Sunday, December 30, 2012
One woman bakes treats and donates profits to feed the hungry. An 8-year-old pushed for a safety day at his school. And after 70 years of marriage, one couple is still deeply in love.
We've highlighted some of the top headlines in Darien and Woodridge during 2012, and unfortunately a lot of the top news ends up being bad: major crimes take place, governments disagree and so on. But there's definitely no shortage of great people in Darien and Woodridge, and we want to highlight their work as well. Here's who inspired us in 2012. Have someone in mind that we missed? Tell us about them in the comments! Cakes for a Cause: Woman Donates Baking Profits to Help Feed Hungry A Darien woman is making life a little sweeter for people in the area by combining her greatest passions: baking and volunteering. Julie Stone has loved baking all of her life, but it wasn't until a few years ago that she realized she could put her skills…
Friday, April 20, 2012
Vote for the Schultz family in a National Mobility Awareness Month contest.
The Schultz family needs a wheelchair accessible van. Three of its members use a wheelchair, two of them full-time. Both father Jerry and daughter Krystie have multiple sclerosis. Krystie has a rare genetic disorder that is severely debilitating. Youngest daughter Rebecca, a junior at Downers Grove South, sometimes uses a wheelchair when her MS flares. Even with two wheelchairs, the family can never travel in one car. The Schultz family’s two vans are only capable of transporting one wheelchair at a time, and loading and unloading are uncomfortable. The new van would allow Jerry to sit up front with his wife, Laura, while Krystie’s second wheelchair can be tied down in the back. “It’d be nice to do things as a family as a change,” Laura…
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
The Cancer Smashers event raised funds to benefit the Robert H. Lurie Center at Northwestern University.
They’re called the Cancer Smashers. It’s no wonder, then, that their winter fundraiser was such a smashing success. Students in District 61 and District 66 raised $22,676.96 over the course of the past week to help fund cancer research at Northwestern University’s Robert H. Lurie Center. “I’m extremely proud of all the students from both districts that they came together to raise this much money in one week,” said Eisenhower Junior High Principal Mike Fitzgerald. “I think it’s amazing.” EJH and Lace School raised a combined total of $14,000, while Prairieview Elementary and Lakeview Junior High took in just more than $8,600. All of the money raised will go directly to the Lurie Center, organizer Beth Tischler said. The Cancer Smashers …
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Monday, December 12, 2011
It was the most successful year for the fundraiser, which is organized by DGN's girls swimming and diving team.
Downers Grove North High School raised more money this fall for St. Baldrick's than ever before. DGN raised $15,000 for the charity. It's the highest amount for the fundraiser, which usually raises between $5,000 to $10,000. The DGN girls swimming and diving team has organized the fundraiser for the past four years. St. Baldrick's Foundation supports pediatric cancer research, raising funds in part through encouraging men and women to shave their heads in solidarity with child who lose their hair after chemotherapy. Downers Grove North also had more shavees this year than last. In 2010, under 20 students shaved their heads, said Kristine Busse, assistant coach for the DGN swimming and diving team. In 2011, 47 students shaved their heads…
Friday, November 11, 2011
Edward Block is 93. He said he fully intends to make it to 100.
Edward Block said he is not a survivor of Pearl Harbor, though he was there on Dec. 7, 1941 when Japanese forces attacked. According to him, he’s a survivor of the Battle of Leyte Gulf in October 1944, the largest naval battle ever fought. Block was blown from one end of the destroyer to the other. Part of his shoulder was blown off. He was thrown into the ocean and waited 57 hours to be rescued while shipmates around him were eaten by sharks. He then spent 14 months recovering in Great Lakes Hospital. “I was pieces put back together,” he said. On the day Pearl Harbor was bombed, Block was on the U.S.S. Medusa. He was the ship’s barber. “I was sleeping in the barbershop,” he said. “I heard a loud noise and saw bombs going off right next to…
Bob Kolling is a Purple Heart recipient who served during the Vietnam War.
NAME: Bob Kolling AGE: 63 MILITARY BRANCH: Army HOMETOWN: Bolingbrook, but lived in Woodridge for 30 years FAMILY: Wife, Linda; two sons, Christopher and Brian, from a previous marriage Bob Kolling was drafted into the Army and served in Vietnam for six months in 1969 as a sniper in the First Cavalry Division. Kolling would spend three weeks in the jungle before returning to base camp for a shower and to change into clean clothes before spending another three weeks in the jungle. "We worked in two-man teams," he said. "We would go out ahead of the patrol for surveillance. ... Our job was to engage the enemy." Kolling was wounded in a machine gun ambush on Nov. 4, 1969 and lost his right leg. "It was 41 years ago last week," he said. …
Veterans spoke to Downers Grove South students Wednesday about their military experiences. We feature a Vietnam veteran and a U.S. Army Corps nurse deployed to Iraq.
Downers Grove South High School hosted veterans from various American conflicts Wednesday. Read below for the stories of two of these veterans. Jack Aldworth Editor’s note: Yep! Jack Aldworth is the father of DGS Student Activities Director John Aldworth. Jack Aldworth was drafted into the Army on Oct. 31, 1967 and spent 365 days serving in Vietnam. Seven days before he left for Vietnam, he got married. “You really shouldn’t get married seven days before leaving for Vietnam.” Every six to seven days, Aldworth would receive a letter from his wife, he said. “Every day she wrote me a letter. She put them in numerical order and spray each one with Chanel #5. It’s the greatest smell to me in the world.” She would also put one envelope of …
Patch talks to veterans in attendance at assembly.
Downers Grove North High School honored more than 80 veterans and dozens of family members of U.S. service men and women at its annual Veterans Day assembly Thursday. North High students and staff with loved ones deployed spoke to the challenges and sacrifices in a video played during the assembly. “You’re so used to having a dad,” one student said. “You realize how much you need him.” Students and staff can also take part in a letter and care package drive at North next week. You can donate hygiene items, clothing and entertainment. Letters and care packages will be sent to those serving around the world and those at Hines Hospital. Patch talked with two veterans at North. Read each of their stories below. Floyd Mizener Mizener attended…
Thursday, November 10, 2011
Woodridge Police Chief Steve Herron will retire Nov. 11 after 38 years in the Woodridge Police Department, including eight years as chief.
Woodridge Police Chief Steve Herron will retire Friday after serving in the Woodridge Police Department for 38 years, including eight as chief. Herron began to serve Woodridge 14 years after the village was incorporated. Throughout his tenure, he saw Woodridge transform from a small veterans' community to the diverse, 30,000-population municipality it is today. Herron went to Hinsdale South High School, working at a gas station part-time. His first ambition was to be an entrepreneur and to eventually own a gas station in Hinsdale. After the oil embargo came through, he said, “I decided the business world was not the right world for me.” He was also interested in law enforcement and, knowing those who lived in Woodridge, became a …
Suzanna Klein
7:46 pm on Sunday, May 13, 2012
I've voted daily, including today, with the hopes that you will win. Please keep us updated on the outcome. Best wishes~ more ›