WednesdayJournal_040517 by Wednesday Journal

C O M P L E T E E L E C T I O N R E S U LT S AT O A K PA R K . C O M

JOURNAL W E D N E S D A Y

April 5, 2017 Vol. 35, No. 33 ONE DOLLAR

of Oak Park and River Forest

@O @OakPark

ELECTION

2017

@oakpark @wednesdayjournalinc

The book of Elijah

Nearing the anniversary of her son’s death, Sharita Galloway drafts a story of survival By MICHAEL ROMAIN Staff Reporter

incidents involving guns, a nonfatal shooting of a gang member in February and an aggravated discharge of a firearm a month earlier. Gunshots twice in under a month Waters, who has lived across the street from the BP for 10 years, said her fears worsened after returning home on Feb. 11 to find the gas station cordoned off with yellow police tape.

Last Friday afternoon, 1-year-old King Sims stumbled past framed photos of his brother, Elijah Sims. One shows Elijah when he was King’s age, and there’s a striking resemblance between the two. Another photo — taken not long before the 16-year-old Oak Park and River Forest High School student was gunned down in Austin last August — shows Elijah smiling. “King just started to walk like four days ago,” said Sharita Galloway, King’s and Elijah’s mother. She pointed to the framed photos, which were on the wood floor, propped up against the television stand. Sharita said King was several months old when EliELIJAH SIMS jah was killed. The toddler, however, hasn’t forgotten his brother. King seems to hold the memory of Elijah in his ligaments. “I never hung the photos up,” said Sharita. “I want to keep them low so King can see them. I would let him down to crawl, and he would crawl straight over to Elijah’s picture and just rub on his brother’s face. They spent a lot of time together. King knew his brother. He played with him. He loved him.” Sharita, 38, said she’s working on a scrapbook — a “Book of Elijah” — for King, so that he’ll remember his older brother’s quirks and traits. There’s a picture that King will perhaps laugh at one day of Elijah asleep in his mother’s car, sucking his bottom lip. “He sucked his bottom lip always, everywhere,”

See BP on page 13

See ELIJAH’S MOM on page 14

WILLIAM CAMARGO/Staff Photographer

POLICE PRESENCE: Oak Park Police Chief Anthony Ambrose says criminal activity around the BP gas station at 100 Chicago Ave. has prompted an increased police presence in the area.

Gas station crime prompts concern Residents looking for answers, send message of unity after shooting By TIMOTHY INKLEBARGER Staff Reporter

On most days the BP gas station at 100 Chicago Ave. is a real convenience for Christina Waters, who lives across

the street and frequents the business regularly for milk, cheese and other household goods. But over the last several months she’s grown worried about the business and the criminal activity it attracts. Between June of 2016 and mid-February, the 24-hour gas station has experienced at least seven motor vehicle thefts — worth a combined $87,900 in stolen property — and two separate

Easter Sunday | April 16 brunch buffet & a la carte dinner

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Wednesday Journal, April 5, 2017

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Men in Nursing Hear male nursing professionals talk about their experiences as nurses. What’s it really like for men to build nursing careers? Here’s your chance to hear for yourself. Resurrection University’s Thinking Out Loud Speaker Series is proud to present Men in Nursing. You’ll listen to male nursing professionals talking about the advantages, the challenges and everything in between. Nursing has become one of the fastest growing healthcare careers for men— join us to discover why and learn more about how to become a nurse.

Men in Nursing Saturday, April 8, 2017 • 10 am–12 pm Resurrection University 1431 N. Claremont Ave., Chicago RSVP: resu.edu/meninnursing

ResU.edu

A part of Presence Health • 1431 N. Claremont Ave. • Chicago, IL

Wednesday Journal, April 5, 2017

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I N S I D E

R E P O R T

Election results available online You might have noticed something missing in today’s print edition of Wednesday Journal – that’s right, no election coverage. That’s because Wednesday Journal’s print edition goes to the printer on Tuesday morning – hours before the polls close on Election Day. The results are all available online at our 2017 Election Headquarters webpage at www. oakpark.com, the most comprehensive guide to this year’s local elections. There you will find the results for Oak Park and River Forest village boards and village clerk; District 97 and

District 200 school districts; Oak Park library board; and two separate ballot referenda questions addressing District 97 operating and capital tax hikes; among many others. Election results also will be available from Wednesday Journal’s sister publications, Forest Park Review (ForestParkReview.com) and Riverside-Brookfield Landmark (rblandmark. com). Those in Maywood can get results online at the Village Free Press (thevillagefreepress.org). Check back at OakPark.com throughout the week for analysis of the election results.

ELECTION

2017

Timothy Inklebarger

WILLIAM CAMARGO/Staff Photographer

Cupcake Wars! Kids who participated in Sugar Beet’s Schoolhouse Spring Break Camp dine out over cupcakes they baked on March 31, the last day of the camp.

Ernie’s graduation centennial

One hundred years ago in June 1917, our most famous native son, Ernest Hemingway, graduated from Oak Park High School (now Oak Park and River Forest High School). The Hemingway Foundation of Oak Park is celebrating this milestone by holding its annual fundraiser on Saturday, June 17, at the Hemingway Museum, 200 N. Oak Park Ave. Wednesday Journal will feature a moment from this pivotal year in Hemingway’s life each Wednesday leading up to the event. “Ernest Hemingway was born at home in Oak Park on July 21, 1899. His birthplace home was built in the 1880s by his maternal grandfather and grandmother, Ernest and Caroline Hall. When Caroline Hall became ill with cancer, young Dr. Clarence Hemingway, who lived across the street, assisted the family physician, Dr. William Lewis, in providing medical treatment. In the course of his medical visits, Clarence met Ernest and Caroline’s’ daughter, Grace, whom he eventually courted and married.” (Nancy Sindelar, Influencing Heming-

way, p. 11. Lanham, Maryland: Rowman and Littlefield, 2014)

‘Get Out’ provokes a talk-in

There’s a scene in the breakout hit movie and instant cult classic, “Get Out,” directed by comedian Jordan Peele (onehalf of Comedy Central’s Key & Peele), whiteness, racism is in the subtleties; that resonates with Reesheda Washingits content and consequences, like sex, ton (one-half of the duo behind L!VE mostly hidden from the knowing mind. Café, 163 S. Oak Park Ave. in Oak Park). In the film, Peele explores racism’s The comedy horror film follows a latent reality to pitch-perfect effect in black photographer, Chris Washington what might as well be called (Daniel Kaluuya), during a the “sunken place” scene. weekend trip to meet the famiChris arrives at the ly of his white girlfriend, Rose “sunken place,” the very Armitage (Allison Williams). ■ To read more heart of white America’s Washington’s trip quickly subconscious grappling with mutates into an Inferno-like VISIT OAKPARK.COM race, involuntarily after descent into what might be Rose’s mother, Missy Armitdescribed as the ‘Heart of age (Catherine Keener), hypnotizes him Whiteness.’ by deftly stirring a spoon in a teacup. Within a span of a few hours, Chris Rose is the person who gives the “sunken experiences the entire time-space specplace” its name. trum of how whites have responded to There’s a lot of cultural symbolism the black presence in America — from (Dante’s various circles of hell come to faux empathy to liberal indulgence to mind with Missy’s circular stirring) and downright barbarity. In Peele’s heart of

WEB EXTRA

‘THE DISCOMFORT ZONE’: Attendees listen to a panel discussion at L!VE Cafe on March 26, which was convened by the cafe’s coowner, Reesheda Washington. MICHAEL ROMAIN/Staff

racial history to unpack in this film and this scene is perhaps most representative of that depth of meaning. So it helps when flesh and blood people get together to share what the film’s abstract complexity means to their threedimensional, lived worlds. Washington, who along with her husband and business partner, Darrel, is African American, shared her experience with the film during a March 26 panel discussion on “Get Out” convened at L!VE. “I work at a coffee shop … That teacup and that spoon was a metaphor, an image, for something that happens in all different kinds of spaces, using all different kinds of mechanisms,” Washington said. Read the full story at oakpark.com.

Michael Romain

Wednesday Journal, April 5, 2017

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Medicinal food

Gershwins in Hollywood

Tuesday, April 4 at 10 a.m., West Sunday, April 9 at 2:30 p.m., Open Door Theater: Suburban Medical Center: A Charles Troy presentation with Jeff Dean and The “Food is Medicine” food-preBob Moreen. In August of 1936, the Gershwin scribed pantry celebrates its brothers arrived in Hollywood to write two first anniversary. Patients Fred Astaire movie musicals. Little did experiencing medical Sunday, April 9 at 4 p.m., they know it would be the last year of issues like diabetes, Pilgrim Congregational Church: George’s life. Learn the shocking story of obesity, and heart disThe Sing to Live Community Chorus presents your fathis fateful 12 months, interspersed and ease can fill prescripvorite songs from favorite Broadway productions. Tickets leavened with abundant video clips of tions for a different are available at www.singtolive.org: General admisthe numbers from the two Fred Astaire kind of medicine: in the sion $22, students $17, breast cancer survivors free. classics, as well as live performances form of vegetables, fruit, Tickets at the door: General Admission $27, of the music. Tickets: $20. Visit www. and lean protein. The Eat student $22, breast cancer survivors free. opendoortheater.net or call 708-386.5510 and Be Well Medical Food 460 Lake St., Oak Park. (voice mail). 902 S. Ridgeland, Oak Park. Pantry is located on the 4th floor of the professional office building on the West Suburban Medical Center campus, 3 Erie Court, Oak Park.

Sing to Live

April 5-12

BIG WEEK

Hidden Hemingway

Compass Rose Quartet Friday, April 7 at 7:30 p.m., Historic Pleasant Home: Compass Rose Quartet’s original compositions and innovative arrangements take a fresh approach to instrumental music, drawing from a wide range of international influences. Enjoy a self-guided tour of the first floor and a wine & cheese reception during intermission. Wine will also be served when doors open at 7 p.m. The performance will begin right at 7:30. Tickets are $20 for general admission ($15 for Pleasant Home Foundation members). Corner of Pleasant Street and Home Avenue.

Architect and bon vivant Monday, April 10 at 1:15 p.m., 19th Century Club: Docent and lecturer Steven Monz paints a portrait of Benjamin Marshall through several of his projects in Chicago, including residential buildings you might recognize along East Lake Shore Drive, including the Drake and Blackstone Hotels. Hear about the man and the “sensation.” $10 suggested donation. Nineteenth Century Charitable Association, 178 Forest Ave., Oak Park. Call 708-386-2729 or visit www.nineteenthcentury.org.

Waiting for Godot CALENDAR EVENTS ■ As you’ve likely noticed, our

Calendar has changed to Big Week. Fewer items, higher profile. If you would like your event to be featured here, please send a photo and details by noon of the Wednesday before it needs to be published. We can’t publish everything, but we’ll do our best to feature the week’s highlights. Email calendar@wjinc.com.

Thursday (preview) at 7 p.m., Friday and Saturday at 7:30 p.m., and Sunday 3 p.m., April 6-9, Dominican University Performing Arts Center: And for something to take your mind off the existential abyss known as the Trump administration: Dominican University’s Performing Arts Lab Series presents a student production of Samuel Beckett’s iconic tragicomedy, Waiting for Godot. Interpretations of the play’s social, political, psychological and religious undertones have been debated since it debuted in France in 1953. Tickets for the play are $17/$5 for students. For more information or to order tickets, visit events.dom.edu or call the box office at 708-488-5000.

And more Courtesy of the Oak Park Area Arts Council: Wednesday, April 5 ■ Pleasant Home Foundation, 217 Home Ave. in Oak Park, presents a Maher & Silsbee in Edgewater Lecture at 7 pm. Free & open to the public. Info: www. pleasanthome.org. ■ The Oak Park Public Library, 834 Lake St. in Oak Park, presents Tom Tresser, Hilary Denk, & Amara Enyia, authors of Chicago Is Not Broke, at 7 p.m. Thursday, April 6 ■ Oak Park & River Forest High School, 201 N. Scoville in Oak Park, presents a choral performance. Info: 708434-3719. Friday, April 7 ■ Oak Park & River Forest High School, 201 N. Scoville

Thursday, April 6 from 7 to 9 p.m., Oak Park Public Library: Oak Park author Robert Elder will tell stories from Hidden Hemingway: Inside the Ernest Hemingway Archives of Oak Park, part time capsule and part biography of the Nobel Prizewinning author. The hardcover coffee table book features never-before-seen items, such as family photos, teenage diaries, bullfighting tickets, love letters, and even a dental X-ray. Books will be available for sale and signing. For more information, visit oppl.org/events. 834 Lake St.

in Oak Park, presents I.T.S. #5405 Fundraiser: 23rd Annual Evening of One Acts on Apr. 7 & 8. Info: 708-434-3719. ■ Bead In Hand, 145 Harrison St. in Oak Park, presents a Rosary Workshop, a jewelry class from 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. $30. Info: www. beadinhand.com. Saturday, April 8 ■ Open Door Repertory Company, 902 S. Ridgeland in Oak Park, presents Therapy Players at 8 p.m. $15 general admission. Info: 708-386-5510. Sunday, April 9 ■ Wonder Works, 6445 W. North Ave. in Oak Park, presents a concert by Laura Doherty & The Heartbeats at 4 p.m. $11/$8 members/ free for children under 1. Info: 708-383-4815.

Cubs home opener Monday and Wednesday, April 10 and 12 at 7:05 p.m., FitzGerald’s: Watch the Cubs home opener on April 10 plus the World Series Ring Ceremony and the game on April 12 all on the big screens in the club and yard. The Cubs face the Dodgers, but first the World Series Championship flag goes up. On April 12, watch the players, dressed in special uniforms, get their World Series rings. Admission is free. Doors open at 6 p.m. For more information on FitzGerald’s, go to http://www. fitzgeraldsnightclub.com, call 708-788-2118 or email info@fitzgeraldsnightclub.com. 6615 W. Roosevelt, Berwyn.

Wednesday Journal, April 5, 2017

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ART BEAT The king of Off Broadway comes to Madison Street

Juliet. They’re naïve but boisters I so often say, we are ous. They are separated by a wall extremely fortunate in erected by their fathers. The two this community to have neighbors (Nate Perez and David high-quality college proZiebart) are actually in cahoots to ductions performed in our get their children to marry. But the midst. If you’ve never seen The two kids are already in love. Fantasticks before, or you’ve not exThe men hire a couple of travelperienced it in a number of years, ing players to stage an abduction there’s an engaging production of of the girl — with the goal of makthe classic Off Broadway musical ing the boy seem like a hero when currently being presented by The he rescues her. I don’t recall the Collective of the Department of Theater Critic original version in great detail, but Theater, Concordia University I suspect this episode Chicago. It’s playing is now truncated or one more weekend altered so as to not on the main stage at come off as advocatMadison Street Theing rape or violence ater, 1010 Madison, in toward women. Oak Park. This small Henry, portrayed by but wonderful little the hilarious and exmusical is funny, paspressive Eamon Mcsionate, and immediInerny, is a washedately beguiling. up thespian who is The Fantasticks always accompanied set the record for by his sidekick Morthe world’s longest timer (played in a bit running musical. It of gender-bending by opened on May 3, 1960 Angela Malera). She and played for 21,552 is clad as a Native performances in American. There is New York alone. Over a huge trunk, stage nearly six decades, there have also been hundreds of regional right, where Henry and Mortimer enter and productions and touring companies. It’s the exit. The nearly ever-present Mute is played only Off Broadway musical to win a Tony. The breezy score is by Harvey Schmidt, by Rachael Nuckles. She handles props and provides amplification and emphasis to the with book and lyrics by Tom Jones. The allegorical plot is based on an 1894 goings-on. The cast sings their sweet songs accomshort story by French poet and dramatist Edmond Rostand (1868-1918), who penned panied by only a keyboard (played by Kevin Disch) and a harp (by Michael Magamuso). Cyrano de Bergerac. Inventive director Brian Fruits has rei- The lovely harp music was often prominent magined the show in fresh ways. His pro- during the show. duction features a diverse company of eight Charles Brown is the musical director. talented actors who bring warmth and vital- Christina Leinicke designed the set, which ity to the musical fable. features a large gazebo in the center of the The Fantasticks is not just a simple story stage. Leinicke also created the whimsical about two love-struck teens and why parents costumes. should never meddle in matchmaking. It The tech people have done a solid job, has magic and lots of humor. especially with the lighting. Garet PahlkotDashing and wily El Gallo, played by ter designed the lighting, which frequently Charles Howard, is the mysterious main bathes the set in warm colors. character and narrator. This actor is a towThough The Fantasticks has no real glitz ering presence who engages everyone in- or glitter like a lot of musicals of its vinstantly. He sings the show’s signature num- tage, it’s a delightful show that’s not only ber, “Try to Remember.” El Gallo is also the sweetly nostalgic but is also built upon elrole that launched Jerry Orbach’s career. ements of comedia dell’ arte and Theater The story is simple. A boy (Matt Bender) of the Absurd. It’s all done beautifully and and Girl (Anneliese Ayers) fall in love. They its intimacy works perfectly in this perforstray. Then they return wiser and more in mance space. Tickets cost $20 though there are discounts love than before. The young couple have long lived next for seniors, students, and Concordia alums. door to one another, but they get caught in Three performances remain on April 7 and 8 the middle of a family feud, like Romeo and at 7:30 p.m. and a matinee on April 9 at 2 p.m.

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Wednesday Journal, April 5, 2017

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Dominican builds bridges with Mexican universities President Donna Carroll says exchange now more important than ever

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THE SILVER GOLD RUSH:

Aging’s Impact on Business and Community Dominican University | Lund Auditorium May 23, 2017 • 11:00 am - 1:30pm This year’s Chamber Economic Luncheon has combined with the Celebrating Seniors Closing Event to create a very special program. Please join us on Tuesday, May 23 to hear Wally Amos, founder of “Famous Amos” cookies and now owner of “The Cookie Kahuna” company. Mr. Amos will deliver the Keynote Address, followed by luncheon and panel discussion on the impact of aging in both business and community. Keynote Address from Wally Amos will begin at 11am in the Lund Auditorium. At noon, we will move to Mazzuchelli Hall for luncheon followed by panel discussion.

Panelists:

Wally Amos, Owner, The Cookie Kahuna Marla Levie, CEO of marketing agency Focus on Aging Rosanna Marquez, AARP Illinois State President Claudia Santin, Dean, College of Business, Concordia University This Event is Co-Hosted by Celebrating Seniors Coalition, Oak Park - River Forest Chamber of Commerce and Forest Park Chamber of Commerce and Development

sities] began several years ago it was about partnerships and collaboration,” Carroll said in a telephone interview. “In this current political context it takes on a larger significance.” Carroll says by creating relationships with other institutions that share common By TIMOTHY INKLEBARGER values and a commitment to collaboration Staff Reporter “a lot of different initiatives will emerge.” She said the Trump administration has In the era of Donald Trump, partnerships with our neighbors south of the Rio Grande created “a great deal of uncertainty that hold an even greater meaning, according makes students and families feel anxious to Dominican University President Donna about the future.” “It puts a lot of stress on students that is Carroll. distracting from their primary task, which Carroll joined a delegashould be their education of 24 presidents from tion and planning for independent colleges the future,” Carroll said, across the U.S. last week noting that the trip sends in Guadalajara, Mexico, both a practical and symfor the first summit of its bolic message. kind with their Mexican Carroll added that “Docounterparts. minican’s strong stance Carroll not only attendin identifying itself as a ed the conference orgasanctuary campus was nized by the Council of Inreceived very well in dependent Colleges (CIC) Mexico. I was proud to be and the Mexican Fedable to represent the unieration of Private Higher versity, and I’m proud of Education Institutions the courageous position (FIMPES) in late March, we’ve taken.” she was a speaker at the Mexican institutions event, which aims to emof higher education that phasize the importance attended the summit of international exchange were Instituto Tecnoopportunities. logico de Estudios SupeIt’s a natural fit for President Donna Carroll riores de Monterrey, UniCarroll, whose freshman versidad Panamericana, class this school year was made up of 63 percent Hispanic students. and Universidad del Valle de Atemajac. Council of Independent Colleges PresiThe university also has been a vocal supporter of immigrant rights, declaring the dent Richard Ekman said in a press release River Forest-based institution a sanctuary that the “in the current climate of constrained international cooperation, CIC campus in late 2016. The summit, “Reaffirming the North reaffirms the importance of international American Spirit of Collaboration in Higher exchange for the preparation of informed Education: Creating Bridges for Commu- citizens and responsible global particinication” aims to strengthen relationships pants.” “Our Mexican neighbors have a special for shared opportunities in research and development, exchanges with students and relationship to colleges in the U.S.,” he said. CONTACT: tim@oakpark.com faculty, and for cross-border internships. “When this conversation [between univer-

H O W

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Wednesday Journal, 141 S. Oak Park Ave., Oak Park, Illinois 60302 PHONE 708-524-8300 ■ FAX 708-524-0447 ■ ONLINE www.OakPark.com | www.RiverForest.com CIRCULATION Jill Wagner, 708-613-3340 circulation@oakpark.com DISPLAY ADVERTISING Dawn Ferencak, 708-613-3329 dawn@oakpark.com

CLASSIFIED ADVERTISING SALES Mary Ellen Nelligan, 708-613-3342 maryellen@oakpark.com NEWS/FEATURES Dan Haley, 708-613-3301 dhaley@wjinc.com

CALENDAR Carrie Bankes calendar@wjinc.com SPORTS/PARKS Marty Farmer, 708-613-3319 marty@oakpark.com

Wednesday Journal is published weekly by Wednesday Journal, Inc. POSTMASTER: Please send address changes to Wednesday Journal, 141 S. Oak Park Ave., Oak Park, IL 60302-2901. Periodical rate postage paid at Oak Park, Illinois (USPS No. 0010-138). In-county subscription rate is $32 per year, $57 for two years. Annual out-of-county rate is $40. © 2016 Wednesday Journal, Inc.

Wednesday Journal, April 5, 2017

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DOUBLE YOUR CHARITABLE GIFT TO UNITY TEMPLE’S RESTORATION TODAY! Just in time for Frank Lloyd Wright’s 150th Birthday Celebration The Tawani Foundation will match each and every gift up to $100,000! The comprehensive restoration of Frank Lloyd Wright’s Unity Temple will soon be complete. This momentous project will restore Unity Temple to its original condition. Exterior restoration includes outside concrete repair, skylight replacements, new roofing, landscape and exterior lighting. The interior scope of work will include restoration and preservation of plaster and paint finishes, wood work, art glass and Frank Lloyd Wright’s signature lay lights in the Unity Temple sanctuary and Unity House. New geothermal too! Unity Temple’s distinction as one of Frank Lloyd Wright’s greatest achievements is worldwide and here it is right in our very own Village of Oak Park! Be a part of this momentous occasion!

We’re double-matching all charitable gifts — yours too! Make your donation at WWW.UTRF.ORG or by sending a check made payable to Unity Temple Restoration Foundation: 1011 Lake Street Suite 212 Oak Park 60301

Frank Lloyd Wright thanks you and so do we! Unity Temple Restoration Foundation is a 501(c)(3) organization. Gifts are tax deductible as provided by law. This advertisement paid for by an anonymous donor.

Wednesday Journal, April 5, 2017

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Township consolidation bill clears Illinois House

Would allow binding vote for towns like Oak Park, River Forest By DEBORAH KADIN Contributing Reporter

Dixon), the other principal sponsor of the bill. If it is approved, all township assets would have to be transferred to the village within 60 days. If the referendum fails, the initiative could not be resubmitted for a vote for four years, Demmer said. Although it barely makes a dent in the number of units of government in Illinois, lawmakers supportive of the measure say it is a step forward. Illinois leads the nation in the number of units of government -- around 7,000. More than 1,400 of them are townships. “Any time we can find an opportunity to consolidate government and save taxpayers money, we should take advantage of it,” said state Rep. Chris Welch (D-Westchester), a co-sponsor of the bill who represents River Forest. “I have always supported smart consolidation.” HB 496 is just one of several measures that could lead to consolidation. The second bill is HB 3133, which would require a county-wide binding referendum on abolishing townships and turn over all township services to the county. The measure is pending in a house committee chaired by Yingling, a former supervisor of Avon Township in Lake County. Both bills are stand-alone measures. The lone Senate bill is SB 3, which would allow counties to dissolve certain units of lo-

cal government by a voter referendum. That measure passed unanimously in the Senate earlier this year as part of a grand budget compromise. SB 3 is on hold in the House. How Oak Park would receive the news about HB 496 is uncertain. During forums this winter, three of the River Forest trustee candidates -- Tom Cargie, Patty Henek and Respicio Vasquez -- endorsed the idea of township consolidation. Trustee Tom Dwyer, who did not attend any of the forums, favored a merger back in 2014 when the issue first came up, but flipped-flopped on it that summer. River Forest Township Supervisor Carla Sloan in an interview earlier this year said the township would fight any question about a merger, as it did in 2014. At that time, Welch introduced a bill that would have put an advisory question before the voters. Heated exchanges took place over the months between township and village officials. In July 2014, village and the township officials sat down to discuss how they might consolidate some services; nothing materialized. Some residents, at the same time, mounted an effort to place an advisory question on the ballot in November 2014. That question never made it on the ballot. Since 2014, two cities having co-terminus boundaries with their townships have approved mergers. The city of Evanston city

and its township merged in March 2014 after a series of referendums and General Assembly legislation. The township was dissolved on May 1, 2014. In 2015, Belleville Township and the city began talks on merging. Dissolution of the township is to take place in May. Last year, a study out of the lieutenant governor’s office recommended that co-terminus cities/townships should merge to reduce the size and cost of government.

Join the conversation Please send Letters to the Editor to ■ ktrainor@wjinc.com or ■ Wednesday Journal, 141 S. Oak Park Ave., Oak Park, IL 60302 Include name, address and daytime phone number for verification.

SPONSORED CONTENT

Getting Down To Business

with the Oak Park - River Forest Chamber of Commerce APRIL 3rd, 2017

Spring Cleaning Your Online Persona

By CATHY YEN, Executive Director

round April Fool’s Day each year, see what happens when you google yourself. You may be “fooling” people with bad information. Time for online spring cleaning. I just googled my name. The bio I wrote years ago for this newspaper column appears first, followed by our Chamber website’s Staff Page. A YouTube video interview on the Village of Oak Park’s channel shows up third, followed by my LinkedIn profile and then Facebook. Happily, my information appears before other Cathy Yens that might be out there, including one Cathy Yen who is CEO of a company in Asia. That makes gives me confidence in the strong website SEO

(search engine optimization) utilized by our community paper, municipal government and Chamber.

incorrect address and phone number. Each provides a link to submit edits. I need to do that.

However, I have not updated my newspaper bio in two years. Haven’t even looked at it. I might want to check that out, even edit it, since it shows up first on Google. I also am surprised to find that LinkedIn appears before Facebook. That makes sense from a professional perspective. However, I have not updated LinkedIn in as many as three years as opposed to Facebook, which I was on, oh, maybe five minutes ago. Looks like I have some work to do to keep my public information fresh and accurate.

This week, we will email Chamber members the profile information we have on file for them. This information appears in our public, online directory. Soon we will send it to the Wednesday Journal’s Answer Book team for publication in our annual print directory. We hope members take a minute to affirm or edit their listings for accuracy. Online spring cleaning for yourself and your business is time well spent. “Alternative facts” are no joke when potential customers stumble upon stale online information.

Did the same with the Chamber. I was glad to see that the information on the first page of hits was correct. Our website comes up first followed by news media mentions and social media profiles. On page two, however, both MapQuest and WhitePages show an

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… to SPENGA OAK PARK on their grand opening! Pictured: Bob Stelletello, Right At Home Oak Park/Chicago; Roger McGreal, SPENGA; Pat Koko, Celebrating Seniors Coalition; Cliff Osborn, Gloor Realty; Adrienne Smith, SPENGA; Alison Ver Halen, Alison Ver Halen; Sara Bender, SPENGA; Hannah Kaye, SPENGA; Dr. Brian Fuller, Fuller Health Group; Levi Fuller, Fuller Health Group; Susie Goldschmidt, MB Financial; Viktor Schrader, Oak Park Economic Development Corporation; Christian Harris, MaidPro; Cathy Yen, Oak Park-River Forest Chamber of Commerce; Mickey Agney, Kneaded Work; Kim Goldschmidt, AXA Advisors. Not pictured: Christina Aguinaga-Alvarez, Community Bank of Oak Park-River Forest; Ronan Fuller, Fuller Health Group; Cameron Gearen, Oak Park Economic Development Corporation; Charlene Witkowski, Community Bank of Oak Park-River Forest; Brad Zerman, Seven Point.

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Wednesday Journal, April 5, 2017

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Major incidents at the BP gas station at 100 Chicago Ave.

Gas/Crime

2016

from page 1 Earlier that evening, at just after 8 p.m., a 21-year-old man, who claims to be a gang member, was shot in the leg at the gas station. The recently released incident report reveals that the man admitted to police that the shooting was “probably gang-related” but he would not testify in court against the shooter or cooperate with police in the investigation. Waters said she already was aware of criminal activity at the gas station, but it was the Feb. 11 shooting that made her decide to take action. Within a few days, she and others organized a march from the gas station to New Life Ministries church, 634 N. Austin Blvd., to show that residents in Oak Park and Chicago’s Austin neighborhood are unified in their desire to prevent crime. All it takes is “one stray bullet” for her three children or anyone in the surrounding area to lose their life, Waters said in a recent interview. About a month prior to the Feb. 11 shooting, shots were fired outside the gas station, but reportedly no one was hit. On Jan. 4, at approximately 5:07 p.m., video surveillance at the store captured two men exit the store. One of the men is seen in the video pointing a handgun on Taylor and ducking “while several patrons are observed running in different directions indicating that a shot was fired,” according to the report. The man seen shooting in the video then handed a gun to his companion before the two got into their light-colored [possibly silver] SUV and fled westbound on Chicago Avenue. One witness to the incident was standing on the east side of North Taylor Avenue when he heard a person say, “You need to stop tweaking, bro.” The witness reportedly looked up and saw a man around the age of 20 holding a silver handgun with a black handle. The witness ran north on Taylor and heard one or two gunshots, according to the report.

Looking for answers After the Feb. 11 shooting, Waters said, she and others began organizing the march, which moved down Austin Boulevard to “show our strength in numbers and unity and solidarity.” “We should not be afraid,” she said. She went door-to-door inviting residents in the area, many of whom were not aware a shooting had occurred. “I find that alarming,” she said. “We have all these families here, and if you’re not aware of what’s going on, how do you know what to tell your kids?” The meeting was attended by a resident Oak Park beat cop and Harry Singh, son of Daljit Singh, owner of the gas station. Waters and others requested that police not only step up patrols in the area but that they use the low-cost policing trick of park-

6/12 - Motor vehicle theft, 10:35 p.m., black 2012 Toyota Tacoma and iPhone 6 Plus, estimated loss $20,500 8/12 - Motor vehicle theft, 10:40 p.m., gold 2012 Chevrolet Impala, estimated loss $9,400 TIMOTHY INKLEBARGER/Staff

BLUNTS FOR SALE: Neighbors believe that the low-cost cigars sold at the BP gas station at 100 Chicago Ave. are used as drug paraphernalia for so-called marijuana blunts. They’ve asked gas station owner Singh Daljit to stop selling them to deter criminal activity at the location.

