Vicki Schnell Gloor, 82, who left us on March 13, 2025. Bor n on Oct. 9, 1942, she was a vibrant force of nature with a spirit that could light up any room. Her passion for life was contagious, and her love for her family immeasurable
Known for her spunky personality and playful sense of humor, she made everyone feel welcome. Whether it was hosting family game nights, planning epic holiday gatherings, or simply sharing a laugh, she never missed a chance to make life a little more fun. She was the first to start a game, encourage friendly competition, and celebrate every win with enthusiasm, big or small.
In her professional life, she channeled the same enthusiasm and energy into multiple careers. She taught English and
French at Cranbrook School in Michig an and worked in television production on shows such as The Oprah Winfre y Show, The Tonight Show and Sun Up San Diego . She cherished every moment with her children, grandchildren, and extended f amily, creating lifelong memories. Her home was always filled with warmth, love, and the constant hum of joy.
S he will be d early missed by her f amily, friend s, and anyone lucky enough to have known her. While she may no longer be with us, the g ames, laughter, and family b onds she built will live on foreve r. We love you, Mom. You were truly one of a kind
In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to the: Misericordia Foundati on, Attn: Sister Rosemary Connelly, 6300 N. Ridge, Chicago IL 60660, or https://www. misericordia.com/giving/donate-online.
Gregory Neumer,
85 OPRF math teacher, CIA agent
It’s easy to find the darkness in the world and tap into frustration and ne gativity. Gregory Neumer never did. Neumer, 85, of Oak Park, the husband of Charlotte and father to Chris and Peter, died peacefully on March 19, 2025. Born in Chicago on June 21, 1939, he graduated from Northwestern University with a de gree in mathematics, then earned his master’s de gree in the same field from Wayne State University. He went on to teach mathematics at both Evergreen Park High School and Oak Park and River Forest High School. If you listened to him, you would hear that he also worked for the Central Intelligence Agency, dated Ingrid Bergman and, for a summer in grad school, spent time at a nudist colony.
be argued, should) normally be associated with Calculus and Geometry. He had an almost Tom Sawyer-esque way of making people understand the value of hard work and see the importance of doing the right thing, no matter how difficult it was He was a dreamer and an encourager. He never let minuscule odds stand in the way of suggesting someone try something they were passionate about. He was a gardener, a surfer, and a birder. He made the world a better place every day for those who had the good fortune to interact with him. He will be sorely missed
While Neumer’s pursuits were ostensibly mathematics-related, his most important achievements came in arenas that weren’t as tangible. He brought a lightness and sense of joy to everything he did, which often served to obscure the pain that would (and it could
Gregory is survived by his wife, Charlotte; his sons, Christopher and Peter (Hilary Williams); and his grandson, Lucien Gregory. Visitation was held at Peterson-Bassi Chapels, 6938 W. North Ave. Chicago, IL 60707, on March 23.
In lieu of flowers or gifts, please talk to your friends and family about the importance of the Riemann Inte gral.
SPORTS
OPRF, Fenwick girls soccer o to unblemished starts
Both Huskies and Friars undefeated in the early season
By MELVIN TATE Contributing Reporter
The Oak Park and River Forest girls soccer together an impressive start this season, with three consecutive victories in the Windy City Classi
The Huskies (3-0) opened the season on a 5-2 victory over Mother McAuley at Daphne Mason scored twice. Senior Genevie had a goal and an assist, and sophomore Branka Chiprich and senior Abby Cockerill each had an assist.
On March 20, OPRF notched a 2-1 victory wood-Flossmoor, also at Argo. Cockerill scored on a penalty kick and Chiprich also scored for senior Malie Cassel getting an assist.
In the quarterfinals, March 22 at Re Chiprich, Simkowski, and senior Maddy Huskies a 3-2 victory over Lincoln-Way West. Chiprich and Vizzone each added an assist.
With 12 returning varsity players from last season, there’s plenty of experience for OPRF to year head coach Lauren Zallis believes that kno allowed the Huskies to enjoy early success
“We have a lot of senior returners,” she said, “and having them on varsity already, they understand the culture we’re trying to create. There’s a certain level of they experienced last year that they expected this year.
“The other part is when you have that many returner there’s a lot more cohesion between the players. It doesn’t feel like we have to teach a brand-new system; rather, we’re able to get more in-depth with what we created last year.”
Junior Ana Sofia Mrotzek, who has committed to Loyola University Chicago, had eight goals and five assists last year while making the West Suburban Silver All-Conference Team. Cassel and Simkowski also had eight goals each. Simkowski will play collegiately at the University of Wisconsin at Whitewater, while Cockerill is an Emerson Colle ge commit.
Other returning Huskies are seniors Addison Bliss, Evie Derhammer, Tea Dassinger and Paulina Simkowski; and juniors Maisee Champaneri and Lilly Wright.
Sophomore Lila VanderGriend and senior Scarlett Simkowski are competing for re ps as they re place the graduated Jackie Bollinger at goalkeeper.
