Wednesday Journal 051921

W E D N E S D A Y

May 19, 2021 Vol. 41, No. 42 ONE DOLLAR @oakpark @wednesdayjournal

JOURNAL of Oak Park and River Forest

Array of goals as Oak Park’s new village board meets

An awful lot to live for Joe Citari, star of OPRF’s 1981 baseball state champs, battles ALS

Sustainability, racial equity, community safety, affordability and infrastructure key goals

By MELVIN TATE

I

Contributing Reporter

n June 1981, the Oak Park and River Forest High School baseball team won the Illinois High School Association Class AA championship, defeating Brother Rice 8-3 in the title game. The win marked legendary coach Jack Kaiser’s only state championship.

This year is the 40th anniversary of the Huskies’ special season, and that normally would be cause for great celebration. But the enthusiasm has been tempered with the news that the star and co-captain of the team is in hospice with an incurable disease.

Last September, Joe Citari was diagnosed with ALS, more commonly known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, after New York Yankees first basemen whose life and Hall of Fame career was cut short by the disease in 1941 at the age of 37.

It is a severe neurological condition that weakens muscles and impacts physical functions. For those who contract ALS, it becomes progressively difficult to move, speak, and breathe.

“I was not happy. It was a big-time shock,” said Citari during an interview with Wednesday Journal last week. “I have gone from being a normal person to someone who can hardly do anything in a year.”

Citari’s health has declined to the point where he was placed in hospice on May 4. It’s also been tough on his family, ex-wife Alicia, daughter Kaitlin and son Joe Jr. “ALS is a horrific and unforgiving disease, and it’s been painful to watch,” Alicia Citari said. “Joe was always super athletic, and to see him weakened is hard to see. He struggles with everything and he tries to stay as independent as possible. It’s just hard.”

Joe Citari says that every day someone is at his house doing something for him. He is grateful for the support he has received from the community, in particular his former OPRF baseball teammates.

“We started [getting together] last fall, and it’s blown up since then,” Citari said. “They come by every weekend and

By STACEY SHERIDAN Staff Reporter

Photo provided

A TOUGH OUT: Joe Citari faces a difficult diagnosis. we hang out.”

Alicia Citari said the reunification of the 1981 team as they rally around Joe has been a bright spot during a dark time.

“I can’t say enough about those guys,” she said. “Joe has an awesome group of friends from OPRF, and to hear them talk about baseball and high school is a really nice thing.

“Sometimes, life is so busy that you don’t really take the time to see your friends and family and do things. But I think this has forced [Joe’s teammates] to look at their mortality and bring them back together.”

Teammates were stunned to learn of Citari’s illness. As they did on the field 40 years ago, the former Huskies rallied around their leader.

“We’re seeing each other more now than we have in the last 40 years,” said 1981 OPRF co-captain Jim McBride. “We’re getting together to visit Joe, which is forcing us to get back together as a group. We’ve been able to reconnect and renew our friendships, and I think that’s cool.”

McBride said he’s been impressed by Citari’s determination to See CITARI on page 18

Oak Park’s newly reconstituted village board met Monday and offered up wide ranging goals for their term, spoke in civil tones and accepted some cautions from Vicki Scaman, the new village president, who urged reasonable expectations and an eye on the budget.

“We’re moving forward with respect for each other as well as respect for those who are going to help us implement and attain our goals,” Scaman told trustees at the meeting’s onset.

Goals were categorized into five groups: sustainability, racial equity, community safety, affordability and infrastructure, the last of which includes small business recovery actions. Once clearly defined and put to paper, the village board will adopt its goals later this year.

As a means of promoting greater accountability, Trustee Susan Buchanan asked that village staff present an action plan to the village board within a month of setting goals.

Scaman cautioned trustees to remember the limitations of municipal government by not setting overly ambitious goals difficult to attain during their terms.

“The more reasonable our expectations are, the more we all will feel successful and continue to be able to work together to reach our goals,” said Scaman.

See BOARD GOALS on page 18

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Wednesday Journal, May 19, 2021

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Farmers Market opens Saturday Market returns to Pilgrim Church lot under supervision of new manager

By MELISSA ELSMO Oak Park Eats Editor

Set your alarm clock and mask up -- the Oak Park Farmers Market is set to begin its 46th season on Saturday, May 22 at 7 a.m.

After the pandemic forced the market to relocate last year, the 2021 market is returning to the Pilgrim Church parking lot at Lake Street and Elmwood while still honoring social distancing requirements.

“The market is going to be comfortable and safe,” said Cameron Davis, assistant director of development customer services and staff liaison to the farmers market commission. “Not everyone has the capability to walk long distances and the shorter market route will benefit many customers.”

Maximizing walkable square footage in the market was a top priority for organizers. While the layout will look similar to previous markets held in the large lot, with vendors spaced along the perimeter, the arrangement of center aisle vendors has been shrunk to create significantly wider walking paths through the market.

The planned market layout has 13,000 square feet of non-vendor space. Phase four guidelines allow for 195 shoppers to be inside the market at one time -- 20 more people than were permitted inside the 2020 modified market. Market capacity would increase to nearly 400 people should Illinois enter the bridge phase under the Restore Illinois Plan.

The Oak Park Farmers Market will welcome masked guests at a single point of entry on Lake Street; should the market fill to capacity a line will snake west on Lake and north on Scoville. Inside the market traffic will flow one-way in a counterclockwise direction, but unlike last year guests will be able to make multiple loops through the market before exiting through one of two exits. According to Davis a shopper would have to make four laps around the market in the Pilgrim lot to cover a distance equivalent to a single trip through the modified ushaped market last year.

Approximately 20 vendors are participating in the 2021 market. Market goers should expect to see familiar and popular vendors like Katic Breads, J2K Capraio, and R.Smits at the market weekly. Knife sharpening services will be available at American Pride Microgreens. Organic produce vendor, Iron Creek, is making a notable return to the market this year and will occupy a large space in the northeast corner of the market.

After a successful first season the hyperlocal Oak Park farmers behind Chanticlare Farms will return this year. Shoppers will find them positioned on the east side of

Growing Community.

Alley and Residential Homes

N

Donut sales

Exit

Katic Breads

J2K Capraio Creamery

River Valley Ranch

Johanson’s Apple World

Iron Creek Organic Farm

Three Bees Honey

Ellis Family Farm

Nichols Farm and Orchard Chanticlare Farm

Walt Skibbe Farm R. Smits & Sons “The Farm” and Smits Organics

Breadman Baking Company

Hardin Farm

New vendor

Barry’s Berries

Green Fire Farm

American Pride Microfarm & knife sharpening

Brunkow Cheese / Baked Cheese Haus

Herbally Yours I INFO

Main Entrance / Ma Exit

To Downtown Oak Park

K.V. Stover & Sons

Lake Street

the market between Three Bees Honey and Breadman Baking Company.

Davis indicated organizers are still interested in attracting a couple more vendors to the market and are working diligently to find a plant and flower focused farm interested in signing on for the season.

“It is most exciting that so many returning vendors requested more space this year,” said Davis. “With the added space we expect to see a healthy increase in the number of products offered.”

Staffing shortages have made executing the complex aggregation program challenging; individuals looking to have a contactless market experience are encouraged, at least for the time being, to order through the What’s Good App and arrange for home delivery.

Donuts will be available for sale inside the market and will also be accessible from the

Geneva Lakes Produce

To Austin Blvd.

alley for those hoping to pick up sweet treats without entering the market. Musicians will perform on the lawn in front of Pilgrim Church to entertain market goers.

New market manager, Kimball Ingram, attended the May 12 Farmers Market Commission Meeting and introduced himself publicly for the first time. He and his family recently moved to Oak Park from Florida and he brings a wealth of experience in restaurant, bar and event management to the position.

“Kimball has been a great addition to staff,” said Davis. “He brings a very business focused approach to the farmers market. He is a good operational manager who understands this is a long-standing community event.”

The Oak Park Farmers Market will be open from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturdays from May 22 through Oct. 30. Masks required.

Wednesday Journal, May 19, 2021

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Gaza, crisis reporting, and the crisis of local journalism

O

n Saturday, May 15, Jawad Mahdi — the owner of the 11-story al-Jalaa tower in Gaza City that was home to residential apartments and the offices of Al Jazeera and the Associated Press — pleaded with an Israeli intelligence officer for more time.

Less than an hour earlier, Mahdi and others in the building had been notified by the Israeli army of the military’s intention to bomb the building.

The army claimed it housed Commentary “military interests of the Hamas intelligence,” Al Jazeera would later report, a line typically used after buildings are bombed in Gaza. (The outlet would also report that the military’s claims were not backed up by any evidence.)

“All I’m asking is to let four people … to go inside and get their cameras,” Mahdi told the officer. “We respect your wishes, we will not do it if you don’t allow it, but give us 10 minutes.”

“There will be no 10 minutes,” the intelligence officer told Mahdi, who then replied: “You have destroyed our life’s work, memories, life. I will hang up, do what you want. There is a God.” Mahdi’s comment is both fatalistic and defeated, but also hopeful and optimistic. Mahdi’s energy is spent, but his reserve is not depleted. The army may have obliterated his life’s work and artifacts of collective memory, but not his faith.

Recently, while thinking about the state of journalism, I’ve found myself feeling the mixed emotions Mahdi so vividly articulated over the phone in Gaza. On the one hand, I’m resigned to a reality that’s pretty hard to deny.

The al-Jalaa tower is, in some meaningful ways, a fitting metaphor for the state of local news in America.

When asked in 2019 about the future of local newspapers, billionaire and famed investor Warren Buffett said frankly: “They’re going to disappear.” Unfortunately, that’s how things seem to be trending.

A study in the Newspaper Research Journal showed that from 2004 to 2015, the country lost over 1,800 print outlets — each shuttered newspaper like a patch of brick wall holding up the al-Jalaa tower. Since then, more debris has fallen (and recently in Chicago, as Alden Global Capital aims its weapons of value destruction at the Tribune, we’ve gotten used to looking over our heads, so to speak).

For a country, newspapers in particular (the first drafts of history) and journalism in general are like neurons in the brain of a person. When she loses newspapers and journalists, a country also loses her ability to remember who she is, which is essential to forging the country she wants to be in the future. This amnesia plays right into the hands of authoritarians like Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

In Race, Media and the Crisis of Civil Society, his penetrating book published in 2000, sociologist Ronald Jacobs, referencing the philosopher Jurgen Habermas, explains that “the principle of open public discussion came to replace that of parliamentary secrecy” in the West due to the development of the public sphere: “the sphere of private people come together as a public, who claimed the space of public discourse from state regulation, and demanded that the state engage them in debate about matters of political legitimacy and common concern.”

After Habermas, Jacobs said, scholars questioned the validity of a single public sphere, arguing that civil society

MICHAEL ROMAIN

actually comprises multiple public spheres “oriented just as often to cultural issues as to political ones.” Of course, in our age of hyper-fragmentation (of Fox News and Facebook), this point is no longer up for debate.

However ancient, the conversation is still instructive. I found Jacobs’ analysis of the 1991 beating of Rodney King particularly useful as a tool for looking at crises like the alJalaa tower bombing beyond the lens of crisis journalism.

Jacobs explains that in 1991, most mainstream media outlets like the Los Angeles Times, the New York Times, the Chicago Tribune and TV news outlets like ABC News “represented the beating as a ‘shocking’ event, criticized the police officers for using their powers illegitimately, and described them as being irrational and excitable in their works.”

The heroes in this mainstream media framework were good cops and politicians and well-known advocacy groups working against the uniformed villains seen in the grainy, black-and-white footage pounding Rodney King to a pulp.

In this narrative, King himself is not worthy of much sympathy, his human suffering rendered invisible, overshadowed by the much greater emphasis white media placed on his alleged drug use and criminality.

It took Black newspapers like the Los Angeles Sentinel, the Chicago Defender and the New York Amsterdam News to make Black agency and the Black community in LA central to the story and to provide a counter-narrative (an alternative public sphere, if you will) to the one provided by the mainstream white press.

“News reports in the Los Angeles Sentinel juxtaposed the outrage over and collective attention to the Rodney King beating with the relative lack of attention concerning another beating case whose trial had begun on the same day,” Jacobs writes.

“The trial stemmed from the Don Jackson case, a 1989 event where two Long Beach police officers were captured on videotape pushing an off-duty, African-American police officer through a plate-glass window.”

By recalling these other instances of police brutality, the Black newspapers “placed the event of the [Rodney King] beating in the middle of a long and continuous narrative, rather than at the beginning of a new one.”

For these much smaller and often overlooked outlets that were nonetheless critical platforms in their respective communities, it was important to show in their reporting that King’s beating wasn’t a unique emergency or one-off crisis, but consistent with hundreds of years of struggle that “had been largely ignored by the mainstream media and white society.” Call it a long crisis.

As with the 1991 beating of Rodney King, the current crisis in Gaza has to be understood within the context of deep history and of a larger struggle that has often been ignored or distorted by Western media. The bombings are nothing new and neither is the unjust false equivalency in the media between the harm done by the Israeli government and that done by the Palestinian forces.

AP and Al Jazeera are important, but we also need to think about the local journalism that may be threatened by the bombs — particularly the journalism told by reporters who aren’t just “embedded” in Gaza and Israel, but who live and have roots there. They are the Defenders and Sentinels of this particular moment. And I’m embarrassed that I can’t name a single one.

Despite my fatalism, I am still somewhat hopeful and optimistic about the state of local journalism much closer to home.

On May 5, I listened to Illinois Senate President Don Harmon give some remarks during the Illinois Press Association’s annual convention, which this year took place virtually.

When he was younger, Harmon said, he delivered copies of the Chicago Daily News in Oak Park and was a sports reporter for his college newspaper, the Knox Student.

Those experiences in local journalism stayed with him and helped shape his identity, Harmon said, adding that he’s been subscribed to Wednesday Journal “for as long as I can remember; my mom always had it delivered and I certainly have kept a subscription.”

And then Harmon spoke about the overwhelming, bipartisan support that SB 0134 has received in both the House and the Senate. The bill, which would create a Local Journalism Task Force designed to propose possible solutions to the many existential problems confronting journalism in Illinois, was introduced by Sen. Steve Stadelman, himself a former journalist.

Sen. Jacqueline Collins, the bill’s co-sponsor in the Senate, and Rep. Dave Vella, the bill’s sponsor in the House, are also all former journalists.

The task force will include representatives from a variety of institutions — journalism schools and trade associations like the IPA. When I learned of it several weeks ago, I realized that this task force, as it was composed, wasn’t representative of the many diverse media outlets that are owned by Black and Brown people and/or outlets that serve Black and Brown communities.

Any entity analyzing local journalism needs to hear these voices or risk perpetuating the kind of media that has historically ignored Black and Brown suffering, and that prompted Malcolm X to offer this word of caution: “If you’re not careful, the newspapers will have you hating the people who are being oppressed, and loving the people who are doing the oppressing.”

To their credit, Stadelman, Collins and Vella all took my phone calls, listened attentively to my concerns and vowed to ensure that the task force will be open to a diversity of perspectives and viewpoints.

The process of engaging with these politicians gave me another reason to be optimistic about the future of journalism and, by extension, democracy. It turns out, not all of our elected officials are aspiring authoritarians.

America, as Robert McChesney and John Nichols once wrote, was “called into being by a journalist” named Tom Paine. The current efforts of journalists (and former journalists) are what will save her.

CONTACT: michael@oakpark.com

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Wednesday Journal, May 19, 2021

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Everyday Activists Panel Thursday, May 20, 7 to 8:30 p.m., In-person and Virtually with Oak Park Art League In conjunction with the Intersection: Art & Word exhibition, photographic portraits and interviews from Austin and Oak Park participants in the Everyday Activists project are on display in the gallery. During the panel, learn about the work of Liz Abunaw, Leroy Duncan and Vanessa Stokes. And hear spoken word from poet Andadita Vidyarthi. In-person seating is limited to 30 people at this event. Masks must be worn. 720 Chicago Ave., Oak Park. Or view the livestream: youtube.com/ watch?v=nIcSGBzBoLI

“Art & Word” Through May 26, Oak Park Art League In this exhibit, artists use text or words as a central part of their work or creative practice. Written text passages are part of the artists’ books, paintings, photographs, drawings, prints, collages, sculptures or other visual art forms. Includes the Everyday Activists installment. Gallery hours, Tuesdays through Fridays, 1 to 5 p.m., Saturdays, 1 to 4 p.m. Masks must be worn inside the gallery. More: oakparkartleague.org. 720 Chicago Ave., Oak Park.

CONNECTIONS+ Community Art Project

By Wednesday, May 19, By Discovery Turn something no longer needed into art for the community. Contribute single objects to be exhibited in June. By Discovery artists will use donated objects for an installation in the window of 159 S. Oak Park Avenue, Oak Park. At drop off, pick up supplies to paint Connection Stones. Then place painted stones at the base of a designated tree outside the installation through June – the collection “being a hopeful reminder of the physical proximity we will soon embrace once the pandemic is behind us.” Details/ registration: bydiscovery.org/summer

Township Youth Services Hygiene Closet Reopened Donate items, such as shampoo, toothpaste, deodorant or other personal care products that will be distributed to youth in the community. View items and purchase through a new Amazon Wishlist (amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/ OXPWN0E072A2?ref_=wl_share) or drop off at the Township’s offices. 105 S. Oak Park Ave., Oak Park. Questions: 708-445-2727, mgale@oakparktownship.org.

Virtual Open House Wednesday, May 19, 7:30 to 8:30 p.m., Zoom with L’Institut français d’Oak Park Ask questions and learn more about French courses and weekly Conversation Cafés.

Register now for Summer 2021 courses, running June 14 to Aug. 7 and Conversation Cafés on Thursday evenings. Drop into the open house any time during the hour. Register: www.frenchinstitute.net, stacy.fifer@frenchinstitute.net

“Creation, A Symphony of Joy” Sunday, May 23, 3 to 5 p.m., Zoom with Shem Center Hear The Hildegard Singers perform the music of Hildegard of Bingen, 12th century Abbess, mystic and composer. Music for children is included in the program. Donations accepted for this gala event. Register/more: shemcenter.org/shem-center-galaconcert

Spring Plant and Tool Exchange, Plastic Pot Recycling Saturday, May 22, 9:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., Oak Park Conservatory Share your favorite plants and extra tools. Drop off material from 9:30 to 11:30 a.m.; pick up items from noon to 12:30 p.m. If you shopped the Conservatory’s Plant Sale, return empty plastic garden pots for re-use to the Rubinstein Garden entrance.

Accepting the following sizes: 4.5-inch square, 4.5-inch round, 1-gallon perennial containers. Brought by the Friends of the Oak Park Conservatory. 615 Garfield, Oak Park.

BIG WEEK May 19-26

“A New Mythology” Tuesdays, 10:30 a.m. to 3 p.m., Dancing Krow Studio

Throughout this year’s exhibits, Dancing Krow artists examine aspects of A New Mythology - Alone, Division, Remembrance, Vision and Return - through their art-making process. More: facebook.com/DancingKrow. 43 Harrison, Oak Park.

