W E D N E S D A Y
December 26, 2018 Vol. 39, No. 21 ONE DOLLAR @oakpark @wednesdayjournal
JOURNAL of Oak Park and River Forest
Gift baskets Sports, page 44
Schools tout 2018 tax savings with eye on new state grant YEAR IN REVIEW
Districts 97, 200 explore relief for taxpayers By MICHAEL ROMAIN Staff Reporter
Property owners in Oak Park and River Forest, whose high tax bills are the stuff of lore, can anticipate some significant relief in the near future from the two local governments that take in the bulk of that property tax revenue — Oak Park Elementary School District 97 and Oak Park and River Forest High School District 200. Officials in both districts last week touted millions in tax abatements that they’ve issued in recent years. District 200 officials said that if they receive funding from a new state grant designed to provide tax relief for high-taxed districts — which they believe is likely — area taxpayers can anticipate even more savings. Recently, school boards in both districts passed estimated tax levies for 2018 that keep pace with the 2.1 percent rate growth in the Consumer Price Index. During a regular meeting on Dec. 20, D200 officials said that the 2.1 percent 2018 levy increase could generate another $1.4 million in tax revenues to the district, increasing the See SCHOOLS on page 8
ALEXA ROGALS/Staff Photographer
MESSAGING: Marchers rally in front of the Lake Theatre on Nov. 11, during a Unite Against Hate March in Oak Park and River Forest.
Big changes for Oak Park in 2018 A year marked by a groundbreaking documentary, high-rises, and tax talk
By TIM INKLEBARGER & MICHAEL ROMAIN Staff Reporters
News of local documentarian Steve James’ America to Me series about the achievement gap at Oak Park and River Forest High School dominated headlines this year in the village, but Oak Parkers
SAVE THE DATE
had plenty to talk about on other issues like taxes, tall buildings, Divvy bikes and the upcoming municipal election in 2019.
The year of ‘America to Me’ The year 2018 in Oak Park might best be divided into two periods — before America to Me and after America to Me. When the
10-part documentary series, directed by longtime Oak Parker Steve James, along with a diverse coterie of co-directors, aired on Starz in August, it touched down like a meteorite, exploding some people’s preconceptions and other people’s comfort zones. See OAK PARK 2018 on page 10
SAY Connects presents our next installment in a series of community conversations. Come hear what our young people have to say. January 17, 2019 • Julian Middle School Auditorium: 7:00 p.m. - 8:30 p.m. Registration is Required - RSVP at oakpark.com/sayconnects Email advance questions to: sayconnects@oakpark.com
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Wednesday Journal, December 26, 2018
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Wednesday Journal, December 26, 2018
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I N S I D E
Nyberg takes heat for chastising dead cops Block Club Chicago, an online news organization, reports this week that former Oak Parker and Wednesday Journal contributor Carl Nyberg was removed from his position on the steering committee of the political organization Northside Democracy for America. The report notes that the decision was made to remove Nyberg after his comment on Twitter calling Chicago police officers “stupid” after being killed in the line of duty. Officers Conrad Gary and Eduardo Mar-
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molejo were struck and killed by a South Shore Line train on Dec. 17, while investigating shots fired near the Metra tracks. That same day, Nyberg tweeted, “Two people too stupid to avoid getting hit by a train were given firearms & the authority to kill people by Chicago Police Department.” Block Club reports that Northside Democracy for America announced on Twitter that Nyberg is no longer on the steering committee.
Timothy Inklebarger
ALEXA ROGALS/Staff Photographer
(Above) Students protest during a student walkout at Oak Park and River Forest High School. (Left) Volunteers put on finishing touches on the aquatic mural at Wonder Works on North Avenue.
More photos on page 12.
Rare Bird Preserves
Out with the old, in with the new
New businesses came and went this year in Oak Park – so many that it was hard to even keep up. Here are just some of the new restaurants and businesses in the village and those that just couldn’t make it to 2019.
New
■ Rare Bird Preserves, 211 Harrison St. ■ Kalamata Kitchen, 105 N. Marion St. (coming soon) ■ Poke Burrito, 1025 Lake St. ■ District Kitchen and Tap, 220 Harrison St. ■ Surf ’s Up, 6427 W. North Ave. ■ MORA Asian Fusion, 201 Harrison St. ■ Dye Hard Yarns, 1107 Westgate
Old ■ Magic Tree Bookstore, 141 N. Oak Park Ave.
Poke Burrito
■ Two Brothers Social Tap, 100 S. Marion St. ■ Red Mango, 1044 Lake St. ■ Nature Yoga Sanctuary, 146 Harrison St. ■ Five Guys, 1115 Lake St.
Timothy Inklebarger
Most checked out books of 2018 What burning items singed the edges of River Forest Public Library cards this year? Read below for the top 10 most checked out books and DVDs of 2018: ■ Diary of a Wimpy Kid, book ■ Game of Thrones, TV series ■ Lady Bird, movie ■ Midsomer Murders, TV series ■ Vera, TV series ■ New Tricks, TV series ■ Now That’s What I Call Music!, audio ■ Darkest Hour, movie ■ The Post, movie ■ Homeland, TV series
Nona Tepper
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Wednesday Journal, December 26, 2018
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Coat and Winter Gear Drive
Compassion and Wisdom in the New Year
Through Feb. 1, Oak Park Township Administrative Office: Help spread warmth with donations of coats, boots and other winter gear. The Community Mental Health Board of Oak Park Township is collecting items to provide to agencies and their clients within Oak Park. Drop off at 105 S. Oak Park Ave., Oak Park.
Monday, Dec. 31, 8 p.m., 9:45, and 11:30 p.m., Kadampa Meditation Center: At Prayers of Compassion for the New Year, drop in for one or more of three start times “for an inspiring and meaningful New Year’s Eve celebration with meditation and prayers of compassion for world peace.” Session begins with an introduction, followed by chanted meditation and time for quiet contemplation and reflection. Final session includes meditation on compassion for world peace. Free. All welcome.
Thank-You Note Workshop
Tuesday, Jan. 1, 10:30 a.m., 1 p.m., and 2:30 p.m., Kadampa Meditation Center: Prayers for Wisdom in the New Year focuses on the development of pure wisdom by engaging in the “mantra, prayers, and meditations related to Tara, the female enlightened Buddha who is the embodiment of swift wisdom and protection.” Free. All Welcome. Optional brunch, 11:30 a.m., $5. Drop in at the start of one or more sessions. Brunch registration/more: meditateinchicago.org. Questions: info@meditateinchicago.org. 13 Harrison St., Oak Park.
Wednesday, Dec. 26, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., River Forest Library: Kids, don’t forget to be grateful for your holiday gifts. Drop by the Children’s Room to write your own personalized thank-you cards. Supplies provided. Grades kindergarten through 4. Questions: 708-366-5205. 735 Lathrop Ave.
DIY Snowflakes
Dec. 26 - Jan. 2
BIG WEEK
Friday, Dec. 28, 1 to 4 p.m., River Forest Library: Drop in and visit the Children’s Room to learn how to make your own snowflake. Supplies provided. Ages 3 to 10 with caregiver. Questions: 708366-5205. 735 Lathrop Ave.
Boxing Day Wednesday, Dec. 26, Noon to 4 p.m. Hemingway Birthplace Museum: Celebrate the English custom as the Hemingway family did more than 100 years ago with traditional Boxing Day festivities, including holiday music, a special Hemingway Readers Theatre production (“The Spirit of Boxing Day”), along with English tea and refreshments. $10; $7, seniors/children; free, foundation members/docents/volunteers. 339 N. Oak Park Ave., Oak Park.
New Year, New You, New Journal
Winter Wonderland Storytime
Open House: The Legacy of Fair Housing
Wednesday, Jan. 2, 2 to 4 p.m., River Forest Library: Bullet journaling helps unleash creativity, be mindful and reach goals. Learn how to set up a bullet journal and get organized this year. Bring your own journal or get one provided by the library. Grades 5 through 12. 735 Lathrop Ave.
Wednesdays through Saturdays, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., Oak Park River Forest Museum: Visit Oak Park’s newest museum and the home of the Historical Society of Oak Park River Forest to see an exhibit on how Oak Park grappled with race before the 1960s and how the 1968 Fair Housing Ordinance sparked changes that still shape our villages today. Through June 2019. Also see Ghosts of Christmas Past through Jan. 12. $7; $5, Oak Park/River Forest residents; $3, students; free, members and children under 7. More: oprfmuseum.org, 129 Lake St., Oak Park.
New Year’s Eve at FitzGerald’s Monday, Dec. 31, FitzGerald’s Nightclub: See Expo ‘76 & the Total Pro Horns, with the Outcast Jazz Band, at 9 p.m., in The Club. Expo will play a few songs, then be joined by the 12-piece big band. $40. In The Sidebar, hear the soul music of Chicago’s The Heavy Sounds, 9:30 p.m. $15; $20, at door. Doors open at 8 p.m. Celebrate with party favors and a champagne toast at midnight. Tickets/more: fitzgeraldsnightclub.com/listview or at the Club. 6615 Roosevelt Rd., Berwyn.
Thursday, Dec. 27, 10 to 10:30 a.m., Storytime Room, Main Library: It’s chilly outside, but everyone will stay warm with books, songs and fun at this special all-ages storytime. Questions: 708-452-3420, childrens@oppl.org. 834 Lake St., Oak Park.
Noon Year’s Eve Monday, Dec. 31, 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., Meeting Room, River Forest Library: Be the first to celebrate. Countdown to 2019 with activities, dancing and snacks with a festive flair. Children of all ages with caregivers. 735 Lathrop Ave.
New Year’s Eve with Tributosaurus as The Rolling Stones Monday, Dec. 31, 9:30 p.m., Wire: Come celebrate the New Year while listening to the local band that morphs into an iconic band for the holiday. Doors open at 8 p.m. 21+. $45. Tickets: wireismusic.com. 6815 W. Roosevelt Rd., Berwyn.
Kwanzaa Celebration Sunday, Dec. 30, 2 to 5 p.m., Veterans Room, Main Library: Join members of the community to celebrate Kwanzaa, a celebration of family, community and culture. All ages. Inquire: npriddy@oppl.org. 834 Lake St., Oak Park.
Look to the Stars Thursday, Dec. 27, 7 to 8 p.m., Taylor Park: Join NASA/JPL Solar System Ambassador Mark Benson for a night of telescope viewing and a discussion of current and upcoming NASA missions and discoveries. Bring a telescope if you have one. Weather permitting. 400 Division, Oak Park.
Wednesday Journal, December 26, 2018
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ART BEAT
An Oak Park writer channels Dickens
By MICHELLE DYBAL Contributing Reporter
W
hat if what is happening in a story actually happened to its creator? This idea sprang forth from the creative mind of Oak Parker Ned Crowley, first as a possible It’s a Wonderful Life spinoff, where director Frank Capra is going through his own depressive episode ala George Bailey as he makes the beloved 1946 holiday film. Photo by Jhenai Mootz But that idea morphed into A Dickens Carol, currently in its second sea- BIOGRAPHICAL: Kevin Theis as Charles Dickens son with Oak Park Festival Theatre. in Oak Park Festival Theatre’s “A Dickens Carol.” Crowley, its author, has lived in the village for approximately 15 years. at Leo Burnett, working for 18 years on acIt opens with a grumpy and bitter Charles counts such as Disney, Kraft, Kool-Aid and Dickens, who is cheating on his wife, rude most recently, American Express. to beggars, insensitive to his editor and not During his many flights to the coasts, he having much recent publishing success. It’s writes. He has logged 300,000 air miles this Christmas Eve, 1842, in London. After an acyear. Crowley has written movie scripts, two cident, Dickens has an Ebeneof which were produced: Parting zer Scrooge-like experience — Words and Middle Man. A dark See “A Dickens all before writing A Christmas comedy, Middle Man paired him Carol,” Thursdays, Carol. Fridays and Saturwith Parks and Recreation actor Many elements of the play days, 8 p.m., SaturJim O’Heir, whom Crowley beare loosely based on Dickens’ days and Sundays, friended during his comedy days. life. One is a time shift — with a 3 p.m., through Crowley also directed the film. historic train crash setting off Dec. 30, at Madison A Dickens Carol was written the sequence of emerging spirStreet Theatre, 1010 over six weeks in the early mornits and the scenarios they bring Madison St., Oak ing hours at the Buzz Café before to light, reminiscent of the Park. RecommendCrowley went into work. Incidenoriginal holiday novella, pered ages 10+. $35; tally, Dickens wrote A Christmas sonalized to Dickens himself. $28, seniors; $15, Carol in six weeks also. Crowley While Crowley has gone to students. Tickets: wrote his play to be “clever, but various holiday shows in the 708-300-9396, oakreverent” having “spirit, not sarcity with his family over the parkfestival.com. casm.” years, he found them to be preWhen it was first staged last Dedictable, or worse, “horrible.” cember by Oak Park Festival Theatre, Theis He wanted to write an alternative. directed and Crowley restrained himself When he attended a 2011 Oak Park Festival production, “Faith Healer,” Crowley saw — to a point. The playwright helped paint Kevin Theis perform. The two had known the set. He drove, purchased and installed a each other more than 25 years prior from snow machine after the preview so it looked their theater and comedy days in Chicago. more like winter, much to the surprise of the actors. And he sat in on more than a Seeing Theis gave Crowley an idea. “I’m going to write this and maybe like dozen shows and took notes on what could the old days, we’ll find a way to put it up,” he be tweaked for 2018. Crowley tightened the script over the sumsaid. Crowley “wrote it for Kevin,” envisionmer and reworked the appearance of Dicking Theis in the lead role of Charles Dickens. While Crowley originally imagined a ens’ first visiting spirit, another famous litone-man show, he realized more was needed erary figure, for this season’s performance. The show has a cast of 13, many of whom to bring the story to life. Theis, also an Oak Parker for 15 years, and play multiple characters, and there are spean Oak Park Festival artistic associate, met cial effects and changing sets. This year’s Crowley to discuss the show. After sharing production is co-directed by Theis and Matt the information with Festival’s managing di- Gall. Crowley says Theis is instrumental to the rector, Jhenai Mootz, she suggested producshow. “I always needed a co-conspirator,” he ing it through Oak Park Festival Theatre. Crowley is not a playwright by trade. said. “Part of this is the enjoyment of creating something with someone you know.” He is in advertising — currently the chief creative officer at mcgarrybower, formerly
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Wednesday Journal, December 26, 2018
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OP-RF Food Pantry delivers groceries, and more Nonprofit’s delivery service reaches 80 clients (and growing) a month By TOM HOLMES Contributing Reporter
Tickets are on sale now! Visit EmeraldCityTheatre.com
Season’s Greetings
Almost three years ago, Michele Zurakowski, the executive director of the Oak Park River Forest Food Pantry, realized that people with disabilities in the 13 ZIP codes served by her nonprofit often cannot get to First United Church on Lake Street to pick up the groceries they need. She came up with the idea of starting a delivery service and handed it off to Adriana Riano, the pantry’s program manager, who implemented a pilot program with 20 clients. In less than three years, the number of clients has grown to 80 with names still being added. “Hunger is on the rise for the suburban working poor and for those on fixed incomes,” said Zurakowski, “Our home delivery program is targeted at ending hunger for those seniors and people with mental health issues whose disabilities make a pantry visit impossible.” Census data from 2015 revealed that in Oak Park alone 7,382 residents were “food insecure,” the food insecurity rate was 14.2 percent and the unemployment rate was 8 percent. Deliveries of groceries begin with a referral from Oak Park Township, which screens clients in terms of eligibility and from Thresholds, a Chicago based nonprofit that provides healthcare and housing for peoples with mental illnesses and substance use disorders. Riano said clients referred by the township are people who can’t physically get to the pantry while those referred by Thresholds are often folks who are unable to be in situations where there are a lot of people because of mental illness. Once their names are on the list, clients receive a monthly phone call from a pantry volunteer who gives the client a menu of the food items available. The homebound clients get to choose which items will be delivered to them. “We give our homebound clients the same choices as those who physically come to the pantry,” said Riano. “Choice is a big part of our mission. We want to ensure that our clients get what they want, not what we think they should get.” Every month 14 drivers and 14 assistants “shop” for food from the OPRF Pantry shelves following each order taken on the phone and assemble boxes of food weighing about 40 pounds. Each driver is accompanied by an assis-
File photo
tant, because the boxes of food are heavy, especially when they have to be carried up flights of stairs. Because finding parking in Oak Park can be difficult, the driver might stay in a loading zone with hazard lights flashing while the food is carried to the client. Volunteers also deliver something else to clients – conversation. “Many of our clients are alone because they don’t have family living in the area,” Riano said, “so a conversation with a volunteer on the phone who is taking their orders or with a driver may be the only conversation they have with another person that day. Respect is one of the core values for everything we do here.” A typical monthly home delivery weighs about 40 pounds and contains fresh produce, milk, eggs and dry goods. Some of the food distributed by the pantry is “rescued” from local businesses like Prairie Bread, Trader Joe’s, Jimmy John’s, Panera, Jewel Osco, Sugar Beet, Target and many more. “Groceries have a time frame in which they have to pull food from their shelves based on their policies regarding the ‘sell by’ date on the package,” Riano said. “Whole Foods, for example, pulls their product at least three days before the expiration date, so the food we receive from them is perfectly eatable.” Much of the food is received from the Chicago Food Depository, a huge nonprofit which rescues food on a large scale and passes $9 worth of food on to pantries in the metropolitan area at a cost to them of only $1, a fee they charge to cover their overhead expenses. Riano said that she can always use volunteers and that groups like soccer teams or church organizations often commit to taking one month a year to do the deliveries. To volunteer, call Riano at 708-386-1324, ext. 1104. She will give you information, take your name and turn over it over to the pantry’s volunteer manager. Volunteers at the OPRF Food Pantry put in 2,100 hours a month, serving about 1,200 clients who come from Oak Park and surrounding communities.
