The Clearing Night Force’s tree lighting event is an annual favorite with young and old, as this photo from 2019 illustrates. --File photo
Holiday cheer continues at Hale Park
By Joan Hadac
Your correspondent in Clearing and Garfield Ridge
(708) 496-0265 • joan.hadac@gmail.com
I hope your Christmas season is off to a warm and memorable start.
Thanks to the Garfield Ridge Neighborhood Watch, the Midway Chamber of Commerce and everyone responsible for making the annual Christmas tree lighting in Wentworth Park and the annual Snack With Santa a success last Saturday. Many, if not most, neighborhoods in the city don’t have anything quite like those two events.
If you missed the tree lighting last weekend, please know you are welcome to attend a tree lighting scheduled for 7 to 8:30 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 13 at Hale Park, 6258 W. 62nd St.
Sponsored by the Clearing Night Force, this event is not the big, outdoor extravaganza seen at Wentworth Park, but it has just as much Christmas cheer.
Everything occurs inside the fieldhouse, so you won’t be at the mercy of the elements.
The Clearing Night Force’s tree lighting event is an annual favorite with young and old, as this photo from 2019 illustrates. –File photo
You’ll enjoy hot cocoa and cookies as you are invited to sing along with carolers from the Hale Park Theatre Company.
Children will enjoy an ornament-making activity, as well as a visit with Santa Claus himself.
This is all at no charge, although I would imagine that the non-profit Clearing Night Force would turn away any kind of a donation to might want to make. For details, send an email to clearingnightforce812@gmail.com.
Mark your calendar
- If you missed the Midway Chamber of Commerce’s Snack With Santa, please know you are welcome to have breakfast with Santa at the Rhine VFW Post 2729, 5858 S. Archer, from 8:30 a.m. to noon Sunday, Dec. 11.
Enjoy pancakes, scrambled eggs, sausage, cake, cookies, juice and coffee.
Admission is $11 for adults, as well as children ages 9-17; $5 for children ages 3-8; and no charge for kids younger than 3.
Santa will be on hand, and all children will receive a modest gift. There will also be raffles. For details, call the post at (773) 284-9025.
- For Christians in general, Advent season has started. For Catholics in particular, the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary is Thursday, Dec. 8. That’s followed by the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe on Monday, Dec. 12. She originally was Patroness of Mexico but was declared Patroness of all the Americas by then-Pope John Paul II. May these special days, as well as the Advent season in general, be especially meaningful for all believers.
- A Christmas festival is set for 10:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 11 in the basement of St. Blase Church, 6101 S. 75th Ave., Summit. Enjoy food, refreshments, Christmas music, a piñata for children and more. Proceeds from the event benefit the CCD program of Blessed Martyrs of Chimbote Parish. Not sure what the admission fee is. For details, call the BMC office at (708) 458-0007. The parish includes the westernmost section of Garfield Ridge.
- Speaking of BMC, the parish’s Ladies of the Rosary are hosting a Christmas party from 6 to 10 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 14 at European Chalet, 5445 S. Harlem. Tickets are $35 each and include dinner and entertainment. There will be a cash bar. There will be a raffle of holiday baskets. Not sure if tickets are available, but call (708) 458-0501 for details.
- Santa Claus will climb aboard Jim Sircher’s vintage fire truck and ride through the streets of Garfield Ridge (west of Central) from 4 to 9 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 10, courtesy of the Garfield Ridge Neighborhood Watch. The Jolly Old Elf will do the same in Clearing (west of Central) from 3 to 8 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 11. So keep your eyes and ears open, everyone, and thank you, Garfield Ridge Neighborhood Watch!
- Children under age 7 are invited to a Christmas themed event scheduled for 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Monday, Dec. 12 at Valley Forge Park, 7001 W. 59th St. The session will include holiday crafts, games, cookies and hot cocoa, arm painting and a photo opportunity with Santa Claus. Fee is $10 per child. For details, call (773) 229-0812.
