The latest news from Wednesday Journal http://www.oakpark.com Thu, 20 Jun 2013 06:02:45 UTC http://www.oakpark.com http://media1.oakpark.com/Images/5/3/8/41/1/5_3_8_41_1_144x144.png http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25908/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS

Kelly Soprych, 44, likes riding her hog ... the Harley Davidson Softail Deluxe kind, that is. For her, it's all about the freedom of the open road, the wind in her hair and the calmness that settles in when she's riding a motorcycle far away from the urban thrall. Read More...


]]> http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25908/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Wed, 19 Jun 2013 19:30:00 UTC http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25907/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS

Great swag to grab from Oak Park shops before you head downtown to the Pride Parade. Read More...


]]> http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25907/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Wed, 19 Jun 2013 19:30:00 UTC http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25906/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS

Chicago Pride Weekend consists of a two-day festival and our world-famous parade. The two-day festival takes place along Chicago's famed Halsted strip on Saturday, June 22, 2013 and Sunday, June 23, 2013. Read More...


]]> http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25906/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Wed, 19 Jun 2013 19:30:00 UTC http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25905/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS

Oak Park's Ranger Scouts may not have the same legacy as the Boy Scouts of America, but a handful of parents believe an alternative is better until the 100-year-old group changes its course on discriminating against gay scouts and leaders. Read More...


]]> http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25905/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Wed, 19 Jun 2013 19:30:00 UTC http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25904/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS

They were the first generation out of the closet, recognizing their sexual orientation when homosexuality was still illegal in many states, when it was still classified as a mental illness by the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-II). Read More...


]]> http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25904/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Wed, 19 Jun 2013 19:30:00 UTC http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25903/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS

Posha Carter remembers some of the family stories shared with him by gay teens from Oak Park and surrounding suburbs when he was youth leader with OPALGA, the Oak Park Area Lesbian and Gay Association. Read More...


]]> http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25903/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Wed, 19 Jun 2013 19:30:00 UTC http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25902/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS

The stories of two Oak Park same-sex couples illustrate how far society in general has changed in the last 30 years. When Leah Fowler was a teenager in the early 1990s, she would, from time to time, have crushes on girls she knew, but she resisted the possibility that she might be gay. Read More...


]]> http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25902/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Wed, 19 Jun 2013 19:30:00 UTC http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25901/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS

Go behind-the-scenes in the basement of Pilgrim Congregational Church to watch how those delicious Oak Park Farmers Market donuts are made each Saturday morning. Read More...


]]> http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25901/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Wed, 19 Jun 2013 03:00:00 UTC http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25900/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS

Plans for the downtown Oak Park parcel commonly known as the Colt site (the Colt building formerly occupied that site) will move ahead as recommended in April, potentially bringing a mix of retail, luxury apartments and parking from Lake Street to North Boulevard. Read More...


]]> http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25900/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Wed, 19 Jun 2013 03:00:00 UTC http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25899/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Meatless Mondays won't be the law of the land, but there will be an official proclamation from the village of Oak Park encouraging its residents to be more mindful of their meat-eating practices. Read More...


]]> http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25899/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Wed, 19 Jun 2013 03:00:00 UTC http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25898/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS So, folks, we brought the Will Loomis Memorial Trophy home to Oak Park on Friday. That's the prize the Illinois Press Association gives out to the top paper, the sweepstakes winner, among large circulation weeklies in the state. And this year it came our way. Read More...


]]> http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25898/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Wed, 19 Jun 2013 03:00:00 UTC http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25897/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS

Oak Park used to be known as the place "where the saloons stop and the churches begin." A quick stroll down Lake Street and you'll see that's changed. It's about to change again with a shift in the liquor law that will allow alcohol to be served earlier on weekends and holidays. Read More...


]]> http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25897/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Wed, 19 Jun 2013 03:00:00 UTC http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25896/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS

Local Independence Day festivities have been given an overhaul this year in the western suburbs as local park districts and villages confront financial constraints and crowd control. Read More...


]]> http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25896/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Wed, 19 Jun 2013 03:00:00 UTC http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25895/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS

You're walking along Lake Street in River Forest and come across a really nifty old building, but you can't quite remember what it is and don't have a guidebook that might have the answer. Well, if you have a smart phone with an app that can read a commonly-used bar code, you'll learn that it's the Harlem School building. Read More...


]]> http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25895/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Wed, 19 Jun 2013 03:00:00 UTC http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25894/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Village Manager Cara Pavlicek reported Monday that Oak Park is on its way to finalizing its building code updates, but this time around restrictions have eased. Read More...


