Project Fire Buddies helps Oak Forest girl with adaptive cycle
When Lily Brown, of Oak Forest, and her family receive toys from Oak Forest-based Project Fire Buddies, they always respond, “split our portion with the other Fire Buddies,” according to officials from the organization. So when the Brown family recently reached out looking for assistance, they sprang into action.
Lily, who has Rett Syndrome, hasn’t been able to get her normal physical therapy treatments because of the pandemic, and her scoliosis has gotten significantly worse. A new special needs tricycle would help her spine stay in line and help prevent further permanent damage.
“Her favorite activity has always been walks with her family — it’s her favorite part of the day,” Kurt DeGroot, of Project Fire Buddies, said in a social media post. “The problem was that Lily had outgrown her current bike.” And a replacement would run about $4,000.
They were able to get a significant discount from the manufacturer, E-Needs, but still needed to come up with $2,400. After putting the word, they were contacted by Kristen Anzelmo from Andres Medical Billing, which wanted to cover the rest of the cost.
“Between both of these amazing companies and the generous people who run them, the Brown family can ensure that their Lily’s scoliosis will slow its pace and her favorite activity will resume,” DeGroot said.
Freshmen return to classrooms at Richards
Despite wearing face masks, the smiles of Richards High School teachers and administrators shined clearly Thursday as they welcomed half the freshman class for the first day of in-person instruction.
Months in the making, staff members greeted the ninth graders with safe-distanced care and cheer, according to a School District 218 news release.
“This is the first time since March that I’ve had students in this classroom, and it’s awesome,” said English teacher Jim Bolhuis as freshmen entered.
District 218 schools thisweek returned to in-person instruction with half freshmen on Thursday and the other half set to attend Friday. Next week all students come for in-person instruction, half on Monday and the other half on Tuesday.
The sequence repeats on Thursdays and Fridays with all students learning remotely on Wednesdays. Parents also could choose to have their children continue remote learning full time.
In classrooms, teachers maintain distance from students by staying in an area marked by tape. Students sit spaced far apart in classrooms, walk hallways divided by tape, eat lunch in four separate areas, and wear face masks at all times to reduce risk, the release stated.
Chicago Southland Convention& Visitors Bureau moves
After being based in Lansing for 23 years, the Chicago Southland Convention & Visitors Bureau has a new office location. Due to its lease not being renewed, it relocated to the Governors Office Park in Olympia Fields.
Officials said the new Olympia Fields location is more centralized, making it more accessible for partners and is a more affordable option for the organization. As the official destination marketing organization for the Chicago Southland’s 62 municipalities, the CSCVB will continue to aggressively market and sell the area on a state, regional and national level as a destination for leisure visitors, meetings, conventions, group tours and sporting events, regardless of office location.
The new office location is 19900 Governors Drive, Suite 200. Office, fax and toll-free numbers have not changed, while the phone number is 708-895-8200.
Property tax appeal seminars set for south Cook County
Cook County Assessor Fritz Kaegi announced his office will co-host five virtual Town Hall Appeal Seminars to help south suburban property owners understand and appeal their properties’ proposed reassessment values.
Each year, the Cook County Assessor’s Office reassesses onethird of the nearly 1.8 million parcels of property located in Cook County. This year, the Assessor’s Office has reassessed properties located in south and west suburban Cook County.
“These virtual outreach seminars provide personal and safe access to information via Facebook Live and YouTube,” Kaegi said.“We want property owners to have all the information necessary to understand their reassessment values and appeal them if there are errors.”
The virtual meetings will help property owners understand the different reasons for filing appeals and guide them through the online appeals process. The Assessor and his staff will alsobe on hand to facilitate a live Q&A portion of the meeting.
The final south suburban townships open for appeals include Bremen Township with an appeal deadline date of Oct. 22, Rich Township with an appeal deadline date of Oct. 30, and Bloom Township with an appeal deadline date of Nov. 12.
Cancer Support Center sets ‘UnGala’ fundraiser
The Cancer Support Center will host its annual fundraiser, the Harvest Moon UnGala Oct. 30. This year, guests have an option to join in-person at the Olympia Fields Country Club or virtually, but either way, registration is mandatory — there will be no day-of registration available.
The UnGala is one of four signature events The Center hosts annually to help raise funds to support the free programs and services offered to over 4,200 men, women, children and families that are impacted by cancer, butwill be The Center’s first ever casual gala.
“We’re doing things a little more casual this year. We have two spots youcan choose to dine in, either in the enclosed outdoor tent, which will be heated or you can chose to be in the Normandy Room, both options have ample space for social distancing,” said The Center’s executive director, Sue Armato. “It’s all to support The Cancer Support Center — even through this entire pandemic, we have not missed a beat. We have continued to be there for our participants, and we have serviced more people nowthan ever before. We’re helping people navigate through the terrible burdens and hardships that cancer has put on them.”
Registration is available at www.cancersupportcenter.org. The Center will allow a maximum of six persons or less, per table, for in-person dining to maintain social distancing guidelines. Guests who choose to join from their homes, can do so through a private zoom link. Balagio’s Restaurant, in Homewood and Mokena, has also offered to prepare carryout dinners so guests can be a part of the dining experience.
Evergreen Park library highlights Chicago’s statues
Author and artist Krista August offered Evergreen Park library patrons a recent presentation of her award-winning book “Giants in the Park: A Guide to Portrait Statues in Chicago’s Lincoln Park.” In the presentation, which remains available to view on the library’s social media platforms, August took a walk through Lincoln Park and highlighted the stories behind the statues.
August’s illustrations from the book and other pieces of her artwork will be on display in the library throughout October. Evergreen Park Public Library, 9400 S. Troy Ave., is open Monday - Saturday, from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.