Residents working to establish Community Watch group Oak Park and Austin residents gathered in the days following the Feb. 11 shooting of an admitted gang member at the BP gas station, 100 Chicago Ave., and marched down Austin Boulevard to send a message that crime will not be tolerated in either community. Now neighbors of the business are working to form a “community watch” group for the northeast side of Oak Park to sustain their message of awareness and unity. Anthony Clark, executive director of Suburban Unity Alliance, said residents are invited to join in the first meeting of the community watch group on Wednesday, March 5, at 7:30 p.m. at L!VE Café, 163 S. Oak Park Ave. Clark said the group is made up of Oak Park and Austin residents who want to reduce crime in both areas.

ing an unmanned patrol car near the gas station when an officer is unavailable. Police have done both, she said. The police presence near the BP is so noticeable now, she sees a manned patrol car on Chicago almost every day when she leaves for work and again when she returns home. She is also encouraging BP owner Daljit Singh to stop selling 3-for-a-dollar cigars, which she believes are used to roll so-called marijuana blunts. “I asked him if he could re-evaluate what he’s selling. He was not as receptive to it, and that was after the shooting.” Singh did agree to put up a flier announcing the march and public meeting, Waters said. Harry Singh told Wednesday Journal he, too, has noticed a substantially increased police presence around the BP since the Feb. 11 shooting, with patrols every 30 to 40 minutes. Neighbors of the gas station aren’t the only ones who are worried, Singh said. “It’s part of living but it’s scary,” he said,

adding that the proliferation of guns is a big part of the problem. Singh said his family has owned the BP and the nearby GoLo gas station down the street at 330 Chicago Ave. The BP’s proximity to the city has made it a bigger target for crime, Singh said. He is aware of the neighbors’ requests for the BP to stop selling cheap cigars used for rolling blunts, but he said not selling them would put his competitors at an unfair advantage. “I will stop selling cigars if all the stores coming before me and [those] on the edge [of town] stop selling them too,” he said.

A 24-hour business While Waters is taking a more measured approach toward the BP, others in the neighborhood believe limiting the gas station’s hours of operations is part of the solution. Waters met with Anthony Clark, executive director of Suburban Unity Alliance, to help organize the march. Clark told Wednesday Journal there is “no question” that the store’s hours of operation are a problem. “Common sense will tell you that you are going to invite negativity to your establishment [if you’re open all night],” he said. “We have a suburban business with city practices. If it comes to a point where businesses are not going to change their practices or update their policies, then pressure will be applied. “I’m not here to shut down the business,” he added. “I know it’s a family and they have to make a living as well, but they are making their business off the community.” Waters noted that neighbors chatting online, particularly on the Facebook fan page, North East Oak Park Community Group, have advocated working to close the BP during the late night. But of the nine major crimes committed there since the beginning of 2016, only three took place after 10 p.m. — all three were car thefts — and only one of those took place past midnight. Waters said that even though she understands the urge to target the late-night hours, she doesn’t believe it will solve the problem. “I don’t know that is the solution,” she said. “The fact is those incidents have occurred during [daytime] business hours.”

11/17 - Motor vehicle theft, 8:09 a.m., 2008 Saturn Vue, estimated loss $8,000 11/20 - Motor vehicle theft, 1:10 p.m., gray 2011 GMC Acadia, estimated loss $10,000 11/23 - Motor vehicle theft, 4:43 p.m., 2015 Chevy, estimated loss $30,000

2017 1/14 - Aggravated discharge of firearm, 5:07 p.m. 1/15 - Motor vehicle theft, 2:03 a.m., black 2007 Chevy Impala, estimated loss $20,000 1/27 - Motor vehicle theft, 5:25 p.m., red 2014 Ford Escape, estimated loss $20,000 2/11 - Aggravated battery, 8:03 p.m. 2/17 - Spent firearm round found by police Oak Park Police Chief Anthony Ambrose also doesn’t believe limiting the gas station’s hours of operation will cut down on crime at the location. “Hours of operation is not a concern of mine,” Ambrose told Wednesday Journal. “My concern is making sure there is a police presence throughout the community.” He noted that police have increased patrols in the area and continue to hold monthly community meetings with the public. He believes the warm weather in January and February led to an uptick in crime. “I think that definitely played a part.” Closing the gas station down during the late-night hours could be difficult because it does not appear that the business needs a special permit of any sort to operate 24/7, according to village spokesman David Powers, who said in an email response to questions: “As best as can be determined, the station does not have any kind of special permission to operate 24 hours. Restrictions on hours could be part of a special-use permit. Provisions of special-use permits are determined on a case-by-case basis.” Singh said he does not believe limiting the BP’s hours will help cut down on crime. Since his family first bought the store seven years ago, there has always been some crime, he said, and those calling for limited hours should consider that. A carjacking took place down the street from the gas station shortly after the Feb. 11 shooting, he noted. “Do we want to block the roads now, too? Or maybe we should have a curfew, so people can’t get out of the house after 8 p.m.” CONTACT: tim@oakpark.com

Wednesday Journal, April 5, 2017

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ELIJAH’S MOM Still fighting from page 1

WILLIAM CAMARGO/Staff Photographer

STILL SMILING: The loved ones of Elijah Sims keep his memory alive by reflecting on his outgoing personality. From left to right: Tayanna Norman, Isaiah Sims, Sharita Galloway, Shawanda Bell and King Sims.

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Sharita said, laughing. “He had to suck his lips to be able to go to sleep. That was his comfort.” These days, Sharita’s comfort, outside of her close family members, has been the impromptu community of fellow Oak Parkers who, after showing up in the days, weeks and months after Elijah’s death, have never really left. During an audience discussion of a play titled, Crossing Austin Boulevard, produced and performed by theater students last month at OPRF, Sharita said she never really felt like she belonged in Oak Park until her son died. “Before, I just pretty much went to work and came home,” she said last week. “I’m more involved in things now and I’ve met a lot of different people. We’ve grown to have real relationships. I feel I have a really good support system, which I’m happy about because, unfortunately, I feel I didn’t have a lot of support from some members of my family afterward.” Sharita said her biggest support system includes four sisters, two of whom live in other states, and her mother, who now lives in North Carolina. She also has two sons besides King and Elijah — 19 and 20 years old. It’s the wider orbit of extended relatives, aunts and uncles namely, that she said disappointed her. “I have aunts and uncles who I would have expected to comfort me, or at least call and check on me, who never did that,” she said. “That really hurt my feelings because I was the one who always tried to do things for others in the family. But they say when the funeral is over, everybody’s going to disappear. That’s what it was.”

And the silence has, at times, been deafening, Sharita said. After Elijah’s death, she didn’t go back to her job as a nurse at a mental health clinic in Chicago because she didn’t want to feel singled out by the tragedy. On the three-month anniversary of her son’s death, she looked up and realized she wasn’t sleeping or eating. She’d lost roughly 25 pounds. She had to be admitted to Riveredge Hospital for eight days after experiencing a mental breakdown, the culmination of troubles accumulating since the day she left Stroger Hospital, shell-shocked by the reality that her son wasn’t leaving with her. “The morning my son died, I left the hospital and went straight to my primary care doctor because I knew I was going to need help,” she said. She has since developed “really bad PTSD.” Regular grief counseling and walks with her Oak Park friends have helped ease the emotional turmoil, but the stress hasn’t released. She carries it like the stainless steel cremation jewelry she made for herself and her sons after receiving Elijah’s ashes (months before his death, during a spur-of-the-moment conversation with Sharita, Elijah had expressed a desire to be cremated). “I’m afraid for everybody’s safety now. I’m just afraid,” she said. “I take different routes home from work. If there are too many cars in a parking lot in a store I’m looking to go into, I’ll just go to another one.”

Shot while biking home On Monday, Aug. 29, 2016, Sharita was at home asleep when she got the phone call that Elijah had been shot. It was about five minutes after 10 p.m., which had long been Elijah’s weekend curfew. His school-day curfew was 9 p.m. “It was hard for me because Elijah was going to turn 17 that Wednesday,” Sharita said. “That Monday was the first day of his 11 o’clock curfew. He was showing he was responsible and

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‘Everything reminds me of him’ King was in his playpen as Sharita pondered the toddler’s future, considering what happened to his older brother, who was killed during a visit to the neighborhood where he had grown up and had developed deep friendships. She hadn’t let her fear consume her ability to contextualize. King, she said, won’t have those Austin bonds and thus no reason to return to the neighborhood at night to visit friends. But the comfort this knowledge provides is undergirded by all kinds of problems that Sharita is beginning to unravel. She’s joined a community organization

she helped form with Clark that includes residents of both Oak Park and Austin. They meet to explore ways they can address the violence that happens disproportionately on the West Side, but that, lately, has also been happening in Oak Park. And in the future, Sharita said, a stillto-be-formed Elijah Sims Foundation will involve community outreach in Austin, specifically, where help is needed most. One of Sharita’s ripening dreams, among a field of them, is to have something unusual to Austin (“maybe an ice-skating park”) dedicated in Elijah’s honor. In the meantime, as they wait for the monuments to materialize, the family passes the memories of Elijah on to King, who has also inherited his mother’s ambitions. “My goal was to make sure all my boys graduated high school because I didn’t,” she said. In her winding odyssey to fulfill that goal, she sent her sons to numerous schools in the city that would both provide them with a sound education and a respite from the violence, but the violence always seemed to be with them. One day, her 19-year-old was robbed at gunpoint. Eventually, she sent her boys to live with their father in Memphis before she settled in Oak Park and they returned to live with her, enrolling at OPRF. “His first week at that school, Elijah came home and said, ‘Ma, it’s this girl at that school. Her name is Tayanna Norman. Ma, she is a good girl.’ He told me that he wrote her letters asking to be her boyfriend,” Sharita recalled. “We were in math class together and I didn’t notice until he snatched my phone and added me on Facebook,” said Norman, who was supposed to go to prom with Elijah this year. Instead, she said, Elijah’s 19-year-old brother will take her. “That’s when you noticed that beautiful smile? And them eyes?” Elijah’s favorite aunt, Shawanda Bell, asked Norman. They were seated across from Sharita, feet away from Elijah’s photo, their voices within whispering distance of King’s playpen, his little kingdom. “Yep,” said Norman, blushing at the recollection. “He practiced that smile,” said Bell, laughing, as Elijah’s relatives remembered his buoyant mischief. “Some days, when I would get out the car, he would scare me,” said Sharita. “He’d jump from behind the car. He was really silly. He was really a character. Everything reminds me of him. Everything.” Twenty-year-old Isaiah Sims, Sharita’s oldest child, said he feels the need to fill that void left by his younger brother. “I just go through the day, smile and do it over again,” Isaiah said. “Once I come home, I tell jokes to my mom. … Yeah, I smile all the time. That’s all we can do.” Anyone interested in donating to the Elijah Sims Memorial Fund can visit: https://www.gofundme.com/elijah-sims-memorial-reward-fund. CONTACT: michael@oakpark.com

Performing Arts Center

doing what he was supposed to do. He worked 35 hours a week during the summer hours [at Pete’s Fresh Market in Oak Park].” One question that haunted Sharita in the weeks after Elijah’s death was how her son was planning to get home that night. “I didn’t know until I was passing out flyers [in Austin] one day and a young man came up to me and told me, ‘Ms. Sims that wasn’t for your son. I saw it all.’ I didn’t talk to him because there were young men outside. I didn’t want to endanger him. He told me that Elijah was on a bike. And detectives later confirmed that the bike was in evidence. When he got shot in the head, my son was on a bike trying to come home.” Since her son’s murder, Sharita said she’s encountered multiple people who witnessed the shooting but who have refused to come forward. Detectives, she said, have leads. She has their business cards. That about sums up the case’s status One witness, she said, came forward to OPRF teacher Anthony Clark. That person, however, would not go to police. “I believe that oftentimes crimes go unsolved because of personal relationships witnesses share with offenders, out of fear of being harmed, or fractured community relationships with law enforcement,” said Clark in an email statement. Clark helped setup a GoFundMe campaign, called the “Elijah Sims Memorial Reward Fund,” in order to “support the police department’s efforts in reaching justice,” according to the campaign’s web page. Sharita said the money will be used to do the kind of things that the government should be doing, such as funding relocation efforts and helping with witnesses’ living expenses. “We are sending a message that Elijah’s life mattered,” wrote Clark, “that our communities will not let fear or relationships prevent us from working together to solve this crime. Our communities cannot wait for others to save us; we have to work with each other to truly reach change.” Meanwhile, Sharita is also advocating for the passage of legislation, which she calls ‘Elijah’s Bill,’ that would hold accountable the parents of young people — oftentimes teenagers — who kill.

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Wednesday Journal, April 5, 2017

Township consolidation bill clears Illinois House

Would allow binding vote for towns like Oak Park, River Forest By DEBORAH KADIN Contributing Reporter

Help set future community public health priorities If you live in Oak Park or River Forest, you can have a voice in determining future priorities for public health focus and funding, including behavioral health and developmental disabilities. How? Just visit www.surveymonkey.com/r/OPRFHealthSurvey and take a brief survey. The survey is entirely anonymous and confidential and takes approximately 10 - 20 minutes to complete. The survey is part of the Community Health Needs Assessment conducted once every five years through the Oak Park Department of Public Health in partnership with the Community Mental Health Board of Oak Park Township, the River Forest Township, Oak Park Township and the Rotary Club of Oak Park - River Forest. For more information, or hardcopies of the survey, call 708.358.5480 or email health@oak-park.us.

Community Mental Health Board

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of Oak Park Township

The Community Mental Health Board of Oak

Near the eve of the April municipal elections, a bill allowing voters in some areas of the state to decide whether to consolidate village and township governments is picking up steam in the Illinois General Assembly. HB 496, which cleared the Illinois House on March 29 by a vote of 111-2, would affect 18 townships that have co-terminus boundaries with municipalities, including Oak Park and River Forest. It is uncertain yet who will shepherd the bill through the Senate, state Rep. Sam Yingling (D-Round Lake Beach), one of the two principal sponsors, told Wednesday Journal. If the bill is approved by the Senate and is signed by the governor, voters in Oak Park and River Forest could cast ballots on a binding consolidation initiative as early as the 2018 primary in March. A village board or a local petition signed by 10 percent of the electorate could trigger that initiative, said Rep. Tom Demmer (RDixon), the other principal sponsor of the bill. If it is approved, all township assets would have to be transferred to the village within 60 days. If the referendum fails, the initiative could not be resubmitted for a vote for four years, Demmer said. Although it barely makes a dent in the number of units of government in Illinois, lawmakers supportive of the measure say it is a step forward. Illinois leads the nation in the number of units of government -- around 7,000. More than 1,400 of them are townships. “Any time we can find an opportunity to consolidate government and save taxpayers money, we should take advantage of it,” said state Rep. Chris Welch (D-Westchester), a co-sponsor of the bill who represents River Forest. “I have always supported smart consolidation.” HB 496 is just one of several measures that could lead to consolidation. The second

bill is HB 3133, which would require a county-wide binding referendum on abolishing townships and turn over all township services to the county. The measure is pending in a house committee chaired by Yingling, a former supervisor of Avon Township in Lake County. Both bills are stand-alone measures. The lone Senate bill is SB 3, which would allow counties to dissolve certain units of local government by a voter referendum. That measure passed unanimously in the Senate earlier this year as part of a grand budget compromise. SB 3 is on hold in the House. How Oak Park would receive the news about HB 496 is uncertain. During forums this winter, three of the River Forest trustee candidates -- Tom Cargie, Patty Henek and Respicio Vasquez -- endorsed the idea of township consolidation. Trustee Tom Dwyer, who did not attend any of the forums, favored a merger back in 2014 when the issue first came up, but flipped-flopped on it that summer. River Forest Township Supervisor Carla Sloan in an interview earlier this year said the township would fight any question about a merger, as it did in 2014. At that time, Welch introduced a bill that would have put an advisory question before the voters. Heated exchanges took place over the months between township and village officials. In July 2014, village and the township officials sat down to discuss how they might consolidate some services; nothing materialized. Some residents, at the same time, mounted an effort to place an advisory question on the ballot in November 2014. That question never made it on the ballot. Since 2014, two cities having co-terminus boundaries with their townships have approved mergers. The city of Evanston city and its township merged in March 2014 after a series of referendums and General Assembly legislation. The township was dissolved on May 1, 2014. In 2015, Belleville Township and the city began talks on merging. Dissolution of the township is to take place in May. Last year, a study out of the lieutenant governor’s office recommended that co-terminus cities/townships should merge to reduce the size and cost of government.

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Wednesday Journal, April 5, 2017

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Entrepreneurial Cookie:

Wally Amos Headlines Celebrating Seniors Week in May Sweet-Toothed Supporters Can Help by Donating to Cause, Getting `The Big Kahuna’ Cookies at 30-plus Locations

n May, Famous Amos founder Wally Amos is delivering a keynote talk at a luncheon and panel discussion co-sponsored by two local chambers of commerce and the Celebrating Seniors Coalition. But already, at more than 30 area businesses and other locations, you can get a taste—literally—of this 80-year-old entrepreneurial icon’s current venture. Bags of Amos’s latest foray into delectable goodness, The Cookie Kahuna, are each available for a $6 donation. All proceeds from those donations go directly to the Celebrating Seniors organization. Its mission includes providing financial support for at-risk and vulnerable older adults in need throughout Oak Park, River Forest and Forest Park. So far, volunteers have sold more than 750 bags of The Cookie Kahuna, said Jim Flanagan, founder and chairman of Celebrating Seniors. In its seventh year of organizing a weeklong series of events throughout the three communities, Celebrating Seniors has typically tapped local media personalities, such as Roz Varon, Harry Porterfield, and Bruce DuMont, to serve as keynote speakers. This past year, Flanagan connected with Amos and recognized a synergy between his own journey and the spirit of

Celebrating Seniors’ Jim Flanagan

Celebrating Seniors. “Celebrating Seniors is a group dedicated to recognizing the contributions and talents of the older adults in our community. It’s not a paste-tense thing, either. They’re continuing to blaze trials and make a great impact,” said Flanagan, who is also chairman of the Oak ParkRiver Forest Township Seniors Services Committee. “Wally is the same way. He’s like your next-door neighbor, or favorite uncle—always encouraging and looking on the brighter side of things.” In support of Celebrating Seniors, Amos has given the organization permission to make his varieties of The Cookie Kahuna available for donations. On Tuesday, May 23rd, Amos will be at Dominican University, 7900 W. Division

OUT ABOUT

Why not?” Amos has led a fascinating life that includes his becoming the first AfricanAmerican talent agent at the famed William Morris Agency. In that role, he signed a folk-singing duo who would go on to become legends: Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel. But he really began making a name for himself in 1975, when he founded the Famous Amos cookie store in Los Angeles. He eventually sold the company and two years ago, he started a new one, The Cookie Kahuna, a name that draws on his current home state of Hawaii. The cookies are sold in all seven Costco locations in Hawaii, and he’s trying to expand distribution to the mainland as well. Wally Amos

Celebrating Seniors Week will feature dozens of events throughout the three communities between Thursday, May 18th and Thursday, May 25th. The program is a collaboration of Celebrating Seniors and the local business community. The Oak Park and River Forest Chamber of Commerce and the Forest Park Chamber of Commerce and Development are co-sponsors of the event. St. in River Forest, serving as the featured speaker, then panelist on “The Silver Gold Rush: Aging’s Impact on Business and Community.” He will be joined by Marla Levie, CEO of marketing agency Focus on Aging, Rosanna Marquez, AARP Illinois State President, and Claudia Santin, Dean of the College of Business at Concordia University Chicago. The keynote, at 11 a.m., is at Lund Auditorium, followed by the luncheon and panel discussion at Noon in Mazzuchelli Hall. Amos, who recently appeared on the hit entrepreneurial television program “Shark Tank,” applauded Celebrating Seniors’ mission and work. “Seniors have blazed the trail and made sacrifices in many areas of society, and I’m glad to be as helpful as I can. It’s not about me—we learn from each other,” Amos said. “I’m still selling cookies and building a company. I’m still in the game.

Bob Stelletello, president of the Oak Park and River Forest Chamber of Commerce and member of the Celebrating Seniors Coalition, said it will be “a privilege and an inspiration to hear Wally’s story.” “He’s a living legend,” Stelletello added. “He has been to the peak, experienced major setbacks in life and business, and has now come back with another business—he’s living the dream.” In addition to providing financial support to seniors in need—more than $70,000 has been raised since the group’s inception—Celebrating Seniors has three other objectives. They are to facilitate cooperation between the business community, government agencies and non-profit organizations for the benefit of the senior population; to promote senior groups and organizations that serve persons 60 and older; and to raise public awareness of issues affecting seniors. Among the locations where The Cookie

Kahuna is available, for a $6 donation per bag: The Oak Park and River Forest Chamber of Commerce, 143 S. Oak Park Ave., Oak Park; the Forest Park Community Center, 7640 Jackson Blvd., Forest Park; Al-Mart Furniture, 7045 W. North Ave., Oak Park; Brown Cow Ice Cream, 7347 Madison St., Forest Park; Concordia University (West Annex), 7900 W. Augusta; Famous Liquors, 7714 Madison St., Forest Park; Home Instead, 6901 W. North Ave., Suite 1-F; Pure Health Chiropractic, 421 N. Marion St.; Right at Home, 7000 W. North Ave., Suite 1-B; Team Blonde, 7442 Madison St.; TEFCO Construction Co., 7744 W. Monroe, Forest Park; Synergy Home Healthcare, 1515 N. Harlem Ave., Suite 307-2; and the UPS Store, 159 N. Marion St. The cookie varieties are Original Chocolate Chip, Chocolate Chip Pecan, and Butterscotch Chip Macadamia Nut. Tickets are $25 for Amos’s speech, $50 for the lunch, or $65 for both. Tickets are available at the OPRF Chamber of Commerce’s website, at www.oprfchamber. org. Celebrating Seniors is online at www. CelebratingSeniors.net. On Facebook: www. facebook.com/CelebratingSeniors; on Twitter: www.twitter.com/CelebratingSrs. Phone: 708-386-3100.

Wednesday Journal, April 5, 2017

See what all the buzz is about.

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Religion Guide Methodist

Check First.

First United Methodist Church of Oak Park

First Congregational Church of Maywood

400 N. Fifth Avenue (1 block north of Lake St.) Come join us for Sunday Morning Worship at 11 am Pastor Elliot Wimbush will be preaching the message. Refreshments and fellowship follow the service. 708-344-6150 firstchurchofmaywood.org When you're looking for a place to worship the Lord, Check First.

You’re Invited to A Church for All Nations A Church Without Walls SERVICE LOCATION Forest Park Plaza 7600 W. Roosevelt Road Forest Park, IL 60130

William S. Winston Pastor (708) 697-5000

324 N. Oak Park Avenue 708-383-4983 www.firstUMCoakpark.org Sunday School for all Ages, 9am Sunday Worship, 10am Children’s Chapel during Worship Rev. Jenny Weber, Pastor Professionally Staffed Nursery Fellowship Time after Worship

Believer’s Walk of Faith Broadcast Schedule (Times in Central Standard Time) Television DAYSTAR (M-F)

3:30-4:00pm

Nationwide

WJYS-TV (M-F)

6:30-7:00am

Chicago, IL.

WCIU-TV (Sun.)

10:30-11:00am

Chicago, IL.

Word Network

10:30-11:00am

Nationwide

(M-F)

Lutheran—ELCA

United Lutheran Church

409 Greenfield Street (at Ridgeland Avenue) Oak Park Holy Communion with nursery care and children’s chapel each Sunday at 9:30 a.m. www.unitedlutheranchurch.org

708/386-1576

OakPark.com ForestParkReview.com

Lutheran-Independent

Grace Lutheran Church

7300 W. Division, River Forest David R. Lyle, Senior Pastor David W. Wegner, Assoc. Pastor Lauren Dow Wegner, Assoc. Pastor Sunday Worship, 8:30 & 11:00 a.m. Sunday School/Adult Ed. 9:45 a.m. Childcare Available

Grace Lutheran School

www.livingwd.org www.billwinston.org

Preschool - 8th Grade Bill Koehne, Principal 366-6900, graceriverforest.org

West Suburban Temple Har Zion

1040 N. Harlem Avenue River Forest Meet our Rabbi, Adir Glick Pray, learn, and celebrate with our caring, progressive, egalitarian community. Interfaith families are welcome. Accredited Early Childhood Program Religious School for K thru 12 Daily Morning Minyan Weekly Shabbat Services Friday 6:30pm & Saturday 10:00am Affiliated with United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism 708.366.9000 www.wsthz.org

Roman Catholic

St. Bernardine Catholic Church Harrison & Elgin, Forest Park

CELEBRATING OUR 105TH YEAR!

Sat. Masses: 8:30am & 5:00pm SUNDAY MASSES: 8:00am & 10:30am 10:30 Mass-Daycare for all ages CCD Sun. 9am-10:15am Reconciliation: Sat. 9am & 4pm Weekday Masses: Monday–Friday 6:30am Church Office:INKLEBARGER 708-366-0839 By TIMOTHY CCD: 708-366-3553 Staff Reporter www.stbern.com Pastor: Fr. Stanislaw Kuca

Victim reportedly is a family Fair Oaks member of the suspect

Presbyterian

Sunday Service 7AM, 9AM & 11:15AM

LIVE Webcast - 11:15AM Service

Oak Park man charged with sexually abusing girl

Lutheran-Missouri Synod

Christ Lutheran Church

607 Harvard Street (at East Av.) Oak Park, Illinois Rev. Robert M. Niehus, Pastor Sunday Bible Class: 9:15 am Sunday School: 9:10 Sunday Worship Services: 8:00 and 10:30 am Church Office: 708/386-3306 www.christlutheranoakpark.org Lutheran-Missouri Synod

St. John Evangelical Lutheran Church

305 Circle Ave, Forest Park Sunday Worship, 8:30 am and 11:00 am Adult Bible Class, 10:00 am Wheelchair Access to Sanctuary Leonard Payton, Pastor Roney Riley, Assistant Pastor 708-366-3226 | www.stjohnforestpark.org

PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH

744 Fair Oaks Ave. Oak Park 386-4920

Rev. Daniel deBeer, Interim Pastor The Oak Park Police Department has arSunday Schedule Traditional Catholic rested a 37-year-old Oak Park man suspected Christian Education for All Ages 9:00amof sexually abusing a juvenile female famWorship Service 10:00am ily member. The Cook County State’s AttorChild care available 9-11am ney’s Office has The charged him with criminal Traditional Catholic Latin Mass fairoakspres.orgsexual abuse and sexual of a Our Lady Immaculateexploitation Church 410 Washington Blvd child. OAK PARK MEETING Oak Park. 708-524-2408 Mass Times: Sat.man 8:00am that the was taken into OF FRIENDS (Quakers) Police report Sun. 7:30 & 10:00am Meeting For Worship custody outside his office in the Operated by Society of St. Pius X. 1000 block Sundays at 10:00 a.m. Confessions 1 hr. before each mass at Oak Park Art League of Lake Street at 3:35 a.m. on March 24 for an 720 Chicago Ave., Oak Park Please call 708-445-8201 incident that occurred on Feb. 28. www.oakparkfriends.org Wednesday Journal is withholding the Roman Catholic man’s identity11am and place of residence to proService: Ascension Catholic Church tect the identity of his alleged victim, who is “Celebration of Life” a juvenile and a family member. thirdunitarianchurch.org The man was (773) processed and held for bond 626-9385 301 N.to Mayfield hearings, according police. 808 S. East Ave. 708/848-2703 near Austin and Lake www.ascensionoakpark.com Oak Park Police Commander LaDon ReynWorship: Saturday Mass 5:00olds pm said the arrest “stems from one known Unity Sunday Masses 7:30, 9:00, 11 am, incident.” 5:00 pm UNITY CHURCH Sacrament of Reconciliation OF OAK He added that the PARK alleged incident oc4 pm Saturday 405 North Euclid Ave. Taize Prayer 7:30 pm curred in the man’s home and involved “inFirst Fridays Feb.– Dec. & Jan. 1 We behold appropriate touching.” Holy Hour 6:00 pm Third Thursdays the Christ in you. Rev. James Hurlbert, Pastor The man was released from custody after Sunday Services 9 am & 11 am posting 10 percent on a $200,000 bond. Youth Education 11 am Roman Catholic The Cook County State’s Attorney assistSt. Edmund 708-848-0960 — unityoakpark.org Catholic Church ed in the investigation. 188 South Oak Park Ave.

Third Unitarian Church

Saturday Masses: 8:30 a.m. & 5:30 p.m. Sunday Masses: 9:00 & 11:00 a.m. & 5:30 p.m. Weekday Mass: 8:30 a.m. Holy Day Masses: As Announced Reconciliation: Saturday 4:15 p.m. Parish Office: 708-848-4417 School Phone: 708-386-5131

Upcoming Religious Holidays CONTACT: tim@oakpark.com

April 5 9 10 11

Ramanavami Hindu Palm Sunday Christian Mahavir Jayanti Jain Lord’s Evening Meal Jehovah’s Witness Christian Hanuman Jayanti Hindu 11-14 Theravadin Mew Year Buddhist 11-18 Pesach (Passover) Jewish

To place a listing in the Religion Guide, call Mary Ellen: 708/613-3342

Wednesday Journal, April 5, 2017

OAKPARK.COM | RIVERFOREST.COM

C R I M E

Eagles fan loves Jameson whiskey, hates paying Someone wearing a Philadelphia Eagles hat and sweatshirt stole two bottles of Jameson Irish whiskey from Carnival Foods, 824 S. Oak Park Ave., at 7:05 p.m. on March 27. The thief, whose gender was not revealed in the police report, entered the grocery store, took the whiskey, exited the store and headed southbound on Oak Park Avenue on foot. The loss was $62.04.

Attempted robbery A Forest Park woman was the target of an attempted robbery in front of the Walgreen’s at 811 Madison St. at 1 p.m. on March 23. A man approached her and asked the woman for spare change. When she refused, he followed her across the street and struck her in the forehead with a green glass bottle and attempted to take her purse. No loss was reported.

Residential burglary ■A

residence in the first block of Greenfield was burglarized sometime between 3 a.m. on March 26 and 9:30 a.m. on April 1. The burglar used a pry tool to the rear door to gain entry and then stole a 45-inch Samsung TV and a Citizen brand watch. The estimated loss was $1,450. ■ A residence in the 700 block of north Grove Avenue was burglarized sometime between 11:30 p.m. on March 29 and 8:45 a.m. on March 30. The burglar entered the residence through the closed and locked rear door and then stole two Vaio laptop computers and cash. The estimated loss was $2,150.

Burglary from motor vehicle ■A

gray 2013 Volkswagen was burglarized in the 1100 block of Schneider Avenue at 11:50 p.m. on April 1. The man gained entry to an underground parking garage by unknown means and then entered the Volkswagen by means of an unlocked door. He then stole credit cards and prescription sunglasses. The estimated loss was $3,000. ■ A Ford Explorer and Ford Taurus were burglarized in the 800 block of South Lombard sometime between 8 p.m. on March 25 and 1:41 a.m. on March 26. The burglar entered the carport and ransacked both vehicles, removing three quarters from the center console of one of the vehicles. Police estimated the loss at $0.75 in the report. ■ A Mazda was burglarized in the 100 block of Harrison while it was parked in a lot at the corner of Harrison and Lombard sometime between 9:15 p.m. on March 25 and 10 a.m. on March 26. The burglar emptied a bag in the trunk of the vehicle and stole a silver iPod and plastic case. The estimated

loss was $200. ■ A white 2016 Dodge Caravan was burglarized in the 900 block of South Oak Park Avenue sometime between 6:30 and 9 p.m. on March 26. The burglar, by unknown means, gained entry to the vehicle and then stole a black cloth laptop bag containing a HewlettPackard laptop. The estimated loss was $500.

Forgery arrest A 43-year-old Chicago man was arrested and charged with misdemeanor forgery and possession of a fraudulent document after he attempted to use a counterfeit $100 bill to buy merchandise at the Whole Foods Market at 7245 W. Lake St. at 4:37 p.m. on March 28. The counterfeit bill was of poor quality and the store management believed the subject knowingly attempted to defraud the store.

Burglary Ronnie’s Mini Mart, 1116 South Blvd., was burglarized at 1:42 a.m. on March 26. A man was seen kicking the glass door to the business and then removing nine cartons of cigarettes and a retail box containing candy bars. He then ran eastbound on North Boulevard. The estimated loss was $2,020.

Retail theft The Walgreens retail store at 811 Madison St. was the target of retail theft sometime between 6 a.m. and 10:55 a.m. The thief, by unknown means, stole four electronic headphones and three speakers. The estimated loss was $170. These items, obtained from the Oak Park and River Forest police departments, came from reports, March 19 to April 3, 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. We report the race of a suspect only when a serious crime has been committed, the suspect is still at large, and police have provided us with a detailed physical description of the suspect as they seek the public’s help in making an arrest.

— Compiled by Timothy Inklebarger

BEAUT Y THROUGH EACH SEASON. All Phases of Lawn, Garden & Property Maintenance.

