Jozwiak will be new face on Argo School Board
By Bob Bong and Carol McGowan
Catherine Jozwiak (1,434 votes) will be the newest member of the Argo High School District 217 Board of Education when she takes office in May.
She will join incumbents Jennifer Grenier (1,467 votes), board president Daniel Kozal (1,504 votes) and Diane Ponce (1,530 votes), who all won re-election in Tuesday’s voting, according to complete but unofficial results.
Cathy Jozwiak
Newcomer Ramanda Bond (1,099 votes) finished fifth in the race.
“I’m excited to win a fifth term on the Argo Board of Education,” said Kozal. “I look forward to continuing to support the taxpayers and students of Argo High School, and keeping it a great place for the students and the Argo community.”
“I’m so happy to be able to serve another four years on the Argo board,” said Grenier. “My family and I are committed to Argo High School. My daughter is a third generation Argonaut and I love paying it forward to my community.”
“I’d like to give a huge thank you to my husband, family, and the voters in District 217,” said Ponce. “I’m grateful for the opportunity to serve another term representing Argo’s students, parents, and the entire Argo community. I will continue to go above and beyond what is needed to serve the Argo community.”
“I am overjoyed,” said Jozwiak. “I was biting nails all day, and so glad to have this opportunity. I volunteer already at many Argo events and already feel that Argo is home to me. I’m excited and looking forward to serving on the board with great, dedicated board members. At the end of this year, I will have two kids that will have graduated from Argo High School. I look forward to serving the community and students of Argo.”
Rhonda Regep-Hyde did not file to run for re-election.
Turnout in the election was 11.5 percent.
Morton District 201
Incumbent board member Maria Gallegos easily beat out Dolores Sanchez for the two-year unexpired term on the Morton District 201 school board. Complete but unofficial results showed Gallegos picked up 4,386 votes to 2,403 for Sanchez.
Also winning re-election was board president Jeffry Pesek (4,087 votes) and fellow incumbent Mark Kraft (4,118 votes). Joining them on the school board in May will be Fernando Godinez (3,996 votes).
Johnny Joe Reyes, and Suzanne Lee Donnelly trailed the field with 3,194 votes and Johnny Joe Reyes with 2,714 votes.
Lyons Township District 204
Seven candidates were seeking three four-year terms on the Lyons Township District 204 school board.
Incumbents Jill Beda Daniels and Kari Dillon were easily re-elected. Joining them on the board will be Timothy Albores.
Complete but unofficial results showed Albores received 6,725 votes, Daniels garnered 6,667 votes, and Dillon tallied 6,561 votes. Alison Kelly chose not to run for re-election.
Also on the ballot were Timothy Vlcek, David Herndon, Justin Clark, and Frank Evans.
Turnout was 25.4 percent.
Riverside-Brookfield District 208
Incumbent Carolyn Lach defeated fellow incumbent Michael Welch in the race for the two-year unexpired term on the Riverside-Brookfield District 208 Board of Education on Tuesday.
Also winning re-election were Deanna Zalas, William Durkin, and Laura Hruska. Joining them when the new board convenes in May will be Nicholas Novak.
Complete but unofficial totals showed Lack polled 1,538 to 1,138 for Welch for the two-year term.
For the four-year term, Novak led all candidates with 2,073 votes, Zalas had 2,054, Durkin received 1,970 and Hruska garnered 1,722 votes.
Turnout was 14 percent.
Willow Springs District 108
At first, it appeared Willow Springs District 108 would not have enough candidates to fill all of the open seats when incumbent Adriana Hawkins was the only person to file petitions to run for re-election.
That left two four-year terms up for grabs without candidates and a two-year term.
Write-in candidates filed to fill the other seats. They are Joe Bonomo, who is seeking the two-year unexpired term, and David Patterson and Jeffrey Wojciak who are running for the two four-year seats.
La Grange District 102
Six hopefuls were running for four four-year seats on the La Grange District 102 school board.
Incumbent Tiziana Lambert won re-election, but fellow incumbent Bessie Boyd was not as lucky. Also elected were newcomers Catherine Murphy, Molly Knott, and Kathryn McQuiston.
