Local News
Lions Club District 1A Helen Keller race draws big field
By Kelly White The damp weather from overnight rain did not deter more than 100 people on Sunday morning from getting some exercise. The 14th annual District 1A Helen Keller 5k Fun Run/Walk proudly took place along at Harold L. Richard’s High School, 10601 Central Ave., Oak Lawn. “This is a really great event,” Oak…
EPCHS students collect shoes for Christmas Without Cancer Sneaker Drive
From staff reports Students in Evergreen Park Community High School’s junior physical education leadership class teamed up with the non-profit organization Christmas Without Cancer to help local families battling the devastation of cancer. The class – taught by EPCHS physical education teacher Ree McDonald – helped gather donations for Christmas Without Cancer’s second annual Sneaker…
Swallow Cliff Chapter, NSDAR, honors JROTC cadets
From staff reports Swallow Cliff Chapter, National Society Daughters of the American Revolution, participated in recent JROTC awards ceremonies held at Shepard High School in Palos Heights and Richards High School in Oak Lawn. The DAR JROTC award, consisting of a medal and certificate, was presented to Navy Cadet Emily Schrode at Richards High School…
Worth Library celebrates 60th anniversary
By Kelly White The Worth Public Library has been around for decades. Resting in the heart of the village at 6917 W. 111th St., the library held an event focusing on its rich background story on April 23 with a historical photo exhibit. “It’s amazing because this library is still so important to the community,”…
Rose Zubik, Woman’s Club veteran, installed as 3rd District president
Rose Zubik, of Palos Heights, the new president of the 3rd District General Federation of Women’s Clubs-Illinois, lights a candle during the installation ceremony held April 27 at Fox’s Restaurant in Orland Park. Heather Linehan, the outgoing president, is beside her.By Dermot Connolly A longtime member of the Palos Heights Woman’s Club is now president…
Shots fired in Chicago Ridge Commons parking lot
From staff reports Shots were fired Wednesday night in the parking lot at Chicago Ridge Commons mall. Police said they received reports of the shooting about 9:45 p.m. No injuries were reported. Multiple witnesses told police four men were walking through the parking lot from the XSport Fitness area. They approached two vehicles and separated…
Hair salon with a ‘flair’ marks first year in Chicago Ridge
By Joe Boyle Melissa Kowalski wanted to do something meaningful to mark the first-year anniversary of her Flair With Hair Salon in Chicago Ridge. “We did not have a grand opening last year so I wanted to do something really special,” Kowalski said. “We wanted to say thank you to our clients.” Kowalski, a resident…
Palos East fifth-grader wins Scholastic Storyworks writing contest
Gabriel Chowaniec, a fifth-grader at Palos East Elementary School, has been named a winner of the Scholastic Storyworks Magazine writing contest. Gabriel, who is a student in Cathy Casey’s fifth-grade classroom, was named one of only five winners nationally for the December 2023/January 2024 competition. Garbriel’s submission for the nonfiction story “The Shattered Land,” “showed a strong understanding of the text along with the ability to author a well-organized and engaging response,…
Shepard celebrates Autism Week
By Kelly White World Autism Acceptance Week is organized by the National Autistic Society in the first week of April and aims to raise awareness about the challenges autistic people face across all areas of society. Not missing out the opportunity to celebrate all-inclusion was Shepard High School, 13049 S. Ridgeland Ave., Palos Heights. “We…
Billions of cicadas get ready to raise a racket
By Kelly White If you haven’t heard the buzz yet, you will soon. With 2024 marking a big year for periodical cicadas in Illinois, billions of the red-eyed buggers will soon be making an appearance. Periodical cicada broods XIII and XIX will be emerging throughout much of the state at the same time. Although exact…
Softball | Jocelyn Hovanec scores two runs, Ks 12 in Chicago Christian win
By Xavier Sanchez Correspondent Chicago Christian is working to find its footing in the inaugural season of the Chicagoland Christian Conference. The Knights entered this week 6-8 overall and 4-6 in the CCC, putting them in fifth place with just two conference games to play among their final seven regular-season contests. The Knights have had…
Boys Volleyball | Chicago Christian finishes April strong, takes second at Ridgewood Invitational
By Xavier Sanchez Correspondent A busy and largely successful final seven days of April saw Chicago Christian briefly climb back to the .500 mark after a tough first month of the season. The Knights (11-12, 4-4 Chicagoland Christian Conference) have won seven of their past 10 matches, all of which were played over a seven-day…
Sophia Smith’s brace sinks Red Stars