Local News
Offer history hike to senior citizens
Spread the loveBy Tim Hadac Senior citizens are invited to take a “walk and talk” hike at the Chicago Portage National Historic Site, near 48th and Harlem, on Thursday, July 7. A mini-bus will depart at 9 a.m. from Hope Church Midway, 6059 S. Archer, and return by about 1 p.m. The one-mile hike will…
Baseball Class 4A State Finals: Brother Rice takes third with romp over McHenry
Spread the loveBy Jeff Vorva Staff Writer Some view state third-place games as a waste of time. It’s usually the game nobody wants to be involved in after having their dreams of winning a state championship crushed by a loss in the semifinals. But the third-place game in the IIHSA Class 4A baseball state tournament…
Area Sports Roundup: Notre Dame’s Dylan Jacobs wins national championship in 10,000 meters
Spread the loveBy Jeff Vorva Staff Writer Add a national championship to Dylan Jacobs’ already impressive list of accomplishments in 2022. The Orland Park resident and Sandburg graduate broke a four-minute mile on Jan. 22 and set an American college indoor record in the 5,000-meter run with a time of 13:14.04 seconds on Feb. 12.…
Pro Soccer Report: Red Stars blank Orland to finish brutal stretch unscathed
Spread the loveBy Jeff Vorva Staff writer The Chicago Red Stars finished the busiest stretch of their season unbeaten. The five-games-in-16-days logjam ended with a 1-0 victory over Orlando on June 11 at SeatGeek Stadium in Bridgeview. Mallory Pugh drilled her fifth goal of the season in the 10th minute for the Stars (4-1-3), who…
Young Roadrunners win first baseball title to cap a huge sports season at Naz
Spread the loveBy Jeff Vorva Staff writer Nazareth’s athletic class of 2024 could go down as the best in school history. The Roadrunners’ girls volleyball team finished first in the state in the fall. Two sophomores were among the eight players who were on the court during the Class 3A state championship game. The girls…
He’s a baseball player at heart
Spread the loveBy Joan Hadac Your correspondent in Clearing and Garfield Ridge (708) 496-0265 • joan.hadac@gmail.com John Cruz-Barcenas is on his way to a career in mechanical engineering, but he’s a baseball player at heart. The photo his mom shared with me tells the tale. John recently graduated from the prestigious Milwaukee School of Engineering. But…
St. Dan’s carnival coming
Spread the love The simple childhood joys of a neighborhood carnival are just a week away at St. Daniel the Prophet Church, 54th and Natoma. The fun starts Thursday, June 16 and runs through Sunday, June 19. St. Dan’s Summerfest will feature carnival rides, games of skill and chance, food and beverages, raffles and live…
Knights of Columbus officers ready to serve
Spread the love Elected last month as officers of the Two Holy Martyrs Parish Knights of Columbus council are Darrin Bourette Deputy Grand Knight; Mike West, Treasurer; Jerry Hughes, Grand Knight; and Joe Donato, Financial Secretary. Founded on the principles of charity, unity and fraternity, the Knights of Columbus was established in 1882 by Father Michael…
Exhibit at Clearing Library honors war dead
Spread the love Former Gov. Pat Quinn talks with 23rd Ward Ald. Silvana Tabares at a recent public unveiling of Portrait of a Soldier, an exhibit that briefly visited the Clearing Branch Library, 6423 W. 63rd Place. The traveling exhibit features sketches of all Illinois soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines killed in the line of…
Pappas to host phone bank for black, Latino homeowners
Spread the loveCook County Treasurer Maria Pappas and ABC 7 Chicago will host another Black and Latino Houses Matter phone bank on June 15 to help homeowners find refunds, apply for property tax exemptions and avoid the Tax Sale. “Since I started Black and Latino Houses Matter we’ve returned nearly $200 million owed to these…
Neighbors
Pritzker to meet with Biden, Dem governors concerned about president’s campaign
By HANNAH MEISEL Capitol News Illinois hmeisel@capitolnewsillinois.com Gov. JB Pritzker traveled to the White House to meet with President Joe Biden and his fellow Democratic governors on Wednesday amid rising worry within the party about the president’s ability to continue running for a second term. Pritzker – whose name had been floated by the pundit…