OPRF’s other varsity newcomers are seniors Campbell Beasley, Anna Breuer, Zoey Fejes, and Alexis Meagher.
The Huskies are busy again this week with the WSC Silver opener at York, followed by the Windy City Classic semifinal at Reavis versus Andrew (after deadline).
“Knowing how to help the players recover and remind-
OPRF junior Ana So a Mrotzek (le , #10) brings the ball forward versus Lincoln-Way West dur ing a girls’ soccer match, March 22. e Huskies prevailed 3-2.
ing them of that is important,” Zallis said. “But we also have the depth this year to be able to rotate subs without decreasing the intensity of our game. We’re looking to spread out minutes in a crunched-up week like this.”
Fenwick
Fenwick has a victory and a draw in its first two matches this spring.
“It’s a good start,” said Fenwick coach Craig Blazer. “Those were two very good teams we played against, and [it was] good to see our mix of young players and upperclassmen working well together.”
In the opener against Deerfield at the Fenwick Priory in River Forest, March 18, freshman midfielder Lila Gaddipati had an impressive debut, scoring both goals in the Friars’ 2-1 victory.
“Lila’s a talented player who’s attack-minded,” Blazer said. “She has a very good shot, and she’s done very well her first two games. We’re looking for more from her.”
Freshman Keira MaGee and senior Kiera Mullarkey
each had an assist.
C AROL DUNNING
On March 20, senior midfielder Finley Dondlinger’s goal gave Fenwick a 1-1 draw with visiting Glenbrook South.
“I give our players a lot of credit. We went down first in both games,” Blazer said. “It’s great to see them have a lot of confidence and play well in these four halves, and I think our better games are ahead.”
Dondlinger and Mullarkey are captains. The Friars’ other top returnees are sophomore Mia Carvalho, juniors Mary Brunick and Lola Martinez, and seniors Alex Ballinger, Emma Maria Bassett and Keira Kapsch
Besides Gaddipati and MaGee, Fenwick’s top newcomers are freshmen Lola Avila and Quinn Sansone, sophomore Lucy Gruber, and senior Jacqueline Keller, a University of Minnesota signee, who is splitting time at goalkeeper with Carvalho
“The combination of [Carvalho and Keller] has been outstanding,” Blazer said. “It’s a great opportunity for them to learn from each other, and it’s great to have two outstanding goalies.”
Fenwick’s next match is April 1 versus visiting Chicago University High.
OPRF girls water polo starts swimmingly
Huskies go 3-1 at Naper ville Central tournament
By MELVIN TATE Contributing Reporter
The Oak Park and River Forest High School varsity girls water polo team has started the season with a solid 4-2 record
At the Naperville Central Invitational, the Huskies won three out of four games. They dropped the opener on March 21, 8-3, to St. Ignatius. Senior Lucy Vander Griend scored two goals and senior Jada Noyes one in defeat.
OPRF bounced back that evening with a 4-3 victory over Naperville Central. Noyes, Vander Griend, sophomore Claire McFarlin, and junior Evie Hasenbalg each tallied a goal, and senior goalie Zoie Segbawu had 10 saves, including two on five-meter penalty shots
On March 22, OPRF picked up two wins. In the morning, the Huskies defeated LincolnWay East 5-2. McFarlin notched a pair of goals. Hasenbalg, Noyes, and Vander Griend had a goal apiece, and Segbawu posted seven saves.
OPRF closed the tournament strongly, rolling to an 11-4 victory over Homewood-Flossmoor. Vander Griend exploded for five goals Noyes scored three goals, McFarlin two, and Hasenbalg one. Segbawu made six saves.
In her 21st season as Huskies’ head coach, Beth Perez likes how things are shaping up so far, especially considering the fact tha 10 players have returned from last season, which saw OPRF finish 10-12.
“Our strength is in our returning player and their knowledge level of water polo,” she said. “It’s rare that we have so many returning to varsity and I see it as a big bonus. We’re already able to work on things that would have taken until later in the season last year.”
OPRF Elisabeth Drobot (2) blocks a pass by Naperville Central’s Molly Moore (9) during the Naperville Central Invite Fr iday, March 21, in Naperville.
Other OPRF varsity returners include seniors Elisabeth Drobot, Fiona Gibbs, Meredith Steinman, and Callie Walsh, and junior Avaa Ruffer. The Huskies’ newcomers are junior Abi Ago and seniors Anne Claud and Noah Stelzer-Jocks
Under Perez, OPRF has challenged itself
by playing a difficult schedule, and this year is no different. The Huskies play at the Hersey Invitational on April 5 and will meet several quality opponents, including Hersey, Jones, Payton Prep, and Sandburg. The annual East Avenue Showdown with Fenwick takes place at Fenwick, April 21.
OPRF does not get any breaks in the West Suburban Silver either Lyons Township and York have become perennial state powers
and are the teams to beat for the title
However, Perez is more focused with her team continuing to improve on a daily basis.
