Peggy Zabicki
Wearing the green year round
By Peggy Zabicki
Your correspondent in West Lawn
3633 W. 60th Place • (773) 504-9327
Greetings to all! I hope everyone had a nice St. Patrick’s Day. I always wear green on St. Patrick’s Day. One year I forgot to wear green; but since my eyes are green, I technically am always wearing green. Wishing you a pot o’ gold and all the joy your heart can hold.
Daley College is partnering with Southern Illinois University Carbondale in order to support students and increase access to higher learning. Every Daley graduate who earns an associate’s degree will get an automatic admission to SIU’s online programs in accounting, business administration, criminology, psychology, healthcare management and radiologic sciences. For more information on this transfer partnership, go online to news.ccc.edu.
Envision Community Services is presenting an event called Market Day on Saturday, April 2 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. There will be more than 20 vendors selling sweets, gift bags, arts and crafts, beauty items and much more.
Market Day takes place at the St. Mary Star of the Sea Parish Center, 4626 W. 63rd St. Vendor space is still available. Call (773) 581-8000 for more information.
Lawn Lanes, 6750 S. Pulaski, has a special bowling deal coming up for parents and their children. Go there in person and register your kids. You will receive two free games of bowling every day, all summer long for your children. Call (773) 582-2525 for more information.
The West Lawn Branch Library, 4020 W. 63rd St., will be showing the movie The Dark Knight on Monday, March 21 at 5 p.m. Call the library at (312) 747-7381 to reserve your spot. This is a free event.
There’s a new restaurant coming to West Lawn called BIGG’S at the bridge. The address is 6659 S. Cicero. BIGG’S will feature breakfast, Maxwell Street Polish, pork chops, breaded steak, gyro, wings, burgers, miniature doughnuts and ice cream. Their hours will be 7 a.m. to midnight.
BIGG’S is currently accepting applications for employment. Call Mark at (773) 317-7969. April 2 is their expected opening day, just in time for spring and summer. I can’t wait to check it out. They had me at mini donuts.
Were you watching TV on March 10? Perhaps you saw the Channel 2 evening news report about the problem in our neighborhood with stolen catalytic converters. The thieves recently targeted the area around 59th and Kedvale to 69th and Karlov. There were approximately 10 converters stolen between 2:30 and 4 a.m. The thieves were seen driving a new Jeep Cherokee with no license plates. If your catalytic converter was stolen, please file a police report if you haven’t already.
Condolences to the family and friends of Alicia Tamas, who passed away on March 9. Ms. Tamas taught at Lee Elementary School for 16 years. May she rest in peace.
Thank you for your calls and texts. I appreciate every one of them.
Local News
Celebrating a century plus one
Spread the love West Lawn resident Frank McDermott (right) crosses himself as he receives a blessing from Deacon Angelo Cordoba Jr. during Mass last Sunday at St. Mary Star of the Sea Church, t celebrate his 101st birthday. Given the age difference between the two men, Cordoba joked that perhaps he should be the one receiving…
Rush acts to extend civil rights ‘cold case’ term
Spread the loveFrom staff reports A bill that would extend the term of the Civil Rights Cold Case Records Review Board by three years was recently introduced into the U.S. House of Representatives by U.S. Rep. Bobby L. Rush (D-1st). Established by the Civil Rights Cold Case Records Collection Act, which Rush introduced the House companion for and…
Area college report: Ooms brothers lower the boom, propel Saint Xavier to national tourney
Spread the loveBy Jeff Vorva Staff writer Good things happen when the Ooms brothers go boom. In this case, it means another trip to the NAIA National Tournament The siblings from Minooka High School combined for 18 kills on Saturday to lead the Saint Xavier men’s volleyball team to a 25-23, 25-18, 27-25 victory over…
Area Sports Roundup: Lions grow together while winning Argo Invitational
Spread the loveBy Jeff Vorva Staff writer A few last-minute changes in the schedule forced Lyons to head into the Argo Invitational with just two matches under its belt this season. While some of the other teams in the tournament had played more matches, the Lions adapted and won the 12-team tournament with a 5-0…
Biz leaders launch effort to serve seniors
Spread the loveFocus is on safety By Tim Hadac Several leading businesses serving the Southwest Side have forged a partnership to serve the community’s elderly residents. All Exterior Contractors, Mike Riordan State Farm Agency and First Rate Realty—all members of the Garfield Ridge Chamber of Commerce—are teaming up to offer safety inspections of seniors’ homes, all at no charge.…
Serving more than ice cream
Spread the loveBetty’s is a labor of love By Kelly White Boys and girls thrilled to see the seasonal reopening of Betty’s Ice Cream, 5840 S. Kedzie, are most likely unaware that behind their favorite ice cream cone, sundae or other frozen treat is more than a half century of love. It was February 1967…
Easter is a joyful season
Spread the loveBy Laura Ortega Your correspondent in Greater Ashburn 4214 W. 82nd Place • (773) 627-6679 Ladies and gentlemen, Easter is around the corner. What is Easter? Easter is a holiday that celebrates the Resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. After his crucifixion, death, and burial, three days later, he arose from the grave.…
Grocery store manager is a West Lawn original
Spread the loveBy Peggy Zabicki Your correspondent in West Lawn 3633 W. 60th Place • (773) 504-9327 Have you been grocery shopping at the Save A Lot at 4439 W. 63rd St. recently? If so, you may have noticed some improvements in the food displays. New manager Juan Valenzuela has goals of improving merchandise quality and…
We’ll write to you from Timbuktu
Spread the loveBy Mary Stanek Your correspondent in Archer Heights and West Elsdon 3808 W. 57th Place • (773) 284-7394 I want to wish everyone a goodbye. My family and I are moving to Timbuktu. Welcome to 57th Place, baby Santiago. Our neighbor, Claudia, delivered her bundle of joy, and he is as cute as…
Neighbors
Illinois child tax credit: who gets it, how much is it?