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Wednesday Journal, December 26, 2018
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Apartment living with congregate services
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his property with its architecturally award-winning atrium, provides seniors and persons with disabilities with parking, library, laundry room, wellness center and other conveniences. A service coordinator is on staff to assist tenants who may need additional services. The units are studio and one bedroom, each with electric appliances, tile bath, and wall to wall carpeting. Modern fire and safety systems are installed in each apartment and common areas of the building. There are 8 accessible one bedroom units for the mobility impaired. The Oaks is owned and operated by the Oak Park Residence Corporation and is funded by the Department of Housing and Urban Development through the 202/section 8 Program. Residents pay approximately 30% of their monthly income for rent. For additional information, please visit our web site at www.oakparkha.org or contact us at 708-386-5812.
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Wednesday Journal, December 26, 2018
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Unity Temple congregation opposes Golub tower
Congregation releases letter urging inclusive discussion By TIMOTHY INKLEBARGER Staff Reporter
Unity Temple Unitarian Universalist Congregation has released a letter stating its opposition to the proposed 28-story tower proposed by developer Golub & Company about half a block away from Frank Lloyd Wright’s masterpiece Unity Temple. The proposed 299-foot building would be located at 835 Lake St., where a U.S. Bank drive-thru is now located. Unity Temple is at 875 Lake St., and opponents of the project have argued that the shadow cast over the temple would detract from the magnificence of the structure. “On behalf of the congregation … we the board of trustees oppose the current development plans for 835 Lake St., Oak Park, as proposed by Golub & Co. developers,” the letter reads. “As elected stewards of Unity Temple, we take seriously and reaffirm our obligation and our commitment to protect this building as both our sacred space for worship and as an historical architectural treasure of local, regional, national and international importance,” the letter states. “We share with the Unity Temple Restoration Foundation serious concerns with any development that poses risk to Unity Temple either physically, aesthetically, or experientially.” Golub vice president Michael Glazier said in an email that the company agrees that the development “should be conducted in a thoughtful, transparent and inclusive process.”
SCHOOLS
Districts target tax savings from page 1 annual taxes of a home valued at $400,000 by around $68. District 97 officials said that the district’s 2.1 percent increase doesn’t include an additional .84 percent increase in tax revenue from the growth in taxable property values due to new construction. The 2.95 percent increase reflects an increase of $2 million over the roughly $71 million levy extension approved in 2017. District 200 board member Tom Cofsky said earlier this month that between 2011 and 2017, the district “has levied $32.2 million less than it was entitled to receive under the law and instead depleted approximately 20 percent of its fund balance reserve to cover operating deficits.” And according to District 97 board President Holly Spurlock, district officials
Images released by Golub and enhanced by Unity Temple Universalist Congregation
Renderings of Golub’s proposed 28-story development just down Lake Street from Unity Temple. “That’s why we have not yet filed an application for a redevelopment agreement as we evaluate possible revisions to the design,” Glazier said. “We will make every effort to continue to have a positive, respectful dialogue with community stakeholders in any proposal we submit for approval.” The congregation letter notes that it supports development “that is within the current zoning guidelines” adding that “any proposed development that is outside the current zoning guidelines must be evaluated through a thoughtful, inclusive, and transparent process that considers impact and appropriateness, and includes meaningful community participation.” The letter continues by saying that the opposition stems from “one of our faith’s core principles: ‘to affirm and promote the right
of conscience and the use of the democratic process within our congregations and in society at large.’” The congregation also urges the Village of Oak Park to “pursue, in thoughtful and inclusive discussion with the community, what would best serve our community in this space.” The announcement comes a few weeks after Oak Park Mayor Anan Abu-Taleb, and five of the six other members of the board, announced opposition to the height and density of the proposal. “I do not envision, nor do I support, a 28-story building on this site,” Abu-Taleb wrote in a letter on Dec. 5. “I have, therefore, asked Golub to revisit its plans and explore other options that would not place Oak Park’s tallest building in this location.”
The Unity Temple Restoration Foundation, which oversaw the $25 million restoration of the historic building and continues to raise funds to pay for the project, also released a letter this week but did not outright oppose the proposed building. “Any high rise development on an adjacent site could have negative effects on Unity Temple during the construction process, as well as create a long-term impact by casting shadows on the building, thus interfering with Frank Lloyd Wright’s design intent,” the restoration foundation letter states. The group said it aims to “engage in dialogue with village officials and developers to ensure that our concerns with regard to the integrity of Unity Temple are appropriately considered and successfully remedied.” tim@oakpark.com
have given back more than $6 million to taxpayers ever since discovering that it would receive $2.6 million of unanticipated extra revenue as a result of the successful referendum on April 4, 2017. The extra money was, in part, the result of a communication mishap between D97 officials and the Cook County Clerk’s Office. At the time, the district considered a variety of ways to return the money, including the possibility of mailing out refund checks to residents. Most of those strategies, however, proved costly and unfeasible. “The abatement strategy has been the most appealing, because it doesn’t have any collateral consequences that could limit future board options for responding to some unexpected crisis from the state, whether it be pension issues or something else that comes up,” Spurlock said in a recent interview. Spurlock and Paul Starck-King, D97’s assistant superintendent for finance and operations, said that the district has also avoided issuing up to $16 million in bonds
related to capital projects — an action that translates into fewer debt payments for taxpayers, they said. “There has been a delay in the Holmes construction, which provided us a little bit of flexibility with our [bonding] authority,” Spurlock said. “We’re taking advantage of that to benefit the taxpayer.” District 200 officials said that they’re hopeful they can receive money from a new state grant program that carves out $50 million in the state’s 2019 budget for the purpose of providing tax relief to hightaxed school districts. The state prioritizes districts based on their respective tax burdens. District 200, officials said, ranked 15th on the state’s priority list. The D200 school board approved the district’s grant application at a Dec. 20 regular meeting. With the approval, the board “is telling the state that you’re willing to lower taxes by $5.8 million, and in turn the state will pay the school district $3.75 million [as a reimbursement],” said Rob Grossi, the district’s financial consultant.
District officials said that the new tax abatement will reduce the annual tax bill for owners in a $400,000 market value home by around $280. “Note that because the district is just one of the local taxing bodies, a property owner’s total tax bill may still increase,” officials said in a statement released Dec. 20. Grossi said that if D200 receives the grant, that $3.8 million “will be received every year going forward even though the requirement is for” the district to abate roughly $2 million the first year. District 97 officials said that they also applied for the state grant, but that they’re ranked much lower than OPRF in the state’s priority rankings. “We are less confident than the high school [of getting the grant money],” said Starck-King, who added that the district still applied “because not applying leaves money on the table.” CONTACT: michael@austinweeklynews.com
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Village approves 2018 levy
River Forest trustees unanimously approved an approximately 2.45 percent tax levy increase for 2018 at a regular meeting on Dec. 10. The village’s total 2018 levy request is about $8.2 million, up slightly from last year’s final tax extension of approximately $8 million. The village’s share of the levy is expected to decrease about 4 percent year over year to $3.7 million, while the police and fire pensions levy is expected to increase along with the River Forest library levy. The police pension levy is expected to take in about $1.5 million, up nearly 8 percent from last year; the fire pension levy is expected to earn about $1.3 million, up 21 percent from the year prior; the non-capped fire pension is $37,910, down 27 percent year over year; and the River Forest Public Library is expected to take in approximately $1.2 million, up 2.8 percent from the 2017 levy. The village estimated that new property taxes will generate an equalized assessed value (EAV) of $590 million, up less than 1 percent from the previous year, with about $4 million worth of new construction, according to Joan Rock, village finance director. The state does not publish the equalization factor until around April of each year, which is after the annual December due date for taxing bodies to submit their levies. Rock calculated the estimated EAV using building permit information. The village is subject to the Property Tax Extension Limitation Law, which limits property tax levy increases to 5 percent or the consumer price index (CPI), whichever is lower. CPI is currently at 2.1 percent. The fiscal year runs from May 1, 2018 to April 30, 2019. The taxes from the 2018 levy are collected in 2019.
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Wednesday Journal, December 26, 2018
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OAK PARK 2018
Equity, towers and taxes from page 1 The series, filmed during the 2015-16 school year at Oak Park and River Forest High School, put the institution’s long struggle with racial equity on a national stage and forced viewers everywhere into a deep reckoning of what being liberal, diverse, integrated and American means. At the more granular level, the film penetrated capital improvement discussions at OPRF and cafe conversations; it was the source of likely dozens of panel discussions in Oak Park and River Forest alone — including one hosted by community groups and the New York Times, and that was interrupted by protesting students whose urgent demands for immediate reforms, such as the implementation of a racial equity course, were met with applause. The documentary cut some administrators and teachers caught within its powerful frame painfully deep. Nathaniel Rouse, OPRF’s principal, admitted during that New York Times panel discussion, within earshot of James, that “to look at the way I was characterized was incredibly difficult.” James retorted that it’s “hard for us to fully portray someone who doesn’t participate” (Rouse, former D200 Supt. Steven Isoye, and virtually every other top level district administrator refused to go along with the film — a collective decision that was overruled by the consent of the school board). Now that the documentary has aired, however, more and more Oak Parkers are realizing that the option of not participating in the collective drama of race in the village is not value neutral.
Photo by Paul Goyette
IMMEDIATE DEMANDS: OPRF students demonstrated outside the high school’s main entrance to demand the district implement stronger racial equity policies and procedures. They also decried multiple cases of racist hate-speech that recently occurred on campus.
Oak Park towers Luxury high-rise buildings again took center stage in the village, with the construction of Eleven 33, a 12-story, 250-unit building at 1133 South Blvd. Lincoln Property Company’s building is expected to be finished early next year. The village also saw the beginning stages of construction of the much-opposed Albion building at the corner of Lake Street and Forest Avenue. The 18-story, 265-unit building was a hot topic in 2017, in part due to its close proximity to Austin Gardens. Opponents argued that the building’s shadow would ruin the park-goers’ experience, among other concerns. The two towers — along with Vantage at Lake and Forest (that building sold in January for over $100 million, netting the village $800,000 in property transfer tax revenue) and the Emerson at 1135 Westgate St. — are a prelude to the 28-story tower proposal in November by Golub & Company at 835 Lake St. That tower, which would cast a shadow over Frank Lloyd Wright’s masterpiece Unity Temple, is unlikely to move forward in its current form, due to widespread opposition, not only from the public and Unity Temple’s congregation, but also Mayor Anan Abu-Ta-
leb and five of the six other members of the Oak Park Board of Trustees. Golub’s not totally out of the picture, though. Expect a revised proposal in 2019. Golub Vice President Michael Glazier says the company “will make every effort to continue to have a positive, IN respectful dialogue with community stakeholders in any proposal we submit for approval.”
■ Signing a redevelopment agreement with Jupiter Realty, Pete’s Fresh Market, Paragon Real Estate and Essex Communities. The development team plans a new Pete’s grocery store at 644 Madison St. (Oak Park and Madison) and an eight-story senior housing facility at 711 Madison St. Public meetings on the proposal will begin next year. ■ A 23-unit luxury apartment building at the corner of Madison Street and Lyman Avenue by Ambrosia Homes Inc. ■ A 37-unit affordable-housing apartment building at the corner of South Oak Park Avenue and Van Buren Street by Community Builders Inc. ■ A 21-unit townhouse development at the site of the former Oak Park School District 97
2018 YEAR REVIEW
More development High-rises are only part of the story of development in Oak Park in 2018. A number of smaller residential real-estate projects moved forward this year, including:
administrative building, which runs from 932 to 970 Madison St., by Lexington Homes LLC. ■ The completion of the five-story, 28-unit luxury condominium building, District House, at the site of the former Tasty Dog restaurant at 708 Lake St., by Ranquist Development. ■ Seritage Growth Properties, the holding company for Sears properties, and Tucker Development announced plans in May to redevelop the Sears building at North and Harlem avenues, right across the street from Oak Park. ■ An 18-unit, low-income housing building at 206 Chicago Ave. by New Moms Inc.
Taxes, taxes, taxes The rising tax burden in the village was an ongoing topic of conversation with villagers again this year, prompting the estab-
Wednesday Journal, December 26, 2018
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lishment of the Tax Bodies Efficiency Task Force by the Oak Park Board of Trustees. The task force held hearings and brought forth a non-binding ballot referendum asking whether the village should further study consolidation of the various taxing bodies, including Oak Park Township, the library system and the park district. Over 61 percent of voters said yes to the question. The task force also recommended limiting increases to the village’s tax levy to 3 percent, not approving tax-hike referendums through 2030, and establishing a citizen-led financial oversight commission to educate the public and monitor municipal finances. The Oak Park Board of Trustees followed the recommendation on hiking the levy by no more than 3 percent, but it only was able to do so by spending $1.4 million in budget reserves. How they’re able to do that in coming years is a big question the board faces in 2019.
Elections The questions of student achievement, tall buildings, taxes and government consolidation are certain to be on the table in 2019’s hotly contested municipal election, where 11 candidates are running for three seats on the Oak Park Board of Trustees. The flood of candidates is unusual in the village, which has been largely dominated by candidates from the Village Manager Association (VMA) for decades. The organization, which has vetted and slated candidates in the past, announced in June that it would disband. That left a huge vacuum in local politics. A new organization calling itself VOICE Oak Park — the organization’s membership is largely made up of former VMA members and opponents of the Albion project — emerged and is slating three candidates for
By MICHAEL ROMAIN
ALEXA ROGALS/Staff Photographer
HIM TOO: Ben Iglar-Mobley, of Oak Park, wears black clothing to protest Brett Kavanaugh’s Supreme Court nomination at the entrance to Scoville Park in September. the village board election on April 2. On the county level, Oak Parker Fritz Kaegi defeated Democratic Party Chairman Joe Berrios to become Cook County Assessor.
Though that might sound boring, the assessor’s primary race between Kaegi and Berrios was one of the most notable in the March election. Kaegi ran as a reformer and campaigned
on the promise that he would fix a broken and racist tax system. He began his work in early December when he was sworn in to office. tim@oakpark.com
2018 was quiet, but packed a punch
Staff Reporter
If 2016 and 2017 were the year of the pool and raw racial controversies (including major drama related to an Oak Park and River Forest High School student’s Blackface Snapchat and members of the football team and band taking a knee), 2018 was the year of America to Me, equity and Imagine OPRF. Of course, there were protests after protests after protests — including at least two major student walkouts at Oak Park elementary schools and at OPRF earlier this year following the mass shooting at Florida’s Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School on Feb. 14. A frenzy of demonstrations also followed a series of racist and anti-Semitic incidents at the high school in November. Much quieter were the genuinely impactful actions taken at school board tables and in community meetings across Oak Park. In June, the District 200 board implemented a monumental overhaul of the district’s gender equity policy, adding a series of protections for transgender students.
Almost as consequential, the board’s vote on Dec. 21 set a course of action on at least a portion of long-term capital improvements resulting from Imagine OPRF’s long-term master facilities plan — roughly a year after the Imagine committee was formed, based on direction provided by D200 Supt. Joylynn Pruitt-Adams. The series of initial construction projects, estimated to cost around $32.6 million and take up to four years, represent the first phase of a more comprehensive Imagine capital plan that could cost around $220 million and take IN up to a decade to complete before all is said and done and voted on. That the plan was completed in itself is a milestone, marking the most comprehensive and ambitious assessment of OPRF’s physical needs in decades (possibly ever). And the board’s vote to go forward with the capital improvements marked what would be the largest capital expenditure in decades for a campus that hasn’t had a ma-
jor capital improvement investment in 50 years, according to district officials. Not to mention (which we will) the documentary series, America to Me — an event that swept through Oak Park and River Forest like a Category 4 hurricane, plopping the high school into national publications like the New York Times, Slate Magazine, Vulture, the Hollywood Reporter, Forbes and Time, to name a few. The documentary arguably catalyzed what has typically been the slothful course of progress when it comes to racial equity in Oak Park schools. The momentum could be heard in the language of administrators. “Equity, to me, is an antidote to — and I’m going to say it — institutional racism,” said District 97 Supt. Carol Kelley during an interview September. Kelley said she hopes the dialogue about the documentary would prompt people to start looking at issues of race and education much more seriously and analytically. The momentum could also be felt in the
2018 YEAR REVIEW
passion of students, such as those from Students Advocating for Equity, a student club at OPRF, whose members stormed the stage at a panel discussion about America to Me held in November at the high school and hosted by the New York Times and a range of local community groups. The students’ demands included implementation of a racial equity course and hiring more teachers of color. In the last few months of 2018, the D200 board has quietly worked to implement a less draconian dress code that was seen as perpetuating race-based disparities in student discipline, overhauled the district’s HR department to give higher priority to recruiting and retaining teachers of color and teachers with cultural sensitivity, added more multicultural offerings to the books that students study, and took steps to implement the racial equity course that SAFE students have wanted for years (and that they have played a large role in helping to design), among other markers of that quiet progress. “Shhh” is the sound of getting things done.