]]> http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25894/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Wed, 19 Jun 2013 03:00:00 UTC http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25893/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Dorothy Spourdalakis, 50, once the owner of The Eyeglass Shop in Oak Park, has been accused of murdering her autistic teen son in their River Grove Home. Read More...


]]> http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25893/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Wed, 19 Jun 2013 03:00:00 UTC http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25892/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Oak Park police arrested a 47-year-old Bensenville man at his home June 11 and charged him with a residential burglary that occurred in the 100 block of S. Kenilworth Avenue on April 10, 2011. Read More...


]]> http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25892/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Wed, 19 Jun 2013 03:00:00 UTC http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25891/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Approximately $1.3 million will be transferred from two funds to help pay for current and future District 90 capital projects. With three members absent, the school board, Monday night, voted 3-1 to allow $1 million to go from the Education Fund to Operations and Maintenance. Read More...


]]> http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25891/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Wed, 19 Jun 2013 03:00:00 UTC http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25890/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Seven of the 10 District 97 schools are in need of upgrades to make certain areas of those buildings more accessible to students with special needs, according to a recent D97 report. Read More...


]]> http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25890/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Wed, 19 Jun 2013 03:00:00 UTC http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25889/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS School PTOs or outside groups such as the Girl Scouts will not have to pay to use District 97 facilities, said Supt. Albert Roberts, responding to a misconception that the elementary school district was planning to charge parent groups. Read More...


]]> http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25889/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Wed, 19 Jun 2013 03:00:00 UTC http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25888/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS District 97 is scheduled to vote next week on whether to open the Downtown TIF settlement agreement. Read More...


]]> http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25888/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Wed, 19 Jun 2013 03:00:00 UTC http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25886/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS

It was a dream eight years in the making. When Oak Park artist Mike Hedges and his wife Julie purchased a home across the street from her parents, they knew what they were taking on: a mortgage and a plan for their future family. Hedges knew the responsibility came with a downside. Read More...


]]> http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25886/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Wed, 19 Jun 2013 03:00:00 UTC http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25885/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS

Opening night of Oak Park Festival Theatre's Amadeus was threatened by impending predicted showers but the rain held off until literally the last lines of dialogue were being delivered. Talk about a show-biz miracle! This classy, riveting production was savored by a large, receptive audience; not one person left early despite the ominous distant rumblings of thunder. Read More...


]]> http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25885/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Wed, 19 Jun 2013 03:00:00 UTC http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25884/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS

The second Sacred Spaces House of Worship Walk, co-sponsored by the Oak Park-River Forest Community of Congregations and the Historical Society of Oak Park-River Forest, offers tours of seven churches, temples and chapels in north Oak Park and River Forest on Sunday, June 23, from 2 to 5 p.m. Read More...


]]> http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25884/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Wed, 19 Jun 2013 03:00:00 UTC http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25883/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS William "Joe" English, 76, died peacefully with his family by his side on June 2, 2013. Born in Galesburg on Aug. 30, 1936, he spent his last 25 years living in Oak Park. The majority of his life was spent in Illinois, but he also lived in Arizona, Michigan and Oklahoma. Read More...


]]> http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25883/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Wed, 19 Jun 2013 03:00:00 UTC http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25882/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Shirley M. Peterson, nee Padgitt, a former Oak Park resident, died in San Antonio, Texas, on Dec. 20, 2012. Born on June 27, 1920 in Chicago, she was a graduate of Marshall High School and worked at Underwriters Laboratories in Chicago, marrying her husband, Frank, in 1942. Read More...


]]> http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25882/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Wed, 19 Jun 2013 03:00:00 UTC http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25881/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS

Lydia Holm-Bertelsen, 80, died on June 13, 2013. Born Lydia Johanna Mommens on Aug. 9, 1932 and raised on the family farm in Shleswig-Holstein, Germany, near the North Sea, she lived a life of adventure. As a young woman, she boarded a ship to North America, knowing nothing of the language or what lay ahead, to join her betrothed, Hermann Holm-Bertelsen, in Winnipeg, Canada. Read More...


]]> http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25881/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Wed, 19 Jun 2013 03:00:00 UTC http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25880/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Jacob Joseph "Joe" Levin, 82, of Oak Park, died in his home on June 8, 2013. Born in New York City on Aug. 15, 1930, he married his wife, Doris, in 1949, and they then moved together to upstate New York to attend school. Read More...


