Local News

Cool Kids see Santa
. Several dozen special-needs boys and girls were let in early at the Midway Chamber of Commerce’s annual Snack With Santa, held earlier this month at Mayfield Banquets. The special time was the brainchild of the Midway Cool Kids Club, a social club founded earlier this year by Geno Randazzo of All Exterior Contractors. The…

Boys Basketball | Marist unbeaten heading into clash with Marian Catholic
By Xavier Sanchez Correspondent Four quarters were not enough time to determine a winner between Marist and St. Laurence in a Chicago Elite Classic matchup. The RedHawks prevailed, doubling up the Vikings in overtime to take home a 49-44 win and improve to 6-0. The game was played December 1 at Credit Union 1 Arena…

Boys Basketball | Stagg off to a strong start, dr
By Xavier Sanchez Correspondent Stagg has started the season strong, opening by winning the title at their own John McBride over Thanksgiving weekend. The Chargers won the championship game, 49-45, over Plainfield South. Senior guard Connor Williams was named MVP of the tournament, and teammates David Ortiz and Domas Narcevicius were named to the All-Tournament…

Neighbors lighting the way to Christmas season
. By Mary Stanek Your correspondent in Archer Heights and West Elsdon 3808 W. 57th Place • (773) 517-7796 . It is beginning to look a lot like Christmas, everywhere me and Oliver go! Thank you, neighbors. The blocks around my home are simply beautiful with the displays. To get yourselves more in the Christmas…

Hanukkah, a holiday of happiness and peace
. By Peggy Zabicki Your correspondent in West Lawn 3633 W. 60th Place • (773) 504-9327 . Happy Hanukkah to all who celebrate the rededication of the Jewish Temple in Jerusalem in 165 B.C. and the miracle of the temple lights lasting eight days with just one day’s supply of oil. Hanukkah is a happy…

College Report | SXU football falls in quarterfinals
By Jeff Vorva Staff Writer For three quarters, Saint Xavier went nearly toe-to-toe with the No. 1-ranked football team in the nation. Justin Pringle had returned a kickoff 70 yards for a touchdown to bring the Cougars to within three points of Northwestern (Iowa), the top-seeded team in the NAIA playoffs and the defending national…

Area Sports Roundup | Richards grad Sean Lewis ready to air it out in San Diego
By Jeff Vorva Staff Writer The rollercoaster ride continues for Sean Lewis. The Richards alum went from being the head coach at Kent State to the offensive coordinator at Colorado, one of the most talked about college football programs in the country this season because of Buffaloes head coach Deion Sanders. He was then demoted…

Girls Hoops | Sandburg and Oak Lawn to host holiday tournaments
By Jeff Vorva Staff Writer The field has been finalized for the third Sandburg Holiday Classic, which is the only girls basketball holiday tournament in the area to feature 16 teams. The host Eagles will be joined in the event, to be held Dec. 27-29, by area teams Oak Lawn, Richards, Argo and Riverside-Brookfield. Also…

Offer cash reward in Chrysler Village slaying
. By Tim Hadac . Someone somewhere knows who shot and killed Misael Sanchez. To help bring that person forward, the Cook County Crime Stoppers group is offering a cash reward of up to $15,000 for information leading to the killer’s arrest. Sanchez, 23, was shot in the 5200 block of West 64th Place (close…

Midnight Terror serves up a different kind of spirits at Christmas Fear
By Bob Bong The Halloween fans at Midnight Terror in Oak Lawn have decided to extend the haunted house season into the holidays with their eighth annual Christmas Fear weekend in December. Savage Santas, eerie elves, and sinister snowmen will be running amok and showing off their own kind of Christmas spirit at the haunted…

Dogs had their day at alderman’s office
. By Mary Stanek Your correspondent in Archer Heights and West Elsdon 3808 W. 57th Place • (773) 517-7796 . Who let the dogs out? Who, who, who let the dogs out? Twenty-third Ward Ald. Silvana Tabares let the dogs in, at her office on 63rd Street. Our Oliver was one of the first to…