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Wednesday Journal, December 26, 2018
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1. Ellyana Nowinski, 10, of Oak Park, pulls her sister Kyleena, 7, on a sled through Scoville Park during a school snow day. 2. Members of the OPRF High School marching band perform during the Homecoming halftime show. 3. Ryan Brennan, a sophomore at OPRF participates
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in the Families Belong Together rally and march. 4. David Lyons, left, makes a flower balloon for Zoey White, 5, during the 69th annual carnival at Lincoln School in Oak Park. 5. Fenwick junior Katie Drumm competes in the 100-yard butterfly during a swim meet. 6. Gabriel Paul Tetrev makes a lid for a bowl at GPTetrev Pottery. 7. A child from the Edmer Avenue Community Betterment Crew rides a bicycle and throws out candy to children during Oak Park’s Fourth Of July Parade on Ridgeland Avenue. Photos by ALEXA ROGALS/Staff Photographer
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M E M O R I A M
Among the many who made us who we are By KEN TRAINOR Staff Writer
2018
In the past 12 months, we said goodbye to many who contributed IN to the tapestry that is Oak Park and River Forest. Here is a small sample of those we miss:
YEAR REVIEW
Gene Callahan, 80, Oak Park village trustee, 1973-77, expert on affordable housing
John Mahoney, 77, acclaimed stage (Steppenwolf), film (Moonstruck), and TV (Frasier) actor and longtime Oak Park resident
Janet Barnstable, 76, Julian Middle School teacher, Global Virtual Classroom pioneer, and Golden Apple Award winner
Sergio Quiano, 77, homicide victim, parishioner at St. Edmund for 30 years, familiar to many from conversations as he walked Oak Park
Angelo “Al” Provenzano, 93, World War II veteran who was involved in the Normandy invasion, one of the great talkers around town
Al Sye, 67, OPRF High School principal in the mid-1990s, advocate for racial equity in education, All-American collegiate wrestler
Norb Teclaw, 82, longtime OPRF High School instructor, champion of Percy Julian’s legacy, founded the annual Julian Symposium
Paul Sassone, 76, longtime editor and columnist with the Oak Leaves and Pioneer Press
Nancy Follett, 86, charter member of Women Leaders in Philanthropy, Oak Park Township supervisor, director of the Follett Corporation
Sister Jean Crapo, 93, longtime Rosary/ Dominican University archivist, teacher, dean, and author of a history of Dominican University’
Father John Carolan, 92, Catholic priest for 66 years, 45 of them at St. Catherine-St. Lucy Parish, including 20 years as pastor
Val Camilletti, 78, longtime proprietor of Val’s halla Records and walking encyclopedia of musical culture
Marv Abrahamson, 93, longtime owner of Abrahamson’s Furs and known as “The Mayor of Marion Street”
Mary Seibel Cronin, 89, actor, co-founder of Village Players community theater group
Development defines 2018 in River Forest
By NONA TEPPER Staff Reporter
News of property and community developments defined River Forest the past year, with big plans starting in 2018 certain to dominate the headlines this coming year. The story of the year came in September, when a majority of trustees approved the five-story, mixed-use development at the corner of Lake and Lathrop, after nearly a decade of discussion. Developers Keystone Ventures and Sedgwick Development plan parking and commercial space on the ground floor — which they hope a restaurant, retail shops and bank branch will fill — topped by four floors that would include 30 mostly three- and four-bedroom condos. During several public hearings this fall, residents commented on everything from the building’s height to its design. A month later, trustees approved another controversial development, a four-story, 125unit senior living home at the northwest of Chicago and Harlem avenues. Once built, the village expects it to be the third-largest taxpayer in River Forest, with an equalized assessed value (EAV) projected at $6.8 million. New development also meant the end of an era for a historic yet dilapidated home
in the 700 block of River Forest’s William Street, rumored to be designed by Frank Lloyd Wright, on a block the village has declared a local landmark. The block represents the first, and possibly only remaining, Prairie School development in the state. Mayborn Development demolished the home at 747 William St. in March and plans to build a new residential property on the site. Its destruction led some residents to create historic plaques for buildings in the village, in an effort to drive awareness of important structures. To further promote developIN ment, trustees approved a new tax increment financing (TIF) along North Avenue in August, with the TIF boundaries stretching from Harlem to Thatcher. Along North Avenue another debate brewed, with Keystone Montessori School filing a complaint against the village in March, alleging officials forced the nonprofit school to sign an agreement never to seek a property tax exemption in exchange for a zoning variance. But the Illinois Department of Revenue granted the school a property tax exemption in December — a ruling the village plans to appeal — and the debate over whether the 20-year-old agreement be-
tween Keystone and the village is valid will continue into the new year. Next year, also expect to see continued discussion over the future of the old Civic Center Authority building. In April, the village and other taxing bodies signed an intergovernmental agreement to collaborate on rehabilitating, renovating or redeveloping the building to create a larger community space. The village and River Forest District 90 schools found another way to collaborate this year, after a third-grader was struck by a car on his way to Lincoln Elementary School in December 2017. River Forest officials and D90 have spent the last year collaborating on a “Safe Routes to School” study to rethink the organization of crossing guards, traffic signals, and to identify the safest routes to school in the village. Officials presented a draft of the master plan in December. In the aftermath of the accident, which occurred while the student crossed Oak and Park Avenues, nearby residents volunteered as crossing guards at the intersection, including Steve Lefko, who has now thrown his name in the ring for the village board of trustees race. Six challengers have come forward for the
2018 YEAR REVIEW
three open seats on the board this April. D90 also faces a competitive race for the board of education, where eight challengers have emerged for three open seats. Local schools did not go unnoticed in 2018. The majority of River Forest District 90 schools earned “exemplary,” the Illinois State Board of Education’s highest ranking in the annual school report card ranking in November, a feat that only 10 percent of schools in the state achieved. The accolade recognizes student academic understanding, as well as their growth. Roosevelt students — along with learners at Trinity High School — looked beyond the village’s borders in March, when they marched out of school en masse to raise awareness about school shootings and honor the 17 victims fatally shot at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Florida. Trinity students also learned a lesson about intolerance in November, when a swastika was found scratched on a bathroom stall. New President Corinne Lally Benedetto, who officially assumed the role in July, said the Nazi symbol was removed and “any expression of hate or intolerance is absolutely unacceptable in our Trinity community.” CONTACT: ntepper@wjinc.com
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Wednesday Journal, December 26, 2018
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Williams calls it a day at Township Youth Services
Longtime director spent 24 years working with at-risk youth
Oak Park, River Forest cut township youth program
By TIMOTHY INKLEBARGER Staff Reporter
For nearly a quarter-century he has worked to curb youth involvement in drugs, gangs and violence, but John Williams has announced he’s leaving his position as director of youth services at Oak Park Township. The township announced that Williams will be departing from the position on Jan. 11 “to pursue a future in the training and consulting business.” Williams could not immediately be reached for comment. Township Manager Gavin Morgan said in an email that Williams came to the township from Family Services — now known as Thrive — and created the Youth Interventionist Program, an intergovernmental partnership that works with youth and their families on a case-by-case basis. “Over the years, under John’s leadership, Youth Services has also contracted with and provided support to local youth-serving agencies to provide programming for thousands of kids annually, provided consulting to community organizations and individuals, and advocated for youth and families facing a variety of challenges,” Morgan said. The announcement comes just a few months after the Youth Interventionist program was recognized by the state of Illinois as a “shared service best practice.” The Journal of Local Government Shared Service Best Practices accolade was awarded to the program in August under Williams’ leadership. “Local leaders and residents know what is best for their communities
File photo
MOVING ON: John Williams, who has been director of youth services for Oak Park Township for the past quarter century, has announced he’s leaving to pursue other opportunities. and should be empowered to find solutions that will serve their unique interests,” Lt. Gov. Evelyn Sanguinetti said in a press release in August. Williams said at the time that communities “can go farther and be stronger and more successful together helping our youth than operating in silos.” “The most important job in the world is raising good human beings,” he said in an August press release. “Families confronting the trauma and mental health issues around gangs, drugs and violence need all the community support we can lend.” Morgan shared a story that is a “go to” tool for Williams in working with youth and families. From The Protagoras by Plato, Protagoras responds to the challenge by Socrates on how virtue can be taught. “The gods entrust Prometheus and Epimetheus to distribute to these animals their appropriate ca-
pabilities. … By distributing different characteristics and faculties to the animals, Epimetheus distributes the different kinds of animals so as to ensure the survival of each kind,” the story goes. “When Prometheus inspects Epimetheus’ work, however, he discovers that Epimetheus has left humans unclothed, unshod, unbedded, unarmed. Prometheus therefore distributes practical wisdom (the knowledge of fire and the means of procuring sustenance) amongst humans. “But humans live as scattered individuals, defenseless against wild animals because they have not come together as a community to fight off predators. Zeus, therefore, dispenses the notions of respect and justice to all humans, enabling them to live together in communities. Communities cannot function if only some members know how to live in a community; hence, the civic arts are distributed universally.” tim@oakpark.com
The announcement of the departure of John Williams, director of Youth Services at Oak Park Township, comes in a year when both the village of River Forest and the village of Oak Park eliminated funding for the township’s Youth Interventionist program — River Forest cutting $16,000 in June and Oak Park cutting $61,200 this month. Oak Park Township Supervisor Clarmarie Keenan said in a telephone interview that the funding cuts and Williams’ departure are unrelated. The program has been funded through an intergovernmental agreement with all 11 taxing bodies in the two villages for more than two decades, but officials in both Oak Park and River Forest say the cost of the program should be taken over by the township. “We believe it’s an established, mature program that’s been going on for 23 years, and it clearly now should be taken over by the township itself and budgeted by the township,” River Forest Village President Cathy Adduci said in June. “We also want to let the township run this program and not be burdened by another level of government oversight and government spending.” The Oak Park Board of Trustees also recently voted to cut the program from its
budget. The village recommended the cut in its proposed budget, and on the evening of the vote, trustees took a straw poll on the issue with the informal vote split 3 to 3. Trustees Simone Boutet, Jim Taglia and Bob Tucker supported maintaining the funding, while Mayor Anan Abu-Taleb and trustees Deno Andrews and Dan Moroney voted against continued funding for the program. Trustee Andrea Button, who said she had to leave early because it was her birthday, was absent for the vote. The split vote resulted in the village recommendation moving forward. Andrews argued that the funding circumvented taxcap laws, noting that the township had reached its spending cap and should fund the program itself. “I think if the township values this program, then they should look at their budget and figure out how to reduce it elsewhere, so they can continue to fund this,” he said. Taglia disagreed, saying it was inappropriate to defund the program without a more thorough conversation. “There is a moral and financial commitment among all the taxing bodies to get together and cooperate on an intergovernmental basis, and I think that to defund them at the 11th hour is disingenuous,” he said.
C R I M E
’Tis the season for stealing packages off porches
Oak Park police reported a number of package thefts as Christmas crept closer. ■ A package containing a handmade Afghan blanket was stolen from the front porch of a residence in the 1100 block of Highland Avenue between 6:21 and 7 p.m. on Dec. 6. The estimated loss is $30. ■ An envelope containing a check from U.S. Bank was stolen from the porch of a residence in the 700 block of Hayes Avenue at 3:11 p.m. on Dec. 14. ■ Someone stole three Amazon packages
from the front porch of a residence in the 1100 block of South Elmwood Avenue between 4 and 6 p.m. on Dec. 14. The packages contained cream-colored cloth treat bags, dog treats, Peppermint Patties candy and four metal straws. The estimated loss is $148. ■ A package was stolen from the lobby area of a building in the 500 block of South Oak Park Avenue at 10:52 a.m. on Dec. 18. The offender was described as a man wearing a red sweater with red-and-white striped sleeves and green trim. He also had a blue
backpack. The package contained a set of bed sheets. The estimated loss is $30.
fender gained via an unlocked door and ransacked the interior. No loss was reported.
Vehicle break-ins
Arson
■ A vehicle was burglarized in the 100 block of Forest Place between 10 a.m. and 5 p.m. on Dec. 15. The offender gained entry to the vehicle, ransacked it and made off with a single dollar. ■ A vehicle was burglarized in the 500 block of Clarence Avenue between 9:30 p.m. on Dec. 16 and 2:17 a.m. on Dec. 17. The of-
Someone ignited wooden sticks that were placed near the fuel tank area of a van in the 100 block of North Lombard Avenue at about 5:10 a.m. on Dec. 17. The fire caused exterior damage to the vehicle.
Compiled by Timothy Inklebarger
Wednesday Journal, December 26, 2018
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For over 33 years, Oak Park Apartments has been committed to breathing life into old buildings and making a home in Oak Park and the near western suburbs for our tenants. Oak Park Apartments currently manages over 1,500 units in 64 buildings. In 2018, we welcomed over 600 new residents to the community.
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Photo by David Hammond
Yorkshire Pudding: An easy-tomake, classic U.K. starter/side
Y NEW YEAR’S EVE
I bought some beef bacon from orkshire Pudding Finn’s at the Oak Park Farmers is a savory, bready, Market. Sheila Essig, who sold me baked good, poputhe bacon, selected a rasher with a lar throughout the lot of fat; just what I was looking United Kingdom, for. As we’ve discussed in these composed of eggs, flour and pages, there are lots of different milk. It’s usually served kinds of bacon out there, and this as a starter or side dish to beef bacon looked like brisket juicy meat, like roast beef or shavings, unsmoked. prime rib. In addition to making Yorkshire Once called “Dripping pudding in muffin forms, which Pudding,” Yorkshire Pudding is how it’s usually prepared in used meat drippings from a restaurants, I also made it in what cut of beef that dripped as it may be the more traditional way. was cooked over a fire. A pan Local Dining I put rendered beef fat in a pan, was placed under the meat & Food Blogger poured the batter with beef bits to catch the drippings, which on top of the hot fat, and then were then used to flavor — cooked the whole shebang. This or make a gravy for — the yields a sheet of luscious pudding, rich and pudding. The first documented mention of satisfying. dripping pudding was in the presumably Technically, Yorkshire Pudding with edifying, “Whole Duty of a Woman,” pubmeat is “Toad in the Hole,” which contains lished in 1737, though this preparation was sausage or any stray meat you have. When likely prepared for centuries before. you add meat, your Yorkshire Pudding/ Making Yorkshire Pudding is amazingly Toad in the Hole can be a main course all easy: beat 2-3 eggs with a cup of milk and by itself. And, like last night’s pizza, it then slowly whisk in a cup of flour. Preheat makes a perfectly suitable Sunday morning the oven to 375. Grease a muffin pan with breakfast, right out of the refrigerator. either warm butter or beef fat (some say Much baking relies upon getting the if you don’t use beef fat, all you’ve got is a chemistry just right for the baked good; popover); warm the butter or beef fat in the with Yorkshire Pudding, there’s no such exoven for a few minutes, then pour the batactitude. Use fewer eggs, substitute water ter in the muffin pan. Put the muffin pan in for milk, it doesn’t matter. You’ll still get a the oven and cook for 5 minutes at 375, then tasty pudding. This was an old-timey way reduce temperature to 350 and cook for to use what you’ve got to make something about 25 minutes, or until the puddings are delicious, so there’s a lot of room for variagolden and crisp. tion. Unlike the old days when people used Somewhat surprisingly, Yorkshire Pudabsolutely every edible item from a piece ding Day is an international phenomenon. of meat, wasting nothing, most of us don’t In the United States, we celebrate Yorkkeep jars of rendered fat on hand. To get shire Pudding on Oct. 13. the fat I needed for my Yorkshire pudding,
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HAMMOND
Wednesday Journal, December 26, 2018
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Wednesday Journal, December 26, 2018
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NEW YEARS EVE SPECIAL MENU Starters (choice one)
Celebrate the holidays with family, friends & co-workers at Trattoria 225. We have some great dates available for holiday parties for groups of all sizes up to 150 people Contact Bill Quick at BillQ@trattoria225.com
Lobster Bisque Seared Crab Cakes with Dijon Remoulade Grilled Avocado Salad with Corn, Tomatoes, Romaine & Creamy Pesto Spinach and Strawberry Salad with Pecan-Fennel Vinaigrette Grilled Mozzarella & Prosciutto with Basil Pesto
Entrees (choice one)
Linguini with Mussels & Clams Chicken Saltimbocca with Sage, Peosciutto, Capers & Butter Grilled Fresh Water Trout with Caper Sauce, Arugula & Borlotti Beans Braised Lamb Shank with Wild Mushroom Risotto Lobster Ravioli with Grilled Prawns
Dessert (choice one)
Chocolate Cheesecake Tiramisu Affogato Strawberry Mousse
$37.00 Per Person
225 harrison oak park, il 60304 • 708.358.8555 • www.trattoria225.com
Growing community.
explore your community @ OakPark.com
Wednesday Journal, December 26, 2018
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Homes
NEED TO REACH US?
oakpark.com/real-estate email: buphues@wjinc.com
Looking back at 2018 A year in homes By LACEY SIKORA
T
Contributing Reporter
his year saw plenty of activity in local real estate. We saw high-end foreclosures and architectural stunners hitting the market. Local real estate experts opined on the increasing impact of property taxes on home sales and hot neighborhoods in Oak Park. We discussed decorating with wallpaper and building tiny homes with a charitable mission. Here’s a look back at some of the year’s top stories.
January In January, we took a look at a small turned large house with a remodel of 624 N. East Ave. in Oak Park. Pam Whitehead of P&P Construction took a modest 1940s bungalow and turned it into a European farmhouse that fits right in with its architecturally pedigreed neighbors.
PHOTO BY PAUL GOYETTE
April In April, we took a look at one of the area’s fanciest foreclosures. The home at 620 N. Euclid Ave. is an E.E. Roberts-designed manse that had fallen on hard times. In 2004, the home sold for $1.7 million. The home fell into foreclosure and in 2018, experts opined that the home’s high taxes -- over $66,000 in 2016 -- were scaring some buyers from scooping up a relative bargain. The home sold in May for $975,000.
February A south Oak Park home that was the subject of local lore was the star of February. Rumored to have once been a clubhouse for a long-defunct golf club in Oak Park, 535 S. Carpenter Ave. boasted charming Victorian details as well as a good story to share around the fire pit in its spacious back yard. PHOTO BY MICAH TOPPING
ALEXA ROGALS/Staff Photographer
May In May, a pristine E.E. Roberts home just a stone’s throw from Frank Lloyd Wright’s Home and Studio hit the market. The A.J. Redmond Home on Forest Avenue features a wrap-around porch, tiled roof, and stunning original woodwork, art glass and light fixtures. Not enough? Even the fireplace was richly detailed, featuring 24-karat gold finishing on the tiles.
March In March we took a look at a Historic Preservation Award winner. 206 Forest Ave., one of the Emerson Ingalls Row Houses opposite Austin Gardens, got a complete restoration under the careful hands of architect Debra McQueen and homeowner Gayle Riedmann. The two considered every detail in taking a run-down apartment and turning it back into a home.
Coldwell Banker Residential Oak Park
Photo by Leslie Schwartz
See YEAR IN HOMES on page 19
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Find your why. joinremax.com/inthevillage
Wednesday Journal, December 26, 2018
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YEAR IN HOMES from page 19
June A Frank Lloyd Wright remodel job on Forest Avenue hit the market in June. When the Victorian house was overhauled by the Prairie School master, the end result was a unique combination of styles. The first floor is completely Wright, with pared down trim and Wright-designed lighting, and the second floor retains much of the original Victorian detailing down to the marble sinks.