Complete but unofficial totals showed Knott led all candidates with 2,949 votes, Murphy received 2,584, Lambert garnered 2,482 and McQuiston tallied 2,465 votes. Boyd collected 2,218 votes.
Incumbents Leah Werab and Scott Wuggazer did not seek re-election.
Burbank District 111
Another crowded field with seven candidates seeking three seats on the Burbank District 111 school board.
Incumbents Jessica Thomas and Thomas Jansen won re-election while fellow incumbent Tricia Ponicki was defeated by Marissa Swistowicz.
Complete but unofficial totals showed Swistowicz led all candidates with 464 votes, Jansen had 442, Thomas garnered 390. Ponicki received 335 votes to finish fourth.
Also on the ballot were Laura Thurman, Griselda Aguinaga, and Gabriel Garcia.
Turnout was 5.3 percent.
Local News
Warrant issued for suspected shooter in Worth double homicide
Spread the loveBy Bob Bong Worth police have an arrest warrant for a man suspected as the shooter in a double homicide January 10 at the Crossing Bar and Grill in Worth. Worth police are working with numerous law enforcement agencies to seek the man, who was not identified. Police said the suspect is not…
Hog Wild to open Monday in Oak Lawn
Spread the loveBy Kelly White Dining choices will get a boost in Oak Lawn with the arrival of Hog Wild. The restaurant is scheduled to open Monday, January 17, at 4040 W. 111th St. That’s a week later than originally scheduled. “We are very fortunate here in Oak Lawn to have attracted Hog Wild,” Oak…
$1 million Lucky Day Lotto jackpot won in Bridgeview
Spread the loveFrom staff reports If you bought a Lucky Day Lotto ticket in Bridgeview for Thursday night’s drawing, you may want to check it right away – that’s because you might be a newly-minted millionaire! Circle K gas station, located at 7050 S. Harlem Ave. in Bridgeview, sold a $1 million winning Lucky Day…
Poisoned bald eagle found in Lyons woods
Spread the loveBy Kelly White Bald eagles are becoming increasingly more common in the Chicagoland area, and avid bird enthusiasts said this is no surprise. “I have been watching the same pair of bald eagles and their offspring for 12 years now,” Sue Delfiacco said. To Delfiacco, the pair of birds are like family. Every…
Local Sports Notebook: Four area girls teams headed to Hoopsfest
Spread the loveBy Jeff Vorva Staff Writer Four area girls basketball teams will participate in the 32nd running of the Coach Kipp Hoopsfest. This year’s tournament, sponsored by Dick’s Sporting Goods, takes place Saturday at Montini High School and Monday at Benet Academy. Sandburg is scheduled to play Downers Grove North in the 12:30 p.m.…
Argo Wrestling busy over winter break
Spread the loveBy Carol McGowan While many students enjoyed time off during the school’s winter break, Argo wrestlers were hard at work competing in an all level tri meet. They beat both DeLaSalle High School and Riverside-Brookfield teams and it came down to the last match to decide the winner. The Argonauts battled to the…
Argo Alumni Night returns
Spread the loveBy Carol McGowan The tradition of Alumni Night at Argo Community High School returns on Friday, January 14. The Alumni Dinner, at which the school provides a free buffet dinner to alumni, will take place from 5-8 p.m. in the Bulow Auditorium. Many of all ages have gathered in the past for great…
Bobby Rush to retire after 15 terms
Spread the loveFrom staff reports U.S. Rep. Bobby Rush, the state’s longest serving member of Congress, announced Tuesday he would not seek re-election this year, stepping down after almost 30 years of representing Chicago’s South Side and southwest suburbs. Rush, 75, formally announced that he will not run for a 16th term in Congress, but…
Stagg health team earns fourth straight Blue Ribbon award
Spread the loveBy Jeff Vorva District 230 Supt. Robert Nolting likened the Stagg Health Education department to the New England Patriots. For the fourth straight year, Stagg won the Blue Ribbon Award for Excellence in Education from the Illinois Association for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance. Staff members said Stagg was the first school…
Boys Basketball: Highs and lows for Oak Lawn
Spread the loveBy Steve Millar Correspondent During a week that Oak Lawn coach Jason Rhodes knew would present a huge challenge for his team, the Spartans started with a big win over a top South Suburban Conference contender. Then the league’s greatest perennial power provided proof that Oak Lawn still has a lot of work…
Neighbors
Flooding is Illinois’ Most Threatening Natural Disaster. Are We Prepared?