“Our objective is always to gain more water polo knowledge, of course, while enjoying the aspects of being on a team – the teamwork and camaraderie that come with playing a sport,” she said. “We will need to push ourselves and each other to be the best in and out of the pool that we can be.”
OPRF, Fenwick boys water polo look to make waves
Huskies, Friars round into form
By MELVIN TATE Contributing Reporter
At the Dan Lynch Invitational hosted by Fenwick, March 21-22, the Oak Park and River Forest High School boys water polo varsity team went 1-3 against tough competition. The Huskies lost the tournament opener on March 21 to Fenwick 10-8, but rebounded to defeat Parkway West of St. Louis in the nightcap.
The following day, OPRF suf fered a pair of losses – 14-8 to Brother Rice, 13-3 to Lincoln-Way East – to finish eighth in the tournament, dropping its season record to 4-6. Still, fourth-year OPRF coach Bailey Wendt likes how his team has played so far.
“This team is very balanced this year,”
said Wendt, a 2015 Fenwick graduate. “Our team’s strength is our unselfishness; nobody is playing “hero ball” and everyone is looking to pass to the open man, re gardless if they are a freshman or a senior.
“One area we could improve is our conditioning. Coming of f the swim season, many of these guys developed the ability to swim a very fast 100 freestyle, which is typically a race that takes less than a minute. We have the challenge of developing our guys to play three or four quarters of a game.”
OPRF returns nine players from last year’s 19-11 team, including senior center Greg Huseby, junior attacker Max Koschmann, senior attacker Will Keyes, and senior goalie Lucas Puntillo. Top newcomers are freshman Chris Huseby, sophomores Clark Greendyke and Cam Kuenster, and junior Evan Sterk.
“Our main objective for the year is sim-
ple,” Wendt said. “We just want to get a little bit better every day. We focus on the task at hand, one day at a time.”
Fenwick
The Friars finished fourth in the Dan Lynch Invitational, going 2-2 over the weekend.
On Friday, Fenwick defeated OPRF for the second time this season, 10-8, then defeated Parkway West. In the semifinals on Saturday, the Friars lost 18-7 to New Trier, then fell to Stevenson 13-7 in the third-place game, dropping their season record to 6-3.
Fenwick started the season strongly, winning the Palatine Tournament. One of the Friars’ wins there came against OPRF (11-7).
But head coach Beto Garcia, in his second season, says there’s still work to do
“We need to improve in every area of the game,” he said. “I hope by the end of the sea-
son our versatility will be our strength.”
The Friars’ top returning players are senior attackers George Grant and Thomas Heit, senior goalie Eddie Miljanovic, and junior utility Jack Posluszny. A newcomer to watch is freshman utility Aaron Diaz.
Fenwick has a challenging schedule, which has long been among the hallmark of a program filled with a tradition of excellence, as 20 state championships allude to. The Friars have upcoming matches against multiple state contenders.
“Our games with Lyons, Naperville North, [and] York will be big,” Garcia said.
Fenwick also figures to contend once again for the Metro Catholic Aquatic Conference title, along with Brother Rice and Loyola Academy.
As for season goals, Garcia put them in simple ter ms
“We have three objectives – win (MCAC), win sectionals, and compete at state,” he said.
STEVE JOHNSTON
REAL ESTATE FOR SALE
IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF COOK COUNTY, ILLINOIS COUNTY DEPARTMENT - CHANCERY DIVISION
LAKEVIEW LOAN SERVICING, LLC
Plaintiff vs. CHRISTOPHER RAY ETHERTON AKA CHRISTOPHER ETHERTON; JEANNE ETHERTON AKA JEANNE STEARNS AKA JEANNE SCHEMONIA; VILLAGE OF MELROSE PARK; UNKNOWN OWNERS AND NON-RECORD CLAIMANTS
Defendant 24 CH 2755
CALENDAR
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 May 5, 2025, at the hour 11:00 a.m., Intercounty’s office, 120 West Madison Street, Suite 718A, Chicago, IL 60602, sell to the highest bidder for cash, the following described mortgaged real estate:
P.I.N. 15-03-413-007-0000. Commonly known as 1301 N. 12th Avenue, Melrose Park, IL 60160. The real estate is: 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: At sale, the bidder must have 10% down by certified funds, balance within 24 hours, by certified funds. No refunds. The property will NOT be open for inspection. Prospective bidders are admonished to check the court file to verify all information. For information call Sales Department at Plaintiff’s Attorney, Diaz Anselmo & Associates P.A., 1771 West Diehl Road, Suite 120, Naperville, IL 60563. (630) 453-6960. 6706-200451 INTERCOUNTY JUDICIAL SALES CORPORATION intercountyjudicialsales.com I3263243
PUBLIC NOTICES
PUBLIC NOTICE
Notice is hereby given, pursuant to “An Act in relation to the use of an Assumed Business Name in the conduct or transaction of Business in the State,” as amended, that a certification was registered by the undersigned with the County Clerk of Cook County. Registration Number: M25000278 on March 4, 2025 Under the Assumed Business Name of JENNY KELLY ART with the business located at: 941 BONNIE BRAE PLACE, RIVER FOREST, IL 60305. The true and real full name(s) and residence address of the owner(s)/partner(s) is: JENNIFER KELLY 941 BONNIE BRAE PLACE, RIVER FOREST, IL 60305, USA.