ALEXA ROGALS/Staff Photographer
July
October
In July, local real estate professionals weighed in on the current state of the real estate market. While the general consensus was that Oak Park is still a draw for people moving from the city, the real estate reflection at the mid-point of the year wasn’t all positive. The experts pointed out that dropping prices coupled with rising market times and the impact of rising property taxes kept home sales from reaching ideal numbers.
In October, we went small. Small houses that is. WJ Homes paid a visit to the local studio of Hope Houses, the charitable enterprise run by River Forest residents Steve Lefko and Lurana Brown. Their dollhouses and children’s books are bringing a message of fun and hope to local children living in Hephzibah and Mercy Home. For each dollhouse sold to a paying customer, the duo donates a house to a child in need.
November/ December
September August One part of the real estate market that is still hot? Homes close to the center of town. In August, we looked at listing within a few blocks of downtown Oak Park. Real estate agents reported that many of the people looking to buy locally are seeking out a walkable location. Homes close to public transportation, restaurants, shops and schools received a lot more foot traffic than those in the farther reaches of the village.
Once a home does sell, plenty of new homeowners want to put their personal stamp mp on the place. In September, local ocal designers Natalie Papier and Kim Daunis of HomeEc talked about ut helping clients express their personalities nalities through wallpaper. Colors and prints can complement or spice up any historic home, and Daunis and Papier also gave out some pointers on how to find it and use it to camouflage problem areas.
In November, we got ready for the holidays and looked at holiday decorations of all shapes and sizes. s The Infant WelT fare Society’s anfar nual Holiday Housewalk showed us the exterior and interiors of four local h homes decked out for the holidays. The fifth stop on the walk was the Oak Park River Forest Museum, which is still celebrating the season with an exhibit of Jerry Ehernberger’s vintage Christmas collections.
Wednesday Journal, December 26, 2018
OAKPARK.COM | RIVERFOREST.COM
SO LD
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WE’LL SELL YOUR HOME FAST
Stylish brick English Tudor. Beautifully designed.
Fabulous kitchen - centrally located.
Updated Victorian - renovated kitchen & master bath - huge park-like yard.
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728 N ELMWOOD AVE, OAK PARK $850,000 :: 4 bed :: 2.5 bath
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1104 N ELMWOOD, OAK PARK $687,500 :: 4+ bed :: 3.5 bath
SO
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119 KEYSTONE, RIVER FOREST $805,000 :: 4 bed :: 2.5 bath
1011 FRANKLIN, RIVER FOREST $575,000 :: 3 bed :: 3.5 bath
1 GALE AVE #4A, RIVER FOREST $790,000 :: 4 bed :: 5.5 bath
Awesome newer construction, newer designer kitchen and baths. Great location - walk to train.
Classic mid-century tri-level. Awesome location.
Huge condo with over 5000 sq ft of beautifully finished space with balcony & 4 parking spaces. Walk to train.
KATHY & TONY IWERSEN 708.772.8040 708.772.8041 tonyiwersen@atproperties.com
Wednesday Journal, December 26, 2018
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NO NEED TO WAIT OUR JANUARY SALE STARTS NOW!
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West Cook YMCA | 255 S. Marion St., Oak Park, IL 60302 | P: 708.383.5200 | www.westcookymca.org
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Get to know who is working for you!
LEAD . LEARN . PROMOTE
We wish you a HAPPY NEW YEAR!
GET TO KNOW OUR 2019 BOARD OF DIRECTORS - Back Row: Kellie Scott, Richard Jung, Marc Stopeck, Christian Harris, Mike Lavery, Amanda H. Young, Anne Pezalla, Robert Stelletello, Lynn Palmgren Front Row: Mary Ann Bender, Lori Mallinski, Donna Fantetti-Slepicka, Fernando Rivera, Jonathan Biag, Peg Dowling, John Lawerence, Heidi Ruehle-May, Angela Cooper , Gary Longstein, Kimberly Augustin.
learn more at oprfchamber.org/board&staff
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The Joyful Giving Catalog AgeOptions AgeOptions helps to empower older adults in Suburban Cook County by connecting them to information and resources so they can thrive as they age. AgeOptions has served older adults since 1974 reaching more than 155,000 older adults and caregivers last year alone. AgeOptions partners with community-based nonprofits serving older adults and their caregivers to ensure that every aging person has access to in-home care, adult day services, nutritious meals, intervention and prevention of fraud, abuse, and neglect, and advocacy to protect their right. To donate, volunteer, or simply find out about the many services and programs available to you or your loved ones, go to www.ageoptions.org or call us at 708-383-0258.
Animal Care League Animal Care League offers a safe haven for pets in need. Founded in 1973, Animal Care League takes a proactive approach to animal care and adoption as well as preventative measures to help reduce the number of homeless animals in our communities. With over 1000 pets coming to our doors each year, Animal Care League counts on supporters to ensure that we can provide what is needed from routine vaccinations to life saving surgery. Make a difference in the life of a homeless animal by visiting www.animalcareleague. org where you can sign up to volunteer, make a donation, view our adoptable pets, and learn about upcoming events.
Austin Coming Together (ACT) Austin Coming Together (ACT) exists to create a thriving Austin community. ACT’s mission is to increase the collective impact of our member organizations on improving education and economic development outcomes in the Austin community. ACT provides backbone support for a network of more than 50 non-profit, faith-based, public, and private entities committed to improving the quality of life in the Austin community.
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in learning and in life. We work with more than 60 organizations so that parents and their children receive critical information and support services, children are screened for developmental delays, teachers in child care centers, preschools and family child care homes provide high quality programs and our most vulnerable children and their families experience a strong web of support. Coordinated by the Oak Park-River Forest Community Foundation
For more information, or to make a donation, please visit us at collab4kids.org or follow us on Facebook.
Concordia University Chicago
We connect giving to impact!
Since 2010, we have helped our members take a strategic and collaborative approach to achieving outcomes together.
For more information about membership, volunteering, or to make a donation please contact Executive Director, Darnell Shields, at 773-417-8613 or dshields@ austincomingtogether.org
BUILD, Inc. Since 1969, Austinbased BUILD, Inc. has helped thousands of Chicago youth escape gang violence to become positive community leaders. BUILD is a second family to young people who face steep obstacles, yet succeed every day with the help of caring mentors who share similar backgrounds. Programs like the Block 51 Arts Academy, Austin Summer of Opportunity, and BUILDing Girls 2 Women foster creativity, socialemotional health, and academic success of youth ages 6 to 24. Gifts to the Attitude of Gratitude campaign support expansion of programs in Austin, Garfield Park, Humboldt Park, Hermosa, Logan Square, and Fuller Park. Visit www.buildchicago.org or call 773-227-2880.
Celebrating Seniors In May 2011 Celebrating Seniors launched its first Celebrating Seniors Week, which has since become a vibrant annual tradition in Oak Park, River Forest and Forest Park. Celebrating Seniors is dedicated to honoring, recognizing and serving local seniors. The organization concentrates on four main objectives: • To facilitate cooperation between the business community, government agencies and non-profit organizations for the benefit of the senior population. • To promote senior groups and organizations that serve persons 60 and older. • To raise public awareness of issues affecting seniors. • To generate funds to support at-risk and vulnerable elders. To volunteer to support our Celebrating Seniors Week or to contribute financially to our community mission, visit us at www. celebratingseniors.net.
The Children’s Clinic/ Oak Park River Forest Infant Welfare Society Will you join us? We’re on a mission to advance the health and well-being of children in need. When you support the OPRF Infant Welfare Society, you help vulnerable children in our community and surrounding areas access critical healthcare, including pediatric, dental and behavioral health services. Our Children’s Clinic is an important safety net for 3,500 children each year, and your generosity is key. Your gift of $50 will provide a toddler with two essential vaccines. Or for $150, a young patient with autism can receive specialized preventive dental services. Make a gift at www.oprfiws.org or call 708406-8661.
Cluster Tutoring For more than 27 years, the Cluster Tutoring Program has been providing free one-to-one tutoring to students in grades K through 12 who primarily come from the Austin neighborhood of Chicago. Our dedicated volunteers meet with students for 30 weeks throughout the school year to provide literacy instruction, homework help, and mentoring. We also offer a summer reading program and additional academic enrichment opportunities through community partnerships with Concordia University and the Mathnasium in Oak Park. Your support of Cluster assists us in fulfilling our mission, which is to help young people realize their potential through the power of learning in an environment that strengthens the student, the tutor, and the community. For more information or to make a donation, please go to our website: www. clustertutoring.org or contact Executive Director, Kara Kalnitz, at 773-378-5530.
The Collaboration for Early Childhood The Collaboration for Early Childhood is your resource for early childhood information in Oak Park and River Forest. We provide the connections vital to every child’s opportunity for success
Founded in 1864, Concordia University Chicago is an affordable, comprehensive liberal arts-based Christian university based in the Lutheran tradition. Through its College of Arts and Sciences, College of Business, College of Education, College of Graduate Studies, and College of Innovation and Professional Programs, Concordia-Chicago offers more than 100 areas of study through traditional, blended or online classes leading to a bachelor’s, master’s or doctoral degree. Classes are taught by professors who are passionate about teaching and student success. Currently, more than 6,000 full-time undergraduate and graduate students are enrolled at ConcordiaChicago, River Forest. Make your secure donation by visiting www. cuchicago.edu/givenow. Your support ensures the best and brightest programs for our next generation of teachers, church workers, business leaders, gerontologists, and a host of other vocations!
Oak Park Festival Theatre Since 1975 Oak Park Festival Theatre, the Midwest’s oldest professional outdoor classical theatre, has brought the magic of dramatic masterpieces to generations of our neighbors. Whether performing under the stars in beautiful Austin Gardens as we do each summer or at any of the many local venues where we partner with local philanthropic agencies (such as Housing Forward, Oak Park Housing Authority or Nineteenth Century Charitable Association), Festival Theatre breaths fresh air into timeless texts for Oak Park and beyond. With ticket prices kept friendly for every budget and free admission for all under 13, we rely on the generosity of our audiences to continue our dynamic community dialogue. Donations can be made on-line at oakparkfestival.com or mailed to us: Oak Park Festival Theatre, P.O. Box 4114, Oak Park, IL 60303.
Friends of the Oak Park Conservatory Since 1986, the Friends of the Oak Park Conservatory has been inspiring and educating visitors. We manage over 150 volunteers. We offer free tours through the showrooms and free educational programs for kids. We sponsor two free events at the Conservatory - KidsFest and FallFest. We host the Uncorked summer-series
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Wednesday Journal, December 26, 2018
OAKPARK.COM | RIVERFOREST.COM
and we are celebrating the 30th annual plant sale this coming spring. We give grants to the park district to make improvements to the Conservatory. We rely on volunteers, members and donors to make these events, programs and grants possible. Please consider helping us grow. Join. Donate. Volunteer.
Our skilled staff recruits and trains foster parents, and offers ongoing support to help all family members navigate challenges.
For more information about membership, volunteering, or to make a donation please contact Executive Director, Beth Cheng, at 708.725.2460 or director@fopcon.org.
To make a real difference in the lives of children and families, please donate today at hephzibahhome.org.
Green Community Connections The most recent United Nations report shows that the worst effects of climate change will hit by 2040 if we don’t act now. Go “all in” for the planet with your donation to the 8th annual One Earth Film Festival, an OPRF grass-roots effort that inspires climate action, resilience and environmental justice in communities throughout Chicagoland. In 2018, we hosted 60 film screenings, and 95% of surveyed attendees reported being inspired to get involved in issues or solutions. Protect the planet by joining One Earth today: oneearthfilmfest.org/give. Memberships start at $25. Bill Reilly of The Reilly Group at Merrill Lynch will generously match your donation now through #GivingTuesday.
Ernest Hemingway Foundation Of Oak Park The Ernest Hemingway Foundation of Oak Park is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) literary arts and educational foundation dedicated to thoughtful reading and writing. The foundation offers a wide variety of programming, all open to the public, to nurture and encourage creative expression for students and for people of all ages. Through tours and exhibits at Ernest Hemingway’s birthplace museum, the foundation fosters an understanding of his life and work, his Oak Park origins and his impact on world literature. Your gift supports creative outlets for people of all ages through professional teacher development, local author and performing artist programs, inter-generational engagement, a writer-inresidence program, as well as student writing workshops, mentorships, and scholarships. For more information about us or to donate online go to www.hemingwaybirthplace.com or mail us at Ernest Hemingway Foundation of Oak Park, P.O. Box 2222 Oak Park, IL 60303
Hephzibah
Hephzibah Children’s Association was founded in 1897. We serve more than 1,000 children and families each year through innovative, community-based programs. Hephzibah provides a Group Home for children who have been taken from their families due to profound abuse or neglect.
Our after-school Day Care operates on a sliding scale to serve working parents in Oak Park, with programs based at each elementary school.
Historical Society Forest Park
The Historical Society Forest Park was founded in 1975 for the purposes of “collecting and preserving the rich heritage of Forest Park.” The historical society offers tours of Haymarket Martyr’s Monument in Forest Home Cemetery every Saturday in the summer, collect oral histories of Forest Park Veterans of Military service, hosts several historical events a year and celebrates Forest Park. For more information about us or to donate visit us at www.forestparkhistory.org or mail us: Historical Society of Forest Park PO Box 311 Forest Park IL 60130 Search our website for exciting events and programs You can also become a member of theThe Society and/or volunteer. Historical Society of
The Historical Society of Oak Park and River Forest 2018 has been a remarkable year for The Historical Society of Oak Park and River Forest as we celebrated our golden anniversary and our new facility Oak Park River Forest Museum at 129 Lake in Oak Park. We launched the exhibit “Open House: The Legacy of Fair Housing” which will continue until the end of 2019 and our “Ghosts of Christmas Past” exhibit until Jan. 12. And Illinois Association of Museums named us Small Museum of the Year! But our work has just begun, with new exhibits, programs, and a new elevator being planned. We need your support with a gift toward 2019 operations. The Historical Society of
Learn more at oprfmuseum.org or 708-848-6755
Housing Forward The mission of Housing Forward is to transition people from housing crisis to housing stability. By emphasizing homelessness prevention, supportive services, employment readiness and supportive housing, we are able to offer a comprehensive, long-term solution that moves clients into housing quickly and keeps them there. Housing Forward is the only nonprofit organization in west Cook County with a comprehensive, long-term solution for preventing and ending homelessness. Founded in 1992, the agency provides integrated services to at-risk and homeless individuals and families in six areas: emergency assistance, employment readiness, supportive
housing, outreach and engagement, supportive services, and emergency shelter. To learn more, visit www.housingforward. org or to donate, www.housingforward. org/give, or contact Janet Gow, Director of Development & Communications, at 708.338.1724 ext. 262.
L’Arche Chicago L’Arche Chicago is a community where people with and without intellectual disabilities share life together in homes, as family. In our group homes in the OPRF neighborhoods, we strive to merge the highest quality of care and genuine friendship. We seek to create a world that welcomes difference and celebrates the unique gifts of all people, where each person has a genuine place of belonging. Support L’Arche Chicago and help us to create that kind of world right here in Oak Park River Forest. larchechicago.org/2018
New Moms Since 1983, New Moms has been interrupting the cycle of poverty for two generations: young moms and their children, by offering supports in the most important areas of the life of a family – stable housing, job training, and family support. These supports, along with a loving environment, equip young moms as they work to create strong families. Through our holistic approach, young moms experience a transformation of heart and mind as their life stories change from ones of hopelessness to lives filled with stability, health and vision for a strong future. Learn more at newmoms.org.
Nineteenth Century Charitable Association
The Nineteenth Century Charitable Association strengthens our community through learning, giving, and sharing our landmark building. We provide community outreach, scholarships, and public programming in five areas: music, art, literature, science, and social sciences. The NCCA is the owner of 178 Forest Avenue, commonly referred to as the Nineteenth Century Club. Our charitable and cultural activities are supported by our members, volunteers, donors, and by the events held at the Club. Programs are open to all and we welcome all ages to join. If you would like information about volunteering, joining or donating, please call us at 708-386-2729 email to info@ nineteenthcentury.org.
Oak-Leyden Developmental Services The mission of OakLeyden Developmental Services is to help children and adults with developmental disabilities meet life’s challenges and reach their highest potential. The organization offers life-changing support in three areas: Children’s Services, Residential Services, and Lifelong Learning. Empower people with developmental disabilities today at https://www.oak-leyden. org/get-involved/donate.
Oak Park River Forest Food Pantry $1 = 3 meals, is an equation only you can make possible. With your help, Oak Park River Forest Food Pantry has been reducing local hunger for nearly 40 years. Your support means we are able to meet the needs of nearly 16,000 families struggling with hunger each year. It means we can provide over 50 pounds of nutritious food plus access to vital programs and services to help people stretch limited food budgets in healthy ways. It means that even a little goes a long way: every $1 donated can feed a neighbor for an entire day. To make a donation, visit oprffoodpantry. org or send checks payable to OPRF Food Pantry to Oak Park River Forest Food Pantry, 848 Lake Street, Oak Park, IL 60301.
Oak Park River Forest Community Foundation OAK PARK-RIVER FOREST
Community Foundation The Oak Park – River Forest Community Foundation is based on a powerful promise: to create an enduring institution where people can come together and pool their resources to meet our community’s most pressing needs; not just now, but forever. For sixty years, generations of thoughtful and caring donors and residents have empowered the Foundation’s work to safeguard and advance the community in which we live, raise our families and work. From helping donors with legacy gift planning, to managing donor advised funds, to strengthening local non-profits, we connect. Visit oprfcf.org or call 708-848-1560 (ask for Rhea Yap) to start a fund, discuss your charitable estate plans, or make a donation today.