by Meredith Newman, Illinois Answers Project April 16, 2024 This story was originally published by the Illinois Answers Project. The electricity in Mary Buchanan’s home in West Garfield Park was not working – again. The outage lasted four days, starting just after a crew dug up her front lawn to install a check valve in…
Lawmakers pitch sweeping changes to energy industry and Chicagoland transit system
By ANDREW ADAMS Capitol News Illinois aadams@capitolnewsillinois.com A group of lawmakers and influential environmental advocates are calling for broad changes to the state’s energy industry and a massive increase in state oversight of Chicagoland’s transit system – which faces a projected $730 million budget shortfall. Advocates for the policy platform, which is broken up into…
Democrats flex muscle to kick off final month of session as revenues remain on track
By JERRY NOWICKI Capitol News Illinois jnowicki@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – With about three weeks to go before the Illinois General Assembly is scheduled to adjourn its spring legislative session, supermajority Democrats showed their strength this week as fiscal forecasters noted state revenues remain on track. April is typically a make-or-break month for state coffers, as income…
Former state trooper who caused fatal crash halts effort to get driving privileges restored
By BETH HUNDSDORFER Capitol News Illinois bhundsdorfer@capitolnewsillinois.com The former Illinois State Trooper who pleaded guilty to vehicular manslaughter of two sisters in 2007 has abandoned his efforts to have a hearing into the restoration of his driving privileges – for now. Matt Mitchell, 45, requested at least two delays in the hearing after he failed…
Capitol Briefs: Senate advances elections bill, measure targeting ‘predatory’ lending
By PETER HANCOCK & HANNAH MEISEL Capitol News Illinois news@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – A bill that would put more controls on certain kinds of high-cost loans to small businesses cleared the Illinois Senate Thursday. Senate Bill 2234, known as the Small Business Financial Transparency Act, targets a relatively new kind of nontraditional lender in the credit…
Law enforcement community honors fallen officers at Illinois Capitol
By COLE LONGCOR Capitol News Illinois clongcor@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – Six fallen police officers were honored at an annual memorial service outside the State Capitol Thursday. The Illinois Police Officers Memorial occurs annually on the first Thursday of May to honor officers who died in the line of duty and to support their families. “No one…
Democrats muscle through changes to ballot access, advisory questions
By JERRY NOWICKI HANNAH MEISEL & PETER HANCOCK Capitol News Illinois news@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – Supermajority Democrats in the Illinois House moved quickly Wednesday to push through a change to state election laws that partially limits ballot access and adds three nonbinding referendums to the 2024 general election ballot. It’s a move that caused minority party…
After 3 years, state poised to enforce law aiming to end lending discrimination
By PETER HANCOCK Capitol News Illinois phancock@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – In 1977, then-President Jimmy Carter signed into law the Community Reinvestment Act, a federal law that sought to wipe away the last vestiges of racial discrimination and redlining in America’s home mortgage industry. The idea was simple. By requiring lenders – primarily banks – to make…
Capitol News Illinois partners with ‘Illinois Lawmakers’ program to bring it back to air
Capitol News Illinois announced today it will produce the long-running “Illinois Lawmakers” program this spring, in partnership with longtime host and producer Jak Tichenor. “This new partnership is absolutely critical to providing Illinois residents with reliable, independent, in-depth, up to date coverage from the Illinois Capitol after many newspapers and broadcasters shuttered their Statehouse bureaus over…
Election officials to weigh whether Darren Bailey and GOP operative Dan Proft illegally coordinated
By ANDREW ADAMS & HANNAH MEISEL Capitol News Illinois news@capitolnewsillinois.com CHICAGO – A year and a half after Republican Darren Bailey lost his campaign to challenge Gov. JB Pritzker, state election officials are weighing whether he illegally colluded with conservative radio show host and political operative Dan Proft in the 2022 campaign. The State Board…