To run an obituary Please contact Ken Trainor by e-mail: ktrainor@wjinc.com, or fax: 708/524-0447 before Monday at noon. Please include a photo if possible.

WWW.M A R I A N I L A N D S C A P E . COM

630-771-0074

Wednesday Journal, April 5, 2017

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Emil Messina has left the barbershop Join us for

Easter Sunday Brunch Sunday, April 16, 2017 10:30am – 3:30pm Breakfast Specialties, Omelets made to order, Slow Roasted Prime Rib, Bone-in Ham, Leg of Lamb, Smoked Salmon Platter, Shrimp Cocktail, Pan-Seared Walleye, Salads, Assorted Desserts & much more! See our Full Menu at www.carletonhotel.com

S ERVED IN THE G RAND B ALLROOM Adults $37.95*; Children (5-12) $14.95*; Children 4 & under are free. *Plus Tax & Gratuity.

For Reservations, Please Call 708-848-4250 1110 Pleasant Street, Oak Park, IL 60302 www.carletonhotel.com

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Longtime Oak Park Arms barber has retired

snails in his homeland. I asked mil Messina, my barber of him if he liked them. I think he many years, told me in our actually got a little misty, and 2014 video that he’d work there was a catch in his throat until “the day comes.” when he said, “I love ‘em. Love Today, I found out, that ‘em.” He used to hunt for them day came. Some family health as a kid. emergency, I was told, and then Though it didn’t make the cut he retired. That’s all anyone at in the video edit, during this the Oak Park Arms could tell interview Emil also told me me when I called for an appointabout his days as a barber surment this morning. The front geon in Sicily. Barber surgeons desk said a new barber would used a cup-like mechanism to be taking over this coming draw blood from the backs of Sunday. patients. This practice was adEmil worked at the Palmer Local Dining vertised by the blood red strips House (“the world’s biggest & Food Blogger on the traditional barber pole. barber shop, 40 chairs”) before The belief since the medieval he moved into a shop in the Oak era was that “letting blood” Park Arms. He had cut the hair rebalanced the “humors” in the body and of Liberace, Jack Benny, Murray “Camelcould “cure” the common cold and other back” Humphreys, and me. During haircuts, we’d share our casual philosophies about gar- complaints. When Emil came to the U.S., he discontinued his surgical practice. dening, marriage and food, always food. Just And now, he’s discontinued his hair-cutting two old Italian guys talking about things that practice, and I know that a lot of people are were important to them, and being Italians, going to be very sorry to see him go. Some of that was usually food. us will also be a little hairier for a little while. One the first pieces I wrote for WednesEmil told me a lot of day Journal when I started stories about his life in Italy. in 2011 was about conversaOne day he asked, “Did I tions with Emil about neck ever tell you about the olive bones: tree that saved my life?” I My barber, Emil Messina said he hadn’t but, man, did of the Oak Park Arms, is I ever want to hear that one. a fellow Italian-American Emil told me that when he and he told me his wife was living in Sicily during frequently uses neck bones WWII, the Germans, allies for sauce. “I can always tell of Italy, had encamped if she didn’t use neck bones outside his small town. As for the gravy,” Emil exhe was biking home one plained to me, “so I ask her, day, American planes swept ‘Did you put neck bones down and began strafing the in here,’ and if she says, ‘I German camp. Emil saw the didn’t have any,’ I say, ‘Why the heck didn’t you tell me? planes coming in his direcI would have picked some tion, so he pulled his bike up!’” over and hid under a tree. Emil Messina Neck bones provide the Bullets whizzed about his sauce with both flavor and head; branches and leaves, body. Given the relatively high collagen snipped by gunfire, fell all around him, but in animal joints, the bones of the neck — he was unscathed. He biked home. much like the bones of the feet and back — “Every time I go back to Sicily now,” he help thicken the sauce and provide texture told me, “I visit that tree. Because that’s the and mouth-feel. olive tree that saved my life.” Emil tells me that at holiday dinners at For more on Emil, check out these links his house, his grandchildren always eat at OakPark.com: the neck bones first — “They love ‘em,” he http://www.oakpark.com/Dining/ said, adding “there’s a lot more meat on Blogs/2-24-2014/Emil-Messina,-the-Palmerthem than you might think.” House-and-Goodfellas-in-Need-of-a-Trim-__Lots of times, we’d talk about the food VIDEO/ he had growing up in Italy, about what his http://www.oakpark.com/News/Armom used to make, how his dad made wine ticles/8-6-2013/Friends-and-neighbors:-Thein their basement, what food he liked as kindest-cutter-of-all/ a kid. Once, after I got back from a trip to http://www.oakpark.com/Community/ Italy, I mentioned to Emil that I had eaten Blogs/1-19-2016/Barber-milestones/

DAVID

HAMMOND

Wednesday Journal, April 5, 2017

NEED TO REACH US?

oakpark.com/real-estate editor Ken Trainor at 613-3310 ktrainor@wjinc.com

Homes

The worst home on the block What to do in the face of neglect By LACEY SIKORA

Contributing Reporter

ak Park is a house-proud village, but it’s also a village made up primarily of older housing stock. For both safety and aesthetic purposes, older homes need regular maintenance. When a home is neglected by its owners or abandoned by the person legally responsible for its upkeep, an older home can quickly become the eyesore of the neighborhood. When that happens, Village Neighborhood Services is who you’re gonna call. Oak Park residents Larry Howe and Judy Frei know about this firsthand; a home at the corner of Columbian and Division has been the worst home on the block for years, and they have worked with the village to address the problem. It became an issue, Howe recalled, when the house was foreclosed on approximately five years ago. See EMPTY HOMES on page 23

WILLIAM CAMARGO/Staff Photographer

VACANT: The house at the corner of Columbian and Division was foreclosed on roughly five years ago.

WHO DO YOU TRUST? Insuring Local Historic Homes for 60 Years 708.383.9000 • forestagency.com

Wednesday Journal, April 5, 2017

OAKPARK.COM | RIVERFOREST.COM

Serving Our Community For Over 70 Years

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OAK PARK. FAB COLONIAL waiting for your decorating ideas. 4 BRs, 3.1 BAs. Fin’d bsmt w/frplc. New windows, A/C, sprinkler system. ( ....................................$585,000

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OAK PARK NEW LISTING! MOVE-IN READY home with 3 BRs, 2 full & 1 half BA. Stunning woodwork, hardwood floors & stained glass. Huge lot in great location. (.....................................................................$459,000 SO MUCH TO LOVE! Room for all, expansive family rm/kitchen combo, + green space galore! 6 BR, 3.2 BA, fantastic updates in heart of town location. (..................................................................$1,895,000 REDUCED! STUNNING VICTORIAN! 5BRs, 3.2 BAs, beautiful wdwk, updated kitchen & BAs in Estate section. Updated systems. Great entertaining home. (.....................................................................$945,000 THIS HOUSE IS PERFECTION! 4 levels of level space in this 5 bedroom gorgeous Tudor. Seeing is believing. (.....................................................................$949,000 SPACIOUS prairie school home on double lot 5BR, 3.1BA. Choice location! ( .............................$879,000 IMPRESSIVE COLONIAL! Well-maintained & spacious. Designer kitchen. 4BRs, 3.1BAs. New roof. Beautifully landscaped yd. ( ...................... $820,000 ART GLASS, wood floors, 4+ BR/3 BA bungalow. Updated kitchen. Finished walk-out basement. (.................................................................... $625,000 COMFORTABLE 3-STORY, 5BR, 3 full BA Victorian with C/A-SpacePak. Maintenance-free exterior. Newer roof. ( ............................................................$615,000 UNIQUE CLASSIC Prairie-style home. Updated kitchen, stately family rm w/floor-to-ceiling bookcases, skylights, WBFP. Nice Loc’n. ............................$599,000 SUPERB & UPDATED 3BR, 3.1BA w/lovely woodwork, leaded glass windows, large family rm, French doors & much more! ( ................................ $594,000 FALL IN LOVE! Spacious home has original wdwk, rehab kit, fin’d bsmt, TONS of storage & prof lndscpd yd! Close to park, school & pub trans. ( .... $505,000 IDEAL LOCATION! Lots to love in this 4BR, 2BA home. Newer mechanicals, tear-off roof. New kitchen. Call for details. (...........................................$479,700

RIVER FOREST. OUTSTANDING BUURMA HOME. 6BRs, 3.2BAs. Designer kitchen & family rm. Finished bsmt. Beautiful parklike lot. ( ..................................$1,475,000

OPEN HOUSES • SUNDAY, APRIL 9, 2017 STATELY 5 BR, 2.1 bath brick home in FLW Historic District. 4 levels of living. Lovely stain glass & wdwk +updated kitchen & BAs. ( ......... ........................................................................................................................................$654,000

OAK PARK. STATELY 5 BR, 2.1 bath brick home in FLW Historic District. 4 levels of living. Lovely stain glass & wdwk +updated kitchen & BAs. (.........................$654,000

OAK PARK. JUST LISTED! TRADITIONAL home w/open concept kitchen & dining rm. Family rm overlooking a beautifully lndscpd yd. 3 lrg BRs, 1.1BAs. See it! ( ..................................................$595,000

REDUCED! FOUR LEVEL LIVING SPACE! Gourmet kitchen, breakfast rm, 5 BRs, 2 BAs. Oak flrs & woodwork. New roof. Must see! ( ........................................................................................................................................$629,000

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CHARMING, UPDATED 2-story stucco w/lovely nat’l wdwk, hdwd flrs, blt-ins & 2 frplcs. 3BRs, 2.1BAs, updated kitchen. Fin’d LL, C/A & more! Fab loc’n. (............................................................................................$599,500

OPEN 1-3PM • 431 GREENFIELD

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RIVER FOREST DESIGNER REMODELED 6 BR, 3.2 BA beauty. Entertain in style. Chef’s dream kitchen opens to vaulted great room. This is the one! ( .....$1,399,000 NEW CONSTRUCTION! Elegant “Coastal” style home. Deluxe kitchen. 3 levels of finished luxury. 4BRs, 4.1BAs, 2nd flr lndry & a whole lot more. (..................................................................$1,350,000 PRAIRIE SCHOOL home built in ‘06 w/classic architectural design & contemporary amenities. Spacious w/4BRs & 4½BAs. Family rm. SPECIAL! ($1,225,000 ALL THE BELLS & WHISTLES - move right into this gorgeous 4 BR, 2 BA home in great location. (..................................................................$1,100,000 FLAWLESS ATTENTION TO DETAIL. 5BR, 2.1BA home w/coach house. Chef’s kitchen w/over-the-top amenities. Family rm. Much more! ( .......$1,059,000 VERY COOL RETRO RANCH w/open floor plan on a large lot. 3 BRs, 2.2BAs. WBFP. MBR suite. 1st floor laundry. C/A. Attached garage. (............... $594,000 WELL-MAINTAINED 3+BR home. Updated mechanics including roof. Freshly painted exterior. Lovely lot & fantastic price! ( ......................$529,000

FOREST PARK LIVE & ENTERTAIN in high style! Gorgeous and updated home with all the bells & whistles..$429,000 HAS THIS HOME got space! Unique 4 bedroom, 2 bath with huge yard. ( ................................$325,000

OTHER AREA HOMES ELMWOOD PARK. ROOM FOR EVERYBODY! Lovely, large brick bungalow. 4BR w/3 full BAs & updated kitchen. Move right in. (...............$275,000 EQUAL HOUSING OPPORTUNITY

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NEW PRICE! IMMACULATE & UPDATED 2-story brick home on deep lot. 3BRs, 2.1BAs. Remodeled kitchen. New MBA w/Jacuzzi. C/A. Lovely! ( ................................................................................................................$579,000

OAK PARK CONDOS/TOWNHOUSES OPEN 12-2PM AT THE SHOWROOM 139 S. OAK PARK AVE.

NEW CONSTRUCTION! New standard of luxury! 1808-2200 SF units, 3 BRs, 2 indoor pkg spaces, spacious terraces, eco-efficient LEED certified. Pricing starts at..........................................................................................$669,900

ELMWOOD PARK. REDUCED! AWESOME LOCATION! Well-maintained 2 BR home w/rehabbed kitchen & BA. Hdwd flrs. New siding & windows. ( .................. ............................................................................$229,900 ELMWOOD PARK. CUTE 3BR, 2BA in terrific location - great kitchen and yard. Well-maintained. (.....................................................................$227,000

INCOME OAK PARK. BRICK 3-FLAT close to school with a big living rm, formal dining rm. Excellent condition! Great income! .............................................................$729,000 RIVER FOREST. MUCH MORE THAN A 2-FLAT. Side-by-side living. 3BRs, 2.1 BAs in each unit. Hdwd flrs. C/A. 3½-car garage. ( ..........................$749,000

COMMERCIAL OAK PARK. MIXED USE BLDG. 1st flr: lrg commercial spc – approx. 3000SF. 2 apts on 2nd flr: 3BR, 1BA /1BR, 1BA. 2-car gar. 1st flr handicapped access. Call for more info.....................................................$350,000

OAK PARK CONDOS/TOWNHOUSES ELEGANT LU VIOLA, 1st flr unit in Midtown with fabulous architectural details. 2BRs. 1 garage spc included. ( ....................................................$239,500 BEAUTIFUL 2BR plus den, 2BA unit in vintage building in heart of Oak Park. Very spacious living & dining rms. Updated kitchen. ( ..............................$219,000 SUNNY AND SPACIOUS vintage condo with 2 bedrooms, 2 full baths, and laundry in-unit. ( $179,000 IN THE HEART OF TOWN, 2BR, 1BA condo w/view of lovely lndscpd courtyd. Floor-to-ceiling windows. Open flr plan. Pkg. ...........................................$155,000 EQUAL HOUSING OPPORTUNITY

IDEAL LOCATION close to DTOP, library, Scoville Pk, & transportation. 2BR w/new flrs. Elevator bldg. Parking. ............................................................. $119,000 WELL-LOCATED STUDIO features hdwd flrs, new SS fridge and portable washer. Murphy’s bed. ... $68,000

FOREST PARK. MUCH SOUGHT-AFTER 3 bedroom townhouse at the Grove w/balcony & patio. Granite & stainless steel appliances. 2-car garage. ( ...............$339,000 OTHER AREAS CONDOS/TOWNHOUSES ELMWOOD PARK. REDUCED! OPEN floor plan with 2 BRs, 2BAs, great kitchen & a bonus side yard. (.....................................................................$239,000 ELMWOOD PARK. LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION! MBR w/BA & large living space, in-unit W/D, C/A, elevator bldg. - check it out! ( ..$139,000

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RENTALS CONDOS/APARTMENTS

GRACIOUS & LARGE front unit in the Valencia. 3BRs, 2.1 BAs. Eat-in kitchen. In-unit W/D. Storage. Indoor htd parking. ( .............................................. $449,000

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FOREST PARK CONDOS/TOWNHOUSES THREE BEDROOM, 2.1BA townhouse. Open plan w/ fplc in living rm. Granite/SS kitchen w/island. Dining rm w/balcony. BRs/lndry on 3rd flr. Family rm w/patio. (.................................................................... $362,000 ONLY

COMMERCIAL RENTALS OAK PARK. OFFICE SPACES in lovely Art Deco bldg. 2 Elevators. Entry handicap equipped. Tenants pay electric. Public pkg. Call! Rent ranges from .................................................$2,616/mo to $898/mo WESTMONT. CLASSIC STOREFRONT/walk-in office on busy street. 2 blocks from Metra train. In-suite restrooms and kitchen. Great exposure. .....................................................................$1,525/mo

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Wednesday Journal, April 5, 2017

OAKPARK.COM | RIVERFOREST.COM

EMPTY HOMES

safety issue. Another small but important nudge is making sure both the front of a house and the garage or alley entrance are marked with house numbers. Might seem nit-picky to focus on, but it enables emerfrom page 21 gency responders to reach an address with speed. “A development company bought the When a shortcoming is identified through house and has been sitting on it for at least the Neighborhood Walk Program, a protocol four years,” he said. “Two years ago, the en- is followed. tire neighborhood was littered with roofing “If we identify a violation of code,” Wilshingles blowing off the roof. We liams-Clark said, “depending on called the village, and eventually, the severity, we send a notice to the company replaced the roof.” the homeowner and give them a Earlier this year, he comset amount of time to make a replained again when soffits from pair. We always give them the opthe house began blowing around portunity to speak with us. We’re the neighborhood. Again, after not looking for revenue; we’re a prompt response from the villooking for compliance.” lage, the problem was fixed, but Often the violation letter Howe wondered how the village sparks a dialogue between the “system” actually works. property owner and the village. Drew Williams-Clark, NeighWilliams-Clark stressed that the DREW WILLIAMSborhood Services manager, shed process is humane. The village CLARK some light on it for us. strives to give homeowners an appropriate amount of time to make repairs and can make accommodaZen and the art of empty house tions to the timing of repairs based on each maintenance homeowner’s circumstances. He also said his department offers finanWilliams-Clark pointed out that one arm of his department covers property main- cial help for those in need. “We have affordtenance throughout the village. One su- able housing rehab programs, managed by pervisor and four property maintenance the same division,” he said, “so if someone inspectors regularly inspect multi- and has financial difficulty, we can direct them single-family homes. Multifamily buildings toward help.” are inspected on a two-year schedule. During inspection of a rental or condo building, Vacant buildings one third of units will be inspected during a Williams-Clark said his department also typical inspection, as well as all of the commanages the village’s Vacant Building Ormon areas of the building. Single family homes are inspected via the dinance (see link). They make a distinction longstanding Neighborhood Walk Program. between “unoccupied” and “vacant” buildThe village is divided into districts, and ings. Inspectors look for outward signs, each inspector walks his or her district to such as water usage and mail delivery, to determine if a building is unoccupied. inspect the exteriors of dwellings there. In order for a building to be classified as Williams-Clark noted that the village uses a code (see links attached) to identify areas vacant, unless it is in danger of collapse, it must not only be unoccupied but also meet that need repair. “The code is there for health and safety one of another group of standards. If it is reasons,” he said, “and, as a result, it has a unoccupied and facing multiple code violations, a home can be classified as vacant, or positive effect on property values.” A homeowner might bristle when the if a property has been unoccupied for more authorities point out the need to repaint than six months, or if a property has been the home’s stairs, but if left untreated, Wil- unoccupied and boarded for three or more liams-Clark noted, wood rots and can be a months.

Unoccupied and neglected

SUBMITTED BY AIDA STEFANELLI

PAST PROBLEMS: In 2012 the foreclosure epidemic was a boon for raccoons, such as this property at 1145 S. Humphrey, which had more masked mammals per square foot than probably anywhere else in the village. Once a building meets vacancy requirements, it is subject to the vacant building ordinance, a legal process which most property owners try to avoid, Williams-Clark said, if only because of the fees involved. “We mail a packet about how they must register the building as vacant and schedule an inspection,” he noted, “and the legal owner has to pay the registration fee and the inspection fee. If it’s going to be vacant for a long period of time, safety measures need to be taken.” There are exceptions to the vacancy ordinance when a home is listed for sale, under contract or actively being rehabbed. Williams-Clark said the village wants to encourage owners to rehabilitate their property, and rehabbers must make “diligent progress” to avoid issues. “We look at when you pull a permit, and if no final permit was pulled or no final inspections scheduled after a long period of time, that’s a flag for us. If it looks like it’s going in the right direction, we will work with the owners. We certainly do want to encourage people to call my division if there’s a problem, especially if they think a property has been unoccupied for more than six months.”

WILLIAM CAMARGO/Staff Photographer

RECENT PROBLEMS: In September of last year the back deck was collapsing at the vacant home at 637 S. Humphrey. The building’s neighbors, Jay and Robin Arbetman, were working with the village of Oak Park to get the building fixed and eventually sold.

Links for further information Adoption of the 2009 International Property Maintenance Code: http://www.sterlingcodifiers. com/codebook/index.php?book_ id=459&chapter_id=95526 Vacant Buildings Ordinance: http://www.sterlingcodifiers. com/codebook/index.php?book_ id=459&chapter_id=51120

No quick answers Williams-Clark declined to comment on the specifics of the Columbian Avenue home, and Howe said he has no ax to grind with the village and has found them to be responsive to his complaints. Comparing the neglected house to having a missing tooth in the middle of a smile, Howe did question why, on a block that recently saw a house sell for almost $1 million, the developer doesn’t finish work on the house and sell it. He also wondered what exactly is happening between the village and the developer who owns the home. “I can’t understand why the village won’t exercise more pressure,” Howe said. “Homeowners get notices for the slightest infractions. Is there a double standard for developers? This is a symptom of a much larger problem. There is a lot of attention going to the high-rises going up, but our traditional housing stock is one of our greatest assets. It’s why so many people choose to live here.” To report a maintenance or safety issue, call Development Customer Services at 708358-5410.

Wednesday Journal, April 5, 2017

OAKPARK.COM | RIVERFOREST.COM

OAK PARK

RIVER FOREST OPEN SUNDAY 2-4PM

OPEN SUNDAY 1-3PM

OPEN SUNDAY 12-2PM

NEW LISTING!

554 Forest Ave 3BR, 2BA $554,000

609 Clinton Pl 3BR, 1.2BA $599,000

OPEN SUNDAY 11:30-1:30PM

OAK PARK

634 N. Lombard Ave 4BR, 2BA $419,000

1223 Woodbine Ave 3BR, 2.1BA $554,900

1229 Woodbine Ave 3BR, 2BA $479,000

607 Home Ave 3BR, 2BA $470,000

835 Lyman Ave 4BR, 2.2BA $518,900

1109 Highland Ave 3BR, 2BA $489,900

1040 Wisconsin Ave 4BR, 2BA $459,000

FOREST PARK

NEW PRICE!

NEW LISTING!

1115 Thomas Ave 4BR, 3BA $437,400

446 Thomas Ave 2 Flat + PKG $312,500

1043 Thomas Ave 3BR, 2BA $339,000

101 N. Oak Park Ave, Oak Park, IL 60301 • 708-848-5550 www.weichertnickelgroup.com

610 N. Humphrey Ave 3BR, 2BA $389,900

1050 N. Humphrey Ave 2BR, 1BA $239,000

546 N. Oak Park Ave 5BR, 2.1BA $1,049,000

RIVER FOREST

847 Lathrop Ave 3BR, 2.1BA $724,000

131 Ashland Ave 4BR + 1BSMT, 3.1BA $689,000

1151 Lyman Ave 3BR, 2BA $435,000

OAK PARK

923 N. Hayes Ave 4BR, 2BA $419,000

938 S. Euclid Ave 4BR, 3.1BA $699,000

138 Francisco Terrace 3BR, 2BA $315,000

847 N East Ave 3BR + 1BSMT, 3.1BA $727,000

1216 N. Kenilworth Ave 4BR+1BSMT, 3.1BA $732,500

1135 Schneider Ave 2BR, 2BA $259,900

947 Mapleton Ave 4BR, 3BA $619,900

612 Beloit Ave 3BR, 1.1BA $295,000

7770 Washington Blvd 4BR, 3.1BA $725,000 Townhomes & Condos 7200 Oak Ave – 1BR, 1BA $69,900 222 N. Grove Ave – 2BR, 2BA $199,000 613 Grove Ln – 2BR, 2.1BA $337,000 240 S. Oak Park Ave – 2BR, 1BA $199,900 816 S. Maple Ave – 2BR, 1BA $166,500 222 N. Grove Ave – 2BR, 2BA $234,500 329 S. Oak Park Ave – 2BR, 1BA $234,900

826 N. Harlem Ave 5BR + 1BSMT, 4BR $589,500

Go to

WeichertRNG.com to view 3D Tours and see what else is on the market!

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Wednesday Journal, April 5, 2017

OAKPARK.COM | RIVERFOREST.COM

Generations of Excellence since 1958

708.771.8040 • 7375 W. North Ave., River Forest Donna Barnhisel Cibula 7375 West North AvenueJoe Dan Bogojevich Don Citrano Anne Brennan Julie Cliggett Illinois 60305 Karen Byrne Alisa Coghill Kevin Calkins JoLyn Crawford 708.771.8040 Tom Carraher Andy Gagliardo Maria Cullerton

Kurt Fielder Yvonne Fiszer-Steele Ramona Fox Chris Garvey Lisa Grimes Dan Halperin Sharon Halperin Aubrey Jacknow

MANAGING BROKER/OWNERS River Forest,

Pat Cesario

Tom Poulos

Karen Doty Julie Downey

Greg Jaroszewski Vee Jaroszewski Joanne Kelly Michael Kinnare Sherree Krisco Jack Lattner Susan Maienza Vince McFadden

Charlotte Messina Kathleen Minaghan Colleen Navigato Rosa Pitassi Sue Ponzio-Pappas Katie Possley Michael Roche Jenny Ruland

Laurel Saltzman Rob Sarvis Laurie Shapiro Meg Sullivan Tom Sullivan Debbie Watts George Wohlford Nancy Wohlford

45 KEYSTONE • RIVER FOREST OPEN SUNDAY 1-3

7214 QUICK • RIVER FOREST OPEN SUNDAY 1-3

525 FOREST • RIVER FOREST OPEN SUNDAY 1-3

2004 N 75TH CT • ELMWOOD PARK OPEN SUNDAY 1-3

N E W L IS T ING!

P NR EI CWE LRI ES DT UI NC GE D! !

NE W LI S TI N G!

N E W L I S T I N G!

CORNER PRAIRIE STYLE HOME with spacious open floor plan on 1st floor, adorned with oak trim and flooring, and casement windows. Kitchen opens to the family room & large semi covered deck. Four BRs, 2 and ½ baths. Finished basement. 3 car garage and 3 car apron..............................................................................$925,000

JUST LISTED! Designed by Architect Charles White, this Prairie School style home has beautiful details that include custom light fixtures, window treatments, and a tastefully done kitchen. Home also features four bedrooms (one currently an office) and 1-1/2 baths. ......................................................................................$669,900

LOVELY, WELL CARED FOR VICTORIAN offers three bedrooms, 1-1/2 baths and classic Victorian details throughout. All brand new wood floors, carpeting, kitchen appliances, quartz counter tops, sink & fixtures, and washing machine. The large, deep back yard is fully fenced. ....................................................................................$524,900

EXCELLENT LOCATION for this 4 bedroom, 3 full bathroom home. Bright LR/DR combo with hardwood floors and woodburning fireplace. Updated kitchen. Finished lower level Rec room has FP, lots of storage and large utility room. Large deck, side drive and 2 1/2 car garage. .............................................................$369,900

ADDITIONAL OPEN HOUSES SUNDAY, APRIL 9, 2017

1416 S ELGIN • FOREST PARK

FOREST PARK 1017 BELOIT • OPEN SUNDAY 1-3

NEW LISTING CHARMING THREE BEDROOM FARMHOUSE with updated kitchen, family room that overlooks fenced yard and in-ground pool with pool house. Partially finished basement with finished rec room, updated full bath, laundry rm. One car garage, 3 exterior spots. ...........................................$299,000

RIVER FOREST 1501 PARK • OPEN SUNDAY 1-3

N E W L IS T ING! METICUOLOUSLY MAINTAINED new construction with open floor plan features 10 foot ceilings, hardwood floors, and many custom details from crown molding to door handles. High end kitchen. Four generously sized bedrooms. Open basement ready to finish. Just move in!! ............................................................. $484,000

RIVER FOREST HOMES

GEORGOUS FRENCH NORMANDY with 5 bedrooms, 5 full & 5 half baths sits on a 75 foot corner lot. Hdwd flrs and fireplace in LR, eat-in kitchen with adjoining family rm. Lower level rec rm with gas fireplace. ................. $1,049,000

1443 FRANKLIN • OPEN SUNDAY 1-3

PRICE REDUCED CLASSIC RED BRICK COLONIAL with 3 bedrooms, 2-1/2 baths. Traditional floor plan includes first floor family room with fireplace, hardwood floors, separate living room, separate dining, along with kitchen and separate breakfast room. Side driveway with two car garage. ................$679,000

559 WILLIAM • OPEN SUNDAY 1-3

BURMA BUILT BUHRKE HOUSE combines Tudor revival & chateau style architecture elements. Gorgeous décor and impeccable attention to detail and care found in house and landscaped grounds, extends to fabulous in ground pool and patios. Perfect for entertaining. .......................................................................................................$2,449,000 SPECTACULARLY UPDATED American Federalist Home. Tremendously restored and improved by the designer/owner. Benefits include 5 BRs, 4 full + 2 half baths, Gourmet Kitchen, Library/Office and private Family Room with large-scale windows overlooking backyard...............................................................................................$1,895,000 CLASSIC BRICK COLONIAL with all high-end finishes. First floor features hdwd flrs, family rm off kitchen. Finished bsmnt has media room, 2 addl BRs, full bath, plenty of storage. Backyard, private deck, patio, pool. 3 car gar, heated drvwy. ......$1,595,000 RESTORE THIS HOUSE with fabulous curb appeal or Build your dream home on this 100’ x 184’ lot.....................................................................................................$1,400,000 HANDSOME AND BEAUTIFULLY MAINTAINED traditional brick home for those who appreciate tradition and elegance. Distinctive home offers 5BRs, 2 full/2 half baths. Landscaped yard with pool and spa. Ample storage in bsmnt............$1,259,000 PRICE REDUCED STUNNING BRICK ENGLISH TUDOR with 5 bedrooms, 4-1/2 baths on one of River Forest’s most private streets. This house has everything you need. Fabulous family room, large eat-in gourmet kitchen, a truly amazing basement with a full spectacular wet bar. This is a must see. .............................................$1,145,000 BEAUTIFUL STYLISH UPDATED HOME with 4 BRs, 3.2 BAs on four floors of living space. Includes LR w/ frpl, new high end kitchen, Breakfast Rm, 1st FL office. LL has Fam Rm, Rec Room, Laundry, Wine Cellar and Full Bath. 2 car garage with extra storage and rooftop deck. ..........................................................................................$999,500

GREAT CORNER LOT! Move right in to this four 2nd flr BR, one full and two half BA home. Add office/den on first flr. Eat-in updated kit. Hdwd flrs. New Cent Air. Semi-finished bsmnt with half bath and additional office/BR. .........$672,500

PRICE REDUCED BEAUTIFUL QUEEN ANN BUNGALOW! Beautifully maintained and updated. Amazing location within two block radius to District 90 public schools, RF Tennis Clubs and Parochial Schools. Within walking distance to shopping and public transportation. Amazing neighbors and block!”.....$629,900

123 ASHLAND • OPEN SUNDAY 12-2 CHARMING, SPACIOUS QUEEN ANNE BUNGALOW in pristine condition. Art glass windows, French doors, wood trim, hardwood floors. Granite kitchen, breakfast nook. Family room and 1st floor bedroom. 3 bedrooms on 2nd floor. Finished basement, enclosed porch, 2 car garage............................$639,900

735 BONNIE BRAE • OPEN SUNDAY 1-3 LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION. Stucco home with a great floor plan. Hardwood floors, large rooms throughout. Living room includes a gas fireplace. Separate dining room with built-ins and stained glass windows. L-shaped kitchen, family room. Koi pond in the backyard. ...............................................$629,000

1227 FRANKLIN • OPEN SUNDAY 1-3 MID CENTURY RANCH with plenty of options with in this open floor plan. Extra large kitchen, eating area. Fm Rm with gas fireplace. Three BRs with master suite. Two and a half baths. Rc rm in basement. Att 2 car gar.. .................$529,000

OAK PARK 544 N GROVE • OPEN SUNDAY 1-3

VINTAGE VICTORIAN on a corner lot with a formal entry, wood floor in LR/DR. Four bedrooms, two and a half baths. Open front porch on 1st floor and enclosed front porch on 2nd floor. Large yard with a 3 car garage. Central air. Ample space for entertainment inside and out................................................................................$579,000

1145 S SCOVILLE • OPEN SUNDAY 1-3

BEAUTIFULLY REMODELED 5 bed/ 2 full bath home with a newly remodeled kitchen with a large attached breakfast area or family room. Bathrooms updated this year. Four large bedrooms on 2nd fl , 5th BR on 1st floor, perfect for company, or your private office. ...............................................................................................$469,900 SPECIAL HOME on a quiet street. Decorating right out of House Beautiful. The kitchen boasts lots of cabinets/counter space, hdwd flrs. Fireplace is the centerpiece of the LR. DR overlooks beautiful backyard. Fam rm with built -in book cases....$949,000 STATELY BRICK COLONIAL on Corner Lot. Meticulous move-in condition, made for modern living. Four BR, three full, 2 half BA, with a gourmet kit, spacious LL rec room, backyard w/patio, perennial garden, 2 car garage plus a carport...........$948,000 PRICE REDUCED PLENTY OF ROOM in this spacious bungalow. Two bedrooms on the first floor, rebuilt second floor including 2 full baths. Master suite has a fireplace and new bathroom. Two additional bedrooms with lots of space for your family. The kitchen is a cooks dream with many perks. .......................................$799,000

1100 CIRCLE • FOREST PARK

711 ASHLAND • OPEN SUNDAY 1-3

LIVES VERY LARGE! Each room has been thought out in this six BR, two and a half bath. Kitchen boasts Rift Cut Oak and was redone in ‘09. MBR has heated flrs. Patios and sitting areas off the Master. Everything has been done for you. ........................$799,000 PRICE REDUCED CLASSIC TUDOR offers the elegance you’ve come to expect in River Forest. Brick and stone exterior and timeless interior with natural wdwk. Kitchen overlooks backyard. Two fireplaces. Two car garage. ............................$619,900

OAK PARK HOMES

UNPRECEDENTED ESTATE in the Frank Lloyd Wright Historical district of Oak Park! This meticulously renovated 5 BR, 5 full / 2 half bath property offers exquisite details and refined finishes that boast timeless materials and over the top custom millwork. This is a showcase home! .....................................................................$2,525,000

N E W L I S T I N G! BEST OF OLD WORLD COMBINED WITH NEW! New wide plank hardwood floors throughout first floor. Brand new open concept kitchen. First floor bath totally redone. Two bedrooms on 2nd floor, one of 1st. Clean bsmt with new washer/dryer. Corner lot with extra large 2 car garage. ...............................................$309,000 TRULY CLASSIC OP RED BRICK COLONIAL with four or five bedrooms, depending on your needs, and four full and two half baths. Third floor features rec room, or bedroom, and full bath. There is a heated 2 car, with addl 2 tandem space, garage with fabulous coach house above............................................................$1,885,000 GEORGOUS COLONIAL CLASSIC with all the bells and whistles! Flawlessly renovated home with high end finishes and quality updates throughout. Gourmet eatin kitchen opens to family room, massive finished basement, Bluestone patio. Perfect for entertaining. ...........................................................................................................$825,000 GORGEOUS HOME WITH OPEN FLOOR PLAN. This 4 bedroom, 3-1/2 bath brick colonial sits on a corner lot in Historic OP! Living room, sun rm or home office, expansive DR, family room and chef’s kitchen with large eat-in area. ..............$760,000 STUNNING VICTORIAN! Updated 3 BR, 3 bath home. Original details have been preserved, and well considered updates added to create an ideal blend of historical character, contemporary design. Extra large lot with pro landscaping. ............$639,900 BEAUTIFULLY RESTORED VICTORIAN style three bedroom, two bath home in central Oak Park. Large front porch. Open high end kitchen with granite, perfect for entertaining! All new furnace/ac, windows, siding, roof, etc. make this a nearly maintenance free home. ............................................................................................$519,000 MUCH LOVED HOME for over 50 years is ready for a new family! Four BR home circa 1899 features natural wd details, 1st fl fam rm with wd burning fireplace, LR, DR, kitchen, breakfast room. Deep lot offers expansion opportunities. ...................$489,900

FOREST PARK HOMES

NOTHING TO DO BUT MOVE IN! 3 BR, 3-1/2 bath feat ideal flr plan, hdwd flrs, completely finished basement with full bath, luxury kitchen. Charming front porch and back deck. Well maintained with many upgrades and space to spare!.............$449,000

For more listings & photos go to GagliardoRealty.com

Wednesday Journal, April 5, 2017

OAKPARK.COM | RIVERFOREST.COM

Answer Book 2017

Answer Book 2016

W E D N E S D A Y

JOURNAL

ONLINE & IN PRINT

OPRF Chamber of Commerce Community Guide & Membership Directory

Everything Oak Park & River Forest Read and referenced by thousands of local residents throughout the year, the Answer Book is filled with a host of useful listings and phone numbers, including the full Chamber of Commerce membership directory. It also comes with loads of unusual, un-Googleable local factoids, photos and info-graphics. Buying an ad in Answer Book will give year-round exposure to your business, heighten your name awareness and build your local brand.