Oak Park Regional Housing Center Since 1972, the Oak Park Regional Housing Center (OPRHC) has been an advocate for fair housing. Our mission is to achieve meaningful and lasting diversity in communities. The OPRHC works to counteract steering
Wednesday Journal, December 26, 2018
OAKPARK.COM | RIVERFOREST.COM and encourages pro-integrative housing options. We promote Oak Park as a community for all races, attracting people who respond to and strengthen that kind of climate. We work with local entities to coordinate a multifaceted effort to promote and sustain the community’s rich diversity. Support our work with a donation at https:// oprhc.org/donate/oprhc.org • 708-848-7150 info@ oprhc.org • 1041 South Boulevard Oak Park IL 60302
Opportunity Knocks Opportunity Knocks is dedicated to providing opportunities and resources for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities so they may pursue their educational, occupational and social interests. Our approach to programming is person-centered, peer-led and community-based. Due to challenges in relying on the State of Illinois as a funding partner, we rely on our community for that partnership and support. We are nearly entirely privately funded. That fact makes your support that much more important. To learn more about Opportunity Knocks or to make a donation in support of the Warrior Mission, please visit us online at opportunityknocksnow.org.
PING! PING! (Providing Instruments for the Next Generation) is an allvolunteer organization that loans musical instruments to students in need in grades 4-12 in Oak Park-River Forest school districts 90, 97, and 200 so that they can participate in their school band or orchestra. PING! also provides music enrichment for its students through workshops, mentoring, summer music camp scholarships, private lessons, and field trips. Founded in 1998 PING! is celebrating its 20th Anniversary and over the past two decades has served more than 600 students who would not otherwise have the opportunity to participate in the music programs at school. PING! depends on the community for donated instruments and financial contributions to maintain its instrument inventory and program funding. For more information or to make a donation, go to www.pingoprf.org. If you have an instrument to donate, send us an email at pingoprf@gmail.com.
network.org. Your support will make a difference in the lives of others!
Pro Musica Youth Chorus Pro Musica is the ONLY community children’s chorus in the greater Oak Park area for kids in 1st grade through high school. For over 25 years Pro Musica has brought music education, performance opportunities, and youth empowerment programming to over 1,100 children. Evidence shows that kids who sing in chorus get better grades, are happier, and become more community involved adults than their peers. Yet about half of area school children do not have access to chorus. Pro Musica is committed to reaching more children in our community by driving youth music education across socio-economic barriers.
Learn more and donate at pro-bono-
To donate, visit donatenow.networkforgood. org/sarahsinn, or make a tax-deductible donation through postal mail by sending a check to: Sarah’s Inn, PO Box 1159, Oak Park, IL 60304
St. Angela School
• $25 provides sheet music for 1 singer for a season
At St. Angela School we have been called to serve the families of Chicago’s west side, a neighborhood that is too often underserved. We provide our boys and girls with a safe and loving environment, challenging academics, counseling services, a focus on early literacy, and the strong sense of belonging to a school family. As we prepare to begin our second century, we’re proud to voice our commitment to Austin by continuing to invest in our future here: in our people, our programs and our campus.
• $50 provides rehearsal space for our singers for 1 week
Learn more about us at www.saintangela. org; we hope that you’ll feel called to help!
• $100 provides 10 free tickets for seniors to our Spring Concert Help us make a difference in a child’s life – go to promusicayouthchorus.org and donate today!
The River Forest Public Library Foundation “A library outranks any other one thing a community can do to benefit its people,” said Andrew Carnegie. That’s why he funded thousands of public libraries a century ago to help people help themselves through selfdirected learning. Today, the River Forest Public Library (RFPL) carries on that core mission by providing not just books and periodicals but also a wide array of digital resources (onsite and remotely), interactive programs, and other transformative learning opportunities. Honor a family member, a cherished teacher or mentor, a dear friend, or your own love of lifelong learning by giving to the RFPL Foundation, a 501(c)(3) organization, at 735 Lathrop Avenue, River Forest, IL 60305 or rfplfoundation.org/donate. Your gift will inspire others and transform the lives of so many in our community.
Sarah’s Inn
Pro Bono Network We believe access to justice should not depend upon your ability to afford an attorney. There are simply not enough legal aid lawyers to help people in dire need of legal aid. These include issues of safety from an abuser, adequate housing, and the ability to get a job. Over Pro Bono Network’s fairly short existence we have enabled 300+ attorneys to give more than 16,500 pro bono legal hours to over 2,500 clients in need.
the impact of their choices, giving them the tools to lead healthy lives, and empowering them to make a difference in their community.
Since 1981, Sarah’s Inn has worked to improve the lives of those impacted by domestic violence and to break the cycle of violence for future generations. Our Intervention Program provides bi-lingual services for families affected by domestic violence in order to safely navigate crisis, effectively process trauma and ensure self-sufficiency. Our Training and Education Program creates a network of skilled bystanders to appropriately intervene as first responders and community advocates. Our Together Strong Project was created to prevent relationship violence by teaching youth about
The Symphony of Oak Park & River Forest
Named “Community Orchestra of the Year” in 2018, The Symphony of Oak Park & River Forest, under the leadership of award-winning conductor, Jay Friedman, continues to bring extraordinary and accessible concerts to our community. Ticket sales provide less than half the funds needed for the Symphony’s performances. Your gift keeps the orchestra going strong and allows us to maintain affordable ticket prices, including free admission for all students through college. Please help us continue and strengthen our 86-year tradition of bringing beautiful and inspiring music to Oak Park and River Forest. Make your end-of-year tax-deductible donation at symphonyoprf.org, or: P.O. Box 3564, Oak Park, IL 60303-3564.
Thrive Counseling Center Thrive Counseling Center (formerly Family Services of Oak Park) has provided mental health services to our community for 120 years. Located in the heart of Oak Park, our mission is to build healthy minds, families and communities by empowering people to attain mental and emotional well-being. Hope, resilience and recovery form the heart of our programs and services. Last year we provided critical services to approximately 1,400 friends, neighbors and family members including… • counseling for youth and adults • psychiatric care and medication management • in-home counseling for older adults • psychosocial rehabilitation day program • 24/7 crisis intervention • Suicide Safer Community Program • adult and youth group therapy, including:
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• art therapy • stress management • coping with anxiety • grief support • Sibshops To learn more or donate, please visit www. thrivecc.org or call 708-383-7500, ext. 322. Follow us on Facebook!
UCP Seguin Of Greater Chicago
UCP Seguin believes that all people, regardless of ability, deserve to achieve their potential, advance their independence and act as full members of the community. So we stop at nothing to provide life skills training, assistive technology, meaningful employment and a place to call home for people with disabilities, as well as specialized foster care for children. Our goal: life without limits for people with disabilities. Make a difference in the lives of people with disabilities. Donate online at ucpseguin.org or send gifts to UCP Seguin, 332 Harrison Street, Oak Park IL 60304
Way Back Inn/ Grateful House
Since 1974, Way Back Inn and Grateful House have successfully provided residential and outpatient treatment for men and women in Oak Park and surrounding communities who are trying to overcome an addition to alcohol, chemical substances such as opioids, and gambling. Our mission is to rebuild lives damaged by addiction in a personalized healing environment, where men and women’s lives are transformed and relationships are healed. Our recovery program focuses on the integration of the body, mind, and spirit. For more information or to make a donation, go to: www.waybackinn.org or call us at 708-345-8422.
West Suburban Special Recreation Association (WSSRA) West Suburban Special Recreation Association (WSSRA) provides recreational programming for individuals with disabilities who reside in Oak Park, River Forest and nine other surrounding communities. Donations to WSSRA, help provide financial assistance to those participating in our yearround programs and summer day camp. To make a donation, please visit wssra.net.
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Wednesday Journal, December 26, 2018
OAKPARK.COM | RIVERFOREST.COM
Throughout the Season of Giving, you have seen extraordinary examples of philanthropy: from engaged youth giving back, to individuals and families providing a bright future for our community.
The Community Foundation can help you be extraordinary, too! Working together, there is so much we can do to transform lives and grow prosperity in and around Oak Park and River Forest, now and for generations to come.
GIVE TODAY. Contact Rhea Yap
to learn more about how our expertise can fuel your passion
708.848.1560 or ryap@oprfcf.org
The Oak Park-River Forest Community Foundation sponsors the Season of Giving in support of nonprofit organizations serving our communities.
www.oprfcf.org
Wednesday Journal, December 26, 2018
OAKPARK.COM | RIVERFOREST.COM
www.TENandFiT.com Beginner Non-Member Tennis Classes Available
301 Lake St., Oak Park (708) 386-2175
266 Lake Street, Oak Park (708) 524-YOGA
Investing in Our Community and Residents for 34 Years
New Tennis Classes Start Jan. 7th-13th Pickleball
Racquetball
Group Exercise
Spinning®
Yoga
Pilates
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Wednesday Journal, December 26, 2018
OAKPARK.COM | RIVERFOREST.COM
The NEXT SAY Connects Community Conversation A conversation between OPRF community youth of color about our community and what actions they are taking to make it better.
Thursday, January 17, 2019 at 7 p.m. Percy Julian Middle School Auditorium RSVP requested - oakpark.com/sayconnects
DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSIONS IS FRIDAY 5 P.M.
Email Viewpoints editor Ken Trainor, ktrainor@wjinc.com
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Passing the basketball gene
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Testimonials to Kathryn Jonas p. 40
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believe passion is a communicable trait. My granddaughters Lily and Ava are the third generation of Hubbuchs to care about basketball. I’m pretty sure the highlight of Lily’s fourth grade Christmas will be her pair of Steph Currie basketball shoes. I suppose it was inevitable. I was born and raised in Indiana where basketball is king. Baseball and football just pass the time between hoops seasons. The iconic movie Hoosiers ain’t about car racing. My dad bought my first hoop and attached it to our garage when I was in fourth grade. I spent hours playing by myself against imaginary opponents. That’s even harder than you might think because I was also the announcer, coach and crowd. I was a basketball Sybil. I always made the winning buzzer beater. Eventually. In winter I shoveled the driveway, and shot baskets wearing cloth gloves with the fingers cut off. All that hard work paid off because I made the Our Lady of Perpetual Help Eagles grade school team. In my four year career, I averaged 2.2 points per game. But I was adequate on defense. My three sons all played through high school. I coached them in parks and rec and the YMCA leagues. Our family lived and breathed basketball — played, practiced, watched it live and on TV. We cheered madly for the Bulls and Indiana and coach Bob Knight, who personified the game for us until he spiraled into egoism and misanthropy. Chris was a basketball manager in college and coaches his kids now that they are old enough to play. I wouldn’t look at a house unless it had a good hoop. Basketball for us was an essential part of the Oak Park diversity experience. The boys and I were, from time to time, in the minority in gymnasiums in the area. Most of the friendships we made with African Americans were made through playing and coaching basketball. Rural, suburban and inner-city boys and girls all share a desire to put the ball through that orange ring. Basketball is our most inclusive sport. I am by 30 years the oldest participant in a 15-yearold fantasy NBA league with my sons and their friends. I tell the girls about the intricacies of feeding the post, the drop step, the cross over, the box out, denial with the off hand — all the wonderful details that make the sport so special. I have so many basketball memories. Chris recently noted that if he had to rank-order the people, events, experiences or activities that have influenced him as a person, basketball would be pretty far up on that list. Me too.
JOHN
HUBBUCH
See YEAR IN SHRUBTOWN on page 33
by Marc Stopeck
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Wednesday Journal, December 26, 2018
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Looking back
t has been a good year in Oak Park and River Forest. Discernible progress on multiple fronts. And important setting of the stage for two critical issues that will play out in the new year. Development gets a lot of headlines in these two villages of late. We’re glad of that after the lost decade following the Great Recession of 2008 and anticipating another economic downturn in the near future. There has been a window to get projects done and both River Forest and Oak Park have moved aggressively. While there may not be consensus on high-rises in Oak Park there appears to be wide agreement that the latest proposal, 28 floors in spitting distance of Unity Temple, is a non-starter. That’s good. A substantially more modest proposal for the bank drivethru site on Lake Street will be welcome in the new year. Meanwhile, the already approved high-rise projects are well on their way to completion and occupancy. But across these villages any number of notable projects won approval this year. Some of them are already under construction. In River Forest, Lake and Lathrop will finally be remade with a handsome mixed-use project. And a major senior living facility will soon rise on underused properties at Chicago and Harlem. In Oak Park there is finally action, finally as in 30 years late, at Oak Park and Madison. A new Pete’s Fresh Market will anchor the north side while yet another assisted living project will replace the old car dealership on the south side of the street. Upscale townhouses are underway at Home and Madison. Upscale apartments are approved at Madison and Lyman. An affordable apartment project is OK’d at Oak Park and VanBuren. A new Alcuin Montessori is rising on a derelict parcel on Roosevelt Road. There are small wins on North Avenue, too. Overall, a very good year for development. Simultaneously, Oak Park has finally ’fessed up to the roiling impact of never-ending increases in property taxes. From citizen action to the strong work of a village government-appointed task force, the reality of just how fast our taxes have risen is now documented, solutions have been put forward, and steady pressure is being applied. We see it in the painstaking work to cut costs at village hall, in discussions underway at OPRF about funding its capital plan and the difficulty a newly tight-fisted school board is having in reaching a new contract with faculty. This is a necessary debate and one best had when framed in relation to containing taxes to preserve Oak Park’s values of diversity and inclusion. We’d also note that while never offered as a silver bullet, that active development, especially on long underused parcels, is an important part of growing the tax base. Finally, 2018 was the year when both villages became fully focused on equity in education and in all of our governing choices. The America to Me documentary series by Steve James absolutely played a vital role in helping us see our public high school with fresh, honest eyes. But the work on equity has been taking much deeper hold for the past few years as school boards and administrations at all three local school districts have aligned on the critical needs we have on equity, on the necessity of driving real cultural and curricular change in these schools. This discussion and, more importantly real action, will accelerate in 2019. All of these accomplishments, issues and challenges of 2018 have set up the coming April elections. There will be intensely competitive elections almost across the board in our schools and village governments. That is all good. As always, we’ll be looking for candidates who see the complexities of our issues and who bring progressive values to those challenges and genuine ideas on how local government can collaborate to find solutions. It’s not just about the tax burden. It’s not just about a swimming pool at the high school. It’s not just about tall buildings. It’s about the interplay of all these issues, about innovation, about building optimism and hope in tough times.
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@ @OakParkSports
As we resist, don’t forget to embrace
inter arrived mid-November in the Midwest right after the midterms. We scarcely had time to celebrate before the snow started falling. Ah, the midterms: Chalk one up for the resistance. Resist the temptation to stop resisting, however, because the election was just the first step toward reclaiming our democracy. Resist the wannabe tyrants who dishonor our country, but embrace the honor of being one of many chosen to save your country. The resistance is entering its third year. Two more long years to go until the crucial 2020 election. To resist effectively, we need to balance our energy with embrace. Resistance is inherently negative, angry, exhausting. Resistance alone results in bitterness. Check out the average Trump rally. We can’t resist for long if we don’t also embrace the goodness all around us. You’ve been given a great gift, Clarence Oddbody told George Bailey: the chance to see what the world would be like without you. We’ve been given a greater gift: the chance to see what the world could be like with us — fully awake and engaged, highly resolved to bring about, at long last, Abraham Lincoln’s “new birth of freedom.” Lincoln said, “The fiery trial through which we pass will light us down in honor or dishonor to the latest generation. We, even we here, hold the power and bear the responsibility. … As our case is new, so we must think anew and act anew. We must disenthrall ourselves and then we shall save our country.” It is … fortunately, happily … a country worth saving — so we embrace what is right and good about America even as we resist the cartoon buffoons currently running it (into the ground). Resist Trump, but embrace the Anti-Trump: Someone with genuine concern for the wellbeing of others, an unerring moral compass, who treats everyone with respect — especially women, African Americans and Muslims. Wellread, informed, law-abiding, emotionally mature. A truth teller. Someone whose words can be trusted. Words that mean something, words that matter. The Anti-Trump. Someone like Abraham Lincoln. And maybe someone like us. Embrace and resist. Resist and embrace. The balance is everything. When you live in a dark time, become the light. Pay attention to the surrounding beauty and meaning — so easy to overlook. Embrace the face-to-face, the eye-to-eye, the sacred space between I and You. The place where “we” comes into being. Regard everyone you meet or pass on the street as a person of quality — because, almost invariably, they are.
Resist worst-case scenarios, conspiracy thinking, conventional explanations. Resist materialistic excess, which starves the spirit. Accept what can’t change, but embrace what can. Resist inequality, but also embrace equality. Embrace the rural Americans who feel left out. Embrace the newest Americans who don’t feel welcome. Embrace the millennials, women, people of color, who represent the future of a changing nation. Resist the phrase, “I’ll never see that in my lifetime,” because the Berlin Wall came down and the Cubs won a World Series so all bets are off. Embrace the long game. Embrace the light that softens our longest nights. Embrace “Collateral Beauty,” as the film by that name puts it. Embrace Oak Park — all the more after viewing the Starz docu-series, America to Me. I’ve never been prouder. There is so much to embrace … Winter, even when it comes too soon, The night, even at its darkest, Music that connects mind and heart, the key to setting free the soul, Dreams from the deep that remind me I have barely tapped the reservoir of imagination, The fact that things often turn out better than predicted or expected — or even deserved, Embrace the bliss you just can’t resist. Resist the worst, embrace the best, and then we shall save our country. As we prepare to enter another year filled with outrage and energy-draining resistance, consider the following lines, inspired by Psalm 98, from Minyan: Ten Principles for Living a Life of Integrity by Rabbi Rami Shapiro:
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To sing a new song, I must sing with a new voice. I must let go the known and embrace the unknown, for the new is always a surprise. To sing a new song, I must open myself to wonder. I must embrace the fullness of mind and body. I must wash myself in the totality of Life, its births and its deaths, its risings and its passings. I must let go the boxes into which I stuff the stuff of life and allow what Is to speak its truth. And then I shall take that truth and sing it aloud. With lyre and with drum, with voice and with silence, I will sing a song that surprises even God. And in that surprise will be a great deliverance.