By ANDREW ADAMS Capitol News Illinois aadams@capitolnewsillinois.com In the final hours of their spring legislative session, Illinois lawmakers approved a tax credit of up to about $300 for families with young children. The credit is available to Illinoisans with children under age 12 who qualify for the federal Earned Income Tax Credit, or EITC. Although…
Illinois’ ban on ‘bump stocks’ remains in place despite U.S. Supreme Court decision
By PETER HANCOCK Capitol News Illinois phancock@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – An Illinois law banning the sale and use of “bump stocks” and other devices that increase the firing power of semiautomatic weapons remains in place, at least for now, despite a U.S. Supreme Court decision Friday striking down a federal ban on such items. “Illinois law…
Another Choate Mental Health Center employee indicted for abuse of resident
By BETH HUNDSDORFER Capitol News Illinois bhundsdorfer@capitolnewsillinois.com Another caregiver at Choate Mental Health and Developmental Center in Anna is facing charges for abusing a patient. A grand jury indicted Joseph A. Clark, 24, of Grand Chain, on a felony charge of aggravated battery and a misdemeanor charge of battery. Clark pinned a Choate resident to…
State highway shootings decline as critics sue over ‘dragnet surveillance’
By JERRY NOWICKI Capitol News Illinois jnowicki@capitolnewsillinois.com Illinois State Police say an automated license plate reader program has helped the agency identify witnesses or suspects in 82 percent of highway shooting cases this year, including all eight that resulted in a death. But as the state looks to further expand its network of more than…
Illinois’ ban on ‘bump stocks’ remains in place despite U.S. Supreme Court decision
By PETER HANCOCK Capitol News Illinois phancock@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – An Illinois law banning the sale and use of “bump stocks” and other devices that increase the firing power of semiautomatic weapons remains in place, at least for now, despite a U.S. Supreme Court decision Friday striking down a federal ban on such items. “Illinois law…
Just weeks before Republican National Convention, Illinois GOP chair announces resignation
By HANNAH MEISEL Capitol News Illinois hmeisel@capitolnewsillinois.com Halfway through the 2024 election cycle and just a few weeks away from the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, Illinois GOP Chair Don Tracy on Wednesday announced his resignation as head of the state Republican Party. Tracy, who’d held the job since February 2021, explained his resignation in…
Pritzker signs bill creating new Department of Early Childhood
By PETER HANCOCK Capitol News Illinois phancock@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – Gov. JB Pritzker signed legislation Tuesday creating a new cabinet-level state agency dedicated to early childhood education and development. The new Department of Early Childhood, which will become operational in July 2026, will take over programs currently housed across three state agencies, including funding for preschool…
Speaker Welch rebuffs lawsuit from would-be staff union as ‘forum shopping’
By HANNAH MEISEL Capitol News Illinois hmeisel@capitolnewsillinois.com Illinois House Speaker Emanuel “Chris” Welch is urging a Cook County judge to dismiss a lawsuit members of his staff filed against him last month seeking to force recognition of their union. In a new filing Monday, attorneys for Welch argued the Illinois Legislative Staff Association has no…
Advocates say SCOTUS ruling paves way for law ensuring abusers have guns confiscated
By HANNAH MEISEL Capitol News Illinois hmeisel@capitolnewsillinois.com After the U.S. Supreme Court last week upheld a federal law that bars those under domestic violence-related restraining orders from owning guns, victim advocates say Illinois lawmakers should pass a measure to ensure firearms are actually confiscated in those situations. The legislation has been stalled for more than…
Communities, commission push Pritzker admin for more prison plan details
By DILPREET RAJU Capitol News Illinois news@capitolnewsillinois.com Jimmy Soto spent more than 42 years wrongfully imprisoned in Illinois Department of Corrections facilities. In 2020, he was moved to the “F-House” at Stateville Correctional Center in Joliet, a condemned unit, not because he was being punished, but because it was where the facility was housing individuals…