An Introduction to the East Asian Garden Wednesday, May 26, 2 to 3 p.m., Zoom with Oak Park Public Library Explore the Confucian symbolism expressed in gardens and discover how gardens are used to relieve stress and cultivate inner peace in this presentation offering a short background about the aesthetics of Japanese and Chinese gardens. Presenter Yvonne Wolf will focus on five specific plants and trees, with examples from the Chicago Botanical Gardens, Ping Tom Park, Garden of the Phoenix and Morton Arboretum. Register: oppl.org/calendar

OPEF Makes Magic

Spring into Tidy

Friday, May 21, 6:30 p.m., Zoom with the Oak Park Education Foundation

Thursday, May 20, 7 to 8:30 p.m., Zoom with the River Forest Public Library

Enjoy an interactive fundraiser for all ages with magician and Oak Park resident Dennis Watkins.

Chance for valuable raffle prizes. Free; raffle tickets $20 each; 3 for $50. Register/purchases raffle tickets: opef.org/events/makes-magic

Join certified KonMari consultant Megan Spillman to learn steps you can take to declutter, organize and bring joy into your space using Marie Kondo’s method. Brought in partnership with River Forest Township. Register: riverforestlibrary.librarymarket.com/events/spring-tidy

Wednesday Journal, May 19, 2021

OAKPARK.COM | RIVERFOREST.COM

T

The robins and the ladder

his will teach you not to leave the stepladder on the deck leaning against the back wall of the house because you are too darned lazy to haul it back to the garage.

That’s what I did in the late winter. Too cold, too much snow.

I’ll just leave it here for now, I said, in an interior monologue that should have sent the voice of my dad, Frank Haley, reverberating through my noggin: “We’ll peel all the wallpaper off the bedroom walls and leave the interesting designs of the bare plaster just temporarily,” he said back in the mid-’60s.

Three bedrooms, no paint, endless games of ‘Find the State’ in the plaster, for multiple years.

Loved that man.

So the stepladder was on the deck minding its own business as winter finally broke. Then one day I’m coming back from the alley having deposited garbage in the cans and what is it I’m seeing on the top of the ladder? A bird’s nest. Lovely, round, small and, how the heck did it get constructed so fast?

There are robins on the nest of course.

We read up. Mom and dad taking turns nest-sitting over several gestational weeks.

And then miraculously tiny birds start cheeping. We see one head, two, three and finally four little beaks.

That was a little while ago. Now their folks are delivering worms on a regular basis, by this time wondering, ‘Why’d we build this nest on top of a ladder by the back door of a house with multiple dogs, a killer cat and people who like to sit on chairs and stare at us?”

The birds got bigger, featherier, gradually bolder. By Sunday afternoon, the biggest gardening day of the year in our yard, first one and then two of the birds had stepped

out of the nest and perched alongside on the ladder top.

Clearly, they were not long for the nest. Finally as the afternoon was closing, there was mad chirping from all directions as the babies attempted to take flight. Right into a yard filled with fascinated animals.

Disclaimer: No lovely birds died during the creation of this column.

But a couple had close calls as they did not immediately gain altitude and flapped along the driveway maybe 18 inches off the ground. A perfect height for a doodle with an open mouth. Dogs have never been yelled at so loud, chased by older folks so fast as Sunday afternoon. Good, sweet Rue, the doodle, perhaps a bit traumatized by the volume and speed of the normally loving adults, coughed up the bird held gently in her mouth and the baby escaped behind one of the garden fences where it regained its composure and eventually made its way to the sky. The cat, the always sociable, occasionally deadly Jester, was urged from its hiding place in the bushes with the end of a rake. He left the yard with reluctance.

After a few moments the ALL CAPS chirping subsided, the nest was empty, and calm returned to the garden.

The internet tells us that robins often return to the same nest for a second round of procreation. We must debate, and fast, if traffic patterns on our deck should lead us to disrupt those plans, and hopefully avoid the potential trauma of last weekend.

That said, the last weeks of talking to mama and papa robin as we passed them at their work, offering soothing words to the babies as they sat with beaks wide open awaiting a feeding have felt very special and like something of a gift.

It has been a grinding year for all of us.

Here’s to new life. Precarious and glorious.

DAN HALEY

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Wednesday Journal, May 19, 2021

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Dominican picks new president from Viterbo U.

By F. AMANDA TUGADE Staff Reporter

Dominican University’s Board of Trustees has announced a new president, according to a press release issued May 18 by the River Forest university.

Glena Temple, president of Viterbo University in LaCrosse, Wisconsin, has been named president and will succeed Donna Carroll, who plans to retire by the end of the school year. For over two decades, Carroll has served as Dominican University’s president and “led the institution through a period of extraordinary growth and academic achievement,” the release stated. This year, Dominican University was selected as one of the Top 10 regional universities in the Midwest by the U.S. News & World Report.

Carroll’s last day with the university is June 30, and Temple will begin Aug. 2.

In an effort to find its next leader, the university created a presidential search committee, which included representatives from

the board of trustees, faculty, staff, students and Sinsinawa Dominican sisters. The board also received support from Storbeck Search, a national higher education search firm headquartered in Pennsylvania, and legal counsel Husch Blackwell, which is based in Missouri.

For seven months, the search committee reviewed and interviewed a pool of candidates and found Temple to be the right fit, the release stated.

“Temple brings with her an exemplary record of achievement and leadership at multiple levels of higher education and a keen awareness of the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead for Dominican,” said Tom Abrahamson, board chair and member of the search committee in the release. “The board is certain that under her leadership, Dominican will continue to realize its vital mission of preparing students to pursue truth, to give compassionate service, and to participate in the creation of a more just and humane world.”

Before becoming president of Viterbo in

2017, Temple was chair of the eny College and doctoral degree biology department, coordinain botany and plant sciences tor of the natural sciences divifrom the University of Califorsion, co-director of the honors nia-Riverside, the release said. program, dean of the School of She also has a master’s degree Letters and Sciences and vice in educational policy and adminpresident for academic affairs, istration from the University of according to the release.

Minnesota.

There are several parallels be“I am truly humbled and gratetween Viterbo and Dominican. ful for the trust placed in me by Both are Catholic institutions GLENA TEMPLE the Dominican board of trustfounded by religious orders – Vitees,” said Temple in the release. erbo by Franciscan sisters and Dominican “It is an honor to follow President Donna by the Sinsinawa Dominican sisters. Both Carroll, whose leadership inspired so many chose to switch from designations as colleges to university status. Each was founded as over the past 27 years.

“I embrace this opportunity to help build a school for women and later became co-ed. on her legacy with so many dedicated stuViterbo has been co-ed since 1970. dents, faculty, staff, alumni, trustees and Temple also served as the dean of online and distance education for the University benefactors,” she said. “Dominican’s justiceof Wisconsin Colleges and taught at Anoka- driven mission and values deeply rooted in Ramsey Community College in Minnesota the charism of the Sinsinawa Dominican and Victor Valley College in California. sisters spoke to my heart and strengthened Temple, a Rochester, New York native, holds my desire to be a part of this amazing unia bachelor’s degree in biology from Allegh- versity.”

Oak Park protesters turn out to call for peace

By STACEY SHERIDAN Staff Reporter

Over 100 people met at Scoville Park Monday night in support of Palestinians as the conflict between Palestine and Israel has intensified with renewed violence, the pain of which has rippled all the way to Oak Park.

“The massive extent of the atrocities going on in Gaza, not to mention what’s going on in East Jerusalem and the West Bank — I was without breath for three days,” said Bekah Levin, of the Committee for a Just Peace in Israel and Palestine, which organized the turnout.

Many of those in attendance spoke critically of the part the Israeli government has played in the conflict’s bloody resurgence as Israel continues airstrikes on Palestine with the stated goal of thwarting the Palestinian militant group Hamas, which has launched thousands of missiles into cities in Israel.

Many protesters on Monday believe the conflict reflects underlying injustice.

“This is apartheid at its worst,” said Levin, who has been advocating for fair and humane treatment of Palestinians for 30 years.

The violence is a resurgence of a decades-long conflict that has plagued the region, spanning the entire lifetime of many of its residents, including that of former Oak Park mayor Anan Abu-Taleb, whose father died in Gaza in 2012.

Abu-Taleb, who attended Monday’s protest, grew up in the Israeli-occupied Gaza Strip but left at age 19. As his father’s health failed, Abu-Taleb attempted to visit him but was barred from entering the Gaza Strip by the Israeli government.

“I hadn’t seen him for four years, but I couldn’t get in,” Abu-Taleb said.

Despite calls for a ceasefire, the death toll continues to mount as the fighting continued into its eighth day on May 18. The New York Times reported Monday that 10 Israelis have been killed by rockets launched by Hamas and that 212

Palestinians have been killed by Israeli airstrikes in Gaza. Israel has maintained its right to defend itself using airstrikes.

Abu-Taleb’s feelings remain the same.

“I feel the same way after every war, and there have been five of them since 2008,” said Abu-Taleb. “I feel terrible for both sides.

“I guess war is a lot easier than peace,” he said.

Israel and the Palestine region are considered holy land in Islam, Judaism and Christianity. The conflict between Israel and Palestine dates back to the late 19th century, as both Palestinian Arabs and Jewish people have struggled to establish the region as their respective national homes.

“They believe somehow that God is on their side and they’re killing each other in the name of God,” said AbuTaleb.

In recent days, protests against the Israeli government’s treatment of Palestinians have spread and, says Levin, are being attended by people of different faiths and backgrounds including Jewish people. Levin is Jewish.

“Many Jews, young Jews are feeling more and more empowered to speak up against the Israeli government, which would have been unheard of when I was growing up,” she

said.

A longtime resident of Oak Park, Levin previously lived in Israel and worked for the Israeli government during Prime Minister Menachem Begin’s tenure in 1983.

“I worked for the advisor to the prime minister on the status of women,” she said.

In 1985, Levin studied the human rights of those who lived in the West Bank after being asked to join a research team by Israeli parliament member Shulamit Aloni, a noted human rights activist.

Through this work, she says, her eyes were opened. She tried to bring back what she had learned to the United States.

“I was sharing it with people in my Jewish community.

And I became persona non grata for doing so because no one spoke up within the Jewish community in a critical way about Israel back then,” she said.

Despite this, Levin continued to tell others about the situation Palestinians continue to face. She says she refused to be silenced.

“What’s going on, in my name as a Jew, is totally unacceptable, as it has been for years and years,” she said.

Oak Park resident Faisal Alabsy grew up in the West Bank.

His sister, a teacher, still lives there.

“A lot of people ask what are you fighting against,” said Alabsy. “But the real question is what we’re fighting for. We’re fighting for our human rights, to live free, to establish our own country.”

Throughout the years, he said, the Israeli government has demolished homes and displaced Palestinian families in the Gaza Strip and across the West Bank. Before the most recent conflict, the Israeli government tried to evict eight Palestinian families from the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood in East Jerusalem.

With an end to the fighting nowhere in sight, Alabsy called Palestine’s situation “dire.”

“What’s going on over there,” he said, “a lot of people go to sleep at night not knowing if they’re going to wake up tomorrow.”

Wednesday Journal, May 19, 2021

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A ‘cozy’ mystery with a Filipina-American view of life Local author pens Midwestern story with humor, dead bodies

By F. AMANDA TUGADE Staff Reporter

When Mia Manansala returned to the U.S. after traveling abroad and teaching in South Korea, she found herself stuck in a rut, stumbling through the next steps in her life and career. It was 2014, and Manansala, who was then 28, settled back into west suburban Forest Park and decided to move in with her boyfriend, her adventures now folded into memories.

As Manansala drifted into a routine, she decided to unpack a childhood passion and began writing.

“I thought, ‘Maybe, now’s the time,’” said Manansala, now 35, during a Zoom call, sitting inside her lavender-colored office.

She took a mystery writing class through StoryStudio Chicago and never looked back.

In some ways, this part of Manansala’s life runs parallel to Lila Macapagal, the lead in her latest book, “Arsenic and Adobo.” Manansala, who still resides in Forest Park, drew from her past and feelings of being a “big fish in a small pond” when she built Macapagal. The difference between the two women lies in the details that make up the cozy mystery novel, which was released May 4 through Penguin Random House. “Arsenic and Adobo” is the first of a three-book series.

As the story goes, Macapagal moves back to her hometown after a bad breakup but is quickly roped into helping save Tita Rosie’s failing restaurant. Along the way, Macapagal runs into her ex-boyfriend, who happens to be a mean food critic – and dies, after the two meet. Amidst the murder, family drama and chaos, Macapagal spins into an investigation to solve the mystery.

Manansala described cozies, a subgenre of crime fiction, as Hallmark movies “with dead bodies.” There’s no graphic sex, violence or what some may consider “bad language,” she said. Cozy mysteries require authors such as Manansala to find the lightheartedness when there is murder.

For Manansala, there are pieces in “Arsenic and Adobo” that touch on issues such as drug use, police intimidation, domestic violence, and fatphobia, which means fear of fatness or hatred of fat bodies. While some of these issues were implied throughout the storyline, Manansala said she tried to be sensitive around the hard issues, making sure to not dismiss them or make un-

ALEX ROGALS/Staff Photographer

A MYSTERY TO HER: Mia Manansala holds a copy of her new mystery “Arsenic and Adobo” outside Centuries and Sleuths Bookstore in Forest Park. warranted jokes.

“The humor is not about death. It’s not about the tougher things,” said Manansala.

“It’s the things surrounding it. That’s how I try to balance the tone. I didn’t want to be flippant, but I also needed to be real.”

She added family, food and community are at the heart of the story.

My voice, my story Manansala started writing “Arsenic and Adobo” about three years ago. She wrote in her free time, which was mostly after her full-time job and late into the evenings.

Manansala, who was then an English teacher at a school in downtown Chicago, drafted the blueprint of her novel after class, slipping away into an empty classroom. Other times, she’d head over to the nearby Harold Washington Library to continue.

By the time the coronavirus pandemic came, Manansala was homebound working on the book’s revisions.

Manansala opened up about being among the few authors of color in the cozy mystery genre and what it means to be a FilipinaAmerican author and create a Filipina protagonist. Manansala said her favorite genre of literature is fantasy, but when the pandemic hit, she dove into romance and found herself among these characters who were “women of color finding love and joy and realizing that they deserve happiness, too.”

When it came to developing Macapagal, Manansala was candid. Macapagal happens to be a Filipina-American in a murder mystery, she said.

“Her identity shapes her,” Manansala said. “It changes how she sees the world, and it definitely changes how the world sees her, particularly in this small town – a small Midwestern town at that!

But she gets to just be. It’s part of a bigger story.”

Manansala reflected on her childhood and growing up in a multigenerational home in Chicago’s Hermosa neighborhood, a predominantly Latinx community.

“I didn’t really have a Filipino community growing up other than my family,” she said. “I didn’t, I can’t speak Tagalog. I can understand it, but I can’t speak it. My connection to my culture is through my family.”

The latter proposed a small challenge for Manansala while writing “Arsenic and Adobo,” and she often thought about the way she portrayed Macapagal and her family. At times, Manansala was writing from her perspective, the way she understood

her Filipino culture and what she saw as “normal” in her own family. As she looked at those experiences, Manansala was careful to not perpetuate stereotypes but constantly danced in this gray area of “when am I leaning too hard or relying on certain things for comedic effect?” and “when is it like, I mean, this is real?”

“Am I leaning too heavily on my American perspective?” she asked. “Am I not being fair to some of these other characters and what they’ve gone through and why they have this particular point of view?”

Manansala said one of the characters in “Arsenic and Adobo” is a grandmother who is harsh and judgmental, a stickler for tradition, and faults Macapagal whenever she changes a traditional recipe on Tita Rosie’s menu. Manansala said she worked with a reader who offered more insight into the grandmother’s behavior.

“For immigrants, food is the only real tangible connection many of them have to their homeland,” said Manansala of what she learned from that reader. “For her, a plate of food is not just a plate of food. There are maybe reasons that she is as strict and why she holds on to certain traditions the way she does, despite Lila thinking it’s outdated.”

That’s the challenge of writing about cultural identity, and that’s what makes representation, at times, complicated. Manansala said more authors of color are writing their narratives and literary fiction but dive deep into the heaviness of immigrant experiences. But Manansala is trying to pave her path as a cozy mystery author.

As she thought about her most recent work, Manansala asked, “Will people accept this as my experience, and my voice, and the way I tell it?”

“I feel like because there’s so little representation, people put their own hopes and expectations into it,” she said. “It’s like, ‘Oh wow, a Filipino book,’ and they’re hoping to see themselves on the page. I understand that because that’s why I wrote this book. I wanted to see myself on the page, but not all our experiences are the same. We’re not a monolith. We all have different points of view.”

For more information on Mia Manansala, visit www.miapmanansala.com. “Arsenic and Adobo” is now available online or in stores, including The Book Table in Oak Park and Centuries and Sleuths in Forest Park..

It’s like, ‘Oh wow, a

Filipino book,’ and they’re hoping to see themselves on the page. I understand that because that’s why I wrote this book.

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Wednesday Journal, May 19, 2021

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Rush University Medical Center is the No.1 hospital in Illinois for joint replacements because we do a lot of them, and it makes us very good at it.”

For Paul Morris, 66, this common procedure was life changing. Paul has always been active and athletic, participating in sports like shot put, track and judo in his younger days and playing golf and hitting the gym as an adult.

Then, five years ago, he started to experience a tremendous pain in his left knee that he couldn’t relieve. He went to a Chicago-area hospital to have it checked out.

me; he didn’t tell me what to do,” says Paul. “It was evident I was having problems, and he went through all of my options with me, including not performing surgery at all.”

“I was told that I needed a knee replacement and there was nothing I could do about it,” Paul says. “I didn’t like my experience with them, so I put it off and bought about 20 different knee braces so I could keep golfing with my friends on the weekends.”

After the consultation, Karas, his surgical team and Paul decided that he might benefit from a partial knee replacement instead of a full one. Paul’s team noted that this option offered an easier recovery and higher retention of function and feeling.

Finally, he couldn’t ignore the discomfort anymore.

Between golfing, talking walks with his wife and playing with his family, he was constantly limping.

When he felt that he could no longer keep up with his grandkids, he called Rush on the advice of friends and neighbors who had positive experiences with their own knee and hip replacements.

Paul was up and walking the same day as the surgery, though he stayed in the hospital overnight so his care team could monitor him for some pre-existing health conditions.

A resident of the southwest suburbs of Chicago, Paul was grateful to have the option to have the procedure performed at Rush’s Oak Park or downtown location. He and his family decided that Oak Park was more convenient for him.

Paul’s care team discussed all his options, which was incredibly reassuring. “Dr. Karas listened to

And the result of his procedure? “Now that the weather is nicer, I’ve been walking with my daughters and their kids without any pain at all,” says Paul. “I’m looking forward to golf season this year.”

The only regret Paul has about his knee surgery is not doing it sooner.