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by Marc Stopeck
Wednesday Journal, December 26, 2018
W E D N E S D A Y
JOURNAL of Oak Park and River Forest
Editor and Publisher Dan Haley Senior Editor Bob Uphues Associate Publisher Dawn Ferencak Staff Reporters Michael Romain, Timothy Inklebarger, Nona Tepper Viewpoints Editor Ken Trainor Sports/Staff reporter Marty Farmer Columnists Marc Blesoff, Jack Crowe, Doug Deuchler, John Hubbuch, May Kay O’Grady, Kwame Salter, John Stanger, Stan West, Michelle Mbekeani-Wiley, Cassandra West, Doris Davenport Staff Photographer Alexa Rogals Editorial Design Manager Claire Innes Editorial Designers Jacquinete Baldwin, Javier Govea Business Manager Joyce Minich IT Manager/Web Developer Mike Risher Advertising Production Manager Philip Soell Advertising Design Manager Andrew Mead Advertising Designers Debbie Becker, Mark Moroney Advertising Director Dawn Ferencak Advertising Sales Marc Stopeck, Bill Wossow Inside Sales Representative Mary Ellen Nelligan Event Coordinator Carmen Rivera Ad Coordinator Nonna Working Circulation Manager Jill Wagner Distribution Coordinator Wakeelah Cocroft-Aldridge Front Desk Carolyn Henning, Maria Murzyn Chairman Emeritus Robert K. Downs
About Viewpoints Our mission is to lead educated conversation about the people, government, schools, businesses and culture of Oak Park and River Forest. As we share the consensus of Wednesday Journal’s editorial board on local matters, we hope our voice will help focus your thinking and, when need be, fire you to action. In a healthy conversation about community concerns, your voice is also vital. We welcome your views, on any topic of community interest, as essays and as letters to the editor. Noted here are our stipulations for filing. Please understand our verification process and circumstances that would lead us not to print a letter or essay. We will call to check that what we received with your signature is something you sent. If we can’t make that verification, we will not print what was sent. When, in addition to opinion, a letter or essay includes information presented as fact, we will check the reference. If we cannot confirm a detail, we may not print the letter or essay. If you have questions, email Viewpoints editor Ken Trainor at ktrainor@wjinc.com.
LETTER TO THE EDITOR ■ 250-word limit ■ Must include first and last names, municipality in which you live, phone number (for verification only)
‘ONE VIEW’ ESSAY ■ 500-word limit ■ One-sentence footnote about yourself, your connection to the topic ■ Signature details as at left
Email Ken Trainor at ktrainor@wjinc.com or mail to Wednesday Journal, Viewpoints, 141 S. Oak Park Ave., Oak Park, IL 60302
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Wednesday Journal, December 26, 2018
Testimonials to a community activist
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athryn Jonas, a longtime community activist and champion of Oak Park’s urban forest, died on Sept. 19, 2018. So many friends and colleagues wanted to comment on her and her life that we decided to run a selection as a testimonial to her impact. Jerry Adelmann, president & CEO of Openlands: A certified arborist and Openlands treekeeper, Kathryn Jonas has been an urban forest advocate for decades. She was a member of the Chicago Region Trees Initiative, where she shared her expertise in preserving and protecting trees regionally and at home locally. She co-founded the Historic Oak Propagation Project (HOPP) in 2008 to preserve local oaks genetic material by collecting acorns, propagating them, and replanting with neighbors in Oak Park. Kathryn’s impact is evident through the trees she has planted, protected, and her dedication to educating others on the importance of green space for quality of life. She was literally a “force of nature” whose influence and legacy will live on for generations in the trees she saved and planted.
Bill and Deborah Roberts: Her reach was wide and varied, her compassion for enhancing and sustaining life blossomed. What a legacy she created. How can we ever look at a tree again without thinking of her, or even a stranger — there never seemed to be any in her life. Mike Iversen of Oak Park: Kathryn was a person of utmost integrity, wisdom and perspective; passionate about her family, friends and interests, and one of those rare Oak Parkers I respected, admired and enjoyed. Carrie Downs: Katy loved traditions. For 50 years she and I made each other’s birthday dinners. We always had the same desserts: rhubarb pie for her, chocolate cake for me. How will I be able to do the rest of my birthdays without her? Julie Samuels of Oak Park: We both cared about our world — the trees, the land, and the people. And we worried about them all, especially in Oak Park. But she always calmed me down because she knew so much that she never failed to find a way to plan and take the steps to bring about necessary change. She knew what to do and she did it! When we met to talk, I always enjoyed sitting across from her as she drank her half-
KATHRYN JONAS filled cup of coffee so she could ask for refills — to keep it hot. In a way that describes how I think she lived her life: quietly taking the modest steps to save our world. Edith Makra: Kathryn fiercely defended the trees of Oak Park when a contractor and the village mismanaged a pruning contract. Kathryn could not abide this insult to the trees and the loss to beautiful Oak Park. She first sought me out to help with this messy battle when I was Community Trees Advocate for the Morton Arboretum. I dealt with a lot of advocates, but Kathryn was exceptional. She was strategic, tenacious, sophisticated and effective in changing the policies for tree care in Oak Park. The impact endures. It was only because Kathryn carried the idea from acorn to mighty oak that HOPP happened. She did so much thoughtful research and hard work. She was persuasive and passionate. HOPP is a standout project nationally, in my opinion. Kathryn was so influential, yet so modest. She left a beautiful legacy of trees and persuaded others to love trees. Rima Schultz of Oak Park: Kathryn was unique in the melding of her commitments to social justice issues and her keen sense that one of the “inalienable” rights for citizens in a democracy was aesthetic — we have a right to beauty in our surroundings, our community. She valued the natural environment and worked to conserve our trees; and she valued the craft and beauty of what humans built well. Kathryn had an uncanny ability to visualize the way public policy influenced the spatial relations of community, so she imagined what change meant in terms of our ability to live together in harmony. Christine Vernon of Oak Park: If you ever saw Kathryn testify before the village board, then you can imagine her strong voice and
her stature. She had the facts before her and she had the best posture of any person I know. It was kind of a metaphor for her character. She stood up straight, had a strong spine, and spoke her truth. It takes perseverance and patience to make any inroads at all while challenging one-party rule. She found her successes in other areas of her life outside of politics — her devoted “other half,” Gary Johnson; her dear and talented daughter, Erika; the newest person in her family, her son-in-law; and her many friends and extended family. Hers was a rich life. Kathryn will always be one of the most interesting, inspiring, and courageous women I have ever known. John Conroy of Oak Park: Kathryn was an inspiration to all of us with her deep commitment to our environment. She didn’t just talk the talk. She truly walked the walk — and did so fearlessly. Sue Camerino: I found her to be extremely poised, incredibly well-spoken, intelligent and worldly beyond explanation. Even with all that she was, she never looked down on anyone. She always found common ground. Bernell Loeb: She inspired me to use my voice to speak out for what I believed. She taught me about the beauty of pomegranates and oaks and homegrown tomatoes and freshly baked bread. She also cared about knowledge and I loved learning about the latest book she was reading so that I could read it too. Randy Albers: When you met Kathryn Jonas, you immediately felt that you were in the presence of a woman who was smart, solid, fun, and mindful. Passionate about the environment as well as her family, she was unafraid of taking strong stands, even in the face of resistance from those less progressive in their thinking than she. And she could win them over, as she won over all who knew her, respected her, and loved her. Conner Shaw, owner of Possibility Place Nursery, Monee: Kathryn was one of two women I knew I could talk about trees. An unidentified attendee at her Pleasant Home memorial service on Nov. 4: To know her was to love her and the things she loved.
OAKPARK.COM | RIVERFOREST.COM
Making Oak Park stand tall
If you can’t beat them, join them. I’m writing to support our village president and the Make Oak Park Tall Movement (MOPT). All across Oak Park there are simply too many short buildings. As the current buildings rise, let us all commit ourselves to the new 28-story building proposed for Lake Street. This, I hope, is the first of many glorious very tall monuments resulting from the leadership of our current board president, Anan “Tall Building” Abu-Taleb. Everywhere I go in Oak Park, his mark is being made. Wind tunnels blow with powerful gusts that stop pedestrians in their tracks allowing them the time to enjoy the beauty of the tallness. Tallness is everything in a village that often sees itself as coming up short. If we lose sight of the President’s mission to Make Oak Park Tall Again, it may be due to the shadows cast by his monuments. Shadows can be useful on a hot day to keep you cool, or used to make hand silhouettes to entertain children. Lastly, MOPT will keep our taxes tall, too. Just pile all your tax dollars ... up, up, up ... in a big pile until they stand tall! How tall? Tax increase tall! Maybe if you look closely, your tax dollars could be piled 28 feet tall ... this may be a coincidence. As for Unity Temple, here is their opportunity to increase membership 28 fold. Think positive! Don’t forget to purchase your MOPT shirts at village hall. They are a bargain ... $28, tax included. All proceeds, less the sales tax, go to developers who promise to go tall!
Bob Milstein Oak Park
OPRF master plan is all about equity
I watched America to Me and learned a lot from the courageous students who told their stories. Without exception, their ability to manage the hurdles of this traditionally very large and very white institution depended on (1) involvement in extra-curriculars (in smaller groups), athletics, music, science and math, theater, literature/poetry and arts programs, and (2) access to supportive faculty, staff and each other. The Imagine Oak Park Committee’s comprehensive research included (hundreds of ?) hours of interviews and focus groups with students and faculty/staff with diverse academic and cultural perspectives. The result is a plan that, in addition to classroom improvements, focuses up front on centralized and flexible spaces for all students to access support resources, such as library, tutoring, faculty advisors and each other in group work spaces; and addresses the urgent and critical need for newly designed/re-configured and accessible facilities for athletic and music programming that keeps many, many students motivated and connected to their larger academic and career preparation goals. If you’ve attended presentations by the Imagine Committee, you will know that the structure of the south “field house” does not allow simple moving of walls, also that each new section is designed to be accessible and adaptable to different programming needs and is not extraordinarily extravagant. Structures like this are inherently expensive, but consider how long the old one has lasted! These two pieces of a very complex and well-thought-out, longterm plan seem to me to directly address equity needs and should not be delayed. Just “imagine” students using these spaces vs. the experience of a freshman in the first episode of America to Me and you may agree.
Sunny Hall
Parent of three OPRF graduates and grandparent to an OPRF sophomore
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OAKPARK.COM | RIVERFOREST.COM
Unity Temple’s statement on the Golub proposal On behalf of the congregation at Unity Temple Unitarian Universalist Church (UTUUC), we the board of trustees oppose the current development plans for 835 Lake St., Oak Park as proposed by Golub & Co. developers. As elected stewards of Unity Temple, we take seriously and reaffirm our obligation and our commitment to protect this building as both our sacred space for worship and as a historical architectural treasure of local, regional, national and international importance. We share with the Unity Temple Restoration Foundation serious concerns with any development that poses risk to Unity Temple either physically, aesthetically, or experientially. As a historic and engaged community member, UTUUC will support development that is within the current zoning guidelines for the 835 Lake Street address. We believe that
any proposed development that is outside the current zoning guidelines must be evaluated through a thoughtful, inclusive, and transparent process that considers impact and appropriateness, and includes meaningful community participation. We are compelled to this call through one of our faith’s core principles: “to affirm and promote the right of conscience and the use of the democratic process within our congregations and in society at large.” We urge the village of Oak Park to pursue, in thoughtful and inclusive discussion with the community, what would best serve our community in this space.
Alec Brownlow President
Karen Haskins-Brewer
Vice president
Bill Crozier, Anne Devaud, Clara Lewis, Terri Powell, Willa Shultz, Dave Willard, Erik Wise board@unitytemple.org
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Musing on Christmas Eve
t’s an early dusk of a late December day. Traffic is heavy. I’m returning home from an overcrowded grocery store. Everyone is in a rush and in a bad mood. A screech of tires and a blast of horns bring traffic to a halt. A loud outpouring of profane road rage ensues. That’s not unusual in crowded metropolitan living. But it’s Christmas Eve. What happened to peace and goodwill? At home, I snack as I recover from my harrowing shopping trip. I put on a pot of apple cider spiced with cinnamon and cloves. I make myself comfortable in a padded chair in my living room, but leave the TV and the lights off. Solitude and deepening darkness comfort me in my refuge from chaos and cacophony. Crass commercialism permeates the spirit of the holidays and chills the warmth of well-wishing. A call rings out, “Deck the halls with advertising, it’s the season for enterprising” (Tom Lehrer). Commerce interjects valuation to gift-giving and makes the expense of a gift a measure of loving and caring. As war refugees, in 1944, my mother and I had only our embraces for each other to exchange at Christmas. World War II robbed me of my childhood. Throughout my lifetime there has been no period without a war or conflict, and wars continue to blaze. There is no complete peace on earth. Will there ever be a time when “young men will learn war no more?” (Isaiah 2:4). In our country, outcries of anger, a profusion of hate crimes, mass murders, and racial bigotry obscure goodwill, and aggravate the strife of our political di-
vide. But America’s goodwill reveals itself in the dedication of the first responders. Unquestioningly, they fling themselves in harm’s way to rescue, to heal, to nurture, and comfort all the victims of disasters. In response to expressions of gratitude, they remark, “We’re only doing our jobs.” They are America’s greatness. The aroma of cinnamon and clove-spiced hot apple cider floats from my kitchen. A sip conjures up a memory of my Christmas in 1939. I was 6 years old. My parents brought me to live on my grandfather’s ancestral farm. The traditional Lithuanian Christmas Eve table had a layer of straw and hay under its tablecloth, symbolic of the manger. Christmas Eve was a day of fasting, thus the 12 dishes of the meal were meat-less. There were salads, soup, cheeses, and fresh baked sourdough rye bread. Oh yes, and a cup of spiced hot apple cider. The fragrances made my mouth water. The dining room was lit by candles on the table and kerosene lamps in the corners of the room. I was enthralled. After the meal people prepared to attend Midnight Mass. I was tucked into bed. It’s late. My thoughts are slowing down. I feel the tender embrace of drowsiness. A faint sound of a ringing church bell blends with my solitude. It’s St. Edmund Church on Oak Park Avenue. The bell calls the faithful to Midnight Mass. They will renew their dedication to peace, hope, and goodwill. I’ll join them in thought and spirit, as I yield to the sweetness of sleep.
FRED NATKEVI One View
Cami can tell you the names of all of Mary’s grandchildren — in order, from youngest to oldest. As a Belmont Village caregiver, she’s passionate about enriching the lives of our residents through personal, skillful and thoughtful attention to every detail. From daily care to choosing the perfect birthday gift for the littlest grandchild, we’re there for our residents whenever — and however — they need us.
To us, they’re family.
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V I E W P O I N T S
O B I T U A R I E S
Tower at 835 Lake is indefensible at any price An open letter to our village board members and President Abu-Taleb: I’m writing as a concerned longtime Oak Park resident and taxpayer to voice my fervent opposition to any high-rise development at 835 Lake St. I applaud you, President Abu-Taleb, for publicly declaring your opposition to a 28-story tower. But your statement leaves me with two serious concerns. First, Unity Temple — by which I assume you mean both the congregation and the Unity Temple Restoration Foundation (UTRF) — is not the only or even the most important stakeholder here. As you well know, these organizations are mere caretakers for a world heritage treasure that belongs to everyone, everywhere. And since UT’s site and the surrounding area, notably the recently restored Scoville Park and award-winning Main Library, constitute the very heart of Oak Park, the entire community and the many visitors who enjoy it are equally important stakeholders in the redevelopment of 835 Lake. While the subject of stakeholders is on the table, please remember that each of you was elected to protect and promote the interests of our entire community, not subsets or individual entities within our community. In this case, every resident is surely concerned. Every resident has a right to expect you to consider any proposal for redevelopment in Oak Park, especially this one, in light of its impact on all of Oak Park and all its residents. Second, if 28 stories is too tall, what about 20 or 14? The cynic in me smells a 28-story straw dog. What are your criteria for too tall? Do they consider the height of typical structures within
the Hemingway District? What about the 45-foot zoning limit for this lot? Do zoning limits exist only to be drastically revised whenever a developer insists they cannot build economically with anything less than several times that limit? At the Nov. 26 meeting, in answer to the question “Why 28 stories?” Michael Glazier’s response was “because that’s the only way we can get to 256 units” — a number presented as a deal-breaker. Oak Parkers deserve confidence that the board’s decisions on proposals and on height variances are based on firm criteria that reflect the community’s interests and values, not the interest of securing commitments from developers. No one can argue that a drive-up bank facility and parking lot are the best uses for 835 Lake, and as a resident of District House, I am no enemy of contemporary architecture, streetscape in-fill, or change. I take my cue from Mr. Rogers’ “Won’t you be my neighbor?” A neighbor doesn’t disrupt and bully. A neighbor gets along with others and contributes positively to the existing community. We welcome neighbors like that. I look to members of the village board, elected to serve the community, to ensure that the redevelopment of 835 Lake and any other site in our village fits into the unique architectural fabric that defines this place, rather than undermining it. Please demonstrate that, after all, you have our community’s interests foremost, and not those of developers. Don’t let the Hemingway District become another Downtown Oak Park. Wendy Greenhouse is an Oak Park resident.
WENDY
GREENHOUSE One View
Senior housing says, ‘Thank you all’ We’d like to thank all the generous people of Oak Park and River Forest for their kindness this Christmas season. Advent is a very special time for giving and that’s exactly what so many of you did — families, schools, and businesses. We especially want to acknowledge the Paoli family and their dedicated friends. You guys really know how to give with compassion
and attention. God bless you. As my dear departed father (Charles P. Kevil), once said, “When your time comes you will be sitting next to our Virgin Mother.” Again, God bless and a merry, warm Christmas.
Rosemary Serio
Oak, Mills, and Ryan Farrelly apartments
Herman Ziebell, 64 Resident of Forest Park
Herman Daniel Ziebell, 64, a lifelong resident of Forest Park has died. He was the son of the late Edwin and the late Mary; the grandson and namesake of the late Lt. Herman W. Ziebell, of the Forest Park Police Department, and the late BerHERMAN ZIEBELL nice Ziebell; the brother of Mary Catherine (Philip) Schuster and Gerald Ziebell; uncle of Sarah Grace Schuster, “Godchild” Kristina and Nicholas Ziebell; cousin of Kathy Bailey Kelly and many others; and a friend to many. A memorial visitation will be held on Saturday, Dec. 29 at 9:30 a.m. until time of Mass, 10:30 a.m., at St. Luke Church, 7600 W. Lake St., in River Forest followed by private interment. Additional information is available at 708-383-3191 or www.drechslerbrownwilliams.com.
