Garfield Ridge resident Stephanie Smock. --Supplied photo
A young mom who really needs our help
By Joan Hadac
Your correspondent in Clearing and Garfield Ridge
(708) 496-0265 • joan.hadac@gmail.com
Again and again over the 29 years I’ve lived in Garfield Ridge, I’ve seen examples of the neighborhood pulling together to help its own, especially in time of great need.
As a news reporter and columnist in these pages and online, it has been my privilege to help spread the word about and muster support for folks in need—and then later report the good news of neighbors helping neighbors.
This week, I’m writing about Stephanie Smock, a young mom in Garfield Ridge who could really use a hand from all of us.
Stephanie grew up in the neighborhood. She attended Byrne School and then went on to Kennedy High School, where she graduated in 2006.
In recent years, she has worked at Triano’s Pizza, where she has been said to be an exemplary employee.
She has long been known as someone who is “very outgoing, fun-loving and sweet,” according to her classmate and friend, Mary Spalla.
As Mary tells it, Stephanie was working at Triano’s to support her 18-month-old son, Cody; her mom, Rita (who has diabetes and severe rheumatoid arthritis); and her older brother, Kenny, who has severe diabetes with heart complications and can’t work.
Stephanie was the sole breadwinner for her family, especially since her father passed away in 2018.
Quite a load for a young mom to carry, right?
But things went from bad to worse in January, when Stephanie was involved in a car crash, which “caused Stephanie to suffer an embolism/stroke, resulting in complete loss of feeling on the right side of her body,” Mary reports. “As a result, she needs constant care and help with every aspect of daily living. Stephanie can no longer work and it is unknown if she will ever regain the use of her right side.”
Over the past few months, Stephanie has made some progress. Her memory has improved, and she is walking a bit.
But her road to recovery is still long and uncertain.
She needs help.
If you will, please visit gofund.me/b6ef4d3a. When I wrote this, the effort to help Stephanie was nearly $2,000 short of its $5,000 goal. If we all pull together, we can close that gap fairly quickly.
So let’s do it. And thanks to Mary Spalla for organizing the fundraiser and to Megan Heurich for alerting me to the situation in the first place.
More news of note
- Belated happy birthday wishes to Father Al Adamich, said to be the Archrdiocese’s oldest priest. Father Al recently turned 100 years old. He was an associate pastor at St. Symphorosa in 1970-71. There’s a nice article about him posted at chicagocatholic.com. My thanks to my colleague, Kathy Headley (the Chicago Lawn/Marquette Manor correspondent for the Greater Southwest News-Herald), for alerting me to Father Al’s celebration.
- Cub Scout Pack 3475 and the St. Daniel the Prophet Holy Name Society are preparing a tasty treat for you at their pancake breakfast set for 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. Sunday, June 5 in the St. Daniel School Hall, 5337 S. Natoma. Adults eat for $7; kids 12 and younger for $6. This Sunday, grab your family or a group of friends, eat a delicious breakfast and support these two wonderful organizations.
- There is a lot of excitement coming to St. Daniel the Prophet Parish in mid-June when their Summerfest returns Thursday, June 16 through Sunday, June 19 on parish grounds. So mark your calendar for these dates and prepare to have a great time. This is a wonderful way to welcome in summer. I’ll give you more details about the event next week.
- Congratulations to all members of the class of 2022. Whether you’re graduating grade school, high school, trade school or college, you deserve a tip of the cap for working hard and getting the job done. Cheers to you!
- Summer begins on Tuesday, June 21, according to the calendar. Of course, this is Chicago, so you never know. I know my highlight of the season will come in early August when the grandkids come in for a week to enjoy the place where their mother grew up. I hope you have some special plans as well this summer. Take care and have a great week.
Local News
Football roundup: Christian Flutman helps Chicago Christian advance
Christian Flutman rarely comes off the field for Chicago Christian and he wouldn’t have it any other way. The senior starts at quarterback and defensive back and also is the holder for kicks — duties that kept him plenty busy on Nov. 2 when the Knights rolled by visiting Illini West 53-16 in a Class…
IHSA football playoff scoreboard
With records and seedings in parentheses Note: Classes 8A and 7A are seeded 1-32. All other classes are seeded as two 1-16 brackets. First round Class 8A Glenbard East 49, Curie 0 Stevenson 31, Sandburg 14 Marist 42, Glenbrook South 14 Lyons 38, Joliet West 0 Class 7A Fenwick 12, Brother Rice 7 Quincy 49,…
Area sports roundup: Red Stars fall to eighth seed, will face Orlando
The Chicago Red Stars are heading into the NWSL playoffs with a three-game losing streak and will face the regular season’s best team. The eighth-seeded Red Stars visit top-seeded Orlando at 7 p.m. Friday in the quarterfinals. The Red Stars had a 1-1 draw at Orland on March 29 and lost 1-0 in Bridgeview on…
Postseason roundup: McAuley wins 44th straight volleyball regional
The streak is up to 44. Mother McAuley won another regional championship in girls volleyball on Oct. 31 and that brings its total up to 44 straight regional or district championships after a 25-12, 25-14 victory over Stagg to win the Class 4A Stagg Regional in Palos Hills. Excluding the 2020 COVID-19 season, the Mighty…
Jack Elliott, Mount Carmel cruise in Class 7A opener
Before a Class 7A opener in Machesney Park on Nov. 1, Mount Carmel and Harlem had never played each other. The Huskies are likely fine with not seeing the Caravan again anytime soon, as the Caravan rolled to a 56-14 victory. Playing only in the first half, Mount Carmel quarterback Jack Elliott completed 11 of…