“It changed my life,” he says. “Looking back, if I had proceeded with this five years ago, I might have lost more weight and been in less pain.”

Join Vasili Karas, MD, MS, for a free webinar on June 7 to learn more about knee replacement. Register at rsh.md/knee-1.

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Wednesday Journal, May 19, 2021

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After one year, Beye principal heads back to Naperville Takes post as school psychologist

throughout this pandemic and the numerous transitions that we have endured, the efforts of our teachers and staff have not gone unnoticed.

“I am so grateful for the perseverance, flexBy F. AMANDA TUGADE ibility and grace demonstrated by our staff Staff Reporter during such unbelievably trying times. This was not an easy decision for me to make and After serving one year as principal of I will be forever grateful for all that we have William Beye Elementary School, Jennifer accomplished this year.”

Schemidt has decided to leave Schemidt plans to return to her position. Schemidt, who has Naperville Community Unit served as an administrator and School District 203 and take on a school psychologist for over a the role of a school psycholodecade, came to Beye in 2020, afgist at Highlands Elementary ter longtime principal Jonathan School. Prior to Beye, Schemidt Ellwanger retired. was at D203 and served as an asBeye School is located at 230 N. sistant principal for three years Cuyler Ave. at Maplebrook Elementary The Oak Park Elementary School.

School District 97 Board of EduJENNIFER SCHEMIDT With Schemidt’s last day at cation looks to accept Schemidt’s D97 slated for June 30, the board resignation during its May 25 meeting, ac- aims to have her position filled by July 1, cording to a press release issued May 14 by said Amanda Siegfried, director of commuthe district. nications. She said district administration “During my time at Beye, it has been is currently exploring their options to fill evident that our teams of teachers and the principal role and plan to loop staff, stustaff work so hard to meet the needs of all dents and families in the process. Siegfried learners,” wrote Schemidt in a letter sent to said the community will be updated, as the Beye families this past week. “Particularly district moves forward.

William Beye Elementary School In a written statement, the board extended its gratitude toward Schemidt and her work as an educator in one of the most challenging years, calling her a “strong and capable leader.”

“Although we are disappointed to see her go, we understand that this is the right decision for her and her family, and we wish her the best as she starts this new chapter,” the district stated.

Friedman program for families who can’t afford a tutor SMART, online tutoring project, launches in June

By F. AMANDA TUGADE Staff reporter

In the last year or so, Eric Friedman witnessed the ways remote learning impacted his daughter. Despite being Zoom-bound, Friedman said his young daughter was able to stay engaged while online, keep up with assignments and maintain her grades, but she has gotten some extra help along the way.

Long before the coronavirus pandemic hit, Friedman often worked with his daughter on her math and reading skills. Using a free app called Khan Academy, they would watch instructional videos together, practice math problems and often venture into other subjects too.

“I’m a nerd,” said Friedman, 43, of Oak Park. Friedman has a math degree and is an investment consultant by trade, but “I forgot how to teach addition and subtraction,” which is why the app came in handy, because it gave him and his daughter the chance to learn together.

But Friedman knew leaning on the app wasn’t enough, especially when the pandemic came and brought in-person learning to a screeching halt. He started to worry about the long-term effects of online learning and feared that his daughter may fall behind. He thought about the lessons and skills his daughter should have by now and may have po-

“Tutoring, itself, isn’t new; what’s new about this is making it financially accessible and making it logistically accessible..”

site shared that high school students who tutor tentially missed because of the pandemic’s may charge $10 to $40 per hour for one session, abrupt change. So, he and his wife decided to while teachers may price their services at $100 hire a private tutor. or more per hour. Tutoring centers are just as “It’s something we’re fortunate to do,” expensive with sessions costing between $50 Friedman said about hiring a tutor. “I wish and $80 per hour. it was more financially accessible to more Friedman said some parents don’t have the people.” time to drive their children to tutoring cenThat’s when he came up with an idea to ters and his program is another option. With launch SMART, an affordable tutoring sersessions held on Zoom, SMART aims to be a vice for Oak Park and River Forest elemenresource for local parents and guardians, as tary students. SMART, which stands for Supwell as students. Sessions also touch on differplemental Math Advancing Results through ent math skills, so if students are absent, they Tutoring, looks to work with area third and ERIC FRIEDMAN can “rejoin without being lost,” Friedman exfourth graders on their math skills. Friedman said he wanted to focus on this age plained on his site. group so his daughter can also participate.

As June approaches, Friedman is working SMART is founded on a “pay what you on hiring a few teachers and figuring out the want” model, so that the service is open to families of all number of students per session. Friedman recently created financial backgrounds, said Friedman. A suggested price a GoFundMe to raise $800 to support two tutoring groups for one session is $10. Each session will be held over Zoom with weekly sessions for five weeks. Looking ahead, he also and include a group of students. Friedman hopes to start hopes to expand his SMART service to include other grade the sessions by the week of June 13. levels and subjects.

“Tutoring, itself, isn’t new,” Friedman said. “Anybody can “I’ve seen it over and over again in my life and with my find a tutor and hire a tutor if they have the money. What’s kids and with other kids,” Friedman said. “If they get supnew about this is making it financially accessible and mak- plemental instruction, their performance improves. I think ing it logistically accessible.” that this has the potential to elevate the whole community The average cost for a private tutor can vary because of in terms of education.” experience, according to care.com, a site dedicated to helpFor more information on SMART, visit smart-tutoring. ing people find care for seniors, children, pets and more. The mailchimpsites.com.

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Wednesday Journal, May 19, 2021

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Gardens of memory cause for cross-cultural exchange

Oak Park-Austin Area Moms Demand Action are looking to Mothers of Murdered Sons for inspiration on planned Austin memorial garden

By MICHAEL ROMAIN Equity Editor

When Phyllis “Yafah” Duncan, the founder of Mothers of Murdered Sons (MOMS), a support group for parents who have lost children to gun violence, decided to gather her fellow MOMS members and plant a memorial garden in nearby Bellwood, they captured the attention of local press, elected officials, volunteers and many community members.

Now, 11 years later, the garden, a physical memorial for those whose lives have been lost to violence, is no longer a local novelty and many volunteers who were once active in its cultivation have moved on. Duncan,

however, hasn’t stopped her careful cultivation of the tranquil outdoor space.

On May 16, Duncan was out in the garden with about two dozen volunteers, many of them members of Oak Park-Austin Area Moms Demand Action, a local branch of the national organization that advocates for stronger gun laws.

Denise McDermott, an Oak Park resident and member of Moms Demand Action, said the village of River Forest donated bottles of water and snacks for Saturday’s cleanup, a gesture of outreach she hopes will resonate beyond village hall and into the wider community.

“I want River Forest to do more,” said McDermott, who said she lived in the village for 30 years before recently moving to Oak Park.

For its part, Moms Demand Action was so inspired by Duncan’s garden that the group is planning on planting a memorial\ garden of its own in Austin.

Jenna Leving Jacobson, an Oak Park resident and head of the Oak Park and Austin Area chapter of Moms Demand Action, said the chapter has identified a vacant lot at

4900 W. Augusta in Austin that is owned by the Cook County Land Bank.

“This is a really beautiful model,” Jacobson said. “It’s a beautiful memorial space.

Survivor moms need a space to breathe and to process and to gather.”

Jacobson said “we’ve applied, it’s gone up the chain, we haven’t been denied but we haven’t heard back, and a lot of local gardening organizations have volunteered to help us navigate the process — we just need the space.”

Duncan said the parcel of land for the Bellwood garden was a gift made possible by ComEd, Proviso Township and Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle. Over the years, volunteers have added various memorials within the Peace Garden in memory of loved ones lost to gun violence.

Duncan said as powerful as the garden may be as a memorial to commemorate the dead, it’s also designed to be a balm for the living.

“Some of the MOMS in Proviso Township don’t come out like they used to and that’s alright, because part of our journey is to get better,” she said. “It doesn’t bother me

that they don’t show up to different things, because they’ve gotten to where they need to be, they’re healing and that’s what this is all about.

Duncan, who founded MOMS back in 2005, after her only son’s murder, said she’s also been told of a memorial garden rising up in Chicago’s Auburn-Gresham community.

As Duncan spoke on Sunday afternoon, a name gleaned from a placard on the park bench on which she sat. Duncan said Andre Voice built the bench in memory of his nephew, Quentin Tillison, a 37-year-old who was fatally shot in Schaumburg in 2017.

“Andre heard the moms talking about how they wanted somewhere to sit and so he came out here and built this bench right here in the park,” Duncan said. “We just want to keep the memory of our children alive. It would be a shame for this to just disappear.”

Oak Park-Austin Area Moms Demand Action will host its next membership meeting on Zoom at 7:30 p.m. on May 19. To RSVP for the meeting, visit: https://bit.ly/33UZo68.

OPRF tables Yom Kippur talks Adding or subtracting a religious holiday under discussion

By F. AMANDA TUGADE Staff Reporter

Members of the Oak Park and River Forest High School board voted unanimously May 13 to table a decision on recognizing Yom Kippur as a nonattendance day in the 2022-23 school calendar. After a near half-hour discussion, the vote came when board members felt they needed more time before making a final decision.

The impetus for the discussion came from a group of Jewish students who urged the school to recognize the Jewish holiday.

During the special meeting, the calendar committee, which includes Greg Johnson, the incoming superintendent, and Roxana Sanders, assistant superintendent for human resources, opened the conversation by saying that OPRF’s fall semester is shorter than its spring semester.

That makes the decision to consider Yom Kippur a nonattendance day difficult, because the holiday is observed in September and having another day off could potentially affect the schedule for finals and winter break.

“That’s why we’re so sensitive in trying to make sure that we can do everything we can,” said Johnson.

At the meeting, Johnson and Sanders presented the District 200 board with two options. The first is that the district could make Good Friday, a Christian holiday, an attendance day for staff and students, which would create an additional day for winter break.

In a memo to the board, the committee said removing “the only non-federal holiday that is tied to a religion from the

school calendar” contributes to the school’s equity mission.

The only downside is that those who celebrate Yom Kippur or other religious holidays could still miss work and school.

The other option is to observe Yom Kippur as a nonattendance day. By doing so, the committee said that would most likely push back finals, the start of winter break and the spring semester.

The committee also said in the memo that honoring Yom Kippur could “open the door” to other religious groups who may ask to consider their holidays as a day off. That could lead to a further imbalance of the days between the two semesters and impact the required number of student attendance days, the committee wrote in the memo.

“We just don’t know if there will be additional requests coming our way,” Sanders said. “And, if we grant a religious holiday to one group, then what rationale could we provide for not granting another religious holiday to another religious group?”

Board member Fred Arkin said he felt unready to decide and had some questions. For starters, Arkin asked how many Jewish students attend OPRF and how school districts with large Jewish student populations have handled honoring Yom Kippur or Rosh Hashana. He also wanted to include local Jewish leaders and members of their congregation in the conversation.

“I feel that this issue is being rushed to our board table without enough background data and engagement,” Arkin said.

Arkin also took a moment to share his own experience of growing up Jewish in Oak Park. From grade school to graduate school and for much of his professional life, Arkin said he remembered teachers and employers respecting his religious observances and working with him to meet his needs and hoped that OPRF has done the same for its students.

“Students should not be penalized for missing a day, that

work should be accepted the next day or day after, and that no tests should take place,” he said. “I think those are minimum – bare minimum – accommodations that need to be made.”

Supt. Joylynn Pruitt-Adams, who spoke after Arkin, added, “I don’t want anyone who’s watching or is in this space to think that we’re not wanting to consider the request of any of our families. I think I need to make that clear.”

Pruitt-Adams went on to say the district does work to accommodate students who choose to miss school for a religious holiday, and those absences are considered an excused absence. But what Pruitt-Adams has also heard from those students is that they are most concerned about losing a day of learning, which is a “legitimate concern.”

At this point, it’s about “trying to find that balance,” she said. “We have always been open to sitting and listening to anyone who comes to us with a concern for a holiday consideration.”

Pruitt-Adams also told the board that schools are legally not allowed to ask students and staff about their religious beliefs. That is information the district is unable to collect and “would never be able to,” she said.

For students such as Zoe Klein, Tim Mellman and Ania Sacks, watching the board meeting over Zoom and listening to the members’ discussion gave them some hope. The three were among several Jewish students who initially reached out to school administrators and asked to include Yom Kippur as a nonattendance day.

“We were happy they were talking about it, and while we were expecting a vote initially, we are happy they decided to table the discussion to get more information and work toward a more equitable religious plan,” Klein said.

“Our voice can have a powerful impact,” Mellman added.

“I think that’s really great, and I hope that it is continued in some way in the future.”

Wednesday Journal, May 19, 2021

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Environment Commission helps craft climate RFP

By STACEY SHERIDAN Staff Reporter

The village of Oak Park is seeking guidance from the Environment and Energy Commission (EEC) in crafting a request for proposal (RFP) to hire a consultant who will lead development of a comprehensive sustainability and climate action plan.

EEC commissioners provided multiple recommendations for the RFP during its May 12 meeting, including the suggestion of Commissioner Mark Goldberg to set up infrastructure to provide annual disclosures of environmental data.

Goldberg wanted the annual disclosure report to include data “on behalf of the village as an entity; the village itself as a building owner, operator, decision maker;” as well as “on behalf of village residents as an entity.”

He originally thought the consultant did not need to include businesses since businesses have other “drivers.” Goldberg later changed his mind and said they were worthy of inclusion.

The climate action plan will include a local climate risk assessment that provides a roadmap of areas needing change and a review of greenhouse gas emissions, according to Oak Park Sustainability Coordinator Mindy Agnew.

Oak Park is a member of the International

Council for Local Environmental projects,” said Goldberg, noting Initiatives (ICLEI), which will that the defined projects could provide additional guidance. also fall under the same um“We want to set an interim brella as those on the capital im2030 science-based target, provement list. aligned with guidance sent from Commissioner Stephen Mothe Biden administration and rales, who ran unsuccessfully for ICLEI, to reach climate neutralvillage trustee in the April 6 elecity by 2050,” said Agnew. tion, asked that the RFP include The goal is a reduction in a provision that the chosen emissions by 2030 that will set consultant deliver informathe stage for complete neutralition on the status of charging ty by 2050, according to Agnew. stations for electric automoGoldberg wants a bi-annual biles in Oak Park. adjustable timeframe for the “Do we need more in park“top 10” deliverable projects ing lots? Do we start to subsiverified as “good enough” by dize them in people’s garages the village board paid for with or in multi-unit buildings?”

Community Choice AggregaMorales asked. tion funds.

Morales wanted the RFP to The Community Choice Agconsider such sustainability gregation program allows muareas as green rooftops in Oak nicipalities to buy and generPark and environmentally efSTEPHEN MORALES ficient waste reduction proate electricity for residents Commissioner grams. and businesses in their area.

Part of the development of In Oak Park, that rate is no greater than ComEd’s basic service rates. the climate action plan will include a public Oak Park’s rate includes the existing three- relations campaign for $35,000 to run from tenths of one cent fee per kilowatt hour to July through September marketing energyfund local renewable energy projects, ac- efficiency audits and retrofit grants. Mocording to the village of Oak Park’s website. rales asked that the communications plan “We’ve got a big bucket of money and no take into account “social media, print me-

“Do we need more in parking lots? Do we start to subsidize them in people’s garages or in multiunit buildings”

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dia, in-person discussions and every other avenue.”

The RFP has an expected issue date of early summer, according to Deputy Village Manager Ahmad Zayyad. The village board does not need to approve the RFP prior to its issuance as staff received direction to create and issue it with the input of the EEC. Goldberg wanted to review a draft of the RFP but was advised against it by Zayyad, as it would make the document subject to Freedom of Information Act requests.

“When it’s a final document, then we publish it,” said Zayyad.

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Club of Oak Park - River Forest

A House in Austin

Beyond Hunger

Oak Park River Forest Infant Welfare Society

Opportunity Knocks

Pro Bono Network PING! Providing Instruments for the Next Generation New Moms Senior Citizens Center of Oak Park River Forest

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Club of Oak Park - River Forest

Wednesday Journal, May 19, 2021

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Wednesday Journal, May 19, 2021

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River Forest green lights block parties this summer Residents must still follow CDC guidelines that are in place

By ROBERT J. LIFKA Contributing Reporter

River Forest residents will be able to hold block parties again this summer following action taken by elected officials at their virtual village board meeting May 10.

The village board unanimously approved a staff recommendation to again allow block parties, which were not allowed in 2020 due to restrictions put in place due to COVID-19 concerns.

Under the guidelines of the State of Illinois Bridge to Phase 5, which was entered May 14, participation will be capped at 100 people. If the state of Illinois reaches Phase 5, which could occur as soon as June 11, the participation limit would be lifted.

Block party participants would be expected to follow Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommendations.

“Since the board’s last discussion regarding this matter the Illinois Department of Public Health and Cook County Department of Public Health have continued to refine public health guidance for

outdoor events relative to the COVID-19 case rate and vaccination rates,” said Lisa Scheiner, acting village administrator, in a memo to the village board.

She said block party permits would be subject to the same conditions that existed prior to the pandemic as well as additional conditions relative to COVID-19 regarding such issues as social distancing guidelines, face mask requirements per CDC guidance and availability of hand sanitizer and other hygiene supplies. Permit applicants will be required to sign an acknowledgement that they will share the COVID-19 guidelines with attendees at the event.

Petting zoos, bounce houses and other similar inflatables will not be permitted and requests for village personnel such as police and fire department representatives will not be accommodated until Illinois reaches Phase 5.

Requests are required at least two weeks in advance of the event and forms are available on the village website at vrf. us.

“This seems very reasonable,” Cathy Adduci, village president, said.

Setup is allowed as early as 10 a.m. and streets must be cleared by 10 p.m. To allow passage by emergency vehicles, tables, chairs and other items placed on the street must be within six feet of the curb.

Alcohol consumption is restricted to private property.

Oak Park expands vaccine to kids 12 and up

Return to normalcy seems within reach now that kids as young as 12 years old can receive a COVID-19 vaccination. As of May 12, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) made adolescents between the ages of 12 and 15 eligible to receive the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine — the only COVID-19 vaccine approved people under the age of 18.

As such, the parents of Oak Park students in the newly eligible age range can preregister their children to receive alerts of open vaccination appointments through the Oak Park Public Health Department. Vaccine preregistration is available through the village of Oak Park website.

Preregistration is not the same thing

as scheduling a vaccination appointment.

Rather, it allows the Oak Park Public Health Department to alert preregistered individuals when opportunities for vaccination arise.

When spots become available, preregistered individuals will be contacted by email to schedule a time to receive the vaccination.

A parent or guardian must accompany minors to the vaccination clinic.

The village of Oak Park encourages residents to also sign up for the Cook County COVID-19 Community Vaccination Program to receive information on mass vaccination sites throughout the county.

Stacey Sheridan

With Pride in mind, River Forest adopts flagpole policy New policy applies only to village hall flagpole

By ROBERT J. LIFKA Contributing Reporter

River Forest Trustee Erika Bachner’s desire to see the gay pride flag flying on the village hall flagpole took a step closer to reality when the village board approved a village hall flagpole policy at the May 10 virtual board meeting.