All Business Page owners will also receive a basic listing (name, address, phone, website) in the Answer Book.

Oak parkriver forest CHAMBER OF COMMERCE

PUBLICATION DATE: Wednesday, June 28

AD DEADLINE: Thursday, May 25

TOTAL CIRCULATION 15,000

Reserve your space today! Call 708.524.8300

Wednesday Journal, April 5, 2017

OAKPARK.COM | RIVERFOREST.COM

1521 FOREST AVENUE, RIVER FOREST

1521FOREST.INFO

633 N EAST AVENUE, OAK PARK

Stunning dwelling blends elements of Frank Lloyd Wright with tasteful

This completely renovated home on a beautiful, oversized lot in Oak Park’s

modernism on three full living levels with beautiful yard. $2,395,000

best neighborhood is perfect for today’s active family. $1,995,000

TOM MCCAREY

KATHLEEN MALONE

•

773.848.9241

•

t mccarey@atproperties.com

•

773.600.1551

•

kmalone@atproperties.com

THE #1 LUXURY BROKERAGE FIRM IN OAK PARK. 1011 SOUTH BOULEVARD

506 N EUCLID AVENUE, OAK PARK

1143WOODBINEAVENUE.INFO

1118 N EAST AVENUE, OAK PARK

1118NEASTAVE.INFO

Exquisite all brick corner home located in the center of the Frank Lloyd

This four bedroom beauty, rich with architectural detail, was designed by

Wright historic district of Oak Park and built in 1920. $1,375,000

Charles Kristen, sits majestically on a beautiful lot. $799,000

ANDY GERSTEN

GREER HASEMAN

•

312.342.4205

•

Source: MRED $1 million + sales, Oak Park, 1-1-2016 to 12-31-2016.

and yger sten @atproperties.com

•

708.848.0200

•

greer.gps@atproperties.com

Stop looking, start finding® atproperties.com

Wednesday Journal, April 5, 2017

OAKPARK.COM | RIVERFOREST.COM

Hit it out of the Ball Park with the Gullo & Associates Team! 2634 Grove, Berwyn UNDER CONTRACT!

725 Monroe, River Forest BUYER SALE PENDING

1108 Marengo, Forest Park BUYER SALE PENDING

107 Keystone, River Forest UNDER CONTRACT!

HOME RUN!

David Gullo, Managing Broker

708.567.1375

1526 Clinton, River Forest UNDER CONTRACT!

856 Carpenter, Oak Park UNDER CONTRACT!

1019 Superior, Oak Park BUYER SALE PENDING

746 Clinton, River Forest UNDER CONTRACT!

147 N. Euclid, Oak Park BUYER SALE PENDING

7616 Vine, River Forest UNDER CONTRACT!

GulloAssociates@gmail.com

6816 Dickens, Chicago BUYER SALE

823 S. Harvey, Oak Park SOLD!

422 Marengo, Forest Park SOLD!

1024 Highland, Oak Park SOLD!

1014 S. 3rd, Maywood SOLD!

230 S. Scoville, Oak Park SOLD!

643 Ontario, Oak Park SOLD!

836 S. Cuyler, Oak Park SOLD!

1171 S. Grove, Oak Park BUYER SALE

1139 Lathrop River Forest SOLD!

W W W.G U L LO R E A L E S TAT E.CO M PRICE REDUCTION

NEW PRICE REDUCTION

1435 PARK AVE, RIVER FOREST $713,900 :: 4 bed :: 4.5 bath

1142 FRANKLIN AVE, RIVER FOREST $1,495,000 :: 4 bed :: 4.5 bath

Spacious, meticulously maintained Georgian family home. Walk to elementary school.

Custom modern 6000 sq. ft. home. Dramatic design and unique detailing throughout.

NEW PRICE REDUCTION

JUST SOLD

JUST LISTED

847 CLINTON PL, RIVER FOREST $1,095,000 :: 4 beds :: 3.5 baths

101 N EUCLID AVE #24, OAK PARK $565,000 :: 3 bed :: 3.5 bath

417 N MARION ST, OAK PARK $369,900

Beautifully designed center entrance brick colonial with a gourmet kitchen. Walk to train.

Town house with attached two car garage. End unit, walk to everything!

Stand alone office building with 4 parking spots. 1,800 sq. ft. Multi-use. Walk to train, shop & restaurants.

LMaychruk@comcast.net

Margaret Jones 708.804.0368 Mark Finger 708.990.8115

905 South Lombard Ste. 2 Oak Park, IL 60304

See what all the buzz is about.

KATHY & TONY IWERSEN 708.772.8040 708.772.8041 tonyiwersen@atproperties.com

Laura Maychruk 708.205.7044

OakPark.com

Wednesday Journal, April 5, 2017

OAKPARK.COM | RIVERFOREST.COM

Your local Real Estate Professionals Since 1933. FEATURED LISTING

FEATURED LISTING

OPEN HOUSE • SUN. 12-2 328 PENNSYLVANIA WAY

328 Pennsylvania Way, Oak Park

$564,900

The Oak Park Oasis, 22, 4 level townhomes with a fresh new approach to townhome living. Sleek and modern with a downtown flair, featuring versatile 3 or 4 bedroom layouts, 3.5 baths, open kitchens with large center island, beautiful master suite, balcony, 4th level loft space and attached 2 car garage. Patricia McGowan - ID# 09511551

NEW PRICE

OPEN HOUSE • SUN. 12:30-2:30 532 N OAK PARK AVE

Oak Park

$899,000

Updated 5 bed, 3.5 baths Estate home. Library, fireplace and high-end kitchen with adjoining family rm, newly renovated spa like master suite and upper level suite. Bill Geldes - ID# 09565437

Oak Park

$512,000

4 bed, 1.1 bath American 4-Square features feat sunroom, wd burning fireplace, builtins, fam rm, large eat-in kitchen, 2 tier deck. Bill Geldes - ID# 09561671

$299,000

Oak Park

$479,900

Fantastic SW 2 bed, 2.1 bath corner unit with gas fireplace, hardwood floors, island in kitchen, 2 en-suites, terrace and 2 spaces in heated garage. Patricia McGowan – ID# 09579732

$296,000

$749,000

River Forest

$614,000

Well maintained, 4 bed, 2 bath home features a wood burning fireplace, updated kitchen opens to family room, newer deck and 3 car garage. Lois Bonaccorsi - ID# 09578592

NEW PRICE

CALL FOR APPOINTMENT

Chicago

$479,900

3 bed, 3.2 bath 4-story unit with 1st flr family rm/den/office! Large kitchen with island, gas fireplace, 2 en-suites, ANOTHER top floor en-suite, roof deck. Patricia McGowan – ID# 09578570

NEW LISTING

Oak Park

NEW LISTING

Exceptional 5 bed Victorian home with 3 story turret, wrap around deck, great space and amazing curb appeal. Ann Keeney - ID# 09505923

NEW LISTING

Forest Park

$749,900

Oak Park

$395,000

OPEN HOUSE • SUN. 2:30-4 807 N KENILWORTH

Appealing right from the curb, 5 bed, 2.1 bath home is filled with classic details of built-in book case, fireplace, master suite and much more! Vanessa Willey - ID# 09560703

OPEN HOUSE • SUN. 12:30-2:30 847 S KENILWORTH

Oak Park

917 Home Ave, Oak Park

Fantastic location! Spacious 4 bedroom, 1.1 bath home with large open front porch. Nice updated kitchen with stainless appliances and baths, family room, beautiful refinished oak floors on main level. Extra large fenced yard with party size deck for outside fun. Boiler and HWH new in the past 5 years. 1st layer roof - 2008. Peggy Letchos - ID# 09576959

Chicago

$275,100

OPEN HOUSE • SUN. 12:30-2 815 S KENILWORTH

Oak Park

$599,000

One of a kind 4 bed, 1.1 bath Hulbert built home. Rumored to be a home he intended to live in himself. Formal DR, fireplace, fam rm, new windows and much more! Ann Keeney - ID# 09501906

Forest Park

$439,000

NEW LISTING

$269,000

Oak Park

$228,000

3 bed, 2.1 bath Georgian feat a large living room and separate dining room, updated kitchen, floor family room, finished basement and many updates. Bobbi Schaper Eastman – ID# 09579056

2 bed, 2 bath 4-Square with modern updates. Open living, formal DR, Cook’s kit, lower level rec rm/office, deck, 2-car garage. Steve Scheuring - ID# 09580551

Rehabbed 4 bed, 1.1 bath bungalow with quality finishes, upgrades. Newer kitchen, updated baths, bsmnt party rm, deck and above ground pool. Catherine Simon-Vobornik - ID# 09580025

2 flat in excellent location near downtown FP, Blue Line. Onsite laundry, full partially finished basement, deck, 2 car garage and 2 add spaces. Property being Sold “As Is.” Michael Lennox - ID# 09579854

4-bedroom Townhome with hdwd flrs grand LR, granite tile kit, eat-at breakfast bar. lower level rec rm and 1 car parking space, Property being Sold “As Is.” Steve Scheuring - ID# 09580585

OPEN HOUSE • SUN. 1-2:30 1131 BONNIE BRAE UNIT 1N

NEW PRICE

CALL FOR APPOINTMENT

NEW PRICE

SOLD

River Forest

$219,900

Elegant, bright and sunny, vintage 1st floor 2 bed, 2 bath condo with stunning coved high ceilings and family room. Ed Bellock – ID# 09380759

Chicago

$169,000

Updated 3 bed, 1.5 bath brick raised ranch with hardwood floors, spacious living and dining room, eat-in kitchen and master bedroom with walk in closet. Saretta Joyner - ID# 09521077

Oak Park

$155,000

Spectacular example of vintage condo living in the heart of OP in this 1 BR with amazing views! Generous room sizes and loads of storage in a great location! Arrick Pelton – ID# 09566387

Oak Park

$129,000

High 1st floor 1 BR unit with large living room, formal dining room, hardwood floors, in-unit laundry and newly updated kitchen. Bobbi Schaper Eastman - ID# 09522525

OPEN HOUSE • SUN. 1-3 528 N GROVE

Oak Park

Forest Park

$575,000

Traditional 4 bed, 1.1 bath home located in the heart of the FLW Historic District. Front parlor, custom built-ins, large custom kitchen and spacious family room. Steve Scheuring - ID# 09517813

NEW LISTING

4 bed, 2 bath Victorian. Updated space, master BR, fam rm, fnshd bsmnt, unfnshd attic, brick paver patio and 4 car garage. Arrick Pelton/Tina Marie Mateja – ID# 09578499

Forest Park

$296,000

Ultra-sunny top floor 2 bedroom, 2 bath corner unit in the intimate Bock Building! Open floor plan freshly painted throughout in neutral tones, living room features a gas fireplace, eat-in kitchen with island and space to accommodate extra seating, 2 balconies and an in-unit laundry room with extra storage. Lisa Andreoli and Meredith Conn - ID# 09578580

3 bed, 4 bath brick home with side driveway/parking, spacious eat-in kitchen with island, master with ensuite, full fnshd bsmnt, large deck and 2 car garage. Moises Pacheco – ID# 09570823

NEW LISTING

Chicago

$449,000

1120 Thomas St, Unit 301, Oak Park

SOLD

Oak Park

$375,000

3 bed, 1.1 bath with original details, art glass, front and DRs feat wd trim/beams, eat-in kit, large backyard and full walk up attic. Bobbi Schaper Eastman – ID# 09393353

SOLD

Chicago

$250,000

Rehabbed 4 bed, 2.1 bath. Over 2500 square ft, feat a master bedroom suite with office space, stained hdwd flooring, family rm, and updates kitchen. Yarnell Green - ID# 09483103

OPEN HOUSE • SUN. 1-2:30 220 S OAK PARK AVE UNIT 4

$100,000

Stylish and affordable 1 bedroom near downtown Oak Park! Freshly painted throughout, updated kitchen and 1 assigned parking space included. Vanessa Willey - ID# 09485066

Call us today to use the Local knowledge and skill of our agents paired with the broad reach and power of Baird & Warner. 1037 Chicago Avenue, Oak Park IL | 708.697.5900 | BAIRDWARNER.COM

Forest Park

$84,900

1 BR, one bath condo close shopping, dining and the Green Line. Sun-filled living room, kitchen can accommodate a small dinette, and basement with storage and laundry. Ed Bellock – ID# 09578891

Wednesday Journal, April 5, 2017

OAKPARK.COM | RIVERFOREST.COM

In The Village, Realtors®

189 S. Oak Park Ave., Oak Park, IL 60302 (708) 386-1400 HomesintheVillage.com

April Baker

THIS WEEK’S FEATURED PROPERTIES 530 WILLIAM ST OPEN SUN 1-3 PM

320 S GROVE AVE OPEN SUN 1-3 PM

1231 COLUMBIAN AVE OPEN SUN 12:30-2 PM

916 N EUCLID OPEN SUN 1-3 PM

Joelle Venzera

Mike Becker

Roz Byrne

River Forest • $1,375,000 6BR, 4.1BA Call Gary x125

6826 29TH PLACE OPEN SUN 12-2PM

Oak Park • $739,000 5BR, 2.2BA Call Mike x120

949 LAKE ST B1 OPEN SUN 2:30-4 PM

Oak Park • $630,000 4BR, 2.1BA Call April x181

Oak Park • $589,000 3BR, 1.1BA Call Jane x118

Haydee Rosa

Berwyn • $299,500 4BR, 2.1BA Call Steve x121

Oak Park • $193,000 2BR, 2BA Call Kelly x113

Oak Park • $129,000 1BR, 1BA Call Kelly x113

Oak Park • 739,000 4BR, 2BA Call Harry x116

Kelly Gisburne

Linda Rooney

Oak Park • $324,500 3BR, 1BA Call Elissa X192

Oak Park • $289,000 2BR, 1BA Call Marion x111

Kerry Delaney

Forest Park • $224,800 Multi unit Call Kyra x145

Chicago • $200,000 3BR, 1.1BA Call Laurie x186

by our office • View all properties listed erties listed • View thousands of prop throughout Chicagoland on of Luxury Homes • View the Remax Collecti erties • View Foreclosure Prop • View Open Houses ur neighborhood • View recent sales in yo

Kyra Pych

Elissa Palermo

Steve Nasralla

Marion Digre

Morgan Digre

Kris Sagan

402 WESLEY AVE 3 OPEN SUN 12:30-2 PM

Tom Byrne

Laurie Christofano

Harry Walsh, Managing Broker

Anna Gillian

Dorothy Gillian

Ed Goodwin

Joe Langley

Dan Linzing

Gary Mancuso

Jane McClelland

Keri Meacham

Alisha Mowbray

Wednesday Journal, April 5, 2017

OAKPARK.COM | RIVERFOREST.COM

SINGLE FAMILY HOMES CONDOS TOWNHOMES

Growing community.

Sunday, April 9, 2017 ADDRESS

REALTY CO.

LISTING PRICE

TIME

ADDRESS

REALTY CO.

LISTING PRICE

TIME

ADDRESS

REALTY CO.

LISTING PRICE

TIME

1017 Beloit Ave, Forest Park . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Gagliardo Realty Associates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $299,000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-3 6826 29th Pl, Berwyn . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Re/Max In The Village . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $299,500 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12-2 2307 Elmwood Ave, Berwyn . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Beyond Properties Realty Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $299,900 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11-1 2004 N. 75th Court, Elmwood Park. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Gagliardo Realty Associates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $369,900 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-3 921 S. Humphrey, Oak Park . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Gloor Realty Co . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $399,000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-3 230 Park Ave, River Forest . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . @properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $449,000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-3 1145 S. Scoville Ave, Oak Park . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Gagliardo Realty Associates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $469,900 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-3 431 Greenfield, Oak Park . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Gloor Realty Co . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $479,000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-3 847 S. Kenilworth Ave, Oak Park . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Baird & Warner Oak Park/River Forest. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $512,000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12:30-2:30 525 Forest Ave, River Forest. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Gagliardo Realty Associates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $524,900 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-3 1227 Franklin Ave, River Forest. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Gagliardo Realty Associates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $529,000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-3 554 Forest Ave, River Forest. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Weichert Realtors Nickel Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $554,000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-3 528 N. Grove Ave, Oak Park. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Baird & Warner Oak Park/River Forest. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $575,000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-3 1519 Ashland, River Forest . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Gloor Realty Co . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $579,000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2:30-4 544 N. Grove Ave, Oak Park . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Gagliardo Realty Associates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $579,000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-3 916 N. Euclid Ave, Oak Park . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Re/Max In The Village . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $589,000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-3 815 S. Kenilworth Ave, Oak Park. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Baird & Warner Oak Park/River Forest. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $599,000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12:30-2 735 Home, Oak Park. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Gloor Realty Co . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $599,500 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12-2 635 S Clinton, Oak Park. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Koenig Rubloff. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .$610,000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-4 947 Mapleton Ave, Oak Park . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Weichert Realtors Nickel Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $619,900 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12-2 725 S. Elmwood, Oak Park . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Gloor Realty Co . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $629,000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1:30-3:30 735 Bonnie Brae Pl, River Forest . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Gagliardo Realty Associates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $629,000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-3 711 Ashland Ave, River Forest. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Gagliardo Realty Associates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $629,900 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-3 1231 Columbian Ave, Oak Park . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Re/Max In The Village . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $630,000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12:30-2 123 Ashland Ave, River Forest . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Gagliardo Realty Associates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $639,900 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12-2 502 N. Grove Ave, Oak Park . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Gloor Realty Co . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $654,000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12-2 7214 Quick Ave, River Forest . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Gagliardo Realty Associates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $669,900 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-3 559 William St, River Forest. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Gagliardo Realty Associates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $672,500 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-3 1146 S. Gunderson Ave, Oak Park . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Beyond Properties Realty Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $675,000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-3 1443 Franklin Ave, River Forest. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Gagliardo Realty Associates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $679,000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-3 847 N. East Ave, Oak Park . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Weichert Realtors Nickel Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .$727,000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12-2 1127 N. East Ave, Oak Park . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . @properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $729,000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-3 320 S. Grove Ave, Oak Park . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Re/Max In The Village . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $739,000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-3 807 N. Kenilworth Ave, Oak Park . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Baird & Warner Oak Park/River Forest. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $749,000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2:30-4 532 N. Oak Park Ave, Oak Park. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Baird & Warner Oak Park/River Forest. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $899,000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12:30-2:30 45 Keystone Ave, River Forest . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Gagliardo Realty Associates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $925,000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-3 1501 Park Ave, River Forest . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Gagliardo Realty Associates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $1,049,000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-3 530 William St, River Forest. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Re/Max In The Village . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $1,375,000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-3

220 S. Oak Park Ave. UNIT 4, Oak Park . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Baird & Warner Oak Park/River Forest. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $84,900 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-2:30 402 Wesley Ave. UNIT 3, Oak Park. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Re/Max In The Village . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $129,000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12:30-2 949 Lake St. UNIT B1, Oak Park . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Re/Max In The Village . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $193,000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2:30-4 1131 Bonnie Brae Pl. UNIT 1N, River Forest . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Baird & Warner Oak Park/River Forest. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $219,900 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-2:30 1135 Schneider Ave. UNIT 4C, Oak Park . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Weichert Realtors Nickel Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $259,900 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12-2 110 S. Marion St. UNIT 508, Oak Park . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . @properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $499,000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-2:30 110 S. Marion St. UNIT 401, Oak Park . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . @properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $520,000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-2:30 Showroom Open at 139 S. Oak Park Ave., Oak Park, IL . . . . . . Gloor Realty Co . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $669,900 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12-2 Showroom Open at 139 S. Oak Park Ave., Oak Park, IL . . . . . . Gloor Realty Co . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $684,900 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12-2

138 Francisco Terrace, Oak Park. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Weichert Realtors Nickel Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $315,000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12-2 328 Pennsylvania Way, Oak Park . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Baird & Warner Oak Park/River Forest. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $564,900 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12-2

This Directory brought to you by mrgloans.com

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Wednesday Journal, April 5, 2017

OAKPARK.COM | RIVERFOREST.COM

To many, living at home means freedom and independence. But it can also be isolating. Belmont Village residents enjoy a lifestyle that keeps them physically active and mentally engaged, delighting in the company of friends old and new. At Belmont Village, you don’t have to live alone to be independent.

It’s not just your home. It’s your community.

Distinctive Residential Settings | Chef-Prepared Dining and Bistro Premier Health and Wellness Programs | Award-Winning Memory Care Professionally Supervised Therapy and Rehabilitation Services

The Community Built for Life.® belmontvillage.com BUFFALO GROVE 847-537-5000 | GLENVIEW 847-657-7100 OAK PARK 708-848-7200 | GENEVA ROAD 630-510-1515 Winner of the Argentum 2016 Best of the Best and George Mason University Healthcare Awards for the Circle of Friends© memory program for Mild Cognitive Impairment.

Road Trip on the Horizon? Let us know we’ll hold your paper! Email: circulation@OakPark.com

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Wednesday Journal, April 5, 2017

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Come and join us for HOLY WEEK, as we

REMEMBER CHRIST’S PASSION & VICTORY.

He gave His life and yet He lives, so that we need not fear death or suffering.

Love crucified…arose!

First Congregational Church of Maywood

400 N. 5th Avenue (708)344-6150 Pastor Elliot Wimbush

Maundy Thursday, at 6:30pm Seder Meal and Communion Service Good Friday, at 7:00pm Tenebrae: Service of Shadows Easter Sunday, at 11:00am Morning Worship and Fellowship Hour

Need grace? Find it here…First.

ST. GILES PARISH INVITES YOU TO HOLY WEEK SERVICES TRIDUUM SERVICES Holy Thursday, April 13

Morning Prayer - 8:30 a.m. Mass of the Lord’s Supper - 7:30 p.m. Adoration until Midnight Night Prayer - 11:45 p.m.

Good Friday, April 14

Morning Prayer - 8:30 a.m. Celebration of the Lord’s Passion - 3:00 p.m. Living Stations of the Cross - 7:30 p.m.

Holy Saturday, April 15

HOLY WEEK Palm Sunday April 9, 2017 8:30 a.m. & 11:00 a.m. With Congregational Procession & Holy Communion Maundy Thursday April 13, 2017 12:00 p.m. & 7:00 p.m. Holy Communion Stripping of the altar at 7:00 p.m. only

Morning Prayer - 8:30 a.m. Blessing of Easter Food - 11:00 a.m. in Church Easter Vigil and First Mass of Easter - 7:30 p.m. Initiation of New Members, Reception following (No 4:30 p.m. Mass)

Easter Sunday Masses, April 16

Sunrise - 6:00 a.m. (Outdoors, Weather Permitting) 7:45, 9:30 and 11:15 a.m. in Church 10:00 a.m. Family Mass in Gym (No 5:00 p.m. Mass)

Rev. Carl Morello, Pastor

1045 N. Columbian • Oak Park, IL 60302 • 708-383-3430 • www.stgilesparish.org Two blocks south of North Avenue - Three blocks east of Oak Park Avenue

Good Friday April 14, 2017 12:00 p.m. & 7:00 p.m.

Easter Sunday April 16, 2017 6:30 a.m. Sunrise Service with Holy Communion 8:30 & 11:00 a.m. Festival Communion

St. John Ev. Lutheran Church 305 Circle Avenue, Forest Park (708) 366-3226 www.stjohnforestpark.org Rev. Leonard R. Payton, Pastor Rev. Roney Riley, Assistant Pastor

Join Us For Palm Sunday Sunday, April 9, 2017 Pony Rides for Children 9:30 am Parade into the Sanctuary 10:30 am Easter Sunday, April 16 10:30 am

Reach Oak Park, River Forest & Forest Park with the Wednesday Religion Guide Call Mary Ellen at 708/ 613-3342

Euclid Avenue United Methodist Church 405 S. Euclid Avenue, Oak Park, IL www.euclidavenueume.org

Love God. Live Green. Liberate All.

Wednesday Journal, April 5, 2017

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St. Bernardine Easter Schedule

Please join us for our Easter Celebration!

Soup for the Soul, Wednesday, April 5th 7:00 p.m. Reconciliation, Thursday, April 6th, 7:00 p.m.

8:45 am Easter Breakfast 9:30 am Egg Hunt 9:45 am Musical Prelude Our diverse andWorship dynamic congregation 10 am

Holy Week Mass Times

Palm Sunday, April 9th Saturday 5:00 p.m.; Sunday 8:00 & 10:30 a.m. Weekdays: April 10th, 11th, 12th Monday, Tuesday & Wednesday 6:30 a.m.

welcomes you on the journey of faith. First United First UnitedMethodist Methodist Church of Church ofOak OakPark Park 324 N. Avenue 324 N.Oak OakPark Park Ave. Oak Park, Oak Park,ILIL60302 60302 (708)383-4983 (708) 383-4983 www.firstUMCoakpark.org www.firstUMCoakpark.org

Holy Thursday, April 13th

Mass of the Lord’s Supper at 7:00 p.m. Foot Washing & Eucharistic Procession; Adoration until midnight

Rev. Young-Mee Park, Pastor Sunday Worship 10:00 AM Sunday School for All Ages 9:00 AM

Good Friday, April 14th

Stations of the Cross at 3:00 p.m. Confessions 5:00 – 6:00 p.m. Celebration of the Lord’s Passion, Veneration of the Cross and Holy Communion 7:00 pm

ELCA, Lutheran

Good Shepherd Lutheran Church ALL ARE WELCOME

Holy Week

Holy Saturday, April 15th Blessing of Food at 12 noon Easter Vigil at 8:00 p.m.

Easter Sunday, April 16th

Masses at 8:00 and 10:30 a.m.

7246 W. Harrison St. Forest Park, IL 60130 708-366-0839

St. Edmund Catholic Parish 188 South Oak Park Avenue • Oak Park, Illinois 60302 (708) 848-4417

Palm Sunday ~ Blues Worship, 8 & 10:30a

Maundy Thursday Family Meal with Worship at 6:30p Good Friday Children’s service ~10a Evening ~ 7:30p Easter Sunday Festival Worship ~ 8 & 10:30am goodshepherdlc.org Breakfast ~ 9 -10:30a 611 Randolph at East Ave. Easter Egg Hunt Oak Park • 708-848-4741 ~9:30a

Wednesday Journal Holy Week and EasterEaster Services Guide sections March 16, 2016 (Replaces current ad on Mar 16)

Join us for Palm Sunday, The Sacred Triduum & Easter Palm Sunday of the Lord’s Passion April 9

Masses at 5:30 pm Saturday: Sunday Anticipatory 9:00am, 11:00am & 5:30pm

Holy Thurday - April 13 7:30pm - Evening Mass of the Lord’s Supper 9:30-11:45pm Adoration before blessed sacrament 11:45pm - Night Prayer

Good Friday - April 14

9:00am - Morning Prayer • 7:30pm - Service of the Lord’s Passion

Holy Saturday - April 15

9:00am - Morning Prayer 11:00am - Blessing of the First Easter Meal in Murphy Hall 7:30pm - Service of Light

Easter Sunday - April 16

The Resurrection of our Lord • Masses at 9:00am & 11:00am • No 5:30pm liturgy

St. Catherine - St. Lucy Catholic Church 38 N. Austin Blvd., Oak Park, IL 708-386-8077 Rev. Fr. George O. Omwando, Pastor

ELCA, Lutheran Palm Sunday —April 9 Good Shepherd Lutheran Church

5:00 PM ~ Saturday ALL ARE WELCOME 8:30 AM ~ Sunday Holy Week 10:30 AM ~ Procession of the Palms

Maundy Thursday Family Meal with Worship at 6:30 p 7:00 PM. ~ Mass of the Lord’s Supper Good Friday worship Children’s service ~10a Adoration until Midnight Evening ~ 7:30p Easter Sunday Festival Worship ~ 8 & 10:30a 12 Noon ~ Vigil at the Cross Breakfast ~ 9 -10:30a 7PM ~ Liturgy of The Passion of The Lord Easter Egg Hunt goodshepherdlc.org ~9:30a 611 Randolph at East Ave. Jazz Sunday, April 3 Oak Park • 708-848-4741 Worship 8 & 10:30am

Holy Thursday —April 13 Good Friday —April 14

Holy Saturday —April 15

1:00 PM ~ Blessing of Easter Baskets 7:00 PM ~ The Great Easter Vigil Mass

Easter Sunday —April 16 8:30 AM and 10:30 AM

Wednesday Journal Easter Guide sections March 23, 2016 (Replaces current ad on Mar 23)

Wednesday Journal, April 5, 2017

OAKPARK.COM | RIVERFOREST.COM

DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSIONS IS FRIDAY 5 P.M. Call Viewpoints editor Ken Trainor at 613-3310 ktrainor@wjinc.com

C O N S C I O U S

Wednesday Journal, April 5, 2017

VIEWPOINTS

DOOPer’s Memories p. 39

A G I N G

Resilient aging and aging in place

What is couldn’t be any izzer.