Published in Wednesday Journal March 12, 19, 26, 2025
PUBLIC NOTICES
PUBLIC NOTICE
Notice is hereby given, pursuant to “An Act in relation to the use of an Assumed Business Name in the conduct or transaction of Business in the State,” as amended, that a certification was registered by the undersigned with the County Clerk of Cook County. Registration Number: M25000281 on March 5, 2025 Under the Assumed Business Name of COOPERATIVE PHYSIOTHERAPY with the business located at: 949 GARFIELD ST, OAK PARK, IL 60304. The true and real full name(s) and residence address of the owner(s)/partner(s) is: MARA HUTTON 1108 MARENGO, FOREST PARK 60130, USA.
Published in Forest Park Review March 19, 26, April 2, 2025
PUBLIC NOTICES
PUBLIC NOTICE OF COURT DATE FOR REQUEST FOR NAME CHANGE
STATE OF ILLINOIS, CIRCUIT COURT COOK COUNTY.
Request of Gabriella Rae Nolan Case Number 20254000800
There will be a court date on my Request to change my name from: Gabriella Rae Nolan to the new name of: Gabriella Rae Rodriguez
The court date will be held: On April 8, 2025] at 11:00 AM at Maywood Courthouse, 1500 Maybrook Drive, Maywood, Cook County, IL in Courtroom # 0111.
Published in RB Landmark March 12, 19, 26, 2025
LEGAL NOTICE
The Village of Oak Park issued Request for Proposals �RFP� 25IT�003 for Provision of Internet Services. The full RFP document can be obtained from the Village website www. oak-park.us. Responses will be accepted until April 7, 2025, 4 PM Central Time.
Published in Wednesday Journal March 23, 2025
PUBLIC NOTICES
VILLAGE OF OAK PARK REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL
Issued March 14, 2025
The Village of Oak Park is requesting proposals from qualified firms that wish to manage and administer a program for the Village Towing Services.
The Village will receive proposals at the Police Department, Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., at 123 Madison Street, Oak Park, Illinois 60302.
Firms responding to this Request for Proposals must submit three (3) bound hard copies, one (1) unbound hard copy, and one (1) electronic copy on a CD or thumb drive of their proposals in sealed envelopes, and must conform to format in the RFP located at www.oakpark.us/rfp
The Village reserves the right to accept or reject any and all proposals or to waive technicalities. Information concerning this request for proposals is available from Anjali Peterson, Budget and Revenue Analyst, 123 Madison Street, Oak Park, Illinois 60302. Anjali Peterson can be reached by telephone at the following number, (708) 386-3800 or via e-mail at apeterson@oak-park.us
Upon a formal award to the successful Contractor, the selected contractor shall enter into a Towing Services Agreement in substantially the form attached to the Request for Proposal.
Proposals will be accepted until 5:00 p.m. (local time) on April 14, 2025. Proposals shall be mailed to 123 Madison Street, Oak Park, Illinois, 60302 or submitted electronically via email to APeterson@oak-park. us.
Published in Wednesday Journal March 26, 2025
PUBLIC NOTICES
PUBLIC NOTICE
STATE OF ILLINOIS
VILLAGE OF BROOKFIELD
Notice of Special Public Hearing Village of Brookfield Planning and Zoning Commission April 10, 2025, at 7:00 PM
NOTICE is hereby given that the Village of Brookfield Planning and Zoning Commission will conduct a special public hearing on Thursday, April 10, 2025, at 7:00 p.m. in the Edward Barcal Hall located at 8820 Brookfield Avenue Illinois, IL 60513 for the purpose of considering a request for a Preliminary Planned Development application at 8921 and 8947 Fairview Avenue, Brookfield Illinois 60513 (PINs 1534-426-0010000 and 15-34-426002-0000) by Connemara Holdings, LLC for a proposed 29 unit, 4 story new construction mixed-use building with 15 enclosed parking and retail space on the ground floor.
Legal Description: LOTS 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 AND 6 IN BLOCKS 27 AND 29 TO 34 IN GROSSDALE, A SUBDIVISIONIN THE SOUTHEAST ¼ OF SECTION 34, TOWNSHIP39 NORTH, RANGE 12, EAST OF THE THIRD PRINCIPAL MERIDIAN, IN COOK COUNTY, ILLINOIS
The public is invited to attend the public hearing and present oral and/ or written comments. Written comments may be provided prior to 4:00 PM on the day of the public hearing to: Village of Brookfield, Planning and Zoning Commission c/o Libby Popovic, 8820 Brookfield Avenue, Brookfield, IL 60513, lpopovic@brookfieldil.gov, or 708485-1113. Oral or written testimony may be given during the public hearing.