The policy, which is modeled after one from a municipality in California that Bachner said she found while doing research on the matter, applies only to the village hall flagpole and requires that the request to fly a commemorative flag come from a village board member.

In her memo to the board, Sara Phyfer, management analyst/deputy clerk, said a village flagpole flying only the United States flag is considered a nonpublic forum as op-

posed to a traditional public forum or limited or designated public forum.

“Staff recommends exercising caution and carefully restricting the use of the village’s flagpoles in order to avoid being forced to fly flags that may not align with the village’s public policy goals and messaging due to the public forum doctrine,” she said in the memo, which she noted was prepared with input from Greg Smith, village attorney.

Following a brief discussion over wording in the policy regarding requiring 60-days’ notice and limiting the policy to the village hall flagpole, as opposed to flagpoles at other locations in the village, including the public works pumping station, trustees voted unanimously to adopt the policy.

“In adopting this policy, the village board declares that the village of River Forest’s flagpole is not intended to serve as a forum for free expression of the public, but rather for the display of federal, state and village flags and any commemorative flag as may

be authorized by the village board, as an expression of the village’s board’s official sentiments,” the policy reads.

According to the policy, commemorative flags shall be displayed only if authorized by a resolution adopted by the village board and only if the request is made by a member of the River Forest village board.

Bachner said she first thought about the gay pride flag flying on the village hall flagpole at a village board meeting in June 2019, gay pride month, shortly after she was elected to the village board in April that year.

“Wouldn’t it be great if we could fly the pride flag next time?” Bachner said she thought at the time.

When the matter came up a year later, Bachner said, it was realized that a formal policy would be required.

“I did some research and found a policy in Pittsburg, Calif.,” she said. “They had gone through something similar.

“This one seems to be the most clear and direct. It’s put together well and its compre-

hensive and straight-forward.”

Although the policy requires 60-days’ notice, officials indicated at the May 10 meeting that Bachner would be able to make a request at the May 24 meeting for the gay pride flag to fly during the month of June.

“I’m just so proud that everybody feels comfortable,” she said. “I’m confident the new board will support it.

“I think this strengthens our community.

It’s so important to show how welcoming we are to the LGBTQ-plus community, to show we stand with them.”

Commemorative flags displayed on the village hall flagpole will be displayed in the last position, beneath the village flag. When flags are lowered to half-staff, only three flags will be displayed and any commemorative flag will replace the village flag so no flag touches the ground. Commemorative flags will be displayed for a period of time that is “reasonable or customary for the subject to be commemorated” but no longer than 31 continuous days.

Wednesday Journal, May 19, 2021

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What exactly is equity when your child is young?

By F. AMANDA TUGADE Staff Reporter

In a partnership with the New Teacher Center, the Collaboration for Early Childhood will hold its first Early Childhood Equity Summit May 22 for educators, families, caregivers and community members.

“Equity is about access,” said Heather Duncan, director of early learning at the collaboration, a nonprofit based in Oak Park that offers support, resources and information for area families and providers of children under 5 years old. “It’s about investigating who might be missing out in our community, figuring out who those folks are, how to find them and how to make sure they’re connected to our resources – and that’s a real tricky one.”

“If folks are missing out, that means, for example, they’re not interacting with the collaboration and taking advantage of our resources,” she said. “If they’re not doing that, how do we know where they are? And that is an access and equity issue – that there are a number of people who know all about the collab and know exactly where to go to get the resources and then there’s a set of people who don’t.”

Lisa Peloquin, instructional designer at the New Teacher Center, echoed Duncan’s sentiments. Peloquin said equity in the classroom could mean creating “high-quality” programs that are focused on children’s needs. One example of this is when teachers and families introduce young children to different vocabulary words. The more they create conversations around the words, the more students can associate meaning with the words and understand the world around them, Peloquin said.

“Kiddos who are exposed and get a lot of rich vocabulary in early childhood are then better set up to understand more of the text that they read when they hit elementary school and have the vocabulary to make sense of those things,” said Peloquin.

Those programs could also look like taking students on nontraditional field trips and teaching outside an academic curriculum, Duncan said. Reflecting on her decades-long career as a teacher, Duncan said she taught her students with an intention to “expand the possibility of thought” and believed that method of teaching dovetailed into her work toward racial equity. Again, it’s about meeting students where they are, she said.

Duncan said the biggest misconception about “equity” is that some people may think it’s about measuring gains and losses.

“That seems to be a lot of, in particular, white people’s issue: ‘If other people have equity, I am losing,’” she said. “That is not the case. We’re all just going to get what it is that we need. Nobody’s going to take your thing that you need away. Everybody just needs what they need. If we can get past that hurdle, I think we will be past that hurdle for a lot of equity problems.”

The equity summit – which will take place from 8:15 a.m. to 12:45 p.m. – will also include

two panels and facilitated breakout sessions. One panel will explore equity around the Village of Oak Park and unveil the collaboration’s equity framework, while another discussion will focus on the importance of equity in an early childhood environment. Guest panelists include LaDon Reynolds, Oak Park police chief; Kira Tchang, the village’s human resources director; Rob Huber, of the Pilgrim Community Nursery School and many more. For the full list of the speakers, visit collab4kids.org.

Sarai Coba-Rodriguez, an assistant profes-

sor of educational psychology at the University of Illinois at Chicago, is one of the event’s featured guests. Like Duncan and Peloquin, she reiterated that equity is about access.

“I don’t know if a lot of people really understand it,” she said, adding that it is about looking at the whole classroom and asking questions such as what the student-to-teacher ratio is and if teachers have enough supplies for their students and get the support they need from school administrators.

“Do [schools] have social workers? Do they have case managers? Do they have a

therapist?” asked Coba-Rodriguez. “And, if they don’t, do they have the connections to provide those resources to families and even for teachers?”

“In order for children and families to succeed, you need the partnership of everyone,” she said. “You need community. You need local policymakers, educators, teachers and social workers.”

For more information on the Early Childhood Equity Summit or to register for the event, visit collab4kids.org/events/equitysummit.

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ART BEAT

Transforming choral music, transcending borders

By MICHELLE DYBAL

L

Arts Editor

ux Cantorum Chicago (LCC), a choir of 25 voices whose mission is to share the “transformative power of sacred choral music,” has taken its local voices singing from their hometowns, including Oak Park and Riverside, and reached audiences around the world — particularly, Latvia — transcending borders during the pandemic.

According to LCC board member and Oak Park resident Stuart Jamieson, the group is “an interfaith choir that sings sacred music from all kinds of traditions and cultures.”

In April Lux Cantorum released their performance of “Dod, Dievini,” which trans, lates to “Give, God,” by composer Raimonds Tiguls and lyricist Nora Ikstena, written in 2008. Both are Latvian. The release has garnered nearly 3,500 views on YouTube. Other 2021 releases by LCC have approximately 500 views.

Having performed Tigels’ “Moonlight Sound Design” in 2019 and getting a “hearty response” from both Lux Cantorum singers and audiences, Artistic Director Wilber Watkins decided to explore other works by the composer.

“I came across ‘Dod, Dievini,’ , which had a folklike and yet ethereal feel to it,” Watkins said. He was working on a concert for May 2020, “Encounter,” which was later cancelled due to COVID-19. Instead, individual recordings of music for that concert are being released each month, beginning in February 2021.

“The Latvian work speaks of God’s providence and fit nicely in the musical amalgamation that I envisioned,” he said.

Adding to the interest of the performance after its release was coverage in Latvian media. An article appeared on Latvians.com.

And when Ikstena appeared on Latvian TV to promote her book, she was asked about Lux Cantorum’s performance.

ALEX ROGALS/Staff Photographer

LUX CANTORUM: From left, Lauren Zylstra, Dan Rogers, Stuart Barnes Jamieson, Joan Hutchinson, Wilbert O. Walkins, and Mary Léger inside Pilgrim Congregational Church of Oak Park.

“It made me very happy because that shows us that culture has no boundaries and is not limited by a pandemic,” the lyricist said. “This American choir has recorded this song in the Latvian language — in very beautiful, good Latvian language. This is a sign that for culture and spirit there are no boundaries; even the boundaries of a pandemic are broken.”

Watkins, who has conducted the choir since 2007, said, “The work presented a challenge in diction, as none of our members are Latvian speakers.” He found and worked with a Latvian speaker and singer who cre-

ated Latvian diction files for the choir and was available to answer questions along the way.

While the group is a sacred choral ensemble, the sacred works span religions. “Study War No More,” released on May 9, is of Jewish origin. “Chant of the Sixth Patriach,” a Buddhist piece, releases on May 21, and the group is recording “Shalom,” which will post to the choir’s website on June 4.

While all their recordings are available for free, Lux Cantorum has not had an inperson performance since December 2019, and thus has been unable to collect revenue

Do you want to keep your public officials accountable?

from ticket sales. LCC is suggesting a donation to offset their production expenses for the professionally edited videos.

The group typically performs at least one concert at Pilgrim Congregational Church, 460 Lake St., Oak Park, each season, as well as a holiday concert in December at Saints Peter and Paul Lutheran Church, 250 Woodside Road, Riverside, in non-pandemic times. Watkins is choir director at Pilgrim.

Lux Cantorum accompanist Joan Hutchinson, of Oak Park, is organist and minister of music at Pilgrim. Local members of LCC include Oak Parkers Mary Leger, soprano; Lauren Zylstra, soprano; Brandon Michaels, tenor; and Dan Rogers, tenor. Dina Schenk, soprano, is from Riverside, as is Pastor Dennis Lauritsen, bass.

Lauritsen, who is also an LCC board member, has sung in the choir for seven years.

He is pastor at Saints Peter and Paul. It was from hearing them sing at his church that gave him the idea to audition.

“I distinctly remember one concert when I thought to myself, ‘You know, they’re sounding really good. It’s been a long time since I’ve sung with a choir like this,’” Lauritsen said. “I had always sung with choirs in church, school, college and seminary and this seemed like an opportunity to return to one of my deepest loves in life.”

Because of the pandemic, for the monthly releases of “Encounter,” members rehearsed remotely and recorded their parts individually, compiled in the editing to form completed works.

“It really has been an experience of a lifetime, even during the pandemic, that I never expected after all these years,” Lauritsen said. “There’s nothing quite like the transcendent, mystical experience of voices drawn together from many different places as bearers of peace, unity, gentleness, beauty, truth, compassion, love and praise.”

View the music of Lux Cantorum at luxcantorum.org/encounter-performance-series.

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It is funded and supported by:

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CITARI

Toughest opponent from page 1 remain as independent as possible during the past nine months.

“I see someone who is strong,” McBride said. “His attitude has been amazing. What impresses me the most is that with everything he has going on, while you’re there with him, you don’t realize what he’s going through because he’s been tough about it. It says a lot about him.”

Citari was also determined and tough on the field -- the leader for the Huskies in 1981, when they finished with a 30-4 record.

OPRF was a terrific all-around team with a stellar pitching staff led by Tom Kolzow, Pat McKune and Greg Shannon -- who won the title game -- along with a powerful lineup featuring Citari, McBride, Marty Bell, Mark Carroll, J.J. Dwyer, Tom Hildebrand (who played at Northwestern University and was later drafted by the Chicago White Sox), Mark Serkalend and Jim Wollensak.

Citari said the camaraderie the Huskies had was the key to success in that special season.

“We just came together and had a bunch of talented kids,” he said. “We jelled, and it just wasn’t at the end. We were like that the whole year.”

“We got along great together,” added McBride, who caught the final out in the title game. “My closest friends in life are from that team. We had great players and didn’t have any injuries, and I think the combination of our close friendships plus our talent was important.”

It helped that OPRF was coached by the legendary Jack Kaiser, who won more than

Photos provided

HIGHLIGHTS: Citari’s minor league trading card. (Right) A close encounter with famous fan Morganna.

850 games in his illustrious career as the Huskies’ manager.

“He was great to play for,” Citari said. “He kind of kept to himself in his own way, and when we played well, he let us do our thing.

He had his little idiosyncrasies as a person, but all of us got along with him and he was fun to be around.”

Citari, who hit over .400 with seven home runs in 1981, was the only OPRF player drafted directly out of high school that year, taken in the 16th round of the Major League Baseball draft by the Kansas City Royals.

He embarked on a nine-year career in the minor leagues, advancing as far as Class

BOARD GOALS

OP trustees set priorities from page 1 Under the sustainability umbrella, newly elected Trustee Ravi Parakkat urged the creation of an “incubator” to provide job training for youth in fields concerned with environmental sustainability, as well as to create green investments and jobs in Oak Park.

He asked that the board conduct a feasibility study to see the possibility, the cost and the timeframe of establishing an incubator.

“It would be a good goal to set, in my mind, for this year,” said Parakkat.

Trustee Arti Walker-Peddakotla, a continuing village board member, liked Parakkat’s idea but felt the board should prioritize the assessment and reduction of the village’s greenhouse gas emissions.

Scaman tried to reel Parakkat in a bit, telling him, “We’re not going to have enough money to go and spend for every single idea we have here tonight.”

Trustee Jim Taglia, the board’s senior member, suggested the board conduct a study session to explore Parakkat’s idea.

“It certainly sounds interesting,” said Taglia.

Walker-Peddakotla asked that the board consider setting a goal to fully implement Greenways, a network of low-traffic

AAA, nearly breaking into the majors.

“Joe was the best player on the best team in the state,” McBride said. “Everyone looked up to him. He didn’t have enemies, and people liked him a lot.”

Alicia Citari shared an interesting story about the time when she and Joe went to an old-timers baseball game shortly after they got married -- although she said Joe doesn’t think it’s true.

“I met George Brett [the former Royals’ legend who’s in the Hall of Fame] and George said that Joe was one of the best hitters he’d ever met -- probably better than him,” she said.

residential streets designated as safe areas for walking and cycling. The Bike Walk Oak Park community group has long lobbied the village board to execute the program.

She also asked the village board to look into allowing the planting of pollinator and community gardens in parkways.

The community gardens could address food insecurity while growing local and sustainable produce.

Newly elected Trustee Chibuike Enyia wanted to see participation in the village’s compost program made more easily available to Oak Park’s renters.

The board agreed to prioritize the realization of the recommendations submitted by the ad hoc Oak Park Climate Action Planning Group that were approved under the previous village board.

The Government Alliance on Race and Equity (GARE) was mentioned while discussing racial equity goals after justelected Trustee Lucia Robinson asked that the board employ an organization to create a toolkit for the village to determine whether initiatives and programs advance racial equity. “[GARE] is the foremost leader on racial equity in governing in the nation,” said Walker-Peddakotla. “Any work that’s done on racial equity should be done with GARE.” Walker-Peddakotla suggested the board put into place a taskforce to identify areas in legislation and village practices that do not promote racial equity, as previously recommended by the Community Relations Commission (CRC).

GARE was the organization favored by the CRC to conduct racial equity training for village personnel. When the village board opted to use the National League of Cities last July, six of the commission’s seven members resigned.

After his playing career ended, Citari took over his father’s lighting business. But he stayed involved with baseball, coaching in several youth organizations. And -- even as he was preparing to go into hospice -- was on a Zoom conference last week with OPRF’s freshman team. He spoke with the players and coaches for more than 20 minutes.

Current OPRF coach Joe Parenti has never met Joe Citari in person, but he believes he is a big part of the Huskies’ rich tradition on the diamond.

“A lot of people remember the name,” he said. “He’s been around and stayed in touch with the community. People still pay attention to OPRF baseball, and the baseball alumni still have pride. They want to see us do well. OPRF baseball has an excellent tradition with a lot of success. It’s a good thing to be a part of.”

While baseball will be a large part of Joe Citari’s legacy, Alicia feels his role as a parent and the influence he’s made on his children is just as important.

“Everybody remembers him for baseball,” she said. “He taught kids the game, and he was good with adults too. But I also think his kids will be his legacy. They want to be like him.”

There is no cure for ALS, and no one knows for sure when the end will come.

Until then, Citari will appreciate those who have aided him during his time.

“I was born and raised in Oak Park, and I want to thank the community for all its support,” Citari said. “So many have donated to my GoFundMe page and reached out to me, and I think that’s great.”

Citari’s sister, Theresa Sittler started the GoFundMe back in September and to date the effort has raised more than $31,000 to help with medical and living expenses. If you’d like to donate, visit gofundme.com/f/ joe-citari.

Buchanan asked that the board revisit the reparations discussion and Enyia wanted to the board to find an outlet to conduct difficult conversations with the public to determine where the community is divided.

Walker-Peddakotla had big ideas for community safety goals, including restructuring the Citizen Police Oversight Committee (CPOC) to make it truly independent and give it greater oversight authority.

She wanted the board to consider an alternative emergency response system for mental health crisis calls that would not involve police, as well as a non-police procedure for minor traffic violations.

Walker-Peddakotla also asked that the board look into “transformative” programs for youth who commit criminal offenses instead of putting them through the criminal justice system.

“Notice I that I did not use the word ‘defund,’” she said.

“This is not about fearmongering or saying crazy stuff. This is about doing things in a more humane way.”

As part of the affordability category, Taglia asked if the board could have a study session regarding the inclusionary zoning ordinance, also known as the affordable housing ordinance.

The board established a goal to keep the village’s income tax levy to three percent increases annually and to address parking – the latter of which is a goal consistent among every iteration of the village board.

“Parking is complex,” said Village Manager Cara Pavlicek. “It’s always been revisited by village boards.”

Wednesday Journal, May 19, 2021

OAKPARK.COM | RIVERFOREST.COM

19

C R I M E

A woman was robbed as she was exiting her vehicle at 8:22 p.m., May 13 in the 800 block of North Lombard Avenue. She was approached from behind by two men, one of whom was wearing a mask. The masked man demanded her property and struck the woman. The men took the woman’s car keys and then fled the scene without taking the woman’s vehicle. The only reported loss was the victim’s keys.

Aggravated assault A man pulled a pocketknife on another person at 9:20 p.m., May 7 while on the train platform at the CTA Blue Line Station in the 700 block of Austin Boulevard. The victim fled the platform ramp to Austin Boulevard.

The offender was last seen walking southbound on Austin Boulevard.

Burglary ■ Someone broke into a 2017 Chevrolet Cruze and took a laptop computer, cell phone and tablet between 5:30 p.m. and 6:10 p.m., May 7 in the 400 block of Madison Street. The estimated loss is $1,600.

Woman hit during robbery

■ Someone removed a mountain bike from an unlocked garage in the 1000 block of South Humphrey Avenue between 6 p.m., May 9 and 5:45 p.m., May 10. The bicycle was later recovered in the 300 block of South Grove Avenue and returned to the victim.

■ Someone broke into a garage and removed a bicycle between 11 p.m., May 9 and 7:50 a.m., May 10 in the 100 block of North Euclid Avenue. The estimated loss is $450.

