Pumpkin Jamboree Parade coming
The only thing more interesting than the units in the Midway Chamber of Commerce’s annual Pumpkin Jamboree Parade are the children in Halloween costumes, lining the curbs. This year’s festive event is schedule to start at 10 a.m. Saturday, Oct. 29 at Archer and Nordica, heading east to Merrimac and then south to Kennedy High School. Immediately after the parade, the Halloween fun will continue in Kennedy’s parking lot, where there will be a costume contest, a fall craft fair and a limited amount of complimentary snacks. – File photo
Local News
A century plus 2
Spread the love West Lawn resident Grace Williams walked a path of rose petals as she celebrated her 102nd birthday earlier this month at Senior Suites at Midway Village, 6800 S. Keating. Born in 1920 in Huntsville, Ala., she still reads the Bible daily and is active with Landmark Baptist Church. She…
Thousands of summer jobs coming for youths
Spread the loveLightfoot unveils One Summer Chicago 2022 From staff reports Mayor Lightfoot and several City departments and agencies this week announced a variety of summer youth programming, including the 2022 One Summer Chicago (OSC) application. OSC 2022 will run from July 5 to Aug. 12 and marks the return of in-person job and life-skills…
Chuy says yes to marijuana act
Spread the loveCalls war on drugs ‘racist and anti-immigrant’ From staff reports U.S. Rep. Jesús “Chuy” García (D-4th) recently touted his vote for the Marijuana Opportunity Reinvestment and Expungement (MORE) Act. “Since the first anti-marijuana laws and throughout the war on drugs, marijuana policy has been constructed according to racist and anti-immigrant biases,” García said. “Even…
County to vaccinate dogs, cats
Spread the loveFrom staff reports The Cook County Department of Animal and Rabies Control has announced its 2022 Partners in Prevention clinic locations. ARC is partnering with local animal organizations to offer low-cost or free one-year rabies vaccines and microchips. Clinics are available to Cook County dogs and cats. Owners must bring proof of residency (driver’s license or…
Dart applauds action on ‘ghost guns’
Spread the loveFrom staff reports Cook County Sheriff Thomas J. Dart recently applauded the Illinois General Assembly for passing legislation to combat the proliferation of un-serialized “ghost guns” that are impossible to trace and make it harder to solve violent crimes. “Untraceable ghost guns pose a significant threat to our efforts to combat violence.” Dart…
A bright community with a dark problem
Spread the loveBy Peggy Zabicki Your correspondent in West Lawn 3633 W. 60th Place • (773) 504-9327 West Lawn is a great neighborhood. Now that everything is finally open once again, we can find a little something for everyone. There’s dining, shopping, convenient transportation, places to take your kids, places of worship and a great local library.…
Preserve the park, preserve the planet
Spread the loveBy Kathy Headley Your correspondent in Chicago Lawn and Marquette Manor 6610 S. Francisco • (773) 776-7778 Last week we talked a bit about Earth Day plans in Chicago Lawn and Marquette Manor. Today let’s add another. This time it’s an opportunity to beautify the centerpiece of our neighborhoods: Marquette Park. For more…
Polish Easter traditions are cherished
Spread the loveBy Mary Stanek Your correspondent in Archer Heights and West Elsdon 3808 W. 57th Place • (773) 284-7394 “If you drive a car, I’ll tax the street, if you try to sit, I’ll tax your seat. Cause I’m the taxman, yeah, I’m the taxman.” – the Beatles. Yes, the taxman is knocking on…
Mayor unveils gas giveaway
Spread the loveTax dollars to aid some city residents By Tim Hadac Days after multi-millionaire businessman Willie Wilson attracted nationwide attention by giving away a million dollars of his own money to pay for gasoline at stations across the Chicago area, Mayor Lori Lightfoot announced Chicago Moves, a financial assistance program related to transportation expenses.…
79th St. slaying leads to fed gun bust
Spread the loveCharge reputed gang members with buying weapons, ammo from soldiers By Tim Hadac A federal investigation launched in the wake of a shooting in a Wrightwood storefront a year ago has led to the indictment of nine reputed gang members allegedly tied to three U.S. Army soldiers accused of illegally selling firearms and…
Neighbors
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…
Elections board urged to dismiss complaint that Bailey illegally coordinated in 2022 campaign
By HANNAH MEISEL Capitol News Illinois hmeisel@capitolnewsillinois.com A hearing officer is recommending the Illinois State Board of Elections dismiss a complaint that alleged conservative radio host and political operative Dan Proft illegally coordinated with former Republican state Sen. Darren Bailey during his 2022 campaign for governor. Proft, a one-time gubernatorial candidate himself, is behind an…
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…
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…
As Illinois session ends, lawmakers’ attempt to reinstate wetland protections fails
by JENNIFER BAMBERG Investigate Midwest jennifer.bamberg@investigatemidwest.org In 2006, 19-year-old Jessica Whinston inherited 20 acres of land that her grandparents once farmed in Quincy, Illinois. The land had sat dormant since the 1980s and was overgrown, but Whinston and her husband Bradley worked to turn it into a productive farm. The couple were eventually able to…
Elections board dismisses illegal campaign coordination complaint, declines to clarify law
By HANNAH MEISEL Capitol News Illinois hmeisel@capitolnewsillinois.com CHICAGO – State elections officials on Tuesday indicated they were unlikely to step in to clarify what constitutes illegal campaign coordination after voting to dismiss a complaint alleging such coordination in the 2022 campaign for governor. At their monthly meeting in Chicago, Illinois State Board of Elections members…