OBSERVATIONS Diversity Dinner speaker provides strategies for talking about raceA few years ago, a gentleman (whose name I did not get in my notes, much to my regret) stopped by Homewood village hall during Mayor Rich Hofeld’s Meet the Mayor session. He implored Hofeld to find a way to incorporate[Read More…]
Opinion
The Weeks | Oct. 15: Hidden Gem MVP, Homewood Stories, Flossmoor trees, Walk Walton, Harry Potter trivia
MVP Organizers of the Hidden Gem Half Marathon are often quick to credit the hundreds of volunteers who work to make the race a success every year. They also started in 2022 to recognize a member of the team whose contributions stand out. This year, the Hidden Gem Most Valuable[Read More…]
The Weeks | Oct. 8: Which government owns our streets? Diversity Dinner, Trail Mix music, Fire Department open house
THE WEEK > Meetings Flossmoor Public Art Commission will meet at 7 p.m. Monday, Oct. 9, in the conference room at village hall, 2800 Flossmoor Road. Flossmoor School District 161 Board of Education will meet at 6 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 10, at Normandy Village, 41 E. Elmwood Drive. Homewood Board of Trustees will[Read More…]
Page 2 | Locals agree: Slow down
In the Sept. 17 edition of our newsletter, The Weeks, and again in our October print edition, I wrote about my interview with centenarian John Gibson of Danville, grandfather of Shannon Allred of Flossmoor. One of bit of advice he had was that everyone should slow down. He’s not alone.[Read More…]
New energy in 40th Senate District from battery plant announcement
There’s an exciting new energy in Kankakee County from our ongoing work to embrace the next generation of technology to power our economy. I was excited to join our top leaders in Manteno earlier this month to announce a new, $2 billion electric vehicle battery gigafactory coming to the region.[Read More…]
The Weeks | Sept. 24: Sculpture tour, help a young scientist, goat yoga, roller derby
THE WEEK > Meetings Homewood Board of Trustees will meet at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 26, in village hall, 2020 Chestnut Road. Flossmoor Community Relations Commission will meet at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 26, in village hall, 2800 Flossmoor Road. Stuff to do Monday, Sept. 25Art in S.T.E.A.M. Flossmoor Public Library, 1000 Sterling[Read More…]
Let’s celebrate democracy every day, especially on Democracy Day
This article is part of U.S. Democracy Day, a nationwide collaborative on Sept. 15, the International Day of Democracy, in which news organizations cover how democracy works and the threats it faces. To learn more, visit usdemocracyday.org. When I was a kid, democracy was so normal and unassailable as to[Read More…]
Taxpayers get help finding refunds for tax overpayments, missed exemptions
(EDITOR’S NOTE: Maria Pappas is Cook County Treasurer. This guest column appears in the Chronicle as an information piece.) Cook County owes refunds to thousands of property owners because of past overpayments and missed exemptions. Many homeowners who could use the extra money to pay bills, buy groceries and meet[Read More…]
Page 2: Democracy works when people work it
Sept. 15 is Democracy Day, and I thought it would be appropriate to celebrate it by highlighting several recent moments when local democracy worked rather well. By democracy, I don’t mean governance solely by elected leaders. When we vote, we delegate authority to our representatives, but that doesn’t relieve us[Read More…]
The Weeks | Sept. 3: Flossmoor Fest safety steps, The Gem, D161 board turnover, Box Battle Basho II
THE WEEK > Meetings Flossmoor Board of Trustees will meet at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 5, at village hall, 2800 Flossmoor Road. Homewood-Flossmoor Park District Board of Commissioners will meet at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 5, in the Goldberg Administration Center, 3301 Flossmoor Road, Flossmoor. Homewood-Flossmoor District 233 Board of Education Personnel[Read More…]