■ Someone pried open a garage, then entered a 2021 Honda CRV parked inside and removed a wallet containing money, identification documents, and credit cards between 8 p.m., May 11 and 7:50 a.m., May 12 in the 600 block of North Taylor Avenue. A bicycle was also taken from the garage. The estimated loss is $220.

■ A bicycle, clothing and tools were taken from a locked storage area in the 900 block of Home Avenue between 5 p.m., Feb. 28 and 12 p.m., April 27. The estimated loss is $2,999.

■ Someone used a key to open a garage and removed a pair of shoes and a bike from inside between 8 a.m. and noon, May 10 in the 500 block of Clinton Avenue.

■ A snowblower, hammer drill and toolbox

Need a helping of

were removed from a garage that had been pried open in the 200 block of North Harvey Avenue between 9:30 p.m., May 10 and 8:20 a.m., May 11. The estimated loss is $2,270.

Motor vehicle theft ■ Someone removed a 2019 Toyota Avalon parked in the 1100 block of West Madison Street between 7 p.m. and 9:15 p.m., May 14.

Chicago police recovered the vehicle in the 3000 block of West Flournoy Street at 4:16 p.m., May 15.

■ A 2003 Chrysler Town and Country van was removed from the 800 block of Washington Boulevard between 6:30 p.m., May 12 and 9:20 a.m., May 15.

Theft ■ The

catalytic converter was cut from a 2006 Toyota Prius while parked in the 400 block of South Elmwood Avenue between 7:30 p.m., May 5 and 8:15 a.m., May 7.

■ The catalytic converter was cut from a 2008 Toyota Prius while parked in the 100 block of Home Avenue between 2:30 p.m.,

■ These items, obtained from the Oak

Park Police Department, came from reports May 11 – May 17 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 Stacey Sheridan

Abduction falsely reported No attempted abduction of a Longfellow student occurred

By F. AMANDA TUGADE and STACEY SHERIDAN Staff Reporters

Call Jill at (708) 524-8300 or visit OakPark.com/subscribe

May 12 and 11 a.m., May 8.

■ The catalytic converter was cut from a 2005 Toyota Prius while parked in the 300 block of Home Avenue between 10:30 p.m., May 12 and 9:30 a.m., May 13.

■ The catalytic converter was cut from a 2005 Toyota Prius while parked in the 300 block of Ontario Street between 9:40 p.m., May 12 and 8 a.m., May 13.

■ The catalytic converter was cut from a 2007 Toyota Prius while parked in the 900 block of Pleasant Street between 6 p.m., May 12 and 7:30 a.m., May 14.

Oak Park police responded to a false report of an attempted child abduction May 11 after a Longfellow Elementary School student claimed to have escaped kidnappers while walking home from school. The claim was later found unsubstantiated.

“No child abduction occurred,” said Commander William Rygh.

Rygh told Wednesday Journal that officers received the report at 3:20 p.m. and immediately began investigating, canvassing the area before determining that no such incident had occurred.

“Officers treated it is as a child abduction until investigative efforts determined that it was not,” said Rygh.

In a letter sent to Longfellow parents and guardians, Principal Amy Jefferson wrote that the student reportedly told police that “they were abducted on their walk home from school” on the afternoon of May 11 but “escaped unharmed.” The letter, obtained

by Wednesday Journal, was sent the same

day of the reported abduction.

Jefferson wrote there was “no danger posed to students after school” but that information about the incident quickly spread on social media “which caused a great deal of concern in our community.”

Longfellow School is at 715 Highland.

In an email to Wednesday Journal, District 97 Communications Director Amanda Siegfried said parents saw details about the alleged abduction on Facebook and Twitter through the @OakParkScanners account.

Siegfried also stated the district has no further comment or additional information.

“This was a fairly contained incident,” Siegfried wrote. “We were trying to be proactive in sharing information with our community since it was on social media.”

In Jefferson’s letter, the principal emphasized that the district works closely with the Oak Park Police Department during such situations to get the information out to families as quickly as possible.

“While we appreciate the community’s efforts to share information, it is also important to remember that official sources – in this case, the police department and the district – will provide the most accurate and up-to-date information regarding incidents of this nature,” Jefferson wrote.

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Homes

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The end of an era Post-pandemic, the annual New Moms Kitchen Walk will not return

By LACEY SIKORA

L

Contributing Reporter

ast week, New Moms sent out an email to friends of its annual Kitchen Walk to let them know that the walk -- shuttered in 2020 and 2021 by the pandemic -- would not be returning to Oak Park and River Forest after 36 years in the community.

The walk had been prominent on the local fundraising circuit since 1985, when Parenthesis board member Pat Staszak and her neighbor, Catherine Deam, came up with the idea after Deam renovated her own kitchen.

Parenthesis, which was acquired by New Moms in 2016, began the spring tradition of highlighting Oak Park and River Forest kitchens while also showcasing the work of local kitchen designers.

New Moms took the reins of the walk in 2016, and Bonnie Andorka, senior manager of donor relations and events at New Moms, transitioned from Parenthesis too. Andorka says the necessity of cancelling the walk last year and this year created a pause that allowed the organization to rethink their fundraising efforts.

She notes that at the end of the day, the walk required a lot of time but didn’t show a return on investment.

“New Moms invested significantly in the walk,” Andorka said. “They increased marketing, increased showcase fees and ticket prices and still didn’t see an increase in revenue.”

Andorka said that in spite of these efforts,

the walk did not raise more money in recent years than in did years ago.

The walk required a large investment of time from staff and volunteers, with work typically beginning in August for the lateApril walk. Andorka says that to do the walk well required a tremendous amount of time that could be better allocated to different efforts.

According to Andorka, ending what had become a spring rite of passage in Oak Park was not an easy decision.

“We have an incredible appreciation for the Oak Park and River Forest communities,” she said. “People have always volunteered their time and opened their houses.

So many people came to see the walk and See KITCHEN WALK on page 22

Wright Plus returns in September In other housewalk news, after a pandemic hiatus in May of 2020 and May of 2021, the Wright Plus Architectural Housewalk plans to return on Sept. 18.

Residences on the walk include three Frank Lloyd Wright designs, as well as two other homes making their housewalk debuts: ■ Isabel Roberts House (Frank Lloyd Wright, 1908, remodel 1955) ■ J. Kibben Ingalls House (Frank Lloyd Wright, 1909) ■ Oscar B. Balch House (Frank Lloyd Wright, 1911) ■ Bell House (H. Mahler, 1914) ■ Henry Einfeldt House (Purcell & Elmslie, 1915) ■ John A. Klesert House (William Drummond, 1915) ■ Seth A. Rhodes House (John Van Bergen, 1916) ■ E. Probst House (Edward Probst, 1916)

File photos

SPARK: The kitchen that started it all was first remodeled in the 1980s by Catherine Deam, neighbor of Parenthesis board member Pat Staszak. It reappeared on the 2018 Kitchen Walk when it was remodeled again (top). Denise Hauser (above), a designer who’s been part of the walk since 2009, called the event “a celebration of the architectural significance of our homes and communities.”

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Wednesday Journal, May 19, 2021

OAKPARK.COM | RIVERFOREST.COM

KITHCEN WALK Going to be missed from page 21 support New Moms. The Kitchen Walk was a great way for people to learn about our mission. This decision was not made lightly.”

River Forest-based kitchen designer Mark Menna says he was initially shocked by the news but understands the decision.

“Unfortunately, the pandemic put them in a position of raising money in other ways,” Menna. “It forced their hand to go in another direction.”

Menna, who says he participated in the walk at least 23 of the last 25 years, says that his views on the walk changed over time.

“When I was part of the walk 25 years ago, it was more about me and establishing my business, highlighting my work,” he said. “As I got more established, I was doing it more for the philanthropy and helping a community organization.”

He adds that the walk helped in developing a long-term relationship with the community.

“In the beginning years, it was a critical part of our growth,” Menna said. “As we got our foot in the ground as one of the top players in the area, it still solidified that.”

Menna says he will miss the connections and the community that the walk fostered, noting that he often talked to the same people each year who looked forward to that chance to get a glimpse into new designs.

Denise Hauser of Oak Park’s Denise Hauser Design has also been involved with the Kitchen Walk for years, both as a designer and a judge.

BEAUTIFUL VICTORIAN

“I feel really sad,” Hauser said. “It’s really going to be missed by the community.”

Hauser, who has been a part of the walk since 2009, says that part of what made the walk special was how tailored it was to the communities of Oak Park and River Forest.

“It was a great celebration of the architectural significance of our homes and what a great community we have,” she said. “People came from all over to see our homes and saw how special it is to live in Oak Park and River Forest.”

For some, Hauser says the walk was inspirational and allowed them to dream about a fancy kitchen. For others, it was instructive, and they gleaned ideas for how to update

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their own homes.

“Our kitchens were not originally meant to do what we want them to do today,” Hauser said. “One hundred years ago, when our houses were built, kitchens were just for servants. You have to think about space planning, and that’s different here than it is with a new construction house.”

Hauser says she hopes another organization will consider taking over the Kitchen Walk as a fundraiser and notes that she even floated the idea of combining the annual Garden Walk with the Kitchen Walk as a fall event.

“I’m hoping someone steps up,” she said. “I think it would be a great fundraiser for somebody.”

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Wednesday Journal, May 19, 2021

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Wednesday Journal, May 19, 2021

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Wednesday Journal, May 19, 2021

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SPORTS

Fenwick water polo squads eye state title runs Friars hosting ISHA championships

By MELVIN TATE Contributing Reporter

With a combined 30 state championships (20 boys, 10 girls), the Fenwick High School water polo program has established a tradition of excellence.

After surviving the uncertain nature of this season due to the COVID-19 pandemic, both teams are looking forward to the start of the state tournament this week.

Moreover, there’s an added incentive for Fenwick to do well: It’s hosting the state finals from May 26-29. It’s the first time that’s happened in school history.

“As a Fenwick alum and water polo fan, I love our pool,” said Fenwick boys’ coach Kyle Perry. “It’s going to be a different feel because you’re not going to have the fans on top of you. But our pool is one of the best in Illinois, and we’re really honored.”

But there’s no guarantee the Friars will be competing for championships at home. Both teams are in difficult sectionals and neither has posted up the kind of regular season records typical of state title contenders.

The Fenwick boys finished 17-11 in the regular season, losing the Metro Catholic Aquatic Conference championship game on May 15 to St. Rita 10-6.

Despite the loss, Perry is pleased with the development of the Friars this year, considering there were many newcomers at the start.

“From where we were two months ago to where we are now, there’s been incredible improvement,” Perry said.

“The boys have done a nice job of rising to the challenge, and I’m very optimistic heading into the playoffs.”

Fenwick’s top players this season have been seniors Pete Buinauskas (92 goals, 33 assists, 57 steals), Liam McCarthy (15 goals, 11 assists, 39 steals), Wil Gurski (71 goals, 41 assists) and goalie Brian Moore (195 saves).

“Brian is playing phenomenal,” Perry said. “He got a shutout against St. Viator [on May 14]; it’s not easy to get one in water polo. I think Brian is one of the top goalies in the state.”

In order to advance in the state tournament, Perry believes the Friars will need to protect the ball under pressure and elevate their in-game awareness “We feel we’re ready to make a push and hopefully play our best water polo this week,” Perry said. “If we just play

Photo provided by Fenwick

BACK OFF: Fenwick’s Annie McCarthy (right) finished the regular season with 12 goals, 12 assists and 37 steals. She and the rest of the Friars topped St. Ignatius to win the GCMC title on May 15 and begin the IHSA state tournament this week as the No. 3 seed in the York Sectional. our way, I think we’ll be in every game the rest of the season.”

The Friars are seeded second in the York Sectional and will host the winner of the play-in game between Taft and Von Steuben on May 20. Should Fenwick advance, either crosstown rival Oak Park and River Forest or St. Patrick awaits in the semifinals, with the survivor likely facing the host Dukes for the sectional title May 22.

“You want to be challenged, and when you get a chance to

play top teams at the end of the season, what else can you ask for?” Perry said.

Girls building off conference title The Fenwick girls had a record of 10-12 in the regular season, a rarity for the program. But the Friars enter the postseason with momentum after defeating St. Ignatius 9-4 See FENWICK on page 27

Cronin’s arm leads girls water polo into state tourney Junior’s 57 goals paces Huskies, who need consistency to advance

By MELVIN TATE Contributing Reporter

The Oak Park and River Forest High School

girls water polo team defeated Amundsen 14-3 on May 12, ending the regular season with a 7-8 record heading into the IHSA state tournament, which beings this week.

Coach Elizabeth Perez said the Huskies steadily improved as the season progressed, but she also sees a few areas of concern, especially on offense.

“Our offense has trouble clicking and working together,” said Perez. “Each game

is a new trial and it gets frustrating at times.

It’s been hard to have balance.”

OPRF senior Addie Kosterman, who had 20 goals and 14 assists during the regular season, believes the regular season went well in spite of the circumstances, which included the Huskies having to quarantine for two weeks due to COVID-19.

“After [quarantine], we really came together as a team and put forth our best

whenever we played, because we know [playing] can be easily taken away from us,” said Kosterman.

The Huskies are led in scoring by junior Rory Cronin with 57 goals and 17 assists.

“We look to Rory for a lot of goals,” Perez said. “She’s got the strongest arm on the team and draws a lot of double-teams.”

See OPRF on page 27

Wednesday Journal, May 19, 2021

@ @OakPark

27

After hot start, Fenwick girls lacrosse hits a bump Lane Tech, Ignatius deal back to back defeats

By MELVIN TATE Contributing Reporter

The Fenwick High School girls lacrosse team entered its game May 12 against visiting Lane Tech with an impressive 5-1 record.

But the Friars knew that the visitors -- who were undefeated -- would provide a stern test.

Displaying speed on both ends of the field, Lane Tech took control early on and knocked off Fenwick 13-8 at the Dominican Priory in River Forest.

“Lane is the fastest team we’ve played so far. The pace of this game was faster than what we’re used to,” said Fenwick coach Tracy Bonaccorsi. “It was a little bit of an adjustment for us. We have a lot of young players and this was their first tough game.”

Defensively, Lane Tech made it difficult for the Friars’ offense, using its quickness to maintain defensive discipline and force multiple turnovers.

OPRF

Ball security a must from page 26 Other top performers for OPRF are sophomore Regan Mary Cronin (21 goals; 3 assists plus 51 saves in goal), junior Ashby StewardNolan (7 goals, 7 assists), and junior goalie Cali Weber (111 saves).

During postseason play, the Huskies need spread out on offense so that the focus and pressure can be alleviated somewhat on Rory Cronin. Perez also feels ball security will be important if OPRF is to have success.

“We need to take care of the ball and not

“We definitely need to go to the goal more.

Driving from up top is something we’ve been working on,” Bonaccorsi said. “A lot of it will come with confidence. We have to believe we can score even though [the opponents] are playing tough defense.”

One bright spot for the Friars (5-3) against Lane Tech was the play of senior captain Caroline Finn, who scored three goals and was a notable presence both on offense and defense.

“Caroline is a great leader,” said Bonaccorsi of Finn, a Florida Tech signee who leads Fenwick with 23 goals and 14 assists.

“She’s someone we can always count on when the ball is on her stick.”

On May 14, the Friars took their second loss in a row, falling at St. Ignatius 14-4. Finn had two goals and an assist, and Bonaccorsi felt Fenwick played better than the final score indicated.

Despite the back-to-back losses, the Friars are happy to be back playing after last season’s cancelation due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Bonaccorsi tells her players every day when she’s at work, she looks forward to practice later and working with them.

“Last year was my first, so the season get-

have needless turnovers,” she said. “That will help us with our confidence and score more.”

Moreover, the slow-starting Huskies have to begin clicking sooner in games. Perez thinks slow starts happen too often and make it difficult for OPRF to rally.

“Sometimes we would wait until the third quarter to get going. In the postseason, that’s not going to cut it,” she said. “We need to play four quarters, and not just in spurts.”

Seeded fourth in the York Sectional, OPRF begins postseason play by hosting Von Steuben May 19. Should the Huskies advance, top-seeded Maine West is the likely opponent in the sectional semifinal May 21.

The York Sectional title game is May 22, followed by the state finals May 26-29 at Fenwick High School.

Photo provided by Matt Kosterman

SHARPSHOOTER: Addie Kosterman looks for a shot through a forest of defenders’ arms during the Huskies’ 14-3 win over Amundsen on May 12.

ALEX ROGALS/Staff Photographer

ROUGH RIDE: Fenwick’s Caroline Sutton is surrounded by Lane Tech defenders during the Friars’ 13-8 loss at the Dominican Priory in River Forest on May 12. ting canceled was tough,” she said. “We’ve been waiting a long time to get together and play with each other. It’s been awesome.”

As the regular season heads into the final weeks, Bonaccorsi said she feels it’s important the Friars develop self-confidence and maintain belief whenever things become difficult like they did against Lane.

“Going forward, we need to work on being tougher mentally,” she said. “When every-

FENWICK

Playing as a unit from page 26 on May 15 at Loyola Academy for the Metro Catholic Aquatic Conference championship.

“I don’t think they thought it was going to happen a couple of weeks ago,” said head coach Liz Timmons. “We’ve been playing good the last few games, and they’ve learned how to play together.”

With only one player with varsity experience on this year’s roster, it was going to take some time for the Friars to jell.

“When I think about it, it’s crazy for me to see how far they’ve come,” Timmons said.

“The fact that they’re doing as well as they are is incredible.”

Demi Ovalle leads Fenwick this season with 33 goals, 15 assists, and 27 steals.

Other notable performances for the Friars have been turned in by Annie McCarthy (12 goals, 12 assists, 37 steals), C.C. Trejo (13

thing is flowing, we trust ourselves and each other, but when we got down today, we started gripping our sticks and dropping passes because we were worried about making mistakes instead of playing with confidence.”

Fenwick has six games remaining in the regular season, including home contests against Trinity on May 23 and Oak Park and River Forest May 28.

goals, 12 assists, and 18 steals) and goalie Julie Soto (94 saves, 13 steals).

Timmons believes the Friars can have success in the state tournament as long as they play their game and not focus as much on their opponents.

“We can’t worry about the other team and what they’re doing,” Timmons said. “We need to do the things that make us successful.”

Fenwick is seeded third in the York Sectional and hosts Maine South in a quarterfinal on May 19. If the Friars advance, York -- this year’s West Suburban Silver Conference champion -- would be the probable opponent in the semifinal two days later.

It’s a difficult road, but Timmons says the tough schedule has prepared the Friars well and also provided perspective.

“We’ve been playing a lot of top-level competition, and in the beginning we weren’t ready to take that on,” she said. “But now, I think we are more ready and excited to play [top teams]. Also, when we’ve had our low points, we have reminded them that we’re here doing what we want to do and having fun.”

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Wednesday Journal, May 19, 2021

Growing Community Media & A Tribe Called Aging Present

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VIEWPOINTS

Wednesday Journal, May 19, 2021

29

David Hammond says, ‘VegOut!’ p. 33

OPRF, don’t fail our students

N

one of us need reminding that we have been experiencing — and are still experiencing — the worst pandemic in over 100 years. We are dealing with circumstances in our work, school, and personal lives that we never imagined. As a result, many of us have been allowed some lessening of external accountability. Some jobs are easing off or canceling performance evaluations. School districts and state education systems are not rating schools on their performance.