Two-way star Myles Mitchell helps Richards advance
With Richards trailing late against visiting Dunlap in a Class 6A opener on Nov. 1, Bulldogs coach Tony Sheehan knew what time it was. Myles Mitchell time. “I’m not going to lie,” Sheehan said. “I went up to him in the fourth quarter and told him that we were going to put it all on…
Shepard’s bounceback season ends in Class 6A opener
A rough start led to a season-ending loss for Shepard on Nov. 1. In the first three minutes of a Class 6A playoff opener against downstate Washington, the Astros fell behind 14-0 en route to a 52-21 road loss. Shepard went three-and-out on its first possession. Washington blocked the ensuing punt and scored on a…
Unbeaten Quincy ends Argo’s season in Class 7A opener
Argo coach Phillip Rossberg knew it wouldn’t be easy going on the road to play unbeaten Quincy in a Class 7A opener on Nov. 2. Quincy quarterback Bradyn Little passed for six touchdowns as the 10-0 Blue Devils defeated the Argonauts 49-7. “They’re as advertised,” Rossberg said. “Their quarterback passed 10,000 yards for his career,…
Marist pulls away in second half to win Class 8A playoff opener
Missing the IHSA playoffs last year for only the second time in 14 seasons was a bitter pill for Marist. “We had a letdown last year by not making the playoffs,” RedHawks linebacker Kevin Tomkins said. “We knew that we needed to pick it up this season. “When we worked out in the offseason, we…
Neighbors
Jury deadlocks, mistrial declared in case of ex-AT&T boss accused of bribing Madigan
By HANNAH MEISEL Capitol News Illinois hmeisel@capitolnewsillinois.com CHICAGO – A federal judge on Thursday declared a mistrial after a jury deadlocked in their deliberations over whether former AT&T Illinois President Paul La Schiazza bribed longtime Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan via a no-work contract for the speaker’s political ally. After nearly 15 hours of deliberation…
High court: Smell of burnt cannabis is not cause for warrantless vehicle search
By HANNAH MEISEL Capitol News Illinois hmeisel@capitolnewsillinois.com Law enforcement officers in Illinois cannot rely on the smell of burnt cannabis alone to justify searching a vehicle without a warrant, the Illinois Supreme Court ruled on Thursday. The decision was unanimous, though Justice Lisa Holder White did not take part in it. Writing for the court,…
State wraps up case in challenge to assault weapons ban
By PETER HANCOCK Capitol News Illinois phancock@capitolnewsillinois.com EAST ST. LOUIS – A federal judge invoked images from the 1917 race riots in East St. Louis, Illinois, on Thursday at the end of a trial in a case challenging the constitutionality of the state’s ban on assault-style weapons and large-capacity magazines. Judge Steven McGlynn, who has…
Gun expert says assault weapons ban ‘describes the most popular firearms I’m involved with’
By PETER HANCOCK Capitol News Illinois phancock@capitolnewsillinois.com EAST ST. LOUIS – A firearms expert testified Wednesday that the weapons restricted under Illinois’ assault weapons ban include many of the most common firearms that American consumers use for self-defense. Steven Randall Watt, a combat veteran and retired law enforcement officer who now owns a private firearms…
Case of former AT&T boss accused of bribing Madigan heads to jury
By HANNAH MEISEL Capitol News Illinois hmeisel@capitolnewsillinois.com CHICAGO – On Valentine’s Day in 2017, then-AT&T Illinois President Paul La Schiazza got some good news: After years of trying to push for legislation in Springfield that would save the company hundreds of millions of dollars annually, powerful Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan had agreed to a…
State Supreme Court hears arguments in Jussie Smollett’s effort to overturn conviction
By JERRY NOWICKI Capitol News Illinois jnowicki@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – The Illinois Supreme Court heard arguments Tuesday in actor Jussie Smollett’s appeal to overturn his conviction on disorderly conduct charges for falsifying a hate crime. Smollett, who was an actor on the TV show “Empire,” was improperly charged with the same crime twice, his legal team…
Testimony continues in 2nd Amendment challenge to Illinois’ assault weapons ban
By PETER HANCOCK Capitol News Illinois phancock@capitolnewsillinois.com EAST ST. LOUIS – An engineer who spent decades designing weapons for one of the world’s leading gun manufacturers testified Tuesday that the assault-style weapons now banned in Illinois are intended only for civilian use and cannot be easily converted into military-grade firearms. James Ronkainen, a former engineer…
Contractor’s unsecured databases exposed sensitive voter data in over a dozen Illinois counties
By ANDREW ADAMS Capitol News Illinois aadams@capitolnewsillinois.com Around 4.6 million records associated with Illinoisans in over a dozen counties – including voting records, registrations and death certificates – were temporarily available on the open internet, according to a security researcher who identified the vulnerability in July. The documents were available through an unsecured cloud storage…
Prosecutors rest case against former AT&T Illinois boss accused of bribing Madigan
By HANNAH MEISEL Capitol News Illinois hmeisel@capitolnewsillinois.com CHICAGO – After years of pushing in Springfield, AT&T Illinois’ executive team was thrilled when the Illinois General Assembly in 2017 passed legislation that would get the company out from under expensive obligations to maintain its aging copper landline wires in Illinois. “Game over. We win,” AT&T Illinois…
Trial begins in challenge to assault weapons ban
By PETER HANCOCK Capitol News Illinois phancock@capitolnewsillinois.com EAST ST. LOUIS – The owner of a gun store testified Monday that Illinois’ ban on the sale of assault-style weapons and large capacity magazines has had a significant impact on his business and prevented his customers from buying items they would normally use for self-defense, hunting, target…