Unknown (but repeated by my mother in law)

r. Bill Thomas (of ChangingAging notoriety) speaks of an emerging new stage of life that follows adulthood. This new stage, which can be called “elderhood,” has its own standards and values distinct from adulthood. One of the factors leading to the elderhood stage is today’s longevity, never before seen in the human species. “It’s great you can still do that!” or “Boy, you still look good!” Although well-meaning, this comment is just a more subtle form of ageism than those “funny” supermarket 50+ or 60+ birthday cards that really aren’t even close to funny — ageist because they use the inappropriate standards of adulthood when referring to elderhood. So, too, does the term “older adult,” as if people will always be judged by the standards appropriate for adults, which disrespects the precious beauties of aging in its own right. Let’s just be seen as older people. Aging is not a succeed-or-fail proposition; it is inevitable. It just is. None of us is immune from internalized ageism. It is pervasive. In our culture, it just is. As the collective “we” responds to the needs of our new elderhood stage, it is important to become aware of how the old paradigm infects our new efforts. Creating wonderful new structures and approaches from an internalized ageist point of view perpetuates that ageism. One such local response takes place on Tuesday, April 18, when the Center for Gerontology at Concordia University in River Forest hosts a program titled, “Resilient Aging – Resilient Living: Cultivating Community Good for All Ages.” This will be an exciting day of education, discussion and planning, starting at 9:30 a.m. and going until 3:30 p.m. The keynote speaker is Dr. Roger Landry, a respected medical expert in the field of aging who will outline his perspective on cultivating opportunities to age resiliently. The day provides an opportunity to connect and share views about aging consciously for everyone. I encourage your attendance; it will be a day well spent. (Full disclosure: I will be one of the afternoon panelists.) This timely and energizing program is a joint project of Arbor West Neighbors and the Concordia Center for

MARC BLESOFF

Courtesy of OPRF Historical Society

THE GARDEN OF AUSTIN: The Henry Austin residence in what is now one of the village’s favorite parks.

Austin Gardens’ special place in OP history

ustin Gardens has a noble history that perhaps many are not aware of. The property was owned by the Austins, a venerable family who supported the commercial and social development of Oak Park, and neighboring Austin, at the turn of the 20th century. The Austin home originally faced Lake Street, and the grounds stretched north to Ontario Street along Forest Avenue. A large garden, meadow, encircling footpath, tea house, and dance hall were arranged on the site, with a wooded natural area along Ontario, all of which the Austins generously shared with the community for sporting events, art clubs, and parties. Henry Austin, a champion of the native landscape, was an avid member of Jens Jensen’s Friends of Our Native Landscape advocacy group, along with some other notable Oak Park residents. He even asked Jensen to design a small garden area, featuring the “tea house” and a “bird garden.” Based on historical maps and photographs, I believe that the north side of the Gardens, the location of the wildflower garden, has never been built on — a very rare condition in our urban region. By 1935, as the commercial area began to expand on Lake Street, the Austins’ Arts & Crafts-style house was moved to what is now the meadow area of Austin Gardens. The park was bequeathed to the Park District of Oak Park in Austin’s will in 1947, along with an endowment to be used for “enhanced maintenance” of the park, a unique charitable gift to our community and one that demonstrated

his faith in this public trust. We are now presented with a challenge to this public trust in the guise of a building that would permanently shade portions of the park to an unprecedented degree. Graphics of the shade patterns on the park have been circulated. The shadows that are thrown onto the park are not just momentary snapshots on one date during the year. The shadows will linger for weeks before and after the dates in the sample graphics. People and plantings in the park will be affected, greeted by longer periods of darkness in the winter and into the spring, reducing the temperatures in the shadow areas and greatly reducing the pleasing warmth of the sun on a winter day in much of the park. It means that a much larger swath of the park will stay colder, slowing the thaw in the spring and the awakening of the spring flowers and other plants. The impact of the shade cannot be measured with certainty. The trees, shrubs and flowers within the park will adapt and fail at differing rates, and the impact will be felt over many years. The effect will be gradual. Along with shadows, wind patterns have noticeably changed in the park. In the 18-month period during the construction of the current high-rise (Vantage Oak Park, across the street), five canopy shade trees have been lost to wind storms in the 50-foot area along the south perimeter of the park. While this is anecdotal evidence of a change in wind patterns, it is certainly rare to lose so many trees in such a small geographic area.

CAROL YETKEN One View

See AUSTIN GARDENS on page 40

V I E W P O I N T S

Wednesday Journal, April 5, 2017

O U R

V I E W S

Neighbors and the BP

here is going to be spillover in violent crime from Chicago into Oak Park. It is inevitable and we have watched it in ugly bursts from time to time over the years. The issue is whether Oak Park and Oak Parkers are going to roll over or respond in the face of such crime. In today’s Journal we report on the response of neighbors and police to the gang-related, and thankfully non-fatal, shooting of a young Chicago man at the BP gas station at 100 Chicago Ave. on Feb. 11. That was five weeks after another shooting incident at the same station in which no one was injured. The Journal has also obtained, via a Freedom of Information request, all the police reports pertaining to the BP station over the past eight months. It shows many police calls to the station and, remarkably, the theft of seven cars from the site, as they were being gassed up. In the immediate wake of the second shooting, neighbors organized a march from the gas station to a church on Austin Boulevard where they met to air their concerns. The Suburban Unity Alliance helped organize the march and continues its efforts in the wider neighborhood. Oak Park police, says Chief Anthony Ambrose, have stepped up their presence at the gas station. Christina Waters, an immediate neighbor of the station and, she told us, a regular customer of the convenience store there, appreciates the increased policing. Waters is also asking the station’s owner, Daljit Singh, to drop the sale of certain items she believes may be attracting a tough clientele. Anthony Clark, leader of SUA, believes however, it is the 24-hour-a-day schedule that needs to be changed. “We have a suburban business with city practices,” says Clark. Ambrose and Waters point out that the more serious crimes at the BP have not taken place during overnight hours. And a village spokesman said it is likely not within the village’s purview to limit hours at the BP. So where are we now? Tonight Clark will host neighbors from Oak Park and Austin interested in forming a Community Watch program in the city and suburban neighborhoods immediately adjacent to the BP. That meeting will be April 5 at 7:30 p.m. at Live Café, 163 S. Oak Park Ave. This can be a positive effort, as the weather warms, to get neighbors active in watching over their community and working more closely with police. The answer is being more active, more present in our own neighborhoods. We would hope village government has engaged the BP owner in identifying ways to keep his business safer for the benefit of all of its customers.

Beyond downtown Whether or not the 18-story Albion project ever gets built at 1000 Lake Street, the wonderful reality is that the basic work of redeveloping Downtown Oak Park is now done. There will be tweaks and upgrades but beyond the prime spot at Lake and Forest, the heavy lifting is done. That will, after decades of hand-wringing, micro-managing, underthinking and over-thinking our downtown, allow the economic development energy in Oak Park to shift to other vital opportunities. Clearly, village government has declared Madison Street the next vital target for development. We wait to see if the Jupiter Realty mixed-use project at Madison and Oak Park garners the anchor tenant necessary to move this large mixed-use project forward. We agree with the decision to focus on Madison. There are big opportunities — the village controls key parcels and the upside is huge with so much long-term under-performance on the street. We’re also glad to see planning expand to the two streets that border Oak Park on the north and south sides. Both North Avenue and Roosevelt are largely obsolete mish-mashes of uses and structures. But with heavy traffic and strong residential neighborhoods abutting them (and we’re including both Chicago’s Galewood and Berwyn) there is room for growth and for renewal. This will all take time, collaboration and invention. We’re ready.

@ @OakParkSports

Beauty vs. the Beast

e need soul time, now more than ever, to refresh and renew as we become more involved in the resistance. And we need beauty, in itself a form of resistance — to overcome the unrelenting ugliness, emitting like swamp gas daily from the bottomland of Washington D.C. We need Beauty to battle the Beast. Soul time, of course, can’t just be turned on and off as we do the media. But time for the soul is often a precondition to experiencing beauty. It also works the other way — experiencing beauty has a way of connecting us with our soul. “Our time is hungry in spirit,” writes the late Irish poet/philosopher John O’Donohue in his wonderful book, Beauty – The Invisible Embrace. “In some unnoticed way we have managed to inflict severe surgery on ourselves. We have separated soul from experience, become utterly taken up with the outside world, and allowed the interior life to shrink. … When we devote no time to the inner life, we lose the habit of soul. We become accustomed to keeping things at surface level. The deeper questions about who we are and what we are here for visit us less and less. If we allow time for soul, we will come to sense its dark and luminous depth. If we fail to acquaint ourselves with soul, we will remain strangers in our own lives.” The ugliness and conflict of our time, as it turns out, far from destroying beauty, provides an opening. “Beauty,” O’Donohue writes, “does not belong exclusively to the regions of light and loveliness, cut off from the conflict and conversation of oppositions. The vigour and vitality of beauty derives precisely from the heart of difference. No life is one-sided; the life of each of us is animated by the inner conversation of forces which counter and complement each other. Beauty inhabits the cutting edge of creativity — mediating between the known and the unknown, light and darkness, masculine and feminine, visible and invisible, chaos and meaning, sound and silence, self and others.” I’ve been reading Beauty, akin to a book-length prose poem, incrementally during wee-hour waking, one of the times my soul “shows up,” when words become more resonant and penetrating. We have to invite the soul, writes author Parker Palmer in A Hidden Wholeness, by creating the conditions where it is likely to show up. We cannot summon the soul. We cannot imperiously will it to appear. “Like a wild animal,” Palmer writes, “the soul is tough, resilient, resourceful, savvy, and selfsufficient; it knows how to survive in hard places. … Yet despite its toughness, the soul is shy. Just like a wild animal, it seeks safety in the dense underbrush, especially when other people are around. If we want to see a wild animal, we know that the last thing we should do is go crashing through the woods yelling for it to come out. But if we will walk quietly into the woods, sit patiently at the base of a tree, breathe with the earth, and fade into our surroundings, the wild creature we seek might put in an appearance. We may see it only briefly and only

out of the corner of an eye — but the sight is a gift we will always treasure as an end in itself.” Palmer contends “we know very little about creating spaces that invite the soul to make itself known.” One way is unstructured time. Last Friday night, I was alone and, instead of finding something to busy myself with, I called Jack Kernan, a former longtime Oak Parker and softball buddy of my dad’s. They had grown up together on the West Side, and an unfortunate encounter with a puddle near second base during some halcyon afternoon of yore was the origin, I believe, of the nickname that stuck with him all these years: Muddy. He had just sent out an email announcing his move to a new retirement facility from the one he had lived in since his wife Patsy passed. I had been promising to visit him, and his move prompted me to call. He was a wonderful friend to both my parents in their last years and I did not want to wait because Muddy recently turned 92. He sounded wonderful — energized and optimistic. “I’m 92 but feel like I’m 29,” he said. Muddy is one of those inspiring nonagenarians who is even more liberal than I am, of which there are many in these parts. Talking with him felt like tonic. He made me feel younger. I also called Emil Messina, my barber, who just retired after 75 years of cutting hair. Now 89 and going strong, his career began in Sicily, cutting the hair of the GIs passing through. Getting a haircut — although in my case, it never took long — was always a joy, accompanied by his laughter and the mellifluous tones of operatic Italian tenors on his CD player. Ever genial, he invariably made me feel younger, too. I reached him at home in Westchester where he lives with his wife of 66 years on the aptly named Sunnyside Avenue, but on this day he was on the sad side. His wife recently suffered a stroke so he sold off the contents of his barbershop nook at the Oak Park Arms and is staying home to care for her. (You can read more about Emil in David Hammond’s testimonial on page 20.) Afterward, I marveled at the number of remarkable people whose paths have crossed mine and enriched my life — people who help me reconnect with my soul and experience the beauty that overcomes ugliness. John O’Donohue points out that in medieval times, the concept of “the five Transcendentals” helped bridge the gap between the self and the world. “Every act of thinking, mostly without our realizing it,” he writes, “is secretly grounded in these presences. If The One, The True, Being, The Good and The Beautiful were to vanish, the thought in the mind would have no pathway out to the world. … These presences guarantee our sense of meaning, and sustain the sense of order. For the medieval mind, beauty was a central presence at the heart of the real.” We need activism and resistance, but we also need beauty and soul time in order to keep the current, unleashed beast of chaos and untruth at bay. It’s a tale as old as time. In the end, beauty prevails.

KEN

TRAINOR

V I E W P O I N T S D O O P E R ’ S

M E M O R I E S

The boys of spring at ‘Greenfield Park’

n the spring of 1953, my pal Tom Raymond and I decided to try out for Pony League. Tom wanted to be a third baseman, and I wanted to pitch. We made it through the wet and cold tryouts, at Greenfield Park [aka Lindberg Park], and we were both assigned to the Kiwanis Club team, which was coached by Mr. Clark. Tom was a slick fielder and an average hitter whereas I was a mediocre pitcher but a good hitter. Practice for the pitchers was different from what I had expected because an assistant coach lined up the pitchers facing real batters, with fielders acting as catchers. The batters stood in place and did not swing. While we threw, another assistant coach came up to us individually and showed us photos of big league pitchers winding up to pitch. Every photo he showed us was of a right-handed pitcher like Bob Feller and Robin Roberts. Because I pitched left handed, I asked him to show me photos of pitchers like Warren Spahn and Whitey Ford. He told me it made no difference if the pitcher was a righty or a lefty because the idea was to see the windup used. I told him there is a world of difference between the windup used by a right-handed pitcher and the windup used by a left-handed pitcher. He became angry and pointed out that he had played minor league baseball, and I didn’t know anything about pitching. I didn’t believe him, but I didn’t pursue the discussion.

Tom played in every game during the season and so did I. I never appeared as a pitcher, but I was used as a pinch-hitter. I was able to bat either left-handed or right-handed, so this gave me value for batting against either a lefty or a righty. The assistant coach who gave me the baloney about windups, told Mr. Clark that I did not have the skills to pitch. Clark took his word for it and never watched me pitch on the sidelines, which I did just to loosen my arm. Mr. Clark was an offensive-minded coach, and he watched everyone during batting practice. He told me that since I did not have the skills to pitch, he would use me as a pinchhitter. I was happy that I made the team and figured I would get to bat in a few games. I never realized I would bat in every game. My greatest thrill came when Mr. Clark told me to bat for our pitcher in the last game of the season. It was our last at bats and we were behind 3-1 with two outs and the bases loaded. I worked the opposing pitcher for a 3-1 count, fouled off a couple of pitches and then drove a triple to the fence in right center clearing the bases and giving us the victory. I ended the season on a high note, but I still questioned what the assistant coach said about windups. John Stanger is a lifelong resident of Oak Park, a 1957 graduate of OPRF High School, married with three grown children and five grandchildren, and a retired English professor (Elmhurst College). Living two miles from where he grew up, he hasn’t gotten far in 77 years.

JOHN

STANGER

Reducing energy saves money and breathable air Part 4 of 6:

justing your thermostats even two degrees warmer in summer and cooler in winter saves so much energy. Another way to reduce energy use and save money is with a home energy audit. Insulating and air sealing your attic, basement, doors and windows reduces energy use and gives the quickest return on investment to lower utility bills forever. Elevate Energy is one organization that does home energy audits for $99. Or you can host a house party and receive a free home energy audit. Encourage your house of worship to schedule a free presentation (http://energyimpactillinois.org/residential/). Homes that reduce energy usage 15% qualify for Energy Star Certification, adding to resale value. A win-win for you and the planet. *The Ascension community is midway through a Lenten Carbon Fast: http://tinyurl.com/gw8r8c8. Scroll down to the Calendar. Dominican University staff, students and faculty are engaging in the Interfaith Power and Light Carbon Fast: http://tinyurl. com/zgqkj75. Who else? Join in and share your carbon fasting success stories in the paper or online.

GINA

Living more simply so others may simply live, we make lifestyle changes to reduce our energy use. We can choose empowering things to do for the environment even in the current political atmosphere. A Carbon Fast* is one way. Even turning on a light uses fossil fuels (unless you have solar panels). Many people don’t make that connection. Americans overuse fossil fuels: coal, oil and natural gas. The burning of these fuels releases carbon dioxide into the atmosphere creating warming, aka “the greenhouse effect.” One way you experience this kind of warming directly is by sitting in a car in the summer with the windows up and the AC off. It gets hot — and then hotter. This is what’s happening to our earth — with severe consequences. An easy thing to do is turn off the lights. Make it a mindful family practice, even a game. This Saturday, March 25 engage in EarthHour.org with the mindful practice of turning off devices and lights for an hour. Walk or bike. Become aware of the impact of the foods you eat and choose local foods that are whole, nutrient-dense and have a lower carbon footprint. Ad-

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Wednesday Journal, April 5, 2017

W E D N E S D A Y

JOURNAL of Oak Park and River Forest

Editor and Publisher Dan Haley Senior Editor Bob Uphues Associate Publisher Dawn Ferencak Staff Reporters Michael Romain, Timothy Inklebarger Viewpoints/ Real Estate Editor Ken Trainor Sports/Staff reporter Marty Farmer Columnists Jack Crowe, Doug Deuchler, John Hubbuch, May Kay O’Grady, Kwame Salter, John Stanger, Stan West Staff Photographer William Camargo Editorial Design Manager Claire Innes Editorial Designers Jacquinete Baldwin, Javier Govea Business Manager Joyce Minich IT Manager/Web Developer Mike Risher Director Social Media Strategy & Communications Jackie McGoey Advertising Production Manager Philip Soell Advertising Design Manager Andrew Mead Advertising Designers Debbie Becker, Mark Moroney Advertising Director Dawn Ferencak Advertising Sales Marc Stopeck, Joe Chomiczewski Media Coordinator Kristen Benford Inside Sales Representative Mary Ellen Nelligan Circulation Manager Jill Wagner Distribution Coordinator Caleb Thusat Comptroller Edward Panschar Credit Manager Laurie Myers Front Desk Carolyn Henning, Maria Murzyn Chairman Emeritus Robert K. Downs

About Viewpoints Our mission is to lead educated conversation about the people, government, schools, businesses and culture of Oak Park and River Forest. As we share the consensus of Wednesday Journal’s editorial board on local matters, we hope our voice will help focus your thinking and, when need be, fire you to action. In a healthy conversation about community concerns, your voice is also vital. We welcome your views, on any topic of community interest, as essays and as letters to the editor. Noted here are our stipulations for filing. Please understand our verification process and circumstances that would lead us not to print a letter or essay. We will call to check that what we received with your signature is something you sent. If we can’t make that verification, we will not print what was sent. When, in addition to opinion, a letter or essay includes information presented as fact, we will check the reference. If we cannot confirm a detail, we may not print the letter or essay. If you have questions, call Viewpoints editor Ken Trainor at 708-613-3310 or email him at ktrainor@wjinc.com.

LETTER TO THE EDITOR ■ 250-word limit ■ Must include first and last names, municipality in which you live, phone number (for verification only)

‘ONE VIEW’ ESSAY ■ 500-word limit ■ One-sentence footnote about yourself, your connection to the topic ■ Signature details as at left

Email Ken Trainor at ktrainor@wjinc.com or mail to Wednesday Journal, Viewpoints, 141 S. Oak Park Ave., Oak Park, IL 60302

Wednesday Journal, April 5, 2017

V I E W P O I N T S

OAKPARK.COM | RIVERFOREST.COM

A G I N G

D I S G R A C E F U L L Y

Who is Kaiser Sozi?

onald Trump really likes competition, grandiosity, power and the trappings of great wealth, but has very little idea of how to be president, except to reward his stooges and take cheap shots at his critics. And remember, he has said, he “loves war.” (Insert involuntary shivers here.) So what’s the goal? What’s the strategy? Who has his ear? Who’s really behind all this? What does that person have as a goal? And who is Kaiser Sozi? Before we get to the unmade bed that is Steve Bannon, let’s review some of the other “usual suspects.” If we strictly follow the movie, either of the two mopes, Reince Priebus or Sean Spicer is the logical Kaiser Sozi. Outwardly sort of benign and clueless, it’s clear they’re both scared to death of Trump’s fury (or is it vice versa)? Could it be Spicer is really the protagonist disguising himself as a buffoon? I mean this man clearly has no inside information — or does he? Is he really the puppet-master and not the puppet? As for Reince Priebus, is he still alive? Jared Kushner, the son Trump never had, is a prime Kaiser Sozi suspect. I don’t think I’ve ever heard or read anything he’s said or written, which provides a good cover, but he’s always there. When he’s finished bringing peace to Israel, I imagine he can score that presidential pardon for his father. Stephen Miller, the young punk behind the original travel ban on Muslim countries, when speaking of the president and the judiciary, said, “I think that it’s been an important reminder to all Americans … that the powers of the president to protect our country are very substantial and will not be questioned.” Nah, Miller is too obvious to be Kaiser Sozi. As for Donald Jr. and Eric, have they been allowed back on the continent yet?

Of course they have access to microwaves. Oh, you’ve probably noticed that I left out Kellyanne Conway. I really hate to be hard on someone who is on the verge of being hospitalized for “exhaustion,” a synonym for being bat---- crazy. So we come to the likely Kaiser Sozi, Steve Bannon, the follower, literally, of the madman Andrew Breitbart, who once proposed a documentary labeling the New York Times, the Washington Post, NPR, the ACLU and other “usual suspects” as being on a mission to establish an Islamic republic in the United States. Bannon even managed to get himself placed on the National Security Council, so he knows our every military move. And can tell Trump afterward — unless he tells Trump before the meetings. Of course, if you’ve read this far, you probably agree that Bannon, who has complete access to Trump, is the likely Kaiser Sozi. But hold on. Men don’t realize it yet, but politics is all about women now. If I were going to pick a Kaiser Sozi, it would be Ivanka Trump Kushner. She has her father’s ear, she moved to Washington to keep an eye on him (as well as her husband, the suit with the movie star looks who Trump thinks is the Messiah) and she makes sure she’s in every important meeting. Her motive? Well, there’s revenge for his inappropriate attentions to her in public, particularly when she was a girl, for bringing his new girlfriend on a ski trip when his then-wife Ivana (her mother) was waiting for him — and then laughing about it. But mostly I think it’s her desire to learn the ropes, land on her feet after the impeachment, and eventually take her place in the Oval Office. Look, no one said she didn’t inherit his grandiosity. I think the correct title is Kaiserlin Sozi.

MARY KAY O’GRADY

Courtesy of OPRF Historical Society

LEGACY: The Austin property c. 1915

AUSTIN GARDEN

Prominent place in history from page 37 Austin Gardens, a natural area dedicated to passive use, has a great diversity of trees and plant materials, unique in Oak Park. This diversity is enabled by a natural phenomenon of sandy sub-soil conditions, found only in a swath of Oak Park west of the “continental divide.” As a landscape architect, I have always appreciated the green spaces and natural areas that make up our public park system in Oak Park. On behalf of the park district, my firm prepared the Master Plan for Austin Gardens as part of the improvements and enhancements after the referendum in the early 2000s. The Master Plan was completed in spring of 2005 and updated in January of 2016, and both phases benefitted from public input and community meetings. The

BLESOFF

Arbor West Neighbors from page 37 Gerontology, and represents a new phase in our local efforts to catch up with the realities of aging today. Growing out of the Virtual Village Network movement and using the “aging in place” model, Arbor West Neighbors has been forging an entity that fits our community profile and needs ever since Tess Donnelly and others asked, “Why not here in Oak Park/River Forest/Forest Park?” This upcoming program at Concordia will help some best next steps emerge.

new Environmental Education Center and the Learning Garden, with their commitment to educational outreach, fulfilled the goals of the master planning process, are consistent with the natural character of the park, and creates continuity with Austin’s original endowment. For several generations, Austin Gardens has served as a refuge, natural area, and green respite in our increasingly urban world. It is a critical green space located within single-family and multifamily housing districts, the primary commercial district of Downtown Oak Park and within the nationally recognized Frank Lloyd Wright Historic District, which draws thousands of visitors to our village every year. It is imperative that we measure the value of this green space within our urban fabric and assure that this special asset is not diminished for future generations. Carol Yetken is a landscape architect and an Oak Park resident. Historic photographs provided by the Historical Society of Oak Park-River Forest.

Kudos to the Center for Gerontology and to the Kott Memorial Charitable Trust for supporting Arbor West Neighbors in its infancy. This is a symbiotic example of our local academic institution and funders assisting the development of inventive grassroots organizing. It bodes well for our local efforts to strengthen a community that is indeed good for all ages. Marc Blesoff is a former Oak Park village trustee, co-founder of the Windmills softball organization, co-creator of Sunday Night Dinner, a retired criminal defense attorney, and a novice beekeeper. He currently facilitates Conscious Aging Workshops and Wise Aging Workshops in the Chicago area.

Illinois should follow California’s lead

The EPA’s threats to back away from automotive emissions standards got me thinking. Under federal law, due to its pre-existing standards, and particularly severe air pollution in the Los Angeles metropolitan area, the state of California is allowed to promulgate more stringent vehicle emissions standards, and other states may choose to follow either the national or California standards. Thirteen states (Arizona, Connecticut, Maine, Maryland, Mas-

sachusetts, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont and Washington, plus the District of Columbia), representing approximately 25% of the U.S. vehicle fleet and vehicle miles traveled, have adopted the California Air Resources Board (CARB) emissions standards. What would it take for Illinois to join these states?

Art Spooner

Oak Park

Wednesday Journal, April 5, 2017

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WHAT’S HAPPENING at OPEN DOOR in APRIL Saturday April 8 at 8:00pm The Therapy Players

Saturday, April 22 at 8pm Ella and Louis Together Again

Friday, April 28 at 8:00pm I’m ALL FOR YOU • Ty Cooper

Our favorite Docs return to keep us laughing and JUNG! If laughter is the best medicine for whatever ails you – come be healed. Catch them while you can; they will not be back until the fall!!

Jazzlady Robin Watson and Will, a.k.a. Billy, Washington come together to celebrate the incredible music of Ella Fitzgerald (April 25th marks the 100th birthday of the First Lady of Song) and Louis Armstrong. This is a show not to be missed. Featuring: Dave Turner (piano), Ted Brewer (bass), and George Aparo (drums)

Ty Cooper returns to Chicago for her first appearance at Open Door and brings a collection of songs celebrating YOU in life, love, loss and living to our stage. Featuring such classics as: It Had To Be You, I Wish You Love, and Body & Soul. Featuring: Jim Sellers, Jim Cox and Justin Kramer

Sunday, April 9 at 2:30pm The Gershwins in Hollywood: A Charles Troy Presentation with Jeff Dean and Bob Moreen Charles Troy’s multimedia presentation will tell the whole shocking story of George Gershwin’s last year alive, leavened and interspersed with video clips from two Fred Astaire classics: Shall We Dance and A Damsel in Distress with live performances by two top Chicago cabaret performers, Jeff Dean and Bob Moreen.

Saturday, April 22 at 10:30am Stomp and Shout The Stomp and Shout Jam Band returns to celebrate Spring with happy, fun, interactive rock and roll favorites as well as original tunes. Come dance, play an instrument, join the band on stage. Great fun for all!

Ella & Louis Together Again: A Centennial Celebration

Jazzlady Robin Watson &

Will Washington aka Billy bring to life this match made in heaven with Two spectacular performances Saturday * April 22, 2017 * 8 pm or Sunday * April 23, 2017 * 3 pm

Sunday, Spril 23 at 10:30am The Church of Beethoven

at The Open Door Theater 902 S. Ridgeland Ave., Oak Park, IL 60304 708.386.5510 * www.opendoortheater.net Tickets: $25 each/Groups of 10 or more $20

Church of Beethoven favorites Brandon Acker (classical guitar) and Christine Steyer (soprano), team up with a dazzling program of Spanish Music by Manuel de Falla, Joaquin Rodrigo, and Federico Garcia Lorca. Tickets/info at: churchofbeethoven-oakpark.com

Sunday, April 23 at 3:00pm Ella and Louis Together Again Last chance to see this amazing show!

Tickets: www.opendoortheater.net 708.386.5510 902 S. Ridgeland | Oak Park, Il 60304

(Reserve Early, Limited Seating) Dave Turner, piano, Ted Brewer, bass, George Aparo, drums

April 25, 2017 marks the 100th Birthday of The First Lady of Song, Ella Fitzgerald

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Wednesday Journal, April 5, 2017

Protecting our ideals is vital to our freedom

n February, the village board of Oak Park unanimously passed one of the strongest sanctuary ordinances in the nation, limiting collaboration between local law enforcement and U.S. Immigration Custom and Enforcement (ICE). Make no mistake: this ordinance passed because of the intersectional work of multiple grassroots organizations coming together, mobilizing the citizens of Oak Park to call on the village board to do the right thing. As an army veteran and child of immigrants, this is why I served. This is what democracy looks like. In the military, we’ve woven a multicultural, intersectional fabric, with service members of different backgrounds, religions, and sexual orientations, and it is this multicultural fabric that makes our military the greatest in the world. Our diversity makes our military stronger, as it calls to arms people from all walks of life, to serve, represent and protect our nation. When I answered the call to serve, I did so knowing that, as a Hindu woman and the daughter of immigrants, I would be serving a country that didn’t always protect my rights. I’ve been called a terrorist, stopped and frisked at airports, and have felt out of place in many areas of this country. I’ll never forget the day when, in my own neighborhood, a door was shut in my face by another community member. “Oh, I shut the door because I just wanted to be careful of who I was letting in — you know, because of what happened in Orlando. I wasn’t sure who you were,” they said. I walked away questioning my service to a country where the amount of melanin in my skin somehow equates to my level of patriotism and loyalty to this country. This is not the way. We cannot fear each other, for we are more alike than we are different. As a soldier, you realize that what binds us together is not dependent on the color of our skin, the religion that calls us, or the people we choose to love. We choose to put that uniform on and are willing to pay the great price of our lives because protecting the ideals we know this country can live up to — the ideals of diversity, inclusion, equal rights, religious freedom — is vital to our continued freedom and the health of our democracy. Today, there are many places where we can make our stand. In Illinois, the current legislative session has three bills that we should support: The Illinois Trust Act (SB0022), the Immigration Safe Zone Act (HB0426), and the Student Access Bill (SB2196). We need to continue to engage our local city and state governments to protect our most vulnerable citizens. For the sake of our country, the ideals, and the values we all share, we must never lose hope that our similarities as a multicultural, diverse people can weave a fabric so strong that hate simply cannot tear it apart. Arti Walker-Peddakotla is an Oak Park resident, a U.S. Army veteran, and a leader with Veterans for American Ideals, a Human Rights First initiative.