The one group that is still being held accountable is made up of the people who should be given the most consideration … and those are our young people. Our students.

Most districts, including OPRF District 200, continue to give grades — even failing grades — during the pandemic, even though students have had to attend classes primarily online for the past year. Even though, as we have seen, many others are being given leeway. Even though the research shows failure is a massive de-motivator, especially for those who are not yet adults.

Some argue that if we eliminate failing grades, our high school students will not learn to face reality. They say our students will learn that they will be given rewards without doing the work. But failing grades also communicate a value. And students definitely receive a message from them. What they learn is: “School is not a place for me. I’m not someone who belongs in or can do well in school.”

In the past, this meant failing grades drastically increased the likelihood of students dropping out.

Research from the UChicago Consortium on School Research has found that freshman students who fail two classes are 3½ times less likely to graduate than those who pass. And in a pandemic — who knows? The likelihood of dropping out can only increase when a student has barely been in-person at their school.

And this disconnection is exacerbated for Black and Latinx students, with whom our schools already struggle to connect. We must consider that these students have been facing both the pandemic and heightened racial trauma over the past year, with the public police killings of unarmed Black and Latinx people as well as the pandemic’s increased impact on their own communities.

For all these reasons, the Oak Park and River Forest High School board should eliminate failing grades for this year of school. One way to do this would be to change all grades of D and F to a grade of P, which would award course credit but would not count toward a student’s grade point average. The board should take this action for Semester 2 and retroactively for Semester 1.

The D200 board has adopted a racial equity policy for the OPRF school community. This is the time to stop talking about equity and be about equity. This is the time to act.

OPRF school board, please, don’t fail our students.

Jim Schwartz is an Oak Park resident, an educator, and a blogger at Entwining.org.

JIM

SCHWARTZ One View

W

Illegal guns are spiking: why are lawmakers waiting?

e see it every summer in Chicago: The weather gets warm, we spend more time outdoors, and gun violence spikes. Even last summer, during a stay-athome order.

In fact, especially last summer: between Memorial Day Weekend and Labor Day Weekend 2020, Chicago had 1,884 shooting victims, a 75% increase over 2019. Last July was our most violent month in 28 years, with 107 people killed, mostly by gunshot wounds. That includes 7-year-old Natalia Wallace, shot while celebrating the Fourth of July.

A 7-year-old, killed by guns while observing Independence Day — it’s become the all-too-familiar American tragedy.

But this year, with summer still coming, we’re headed for worse.

We’ve already seen a 30% spike in shooting victims in the first four months of 2021 compared to 2020. And a 55% spike in homicides. That includes Jaslyn Adams, a 7-year-old shot while waiting in a McDonald’s drivethru — yet another all-too-familiar American tragedy less than one year after Natalia.

Worse yet, over the past year our illegal gun problem has spiked. According to data compiled by Jens Ludwig at the University of Chicago Crime Lab, in 2020 illegal gun carrying jumped 110% over 2019.

This time last year we knew our gun violence epidemic was bad, but we did not know how much worse it would become.

So what are lawmakers in Springfield waiting for?

Earlier this year, a statewide coalition of gun safety advocates including survivors, faith leaders, and law enforcement officials, reassembled to pass the Block Illegal Ownership and Fix The FOID Bill (BIO).

This legislation fixes our FOID system, clearing up the backlog for those seeking guns legally.

It closes loopholes to keep guns out of the wrong hands.

It puts more money into critical mental health programs.

And after clearing the Illinois House two years ago, we expect the bill to again pass swiftly out of the House this month.

In the Illinois Senate, we have 28 co-sponsors who have publicly committed to passing the BIO and Fix the FOID bill (SB 568) which includes mandatory fingerprinting for all FOID cards, universal background checks and resources to ensure the enforcement program is fully functional: Sen. Ram Villivalam Sen. Elgie R. Sims Jr. Sen. Omar Aquino Sen. Jacqueline Y. Collins Sen. Julie A. Morrison Sen. Laura Fine Sen. Ann Gillespie Sen. Bill Cunningham

KATHLEEN SANCES One View

See SANCES on page 33

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V I E W P O I N T S

Wednesday Journal, May 19, 2021

O U R

V I E W S

We’re beefing up our reader engagement A note from our Equity Editor

Last week, we did something we rarely do. In response to pushback we received after publishing an editorial called “Turbulent bars,” which was published in our sister paper, the Forest Park Review, Growing Community Media organized a Zoom session to explain our intentions to our readers and to listen to your concerns.

About two dozen of you joined us for that session and provided raw, honest and productive feedback. After about an hour, we agreed that we won’t stop reporting and editorializing on race in Forest Park, as sensitive as that topic often is.

But one person’s feedback, in particular, struck a chord. In so many words, he told us to remember that there are fleshand-blood people behind our words who have to deal with their real-world impact.

That comment, from someone who had never heard of Forest Park Review before reading the controversial editorial, reinforced just how critical our role as a local newspaper is to the community and just how essential it is that we incorporate an array of community voices in all facets of our editorial process.

To that end, we listened to what you told us during that May 11 Zoom session and are working on enhancing our reader engagement process.

Below, we’ve outlined some immediate ways that readers and stakeholders can get your voices heard on our platforms, hold us accountable, and help us improve our reader engagement process.

MICHAEL ROMAIN

■ We’re always open to hearing your thoughts on what’s happening in Wednesday Journal and one of the best ways of doing that is by submitting letters to the editor. For information on the criteria, you can visit: oakpark.com/letter-to-theeditor-submission/.

■ Oak Park and River Forest are rich with small stories waiting to be uncovered and brought to the eyes of the public. Do you have something in mind that deserves to be reported on?

Is there breaking news happening we should be notified about?

Make a pitch to us by going online at: https://www.oakpark. com/pitch-us-a-story/.

■ If you want to submit an obituary, visit: https://www. oakpark.com/obituary-submission/.

■ Finally, we’re currently overhauling our reader engagement process and will be returning with more details in the future. In the meantime, however, we definitely want to start hosting community listening sessions on a regular basis — not just in reaction to controversy — and we want you all to help us plan them. If you’d like to lend some of your time, energy and focus to helping us host these regular listening sessions, please email me at michael@oakpark.com or call me at 708-3599148. We’ll be setting up some planning sessions in the next few months and would greatly appreciate your input.

Michael Romain, Equity Editor and Ombudsman

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Our daily pilgrimage

f life is an odyssey, each day is a pilgrimage. Last Friday begins with 5 a.m. light filtering into my bedroom.

Awake, if not quite “woke,” I continue reading my bed-table book, Pilgrimage to Eternity, by Timothy Egan, who traces the history of Christianity and Western Europe on his long walk, a few years back, from Canterbury to Rome. Yet he has another motive: coming to terms with his own faith — finding out what, if anything, he believes.

Fascinating book, especially if you grew up Catholic … or Protestant … which is to say “Christian,” though its grisly, bloody, un-Christian history might make one question one’s membership. Whether organized religion is worthy of faith remains an open question; many have closed that door in contempt and disgust. The author has not.

As I write this, he has just arrived at the Alps, so I don’t know yet what he discovers on the other side.

On the other hand, the title “Pilgrimage to Eternity” implies a walk with no finish line.

Most pilgrimages have a destination. Pilgrims like endings, preferably the happy sort. The destination of life’s pilgrimage, however, is death. We don’t know what’s on the other side of that door.

Might consciousness continue on in some fashion? That is humanity’s unanswerable question and longing. Do we survive death? Some lay claim to the answer, nay or yea, but the only “proof ” offered is the firmness of belief. No one knows, and anyone who claims to know is selling something, as Dread Pirate Roberts says in Princess Bride.

But asking the question makes us, as Teilhard de Chardin said, spiritual beings having a human experience (instead of the other way around). So each day is a pilgrimage. It begins with said sun invading bedrooms or a clock radio bursting forth with the urgency of latest developments in the world at large. We traverse the arc of each day, paralleling the sun’s arc overhead, sometimes obstructed, sometimes aflame, dawn to dusk — and beyond, to deep sleep’s carnival of dreams, a journey within the ongoing journey.

Each day we set out with our daily goals, meeting challenges and delights with prayerful awareness if circumstances grant us the luxury of awareness, the monks of our monasticism. We plant seeds and tend them, love where we can, praise where we find reason, help where needed, laugh at the world’s comedy or our own, stay present in someone’s life, ease pain where possible, wonder about the lives and burdens and delights of fellow pilgrims, regard each day as a gift, feel the upswelling of gratitude, give our gifts in return, pay attention to what is begging to be noticed, each day ending with a string of pearls passing before our eyes, meaning to be mined.

Give us this day our daily pilgrimage. May we

reach our mecca or help someone reach theirs, treading lightly on the path, welcoming other pilgrims without getting in their way. And at day’s end ask, “What can I do better?”

Give us this day our daily plans, but let them be flexible, to make room for surprise, to embrace adventure. Forgive us our changing minds. May our trespasses lead to greater wisdom and our mistakes to atonement.

Begin and end, and in between we go somewhere. Pilgrim’s progress. Moving forward toward … something. Walking — the act that messages the mind. We trace a “route,” however random, however many right and left turns.

Walking mirrors the inward “travel” our longing calls for. We may not even know where “there” is, may not recognize it when we get there. Maybe going is all there is. Maybe it’s enough.

When I walk, I sometimes look far ahead where the parallel lines of the sidewalk converge to a single point that I will never reach, am in no hurry to reach. I call it “the long walk to forever.” That is the pilgrim’s path.

On this perfect mid-May midafternoon, perfumed by lilac and lily of the valley and adorned with bridal veil, trees leafing toward fullness, three old friends, accompanied by our past pilgrimages and imagining future journeys, make our way to the Gross Point Lighthouse in Evanston and sit on a bench overlooking the blue of Lake Michigan, a ruffled, many-shaded mirror of the cloud-strewn sky — this faux infinity, water stretching beyond the limits of vision, this rehearsal for the death we hope is no ending, because we can’t help but hope, even if we suspect otherwise.

I could sit on this bench, on this day, forever.

On the return trip, I mention Timothy Egan’s pilgrimage of faith, the one with more questions than answers, seeing the potential in religion despite its appalling, faith-crushing fallibility. I wonder where my companions are on their pilgrimage of faith or non-faith. We talk instead about the faith and courage of Joan of Arc, whom Egan writes about, and wonder whether Greta Thunberg might be our Joan.

Whether courage is a function of will or age or simply the fortune of body chemistry.

I think courage is continuing on the pilgrim’s path to its unforeseeable conclusion.

I wonder how far our pilgrimage will take us, together or alone, now that life expectancy gives us a more visible horizon, a more precise actuarial guesstimate.

How long will our bodies carry us on our long walk to forever, made so much more enjoyable with good company? And what will our daily pilgrimage entail when our limbs finally give out?

As if reading my thoughts, a fellow pilgrim pipes up: “I’m thinking of buying a bike.”

KEN

TRAINOR

V I E W P O I N T S

Wednesday Journal, May 19, 2021

W E D N E S D A Y

JOURNAL of Oak Park and River Forest

MARTIN FALBISONER, CC BY-SA 3.0

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A G I N G

Growing Community Media

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

Fascism is footloose and fancy free

F

Editor and Publisher Dan Haley Senior Editor Bob Uphues Equity Editor/Ombudsman Michael Romain Staff Reporters Stacey Sheridan, Maria Maxham, F. Amanda Tugade Staff Photographer Alex Rogals Viewpoints Editor Ken Trainor Real Estate Editor Lacey Sikora Food Editor Melissa Elsmo Arts Editor Michelle Dybal Digital Strategist James Kay Columnists Marc Blesoff, Jack Crowe, Doug Deuchler, Mary Kay O’Grady, Kwame Salter, John Stanger, Stan West Design/Production Manager Andrew Mead Designers Mark Moroney, Javier Govea Business Manager Joyce Minich Marketing Representatives Marc Stopeck, Lourdes Nicholls Sales & Development Mary Ellen Nelligan Circulation Manager Jill Wagner E-MAIL jill@oakpark.com Chairman Emeritus Robert K. Downs

ascism on the rise, and I’m the one who’s losing my mind?

A few weeks ago I had lunch with a group of old friends — yes, that old — to honor a woman who was leaving her job at a building where we all lived at one time or another.

At one point one of the women asked me something (of course I can’t remember exactly what) about my dementia. Every head snapped to look at me and get my answer.

It made sense, given that I am open about my condition. I opened my mouth and my mind went blank. That’s what I should have told them, but I felt pressure to be informative or at least responsive. After all, I’m the one who went public about it. I have no idea what I said, but if I’m guessing right, none of them do either.

Maybe that’s what makes good friends. You can fake it, they know you’re faking it, and everyone carries on.

Some of my friends say they do the daily crossword in 30 minutes or an hour. The New York Times crossword has been over for me for some time, although I still keep a book of NYT puzzles next to my bed. Instead I play Scrabble on my computer several times a day and before I go to sleep. I beat the computer 99 times out of 100. I also play in the “beginners” category. Why should I frustrate myself ?

I drink wine every day, usually one glass, often two.

Most of my friends drink martinis, so I give myself points for that.

I truly believe that I would not be doing so well mentally if Trump had won the election. Joe Biden is just so sane.

But I do worry about my country. The attack on the Capitol was unreal, shocking, right out of a horror movie, but it firmed up an idea that I was not sure I

wanted to admit to myself: fascism is not only present in my country, it’s flourishing.

On Jan. 6, it was not hard to believe that Trump would ask a crowd to go to the Capitol; what was unbelievable was that the crowd was so large, so filled with hate, so murderous, and so armed to the teeth. It still is.

Since then I’ve been watching everything I can about World War II. There’s no question that Hitler looks and acts crazy in all the documentaries. But when the cameras pan, the size of the crowds is absolutely stunning. Trump did not attract those huge crowds, perhaps because his followers had Fox TV. We were able to fool ourselves that his following was not huge, let alone dangerous.

One of the many documentaries I’ve watched — and isn’t it interesting that so many documentaries about World War II are being aired — hit home for me.

It concluded by saying the Germans were motivated by the need to be superior, to be a pure German race.

Thus the murder of Jews, gays and the handicapped.

The fascists in our country — and that’s what they are, fascists — also think there is a “true American” who is white, Christian, straight … and armed. They fear they are being overrun by the “other.” They probably are because they’re not too bright and their leaders are duplicitous morons.

Who can they turn to? Well, Trump was their savior, the poor fools, and he lost. Solution? Tear the place down. Vote Liz Cheney out of her position. (By the way, I hope she has round-the-clock security.)

I wish I knew how it will all turn out. What I do know is this: Cheers for Joe Biden, who is so damn normal, and for his backups, the cunning-in-a-good-way Nancy Pelosi and the future of our country, Kamala Harris.

MARY KAY O’GRADY

BOARD OF DIRECTORS Chair Judy Greffin Treasurer Nile Wendorf Deb Abrahamson, Gary Collins, Darnell Shields, Sheila Solomon, Eric Weinheimer

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, email Viewpoints editor Ken Trainor at ktrainor@ wjinc.com.

LETTER TO THE EDITOR

‘ONE VIEW’ ESSAY

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■ 500-word limit

■ Must include first and last names,

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municipality in which you live, phone number (for verification only)

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

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ADDRESS 141 S Oak Park Ave., Oak ParkIL 60302 ■ PHONE 708-5248300 EMAIL Dan@OakPark.com ■ ONLINE www.OakPark.com Wednesday Journal is published digitally and in print by Growing Community Media NFP. The newspaper is available on newsstands for $1.00.

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V I E W P O I N T S

Wednesday Journal, May 19, 2021

O

Being cruel about the gruel isn’t cool

ne of the out-ofstate publications I used to write for occasionally threw me a restaurant review. After a particularly memorable Sunday brunch, I submitted this review: “Going to Sunday brunch at (restaurant) is like going to Sunday Brunch at the home of a well-liked greataunt who never *quite* mastered cooking but is so very pleasant that no one minds. The food is OK — standard hotel free hot breakfast fare — but the atmosphere is lovely: welcoming, loud, and *very* childfriendly, in a room more suited to wedding vows than a waffle bar. Save the crab-Benedict-and-caviar-omelet brunches for anniversaries; brunch at (the restaurant) is where you go with rambunctious grandchildren.”

Some hours later I got a note from my editor: “Any way I could get you to rewrite this? I know it’s difficult writing something good about something that wasn’t your favorite, but could we focus on the positive? Hate to ask, but this just reads super-sarcastically” There’s an art to restaurant reviews. It’s not literary. It’s diplomatic. I’m pretty good at writing nice things about places that I don’t love because reviewing restaurants is a tremendous responsibility. If you review movies, say, and you pan one, that’s OK. The movie isn’t only playing one local screen. Your one voice won’t make or break it. But to crush a restaurant … that’s just mean and unnecessary.

It’s also unfair, and not just because reviewers of restaurants have a much more powerful impact on their subjects than movie reviewers do on theirs. Everybody sees the same movie. But restaurants are run by humans, not projectors. And humans have up and down days. No one needs me marching in on a night where two line cooks no-showed and the dishwasher broke and the alfredo sauce scorched because the busboy trying to work the line burned himself. Running a restaurant is hard enough without me sneering in print.

Back to my exchange: “I didn’t mean to be sarcastic. I was focusing on the positive. This place … I’m sorry, but there’s no way around it: This place was awful. I’m

not being food-precious here. I *like* low-rent. But this wasn’t low-rent, this was bad. Imagine a buffet run by a down-market Denny’s. The sole positive I could find was that you can totally take little kids without worrying about their behavior. Plus they’ll like the food. Outside that, I’m not going to be able to be any nicer without lying.”

We spiked the review.

The annoying thing is, bad reviews are way more fun to write. Here’s what I would have liked to have written about that brunch: “Sunday brunch at (restaurant) is roughly what I would expect from Sunday brunch at summer camp.

The food was all slightly stale and presented at room temperature, as though it had been prepared and set out the night before. I needed a steak knife to cut the eggs Benedict, which had been resting on the warming tray long enough to turn the English muffins into hardtack. I shouldn’t have bothered, as the only flavor present was salt. The ‘prime rib’ the advertising bragged accomplished the rare exacta of being both overdone and undercooked at the same time. (The meat was gray, but the fat remained unrendered.) The only thing that was hot and fresh were the waffles, which you were permitted to make yourself on their hotel-style waffle-maker. The waffles produced would have been delightful had there been maple syrup for them, rather than the four squeeze-bottles of dessert sauce (‘raspberry’, ‘chocolate’, ‘caramel’, and ‘white chocolate’), can of whipped topping, and bowl of chocolate chips presented. There was no service except to hand me a check — once I went walking around looking for one.