]]> http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25880/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Wed, 19 Jun 2013 03:00:00 UTC http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25879/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS John Edward Kelly III, 70, formerly of River Forest and Hanover Park, died in Punta Gorda, Fla. on April 27, 2013. He grew up in River Forest and attended Oak Park and River Forest High School, where he played football and wrestled his junior and senior years. Read More...


]]> http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25879/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Wed, 19 Jun 2013 03:00:00 UTC http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25878/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Jane E. Hockstein-Netter, 89, of Oak Park, died on June 16, 2013. Visitation will be held on June 20 from 3 to 8 p.m. at Drechsler, Brown & Williams Funeral Home, 203 S. Marion St., Oak Park. A funeral Mass will be celebrated at St. Edmund Church at 10:30 a.m., June 21, followed by private interment at Queen of Heaven Cemetery. Read More...


]]> http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25878/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Wed, 19 Jun 2013 03:00:00 UTC http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25877/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS River Forest has a flooding problem. And it is not just the Des Plaines River. Basements in the village, particularly on the north side of town, flood regularly during heavy storms; they have for years. They will continue to flood because the century-old storm sewer system just doesn't have the necessary capacity. Read More...


]]> http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25877/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Wed, 19 Jun 2013 03:00:00 UTC http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25876/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Oak Park likes a good symbol. We're not nuclear free for nothing. On Monday night the Oak Park village board was expected to pass a symbolic resolution urging villagers to enjoy Meatless Mondays. Read More...


]]> http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25876/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Wed, 19 Jun 2013 03:00:00 UTC http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25875/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Two weeks ago in this space we urged the two local school districts and the village to open discussions about ways to share human resource services. In a weird circumstance, all three entities are without, or about to be without, personnel directors. Read More...


]]> http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25875/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Wed, 19 Jun 2013 03:00:00 UTC http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25874/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS I spent Father's Day afternoon with my son. Nothing fancy, a movie and dinner. Going to movies is one of the things we've always enjoyed doing together. Simple and relaxing. I wish I had a list of everything we've seen over the years. Read More...


]]> http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25874/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Wed, 19 Jun 2013 03:00:00 UTC http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25873/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS

Two views of a longstanding tradition - and controversy - from two former editors of the OPRF High School newspaper, Trapeze. Read More...


]]> http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25873/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Wed, 19 Jun 2013 03:00:00 UTC http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25872/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Most mornings at the Marion Street/Harlem el station, I get on the same CTA train. The conductor is usually the same too, a pleasant, chatty woman, an extrovert. Every morning she has a big hello for people entering her train. Read More...


]]> http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25872/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Wed, 19 Jun 2013 03:00:00 UTC http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25871/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS In fits and starts, I've come late to the debate on immigration reform. For seven months, I housed a political refugee who had been arrested and turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Because he had legal asylum, ICE released him with nowhere to go. Read More...


]]> http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25871/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Wed, 19 Jun 2013 03:00:00 UTC http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25870/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS I have read the IDOT propaganda document "I-290 Environmental Impact Statement. West of Mannheim Road to East of Cicero Avenue. Purpose and Need. September, 2011, Draft." Among other things, this document includes a detailed analysis of traffic patterns, traffic accidents, etc. I would like to highlight a couple of points that illustrate that (a) IDOT is determined to widen the Eisenhower Expressway, and (b) IDOT will twist every bit of evidence to support this predetermined conclusion. Read More...


]]> http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25870/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Wed, 19 Jun 2013 03:00:00 UTC http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25869/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS The Tucson-based band, Calexico, plays a unique blend of Mexican, Southwestern country, jazz and indie rock styles. Almost like short stories, the band's lyrics feature fantastic imagery and tell interesting tales of characters south and north of the border. I caught the band's act on Sunday, June 2 at the City Winery, an intimate venue at Randolph and Racine in Chicago. Read More...


]]> http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25869/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Wed, 19 Jun 2013 03:00:00 UTC http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25868/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS The following is a letter to Gov. Pat Quinn, resulting from a 117-0 Illinois House vote and a 52-0-6 (not voting)-1 (present) Senate vote. Both Oak Park's Senator Harmon and Rep. Lilly voted Yes. Read More...


]]> http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25868/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Wed, 19 Jun 2013 03:00:00 UTC http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25867/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Editor's note: The Unity Temple Unitarian-Universalist Congregation has a tradition of reading the names of servicemen who died in Afghanistan the previous week. We are extending that tradition. Read More...