The application may be viewed at the Village of Brookfield Village Hall during normal business hours. Please reference PZC Case 2504. Public hearings may be continued from time to time without further notice except as otherwise required under the Illinois Open Meetings Act.
Individuals with disabilities requiring a reasonable accommodation in order to participate in any meeting should contact the Village of Brookfield (708) 485-7344 prior to the meeting. Wheelchair access is available through the front (South) entrance of Village Hall.
By the Order of Chuck Grund, Planning and Zoning Commission Chairman.
Published in RBLandmark March 26, 2025
REQUEST FOR QUALIFICATIONS
The Board of Trustees of the Linda Sokol Francis Brookfield Library is seeking professional assistance for the replacement of the building’s exterior envelope installed on the new 21,000 square foot facility which opened in 2021.
The Linda Sokol Francis Brookfield Library serves the Village of Brookfield, a western suburb of Chicago with a population of just under 20,000 people and home to the world-famous Brookfield Zoo.
Part 1: Background Information
Firms interested in being considered for this project should provide the following information by mail no later than 5:00 p.m. on Friday, May 2.
1. The firm’s description. Please stress work conducted in the last 5 – 10 years. If all services mentioned in (2) are not available inhouse, specify from whom they will be obtained.
2. The firm’s experience in the following specialties. Site planning, architectural design, civil engineering, structural engineering, estimating, etc.
3 Key staff and their resumes. Please be sure to indicate whom you are proposing as project architect / engineer and to provide a full resume for that person, including building envelope design experience.
4. Descriptions of at least four recently completed projects, including client references. Some references must be for jobs where the person proposed as project leader for our library was also the project leader. For each project, please indicate the size of the building envelope project, the project budget and whether the project came in under or over budget.
5. Experience in the area of library design. The Library Board would like the most complete list possible, including the nature of work conducted for each project and dates of completion. The Board of Trustees plans to interview approximately four firms on Monday, May 19, 2025 and will make a selection as soon as possible thereafter.
Firms are encouraged to visit the Library. Please contact Kimberly Coughran, Executive Director, at 708-485-6917 x121 or via email at kcoughran@lsfbrookfieldlibrary. org to arrange for a tour and to answer questions.
Published in RBLandmark March 26, 2025
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SSupporting the women behind our brew
welter Coffee Roasters, started in 2020 by Stephanie WelterKrause, is on a mission to build a brand that truly promotes women coffee producers and sustainability through and through. The mission was inspired by the intersectionality of supporting women farmers and sustainability through the work of Project Drawdown, a nonprofit focused on accessible ways to lower GHG emissions globally. After roasting as a hobby for about 7 years, the business was officially launched.
Living in the Bay Area, CA, Stephanie didn’t see many brands showcasing farmer’s stories, let alone women farmers. Women make up easily over 70% of the producing workforce, yet less than 30% own their farms, and often don’t make equal wages, don’t have access to
education or financial support, and don’t have representation in leadership.
Swelter Coffee is building a brand that shares high-quality coffee from women producers and co-ops, and sharing their stories with coffee lovers across the US. In 2024, Swelter Coffee moved to Oak Park. One Oak Park resident already fell in love and has made the trek to Costa Rica to visit the farmer! This is truly the mission — to connect coffee lovers with producers to understand the work and love that goes into every cup.
Coffee lovers can order online for local delivery, or pick up at local retailers (check website for the current list). For Women’s History Month, they’re offering a free coffee sample with all March newsletter sign ups!
Oak Park Regional Housing Center moves the legacy forward
Friday, March 21, the Oak Park Regional Housing Center held its 4th Annual Women’s Month Celebration, the Heroine’s of Housing. The Housing Center holds this annual event each year to honor our founder Roberta “Bobby” Raymond, and her legacy of fair housing, creating vibrant diverse communities and opportunities for housing for all. In addition to celebrating the Founder’s Day, we celebrate women from a specific profession in housing. This year we celebrated women in banking and finance and the contributions and impact they have made toward housing. The theme, "How Women in Finance Help Shape Community Development to Create Vibrant Communities," is not only timely but also profoundly impactful. We also honored Patricia Wilson, Cook County Bureau of Economic Development.
effective transformational goals. We are excited about this new direction and we look forward to and are committed to promoting and sustaining residential integration.
With that said, we want to say thank you while we continue to celebrate the incredible impact of women in finance on community development. That work is not just about numbers; it's about lives transformed, dreams realized, and communities revitalized. Women in Banking and Finance are the architects of vibrant communities whose legacy is felt for generations to come.
Women in Banking and Finance have unwavering commitment to making the world a better place. Together, we will continue to shape the future and create communities that are not only vibrant but also resilient and inclusive.