“I would say that I would not return under any circumstances, but that would be untrue. I would absolutely go back once. You see, (restaurant) is like a 1950s B-movie: Gloriously awful. I want to call a handful of friends, fortify ourselves with a few drinks, and spend $15 each for the pleasure of making fun.”

But, y’know, why be unkind for the sake of laughs? If I wanted to do that, I’d go back to ABC News and resume covering politics.

Alan Brouilette writes a monthly column for our sister publication, the Forest Park Review.

ALAN

BROUILETTE

OAKPARK.COM | RIVERFOREST.COM

I’ll trade you Columbus Day for Yom Kippur OPRF students are requesting that the school calendar be amended to include a holiday to celebrate the Jewish faith’s holiest day. This seems more than reasonable in light of all students having off for Christmas.

However, the incoming superintendent commented that, “In order to claim another day as

a non-attendance day, the school year would need to start earlier in August.” Why not just exchange Yom Kippur for another holiday? It would seem fitting that Columbus Day could easily be forfeited for the sake of inclusion.

Chris Donovan Oak Park

Who do Oak Parkers think they are?

I found Christopher Damon’s commentary, “Oak Park: ‘affluent’ or ‘sophisticated’?”

[Viewpoints, May 12] to be cringe-worthy in the extreme. This sentence sent me over the edge: “We will tell ourselves that discernment of, and investment in, a high-quality food and wine experience is an indicator of our worldly sophistication; it’s not a crass display like furs or jewelry.”

No, Mr. Damon, it’s a more insidious kind of crassness, one that lacks the awareness that the quiet pretensions of luxury consumption are pretensions nonetheless. Perhaps worse, there is a protestation in this commentary that such attitudes are OK, because ... because ...

oh, because we’re Oak Parkers, and we’re better than everyone who is not.

It’s one more example of why some observers — both inside and outside the village — shake their heads when they think of “Oak Parkers” and say to themselves, “those people really do think they’re better than everyone else, don’t they?”

Which, in the end, means: perhaps we aren’t.

I’ve lived here 29 years and my wife for longer than that, and both of us have enjoyed living here. We’re moving half a mile west to Forest Park in June, and I’m beginning to wonder whether perhaps we’re leaving just in time.

Martin Berg Oak Park

Three COVID lessons First, our village government did a great job promoting outdoor dining and providing the best way to administer vaccine: drive-thru.

Thank you very much.

Second, our germ science does not understand exactly how germs get from one person to another. The experts are puzzled by a flu season that did not happen. MIT challenges the 6-foot rule. From now on, I expect expert public guidance to include online published research data.

The CDC needs a Department of Transmission Science, and we need to give awards for Transmission Science research. Bravo for President Biden’s $500,000 better mask contest.

Third, TV news health information needs improvement. Any of us can quickly get better, easy-to-read, documented science by simply Googling topics such as “Flu Airborne Re-

search.” Government and university health research reports are available online. Wellgroomed TV news opinionists confuse belief with science research data. TV news says “Follow the science.” OK, TV news, post the research on your website.

Here is one example of recent important science ignored by TV news. A research project showed that exercise did not burn more calories than just sitting (Scientific American 2/2017).

To learn more, just Google “The Exercise Paradox.” People losing pounds don’t have to endure hated extra exercise. Instead, they can focus on improving their diet. (Overweight and obese people were 78% of COVID hospitalizations according to CDC.)

Emailed every Friday morning!

Robert Sullivan Oak Park

V I E W P O I N T S

OAKPARK.COM | RIVERFOREST.COM

P Wednesdays are good days to … VegOut!

A

Dumpling House, Poke Burrito, t the end of April, the Hecho en Oak Park, Kettlestrings River Forest SustainTavern, and Buzz Café. This list ability Committee is expected to grow considerably launched VegOut over the coming months.

Meatless Wednesdays Cary McLean of the River Forto highlight meat-free menu est Sustainability Commission items at participating restautold us, “I still eat red meat. I’m rants in River Forest, Oak Park, just trying to eat less beef, and and neighboring communities. my main interest in VegOut is These restaurants will highlight planetary health.” offerings that embody the VegSupporting McLean in the Out mission of reducing beef VegOut initiative are two student consumption just one day a week commissioners, Ellie Raidt and to support individual health and Charles Roeger, who wrote in the health of planet Earth.

Local Dining VegOut’s public announcement The River Forest Sustain& Food Blogger that “if our communities want to ability Committee will highlight be sustainable, then we need to participating restaurants — and encourage community members their vegetarian menu options — to eat less meat by making meat-free options on the village of River Forest’s social media abundant. A common misconception is that pages and website. Plant-based menu items to truly alter your carbon footprint, espeare available at participating restaurants cially with regard to animal agriculture, you throughout the week, but on Wednesdays, have to completely change your lifestyle. In they become a kind of house special. truth, you could dramatically decrease your I like beef; my favorite food is a hamburgemissions simply by going meat-free part er; I barbecue steaks all summer long — my of the time. A study by Oxford University very first client as a freelance writer was the National Cattleman’s Beef Board. Still, concludes that if a person decreased their it’s starting to feel like maybe it’s time to animal product consumption by one half, eat less beef. they would be decreasing their carbon footIt’s not that beef is bad nor that it should print by 35%.” be, god forbid, banned. Many of us would VegOut, says McLean, “is a community agree, however, that maybe we have become awareness campaign. Maybe in the coming too reliant on red meat in our diets. I don’t year we can have a VegOut food truck rally, intend to stop eating red meat, but I do inbut for now, many restaurants already offer tend to eat less, and many others are getting some fantastic vegetarian options. Rustico, behind this movement. for instance, has an incredible carrot taco Epicurious, the online food magazine, has and even Carnivore has that great ramp decided to stop publishing recipes for beef; cream.”

Daniel Humm of New York’s internationally There are a lot of good veg-forward options recognized Eleven Madison Park is now prein River Forest and Oak Park, and there are senting an almost completely vegan menu, more coming. At La Parrillita in River Forand closer to home, Buona Beef is now offerest, owner Jackie Kotarba says she’s working ing an Italian Beefless sandwich. to get her recipe for a vegetarian burrito just Restaurants are signing up to be a part right and serving really good vegetarian food of VegOut right now, and so far the followis probably the surest way to encourage more ing River Forest and Oak Park restaurants people to try — if only for one day a week — are participating: La Parrillita Mexican to go without beef and eat more vegetables.

Grill, Schoolhouse (formerly Sugar Beet With summer close at hand, vegging out Schoolhouse), Jerusalem Café, Sushi House, for a day or so every week becomes a more Munch, Tre Sorelle, Little Gem Cafe, Katy’s attractive — and delicious — option.

DAVID

HAMMOND

Wednesday Journal, May 19, 2021

33

‘The Crown’ is a fascinating series

rior to the interview with Oprah, the British monarchy had never really interested me. I do remember watching the marriage of Prince Charles to Diana, and I even watched bits of Prince Harry’s marriage to Meghan Markle. But I’ve never been a royal follower.

However one thing in the Oprah interview did fascinate me. That was Meghan’s proclamation that she had never looked up anything about Prince Harry or his family. I found that to be totally unbelievable and, even more, irresponsible. As an already divorced woman, Meghan is well aware of the mistakes one can make in choosing a spouse. So my curiosity was piqued when Oprah briefly mentioned the Netflix series: The Crown. I started watching it out of curiosity, and have continued watching it out of fascination.

Since I’m not a Royal follower, the accuracy and depictions as presented in the program may include some artistic license.

I am well aware of that. But for the most part, the program appears to be accurate retellings of what goes on in the monarchy.

I never once gave a thought to the kind of education that Queen Elizabeth got in order to become queen until the program dwelt on it. A formal worldwide education was not bestowed upon her. However, she was indoctrinated with knowledge of the British Constitution. But beyond that, her formal education was limited. One hears the term “King” or “Queen” and, for the most part, automatically assigns them characteristics that they may not possess. They may not be wise. They may not have good judgment.

But the title makes us want them to have these characteristics.

Watching the program I have since learned that those in the monarchy cannot vote.

They should not take sides on any political issues or express opinions thereof. And the queen doesn’t have a passport. Even when she visited the television set of Game of Thrones, she could not sit on the mythical throne chair because that would be a violation of her role as sovereign. The more I have gotten into the show, the more vividly I can see the realistic depiction of the term “old guard” as the show accurately portrays those who want to hold onto the status quo.

The more I watch the show, the more I wonder how Meghan Markle could have jumped into that family situation without knowing the history. The royal family is a complicated business with rules and regulations that individuals are required to adhere to. There’s even a royal marriage law about whom the family could marry, because the queen is the head of the Church of England. If Prince Edward renounced the crown because he wanted to marry a divorcee, Wallis Simpson, a divorced Megan Markle should have done better homework.

If nothing else, the death of Princess Diana and the controversy surrounding it, should have been all the warning Meghan needed.

Royal life is not a happily-ever-after event.

The reality is that the monarchy is not the fantasy that most of us would believe it to be.

Arlene Jones writes a weekly column for our sister publication, the Austin Weekly News.

SANCES

Sen. Michael E. Hastings Sen. Suzy Glowiak Hilton Sen. Napoleon Harris III Sen. Kimberly A. Lightford Before the weather gets warm and shooting numbers get worse, our elected officials in Springfield must do their most important job: keeping our kids safe. Firearms are the leading cause for children and teens in Illinois.

Our kids deserve a future, but so many are dying. And before spring ends, a critical deadline looms — on May 31, the current session comes to a close.

That’s why the time is now for lawmakers to act and pass the BIO and Fix the FOID bill.

Before summer comes.

Kathleen Sances is president of G-PAC Illinois. Gun Violence Prevention PAC Illinois is a campaign to save lives by stopping the tragic epidemic of gun violence.

ARLENE JONES

Summer is coming from page 29 Sen. Emil Jones III Sen. Robert Peters Sen. Cristina H. Pacione-Zayas Sen. Laura M. Murphy Sen. Mattie Hunter Sen. Patricia Van Pelt Sen. Sara Feigenholtz Sen. Robert F. Martwick Sen. Karina Villa Sen. Laura Ellman Sen. Cristina Castro Sen. Adriane Johnson Sen. Antonio Muñoz Sen. John Connor Sen. Celina Villanueva Sen. Melinda Bush

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Wednesday Journal, May 19, 2021

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708.749.0011

PLASTERING McNulty Plastering & Stucco Co.

Small & big work. Free estimates.

Complete Plaster, Stucco & Re-Coating Services

708/386-2951 • ANYTIME Work Guaranteed

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

BRUCE LAWN SERVICE Spring Clean-Up Aerating, Slit Seeding Bush Trimming, Lawn Maintenance brucelawns.com

708-243-0571

Public Notice: Your right to know • In print • Online • Available to you 24/7/365 PublicNoticeIllinois.com

BY PHONE: (708) 613-3333 | BY FAX: (708) 467-9066

BY E-MAIL: EMAIL@GROWINGCOMMUNITYMEDIA.ORG

g n a H e r e in th k r a P Oak

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Wednesday Journal, May 19, 2021

OAKPARK.COM | RIVERFOREST.COM

O B I T U A R I E S

Peter Brooks, 73

Computer technology consultant Peter E. Brooks, 73, of Sister Bay, Wisconsin, formerly of Oak Park, died on Saturday, May 8, 2021 at Sturgeon Bay Health Services after a diagnosis of pancreatic cancer in February of this year. Born on July 19, 1947 in Bronx, New York, the son of the late Max and Florence (Gelbard) Brooks, he graduated from the Bronx High School of Science before pursuing his undergrad and master’s degree at City College of New York, then continued his graduate work at University of Illinois, where he met his future wife, Linda. He also served his country in the U.S. Air Force Reserves.

On Sept. 16, 1973, he married Linda H. Becker at the home of Linda’s parents in Oak Brook. They enjoyed visiting Door County each summer with their kids and were able to realize their dream to move to Sister Bay full time in 2015. Retirement also allowed him to pursue other life interests more intensely in Door County, including playing his guitar, banjo and Irish tin whistles with various groups.

As an early adopter of information technology, his professional life as a computer technology consultant led to employment at Digital Equipment Company, Hewlett Packard, Computer Associates, and MVC Consulting to name a few. He rose to VP and held other management capacities throughout those tenures.

He served his community of Sister Bay and Door County as a member of the Town of Liberty Grove Technology Committee, where he assisted with seeking grant funds to improve internet accessibility in Northern Door. He also taught adult learning classes at NWTC. Surviving family include his wife, Linda;

his two children, Rani (Mitch) Esposito and David Brooks; his grandchildren, Matteo and Asha Esposito; and his brother, Gary (Jane Ansbro) Brooks.

Services are being planned in the future and will be announced when finalized.

Casperson Funeral Home & Cremation Services is assisting the family with arrangements. Expressions of sympathy, memories, and photos of Peter may be shared with his family through his tribute page at www.caspersonfuneralhome.com.

35

Robert P. Gamboney Funeral Director I am there for you in your time of need.

All services handled with dignity and personalized care.

Cell: 708.420.5108 • Res: 708.848.5667 I am affiliated with Peterson-Bassi Chapels at 6938 W. North Ave, as well as other chapels throughout Chicagoland.

Loretta Feley, 90 Accomplished artist, passionate gardener

Loretta Jean Feley, 90, a resident of Oak Park for over 65 years, died on May 14, 2021. Born in Chicago on Dec. 24, 1930 to the late Adeline and William Eyer, she grew up near Comiskey Park and graduated from Englewood High School on Jan. 30, 1948 and attended Triton College in River Grove. She married Edmund Feley on Jan. 29, 1949.

An accomplished artist and a passionate gardener, she also loved movies and opera.

She loved watching her children play sports, and camping and fishing with her family.

Loretta is survived by her sons, William Edmund, Edmund Arnold, Ronald Clifton (Jackie), Charles Allison, and the late Richard Kevin (Margy) Feley. She was the grandmother of 8 and great-grandmother of 5.

She was preceded in death by her husband, Edmund in 1976.

A memorial service will be held at a later date.

Arrangements were handled by Drechsler, Brown & Williams Funeral Home.

S W NE

!

H S A FL

Growing Community.

Growing Comm

Growing Community.

Growing Community.

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Wednesday Journal, May 19, 2021

OAKPARK.COM | RIVERFOREST.COM

Graduation is almost here!

Be part of something fun, something positive and celebrate!

Being a student during COVID-19 has been especially challenging. During the first two weeks of June, Growing Community Media will publish graduation coverage across all of our four newspapers.

Give the Grads in your life a much deserved shout out!

Place a personalized ad honoring your graduating high school, middle school or elementary student. The suggested cost is $60 per ad, but no ad will be turned away for inability to pay. If you would like to make an additional donation to defray the cost of another student’s ad, you can do that too!

Ads will run on June 2 and June 9. To place an ad visit: AustinWeeklyNews.com |

ForestParkReview.com | OakPark.com | RiverForest.com | RBLandmark.com

THANK OUR WONDERFUL TEACHERS! Easy to give local digital gift cards at SHOP LOCAL OPRF. Email them the cards that can be used at all participating merchants.

Purchase at oprfchamber.org

*at participating merchants. or service providers.

Wednesday Journal, May 19, 2021

37

Let the sun shine in...

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

Deadline is Monday at 5:00 p.m.

HOURS: 9:00 A.M.– 5:00 P.M. MON–FRI

BY PHONE: (708) 613-3333 | BY FAX: (708) 467-9066 | BY E-MAIL: CLASSIFIEDS@OAKPARK.COM | CLASSIFIEDS@RIVERFOREST.COM PUBLIC NOTICES

PUBLIC NOTICES

PUBLIC NOTICES

PUBLIC NOTICES

PUBLIC NOTICES

PUBLIC NOTICES LEGAL NOTICE: APPLICATION FOR AMENDMENT TO PLANNED DEVELOPMENT PERMIT DEVELOPMENT REVIEW BOARD RIVER FOREST, ILLINOIS

Once the DRB concludes the public hearing, its members will make a recommendation to the Village Board of Trustees that a planned development permit be granted, with or without conditions, or that it be denied. The Village Board of Trustees has up to 60 days to begin consideration of the DRB’s recommendation.

PUBLIC NOTICE Cellco Partnership and its controlled affiliates doing business as Verizon Wireless (Verizon Wireless) proposes to collocate wireless communications antennas at a top height of 73 feet on a 73-foot building chimney at the approx. vicinity of 705-711 W. Garfield, Oak Park, Cook County, IL 60304. Public comments regarding potential effects from this site on historic properties may be submitted within 30 days from the date of this publication to: Trileaf Corp, Emily, e.anderson@trileaf.com, 1821 Walden Office Square, Suite 500, Schaumburg, IL 60173, 630-2270202.

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: Y21006683 on April 22, 2021 Under the Assumed Business Name of TOP TIER PRINTING with the business located at 6436 18TH STREET 1FL, BERWYN, IL 60402.

The true and real full name(s) and residence address of the owner(s)/ partner(s) is: LINDA P RICO 6436 18TH STREET 1 FL BERWYN, IL 60402, USA

PUBLIC NOTICE Riverside Township RIVERSIDE TOWNSHIP – PEDESTRIAN BRIDGE REPAIR

Public notice is hereby given that on Thursday, June 3, 2021 at 7:30 p.m. in the First Floor Community Room at the River Forest Village Hall, 400 Park Avenue, River Forest, Illinois, the Village of River Forest Development Review Board (DRB) will hold a public hearing on the following matter: Application #22-003: Amendment to an existing planned development to construct an enclosed walkway between Trinity’s academic building and gymnasium and construct a courtyard along the east side of the school.

Address: 7574 Division Street, River Forest, IL 60305, which is located between Berkshire and Division Streets and Lathrop and Jackson Avenues.

Applicant: Trinity High School, 7574 Division Street, River Forest, IL 60305 The public is welcome to review the application, to send correspondence, attend the public hearing, submit evidence, and provide testimony at the public hearing. For public testimony to be considered by the DRB and the Village Board of Trustees in their decision, they must be included as part of the public hearing record. If the public is unable to attend the public hearing but would like to provide input on this matter to the DRB, comments may be submitted in writing to Jonathan Pape, no later than 12:00 Noon on the date of the public hearing, at jpape@vrf. us or by mailing them to 400 Park Avenue, River Forest, IL 60305. In preparing your comments, please discuss whether or not you believe the application meets the standards that the DRB must consider when reviewing the application. Those standards are available on the Village’s website at www.vrf.us/DevelopmentGuide.

If you are unable to attend the meeting in person you may participate via Zoom at https://us02web.zoom. us/j/89045176032 or by calling (312) 626-6799 using meeting ID 890 4517 6032.

A copy of the application is available to the public at Village Hall and on the Village’s website at http://www. vrf.us/DevelopmentGuide.

Elements of the application may be amended during the course of this process and interested persons are encouraged to stay apprised of the progress of the application by also viewing DRB meeting agendas and packets, which are also available at the Village Hall and online at www. vrf.us/meetings, and are published no less than 48 hours prior to any public meeting.