By Jeff Vorva Correspondent Home has not been that sweet lately for the Chicago Red Stars. The team lost its second straight game at SeatGeek Stadium with a 2-0 setback to Portland in front of an announced crowd of 4,443 on April 27. Portland star Sophia Smith scored in the 10th and 26th minutes, then…
Nazareth Academy celebrates ‘special talent’ J.J. McCarthy in NFL Draft
By Steve Metsch Dennis Moran has no doubts that J.J. McCarthy – the former Nazareth Academy quarterback who is now with the Minnesota Vikings – will succeed in the National Football League. Moran was among about 60 or so Nazareth Academy fans, friends and coaches who gathered Thursday night at The Stadium Club in McCook…
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Advocates hail regulatory ‘earthquake’ as state slashes requested gas rate increases
By ANDREW ADAMS Capitol News Illinois aadams@capitolnewsillinois.com CHICAGO – Regulators at the Illinois Commerce Commission on Thursday unanimously approved rate hikes for four major natural gas utilities, but the little-known regulatory body’s decision was perhaps more notable for what it rejected. The five-member board flexed its regulatory muscle, slashing the utilities’ requested rate increases by…
Pritzker designates additional $160M for migrant response as winter approaches
By HANNAH MEISEL & JERRY NOWICKI Capitol News Illinois news@capitolnewsillinois.com CHICAGO – As winter quickly approaches, Gov. JB Pritzker on Thursday announced plans for the state to spend an additional $160 million to aid and house a sustained influx of migrants sent to Chicago from the nation’s southern border. The administration sold the plan…
State Supreme Court weighs constitutionality of lifetime restrictions on child sex offenders
By PETER HANCOCK Capitol News Illinois phancock@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – The Illinois Supreme Court is weighing whether it is constitutional to impose lifetime restrictions on where a person can live after they’ve been convicted of a sex crime involving a minor. “It’s been 21 years – almost 21 years since my conviction,” Martin Kopf told the…
State high court to hear case against staffing agencies accused of suppressing wages
By HANNAH MEISEL & DILPREET RAJU Capitol News Illinois news@capitolnewsillinois.com The Illinois Supreme Court on Wednesday will hear arguments from three staffing agencies that say their industry is exempt from state antitrust laws in a case claiming the firms conspired to hold down wages for their workers. The Chicagoland-based companies have already lost twice in…
State police still drafting assault weapons registration rules as deadline nears
By PETER HANCOCK Capitol News Illinois phancock@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – Officials at the Illinois State Police said Tuesday they are working to finalize rules for registering assault weapons and other items that are now tightly regulated under the state’s new assault weapons ban as a Jan. 1 compliance deadline approaches. ISP attorney Suzanne Bond told the…
Gun rights groups to seek Supreme Court ruling on assault weapons
By PETER HANCOCK Capitol News Illinois phancock@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – Gun rights advocacy groups say they intend to ask the U.S. Supreme Court to review the state’s assault weapons ban after a federal appeals court on Friday refused to block enforcement of the law. In a statement Saturday, the Illinois State Rifle Association said it was…
Inside Illinois’ youth lockups, children go without basic services and face “excessive” punishments
By MOLLY PARKER Capitol News Illinois news@capitolnewsillinois.com This article was produced for ProPublica’s Local Reporting Network in partnership with Capitol News Illinois. In late December, a teenage boy with a broken arm was left to suffer alone in his cell at a youth lockup in rural southern Illinois. Staff were aware he’d been seriously injured;…
State police still drafting assault weapons registration rules as deadline nears
By PETER HANCOCK Capitol News Illinois phancock@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – Officials at the Illinois State Police said Tuesday they are working to finalize rules for registering assault weapons and other items that are now tightly regulated under the state’s new assault weapons ban as a Jan. 1 compliance deadline approaches. ISP attorney Suzanne Bond told the…
Lawmakers pass bill aimed at modernizing professional licensing in Illinois
By HANNAH MEISEL Capitol News Illinois hmeisel@capitolnewsillinois.com As Illinois faces shortages of health care practitioners and mental health professionals, the state agency in charge of licensing for those and more than 100 other industries has struggled to keep up. The Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation has failed to meet its goals to speed…
Capitol Cast: The Capitol News Illinois team recaps the veto session
Capitol News Illinois · The Capitol News Illinois team recaps the veto session The General Assembly’s two-week fall veto session that concluded Thursday was marked more by what did not happen than what did. The only big-ticket item to pass from a short list of bills the Capitol News Illinois team was monitoring was…