Marilyn McAulay, 90 Member of First United Church of Oak Park
Marilyn Elizabeth McAulay, 90, of Elmwood Park, died on Dec. 18, 2018. Born on April 3, 1928, she was co-founder of the Elmwood Park Civic Chorus. Active in the Mills Belles and Beaux and MacDowell Artists Association. Marilyn was a member of First United Church of Oak Park. She was the wife of the late Kenneth J. McAulay; mother of James K. McAulay; sister of the late JeaMARILYN MCAULAY nette (Roy) McSay; aunt of Dr. Robert (Ganka) McSay and Lawrence (Susan Gregerson) McSay; and the great-aunt of Alex, Laura, and Kelin. Visitation will be held on Saturday, Dec. 29, from 10 a.m. until time of service, 1 p.m., at Drechsler, Brown & Williams Funeral Home, 203 S. Marion St., Oak Park. Interment will take place at Forest Home Cemetery.
Morna M. (Timothy) Flanagan, Megan J. (Derek) Davis, and Michael J. Flynn, a dear family friend; the grandmother of Clayton J. Davis, Margaret C. Flanagan and Isabella J. Davis; the sister-in-law of Kathleen M. (the late Gary) Pedersen; the cousin of Marilyn (the late Bob) McNulty, John (Mary) Farris, and the late Suzanne Farris; and the aunt and great-aunt of many. A memorial visitation will be held on Saturday, Dec. 29 at Ascension Church, 808 S. East Ave., Oak Park from 9:45 a.m. until time of funeral Mass, 10:30 a.m. Interment is private. In lieu of flowers, memorials to the American Cancer Society (www.cancer.org) are appreciated. For further info 708-FUNERAL.
Donald Storto, 86
Avid golfer and gifted storyteller Donald L. Storto Sr., 86, of Forest Park, formerly of River Forest, died on Dec. 19, 2018. Born on March 5, 1932, he attended St. Mel High School and was a starter on the varsity football Squad as a freshman, where he won the Monogram Club Award for Best Defensive Player in 1949. He graduated from Lake Forest College, earning a degree in Business. A member of the Phi Pi Epsilon Fraternity, and a defensive end for the football team. Directly after graduation, Donald joined the family business (Tri-State Automotive Warehouse Inc.) as a salesman and later as vice president. He developed a love for golf while caddying for his father as a young boy. He was a member and avid golfer at Riverside Golf Club, with two holes-in-one to his credit. Known for his caring nature and sense of humor, he was a gifted storyteller and cultivated long-lasting friendships. He taught us love, respect, and loyalty to the family and the family name. Donald Storto was the husband of the late Claire A. (nee Sansone), the father of Donald Jr., Ronald, Dee Dee, and the late Cara Mae; the brother of Josephine Mago, Louis Storto and the late Marie Griffin and Joseph Storto; and uncle to many nieces and nephews. Family and friends are asked to meet Thursday, Dec. 27, 10:15 a.m. at the office of Queen of Heaven Cemetery, 1400 S. Wolf Road in Hillside, where a chapel service will be held at 10:30 a.m. Memorials to Misericordia are appreciated.
W E D N E S D A Y
Colleen Winter, 76
JOURNAL
Colleen Winter, nee Solon, 76, of Sugar Grove, formerly of Oak Park, died on Nov. 20, 2018. She will forever be remembered for her kind heart and beautiful smile. Colleen was the wife of the late Michael E. Winter; the mother of Michael J. Winter,
Please contact Ken Trainor by e-mail: ktrainor@wjinc.com, or fax: 708/467-9066 before Monday at noon. Please include a photo if possible.
Former Oak Parker
of Oak Park and River Forest
To run an obituary
Wednesday Journal, December 26, 2018
OAKPARK.COM | RIVERFOREST.COM
RELIGION GUIDE Presbyterian
Check First.
First Congregational Church of Maywood
400 N. Fifth Avenue (1 block north of Lake St.) Come join us for Sunday Morning Worship at 11 am Pastor Elliot Wimbush will be preaching the message. Refreshments and fellowship follow the service. 708-344-6150 firstchurchofmaywood.org When you're looking for a place to worship the Lord, Check First.
You’re Invited to A Church for All Nations A Church Without Walls SERVICE LOCATION Forest Park Plaza 7600 W. Roosevelt Road Forest Park, IL 60130
William S. Winston Pastor
ELCA, Lutheran
Good Shepherd
Worshiping at 820 Ontario, Oak Park IL (First Baptist Church) 9:00 a.m.—Education Hour 10:30 a.m.—Worship
All are welcome. goodshepherdlc.org 708-848-4741
Lutheran—ELCA
United Lutheran Church
409 Greenfield Street (at Ridgeland Avenue) Oak Park Holy Communion with nursery care and children’s chapel each Sunday at 9:30 a.m.
Sunday Service 7AM, 9AM & 11:15AM Believer’s Walk of Faith Broadcast Schedule (Times in Central Standard Time) Television DAYSTAR (M-F)
3:30-4:00pm
Nationwide
WJYS-TV (M-F)
6:30-7:00am
Chicago, IL.
WCIU-TV (Sun.)
10:30-11:00am
Chicago, IL.
Word Network
10:30-11:00am
Nationwide
(M-F)
www.livingwd.org www.billwinston.org
West Suburban Temple Har Zion
1040 N. Harlem Avenue River Forest Meet our Rabbi, Adir Glick Pray, learn, and celebrate with our caring, progressive, egalitarian community. Interfaith families are welcome. Accredited Early Childhood Program Religious School for K thru 12 Daily Morning Minyan Weekly Shabbat Services Friday 6:30pm & Saturday 10:00am Affiliated with United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism 708.366.9000 www.wsthz.org
PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH
744 Fair Oaks Ave. Oak Park 386-4920 Sunday Schedule Christian Education for All Ages 9:00am Worship Service 10:00am
Child care available 9-11am
fairoakspres.org OAK PARK MEETING OF FRIENDS (Quakers) Meeting For Worship Sundays at 10:00 a.m. at Oak Park Art League 720 Chicago Ave., Oak Park Please call 708-445-8201 www.oakparkfriends.org
Roman Catholic
Ascension Catholic Church
www.unitedlutheranchurch.org
708/386-1576
(708) 697-5000 LIVE Webcast - 11:15AM Service
Fair Oaks
Lutheran-Independent
Grace Lutheran Church
7300 W. Division, River Forest David R. Lyle, Senior Pastor David W. Wegner, Assoc. Pastor Lauren Dow Wegner, Assoc. Pastor Sunday Worship, 8:30 & 11:00 a.m. Sunday School/Adult Ed. 9:45 a.m. Childcare Available
Grace Lutheran School
Preschool - 8th Grade Bill Koehne, Principal 366-6900, graceriverforest.org Lutheran-Missouri Synod
St. John Evangelical Lutheran Church
305 Circle Ave, Forest Park Sunday Worship, 9:30am Christian Education Hour 8:30am Wednesday Worship 7:00pm Wheelchair Access to Sanctuary Leonard Payton, Pastor Roney Riley, Assistant Pastor 708-366-3226 www.stjohnforestpark.org Methodist
First United Methodist Church of Oak Park
324 N. Oak Park Avenue 708-383-4983 www.firstUMCoakpark.org Sunday School for all Ages, 9am Sunday Worship, 10am Children’s Chapel during Worship Rev. Katherine Thomas Paisley, Pastor Professionally Staffed Nursery Fellowship Time after Worship
808 S. East Ave. 708/848-2703 www.ascensionoakpark.com Worship: Saturday Mass 5:00 pm Sunday Masses 7:30, 9:00, 11 am, 5:00 pm Sacrament of Reconciliation 4 pm Saturday Taize Prayer 7:30 pm First Fridays Feb.– Dec. & Jan. 1
Rev. James Hurlbert, Pastor
Roman Catholic
St. Edmund Catholic Church
188 South Oak Park Ave. Saturday Mass: 5:30 p.m. Sunday Masses: 9:00 & 11:00 a.m., 5:30 p.m. Weekday Mass: 8:30 a.m. M–F Holy Day Masses: As Announced Reconciliation: Saturday 4:15 p.m. Parish Office: 708-848-4417 Religious Ed Phone: 708-848-7220
St. Giles Family Mass Community
We welcome all to attend Sunday Mass at 10 a.m. on the St. Giles Parish campus on the second floor of the school gym, the southernmost building in the school complex at 1034 North Linden Avenue. Established in 1970, we are a laybased community within St. Giles Roman Catholic Parish. Our Mass is family-friendly. We encourage liturgically active toddlers. Children from 3 to 13 and young adults play meaningful parts in each Sunday liturgy. Together with the parish, we offer Catechesis of the Good Shepherd, a Montessori-based religious education program for children in grades K-8. For more information, go to http://www.stgilesparish.org/ family-mass-community or call Bob Wielgos at 708-288-2196.
Third Unitarian Church 10AM Sunday Forum 11AM Service Rev. Colleen Vahey thirdunitarianchurch.org (773) 626-9385 301 N. Mayfield, Chicago Committed to justice, not to a creed
Roman Catholic
St. Bernardine Catholic Church Harrison & Elgin, Forest Park
CELEBRATING OUR 107TH YEAR! Sat. Masses: 8:30am & 5:00pm SUNDAY MASSES: 8:00am & 10:30am 10:30 Mass-Daycare for all ages CCD Sun. 9am-10:15am Reconciliation: Sat. 9am & 4pm Weekday Masses: Monday–Thursday 6:30am Church Office: 708-366-0839 CCD: 708-366-3553 www.stbern.com Pastor: Fr. Stanislaw Kuca
Upcoming Religious Holidays
Dec 26 Zarathosht Diso (Death of Prophet Zarathushtra) Zoroastrian St Stephen’s Day Christian 28 Holy Innocents Christian 30 Holy Family Catholic Christian
To place a listing in the Religion Guide, call Mary Ellen: 708/613-3342
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Forest Park Review, December 26, 2018
OAKPARK.COM | RIVERFOREST.COM New local ads this week
HOURS: 9:00 A.M.– 5:00 P.M. MON–FRI
WEDNESDAY
Classified
YOUR WEEKLY AD
REACHES SIX SUBURBAN COMMUNITIES: OAK PARK, RIVER FOREST, FOREST PARK, BROOKFIELD, RIVERSIDE, NORTH RIVERSIDE, AND PARTS OF CHICAGO
Deadline is Tuesday at 9:30 a.m.
Place your ad online anytime at: www.OakPark.com/Classified/
Please Check Your Ad: The publisher will not be responsible for more than one incorrect insertion. Wednesday Journal Classified must be notified before the second insertion. The newspaper reserves the right to edit or reject any advertisement.
BY PHONE: (708) 613-3333 | BY FAX: (708) 467-9066 | BY E-MAIL: CLASSIFIEDS@OAKPARK.COM | CLASSIFIEDS@RIVERFOREST.COM HELP WANTED ACCOUNT CLERK The Village of Oak Park is seeking qualified candidates for the position of Account Clerk II. This position which performs a variety of accounting clerical duties involving financial record keeping and/or transactions including accounts payable and receivable and to provide a variety of accounting support to the Development Customer Services Department. Applicants are encouraged to visit the Village of Oak Park’s website http://www.oak-park. us/. Interested and qualified applicants must complete a Village of Oak Park application no later than December 31, 2018. FULL TIME MAINTENANCE PERSON Downtown Chicago company looking for full time maintenance person. Good pay & benefits. Hours: Monday thru Friday, 7:30am to 4pm. If interested please call Tony at 312-942-2686 Manager, Risk Strategy sought by Avant LLC in Chicago, IL to develop & implnt credit & clltn rules using anlyticl methods. Apply at jobpostingtoday.com, ref 16105 PART TIME DRIVER Local company looking for part time parts driver/receiving clerk.Must be drug free & have valid IL DL. Must be able to lift 75lbs. $12/hr email resume to hr@sievertelectric.com
PUMA’S BARBERSHOP Barber Wanted 773-889-9811 VISION THERAPIST (PT) Vision Therapist (PT) Late afternoon/evening hours(weekdays). Possible Saturdays. Work one on one with patients(typically children) to improve vision skills. Training provided. River Forest Optometrist-Fax resumes to 708-771-0513. No Calls
ROOMS FORÂ RENT AUSTIN CLEAN ROOM With fridge, micro. Nr Oak Park, Super Walmart, Food 4 Less, bus, & Metra. $116/wk and up. 773-637-5957 Large Sunny Room with fridge & microwave. Near Green line, bus, Oak Park, 24 hour desk, parking lot. $101.00 week & up. New Mgmt. 773-378-8888
GENEALOGY SERVICES
SUBURBAN RENTALS 2BR OAK PARK GARDEN APT 2BR Garden Apt near Longfellow School. Freshly decorated w/ hdwd floor, tiled bath and beautiful backyard. Rent includes heat, private parking, and washer/dryer on premises. $1300 plus 1 mo. security deposit. Background Check required. call 847-561-2677
OFFICE SPACE FORÂ RENT THERAPY OFFICES FORÂ RENT Therapy offices for rent in north Oak Park. Rehabbed building. Nicely furnished. Flexible leasing. Free parking; Free wifi; Secure building; Friendly colleagues providing referrals. Shared Waiting room; optional Conference room. Call or email with questions. Shown on Sundays. Lee 708.383.0729 drlmadden@ameritech.net
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
Abby Schmelling Genealogy Support Services Family History Research Helping You Get Started Getting Through Brick Walls
708-417-1241 abbyschmelling@gmail.com
PETS While you’re away, your pets are okay . . . at home
cat calls
Oak Park’s Original Pet Care Service – Since 1986
Daily dog exercising Complete pet care in your home )PVTF TJUUJOH t 1MBOU DBSF Bonded References
524-1030
TO BE GIVENÂ AWAY CHINA CABINET FREE to a good home! 2 piece glass and mirror china cabinet. Light in color. Call 708-383-7518.
SUBURBAN RENTALS
M&M
property management, inc.
708-386-7355 • www.mmpropmgt.com 649 Madison Street, Oak Park Contact us for a complete list of available rentals throughout Oak Park and Forest Park.
Apartment listings updated daily at:
CLEANING FOR YOU Experienced, reliable, honest, 100% satisfaction guaranteed! Call or leave a message: 708-870-6740 or 708-262-9756
Pam’s A+ Cleaning Service
Fall is here! Time to make a change? Take a moment to preview our detailed cleaning. For a free esimate please call 708-937-9110
ELECTRICAL
A&A ELECTRIC
Let an American Veteran do your work
We make service calls! We fix any electrical problem and do small jobs Home Re-wiring • New Plugs & Switches Added New circuit breaker boxes • Code violations corrected Service upgrades,100-200 amp • Garage & A/C lines installed Fast Emergency Service | Residential • Commercial • Industrial Free Home Evaluations | Lic. • Bonded • Ins. • Low Rates • Free Est.
Our 71st Year
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Fast Delivery MIXED HARDWOODS • $130 F.C. CBH & MIX • $145 F.C. 100% OAK • $165 F.C. CHERRY OR HICKORY • $185 F.C. 100% BIRCH • $220 F.C.
CURT'S HANDYMAN SERVICE
Seasoned 2 years Stacking Available
847-888-9999 Order online:
www. suregreen landscape.com
Credit Cards Accepted
FLOORS
Resolving to get rid of clutter in 2019? To Be Given Away and Lost & Found ads run free in Wednesday Classified. To place your ad, call 708-613-3342
708.749.0011
WINDOWS
Sr. Discounts • 30 Yrs. Exp Servicing Oak Park • All surrounding suburbs • Chicago area
HEATING/ AIR CONDITIONING
UNLIMITED
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Fast & Neat Painting/Taping/Plaster Repair Low Cost
708-409-0988 • 708-738-3848
GARAGE/GARAGE DOOR
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^
Ceiling Fans Installed
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New hardwood flooring installation & pergo. Sanding, re-finishing, staining. Low prices, insured. Call: 773-671-4996 www.klisflooring.com
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.
ELECTRICAL
CLEANING
Garage Doors &
Electric Door Openers
Sales & Service Free Estimates
www.forestdoor.com
Drywall Repair • Painting Fans Installed • Carpentry Trim Gutter Cleaning • Window Repair
BROKEN SASH CORDS? CALL THE WINDOW MAN!
FAST RELIABLE SERVICE
Furnaces, Boilers and Space Heaters Refrigerators Ranges • Ovens Washer • Dryers Rodding Sewers
(708) 452-8929
Licensed
Lic/Bonded 25 yrs experience
FREE SERVICE CALL WITH REPAIR AND SENIOR/VETERAN DISCOUNT.