Any questions regarding this application or the planned development process may be directed to: Lisa Scheiner, Acting Village Administrator, 400 Park Avenue, River Forest, Illinois 60305, lscheiner@vrf.us, (708) 714-3520.

LEGAL DESCRIPTION: Lots 1 to 11, both inclusive, in Block 10 in William Beckman’s Subdivision of the West Half of the West Half of the North East Quarter of Section 1, Township 39 North, Range 12, East of the Third Principal Meridian, in Cook County, Illinois Published in Wednesday Journal May 19, 2021

PUBLIC NOTICE 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 2022, will be conducted virtually at 7:00 p.m. Tuesday, June 22, 2021, https://global.gotomeeting.com/ join/540393325 You can also dial in using your phone.

(For supported devices, tap a onetouch number below to join instantly.)

United States: +1 (669) 224-3412 - One-touch: tel:+16692243412,,540393325# Access Code: 540-393-325 New to GoToMeeting? Get the app now and be ready when your first meeting starts: https://global.gotomeeting.com/install/540393325 A digital copy of the tentative Budgets is available on the Township Website at www.oakparktownship. org. Oral and written comments concerning these proposed annual budgets are welcome.

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 12th day of May, 2021.

Gregory P. White Oak Park Township Clerk Published in Wednesday Journal May 19, 2021

Published in Wednesday Journal May 19, 2021

PUBLIC NOTICE On Thursday, May 20, 2021 at 9 a.m., Oak Park Elementary School District 97 will be conducting a “timely and meaningful consultation” meeting to discuss plans for providing special education services to students with disabilities who attend private/parochial schools and who are home schooled within the district for the 2021-2022 school year. The meeting will be held virtually through Zoom. The details are listed below.

If you are a parent/guardian of a home-schooled student who has been or may be identified with a disability, and you reside within the boundaries of Oak Park Elementary School District 97, you are urged to attend. If you have further questions pertaining to this meeting, please contact District 97’s Department of Student Services at 708-524-3030.

Meeting Information: Join Zoom Meeting https://op97-org.zoom.us/ j/87544758528?pwd=bUJwREc3WEhqTzMzSVFzSjVFOG5Cdz09 Meeting ID: 875 4475 8528 Passcode: 505448 One tap mobile +13126266799,,87544758528# US (Chicago) +13017158592,,87544758528# US (Washington DC) Published in Wednesday Journal May 12 and May 19, 2021

PUBLIC NOTICE OF COURT DATE FOR REQUEST FOR NAME CHANGE STATE OF ILLINOIS, CIRCUIT COURT COOK COUNTY. Request of Little Irene Grace Ryu Case Number 20214001675.

There will be a court date on my Request to change my name from: Little Irene Grace Ryu to the new name of: Irene Grace Ryu The court date will be held: On 6/29/2021 at 9:30 a.m. at 1500 Maybrook Drive, Maywood, Cook County in Courtroom # 111.

Published in Forest Park Review May 5, May 12, May 19, 2021

Published in Wednesday Journal May 5, May 12, May 19, 2021

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: Y21006745 on April 27, 2021 Under the Assumed Business Name of UNIQUELY VICTORIOUS with the business located at 1021 MARENGO AVE, FOREST PARK, IL 60130. The true and real full name(s) and residence address of the owner(s)/partner(s) is: URVONNIE FRANKLIN 1021 MARENGO AVE, FOREST PARK, IL 60130, USA

I. TIME AND PLACE OF OPENING OF BIDS: Sealed Bids for the remodeling described herein will be received at the office of the RIVERSIDE TOWNSHIP, 27 Riverside Road Riverside, IL 60546 until 10:00 A.M., Tuesday, June 15, 2021, and will be publicly opened and read at that time.

II. DESCRIPTION OF WORK: The proposed work is officially known as RIVERSIDE TOWNSHIP – PEDESTRIAN BRIDGE REPAIR and consists of structural repairs to the approximately 210 long suspension bridge spanning the Des Plaines River behind the Riverside Township Hall.

Additionally the existing coatings shall be removed and replaced.

III. INSTRUCTIONS TO BIDDERS: A. Bid documents will be ready after 3:00 p.m. on, Thursday, May 20, 2021. Only General Contractors may obtain bid documents by emailing their request. The email shall include General Contractor’s information of the following: Company Name, Address, City, State, Zip, Telephone, Fax, Contact Person. Documents will be emailed within 24 hours of the email request.

Documents will not be issued if any the requested information is not received.

Published in Forest Park Review May 5, May 12, May 19, 2021

Email bid document request to: Ken@api-architects.net

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: Y21006706 on April 26, 2021 Under the Assumed Business Name of UNIQUE NOTARY SERVICES & TRAINING with the business located at: 1122 N HAYES, OAK PARK, IL 60302. The true and real full name(s) and residence address of the owner(s)/partner(s) is: BEVERLY DENISE SINGLETON 1122 N HAYES, OAK PARK, IL 60302, USA.

Bid forms are non-transferable.

Only those Bids that have been obtained from, and with the approval of, API Architects will be accepted at the bid opening.

Published in Wednesday Journal May 5, May 12, May 19, 2021

B. Only qualified General Contractors who can furnish satisfactory proof that they have performed work of similar nature as Contractors will be entitled to receive Plans and submit Bids. The Riverside Township reserves the right to issue Bid Documents only to those Contractors deemed qualified.

C. All Bids must be accompanied by a Bid Bond for not less than five percent (5%) of the total amount of the Bid, or as provided in the applicable sections of the “PROJECT MANUAL”.

PUBLIC NOTICES

PUBLIC NOTICES

D. No Bid may be withdrawn after opening of Bids without the consent of the Owner for a period of forty-five (45) days after the scheduled time of opening of Bids.

E. The Contractor will be required to furnish a labor and material “Performance Bond” in the full amount of the Contract.

F. The Contractor will be required to pay Prevailing Wages in accordance with all applicable laws.

IV. AWARD CRITERIA AND REJECTION OF BIDS: This Contract will be awarded to the lowest responsive and responsible bidder considering conformity with the terms and conditions established by the Riverside Township in the Bid and Contract documents. The issuance of Plans and Bid forms for bidding based upon a prequalification rating shall not be the sole determinant of responsibility.

The Riverside Township reserves the right to determine responsibility at the time of award, to reject any and all Bids, to re-advertise the proposed improvements, and to waive technicalities.

BY ORDER OF: RIVERSIDE TOWNSHIP Published in RB Landmark Published in Wednesday Journal May 19,2021

Let the sun shine in..

Public Notice: Your right to know In print • Online

Available to you 24 / 7 / 365

OakPark.com PublicNoticeIllinois.com

Illinois Classified Advertising Network HELP WANTED DRIVERS New Starting Base Pay - .60cpm w/ option to make .70cpm for Class A CDL Flatbed Drivers, Excellent Benefits, Home Weekends, Call 800-648-9915 or www.boydandsons.com

    

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.

Find Help Wanted & Marketplace listings on the next page!

This newspaper will not knowingly accept any advertising for real estate which is in violation of the law. All persons are hereby informed that all dwellings advertised are available on an equal-opportunity basis.

To complain of discrimination, call HUD toll free at: 1-800-669-9777.

Wednesday Journal • Landmark • Forest Park Review



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Wednesday Journal, May 19, 2021

CLASSIFIED

(708) 613-3333 • FAX: (708) 467-9066 • E-MAIL: CLASSIFIEDS@OAKPARK.COM | CLASSIFIEDS@RIVERFOREST.COM

Let the sun shine in...

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

PUBLIC NOTICES

PUBLIC NOTICES

RIVERSIDE TOWNSHIP MENTAL HEALTH BOARD The Condition of the Board for the Fiscal Year Ending March 31, 2021 Beginning Cash Balance, April 1, 2020 Revenues

Property Taxes Interest Income Total Income

$ 434,880.00

$ 434,880.00

$ 588.776.96 $ 119.23 $ 588,896.19

$ 588,896.19

Expenditures

Administrative Services Secretarial Legal/Audit/Banking Fees Public Seminars/Training Purchased Services Total Administrative Services Contractual Services

$ 5,400.00 $ 131.48 $ ----$ ----$ 5,531.48

Organization Dues Consulting Services Travel/Meetings Total Contractual Services

$ 3,310.05 $ 11,000.00 $ ----$ 14,310.05

Commodities Office Supplies Publishing/Printing Postage Total Commodities

$ 1,069.16 $ 1,847.49 $ -----$ 2,916.65

Miscellaneous Scholarships & Community Assistance Agency Fundraisers Contingencies Total Miscellaneous

$ ---$ 7.750.00 $ 240.00 $ 7,990.00

Grants to Agencies Pillars Community Support Services Helping Hand Center Aging Care Connections UPC Seguin Way Back Inn National Alliance on Mental Illness WSSRA Total Grants to Agencies

$ 299,208.00 $ 55,000.00 $ 187,828.00 $ 79,085.35 $ 30,000.00 $ 15,000.00 $ 30,000.00 $ ---$ 696,121.35

Total Expenditures

$ 726,869.53

local employees . . . happy employees!

Hire Local.

Place an ad on Wednesday Classified’s Local Online Job Board.

Go to OakPark.com/classified today!

Contact Mary Ellen Nelligan for more information.

(708) 613-3342 • maryellen@oakpark.com $ -(726,869.53)

Ending Cash Balance, March 31, 2021 $ 296,906.66 The foregoing is a true and correct statement of receipts and disbursements for the fiscal year April 1, 2020 thru March 31, 2021.

Published in Landmark May 19, 2021

Wednesday Journal, May 19, 2021

CLASSIFIED

39

(708) 613-3333 • FAX: (708) 467-9066 • E-MAIL: CLASSIFIEDS@OAKPARK.COM | CLASSIFIEDS@RIVERFOREST.COM HELP WANTED HELP WANTED

HELP WANTED PHYSICAL EDUCATION TEACHER River Forest Public Schools District 90 is seeking a Part-time (FTE 0.77) Elementary School Physical Education Teacher.

Qualifications: Valid Illinois Professional Educator License with Grade-Appropriate Physical Education Endorsement; successful teaching experience in physical education preferred; Master’s Degree is preferred.

Job Duties: The part-time PE Teacher will work in partnership with the full-time PE teacher to instruct students in Pre-K through 4th grade on how to develop habits of mind and actions that support good health, fitness and enjoyment of sport and play. The PE teacher will facilitate a learning environment that engages students in learning skills for sport and fitness, as well as SEL skills by growing confidence, sportsmanship and team spirit.

ACCOUNTING CLERK

Responsibilities: • Accounting duties • Process invoices accurately and timely • Check the accuracy of business transactions • Perform data entry and administrative duties • Preparation of payable checks • Posting of checks and ACH payments • Create, edit and update spreadsheets in excel • Daily, weekly and monthly reporting

Application Procedure: Interested candidates should complete the online application available at district90.org. Please do not send hard copies of supporting documentation, i.e.cover letters, resumes, licensure, etc. to River Forest Schools District 90; instead, upload these materials onto the online job application system for proper processing.

• High level of accuracy in data entry skills • Ability to prioritize and multitask • Strong organizational skills

• Deadline and detail-oriented • Proficient in Microsoft Excel • Proficient in QuickBooks

Benefits: Medical, Vision, Dental, Life Insurance, Short-term and Long-term disability and retirement plans, transportation subsidy provided.

ALL POSITIONS AVAILABLE Bartenders Bussers Line Cooks Servers

Part-time, very flexible small law office in Oak Park. Ability to navigate a desktop essential

Apply in person after 3pm.

Email resume to: bob@downslaw.com

KALAMATA

Greek Cuisine 105 N Marion Street 708-628-3661

ELECTRICIAN’S HELPER Must have own transportation.

CALL 708-738-3848

A PA R T M E N T / O F F I C E APARTMENT RENTALS AUSTIN/OAK PARK 3BR Austin/Oak Park: Bright and spacious, 3-bedroom apartment w/huge living room and dining room, appliances included. Rent $1175.00 plus utilities.

Close to transportation and parks.

Call 312-852-2814.

SUBURBAN RENTALS Best Selection & Service

• Previous experience in account-ing, finance, or other related fields

Office located in Chicago. Candidates will be tested on all skill sets.

Qualified Candidates should send their resumes and salary requirements to humanresources@icl-na.com

SECRETARY/ASSISTANT

STUDIOS, 1, 2 & 3 BR

Qualifications:

OAK PARK & FOREST PARK

708-386-7355

MMpropMgmt.com

Apartment listings updated daily at:

Find your new apartment this Saturday from 10 am – 4pm at 35 Chicago Avenue.

Or call us toll free at 1-833-440-0665 for an appointment.

ROOMS FOR RENT Large Sunny Room with fridge, microwave. Near Green line, bus, Oak Park, 24 hour desk, parking lot. $125.00. New Mgmt.

312-212-1212

R E N TA L S SUBURBAN RENTALS

FOREST PARK STUDIO This is a sunny open concept studio apartment located just west of the city in Forest Park, IL. The apartment has a walk in closet with plenty of space to store your belongings! Jewel Osco and downtown Oak Park are both a 5 minute drive away. Building is secure with friendly neighbors. Parking is located behind the building for an additional $85/month. Pets are welcome for an additional $10/month for cats, $20/month for dogs, and $25 for both. Please contact Aisha at 630-550-2900 if interested.

OFFICE /RETAIL FOR RENT 1040 NORTH BLVD OFFICE Sub-lease, Move right in. Private furnished window office 10×15 @1040 North Boulevard, walk to CTA green line and Metra train. Asking $600m + 1m SD. Includes all utilities and internet. Note: this is a 2nd-story walkup space. Conference room available.

Call Michael @ 708 383-7900 LOCATION LOCATION LOCATION FOREST PARK HIGHLY VISIBLE OFFICE/STORE AVAILABLE FOR LEASE 1350 SF w/ AC & HIGHLY VISIBLE MADISON STREET EXPOSURE. 7607 Madison Street. Village parking lot next door. Bright, clean office. Great Madison Street exposure! Call Francis 708-383-8574.

RIVER FOREST–7777 Lake St. * 1116 sq. ft. * 1400 sq. ft. Dental Office RIVER FOREST–7756 Madison St. * 960 sq. ft.

OAK PARK–6142-44 Roosevelt Rd. * 3 & 5 room office suites FOREST PARK–7736 Madison St. *2500 sq. ft. unit Strand & Browne Strand & Browne 708-488-0011 708-488-0011

HELP WANTED DRIVER NEEDED NOW HIRING DRIVERS!!!!

Lucas Medi Car has an opening for a full time wheelchair van driver.

To be considered must have: • • • • •

a current Illinois driver license be friendly and courtoues have a good driving recoed must be 18 years or older in age pass a criminal background check

HELP WANTED Financial Controlling Manager, ArcelorMittal North America (Chicago, IL): Respsbl for commercial & industrial fin controlling & rprting activities necessary to ensure fin & budget perfrmnc of ArcelorMittal’s biz units in North America. Must be Certified Mgmt Accountant. Must have two yrs of exp in fin rprting, acctng, and/ or auditing within the steel ind. Pls send resume & cover letter to contact-HR-NorthAmerica@arcelormittal.com w/ the subject line: “Application – Financial Controlling Manager, North America Finance.”

To schedule an interview CALL (708) 442-7533, MONDAY THRU SUNDAY (10AM TO 4PM) SEASONAL FARMERS’ MARKET ASSISTANT The Village of Oak Park is seeking qualified candidates for the position of Seasonal Farmers’ Market Assistant in the Development Customer Services 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. Open until filled.

CIVIL ENGINEER The Village of Oak Park is seeking qualified candidates for the position of Civil Engineer I in the Public Works Department. This position will oversee and review plans of public work structures and perform routine tasks and duties including designing capital improvement projects and providing staff assistance to the Village Engineer. Applicants are encouraged to visit the Village of Oak Park’s website http://www.oak-park.us/jobs. First review of applications will be June 1, 2021.

We are hiring Relationship Bankers in Oak Park, IL. Visit the link below to check out this opportunity to join a great team! https://wintrust.taleo.net/careersection/2/ jobdetail.ftl?job=2100424&lang=en You can also learn about other career opportunities nearby.

MARKETPLACE ATTIC SALE

ITEMS FOR SALE DECK FURNITURE 48” white wicker table with glass top, 4 chairs with matching umbrella, smaller table and umbrella cover. Best offer.

708-528-0896

Berwyn

708-309-9091

HENREDON SOFA Black-gray Henredon sofa. Excel-lent condition. 84 in w x 34 in d. $249.

708-488-8755 QUARTZ HEATER Patton tower quartz heater. Sun like radiant heat. 4ft tall x 6 in wide. Excellent condition. $59.00.

708-488-8755 SPINET PIANO AND BENCH Baldwin spinet piano and bench. Light brown wood finish. $300 obo.

708-386-0087 ANTIQUE HALL TREE Antique American Hall Tree, solid oak. Excellent condition. 29”w x 78”h x 11”d, with covered shelf and mirror. $159.00.

708-488-8755

CEMETERY PLOTS FOREST HOME CEMETERY PLOTS 6 Plots in Sec. 49. Available in lots of 2.

708-366-4440

FLEA MARKET Berwyn

OUTDOOR FLEA MARKET & CRAFT FAIR TRINITY CHURCH 7022 RIVERSIDE DR. SATURDAY, MAY 22 9AM-2PM 708-484-1818 (press 3)

ANTIQUE MUSIC CABINET Antique music cabinet with door and five shelves. Standing on four legs. Mahogany finish. $129.00.

708-488-8755 ELECTRIC HEDGE TRIMMER $50.00 708-488-8755 BLONDE DRESSER WITH MIRROR 4 drawers. Blonde wood. Very old. Excellent condition. $89.00 708-488-8755 BLONDE CHEST OF DRAWERS 5 drawers. Blonde wood. Very old. Excellent condition. $89.00 708-488-8755 SNOW AND ICE REMOVAL Shovels and ice breaker. $5 each.

708-488-8755 GRANDFATHER CLOCK Perfect condition, oak wood, chimes all work. Everything is perfect. $499.00.

708-488-8755 BRASS HEADBOARD Solid brass headboard. Originally from Marshall Field’s. $189.00.

708-488-8755

ATTIC SALE CALL FOR APPOINTMENT

GARAGE/YARD SALES Riverside

GARAGE SALE • 511 LONGCOMMON RD (RIGHT OFF HARLEM) SAT MAY 22 9AM - 3PM

Glassware, dishes, Home Decor, Art Nouveau,small appliances, new XL men’s shirts, name brand purses & wallets, books, vinyl records, dresses, desk, cameras, binoculars, storage containers, holiday and much more.

Forest Park

YARD SALE • 1111 LATHROP SAT 5/22 8AM TO 12PM

Furniture and other miscellaneous.

WANTED TO BUY 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 Lost & Found, Items for Sale, and To Be Given Away ads run free in Wednesday Classified. To place your ad, call 708613-334

BY PHONE: (708) 613-3333 BY FAX: (708) 467-9066 BY E-MAIL: EMAIL@GROWINGCOMMUNIT YMEDIA.ORG

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Wednesday Journal, May 19, 2021

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