ARTI

WALKER

PEDDAKOTLA One View

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A responsible gun owner responds

couple years ago I was a member of a group that invited people who did not understand or share shooting sports, hunting or self-protection enthusiasm to join together to see if we could find common ground and some agreement toward reducing or ending gun-related violence. We met for almost a year and finally disbanded because we were not even able to define basic causation, much less a workable solution. The Gun Responsibility Advocates (GRA) believe that the total quantity of guns in existence, the lack of comprehensive legal regulations and the irresponsibility of most gun owners is the core of the problem. They have suggested that a gun is a “vector” that transmits anger from reservoir to host. The yet-to-be defined term “universal background check” seems to be their solution to ending gun violence in our society. The gun rights gaggle (GRG), my term, know that gun violence is the result of a small portion of our society who live outside of law-abiding civility or individuals who are mentally out of touch with rational thought. The only way they know to resolve a problem is to harm or kill their detractor. This group has been ignored by our education system, forced into broken homes by our welfare system, and exploited by our progressive politicians. We know that a gun is an inanimate object that has never injured anyone on its own initiative; there is always a person in control. It cannot be denied that illegal gun possession, sales and use is at the core of the problem. Thousands of laws exist

to resolve this problem if our court system would take a hard line and throw the book at anyone who commits a crime with a firearm. I favor “Operation Exile,” which requires all felonies with a firearm be tried in federal court with no plea bargaining and mandatory sentences to be served in federal penitentiaries. This modern day “Lindberg Law” might get the attention of the most ignorant thug. In Richmond, Viginia, gun violence was reduced by 70%! The program was ended by Attorney General Holder because he claimed it was “racist” since the majority of affected criminals were black. Operation Exile is favored by President Trump and endorsed by the NRA, who has never advocated gun violence, but rather sponsors gun and range safety, kids shooting programs and major competitive events. Operation Exile has measurable results and demonstrated success yet does not trample on anyone’s constitutional rights. Existing federal, state and local laws are in place to solve the problem. What is needed is the stomach to turn the switch and courts that will “do the right thing.” If Ken Trainor and the GRA plan for expanded laws and regulations is initiated [An appeal to responsible gun owners, Viewpoints, March 1], we will need to find a way to enforce their new regulations and laws. That enforcement is the basis of the GRG argument. That said, why not try the enforcement path first? It would be much swifter and cost a whole lot less money. Ray Simpson has been an Oak Park resident for 50 years.

RAY

SIMPSON One View

An appeal to responsible gun prohibitionists Several weeks ago in “Viewpoints,” Ken Trainor wrote an appeal to responsible gun owners [An appeal to responsible gun owners, March 1]. Here is a responsible gun owner’s (RGO) response. Here are historical uncontestable facts that you, dear reader, know to be true. A history lesson can be a good idea from time to time for all of us. One: We were, and are told by responsible gun prohibitionists (RGP) that as Americans buy more guns, crime will increase in proportion. Fact: Our national gun ownership has quadrupled while the hysterical doomsday predictions never happened. For the past 40 years, crime has been decreasing and is now at an all-time low. You know that’s true. Law-abiding responsible citizens who bought most of those guns have acted responsibly with them. Two: “Plastic guns” must be prohibited hysteria, bad and good people everywhere shooting us with plastic guns! Fact! There have been no all-plastic guns made and this problem was hysterical fantasy. Three: The assault weapon ban is necessary to stop shooting crime. Fact: no effect on crime. Feeble effort to extend it, failed overwhelmingly. Four: The media is biased against the Second Amendment, which shows in most articles on guns. Best example: almost never does the media tell us the “assault weapon” definition must include the gun being able to fire automatically; the media knows such weapons were specially licensed in 1935! No licensee has in 80+ years been involved in a crime with an assault weapon. Five: For many decades the gun prohibitionists have said that every year thousands of “children” have been

killed or injured with gun misuse (including accidents). The death for “children” under 12 every year is less than 10. Six: Gun buyback programs were supposed to get guns off the street thus preventing criminal misuse of them. Fact: These programs have simply been a joke, accomplishing nothing. Seven: 30,000 persons die every year from handguns. Fact: The gun prohibitionist never include the 18,000 or so who commit suicide. About 3,000 are justifiable and citizen homicides; 7,000 or so remaining victims are felons shot by felons! Eight: Richmond, Virginia had very high crime rate. Fact: Federal gun statutes enforced crime dropped over 70%! Nine: Over 20,000 laws on books for gun-use prohibitions. Fact: very few enforced. Ten: Concealed weapon permit holders very dangerous and need signs in businesses to keep them out. Fact: The 15,000,000 concealed weapon permit holders are far safer than police officers or general public in recognized statistics. Eleven: Handguns are used in crimes 100,000’s of times per year. Fact: true, but responsible gun use to stop crime at least seven times larger: 2,500,000. Call me anytime at my Oak Park home to discuss the latest nonsense to which you have subjects. Phone: 708-3833850.

D.A. Schweig

Oak Park resident for 50+ years.

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Harriet Hausman is an inspiration Ken, it was great to see you at the ACLU luncheon [My best St. Patrick’s Day yet, Ken Trainor, Artbeat, March 22]. What an inspirational event, a balm for our troubled souls. Thanks so very much for your terrific article and, of course, I loved all the references to my wonderful mom. She’s my social justice “rock star” and truly amazing in so many ways. I am blessed to be her daughter! Speaking/writing of family, the involvement of both of my parents in the ACLU had a huge impact on our clan, especially now. Currently, there’s a representative from every generation of our family actively working there, sans those slacker toddlers and babies: ■ Mom, of course, continues to be active on the executive committee. ■ In retirement (which I’m flunking!) I’m serving as a core volunteer. My hashtag is #tis-better-to-lend-a hand-than-wring-them. ■ My nephew (one of Harriet’s grandkids) is an immigration attorney with the New York office. He’s a busy guy! Lastly, because you recently enjoyed the Tchaikovsky opera, I want to tell you about the Sing to Live Community Chorus in which I participate. We’re a group of almost 80 folks, men and women, whose lives have been touched by breast cancer. We sing to share the true joy and healing that is music! Although we are far from the Lyric, we are good, and our mission is great! We have a concert this weekend, Sunday, April 9 at 4 p.m. at Pilgrim Congregational Church, 460 Lake St. in Oak Park. Tickets at www.singtolive.org. In love and justice,

Barbara Hausman

Slow down — and look before you cross

Make peace, not war, on the environment

Has anyone besides me noticed the amount of speeding in the area? I use Thatcher Avenue a lot — early morning and other times in the day. The limit is 25 mph. I see autos going 40-50 mph. I have been tailgated, passed on the left or right, passed in the parking lane. The police are out at times giving tickets. As soon as the drivers pass the police, they speed up. I am surprised there are not more accidents. Also why do people in Downtown Oak Park press the walk buttons on the stop lights and proceed to cross against the light? Our police do a great job, but can’t be everywhere. Slow down, the life you save might be your own! Look before you cross a street!

Chicago

Wednesday Journal, April 5, 2017

James Craig

Melrose Park

The 2017 One Earth Film Festival ended on March 12, and it provided solutions for the many ways we humans have inflicted violence upon God’s good Creation, “our common home.” Time to Choose* and Years of Living Dangerously: Race Against Time explain that solar and wind power are ready to be deployed on a mass scale, both here and abroad. The technologies are economically viable and the masses of people want clean energy. What remains is the will to remove the roadblocks put up by the politically powerful utilities and fossil fuel industries. Sustainable shows the ways many farmers today are using methods that actually build up the soil rather than depleting it, so they can provide healthy food “for thousands of years.” And in Growing Cities, two friends take a road trip around the country, visiting vacant lots, rooftops, and backyards where a variety of plants and animals are being grown — part of the urban agriculture movement.

Minimalism explores the lifestyles of those who have chosen an alternative to the culture of overconsumption that is using up our natural resources at an unsustainable rate. Transformed from being “consumers,” many have found deeper meaning and purpose in their lives. In Death by Design, we learn how organizations like iFixit and Repair Café are working against the planned obsolescence of our electronic gadgets and keeping them and the toxic heavy metals they contain from our landfills. And finally, National Parks Adventure and Chicago’s True Nature remind us that there are many places, both around the country and in our own Forest Preserves where we can enjoy and wonder at the beauty, the complexity, and the peace of nature. *Most films listed here are available in theaters, on Netflix, online, or from the library.

Jim Babcock

First United Church of Oak Park One Earth Film Festival

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3/17/17 1:34 PM

Wednesday Journal, April 5, 2017

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Who should pay for the Trump budget disaster?

Photo by Marty Vernon

SHADOW BOXER: Christine Vernon, with the Vantage building looming in the background, proposes extending open space to Lake Street instead of throwing more shadows on Austin Gardens.

That corner of Lake and Forest is sacred ground I really appreciated your article by Christine Vernon in last week’s Wednesday Journal [Do we want a gateway or a wall? Homes, March 29]. The piece and your supplementary history provide a great historical perspective about Austin Gardens and the “high-rise wars.” I would add two points that I think are relevant. As you may remember, the site for the proposed Albion building is the site of one the earliest and most important structures in Oak Park, what became known as Temperance Hall. Local historian Jean Guarino in her Oak Park: A Pictorial History (p. 17) has this to say: “In 1855, Joseph Kettlestrings donated a lot at Forest and Lake for this nondescript white frame building that played, not one but several, leading roles in Oak Park’s history. “The building originally served as the

village’s first school from 1857-1859. As the enrollment continued to increase, the lot across Lake Street (now 100 Forest Place) was purchased and the new Oak Ridge Central School was built in 1859 [later Lowell School]. “It later became known as the ‘Mother of Churches,’ serving as the first church in this God-fearing community. At one time or another, most of the major Protestant denominations held services in this building prior to constructing their own churches. “And finally, renamed Temperance Hall, it became a temple dedicated to sobriety by H.W. Austin Sr., and his supporters, who were responsible for the 1872 Illinois Temperance Law, which made Oak Park ‘dry’ for more than 100 years. “The building, which was on property Kettlestrings had sold to Henry Austin,

finally fell into disrepair and was razed in 1901.” The Temperance Hall site is sacred ground in Oak Park, in more ways than one. Using the site as a public space would reconnect Austin Gardens to Lake Street and would reconnect Oak Park to its essential history. This idea is not original to me. Remember the planning team of Crandall and Arambula a number of years back? Several of us worked with them on visions for Downtown Oak Park. It was their idea (as I remember) to put a public space there as both a physical focus for downtown and as a focus for the community. Put the Visitor Center next to it, and you have the makings for a huge community asset.

Bob Trezevant Oak Park

Why do we want another high-rise at that corner? I’m writing with a comment about the concern over another high-rise being planned at Lake and Forest. I do not do social media and I do not have any contact for the group effort to prevent it. In my old age, I still like to walk, and once in a while will walk with my dog down to the Lake Street business area. From home, I will usually walk down Forest Avenue because it is always nice to see the Frank Lloyd Wright homes. About a month ago, we did just that

and as we approached the Vantage building, I was shocked to be almost blown down by the wind tunnel effect. I am pretty thin and my dog weighs only 15 pounds and she was knocked sideways. Why on earth would we want another building nearby to make it even worse? What about all the tourists walking on Forest? Do we need to surprise them as well? I worked in the Loop for several years and certainly knew about the wind tunnel effect there, but in Oak

Park? If that second building gets built, I guess there will be a need for a warning sign as one approaches Lake Street. I suppose I will have to walk a less-interesting way and that doesn’t sit right. I would hope this wind effect would be written about. Also, do you know how I could sign that petition?

Denise Wells Palfy Oak Park

It is deeply ironic that many voted for Trump because they believed him to be a successful businessman, despite his many bankruptcies. One look at his proposed budget reveals why he failed at business. Despite claims of fiscal conservatism, his budget increases the deficit. He slashes everything except the military, on which he squanders a mountain of unneeded cash, and further erases any potential savings by massive tax cuts for the billionaire class. Several decades of historical experience show unequivocally that when every Republican administration cut taxes for the rich, the deficit skyrocketed. Economists realize this, but the modern Republican does not believe in historical facts or in listening to experts. The Republican philosophy has never been more clear: Take everything from the middle class and poor, and give it all to the very richest Americans. The proposed cuts will cripple the U.S. economy. For example, Trump wants to cut the NIH budget for medical research by 20%. Most NIH funding supports the salaries of scientists. This means that 20% of working scientists will be fired. The same is true for cuts to all other parts of the non-military economy. The government directly employs 2.7 million people [1], not counting the military. Note that Obama already decreased federal government employees to the lowest number since 1966 [2]. Cutting spending means firing these workers (mechanical engineers, statisticians, auditors, firefighters, biologists, chemists, computer scientists, economists). Unemployed workers cannot contribute to the economy. In addition, once they are fired, who will deliver the mail, inspect meat for contamination, hassle you at the airport, fight forest fires, protect consumers from fraud, or take care of veterans? These millions of newly unemployed by arbitrary elimination of government-supported jobs will lose their health insurance, and they will not be able to buy insurance because the GOP is repealing the Affordable Care Act and replacing it with a more expensive version that covers 24 million fewer people. Will hospitals accept tens of millions of newly uninsured patients? If so, they will go bankrupt. If not, then who will decide which should die? Republican death squads? Because anyone who voted for Trump knew that he promised to take away their health insurance, perhaps they should be denied hospital care. We all support personal responsibility, right? If you voted for this disaster, you should be the first to suffer the consequences. [1] http://infomory.com/numbers/number-ofgovernment-employees-in-the-us-2/ [2] https://economix.blogs.nytimes. com/2013/10/22/bloated-government-federal-employment-at-47-year-low/?_r=0 http://blogs.wsj.com/economics/2014/11/07/ the-federal-government-now-employs-the-fewestpeople-since-1966/

Tom DeCoursey Oak Park

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Wednesday Journal, April 5, 2017

We need a moral budget, not this Trump budget

resident Lyndon Baines Johnson inherited our war against the people of Vietnam. He launched a War on Poverty. In order to fund our war against the people of Vietnam, he abandoned our War on Poverty. In the parlance of the day, he chose guns over butter. People from Martin Luther King Jr. to Jim Wallis (founder and editor of Sojourners) to Mike Pence (before he became vice president of the U.S.) have called budgets moral documents that should reflect the values of the majority of the American people. The Donald John Trump budget proposal (keep in mind it is only a proposal as it must be debated and passed by Congress) calls for an increase in funding for the Pentagon. Again. Yet the Pentagon buried an internal report that showed it had wasted $125 billion in administrative costs. Produced for the Pentagon by McKinsey and Company, the report indicated that

the Pentagon employed over 1.1 million contractors, civilians and uniformed personnel to fill office jobs in support of 1.3 million troops on active duty. The 1.3 million active duty troops are the fewest since 1940. Deputy Defense Secretary Robert O. Work, who authorized the McKinsey study, hid the report from Congress because he was sure Congress would cut Pentagon spending if the report became public. The Pentagon is a corpulent body in serious need of a budget cut. Yet the Trump plan calls for an increase of $54 billion for the Pentagon. Where will that increase come from? Cuts to funding for low-income mothers and children. Elimination of regional and rural economic investment. Massive cuts to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Elimination of transportation grants used for mass public transit improvements and para-transit for the differently abled.

Cutting way back on disease research. Elimination of the Meals on Wheels program. Elimination of a program that helps the poor pay for home energy costs. Cuts to college tuition aid. Elimination of funding for the arts. Cuts to the Community Development Block Grant Program as reported in Wednesday Journal (March 15 issue). Rather than gutting programs that benefit our neighbors and friends, let’s expand programs and services as if people matter: Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP); Medicare for all (single payer health care); affordable child care. Let’s focus on improving the quality of the lives of the many rather than the most wealthy. Don’t we all want safe neighborhoods with affordable housing? Don’t we all want quality public education? Why sacrifice these things to fund increased militarism? Rep. Keith Ellison (D, MN) has introduced

TOM

BRODERICK One View

Trumpcare coverage cuts will give us death panels

In European countries, no one goes bankrupt from medical bills but in the U.S., 680,000 go bankrupt each year from medical bills. Now is the time for Medicare for all.

Tom Ard

Oak Park

SHE SNORES MORE THAN I DO, MORE BUTSHE I STILL SHE SNORES SNORES MORE LOVEI DO, MY BUT HUMAN. THAN ITHAN STILLI DO, BUT I STILL — BANDIT LOVE MY HUMAN.LOVE MY HUMAN. adopted 11-26-09 — BANDIT adopted 11-26-09

— BANDIT adopted 11-26-09

the Inclusive Prosperity Act (H.R. 1144 / S. 434) which is a financial transaction tax that would levy a small tax (a fraction of one percent) on Wall Street transactions. This “robin hood” tax could raise billions of dollars to invest in the programs listed above. Representative John Conyers (D, MI) has introduced H.R. 1000, the HumphreyHawkins Full Employment and Training Act. The goal of this act is to gainfully employ people at living wages to re-build our crumbling infrastructure, including our water delivery systems (think Flint, MI), our schools and hospitals, among other things. I want to thank my representative, Danny K. Davis, for co-sponsoring this progressive bill and urge him to co-sponsor Rep. Ellison’s Inclusive Prosperity Act. We need to push for a visionary budget that emphasizes community rather than one that promotes conflict. Tom Broderick is co-chair of Greater Oak Park Democratic Socialists of America.

Letters to the editor

E-MAIL: ktrainor@wjinc.com FAX: 708-524-0047 MAIL: Wednesday Journal, 141 S. Oak Park Ave., Oak Park, IL 60302

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Wednesday Journal, April 5, 2017

A patriot’s lament

olitical smear campaigns obliterate the very existence of a well-informed electorate and make a mockery of the election process. In the 2016 election campaign, the electorate was not only ill-informed but also churned into an emotionally frenzied mob. Trump broke all rules of civility as he unleashed his vitriolic attacks on his opponents. Such toxicity was stunning indeed. Trump seized upon people’s disillusionments with the policies of previous administrations. He fanned the flames of anger and hate. Building a following, he made vast but vague promises and aligned himself with hate groups. I empathized with people’s discontent with the political establishment. For more than three decades I too struggled against my own economic downward spiraling. I had no costof-living increase in my Social Security benefits for more than eight years. As a patriot, I felt wounded by the loss of stature the United States had suffered. I felt that previous administrations underserved us. But I could not accept “The Donald” as the champion of my cause, especially in light of the way he was conducting himself. I could not accept the bigotry he was purveying. I could not present Trump as a role model to my children. On Election Day, I walked into the polling place conflicted and in despair. Trump was unacceptable, and Hillary offered eight more years of the same policies that were stifling my quality of life. I fulfilled my civic obligation by voting for my writein. I stayed up late on election night and went to bed with the outcome still too close to call. But in the morning I awoke to the unimaginable. After his inauguration, Donald continues his abrasive ways. He has influenced many people but has not made many friends. He has insulted and alienated many leaders of other nations. World leaders cringe as they await Trump’s new tweets. Russia’s Putin may have done more than hack into Democratic Party’s emails. There is evidence that Trump advisers were communicating with Russian “intelligence operatives” prior to our election. Were they coordinating a collusion? An inquiry might reveal a scandal that could surpass Watergate. Now, nearly halfway into the first 100 days of Trump’s presidency, the administration’s cabinet has not been completed. Our nation is a “house divided,” with virtually no healing or uniting efforts apparent anywhere. “Sorcerer Trump” is firing his apprentices, and is moving America into isolation. Mark Twain said, “People deserve the government they elect.” It may be so. But many of us caught in the tidal wave will also suffer consequences. My fellow patriots and I hear the call to make America great. We are eager to respond but, frustrated, we ask, “What can we do for our country?” The aftershocks of the election still have not stopped. While we cannot wait for the dust to settle, we are stymied by the prevailing conflict. With internal national strife and isolation in the world at large, greatness cannot be achieved. In my lament I say, “Cry, my fellow patriots. Weep with me profusely, not only in regret for the election outcome but also because the slanderous, defamatory campaign robbed us of our right to know the truth.”

FRED NATKEVI One View

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Baracoa from an Oak Park lens

n journalism school, they teach us not to become part of the story. But when Oak Park dentist Sarita Woodson and the American Dental Association donated more than $1,000 worth of toothbrushes, toothpaste and mouthwash for the Afro-Indian-Haitian-Cubans of the rural El Gurito village of Baracoa partially destroyed by Hurricane Matthew, I could not refuse. After all, we’re humans first, reporters second. Respectfully, I handed one of the El Gurito leaders a suitcase filled with gifts. As a show of appreciation, they fed us a delectable buffet and played “changui” (Cuban blues) with our musicians while we all danced to this glorious cultural diplomacy in the wake of the U.S.-Cuban relations thaw. Changüí is a style of Cuban music that originated in the early 19th century, according to Hothouse founder Marguerite Horberg, who organized the trip. It arose in the sugar cane refineries and in the rural communities of the eastern region of Guantánamo Province, specifically Baracoa. Changüí combines the structure and elements of Spain’s canción and the Spanish guitar with African rhythms and percussion instruments of Bantu origin. According to Horberg, “The blues patterns of Changüí have similarities to music that also migrated to Chicago,” a city founded by Haitian explorer Jean Baptiste Point Dusable. We saw the lights of Haiti 30 miles away at night in Baracoa where the mix of music, cultures and languages have created a rich mosaic. All of this made us feel at home. I’m here shooting photos and video for a delegation of Chicago blues musicians who jammed with “changui” counterparts in Baracoa, Guantanamo and Santiago de Cuba as part of the Hothouse Chicago-Guantanamo Blues Exchange in the Eastern Province called “Oriente” (where Oak Parker Jan Pena-Davis has relatives). I was also able to reunite with Elario Navarro, a former Cuban solider-turned-musician who fought in two conflict zones in Angola during the time I was there covering the war. The public story is the Cubans saying, “The decades-old U.S. embargo is strangling our country and the illegal U.S. military base and prison at Guantanamo is giving us the blues.” The U.S. Navy base has been here since 1903 and extended in 2003 because of what’s called the Platt Agreement, which Cubans signed under duress of occupation by the U.S. military more than a century ago. Today, Cubans argue, it’s an affront to their sovereignty.

STAN WEST

Photos by Stan West

According to Reference.com, “Senator Orville Platt introduced the amendment and it passed by a vote of 43 to 20. In addition to allowing the United States its say in Cuban affairs, it also dictated that Cuba lease or sell the U.S. lands for use as naval stations or for coaling, including the naval station located at Guantanamo Bay.” Cubans we talked to cited human rights abuses connected to the U.S. base. Politics aside, coastal, pastel-painted Baracoa with its cacao farms, fishing industry and prolific art scene was a great place to end our week-long excursion into what Oak Park activist-educator Nancy Mikelsons calls “Cuba’s oft-neglected area to the more popular Occidente or western area.” She was surprised we were able to get into Baracoa since 80 percent of this area was ravaged by last fall’s hurricane. Mikelsons has visited and lectured in this region at least a dozen times and, along with Pena-Davis, inspired me to forgo the more popular western and touristy Havana area for the more rustic, rural east. Luckily, the whole country — government as well as private citizens — converged on this mostly industry-poor, culturally-rich eastern area to rebuild it to its 95 percent capacity.

Wednesday Journal, April 5, 2017

OAKPARK.COM | RIVERFOREST.COM

O B I T U A R I E S

Alex Kolovitz, 31

OP library aide, inspirational figure Alexander Philip Kolovitz, 31, of Oak Park, died suddenly on March 15, 2017. Born on May 10, 1985, he was the youngest of eight children. Alex battled chronic lung disease and had a tracheostomy, so he ALEX KOLOVITZ couldn’t talk, but he didn’t always have to. He spoke volumes through his actions and the love he gave to his family, friends, and caretakers. Many teachers, teachers’ aides, therapists, and specialists taught Alex and worked with him at St. Edmund, at Oak Park’s Holmes Elementary and Emerson (now Brooks) Middle School and at Oak Park and River Forest High School. He wouldn’t let you forget that he was an honor roll student, student of the quarter, and an inspirational athlete. Alex was involved in the Best Buddies program at OPRF and an active member of Opportunity Knocks, which is a nonprofit organization that provides programs and services to young men and women with developmental and intellectual disabilities. He loved nearly every sport but especially major league baseball and professional wrestling. And he wasn’t just a spectator. Finding ways to stay active and participate as much as he could, he practiced yoga for 12 years. He loved his job as an aide at the Oak Park Public Library.

He had to overcome many challenges in his life, and he always did it with a smile on his face. He was an inspiration to everyone and will be missed dearly. Alex Kolovitz was the son of Phil and Mary; the brother of Anthony (Gina), Marla, Adam (Sara), Lisa, Georgia, Sara and Carla (Paul); the uncle of Ethan, Sophia, Brayden, Vincent, Philip, Robert, Owen, Gabe, Colin, Jack, Chase, Charlie, Reid and Quinn; and a nephew, cousin, and friend to many.

Betty Johnsen, 85 Registered Nurse

Betty R. Johnsen, RN (nee Miller), 85, a former 50-year resident of Oak Park, died on March 25, 2017. She is survived by her children, David, Karen (Marc) Wesseler and Steven (Colleen); nine grandchildren; three great-grandchildren; and her brother, Russell (Jane) Miller. She was preceded in death by her husband, Robert E. A memorial service took place on April 1 at Oak Park’s Calvary Memorial Church, followed by private interment. The family appreciates donations in her name to Moody Church Broadcasting Ministry. Arrangements were handled by WilliamsKampp Funeral Home in Wheaton, 630-6680016 or www.williams-kampp.com.

Charles Samec, 80 Minister and teacher

Charles Edward Samec, PhD, 80, of Carol Stream and a former 37-year resident of Oak Park, died on March 31, 2017 at Central DuPage Hospital. Born in Berwyn, he graduated from Morton High School, attended

Morton Jr. College, and graduated from Wheaton College with a B.A. in Liberal Arts. He attended Northern Illinois Baptist Theological Seminary and received his Master of Divinity degree. He also attended Loyola CHARLES SAMEC University where he received his M.A. and then a PhD in Education and History. His thesis for this was “A History of the Amherst Project: Revising the Teaching of American History, 1959-1972.” He was ordained a Baptist minister at the Oak Park Avenue Baptist Church (now First Baptist of Oak Park) and in 1965 he began teaching at Morton West High School. Over the years he taught at various universities, including DePaul University, Wheaton College, Loyola University, Morton College, Triton College, and College of DuPage. He participated in a National Endowment for the Humanities Summer Institute for teachers in 1992 at University of Illinois Chicago. Thanks to the Chicago Historical Society’s gracious hospitality and resources, his final work was published in 1993, titled, “The History of Cicero Township: Cartographic Perspective.” He retired in 1999 to pursue his many hobbies and spend time with his family and friends. Charles Samec is survived by Carolyn, his wife of 56 years; his children, Robin (Steven) Christensen and Michael (Anna) Samec; his brother, Bob (Rosemary) Samec; and many nieces, nephews, great-nieces, and greatnephews. He was preceded in death by his parents, Henry J. and Stella (nee Janovsky) Samec.

of Oak Park and River Forest

Jacqueline Schelthoff, 89 Oak Park resident

Jacqueline Georgette Schelthoff (nee Chevron), 89, of Oak Park, died on March 28, 2017. Born on April 26, 1927 in Paris, France, she was a longtime member of FUSE, the French United States Exchange. JACQUELINE Jacqueline was SCHELTHOFF the mother of Christian Angele (Cesar) Schelthoff, John William Schelthoff Jr., Phillip Edward Schelthoff, and Steven Robert Schelthoff; the grandmother of Michael, Gabrielle, Samantha and Riley Schelthoff; daughter of the late Jean Eugene Chevron and the late Henriette Demiliers; and sister of Denise, Georgette, and Micheline. Visitation and service were held on April 1 at Drechsler, Brown & Williams Funeral Home, followed by interment at Queen of Heaven Cemetery.

To run an obituary

W E D N E S D A Y

JOURNAL

Visitation will take place from 3 to 9 p.m. on Friday, April 7, at Oak Park’s Drechsler, Brown & Williams Funeral Home, 203 S. Marion St., with a memorial service on Saturday, April 8 at 2 p.m. at First Baptist Church of Oak Park, 820 Ontario St., followed by private interment. In lieu of flowers, please support the Salvation Army or First Baptist Church of Oak Park or a no-kill animal shelter.

Please contact Ken Trainor by e-mail: ktrainor@wjinc.com, or fax: 708/524-0447 before Monday at noon. Please include a photo if possible.

EVERYTHING OAK PARK EVERYONE OAK PARK Check out the mobile version of

IN THE PALM OF YOUR HAND

Wednesday Journal, April 5, 2017

OAKPARK.COM | RIVERFOREST.COM New local ads this week

YOUR WEEKLY AD

REACHES SIX SUBURBAN COMMUNITIES: OAK PARK, RIVER FOREST, FOREST PARK, BROOKFIELD, RIVERSIDE, NORTH RIVERSIDE, AND PARTS OF CHICAGO

WEDNESDAY

CLASSIFIED

HOURS: 9:00 A.M.– 5:00 P.M. MON–FRI

Deadline is Tuesday at 9:30 a.m.

Please Check Your Ad: The publisher will not be responsible for more than one incorrect insertion. Wednesday Journal Classified must be notified before the second insertion. The newspaper reserves the right to edit or reject any advertisement.

Place your ad online anytime at: www.OakPark.com/Classiﬁed/

BY PHONE: (708) 613-3333 | BY FAX: (708) 524-0447 | BY E-MAIL: CLASSIFIEDS@OAKPARK.COM | CLASSIFIEDS@RIVERFOREST.COM HELP WANTED

HELP WANTED

ELECTRICIAN’S HELPER PART-TIME Part-time Electrician’s Helper. Some experience required. Must have own transportation and some tools. Call 708-738-3848.

PART-TIME SEASONAL GARDEN CENTER ASSISTANT McAdam Nursery & Garden Center in Forest Park seeks a part-time, seasonal Garden Center Assistant with extensive plant knowledge, ability to interact positively with customers, and to provide reliable cash handling. Part-time hours would occasionally expand to address peak customer volume periods. Founded in 1979, McAdam is online at www.McAdamLandscape.com. Submit resume to Lena at lena@ mcadamlandscape.com.

SERVERS & BUSSERS WINBERIE’S (Oak Park)

FULL-TIME ACCOUNTS RECEIVABLE/BILLING PROFESSIONAL McAdam Landscaping in Forest Park seeks a full-time individual for accounts receivable/billing position. Minimum two years experience required, with solid clerical/accounting knowledge. Complex problemsolving skills and ability to be a positive, well-rounded team member are musts. Founded in 1979, McAdam is online at www.McAdamLandscape.com. Submit resume to Lena at lena@mcadamlandscape.com. Implementation Analyst sought by Enfusion Ltd. LLC in Chicago, IL to troubleshoot & develop custom financial reports. Req Bachelor’s degree in Finance + 3 yrs exp. Exp w/: SAS, Maple, MATLAB, & JMP. Send cover letter & resume to: Tim Finney, 30 South Wacker Dr, Ste 1375, Chicago, IL 60606 LANDSCAPE/LABORER Independant landscaper looking for landscape laborers for Oak Park area. 30-40 hrs a week. Mon-Fri. 708-547-9121 LINE COOKS & DISHWASHERS WINBERIE’S (Oak Park) Winberie’s Restaurant and Bar in Oak Park is looking for Dishwashers and Line Cooks to join our team! The ideal candidates will be friendly, hardworking team players. The Line Cook candidates will have some previous experience, understand recipes and be friendly, hardworking team players that are passionate about food. Open availability a must, full-time and part-time positions available. Compensation: Hourly. Competitive based on experience. Benefits for any full-time employees. Employment type: employee’s choice Please apply in person, Monday through Saturday, from 2 to 6 p.m., at: 151 North Oak Park Ave. Oak Park, IL 60301 Meeting & Event Planner (Chicago, IL) Meet w/ clients to understand purpose of meeting or event & define its scope. Plan & manage all aspects of events & meetings. Supervise event activities to ensure client & event attendee satisfaction. Monitor & maintain scheduling & timelines for multiple events. Reqs Bach’s deg in Hospitality Mgmt or closely related. Resumes to J. Cazarez, Ivy Hotel LLC (dba Ivy Boutique Hotel), 233 E Ontario St, Chicago, IL 60611.

Buying? Selling? Renting? Hiring?