Insured
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Serving Oak Park, River Forest, Forest Park & Riverside Since 1974
708-488-9411
708-785-2619 or 773-585-5000
Home-improvement pros! Reach new customers. Advertise here. Call 708/613-3342
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PLUMBING
PLUMBING
FREE ESTIMATES Excellent References No Job Too Small
!LL 4YPES OF (OME 2EPAIRS 2EPAIRS )NSTALLATIONS 0ROFESSIONAL 1UALITY 7ORK !T 2EASONABLE 0RICES 0ROMPT 3ERVICE 3MALL *OBS A 3PECIALTY
Mike’s Home Repair Drywall H Painting H Tile Plumbing H Electric H Floors Windows H Doors H Siding Ask Us What We Don’t Do
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Plumbing & Sewer Service FREE ESTIMATES Service in 1 Hour in Most Cases
All Work Guaranteed Lowest Prices Guaranteed FREE Video Inspection with Sewer Rodding /P +PC 5PP -BSHF t /P +PC 5PP 4NBMM Family Owned & Operated
t
email us: classifieds@OakPark.com | classifieds@RiverForest.com
Lic. #0967
)
Wednesday Journal, December 26, 2018
OAKPARK.COM | RIVERFOREST.COM
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 / 7 /365 OakPark.com | RiverForest.com
REAL ESTATE FOR SALE
REAL ESTATE FOR SALE
REAL ESTATE FOR SALE
IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF COOK COUNTY, ILLINOIS COUNTY DEPARTMENT– CHANCERY DIVISION STERLING NATIONAL BANKAS SUCCESSOR BY MERGER TO ASTORIA BANK Plaintiff, -v.CARL M. WAHLSTROM A/K/A CARL M. WAHLSTROM JR., SUSAN I. WAHLSTROM, PNC BANK, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION, TARGET NATIONAL BANK, CAPITAL ONE BANK (USA), N.A. Defendants 17 CH 009087 522 NORTH HUMPHREY AVENUE OAK PARK, IL 60302 NOTICE OF SALE PUBLIC NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale entered in the above cause on July 2, 2018, an agent for The Judicial Sales Corporation, will at 10:30 AM on January 25, 2019, at The Judicial Sales Corporation, One South Wacker Drive, CHICAGO, IL, 60606, sell at public auction to the highest bidder, as set forth below, the following described real estate: Commonly known as 522 NORTH HUMPHREY AVENUE, OAK PARK, IL 60302 Property Index No. 16-05-326-0080000. The real estate is improved with a residence. Sale terms: 25% down of the highest bid by certified funds at the close of the sale payable to The Judicial Sales Corporation. No third party checks will be accepted. The balance in certified funds/or wire transfer, is due within twenty-four (24) hours. The subject property is subject to general real estate taxes, special assessments, or special taxes levied against said real estate and is offered for sale without any representation as to quality or quantity of title and without recourse to Plaintiff and in “AS IS” condition. The sale is further subject to confirmation by the court. Upon payment in full of the amount bid, the purchaser will receive a Certificate of Sale that will entitle the purchaser to a deed to the real estate after confirmation of the sale. The property will NOT be open for inspection and plaintiff makes no
representation as to the condition of the property. Prospective bidders are admonished to check the court file to verify all information. If this property is a condominium unit, the purchaser of the unit at the foreclosure sale, other than a mortgagee, shall pay the assessments and the legal fees required by The Condominium Property Act, 765 ILCS 605/9(g)(1) and (g)(4). If this property is a condominium unit which is part of a common interest community, the purchaser of the unit at the foreclosure sale other than a mortgagee shall pay the assessments required by The Condominium Property Act, 765 ILCS 605/ 18.5(g-1). IF YOU ARE THE MORTGAGOR (HOMEOWNER), YOU HAVE THE RIGHT TO REMAIN IN POSSESSION FOR 30 DAYS AFTER ENTRY OF AN ORDER OF POSSESSION, IN ACCORDANCE WITH SECTION 15-1701(C) OF THE ILLINOIS MORTGAGE FORECLOSURE LAW. You will need a photo identification issued by a government agency (driver’s license, passport, etc.) in order to gain entry into our building and the foreclosure sale room in Cook County and the same identification for sales held at other county venues where The Judicial Sales Corporation conducts foreclosure sales. For information, examine the court file or contact Plaintiff’s attorney: CODILIS & ASSOCIATES, P.C., 15W030 NORTH FRONTAGE ROAD, SUITE 100, BURR RIDGE, IL 60527, (630) 794-9876 Please refer to file number 14-17-07164. THE JUDICIAL SALES CORPORATION One South Wacker Drive, 24th Floor, Chicago, IL 60606-4650 (312) 236-SALE You can also visit The Judicial Sales Corporation at www.tjsc.com for a 7 day status report of pending sales. CODILIS & ASSOCIATES, P.C. 15W030 NORTH FRONTAGE ROAD, SUITE 100 BURR RIDGE, IL 60527 (630) 794-5300 E-Mail: pleadings@il.cslegal.com Attorney File No. 14-17-07164 Attorney ARDC No. 00468002 Attorney Code. 21762 Case Number: 17 CH 009087 TJSC#: 38-9287 NOTE: Pursuant to the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, you are
advised that Plaintiff’s attorney is deemed to be a debt collector attempting to collect a debt and any information obtained will be used for that purpose. I3107527
PUBLIC NOTICES LEGAL NOTICE LAW OFFICE OF LINDA EPSTEIN Attorney for Petitioner 722 W. Diversey Parkway Ste. 101B Chicago, IL 60614 STATE OF ILLINOIS, COUNTY OF COOK, ssCircuit Court of Cook County, County Department Domestic Relations Division In re the Marriage of KORNELIA ERDELYI, Petitioner, and LEO RIVERA, Respondent. No. 2018 D 010236 The requisite affidavit for Publication having been filed, notice is hereby given to you, Leo Rivera, Respondent, that a Petition has been filed in the Circuit Court of Cook County, Illinois, by the Petitioner, Kornelia Erdelyi, for Dissolution of Marriage and for other relief: and that said suit is now pending. Now, therefore, unless you, the said Respondent file your response to said Petition or otherwise make your appearance therein, in the Office of the Clerk of the Circuit Court of Cook County, Illinois, Room 802, Richard J. Daley Center, in the City of Chicago, Illinois, on or before January 9, 2018, default may be entered against you at any time after that day, and a Judgment for Dissolution of Marriage Entered in accordance with the prayer of said Petition. DOROTHY BROWN, Clerk. Published in Wednesday Journal 12/12, 12/19, 12/26/2018
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: Y18000107 on December 12, 2018. Under the Assumed Business Name of JANET VARN TRAVEL CONSULTANT with the business located at: 1123 PLEASANT STREET, UNIT 4, OAK PARK, IL 60302. The true and real full name(s) and residence address of the owner(s)/partner(s) is: JANET VARN 1123 PLEASANT STREET, UNIT 4, OAK PARK, IL 60302 Published in Wednesday Journal 12/19, 12/26/2018, 1/2/2019
EQUAL HOUSING OPPORTUNITY All real estate advertising in this newspaper is subject to the Fair Housing Act., which makes it illegal to advertise any preference, limitation or discrimination based on age, race, color, religion, sex, handicap, familial status or national origin, or intention to make any such preferences, limitations or discrimination. The Illinois Human Rights Act prohibits discrimination in the sale, rental or advertising of real estate based on factors in addition to those protected under federal law. This newspaper will not knowingly accept any advertising for real estate which is in violation of the law. All persons are hereby informedthat all dwellings advertised are available on an equal opportunity basis. Restrictions or prohibitions of pets do not apply to service animals. To complain of discrimination, call HUD toll free at: 1-800-669-9777. WEDNESDAY JOURNAL Forest Park Review, Landmark
Season’s Greetings
Starting a business in the new year? Call the Experts! Publish your Assumed-Name Legal Notice here— call 708/613-3342
MORTGAGE DIRECTORY
MORTGAGE RATE DIRECTORY LENDER COMMUNITY BANK OF OAK PARK - RIVER FOREST
(708) 660-7006 1001 Lake St., Oak Park IL 60301 www.cboprf.com
AMOUNT
RATE/YR
80% 80% 80% 80% 80% 80%
4.875% / 30 yr. fixed 4.750% / 20 yr. fixed 4.375% / 15 yr. fixed 4.375% / 5 yr. ARM 4.500% / 7 yr. ARM 4.750% / 10 yr. ARM
POINTS/ APP. FEE 0%/$550 0%/$550 0%/$550 0%/$550 0%/$550 0%/$550
A.P.R.
4.949% 4.851% 4.502% 5.075% 5.020% 5.051%
· Approved IHDA Mortgage Program Lender · Financing available up to 97% LTV
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Wednesday Journal, December 26, 2018
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CHRISTMAS Gift Baskets from page 44 “The tournament also has eight ranked teams in its field. Our goal is always to get to play in the last day and at night of any tournament we enter. That will mean winning two games at Proviso which is always a challenge.” This year’s field of teams includes Whitney Young, Bogan, Uplift, Hillcrest, Morton and the Friars. Throw in St. Joseph and the Proviso schools (East and West), and it’s a stacked bracket. Led by the terrific trio of guards DJ Steward, Tyler Beard and Myles Baker, Young is the favorite, but the competition will be ready. Bogan is led by 5-foot-9 guards Jordan Booker and Jeremiah Washington and 6-8 senior Rashaun Agee, while Uplift guard Markese Jacobs (DePaul commit) is a great playmaker and scorer. Led by breakout sophomore Bryce Hopkins, Fenwick’s (6-3, 2-2 Chicago Catholic League) signature win came against OPRF at the Chicago Elite Classic. Hopkins, who finished with 30 points and 13 rebounds against the Huskies, scored the game-winning basket in overtime as the Fenwick prevailed 66-65. The 6-5 forward is averaging 24 points, seven rebounds and two steals per game. Fellow Friars Solomon Oraegbu (15 points, 6 rebounds per game), Lucas Kolovitz, and Trey Pettigrew have also led the team. The bench is solid with senior Charlie Westerman, juniors Sean Walsh and Ryan Planek, plus freshman Kaden Cobb. “Offensively we are playing and sharing the ball well,” Peck said. “Defense and rebounding are areas that we need to improve. We are young so we are getting better every day.” Competing at Proviso West 35 times, Fenwick has a 45-57 record at the tourney with a pair of runner-up showings in 2015 and 1977. Regardless of how the Friars fare this year, they always benefit from facing long, athletic teams with standout players in a pressure environment.
Fenwick girls This group has created probably the best story on the hardwood this winter. Fresh off a season in which the team graduated
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2018
HOLIDAY TOURNEYS PREVIEW
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Fenwick guard Lily Riordan provides the Friars leadership, toughness and speed. a pair of 1,000-point career scorers in Kate Moore and McKenzie Blaze, the Friars have somewhat surprisingly not skipped a beat at 12-3. After dropping two of three games to open the season, Fenwick reeled off 11 wins in a row, highlighted by a 33-point victory against Trinity. The Friars are winning with balance, depth and chemistry. Senior Maggie Van Ermen and freshman Audrey Hinrichs exemplify the team’s talent that spreads out over all four classes. Lily Reardon, Lauren Hall, Audrey Hetzer, Sheila Hogan, Elise Heneghan, Gianni Ortiz, Gianna Amundsen, MK Kapsch and Katie Schneider are all playing well for Illinois Basketball Coaches Association Hall-of-Famer Dave Power. The girls will also play in a high-profile tourney at the Komaromy Classic DundeeCrown. The prohibitive favorite in the 16-team field is two-time defending tourney champ Maine West. The host Chargers, New Trier, Prospect and Fenwick, among others, could be in the mix as notable contenders.
OPRF boys The Huskies make their annual trek to the Pontiac Holiday Tournament. Per usual, the field is filled with state title contenders like Simeon, Curie, Bloom, Benet Academy and Bloomington. OPRF seniors Dashon Enoch, Charlie
Hoehne (10.5 points, 6 rebounds per game), Chase Robinson (13.5 ppg, 5 rpg, 4.5 apg) and Anthony Roberts (13.5, 6.5 rpg) are all capable of making the all-tournament team at Pontiac. Robinson and Roberts also shoot close to 40 percent from beyond the threepoint arc, while Hoehne is an 82 percent free throw shooter. The key for the Huskies the rest of the season is blending their considerable individual talent into a smooth-running unit. At 6-3, the Huskies have notched victories against Morton, St. Rita and Orr. On the flip side, area rivals Fenwick, Lyons Township and Riverside-Brookfield each knocked off OPRF. The LTHS 70-57 win over OPRF snapped a record 24-game winning streak in conference for the Huskies. Of course like all teams at this time of the season, the Huskies are a work in progress. Head coach Matt Maloney is keenly aware of that reality. “We have employed the journey as a marathon and not a sprint,” he said. “We have shown our potential in big wins against St. Rita and Orr; however, we have not been consistent to start the season. We have to maintain a sense of urgency for four quarters and respect every team we play as we clearly have a target on our back. I still strongly believe our best basketball is ahead of us, but we need to make necessary changes now in order to maximize our
potential for the stretch run.” Pontiac has often served as a springboard for the Huskies to have strong performances in the second half of seasons. “Pontiac is by far the best tournament in the state and possibly the Midwest,” Maloney said. “We play a strong West Aurora team. If we are able to get by them, we would play Bloom, who is ranked number one in several publications.
OPRF girls While the OPRF boys team is known for its “Huskie Havoc” style of play, the girls arguably play at an even more manic rate. They have no choice with an undersized roster. Do-it-all senior guard Ahsha Spencer and a healthy Darse Sanchez have led the Huskies this season. “We’re tiny so we’ve got to pressure the ball quite a bit,” OPRF coach J.P. Coughlin said. “This group plays together and for each other. That goes a long way. Having two dynamic senior guards like Ahsha and Darse goes a long way too.” Spencer averages 18 points, 11 rebounds and six assists, while Sanchez is another statsheet stuffer with 14 points, five rebounds, four assists and four steals per game. Other top contributors include Karly Cantrell, Faith Smith, Tatym Coe, Lilah Continued on page 43
S P O R T S
OAKPARK.COM | RIVERFOREST.COM Continued from page 42 Gery and Katie Sisler. The Huskies have had four players score over 20 points in a game at least twice or more. Defensively, Coughlin cites Sisler as the team’s best stopper. “I’m very happy with the team’s play so far,” Coughlin said. “We are learning to play with each other on the fly, but the girls have bought into each other and the system we are trying to put in place. Our various presses have been very effective and we have had some outstanding individual offensive performances.” OPRF (8-5) has been playing well lately, with four wins in five games. More importantly, the victories have come against area rival Trinity and conference opponents Hinsdale Central, Proviso West and Lyons Township. With a 3-1 record in the West Suburban Conference Silver Division, the Huskies are well-positioned for a secondhalf run at the league title. During the Christmas break, OPRF turns its attention to the Montini Christmas Tournament. The event features 16 teams and 32 games in four days. The host Broncos edged Geneva 52-50 in the 2017 final, while OPRF finished 1-3. The Huskies’ first game is against Benet on Dec. 26. Tip-off is 3 p.m. OPRF is 11th seed. “Montini is the best tournament around,” Coughlin said. “We play against preseason No. 1 Benet, which should be a great challenge for us. We are excited about the opportunity to play in front of packed crowds and a throng of college coaches.” Along with Spencer and Sanchez, Nazareth’s Annie Stritzel, Lyons Township’s Lily Courier, Montini’s Tatiana Thomas and Zoe
Zacker and Mother McAuley’s Grace Hynes are players to watch. Batavia’s Geddy Rerko, Ava Sergio and Erin Golden comprise perhaps the best trio at the tourney. The only more impressive component of the tourney other than several standout players is the actual teams. Fremd is No. 3 in the Class 4A rankings, while other teams such as Nazareth Academy, Benet Academy, Mother McAuley, Marian Catholic, Geneva and Hersey are all viable threats to go deep in the bracket.
Wednesday Journal, December 26, 2018
Early Childhood Resources
Trinity Under new head coach Kim Coleman, Trinity is learning on the fly with a relatively young team. The loss of Dayjah Chmielewski to injury (ACL) was a costly blow for the Blazers. However, 5-11 sophomore Makiyah Williams has stepped up as one of the best players in the 2021 Class. Junior captains Zyerra Stafford and Claire Hanley stabilize the backcourt and Lauren Saleh provides a presence in the paint. Savannah Childress adds scoring punch. Trinity has placed an emphasis on rebounding in order to improve. Despite a lopsided loss against OPRF, the team won the battle on the boards which pleased Coleman. “We learned a few games back that we had to rebound,” Coleman said after the OPRF game. “Moving forward, that’s the number one responsibility. Everyone needs to rebound. You can’t win games if you don’t. I was proud with how we handled ourselves on the boards (against OPRF), and I’m sure we’ll continue to do that as the season goes along. The Blazers will join Fenwick at DundeeCrown tourney.
Early Childhood Center and Camp
West Suburban Temple Har Zion 1040 N. Harlem Ave. River Forest, IL 60305 708.366.9000 www.wsthz.org 2-5 years old 7:30 am–6:00 pm M-Th 7:30 am–3:30 pm on Fri.
Pilgrim Community Nursery School Celebrating 50 years. 460 W. Lake St. Oak Park IL, 60302 Phone: 708-848-5869 www.pilgrimschool.net Accepting students ages 2–5 years old.
Preschool and kindergarten programs for three, four, and five-year-olds Call for an appointment. 7300 Division St. River Forest 708-366-6900 graceriverforest.org
First United Church Nursery School More than Just a School 848 W. Lake St. 708-848-4910 Find us on Facebook and at www.firstunited school.com Call for a tour and info about summer camp.
Helping parents be successful since 1980 New Moms (Oak Park) contact@newmoms.org Find us on Facebook.
Early Childhood Education at
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1139 Randolph Street Oak Park, IL 60302 708.383.8211 Call to Schedule a Tour! oakparkdn@att.net www.oprfdaynursery.org
• Open 7 am–6 pm • Serving children 2½–6 years old • NAEYC Accredited
Raise your profile in the community. Check the early childhood directory on oakpark.com for updated listings, maps, & current open house information. Call Mary Ellen Nelligan for details: 708-613-3342
Collaboration for Early Childhood Strong Start, Bright Future Photo by Carol Dunning
Trinity sophomore Makiyah Williams is one of the top players in the Class of 2021.
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SPORTS Holiday tourneys top wish list
2018
HOLIDAY TOURNEYS PREVIEW
OPRF, Fenwick and Trinity hoops hit the hardwood over Christmas break By MARTY FARMER
S
Sports Editor
ince the Chicago Bulls own a 7-25 record (worst record in the NBA) and an apparently bleak future, it’s been slim pickings lately for basketball fans in the Chicago area. Sure the DePaul University men’s team has won 8 of 10 games after years of doldrums; however, last year’s NCAA tourney darling Loyola University Chicago and the University of Illinois, collectively, are 11-12. Thankfully the local high school hoops scene never disappoints, especially during the holidays. Here’s a preview of where the Fenwick, OPRF and Trinity teams will be playing during Christmas break.
Fenwick boys The Friars return to the 58th Annual Proviso West Holiday Basketball Tournament, which will be held Dec. 26-29 in Hillside. “This tournament has the most tradition of any holiday tournament in Illinois and we are honored to be part of it,” coach Staunton Peck said. “We are matched up against an undefeated Dunbar team in the first round (Dec. 26 at 4 p.m.). See CHRISTMAS on page 42
Photo by@scotchindian
Fenwick senior guard Solomon Oraegbu (#1) looks for a teammate while being defended by OPRF senior guard Dashon Enoch.
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