Yule decorations light the way to Christmas
. By Peggy Zabicki Your correspondent in West Lawn 3633 W. 60th Place • (773) 504-9327 . Today (Dec. 1) is National Eat a Red Apple Day. Apples are a superfood. Eating them will reduce your chance of developing diabetes, heart disease and cancer. They are good for digestion and even improve brain health. Organic apples are better than…

Catholic schools dilemma
. After loss in Springfield, advocates search for a Plan B . By Tim Hadac After a clear defeat in Springfield earlier this month, supporters of the state’s Invest in Kids scholarship program—which includes a number of Catholic school parents on the Southwest Side—are searching for a Plan B. “What we do at this point…

Mount Carmel beats Downers Grove North for 15th state title
By Jeff Vorva Staff Writer Mount Carmel’s plan was to open and close the season in Normal. They wanted to open the 2023 campaign by beating then-nationally ranked East St. Louis in a neutral-site game at Hancock Stadium at Illinois State University, then return 13 weeks later and a win a state championship. Mission accomplished…

Cold Turkey Trotting | Young runners heat up Orland Park race held in freezing temps
By Jeff Vorva Staff Writer The temperature may have been freezing, but the winners were not complaining. The 35th Orland Park Turkey Trot, held per tradition on Thanksgiving, started in 30-degree weather. And the young champs embraced it. Jack Krusinski, 16, of Palos Heights, won the 2.5 mile event with a time of 14:01.04. The…
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Illinois News

State health plan declares racism a public health crisis
By DILPREET RAJU Capitol News Illinois draju@capitolnewsillinois.com A new state health report pinpoints racism as a public health crisis while also noting Illinois needs to improve in the areas of maternal and infant health, mental health and substance use disorders. The broad goals are laid out in a draft of the State Health Improvement Plan,…

For at least 6 months, state failed to act on Carlinville funeral director that mishandled remains
By BETH HUNDSDORFER Capitol News Illinois bhundsdorfer@capitolnewsillinois.com State regulators allowed a Carlinville funeral director to operate for months despite a complaint filed by a local coroner who found a decomposing body in his funeral home and alleged the care of the remains was “unacceptable and criminal in nature.” While trying to assist a local family…

Dolly Parton Imagination Library officially launches statewide in Illinois
By PETER HANCOCK Capitol News Illinois phancock@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – Illinois families with infants and toddlers now have access to free children’s books that can be sent directly to their home, regardless of their income. Gov. JB Pritzker on Tuesday announced the official launch of the state’s partnership with Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library, a program founded…

What to know about Illinois’ assault weapons ban
By ANDREW ADAMS Capitol News Illinois aadams@capitolnewsillinois.com Gun owners face a Jan. 1 deadline to register their assault weapons with the state under Illinois’ assault weapons law. But between lawsuits and ongoing policymaking, the exact guns, accessories and ammunition covered under the Protect Illinois Communities Act remain unclear to many gun rights advocates, who point…

Capitol Cast: Filing Day for 2024 primary brings frigid temps and election themes to Springfield
Capitol News Illinois Broadcast Director Jennifer Fuller talks with Editor-in-Chief Jerry Nowicki about the 2023 petition filing deadline for Illinois’ 2024 primary election. Capitol News Illinois · Capitol Cast: Filing Day for 2024 primary brings frigid temps and election themes to Springfield

Supreme Court rules teen bicyclist is covered by father’s auto insurance policy
By PETER HANCOCK Capitol News Illinois phancock@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – The Illinois Supreme Court ruled Thursday that automobile insurance policies must cover people against uninsured motorists and hit-and-run accidents, even if the person covered by the policy is not in a vehicle at the time of the accident. The case involved a 14-year-old Chicago boy, Cristopher…

State high court finds medical personnel exemption to biometric information privacy law
By HANNAH MEISEL Capitol News Illinois hmeisel@capitolnewsillinois.com The Illinois Supreme Court on Thursday ruled the state’s strongest-in-the-nation biometric information privacy law does have an exemption: health care workers who use fingerprints or similar scans to access things like medication, materials or patient health information. In a unanimous opinion, the justices ruled against a pair of…