As the Oak Park Regional Housing Center moves the legacy forward, we are committed to working with all of our partners to not only increase housing opportunities but to establish new ones. As a new member for the Next Gen Cohort #2, Oak Park Regional Housing Center is committed to developing new housing throughout the region. And we know we cannot do that alone. We need the help of all of our partners to have successful
Our sponsors this year were Marquette Bank, Republic Bank and Wintrust-Lawndale as we honored Fabiola Candlish, Diversity Account Manager for the Illinois Housing Development Authority; Sheila Barber, Vice-President of CRA Mortgage lending for Associated Bank, and Letrusia May of Rocket Mortgage just to name a few. We are thankful for our partnerships and the work these women continue to perform to create vibrant communities.
Emily Ramirez: Comedy, Community, and Changing the Game
Emily Ramirez isn’t just the founder of BABS Comedy Club—she’s a force of nature. A comedian, producer, Broadway touring performer, and lifelong artist, Emily has built a space where laughter, mentorship, and inclusivity take center stage. With her razor-sharp wit and a heart for uplifting others, she’s redefining what a comedy club can be.
Located in Forest Park, BABS is more than just a stage; it’s a movement. Emily’s passion for fostering a supportive, mentor-driven environment means comedians have a place to grow, thrive, and absolutely crush it on the mic. She believes comedy should be both hilarious and equitable, and she’s leading by example.
More than anything, BABS is a safe
space—a club where everyone is welcome, respected, and free to laugh without fear. Whether you’re a first-time performer or a longtime comedy fan, the atmosphere is one of encouragement, joy, and true community. Offstage, Emily’s dedication to inclusivity extends to charity work, mentorship, and using her platform to uplift those around her.
But let’s not forget—this woman is funny. Like, can’t-catch-your-breath, tears-streaming-down-your-face funny. With her impeccable comedic timing and infectious energy, Emily makes every show at BABS an unforgettable experience.
So, if you’re looking for a night of toptier comedy, genuine connection, and a whole lot of heart, BABS Comedy Club is the place to be.
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What Are You Celebrating?
Same Old Takeout?
Tired of the Same Old Takeout?
Celebrate with New Rose Catering!
delivery!
in-house
to discuss the perfect menu for your graduation, wedding, anniversary, fundraiser, special event.
newrosecatering@gmail.com
Let New Rose cook for you, with free delivery!
Includes 2 soups and 2 entrees made in-house for a family of 2, 4, or 6 with delivery to Oak Park, River Forest, and Forest Park. Dietary restrictions welcome.
Chef/Owner Su Jang
Chef/Owner Su Jang
New Rose Catering 15 Years in Business and Counting
For the last 15 years, New Rose Catering has been offering scrumptious, healthy and affordable meal delivery service and catering to the local community.
Tired of the Same Old Takeout?
Let New Rose cook for you, with free delivery!
and Wednesday evenings. You can order 2, 4 or 6 portions. The food is made fresh each day. New Rose Catering can accommodate dietary restrictions and any food allergies you may have.
newrosecatering@gmail.com
708.261.6908
newrosecatering@gmail.com
708.261.6908
See our weekly menus, order, or cater your event at newrosecatering.com
What Are You
See our weekly menus, order, or cater your event at newrosecatering.com
Book an event or see weekly meal delivery options at newrosecatering.com
Tired of the Same Old Takeout?
Celebrating?
Celebrate with New Rose Catering!
Let New Rose cook for you, with free delivery!
Includes 2 soups and 2 entrees made in-house for a family of 2, 4, or 6 with delivery to Oak Park, River Forest, and Forest Park. Dietary restrictions welcome.
Includes 2 soups and 2 entrees made in-house for a family of 2, 4, or 6 with delivery to Oak Park, River Forest, and Forest Park. Dietary restrictions welcome.
Chef/Owner Su Jang
We’d love to discuss the perfect menu for your graduation, wedding, anniversary, fundraiser, or other special event.
Owner, Su Jang grew up in her family’s Chinese restaurant and learned the tricks of the trade at a very early age. Su explains, “I learned cooking from my dad but business from my mom, she taught me the importance of making your customers happy.”
newrosecatering@gmail.com
708.261.6908
Chef/Owner Su Jang
Chef/Owner Su Jang
newrosecatering@gmail.com
708.261.6908
newrosecatering@gmail.com
708.261.6908
See our weekly menus, order, or cater your event at newrosecatering.com
See our weekly menus, order, or cater your event at newrosecatering.com
New Rose Catering is also a family run business with Su at the helm, her husband Rob Holding, daughter Adeline Holding and friend Tracie Bedell by her side.
Book an event or see weekly meal delivery options at newrosecatering.com
Each week they prepare two different soups and two different entrees and a salad and offer free delivery on Monday, Tuesday
AANew Rose Catering has worked closely with several local non-profit charities and organizations. “Giving back to the community has always been so important and just part of who we are as a company”, said Su Jang. As caterers, they have a selection of appetizer/small bites and buffet menus available on their website.
Reach out to Su to cater your next party whether it’s a graduation celebration, milestone birthday, anniversary party, bridal or baby shower, office luncheon, first communion or just a spring gathering with your friends and neighbors.