State ends fiscal year with nearly $5B cash on hand
By JERRY NOWICKI Capitol News Illinois jnowicki@capitolnewsillinois.com Illinois entered a new fiscal year Monday with a bit of a financial cushion as the prior year’s revenues exceeded final projections by about $123 million. The state ended fiscal year 2024 with about $4.7 billion cash on hand, or about 9 percent of the allocated spending for…
Pritzker signs election bill to increase party power in primary elections
By ANDREW ADAMS Capitol News Illinois aadams@capitolnewsillinois.com Changes to primary election fundraising, the electoral college and the state’s voter registration database are now law after Gov. JB Pritzker signed a wide-ranging bill on Monday. The legislation, containing several unrelated election measures, passed near the end of the legislature’s spring session on a vote of 68-38 in…
U.S. Supreme Court won’t hear challenge to Illinois’ assault weapons ban, for now
By PETER HANCOCK Capitol News Illinois phancock@capitolnewsillinois.com The Illinois ban on assault weapons and large-capacity magazines will remain in place, at least for now. The U.S. Supreme Court announced Tuesday it will not take up any of the pending challenges to the law until the cases have been fully heard in lower courts. Illinois lawmakers…
ILLINOIS LAWMAKERS: Pritzker keeps economic development at forefront in exclusive interview
By JERRY NOWICKI Capitol News Illinois jnowicki@capitolnewsillinois.com With fiscal year 2025 slated to begin Monday, Gov. JB Pritzker continues to tout available state tax incentives and promote Illinois as a site for business development. On the season finale of “Illinois Lawmakers” this week, Pritzker pointed to a pair of developments in East Alton and Normal…
After 9 months, state data begins to detail new pretrial detention system
By JERRY NOWICKI Capitol News Illinois jnowicki@capitolnewsillinois.com Nine months after cash bail ended in Illinois, the state is taking its first steps in publishing the data that crafters of the bail reform law saw as essential to judging its effectiveness. The data shows that judges in the 75 counties served by the Illinois Supreme Court’s…
ILLINOIS LAWMAKERS: Pritzker keeps economic development at forefront in exclusive interview
By JERRY NOWICKI Capitol News Illinois jnowicki@capitolnewsillinois.com With fiscal year 2025 slated to begin Monday, Gov. JB Pritzker continues to tout available state tax incentives and promote Illinois as a site for business development. On the season finale of “Illinois Lawmakers” this week, Pritzker pointed to a pair of developments in East Alton and Normal…
Pritzker calls SCOTUS emergency abortion ruling ‘small respite’ as state protections await his signature
By ANDREW ADAMS Capitol News Illinois aadams@capitolnewsillinois.com Abortion remains legal as an emergency medical procedure in Idaho, for now, after a Thursday U.S. Supreme Court ruling, while a bill that would cement those protections in Illinois law awaits Gov. JB Pritzker’s signature. The 6-3 decision saw the three liberal justices concur with the order. Three…
‘We don’t really know what we’re voting on,’ top Dem says of Pritzker’s prison plan
By HANNAH MEISEL Capitol News Illinois hmeisel@capitolnewsillinois.com LINCOLN – On the eve of a scheduled vote to advise Gov. JB Pritzker’s administration on plans to close and rebuild a pair of dilapidated state prisons, hundreds filed into a junior high school gymnasium Thursday evening clad in matching green T-shirts. Printed on the shirts was a…
SCOTUS ruling could upend federal corruption cases for Madigan, allies
By HANNAH MEISEL Capitol News Illinois hmeisel@capitolnewsillinois.com The U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday narrowed the scope of a federal bribery law prosecutors have relied on in their cases against former Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan and several of his allies convicted of bribing him. A jury last spring found those allies – former lobbyists and…
