Sneed: Will first lady speak of girl?
The murder of Shamiya Adams could be addressed by Michelle Obama when she hits town Thursday.
The Shamiya tragedy . . .
Sneed is wondering if the tragic death of 11-year-old Shamiya Adams, who was killed by a stray bullet during a sleepover with friends Friday in West Garfield Park, will be addressed by first lady Michelle Obama when she hits town Thursday for a Democratic National Committee fundraiser.
In February 2013, Obama attended the funeral of 15-year-old Hadiya Pendleton, who was shot and killed in a Kenwood park the week after she went to Washington, D.C., to attend inauguration festivities for President Barack Obama.
Michelle Obama returned to Chicago the following April to speak at a fundraiser dedicated to making neighborhoods safer.
“Hadiya Pendleton was me, and I was her,” Obama said. “But I got to grow up and go to Princeton and Harvard Law School and have a career and family and the most blessed life I could ever imagine.”
Shamiya, the latest child murder victim caught in the crossfire of Chicago’s gang violence nightmare, has yet to be buried.
Funeral arrangements were still being worked out Monday by the Rev. George W. Daniels, the pastor of Adams’ church, First Baptist Congregational. “We should know something Tuesday or Wednesday,” a church spokesman said.
A vigil for Shamiya — who was killed by a stray bullet that passed through an open window and a wall before hitting her in the head while she prepared to make s’mores in her friend’s kitchen — was held near where she died Sunday.
Scoopsville . . .
Watch for state Sen. Kirk Dillard (R-Hinsdale) to tender his formal resignation from the Senate around Aug. 1 — so he can officially become the next chairman of the Regional Transportation Authority.
To wit: Sneed is told that Dillard, who lost his GOP gubernatorial primary bid to Bruce Rauner, requested 30 days to tie up loose ends and clean out his office.
Scoopsville II . . .
Watch for DuPage County Republican Party Chairman Darlene Ruscitti to appoint former state Rep. Chris Nybo (R-Elmhurst) to Dillard’s Senate seat to serve out the remainder of the term. Over and out.
Danger duck . . .
Lucky ducks: Two orphaned ducklings fell into the moat surrounding the Lincoln Park Zoo’s lion exhibit Monday and had to be fished out with nets — lest the lions take them from quack . . . to snack!
To the rescue: The zoo summoned the Chicago Bird Collision Monitors, who took the wee ducks to Willowbrook Wildlife Center, where they will be raised and released.
The name game: Annette Prince, director of the group, tells Sneed she named one duckling “Daniel, after the Bible story of Daniel in the lion’s den.” Check out the photo of the rescued Daniel.
The Rahm roster . . .
Re-election report: Following news that powerful Latino leader U.S. Rep. Luis Gutierrez, D-Ill., had signed on as co-chair of Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s re-election campaign, Sneed has learned that Rahm’s campaign co-chair roster just added Illinois Secretary of State Jesse White, a huge Dem vote-getter statewide.
I spy . . .
Blackhawk Andrew Shaw celebrated his birthday with friends and family Sunday at Chicago Cut — while fellow Hawk Bryan Bickell dined nearby . . . Legendary singer Tony Bennett, who will turn 88 on Aug. 3, returns to Ravinia on Aug. 16. Until then, he is holed up in Italy, painting Capri, Florence and Rome under the name Tony Benedetto — his birth name.
Sneedlings . . .
Tuesday’s birthdays: Selena Gomez, 22; Danny Glover, 68, and David Spade, 50.