Women Powering Solar - Powering Illinois’ Clean Energy Future
Women Powering Solar - Powering Illinois’ Clean Energy Future
t Windfree Solar, our team is essential to the company’s mission. From project management to engineering, marketing, and fieldwork, their expertise ensures solar energy projects are executed with precision and care. Among these talented professionals, Cynthia Myers stands out as a trailblazer in Illinois’ solar industry.
t Windfree Solar, our team is essential to the company’s mission. From project management to engineering, marketing, and fieldwork, their expertise ensures solar energy projects are executed with precision and care. Among these talented professionals, Cynthia Myers stands out as a trailblazer in Illinois’ solar industry.
Cynthia, an experienced commercial solar installer with NABCEP and OSHA 10 certifications, leads Windfree’s service department. She tackles one of the most challenging aspects of the business: troubleshooting. From diagnosing underperforming inverters to solving complex system issues, Cynthia’s technical expertise and leadership have been instrumental in maintaining Windfree’s reputation for excellence.
Cynthia, an experienced commercial solar installer with NABCEP and OSHA 10 certifications, leads Windfree’s service department. She tackles one of the most challenging aspects of the business: troubleshooting. From diagnosing underperforming inverters to solving complex system issues, Cynthia’s technical expertise and leadership have been instrumental in maintaining Windfree’s reputation for excellence.
“In this industry, being so new, there are many heights that women haven’t reached,” Cynthia notes. “I plan on going as far as I can and taking as many people with me as possible.”
“In this industry, being so new, there are many heights that women haven’t reached,” Cynthia notes. “I plan on going as far as I can and taking as many people with me as possible.”
collaborates with her to ensure smooth and efficient service operations. Brenna Murphy serves as a commercial project manager, leading large-scale solar installations across Chicagoland. Andrea Sanchez oversees project administration for both residential and commercial systems, ensuring every detail is handled with precision. Ashley Lopez, a master of utility interconnections, manages critical coordination with utility companies, a vital component of every project. Brittany Brilliant, Windfree’s Marketing Director, plays a key role in sharing the company’s mission and success stories with the public. Mona Shabani, Senior Solar Project Engineer, brings invaluable technical expertise to large-scale installations, ensuring projects are executed to the highest standards. Taylor Ball, a Solar Energy Consultant, works directly with clients, helping them transition to clean energy with tailored solutions.
collaborates with her to ensure smooth and efficient service operations. Brenna Murphy serves as a commercial project manager, leading large-scale solar installations across Chicagoland. Andrea Sanchez oversees project administration for both residential and commercial systems, ensuring every detail is handled with precision. Ashley Lopez, a master of utility interconnections, manages critical coordination with utility companies, a vital component of every project. Brittany Brilliant, Windfree’s Marketing Director, plays a key role in sharing the company’s mission and success stories with the public. Mona Shabani, Senior Solar Project Engineer, brings invaluable technical expertise to large-scale installations, ensuring projects are executed to the highest standards. Taylor Ball, a Solar Energy Consultant, works directly with clients, helping them transition to clean energy with tailored solutions.
Cynthia is joined by Aaliyah Wallace, the Assistant Director of Service, who
Cynthia is joined by Aaliyah Wallace, the Assistant Director of Service, who
Windfree Solar is proud to celebrate their contributions and remains committed to building a brighter, more inclusive future for solar energy in Illinois. Learn more at go.windfree.us/solar or call 312-588-6953.
Windfree Solar is proud to celebrate their contributions and remains committed to building a brighter, more inclusive future for solar energy in Illinois. Learn more at go.windfree.us/solar or call 312-588-6953.
Clydon Salon & Day Spa - Quality and Personalized Service
ince 2002, Kelly has shaped Clydon Salon into more than just an upscale destination; it's a testament to her vision of empowering women and delivering unparalleled beauty experiences within the Oak Park-River Forest community. Her leadership cultivated a collaborative haven, attracting a team of exceptional talents. From Candy's vibrant creativity to Dena's meticulous precision, Laura's color mastery, Inna's artistic vision, Maria’s gentle touch, Ori’s innovative techniques and Angelica’s expertise with children’s hair, each stylist contributes to Clydon’s esteemed reputation. Jessie, the skilled esthetician and nail specialist, alongside Aurora's elegant makeup artistry, enhances the salon's holistic beauty approach. Alma, Karolina, and Kenia, the welcoming faces at the front
Kelly's entrepreneurial spirit extended further in 2012 with the creation of Lilies and Spikes, Hair Salon for Kids. This venture brought Clydon's commitment to quality and personalized service to a younger audience, showcasing Kelly's ability to diversify and excel in different market segments. Lilies and Spikes, with the hard and dedication work of their team, has became a beloved space for children, offering fun and stylish haircuts.
Both Clydon and Lilies and Spikes stand as pillars of the community, a reflection of Kelly’s unwavering dedication to her team and her commitment to providing exceptional, personalized services to every client, regardless of age."