Advertise in WEDNESDAY CLASSIFIED 708613-3333

Physical Education Teacher (Chicago, IL) Instruct secondary school students (K-12) in physical education activities; plan physical education prgm to promote dvlpmt of student’s physical attributes & social skills; teach individual & team sports to students; teach & demonstrate use of gymnastic & training apparatus, such as trampolines & weights; confer w/ students, parents, & school staff to resolve student problem; produce formal & informal testing to evaluate student success; coordinate & manage extracurricular duties as assigned & sponsor outside activities approved by the charter principal; ensure necessary & reasonable measures are taken to protect students, eqpmt, materials & facilities. Bachelor’s deg in Physical Education, or Sports Mgmt plus 24 mos progressive exp. in the job at K-12 school envrmt including sport camps, coaching sports team reqd; M-F, 40 hrs/ wk; Send resume to Muhammet YILDIZ, Horizon Science Academy Southwest Chicago Charter School, 5401 S Western Ave, Chicago, IL 60609. PT CLEANER FOREST PARK Part-time cleaner needed immediately to clean small office in Forest Park. Daytime position. Must pass background check & drug screen. $18/hr. Contact Bob at rnlundygvpm@gmail.com. PT FARMERS’ MKT ASST The Village of Oak Park is seeking qualified candidates for the position of Seasonal Part-time Farmers’ Market Assistant in the Health Department. This position will provide administrative support to the Farmers’ Market Manager to allow growers and producers of food to sell directly to the public within established guidelines. This position requires work in inclement weather conditions; some heavy lifting of up to 50 pounds; walking or standing for sustained periods of time. Applicants are encouraged to visit the Village of Oak Park’s website at http:// www.oak-park.us/ jobs. Interested and qualified applicants must complete a Village of Oak Park application no later than April 12, 2017. SCHAUER’S HARDWARE PART-TIME CASHIER 25-30 hours, mostly Afternoons and Evenings. Weekends required. No experience necessary, but looking for positive energy people. Must be outgoing, able to work with customers, deal with money & problem solving. Send resume to schauerhardware@att.net.

Winberie’s Restaurant and Bar in Oak Park is looking for experienced SERVERS & BUSSERS to join our team! The ideal candidates will have 1-2 years restaurant/hospitality experience and be friendly, hardworking team players. Open availability a must. Compensation: Hourly. Vacation & health benefits available for full-time employees. Employment type: employee’s choice Please apply in person, Monday through Saturday, from 2 to 4 p.m., at: 151 North Oak Park Ave. Oak Park, IL 60301

CHURCHES Find Hope this Easter!

Join us this Sunday and every Sunday leading up to Easter to experience HOPE and find God’s purpose for your life.

New Life Community Church

3801 Madison in Brookfield Sundays @ 11:30 Children’s ministry is available Free gifts for all visitors. (meeting at Faith Lutheran Church)

newlifebrookfield.org 708.277.9191

SUBURBAN REAL ESTATE BEAUTIFUL GUNDERSON HOME Walk to all schools & Green & Blue LInes, spacious airy, 5 bd, 4 baths, large yard 533 S. Elmwood Ave–Open House on Sunday 1 to 4 pm OR call 708-407-0223 large master bedr with private master bath, rec room, 4 floors of living space, elegant arches , 7 large bay windows, Price :high fives, agents 2%, for sale by owner. Library 2 blks, new basketball ct, new tennis, tot lot baseball just one block, schools very, very close, walk to 2 aquatic centers and ice skating rink—best location!

HISTORIC MAYWOOD MANOR

902 S. 3RD AVENUE (2 blks W of 1st Ave & 1 blk N of Madison) Tired of renting? Why not consider buying an affordable 2BR condo w/ 1000+ sq ft of living space? Savings are built in from a unique 12 year tax freeze plus lower utility costs from energy saving systems and appliances. Onsite pkg, exterior lighting and enhanced security systems included. Plus you can customize and design your living space to better meet your needs! For details Call 708-383-9223. Lost & Found and To Be Given Away ads run free in Wednesday Classified. To place your ad, call 708-613-3342

ROOMS FOR RENT

SUBURBAN RENTALS 2BR RIVERSIDE 2 BR apartment in renovated Victorian home. New kitchen. Garage. 2 blks to train and town. $975. Monthly rent incl. heat & laundry. Call 708-342-0811. OAK PARK 2BR 2 Bedrooms, LR, DR, hardwood floors, tile bath, heat included. $1,250 + 1 mo security. Call 708-717-3975 OAK PARK FOREST PARK Studio, 1, and 2 BDRM. Heated. Dining room. Parking available. Walk to El. $625-$1250.

www.oakrent.com

CITY RENTALS AUSTIN VILLAGE 5939 W. Midway Parkway Remodeled 1 BR. Half block from Oak Park, Green Line & shops. 3rd Floor. $800/month. Heat not included. 708-383-9223 or 773-676-6805.

ROOMS FOR RENT Large Sunny Room with fridge & microwave. Near Green line, bus, Oak Park, 24 hour desk, parking lot. $101.00 week & up. New Mgmt. 773-378-8888

AUSTIN CLEAN ROOM With fridge, micro. Nr Oak Park, Super Walmart, Food 4 Less, bus, & Metra. $116/wk and up. 773-637-5957

OFFICE SPACE FOR RENT * RIVER FOREST * 7777 Lake St. - 3 & 5 room suites 7756 Madison St. - Store: 926 sq. ft. - Office: 900 sq. ft.

* OAK PARK *

6955 North Ave. - 3 room office suite 6957 North Ave. - 2 room office suite 6142-44 Roosevelt Rd. - 4 room office suite

Strand & Browne 708/488-0011

PARKING SPACES/ GARAGE PARKING SPACE RENTAL

The Nineteenth Century Club at 178 Forest Ave. has parking spaces available for 24 hour rental. Please contact Jeanne at 708-386-2729 or info@nineteenthcentury for more detail.

CHURCHES FOR RENT MAYWOOD COUNTRY CHURCH Lovely, old fashioned country church in Maywood, on corner of Fifth and Erie is looking for a roommate or tenant. We are willing to work out a flexible arrangement if you are an appropriate tenant. Various size spaces. Call 708 344-6150, leave a message.

OAK PARK CLASSIC CHURCH FOR RENT

Includes Sanctuary, Fellowship Hall, Kitchen, Midweek Service/ Bible Study, Office Options. 708-848-5460

ANTIQUES & AUCTIONS BERWYN

Historical Society

27TH ANNUAL ANTIQUE SHOW

SATURDAY, April 8th 9 AM to 3 PM Liberty Center 6445 W. 27th Place Rafﬂe & Bake Sale $3 Admission

www.berwynhistoricalsociety.org OakPark.com | RiverForest.com

RUMMAGE SALES Brookfield

ST. PAUL LUTHERAN SCHOOL RUMMAGE SALE! 9035 GRANT AVE FRI. 4/7 9AM-6PM SAT. 4/8 9AM-12PM

$5.00 Bag Sale on Saturday Clothing, household items, furniture, toys, books, misc. Forest Park

HUGE RUMMAGE SALE!!

SUBURBAN FELLOWSHIP CENTER 7438 HARRISON FRI–SAT–SUN 4/28 4/29 4/30 8AM TO 6PM Many Items to Choose From!

ESTATE SALES Riverside

ESTATE SALE 392 BLYTHE ROAD FRI 4/7 & SAT 4/8 10AM TO 4PM

MOST EVERYTHING MUST GO! “No Reasonable Offer Refused” Piano (upright); Solid Wood Rolltop Desk; Antique Dresser; Tables; DR: Table/2 leafs, 6 chairs; Kitchen: Pots, Pans, Silver, Dishes, Utensils, Wine & Stem Glasses; Professional Photography & Art Work; Tools; Patio Furniture; Bikes; Hide-abeds; Women’s Shoes & Clothes; Exercise Equip. For Information Call 708-800-8940

SUBURBAN RENTALS Apartment listings updated daily at:

M&M property management, inc.

708-386-7355 • www.mmpropmgt.com 649 Madison Street, Oak Park Oak Park: Studios, 1 & 2 BR from $750-$2000 Forest Park: 1 & 2 BR from $750-$1300

GLA PROPERTY MANAGEMENT, INC. LaVerne Collins Managing broker

Office located at: 320 S. Wisconsin Ave. Oak Park

708-763-9927 www.glapropertymanagement.com

Properties may be broker owned.

Call us for a complete list of rentals available.

Find your new apartment this Saturday from 10 am – 4pm at 35 Chicago Avenue. Or call us toll free at 1-888-328-8457 for an appointment.

You have jobs. We have readers!

Find the best employees with Wednesday Classified! Call 708-613-3342

Wednesday Journal, April 5, 2017

OAKPARK.COM | RIVERFOREST.COM

CLASSIFIED GARAGE/YARD SALES Oak Park

MULTI-FAMILY GARAGE SALE MOVING SALE! 916 PLEASANT ST. SAT 4/8 7AMâ&#x20AC;&#x201C;12PM

Household items, furniture, electronics, artwork, yard tools. All must go!

ITEMS FOR SALE BUMPER POOL TABLE $40 obo. BLONDE CHEST OF DRAWERS Dust Proof & DRESSER W/ MIRROR $150 FOR BOTH. FINE CHINA Lucien Piccard Fine China. Cream with platinum rim. 12 place settings. $150. Call 708-488-8755. FUTON Black futon on heavy iron frame. $49. Call 708-488-8755. IRON STAIR RAILINGS Pair of iron railing for stairs. aprx 128 x 22 inch $1100 OBO v708 334 2979 OUTDOOR FURNITURE High Quality Outdoor furniture. Heavy wrought iron. $125 obo. Call 708-488-8755. SEWING MACHINE Singer Sewing Machine. Like new. $49.00. Call 708-488-8755. Weber Grill Large double burner propane gas grill. Stainless Steel Cabinet. Excellent condition. $250 obo.

(708) 613-3333 â&#x20AC;˘ FAX: (708) 524-0447 â&#x20AC;˘ E-MAIL: CLASSIFIEDS@OAKPARK.COM | CLASSIFIEDS@RIVERFOREST.COM

ITEMS FOR SALE WIDDICOMB SIDE TABLES Pair of John Widdicomb tables good condition $800.00 OBO 708 334 7989

AUTOS FOR SALE 2005 VOLKSWAGEN GOLF GL 4 dr hatch. Automatic. 44k low miles. $4500. Call 708-383-8507.

CEMENT Finishing Touch Cement & Masonry Residential and Commercial Driveways | Garage Floors Sidewalks | Steps | Patios Specializing in Stamped Concrete Tuck Pointing and All Types Brickwork

Rocco Martino 708-878-8547 FinishingTouchCement2 @gmail.com

For All Your Concrete Needs!

CLEANING Pamâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s A+ Cleaning Service

A cleaner day is just a phone call away. For a detailed cleaning please call 708-937-9110

WANTED TO BUY

ELECTRICAL

WANTED MILITARY ITEMS: Helmets, medals, patches, uniforms, weapons, flags, photos, paperwork, Also toy soldiers-lead plastic-other misc. toys. Call Uncle Gary 708-522-3400

FOUR SEASONS ELECTRIC

FURNITURE JOHN WIDDICOMB BUFFET Buffet by John Widdicomb. Some water damage on top $600.00 708 334 7989 VENETIAN MUSICAL TABLES 6 TRIANGULAR MUSICAL TABLES $2100 OBO 708 334-7989

CEMENT

Full Service Electrical Work including

Rewiring Old Houses & Installing Ceiling Fans

Reasonable Pricing & Free Estimates No Job Too Big or Too Small Lic * Bonded * Ins * 24 hrs

708-445-0447

CEMENT

MAGANA

C O N C R E T E C O N S T RU C T I O N â&#x20AC;&#x153;QUALITY IS OUR FOUNDATIONâ&#x20AC;? ESTABLISHED IN 1987

COMMERCIAL Â&#x2DC; INDUSTRIAL Â&#x2DC; RESIDENTIAL

708.442.7720 '5,9(:$<6 Â&#x2021; )281'$7,216 Â&#x2021; 3$7,26 67(36 Â&#x2021; &85% *877(56 Â&#x2021; 6,'(:$/.6 612: 3/2:,1* Â&#x2021; 67$03(' &2/25(' $**5(*$7( &21&5(7( FREE ESTIMATES LICENSED, BONDED & INSURED

ď &#x2013;ď &#x2022;ď &#x2013;ď &#x2022;ď &#x2013;ď &#x2022;ď &#x2013; ď &#x2022;ď &#x2013;ď &#x2022;ď &#x2013;ď &#x2022;ď &#x2013;ď &#x2022;

ELECTRICAL

A&A ELECTRIC

Let an American Veteran do your work

We fix any electrical problem and do small jobs Fast Emergency Service | Residential â&#x20AC;˘ Commercial â&#x20AC;˘ Industrial Ceiling Free Home Evaluations | Lic. â&#x20AC;˘ Bonded â&#x20AC;˘ Ins. â&#x20AC;˘ Low Rates â&#x20AC;˘ Free Est. Fans Home Re-wiring â&#x20AC;˘ New Plugs & Switches Added Installed New circuit breaker boxes â&#x20AC;˘ Code violations corrected Serv. upgrades,100-200 amp â&#x20AC;˘ Garage & A/C lines installed

708-409-0988 â&#x20AC;˘ 708-738-3848

Sr. Discounts â&#x20AC;˘ 30 Yrs. Exp | Servicing Oak Park and all surrounding suburbs

ELECTRICAL

HANDYMAN

HUGHS ELECTRIC

%,%#42)#!, (!.$9-!. 3%26)#%3

Trouble Calls â&#x20AC;˘ Lights Rehab â&#x20AC;˘ Service Upgrades Lic - Bonded - Ins. Since 1986 Call Hugh:708-612-4803

Electricians serving the greater Oak Park area. Licensed, Bonded & Insuredâ&#x20AC;&#x201C;Reasonable Pricing & Free Estimates. Kineticâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s proud to say you have never experienced service like this! 15 years experience and dedication. No job too big or small!

Furnaces, Boilers and Space Heaters Refrigerators Ranges â&#x20AC;˘ Ovens Washer â&#x20AC;˘ Dryers Rodding Sewers Lic/Bonded 25 yrs experience

FREE SERVICE CALL WITH REPAIR AND SENIOR/VETERAN DISCOUNT.

+$1'<0$1 &2175$&725

708-785-2619 or 773-585-5000

:H GR TXDOLW\ ZRUN DW DIIRUGDEOH SULFHV

(708) 639-5271

FLOORS

Mikeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Home Repair

New hardwood flooring installation & pergo. Sanding, re-finishing, staining. Low prices, insured. Call: 773-671-4996 www.klisflooring.com

HEATING AND APPLIANCE EXPERT

!LL 4YPES OF (OME 2EPAIRS 2EPAIRS )NSTALLATIONS 0ROFESSIONAL 1UALITY 7ORK !T 2EASONABLE 0RICES 0ROMPT 3ERVICE 3MALL *OBS A 3PECIALTY

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KLIS FLOORING INC.

HEATING/ AIR CONDITIONING

Drywall H Painting H Tile Plumbing H Electric H Floors Windows H Doors H Siding Ask Us What We Donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t Do

708-296-2060

GARAGE/GARAGE HANDYMAN DOOR Roofing Repairs Concrete Repairs â&#x20AC;˘ Drywall All types of handiwork Call For Free Estimates

LANDSCAPING

LAWN MOWING We will do a clean, neat job mowing and trimming your lawn for a reasonable rate.

(708) 652-9415 www.forestdoor.com

Drywall Repair â&#x20AC;˘ Painting Fans Installed â&#x20AC;˘ Carpentry Trim Gutter Cleaning â&#x20AC;˘ Window Repair

FREE ESTIMATES Excellent References No Job Too Small

708-488-9411

Lic. #0967

PAINTING & DECORATING

We clean outâ&#x20AC;Ś r #BTFNFOUT r (BSBHFT r "UUJDT r )PVTFIPME %FCSJT r 4UPSBHF -PDLFST r "QBSUNFOUT r $PNNFSDJBM 0Ä&#x201C; DFT FREE ESTIMATES

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Fast Service, Great Prices Fully Insured metrojunkremoval.net

BASEMENT CLEANING Appliances & Furniture Removal Pickup & Delivery. 708-848-9404

ATTENTION! HOME IMPROVEMENT PROS! REACH THE PEOPLE MAKING THE DECISIONSâ&#x20AC;Ś advertise your home improvement business in WEDNESDAY CLASSIFIED. Call 708/613-3342

WINDOWS

ALEX

Residential and Commercial Pest Management Services offered:

â&#x20AC;˘Ant/Spider Control â&#x20AC;˘ Bed Bug Control â&#x20AC;˘ Bug Spraying â&#x20AC;˘ Exterminator Services â&#x20AC;˘ Fumigationâ&#x20AC;˘ Insect Control â&#x20AC;˘ Rodent Control & Removal â&#x20AC;˘Termite Control â&#x20AC;˘ Other Pest Control

CALL FOR A FREE ESTIMATE:

(773) 590-0622

PLASTERINGâ&#x20AC;&#x201C; STUCCOING McNulty Plastering & Stucco Co.

HANDYMAN

CURT'S HANDYMAN SERVICE

BROKEN SASH CORDS?

FAST RELIABLE SERVICE

(708) 452-8929

LAWN & GARDEN

MOVING

Call Taki (708)552-1565

All Work Guaranteed Lowest Prices Guaranteed FREE Video Inspection with Sewer Rodding /P +PC 5PP -BSHF t /P +PC 5PP 4NBMM Family Owned & Operated

PEST CONTROLâ&#x20AC;&#x201C; EXTERMINATOR

HAULING

CARPENTRY TILING PAINTING

FREE ESTIMATES Service in 1 Hour in Most Cases

708-243-0571

Sales & Service Free Estimates

Plumbing & Sewer Service

Exterior and Interior Spring Clean-Up All Work Guaranteed Aerating, Slit Seeding 35 Years Experience Bush Trimming, Zap 'em Trap 'em-z2BX B&S 06.08.16:Layout 1 6/3/16 11:27 AM Call 708-567-4680 Lawn Maintenance CALL THE Senior Discount WINDOW MAN! brucelawns.com

773-732-2263 Ask for John

A-All American

BRUCE LAWN SERVICE

Garage Doors &

Electric Door Openers

PLUMBING

PAINTING & DECORATING

ALLENâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S LAWN MOWING 708-280-6282

Our 71st Year

PLUMBING

Small & big work. Free estimates. Complete Plaster, Stucco & Re-Coating Services

Professional Movers ď &#x2019; Small Local Moves ď &#x2019; Storage Moves ď &#x2019; Labor-Only Moves

Call 708-375-0700 LIcensed â&#x20AC;˘ Insured ILCC 175625 MC

PAINTING & DECORATING 3 Pâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s AFFORDABLE PAINTING Professional water damage repairs plus more. 30 years of experience. Great references. (708)557-9258 or (708)435-9258

CLASSIC PAINTING

Fast & Neat Painting/Taping/Plaster Repair Low Cost

708.749.0011

708/386-2951 t ANYTIME Work Guaranteed

Licensed, Bonded, Insured, & EPA Certified Expert craftsmanship for over 50 years

REMODELING JO & RUTH REMODELING General Contractors - Family Owned Since 1982 -

Complete Remodeling Services

Specialists in:

â&#x20AC;˘ Kitchens & Baths â&#x20AC;˘ Basements â&#x20AC;˘ Electric & Plumbing â&#x20AC;˘ Wall & Floor Tile â&#x20AC;˘ Painting & Carpentry We Work With You To Meet Your Needs

773-575-7220

Licensed

Insured

Ralph Grande Elmwood Park 708-452-8929

Serving Oak Park, River Forest, Forest Park & Riverside Since 1974

PUBLIC NOTICES LEGAL NOTICE STATE OF ILLINOIS) COUNTY OF COOK )ss Circuit Court of Cook County, County Department, Domestic Relations Division. In re the marriage of Jesus Gabriel Avila,Petitioner and Milvian Chaparro, Respondent, Case No. 2017D-001932. The requisite affidavit for publication having been filed, notice is hereby given to you, the above named Respondent, that a Petition has been filed in the Circuit Court of Cook County, Illinois, by the Petitioner, for Dissolution of Marriage and for other relief; and that said suit is now pending. Now, therefore, unless you, the said Respondent, file your response to said Petition or otherwise make your appearance therein, in the Office of the Clerk of the Circuit Court of Cook County, Illinois, Room 802, Richard J. Daley Center, 50 West Washington Street, in the City of Chicago, Illinois, on or before April 24, 2017, default may be entered against you at any time after that day, and a judgment for Dissolution of Marriage entered in accordance with the prayer of said Petition. DOROTHY A. BROWN, Clerk. Published in Wednesday Journal 3/22, 3/29, 4/5/2017

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Wednesday Journal, April 5, 2017

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Public Notice: Your right to know In print • Online • Available to you 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, every day of the year OakPark.com | RiverForest.com | PublicNoticeIllinois.com PUBLIC NOTICES LEGAL NOTICE Chertkow and Chertkow (22019) Attorneys for Petitioner 1525 East 53rd Street Chicago, Illinois 60615 STATE OF ILLINOIS) COUNTY OF COOK )ss Circuit Court of Cook County, County Department, Domestic Relations Division. vIn re the marriage of Mario Gonzalez, Petitioner and Elisa Analco Andrade, Respondent, Case No. 2017D-002060. The requisite affidavit for publication having been filed, notice is hereby given to you, the above named Respondent, that a Petition has been filed in the Circuit Court of Cook County, Illinois, by the Petitioner, for Dissolution of Marriage and for other relief; and that said suit is now pending. Now, therefore, unless you, the said Respondent, file your response to said Petition or otherwise make your appearance therein, in the Office of the Clerk of the Circuit Court of Cook County, Illinois, Room 802, Richard J. Daley Center, 50 West Washington Street, in the City of Chicago, Illinois, on or before /bApril 24, 2017, /rdefault may be entered against you at any time after that day, and a judgment for Dissolution of Marriage entered in accordance with the prayer of said Petition. DOROTHY A. BROWN, Clerk. Published in Wednesday Journal 3/22, 3/29, 4/5/2017

LEGAL NOTICE Chertkow and Chertkow (22019) Attorneys for Petitioner 1525 East 53rd Street Chicago, Illinois 60615 STATE OF ILLINOIS) COUNTY OF COOK )ss Circuit Court of Cook County, County Department, Domestic Relations Division. In re the marriage of Benjamin Padilla, Petitioner and Yolanda Padilla, Respondent, Case No. 2017D-002202. The requisite affidavit for publication having been filed, notice is hereby given to you, the above named Respondent, that a Petition has been filed in the Circuit Court of Cook County, Illinois, by the Petitioner, for Dissolution of Marriage and for other relief; and that said suit is now pending. Now, therefore, unless you, the said Respondent, file your response to said Petition or otherwise make your appearance therein, in the Office of the Clerk of the Circuit Court of Cook County, Illinois, Room 802, Richard J. Daley Center, 50 West Washington Street, in the City of Chicago, Illinois, on or before May 1, 2017, default may be entered against you at any time after that day, and a judgment for Dissolution of Marriage entered in accordance with the prayer of said Petition. DOROTHY A. BROWN, Clerk. Published in Wednesday Journal 3/29, 4/5, 4/12/2017

PUBLIC NOTICES

PUBLIC NOTICE VILLAGE OF RIVERSIDE, ILLINOIS NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING

Notice is hereby given to all interested persons that a public hearing before the Planning and Zoning Commission of the Village of Riverside will be held on Wednesday, April 26, 2017 at 7:00 p.m., or as soon thereafter as the business of the Planning and Zoning Commission may permit, in Room 4 of the Riverside Township Hall, 27 Riverside Road, Riverside, Illinois, to consider proposed text amendments to the Village of Riverside Zoning Ordinance. Application No.: PZ 17-001 Petitioner: Village of Riverside Proposed Text Amendments are to the Following Village Code Sections: 10-1-3 (Applicability), 10-2-2-5 (Building Permits), 10-5-9 (Use and Bulk Requirement Tables/ Table 4: Business District Permitted Uses), 10-6-2 (Use Standards), 10-7-3 (Accessory Structures and Uses), 10-8-9 (Required Off Street Parking Spaces/Table 8), 10-105 (Nonconforming Lot of Record), 10-11-4 (Other Terms Defined), and such other conforming changes to other sections of the Village of Riverside Zoning Ordinance as may be necessary. Specific proposed changes include, but are not limited to: Section 10-1-3 (Applicability) of the Village of Riverside Zoning Ordinance currently outlines how the zoning ordinance applies within the Village and its other ordinances. The Village proposes to modify these regulations relative to the application of the Zoning Ordinance and its general prohibitions. Section 10-2-2-5 (Building Permit) of the Village of Riverside Zoning Ordinance currently states when a building permit is required. The Village proposes to modify this section to align it with the Building Code regulations on when a permit is required.

Section 10-5-9 (Use and Bulk Requirement Tables/Table 4: Business Districts Permitted Uses) of the Village of Riverside Zoning Ordinance currently lists all the permitted and special uses and any related use standards for the Business Districts. The Village proposes to add references to the Drive-Through Facility Use Standards to “Retail Sales Establishments: with drive-through facilities” and “Restaurant: with drive-through facilities,” in the table. Section 10-6-2(C) (Use Standards/ Financial Institutions With DriveThrough Facilities) provides regulations for drive-through facilities for Financial Institutions. Staff proposes amendments to this section and to make it applicable to all drivethrough facilities, not just Financial Institutions. Section 10-7-3(A) (Accessory Structures and Uses/Accessory Structures) of the Village of

Riverside Zoning Ordinance currently regulates Accessory Structures. The Village proposes to modify/clarify the applicability of these regulations, to add gazebos which are listed in the permitted encroachments for accessory structures, and to clarify the reference to the preservation ordinance. Section 10-8-9 (Required Off-Street Parking Spaces/Table 8: Required Off-Street Parking) of the Village of Riverside Zoning Ordinance currently lists the required off-street parking requirements for various uses. The Village proposes to remove the parking requirement for specific listed non-residential uses in the B1-TC Zoning District and to keep just the existing general requirement for “non-residential uses” in order to clarify which parking requirements apply to non-residential uses in this zoning district. Section 10-10-5(B) (Nonconforming Lot of Record/Lots of Record Held in Common Ownership) of the Village of Riverside Zoning Ordinance currently regulates nonconforming lots of record. The Village proposes to modify these regulations to prevent the creation of additional nonconformities, and to otherwise align these regulations with Section 10-1-3 and other village ordinances. Section 10-11-4 (Other Terms Defined) of the Village of Riverside Zoning Ordinance defines other terms. The Village proposes to modify certain definitions to clarify or align with other village ordinances as well as create new definitions to clarify existing regulations related to accessory buildings and structures. The above application is available for inspection at the office of the Village Clerk, 27 Riverside Road, Riverside, Illinois 60546. During the Public Hearing the Planning and Zoning Commission will hear testimony from and consider any evidence presented by persons interested to speak on these matters. Persons wishing to appear at this hearing may do so in person or by attorney or other representative and may speak for or against the proposed text amendments. Communications in writing in relation thereto may be filed at such hearing or with the Planning & Zoning Commission in advance by submission to the Village’s Building Department at 27 Riverside Road, Riverside, Illinois prior to 4:00 p.m. the day of the public hearing. The Public Hearing may be continued from time to time without further notice, except as otherwise required under the Illinois Open Meetings Act. Dated this 5th day of April, 2017. Paul Kucera, Chairperson Planning & Zoning Commission

Published in RB Landmark 4/5/2017

Starting a new business in 2017? Call the experts before you place your legal ad! Call 708/613-3342 to advertise.

PUBLIC NOTICES

LEGAL NOTICE

Chertkow and Chertkow (22019) Attorneys for Petitioner 1525 East 53rd Street Chicago, Illinois 60615

OAK PARK TOWNSHIP NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN to legal voters, residents of the Township of Oak Park, in the County of Cook, State of Illinois, that Public Hearings on the Tentative Town Fund, General Assistance Fund, and Community Mental Health Fund Budgets for Fiscal Year 2018, will be held at 7:00 p.m. Tuesday, May 9, 2017 at the Oak Park Township Hall, 105 S. Oak Park, Ave., in the Township of Oak Park. A copy of the Tentative Budgets named above is on file and available for public inspection, between the hours of 9:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. on weekdays, at the Town Hall, 105 S. Oak Park Ave., in the Town of Oak Park, Illinois beginning April 6, 2017. Oral and written comments concerning these proposed annual budgets are welcome.

