Welcome, Angela and farewell, Esme

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By Kathy Headley

Your correspondent in Chicago Lawn and Marquette Manor

6610 S. Francisco • (773) 776-7778

Welcome to Angelica Godinez who takes over this Sunday, Sept. 4, as the branch manager of the Chicago Lawn Branch Library. Angela comes to us from the Scottsdale Branch. She also worked at the Gage Park Branch.

Best wishes to former Chicago Lawn Branch Manager Esmeralda Cossyleon as she moves to the Central Office to take over as a district chief. Chicago has 81 libraries divided into six districts. Esme will be the Chief at District 3, which is the Central West District.

Esme took Chicago Lawn through the pandemic; before that, the remodeling–and if you remember before that, the car crashing through the front window several years ago. Thanks to Esmeralda for her many years here. We will miss her.

Kathy Headley

Also thanks to Chicago Lawn Children’s Librarian Suzanna Garza for taking over as interim manager while the library searched for the new boss.

Last week we talked about the building on the southwest corner of 61^st Place and Kedzie, right across from the library. I took you through 6132 S. Kedzie as it is today (the Living Word Christian Center, a non-denominational church). Our editor, Tim Hadac, shed some light on the earlier days of that building:

“In its day Marquette Medical was a state-of-the-art neighborhood health center. Besides doctor’s offices, it had an X-ray room, a laboratory and its own pharmacy. One of its marquee providers was Dr. John Klabacha, an outstanding physician who saved lives (including mine) and helped hundreds of patients live healthier lives. It was quite a special place for so many.”

Longtime St. Rita High School Football Coach Todd Kuska has announced his retirement from football after this, his 25^th season. He does plan to continue teaching and will continue to support the football program at the school.

Coach Kuska had 200+ wins, three state championship appearances, six NFL players, more than 50 D1 commits and led the Mustangs to the Class 7A state championship in 2006.

Adrian Dominican Sisters Laura (Mary Norman) Pesick and Margaret (Julia Marie) Lane passed away recently. Sister Laura was in the 75^th year of her religious life. Some of you may remember Sister when she taught at St. Clare of Montefalco School in the 1950s. Sister Margaret was in her 74^th year of religious life and taught at St. Nicholas of Tolentine School, also in the 1950s.

For those of you who went to Visitation in the 1950s, Sinsinawa Dominican Sister Eldena (Marie Evan) Scholl passed away on Aug. 5 in Wisconsin.

This year marks the 95^th anniversary of the founding of Nativity BVM Parish. The celebration will take place on Sunday, Sept. 18, beginning with a Mass at 11 a.m. celebrated by Bishop Rimantas Norvila and followed by a celebration banquet in the parish hall. Tickets for the banquet are $65 for adults and $30 for children under 12. All are invited to join in the celebration.

The annual Siluva Masses and novenas will begin at Nativity on Thursday, Sept. 8, at 11 a.m. Mass. The novena runs from Sept 11 to the 18^th. For more information on either event, call the parish office at (773) 776-4600.

The Little Flower Grammar School Class of 1971 is celebrating their class at a reunion on Saturday, Sept 17 at 115 Bourbon Street, Merrionette Park. The reunion also includes members of the Little Flower High School class that would have graduated in 1975. Reserve your spot by sending a $30 check to Jim Dolan, 1323 Hawthorne Lane, Glenview, IL 60025.

Now let’s return to our trip back to the 1970s and 1980s. As had been suggested by Tom Z., our plan was to head over to Irv’s for the evening. So where was Irv’s? Bob M. was the first to remember that Irv’s was on the southwest corner of the Cicero Avenue bridge that took us over the Belt Railway; in other words, where Walmart sits today.

Bob’s best memories of Irv’s were the driving range and toboggan slides, where you came down the slide on a potato sack. He tells us he remembers Irv putting in trampolines for a while too.

Bill T. remembered going to Irv’s for the batting cages especially. If he had extra money, he’d head for the pinball machines in the arcade room. Fred M. remembers taking his girlfriend there to play miniature golf.

I remember riding down Cicero in those days in the late evenings and everything was dark over that way except for all the lights around Irv’s. If I remember correctly Irv’s would be open from early spring all the way to about Halloween or Thanksgiving.

Now to end our summer fun, let’s get some more ice cream. This time we are going further back to the late 1940s and into the 1950s. Now we must choose between the drug store with a soda fountain at 63^rd and St. Louis, which had grape soda at the fountain; or the candy store with a soda fountain just east of Kedzie on the south side of the street which served cantaloupe sundaes in the summer. Do you remember both of these? Where should we go?