Grachan Agency is your dedicated insurance partner, serving all your insurance needs in the local community
Grachan Agency is your dedicated insurance partner, serving all your insurance needs in the local community
OOak Park has been the home where Esther Grachan has continued to build the Grachan Agency since 2012. In 1978, the Grachan family began with only Property & Casualty options, today Grachan Agency has expanded. The agency has added over 65 health and retirement options. Esther is known for her kind heart and unwavering dedication to helping seniors navigate through the complex world of healthcare and retirement. In making the right introductions to the right resources, she has helped seniors navigate through difficult retirement decisions. The Grachan Agency treats each person with respect and empathy, understanding insurance choices could be overwhelming. The Agency goes above and beyond, conducting thorough research and staying up to date with the ever-changing Medicare landscape to ensure she has the most
ak Park has been the home where Esther Grachan has continued to build the Grachan Agency since 2012. In 1978, the Grachan family began with only Property & Casualty options, today Grachan Agency has expanded. The agency has added over 65 health and retirement options. Esther is known for her kind heart and unwavering dedication to helping seniors navigate through the complex world of healthcare and retirement. In making the right introductions to the right resources, she has helped seniors navigate through difficult retirement decisions. The Grachan Agency treats each person with respect and empathy, understanding insurance choices could be overwhelming. The Agency goes above and beyond, conducting thorough research and staying up to date with the ever-changing Medicare landscape to ensure she has the most accurate
accurate information to-date to share. What has made the Grachan Agency truly exceptional is their unwavering support even after clients have made their decisions. Regular follow-ups and making sure individuals are satisfied with their choices. Their clients knew they could count on their agent to be there, providing ongoing support and guidance throughout their insurance needs.
Many of the Grachan Agency’s clients often recommended their services to their friends and family, and word spread throughout the community about the wonderful agent who genuinely cared. If you are looking for guidance as you work through your insurance needs, please be sure to visit our websites for a video quick-course and other helpful information. You can also join our monthly newsletter for the most up-to-date information!
information to-date to share. What has made the Grachan Agency truly exceptional is their unwavering support even after clients have made their decisions. Regular follow-ups and making sure individuals are satisfied with their choices. Their clients knew they could count on their agent to be there, providing ongoing support and guidance throughout their insurance needs. Many of the Grachan Agency’s clients often recommended their services to their friends and family, and word spread throughout the community about the wonderful agent who genuinely cared. If you are looking for guidance as you work through your insurance needs, please be sure to visit our websites for a video quick-course and other helpful information. You can also join our monthly newsletter for the most up-to-date information!
There Are 9 Mistakes You May Avoid In Every Area Listed Below
Request a Complimentary Strategy Kit to Learn More
Do you think outside the box? When was the last time you stopped to listen to your heart tell you about your dreams and purpose? At Everett Wealth Solutions, we help you align your heart’s desires with your financial journey using a truly holistic approach.
Empowering Others Through Financial Healing
Chris Everett, an independent fiduciary advisor, has a desire to empower others. Using the right tools and an emphasis on financial healing, she can focus on you first and your finances second. She has a vision of how holistic financial wellness could genuinely revolutionize the industry. With the help of her team, it’s a priority to know you and explore your concerns together before designing a plan for optimal peace of mind.
With a deep sense of humanity at her core, the team at Everett Wealth Solutions understands the intricate balance between a full, happy life and stable finances, and they are well-qualified to help you find true peace of mind.
At Everett Wealth Solutions, we believe in shattering your expectations of what a financial advisor should be. Our approach goes far beyond the dollars in your bank account. We work to help align your dreams for the future with a financial plan while providing honest, transparent guidance so that you can feel confident making informed decisions about your future.
The purpose of having a financial plan is to help you have peace and freedom. Having the right tools and strategies in place can mean a steady income in retirement and leaving a legacy for your loved ones. It can also mean saving on the cost of sending your children to college. We help you find your way to a solid future by reverse engineering your dreams into a financial plan that locks down your todays and grows your tomorrows. Plus, we help you employ prudent and cost-effective investment strategies, hedge for inflation, account for rising healthcare costs, maximize Social Security, reduce college costs and create an estate plan for future generations. Our mission is to help you protect what you’ve built while optimistically looking forward to your future and true peace of mind.
What is your financial healing journey?
Start with a Pre-Discover Session. It’s a no-risk way to meet face to face on a brief webinar or a phone call. You know how it is when you speak to someone for the first time. I want to hear your story and why you are reaching out for a fiduciary now. Whether you are building wealth or have achieved significant wealth, Everett Wealth Solutions may become an important fiduciary resource as you create your personal wealth solution. Call us at 708-771-7777, schedule online or send us a message through our website. We’re looking forward to hearing from you.
Celebrating Women in Business at Byline Bank
Susie Goldschmidt and Denise Warren are committed to leading Byline Bank in Oak Park and River Forest. They believe you should be able to get all of your banking done in your neighborhood, with people who love the area as much as you do.
To learn more about our commitment to Oak Park and River Forest, visit bylinebank.com/oprf