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: D17150314 on April 3, 2017. Under the Assumed Business Name of SHOREWOOD STUDIO with the business located at: 1155 S. ELMWOOD AVE., OAK PARK, IL 60304. The true and real full name(s) and residence address of the owner(s)/partner(s) is: KYLIE STANLEY LARSON 1155 S. ELMWOOD AVE. OAK PARK, IL 60304

STATE OF ILLINOIS) COUNTY OF COOK )ss Circuit Court of Cook County, County Department, Domestic Relations Division. In re the marriage of Olufunke O. Ogunyipe, Petitioner and Adebola Ogunsanya, Respondent, Case No. 2017D-002420. The requisite affidavit for publication having been filed, notice is hereby given to you, the above named Respondent, that a Petition has been filed in the Circuit Court of Cook County, Illinois, by the Petitioner, for Dissolution of Marriage and for other relief; and that said suit is now pending. Now, therefore, unless you, the said Respondent, file your response to said Petition or otherwise make your appearance therein, in the Office of the Clerk of the Circuit Court of Cook County, Illinois, Room 802, Richard J. Daley Center, 50 West Washington Street, in the City of Chicago, Illinois, on or before May 1, 2017, default may be entered against you at any time after that day, and a judgment for Dissolution of Marriage entered in accordance with the prayer of said Petition. DOROTHY A. BROWN, Clerk. Published in Wednesday Journal 3/29, 4/5, 4/12/2017

LEGAL NOTICE Invitation to Bid Oak Park Elementary School District Number 97, will receive sealed bids at the District’s Maintenance Building, 541 Madison Street, Oak Park, Illinois, 60302, until 1:00 p.m. local time on Friday, April 21, 2017 for Asbestos Abatement work. A mandatory pre-bid conference and walk through will be held at 4:00 p.m. on Thursday, April 13, 2017 at Longfellow School, 715 South Highland Ave., Oak Park, IL 60304. All prospective bidders are required to attend. Bid documents will be available at the pre-bid conference through the Project Designer, Ramboll Environ. Contact Matt Meyer with any questions concerning the project at mmeyer@ramboll.com. Only those bids complying with the provisions and specifications of the Bid will be considered. The Board of Education reserves the right to waive any informalities, qualifications, or irregularities, and / or to reject any or all proposals, when in it’s opinion, such action will serve the best interest of the Board of Education of Oak Park Elementary School District Number 97. Contracts awarded by the Board of Education require that Contractors comply with the Prevailing Wage Act of the State of Illinois; the general prevailing rate of wages shall be paid for each craft or type of worker or mechanic required to execute the contract of perform such work. Dr. Alicia Evans Assistant Superintendent for Finance and Operations Published in Wednesday Journal 4/5/2017

All interested citizens, groups, senior citizens and organizations representing the interests of senior citizens are encouraged to attend. Oak Park Township does not discriminate on the basis of handicapped status in the admission or access to, or employment in its programs or activities. Those needing special accommodations are asked to provide 48 hours notice. Given under my hand in the Town of Oak Park, County of Cook, State of Illinois, the 3rd day of April, 2017. Gregory P. White Oak Park Township Clerk Published in Wednesday Journal 4/5/2017

PUBLIC NOTICE PETITION FOR CHANGE OF NAME In the Circuit Court of Cook County, Illinois, County Department, County Division. In the matter of the petition of Xhevat Shefik Sherifi on behalf of Adrian Xhevan Sherifi, Aferdita Sherifi; Artana Sherifi for change of name to Jack Prespa on behalf of Adrian Jack Prespa; Aferdita Prespa; Artana Prespa;, Case No. 17M3001772. Notice is given you, the public, that on March 10, 2017, I have filed a Petition For Change of Name in this Court, asking the Court to change our present names of Xhevat Shefik Sherifi, Adrian Shevat Sherifi, Aferdita Sherifi, and Artana Sherifi to the names of Jack Prespa, Adrian Jack Prespa, Aferdita Prespa, and Artana Prespa. This case will be heard in courtroom 204 on May 16, 2017 at 9:00 a.m.. Published in Wednesday Journal 3/22, 3/29, 4/5/2017

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: D17150264 on March 29, 2017. Under the Assumed Business Name of LMH COACHING AND CONSULTING with the business located at: 832 S WESLEY AVE, OAK PARK, IL 60304. The true and real full name(s) and residence address of the owner(s)/partner(s) is: LINDSAY M HAMMER 832 S WESLEY AVE OAK PARK, IL 60304 Published in Wednesday Journal 4/5, 4/12, 4/19/2017

Published in Wednesday Journal 4/5, 4/12, 4/19/2017

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: D17150044 on March 15, 2017. Under the Assumed Business Name of WHITE WOLF ACADEMY with the business located at: 159 MARION ST. SUITE 336, OAK PARK, IL 60301. The true and real full name(s) and residence address of the owner(s)/partner(s) is: CHAD KOCH 159 N MARION ST. SUITE 336 OAK PARK, IL 60301 Published in Wednesday Journal 3/29, 4/5, 4/12/2017

REAL ESTATE FOR SALE IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF COOK COUNTY, ILLINOIS COUNTY DEPARTMENT– CHANCERY DIVISION WELLS FARGO BANK, N.A. Plaintiff, -v.JENNIFER KANWISCHER, THOMAS KANWISCHER, CHASE MORTGAGE SERVICES, INC. F/K/A CHASE HOME MORTGAGE CORPORATION Defendants 16 CH 12264 1126 SOUTH HUMPHREY AVENUE Oak Park, IL 60304 NOTICE OF SALE PUBLIC NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale entered in the above cause on February 1, 2017, an agent for The Judicial Sales Corporation, will at 10:30 AM on May 2, 2017, at The Judicial Sales Corporation, One South Wacker Drive–24th Floor, CHICAGO, IL, 60606, sell at public auction to the highest bidder, as set forth below, the following described real estate: Commonly known as 1126 SOUTH HUMPHREY AVENUE, Oak Park, IL 60304 Property Index No. 16-17-323-0120000. The real estate is improved with a single family residence. The judgment amount was $268,984.41. Sale terms: 25% down of the highest bid by certified funds at the close of the sale payable to The Judicial Sales Corporation. No third party checks will be accepted. The balance, including the Judicial sale fee for Abandoned Residential Property Municipality Relief Fund, which is calculated on residential real estate at the rate of $1 for each $1,000 or fraction thereof of

REAL ESTATE FOR SALE the amount paid by the purchaser not to exceed $300, in certified funds/or wire transfer, is due within twenty-four (24) hours. No fee shall be paid by the mortgagee acquiring the residential real estate pursuant to its credit bid at the sale or by any mortgagee, judgment creditor, or other lienor acquiring the residential real estate whose rights in and to the residential real estate arose prior to the sale. The subject property is subject to general real estate taxes, special assessments, or special taxes levied against said real estate and is offered for sale without any representation as to quality or quantity of title and without recourse to Plaintiff and in “AS IS” condition. The sale is further subject to confirmation by the court. Upon payment in full of the amount bid, the purchaser will receive a Certificate of Sale that will entitle the purchaser to a deed to the real estate after confirmation of the sale. The property will NOT be open for inspection and plaintiff makes no representation as to the condition of the property. Prospective bidders are admonished to check the court file to verify all information. If this property is a condominium unit, the purchaser of the unit at the foreclosure sale, other than a mortgagee, shall pay the assessments and the legal fees required by The Condominium Property Act, 765 ILCS 605/ 9(g) (1) and (g)(4). If this property is a condominium unit which is part of a common interest community, the purchaser of the unit at the foreclosure sale other than a mortgagee shall pay the assessments required by The Condominium Property Act, 765 ILCS 605/18.5(g-1). IF YOU ARE THE MORTGAGOR (HOMEOWNER), YOU HAVE THE RIGHT TO REMAIN IN POSSESSION FOR 30 DAYS AFTER ENTRY OF AN ORDER OF POSSESSION, IN ACCORDANCE WITH SECTION 15-1701(C) OF THE ILLINOIS MORTGAGE FORECLOSURE LAW. You will need a photo identification issued by a government agency (driver’s license, passport, etc.) in order to gain entry into our building and the foreclosure sale room in Cook County and the same identification for sales held at other county venues where The Judicial Sales Corporation conducts foreclosure sales. For information, contact The sales clerk, SHAPIRO KREISMAN & ASSOCIATES, LLC, 2121 WAUKEGAN RD., SUITE 301, Bannockburn, IL 60015, (847) 2911717 For information call between the hours of 1pm–3pm. Please refer to file number 16-080649. THE JUDICIAL SALES CORPORATION One South Wacker Drive, 24th Floor, Chicago, IL 60606-4650 (312) 236-SALE You can also visit The Judicial Sales Corporation at www.tjsc.com for a 7 day status report of pending sales. SHAPIRO KREISMAN & ASSOCIATES, LLC 2121 WAUKEGAN RD., SUITE 301 Bannockburn, IL 60015 (847) 291-1717 E-Mail: ILNotices@logs. com Attorney File No. 16-080649 Attorney Code. 42168 Case Number: 16 CH 12264 TJSC#: 371267 NOTE: Pursuant to the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, you are advised that Plaintiff’s attorney is deemed to be a debt collector attempting to collect a debt and any information obtained will be used for that purpose. I715322

Wednesday Journal, April 5, 2017

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Public Notice: Your right to know In print • Online • Available to you 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, every day of the year OakPark.com | RiverForest.com | PublicNoticeIllinois.com REAL ESTATE FOR SALE

REAL ESTATE FOR SALE

IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF COOK COUNTY, ILLINOIS COUNTY DEPARTMENT– CHANCERY DIVISION DITECH FINANCIAL, LLC; Plaintiff, vs. STEVEN SPEARS; TCF NATIONAL BANK, A NATIONAL BANKING ASSOCIATION; EDGEWOOD PLACE CONDOMINIUM ASSOCIATION; Defendants, 16 CH 12877 NOTICE OF SALE PUBLIC NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale entered in the above entitled cause Intercounty Judicial Sales Corporation will on Friday, May 5, 2017 at the hour of 11 a.m. in their office at 120 West Madison Street, Suite 718A, Chicago, Illinois, sell at public auction to the highest bidder for cash, as set forth below, the following described mortgaged real estate: P.I.N. 15-11-211-018-1008. Commonly known as 419 Edgewood Place aka 419 Edgewood Place, Unit 2, River Forest, IL 60305. The mortgaged real estate is improved with a condominium residence. The purchaser of the unit other than a mortgagee shall pay the assessments and the legal fees required by subdivisions (g) (1) and (g)(4) of Section 9 of the Condominium Property Act Sale terms: 10% down by certified funds, balance, by certified funds, within 24 hours. No refunds. The property will NOT be open for inspection. For information call Sales Department at Plaintiff’s Attorney, Manley Deas Kochalski, LLC, One East Wacker Drive, Chicago, Illinois 60601. (614) 220-5611. 16-019886 F2 INTERCOUNTY JUDICIAL SALES CORPORATION Selling Officer, (312) 444-1122

For information call Sales Department at Plaintiff’s Attorney, Manley Deas Kochalski, LLC, One East Wacker Drive, Chicago, Illinois 60601. (614) 220-5611. 15-012938 F2 INTERCOUNTY JUDICIAL SALES CORPORATION Selling Officer, (312) 444-1122

inspection and plaintiff makes no representation as to the condition of the property. Prospective bidders are admonished to check the court file to verify all information. If this property is a condominium unit, the purchaser of the unit at the foreclosure sale, other than a mortgagee, shall pay the assessments and the legal fees required by The Condominium Property Act, 765 ILCS 605/9(g)(1) and (g)(4). If this property is a condominium unit which is part of a common interest community, the purchaser of the unit at the foreclosure sale other than a mortgagee shall pay the assessments required by The Condominium Property Act, 765 ILCS 605/ 18.5(g-1). IF YOU ARE THE MORTGAGOR (HOMEOWNER), YOU HAVE THE RIGHT TO REMAIN IN POSSESSION FOR 30 DAYS AFTER ENTRY OF AN ORDER OF POSSESSION, IN ACCORDANCE WITH SECTION 15-1701(C) OF THE ILLINOIS MORTGAGE FORECLOSURE LAW. You will need a photo identification issued by a government agency (driver’s license, passport, etc.) in order to gain entry into our building and the foreclosure sale room in Cook County and the same identification for sales held at other county venues where The Judicial Sales Corporation conducts foreclosure sales. For information, contact Plaintiff’s attorney: POTESTIVO & ASSOCIATES, P.C., 223 WEST JACKSON BLVD, STE 610, Chicago, IL 60606, (312) 263-0003 Please refer to file number C1496007. THE JUDICIAL SALES CORPORATION One South Wacker Drive, 24th Floor, Chicago, IL 60606-4650 (312) 236-SALE You can also visit The Judicial Sales Corporation at www.tjsc.com for a 7 day status report of pending sales. NOTE: Pursuant to the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, you are advised that Plaintiff’s attorney is deemed to be a debt collector attempting to collect a debt and any information obtained will be used for that purpose. I716046

I718114 IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF COOK COUNTY, ILLINOIS COUNTY DEPARTMENT– CHANCERY DIVISION WELLS FARGO BANK, NA; Plaintiff, vs. DAVID GILKEY; Defendants, 15 CH 8713 NOTICE OF SALE PUBLIC NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale entered in the above entitled cause Intercounty Judicial Sales Corporation will on Monday, May 1, 2017 at the hour of 11 a.m. in their office at 120 West Madison Street, Suite 718A, Chicago, Illinois, sell at public auction to the highest bidder for cash, as set forth below, the following described mortgaged real estate: P.I.N. 15-10-436-055-0000. Commonly known as 826 South 11th Avenue, Maywood, IL 60153. The mortgaged real estate is improved with a single family residence. If the subject mortgaged real estate is a unit of a common interest community, the purchaser of the unit other than a mortgagee shall pay the assessments required by subsection (g-1) of Section 18.5 of the Condominium Property Act. Sale terms: 10% down by certified funds, balance, by certified funds, within 24 hours. No refunds. The property will NOT be open for inspection.

I718070 IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF COOK COUNTY, ILLINOIS COUNTY DEPARTMENT– CHANCERY DIVISION U.S. BANK, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION, AS TRUSTEE UNDER THE POOLING AND SERVICING AGREEMENT DATED AS OF MARCH 1, 2007, GSAMP TRUST 2007-HE2, MORTGAGE PASS-THROUGH CERTIFICATES, SERIES 2007-HE2 Plaintiff, -v.LISA ROCHE A/K/A LISA C. ROCHE A/K/A LISA CIEPLECHOWICZ, MICHAEL ROCHE A/K/A MICHAEL E. ROCHE, 101 NORTH OAK PARK, LLC Defendants 10 CH 04218 616 S. OAK PARK AVENUE Oak Park, IL 60304 NOTICE OF SALE PUBLIC NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale entered in the above cause on February 15, 2017, an agent for The Judicial Sales Corporation, will at 10:30 AM on May 16, 2017, at The Judicial Sales Corporation, One South Wacker Drive–24th Floor, CHICAGO, IL, 60606, sell at public auction to the highest bidder, as set forth below, the following described real estate: Commonly known as 616 S. OAK PARK AVENUE, Oak Park, IL 60304 Property Index No. 16-18-208-005. The real estate is improved with a single family residence. The judgment amount was $815,289.08. Sale terms: 25% down of the highest bid by certified funds at the close of the sale payable to The Judicial Sales Corporation. No third party checks will be accepted. The balance, including the Judicial sale fee for Abandoned Residential Property Municipality Relief Fund, which is calculated on residential real estate at the rate of $1 for each $1,000 or fraction thereof of the amount paid by the purchaser not to exceed $300, in certified funds/or wire transfer, is due within twenty-four (24) hours. No fee shall be paid by the mortgagee acquiring the residential real estate pursuant to its credit bid at the sale or by any mortgagee, judgment creditor, or other lienor acquiring the residential real estate whose rights in and to the residential real estate arose prior to the sale. The subject property is subject to general real estate taxes, special assessments, or special taxes levied against said real estate and is offered for sale without any representation as to quality or quantity of title and without recourse to Plaintiff and in “AS IS” condition. The sale is further subject to confirmation by the court. Upon payment in full of the amount bid, the purchaser will receive a Certificate of Sale that will entitle the purchaser to a deed to the real estate after confirmation of the sale. The property will NOT be open for

IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF COOK COUNTY, ILLINOIS COUNTY DEPARTMENT– CHANCERY DIVISION US BANK N.A. FKA FIRSTAR BANK N.A. Plaintiff, -v.JOEANN PEOPLES A/K/A JOE ANN PEOPLES, A/K/A JOANN PEOPLES, A/K/A JOANNE PEOPLES, RUBY J. FOUNTAIN, LEE ANDREW FOUNTAIN, VILLAGE OF MAYWOOD Defendants 04 CH 2810 500 SOUTH 10TH AVENUE MAYWOOD, IL 60153 NOTICE OF SALE PUBLIC NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale entered in the above cause on October 17, 2016, an agent for The Judicial Sales Corporation, will at 10:30 AM on May 18, 2017, at The Judicial Sales Corporation, One South Wacker Drive–24th Floor, CHICAGO, IL, 60606, sell at public auction to the highest bidder, as set forth below, the following described real estate:

REAL ESTATE REAL ESTATE MORTGAGE DIRECTORY FOR SALE FOR SALE

REAL ESTATE FOR SALE

MORTGAGE RATE DIRECTORY LENDER COMMUNITY BANK OF OAK PARK - RIVER FOREST

(708) 660-7006 1001 Lake St., Oak Park IL 60301 www.cboprf.com

AMOUNT

RATE/YR

80% 80% 80% 80% 80% 80%

4.375% / 30 yr. fixed 4.250% / 20 yr. fixed 3.625% / 15 yr. fixed 3.750% / 5 yr. ARM 3.750% / 7 yr. ARM 4.000% / 10 yr. ARM

POINTS/ APP. FEE 0%/$550 0%/$550 0%/$550 0%/$550 0%/$550 0%/$550

A.P.R.

4.446% 4.347% 3.748% 4.060% 4.017% 4.070%

· Approved IHDA Mortgage Program Lender · Financing available up to 97% LTV Construction Loans and Home Equity Lines of Credit available – call for terms.

Mortgage rates are accurate as of Monday afternoon. Due to the fluctuation of mortgage rates, the rates may vary before publication. Contact your mortgage lender for complete details. Mortgage rates vary in APR and other qualifying factors.

To Advertise your Mortgage Rates, call Mary Ellen Nelligan: 708/613-3342 Commonly known as 500 SOUTH 10TH AVENUE, MAYWOOD, IL 60153 Property Index No. 15-10-418-0090000. The real estate is improved with a 2 unit home white frame blue trim; with a detached 2 car garage. Sale terms: 25% down of the highest bid by certified funds at the close of the sale payable to The Judicial Sales Corporation. No third party checks will be accepted. The balance, including the Judicial sale fee for Abandoned Residential Property Municipality Relief Fund, which is calculated on residential real estate at the rate of $1 for each $1,000 or fraction thereof of the amount paid by the purchaser not to exceed $300, in certified funds/or wire transfer, is due within twenty-four (24) hours. No fee shall be paid by the mortgagee acquiring the residential real estate pursuant to its credit bid at the sale or by any mortgagee, judgment creditor, or other lienor acquiring the residential real estate whose rights in and to the residential real estate arose prior to the sale. The subject property is subject to general real estate taxes, special assessments, or special taxes levied against said real estate and is offered for sale without any representation as to quality or quantity of title and without recourse to Plaintiff and in “AS IS” condition. The sale is further subject to confirmation by the court. Upon payment in full of the amount bid, the purchaser will receive a Certificate of Sale that will entitle the purchaser to a deed to the real estate after confirmation of the sale. The property will NOT be open for inspection and plaintiff makes no representation as to the condition of the property. Prospective bidders are admonished to check the court file to verify all information. If this property is a condominium unit, the purchaser of the unit at the foreclosure sale, other than a mortgagee, shall pay the assessments and the legal fees required by The Condominium Property Act, 765 ILCS 605/9(g)(1) and (g)(4). If this property is a condominium unit which is part of a common interest community, the purchaser of the unit at the foreclosure sale other than a mortgagee shall pay the assessments required by The Condominium Property Act, 765 ILCS 605/ 18.5(g-1). IF YOU ARE THE MORTGAGOR (HOMEOWNER), YOU HAVE THE RIGHT TO REMAIN IN POSSESSION FOR 30 DAYS AFTER ENTRY OF AN ORDER OF POSSESSION, IN ACCORDANCE

WITH SECTION 15-1701(C) OF THE ILLINOIS MORTGAGE FORECLOSURE LAW. You will need a photo identification issued by a government agency (driver’s license, passport, etc.) in order to gain entry into our building and the foreclosure sale room in Cook County and the same identification for sales held at other county venues where The Judicial Sales Corporation conducts foreclosure sales. For information: Visit our website at service.atty-pierce.com. McCalla Raymer Pierce, LLC, Plaintiff’s Attorneys, One North Dearborn Street Suite 1300, CHICAGO, IL 60602. Tel No. (312) 476-5500. Please refer to file number 9281. THE JUDICIAL SALES CORPORATION One South Wacker Drive, 24th Floor, Chicago, IL 60606-4650 (312) 236-SALE You can also visit The Judicial Sales Corporation at www.tjsc.com for a 7 day status report of pending sales. I717767 IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF COOK COUNTY, ILLINOIS COUNTY DEPARTMENT– CHANCERY DIVISION WELLS FARGO BANK, N.A. Plaintiff, -v.TEMIKA TURNER, UNKNOWN OWNERS AND NONRECORD CLAIMANTS, UNKNOWN HEIRS AND LEGATEES OF EVANGELINE JONES, GERALD NORDGREN, AS SPECIAL REPRESENTATIVE FOR EVANGELINE JONES (DECEASED) Defendants 16 CH 008840 1922 S. 9TH AVENUE MAYWOOD, IL 60153 NOTICE OF SALE PUBLIC NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale entered in the above cause on January 12, 2017, an agent for The Judicial Sales Corporation, will at 10:30 AM on May 19, 2017, at The Judicial Sales Corporation, One South Wacker Drive–24th Floor, CHICAGO, IL, 60606, sell at public auction to the highest bidder, as set forth below, the following described real estate: Commonly known as 1922 S. 9TH AVENUE, MAYWOOD, IL 60153 Property Index No. 15-15-415-0230000. The real estate is improved with a residence. Sale terms: 25% down of the highest bid by certified funds at the

close of the sale payable to The Judicial Sales Corporation. No third party checks will be accepted. The balance, including the Judicial sale fee for Abandoned Residential Property Municipality Relief Fund, which is calculated on residential real estate at the rate of $1 for each $1,000 or fraction thereof of the amount paid by the purchaser not to exceed $300, in certified funds/or wire transfer, is due within twenty-four (24) hours. No fee shall be paid by the mortgagee acquiring the residential real estate pursuant to its credit bid at the sale or by any mortgagee, judgment creditor, or other lienor acquiring the residential real estate whose rights in and to the residential real estate arose prior to the sale. The subject property is subject to general real estate taxes, special assessments, or special taxes levied against said real estate and is offered for sale without any representation as to quality or quantity of title and without recourse to Plaintiff and in “AS IS” condition. The sale is further subject to confirmation by the court. Upon payment in full of the amount bid, the purchaser will receive a Certificate of Sale that will entitle the purchaser to a deed to the real estate after confirmation of the sale. The property will NOT be open for inspection and plaintiff makes no representation as to the condition of the property. Prospective bidders are admonished to check the court file to verify all information. If this property is a condominium unit, the purchaser of the unit at the foreclosure sale, other than a mortgagee, shall pay the assessments and the legal fees required by The Condominium Property Act, 765 ILCS 605/9(g)(1) and (g)(4). If this property is a condominium unit which is part of a common interest community, the purchaser of the unit at the foreclosure sale other than a mortgagee shall pay the assessments required by The Condominium Property Act, 765 ILCS 605/ 18.5(g-1). IF YOU ARE THE MORTGAGOR (HOMEOWNER), YOU HAVE THE RIGHT TO REMAIN IN POSSESSION FOR 30 DAYS AFTER ENTRY OF AN ORDER OF POSSESSION, IN ACCORDANCE WITH SECTION 15-1701(C) OF THE ILLINOIS MORTGAGE FORECLOSURE LAW. You will need a photo identification issued by a government agency (driver’s license, passport, etc.) in order to gain entry into our building and the foreclosure sale room in Cook County and the same identification for sales held at other county

venues where The Judicial Sales Corporation conducts foreclosure sales. For information, examine the court file or contact Plaintiff’s attorney: CODILIS & ASSOCIATES, P.C., 15W030 NORTH FRONTAGE ROAD, SUITE 100, BURR RIDGE, IL 60527, (630) 794-9876 Please refer to file number 14-16-07345. THE JUDICIAL SALES CORPORATION One South Wacker Drive, 24th Floor, Chicago, IL 60606-4650 (312) 236-SALE You can also visit The Judicial Sales Corporation at www.tjsc.com for a 7 day status report of pending sales. NOTE: Pursuant to the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, you are advised that Plaintiff’s attorney is deemed to be a debt collector attempting to collect a debt and any information obtained will be used for that purpose. I716424

EQUAL HOUSING OPPORTUNITY All real estate advertising in this newspaper is subject to the Fair Housing Act., which makes it illegal to advertise any preference, limitation or discrimination based on age, race, color, religion, sex, handicap, familial status or national origin, or intention to make any such preferences, limitations or discrimination. The Illinois Human Rights Act prohibits discrimination in the sale, rental or advertising of real estate based on factors in addition to those protected under federal law. This newspaper will not knowingly accept any advertising for real estate which is in violation of the law. All persons are hereby informedthat all dwellings advertised are available on an equal opportunity basis. Restrictions or prohibitions of pets do not apply to service animals. To complain of discrimination, call HUD toll free at: 1-800-669-9777. WEDNESDAY JOURNAL Forest Park Review, Landmark

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Wednesday Journal, April 5, 2017

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Future is bright for Fenwick girls soccer

Senior forward Brennan leads team loaded with young talent By MATT LE CREN Contributing Reporter

Isabel Brennan knows she is a rare breed and she’s OK with that. Brennan is the only senior starter on the Fenwick girls soccer team, which has a bright future after winning the first Class 3A regional championship in program history last spring. Brennan, a forward, is one of only three seniors on the roster. The others are backup goalkeepers Caroline Fahey and Kelly Carpenter. “Being the only senior is fine,” Brennan said. “I definitely have to take a leadership role but I like it. We all get along really well. “We have four captains and we all take different roles. I’m definitely more of the serious one. I’m quite off the field but you will definitely hear me on the field. “Our other captains are more vocal, but we unite really well.” The Friars may be young but they don’t lack talent. The other co-captains are

forward Lauren Stibich and midfielders Kaylie Fredian and Lauren Miller, all of whom are returning starters. “We are a young team,” Brennan said. “We do have a lot of juniors and sophomores that is like the core of our team. “They’re really good, so I think by the time they’re seniors we’ll be even more solid than we are right now. It’s nice because they develop really good team chemistry with each other and they’re growing up together.” The Friars are off to a 3-3 start against a typically tough schedule. They knocked off Mother McAuley 3-0 on Saturday in their GCAC Red opener before losing to St. Francis 4-1 in Wheaton on Monday night. The Spartans (2-0-1, 1-0) went to the Class 2A state semifinals last year and feature two future Big Ten strikers in Illinois-bound junior Kendra Pasquale and sophomore Hannah Rittenhouse, who just committed to Iowa. Pasquale scored twice and Rittenhouse and Erin Peck each had one against Fenwick. They blew the game open by scoring

File photo

Fenwick forward Lauren Stibich is a co-captain with excellent scoring and passing ability. three highlight-reel goals on three consecutive shots in the first half. “First half after a couple of their goals we definitely got down on ourselves, so I think at halftime we regrouped,” Fenwick junior Morgan Hosty said. “The captains told us some things to look out for and I

think we came back in the second half with our heads high and we really wanted to get some work done.” Hosty did just that, averting a shutout by bagging her fourth goal of the season with 10:40 remaining off a throw-in from Fredian and an assist by Miller.

SOCCER TRYOUTS!

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Wednesday Journal, April 5, 2017

OPRF girls soccer in rebuilding mode

Although injuries have hurt Huskies, team will compete and develop talent this season By MATT LE CREN Contributing Reporter

Most high school teams have to endure rebuilding years every so often. But the already difficult process becomes even harder when some of the foundation pieces are in pieces. That’s the situation faced this spring by the Oak Park and River Forest girls soccer team, which already has lost three players to season-ending torn ACLs. “This is going to be a rebuilding year but we’ve taken a couple injuries that have put a crimp in our plan,” OPRF coach Ignacio Ponce said. “Our goal is to develop this (junior) class and get them to play together, then teach the basics to the next class and hopefully next year they can come together.” The Huskies don’t have any big future college stars and one of the few players that had been recruited, senior goalkeeper Ava Trogus, has decided to forgo a college career to focus on academics. Trogus, a top student and aspiring engineer, impressed as a junior with her height and athleticism, but has dislocated her shoulder twice in the past year, thus ending her career between the pipes. But she’s still on the roster and could contribute. “She can’t play in the goal,” Ponce said. “So I’m trying to convert her to a forward.” Ponce will be happy with any production he can get from Trogus, seeing as how the offense figures to struggle with

inexperience. The only returning starter up front, senior Julia Morrison, has switched to defense, where she joins returning seniors Charlotte Melcher and Samantha Gurrola. The play of the back line will be crucial considering the Huskies’ green goalkeeping corps. Trogus’ backup is ineligible for the first five games, meaning sophomore Alexandra Hampton, who had been slated to be the JV goalie, has started the first four games. The Huskies (2-2) split those games, with Hampton getting two shutouts. OPRF beat Niles West 2-0 in the season opener on goals from Morrison and senior midfielder Cedella Breitenstein, and edged Whitney Young 1-0, with another senior midfielder, Grace Huettel, netting the lone goal. Huettel, who had two assists against Niles West, and Breitenstein are returning starters who provide strength in the midfield. Breitenstein is back from a torn ACL. “(Huettel) is a strong player,” Ponce said. “With those two in the middle, it’s looking solid.” But another potential impact player, junior forward Ella Karnowski, will have to sit out a second straight season with a knee injury. After showing promise as a freshman, Karnowski suffered a torn ACL last season, then tore it again on the first day of practice last month. “She played on the sophomore team as a freshman and I was hoping she’d be a good person off the bench,” Ponce said. “She’s pretty solid. She wants to come back next year.” Other newcomers who figure to play leading roles include junior defender Emma Smith, who was brought up to varsity for the playoffs last spring, and senior midfielder Quinn

File photo

OPRF senior midfielder Grace Huettel, right, is a leader and playmaker for the Huskies. Berleman, who has returned from a torn ACL. The Huskies’ only losses have been a 2-0 decision to Nazareth and a 7-0 defeat at the hands of Benet. Both of those schools are favored to be contenders in Class 2A. The Huskies were missing seven starters, who were on an overseas trip, for the Benet game.

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Wednesday Journal, April 5, 2017

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Growing Community.

WILLIAM CAMARGO/Staff Photographer

Ian Smith is a talented player who is focused on improving his movement. (Right) Tom McNeil, Smith’s doubles partner, is solid off the ground.

TENNIS

Witsman Invite from page 56 Sullivan. “He’s played about 45 matches at big tournaments since last year’s state finals tournament. He’s a big, strong kid who has improved the technique on his strokes. “Nico is our No. 2 singles but plays Carlos pretty close in practice. I have to say they are almost neck and neck. Nico is also our top doubles players.” On Saturday, the Friars also fared well in doubles with the tandems of Mike Prabhu/ Jeff Cappelli, Marty Nield/Liam Collins and Chris Sedlacek/Justin Wakely winning two of three matches as well. Ryan Castellano and Antonio Bosco are experienced players who could also contribute for the Friars this spring. “We have competitive players on our team,” Nield said. “Carlos and Nico are really good players at the top of our lineup. It’s fun playing against them. I think we all like playing every day and making each other better.” The Witsman Invite served as a preview of the Chicago Catholic League North race. Loyola, St. Ignatius and Fenwick, along with De La Salle, are the top contenders to win the conference championship.

“It’s a very competitive conference,” Sullivan said. “Last year, the Chicago Catholic League expanded, too, with the addition of schools like Marmion, Montini and St. Francis so it’s getting even tougher. “We’ll have our hands full but that’s a good thing. From a coach’s perspective, the fact that every kid on this team is willing to improve is all I need.” Fenwick welcomes De La Salle to Taylor Park for a conference match on Wednesday, April 5 at 4 p.m.

OPRF has talent, lacks experience

With 11 state championships, including seven in a row from 1947-1954, the Huskies often fly under the radar as one of the state’s best tennis programs. Perennial powers Hinsdale Central (24 state titles) and New Trier (21) now get most of the attention. After losing several key seniors (notably Jacob Palley and George Brennan) to graduation last year, the Huskies are reignContinued on page 55

OAKPARK.COM | RIVERFOREST.COM Continued from page 54 ing in expectations a bit this season. “It’s a rebuilding year,” Morlidge said. “There’s some talent in our program, but we don’t have many tournament players like in the past. I don’t think our team leaders have emerged yet. Hopefully, some guys step up in practice and lead by example. “We’re pretty fortunate to be hosting a sectional this season. St. Ignatius is in our sectional, but overall it’s one of the weaker sectionals. We would like to qualify as many players as possible for the state tournament.” In singles, the top returning player is sophomore Sean Wangelin. Although he lost to Gutierrez 6-0, 6-1 at No. 1 singles Saturday, Wangelin is a talented player with powerful groundstrokes and great movement on the court. “Sean worked really hard during the offseason,” Morlidge said. “He improved his serve and he’s a good baseline player.” Ben Manola, Ian Smith and Ryan Murray are vying for JOHN MORLIDGE playing time at No. OPRF coach 2 singles. Promising freshman Neil Fajardo played second singles Saturday. Tommy McNeil and Smith were at No. 1 doubles Saturday. They won two of three matches in an auspicious season debut. “We haven’t played a lot together so it was pretty good,” McNeil said. “I also think in a pinch we’re great together. This is my senior year so I want to win a lot of matches.” Smith added: “I think our team should be decent. We might not be as good as recent years, but it still should be fun. “I need to be better with my movement when it comes to doubles.” Other OPRF players expected to contribute this season are senior Matt Kanagandram, juniors Elijah Carter and Max Freeman, and freshman Sam Heilenbach. OPRF hosts highly regarded Glenbrook North on Thursday, April 6 at 4:45 p.m.

“It’s a rebuilding year. There’s some talent in our program, but we don’t have many tournament players like in the past.”

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Wednesday Journal, April 5, 2017

Future is bright for Fenwick girls soccer 52

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SPORTS

OPRF girls soccer i rebuilding mode in 53

Friars 3 , Huskies 4 at Witsman Invite rd th

Gutierrez, Halter lead Fenwick; Wangelin headlines OPRF lineup By MARTY FARMER

File photo

Fenwick junior Nico Halter is a versatile player. Halter, from Oak Park, plays at No. 2 singles but is also the Friars’ best doubles player.

Sports Editor

osted annually by Oak Park and River Forest High School, this year’s Rudy Witsman Invite had a decidedly Chicago Catholic League flavor at the top of the team standings on Saturday. Loyola won the championship with 42 points, followed by conference rivals St. Ignatius (38) and Fenwick (34). OPRF finished fourth (26) as the highest non-CCL team, with Evanston (18), Marist (12), Brother Rice (7) and Leyden (6) completing the eight-team field. “This is a great way to start the season and always a fantastic tournament,” OPRF coach John Morlidge said. “With Loyola, St. Ignatius, Fenwick and ourselves competing in the tournament, it’s a good field of teams.” While both the Friars and Huskies are still tinkering with their lineups, the former is front-loaded with talent at the top two singles positions. Sophomore Carlos Gutierrez and junior Nico Halter slot in at the No. 1 and No. 2 singles positions, respectively, for the Friars. Gutierrez dropped only 10 games in three straight sets wins at Witsman. He defeated St. Ignatius senior Bobby Sollberg 6-4, 6-3 in the final. Fenwick junior Nico Halter went 2-1 at second singles to earn a runner-up showing. “Carlos had a great finish last year by going to the second day of the state finals,” said Fenwick coach Gerard See TENNIS on page 54

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