]]> http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25867/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Wed, 19 Jun 2013 03:00:00 UTC http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25866/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS

Thank you for your story about the Wilson family [Meet the Wilsons, News, June 12]. I am an adopted parent for 25 years. My wife and I adopted two of her nieces and raised them as our daughters. Adoption is hard. Read More...


]]> http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25866/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Wed, 19 Jun 2013 03:00:00 UTC http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25865/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS We can thank the bees for every third bite we eat. Let's return the favor by marking National Pollinator Week. By bringing color and life into our yards and gardens, we can do something for the bees and other pollinators who provide us with food and beauty. Read More...


]]> http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25865/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Wed, 19 Jun 2013 03:00:00 UTC http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25864/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Scores of well-wishers and a handful of Italian-speaking Oak Parkers showed up on Wednesday, May 29 for an exhibit at McDuffie Design Center, co-sponsored by the Italian-American Chamber of Commerce and Italidea/Italicultura — the cultural and language branches of the Italian government here in Chicago area. Read More...


]]> http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25864/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Wed, 19 Jun 2013 03:00:00 UTC http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25863/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Before becoming a mental health counselor, I spent 30 years in the business world. I used to say that the future of work is fewer people working harder and harder. Today, I see the signs of that in two trends. I them call Wonder-mom Syndrome and Workplace Dysphoria - a state of feeling unwell or unhappy. Read More...


]]> http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25863/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Wed, 19 Jun 2013 03:00:00 UTC http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25887/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Add free outdoor WiFi to the list of amenities that debuted at the new and improved Scoville Park in June. Complementing park renovations, including new tennis courts, a playground, a new plaza around the World War I monument, aesthetic landscaping and other upgrades, Scoville Park visitors can also enjoy wireless access to the Internet virtually anywhere in the park. Read More...


]]> http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25887/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Tue, 18 Jun 2013 20:00:00 UTC http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25815/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS

When planning their fairy tale wedding, most women envision a beautiful church ceremony filled with family, friends, flowers, merriment and music. Ann Joyner opted for a different marital route, literally, when she tied the knot with Ray Greeley on June 3 in Oak Park. Read More...


]]> http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25815/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Tue, 18 Jun 2013 22:10:00 UTC http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25862/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS

The Oak Park and River Forest High School annual summer boys basketball league kicked off last week, with both the host Huskies and neighboring Fenwick seeing plenty of action. Read More...


]]> http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25862/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Mon, 17 Jun 2013 17:54:04 UTC http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25861/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS

Nate Prescott, Mark Jirik and Abby Prescott are in most ways your typical mid-20s young adults. The Oak Park natives, who all graduated from Oak Park and River Forest High School and Big Ten universities, have already briefly dipped their toes into the work force. Read More...


]]> http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25861/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Wed, 19 Jun 2013 01:00:00 UTC http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25860/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS One week into his head boys basketball coaching job at Fenwick High School, Rick Malnati says he likes what he sees. Read More...


]]> http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25860/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Sun, 16 Jun 2013 18:23:29 UTC http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25859/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS The District 97 Board of Education, on June 11, renewed the contract of its longtime bus service provider, Lakeview Bus Lines, despite complaints from some Oak Park parents about service. Read More...


]]> http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25859/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Tue, 18 Jun 2013 22:05:00 UTC http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25858/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Paying off a significant portion of its parking fund debt and implementing long-term financial planning are two key components which show Oak Park's fiscal outlook remains on a positive trend, an independent auditor told the village's finance committee last Monday. Read More...


]]> http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25858/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Tue, 18 Jun 2013 22:35:00 UTC http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25857/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS

Do me a favor, count to ten. Just do it. Fine, I'll do it with you: Read More...


]]> http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25857/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Fri, 14 Jun 2013 13:45:54 UTC http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25856/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS

A Berwyn man is seeking a July clemency hearing from Gov. Pat Quinn and the Illinois Prison Review Board to pardon his 1997 convictions for aggravated criminal sexual abuse. The two victims were Oak Park and River Forest High School female students. In addition, Dutra was accused, but not convicted, of misdemeanor battery charges against four other girls for unwanted touching. The girls who accused him were between 13 and 16 years old. Read More...


]]> http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25856/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Thu, 13 Jun 2013 20:15:38 UTC http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25854/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS

A gallery of photos from this year's graduation ceremony at Oak Park and River Forest High School, as well as a list of the class of 2013. Read More...


]]> http://www.oakpark.com/3_2_25854/?utm_source=RSS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=RSS Thu, 13 Jun 2013 15:03:30 UTC