Local News
Area Sports Roundup | Kilbane, SXU heading to golf nationals
By Jeff Vorva Staff Writer Hannah Kilbane helped the Saint Xavier women’s golf team qualify for the NAIA nationals for just the second time in program history. Kilbane, a junior, needed a playoff hole to be crowned the Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference champion, and her red-hot shooting on the second day of the conference tournament…
May calendar filling up quickly
. By Patti Tyznik Your correspondent in Clearing and Garfield Ridge (708) 496-0265 • ptyznik@gmail.com May is sure shaping up to be plenty busy around here with graduations, communions, weddings and of course, Mother’s Day. As the days grow longer, there’s more time to enjoy evening walks. Have you had the pleasure of hearing the sounds…
Area Sports Roundup | U.S. hockey star Abbey Murphy scores quickest goal in tourney
By Jeff Vorva Staff Writer At age 20, Abbey Murphy did something that will be difficult to top. In the United States women’s hockey victory over Switzerland on April 7 in the International Ice Hockey Federation World Championship, the Mother McAuley graduate scored the quickest goal in an IIHF championship final, finding the net seven…
College Notebook | Freshman Luke Sefcik is a force for Chippewas
By Mike Walsh Correspondent Luke Sefcik, a Marist graduate who is playing baseball at Central Michigan, was named the Mid-American Conference’s Player of the Week for April 10. The redshirt freshman second baseman hit .625 while helping the Chippewas to a 3-1 record for the week. He collected 10 hits in 16 at-bats, drove in…
Baseball | St. Rita goes 4-1 over five-day stretch of games
By Steve Millar Correspondent Ryder Johnson knows his role in St. Rita’s offense. Hitting in the leadoff spot, the senior outfielder looks to wreak havoc and put pressure on the opposing defense. “With my speed, being at the top, it’s my job to get on base and start rallies,” Johnson said. “I scratch and claw…
Baseball and Softball Wrap | Sandburg trying to find footing as season hits halfway mark
By Jeff Vorva Staff Writer The Sandburg softball team dropped 10 of its first 13 games to open the season, but the Eagles record heading into this week was not indicative of how well they have played at times. Their three wins during that stretch were each by 10 or more runs, beating Lyons, 11-1,…
Pro Sports Report | Dual braces doom Red Stars
By Jeff Vorva Staff Writer The Chicago Red Stars and the Chicago Fire II teams were on the losing side of scoring braces on April 22. For the Red Stars, it was double trouble against the OL Reign as Bethany Balcer and Jess Fishlock scored braces in a 5-2 Reign victory in a NWSL matchup…
Time for youthful joy to be on parade
. . By Joan Hadac Your correspondent in Clearing and Garfield Ridge (708) 496-0265 • joan.hadac@gmail.com I love watching parades, especially ones that highlight our community’s boys and girls. One of the best examples of that is Clear Ridge Little League’s annual Opening Day Parade. This year’s parade is scheduled to step off at 9:30 a.m.…
Baseball | St. Laurence bounces back from trouncing with wins downstate
By Steve Millar Correspondent After the type of disastrous inning St. Laurence does not endure often, let alone at home, the Vikings did not go down without a fight. Lincoln-Way Central stunned the Vikings by scoring 10 runs in the top of the first inning of a non-conference showdown on April 12. St. Laurence answered…
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Illinois News
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…