West Chicago Elementary School District 33 Superintendent Kristina Davis declared the first District-wide Pajama Day Friday, December 20, 2019. Donned in her festive pajamas, she plans to visit students and staff at all the schools. (www.merleburl.com)
Community High School District 94 holds a Public Hearing at a special meeting at 5:00 p.m. Friday, December 20, 2019, at the District Administrative Center, 157 West Washington Street. The purpose is to review and receive public comment on the proposed adoption of an e-learning program.
Trinity Lutheran Church, 338 George Street, has a Christmas Choral Celebration featuring the Choir and Sunday at 5:00 p.m. Saturday, December 21, 2019.
Wayne/Winfield Area Youth/Family Services offers hour-long computer classes for senior citizens, 27W031 North Avenue. Not only do seniors learn basic skills, but also have the opportunity to socialize. The fee is $2. Reservations are required and may be made by calling (630) 231-7166. Beginner classes are at 1:00 p.m. Tuesdays. “Texting on Smart Phones” class is at 4:00 p.m. Monday, December 23, 2019.
The Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 6791 holds its popular Raffle Blast at noon Saturday, December 28, 2019, at the Post, 431 North Neltnor Boulevard. The charge is $50 per person and includes lunch prepared by the Post Auxiliary. Pre-registration is required. To register, or for more information, call the Post at (630) 231-9823.
We-Go Community Theater of West Chicago Park Districts holds auditions for its 2020 winter production, “The Jungle Book Kids.” The deadline for sending video productions to jshipp@we-gopark.org is Monday, December 30, 2019. Drop-in auditions are from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. Saturday, January 4, 2020, at The ARC, 201 West National Street. Performances are at 10:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m. Saturday, February 8, 2020.
The Friends of the West Chicago City Museum 2019 ornament is now available. It highlights the historic landmark, the Women’s Christian Temperance Union fountain, capturing it in its original location at the intersection of Main and Washington Streets. The price is $10. They are available at the City Museum, 132 Main Street; hours are from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. Thursdays, 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. Fridays. They also are available at Gallery 200, 103 West Washington Street. Hours are from noon to 6:00 p.m. Thursdays, noon to 8:00 p.m. Fridays, 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Saturdays and from noon to 4:00 p.m. Sundays.
The holiday lights at Supermercado Tampico, 516 Main Street, are dazzling. Try to take the time to view them at night.
Check out the local eating establishments for holiday meals.
John & Tony’s Restaurant, 27W371 North Avenue, is now open for breakfast and lunch from 8:00 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. daily.
Sincere sympathy is expressed to the family of Elinor L. Parsons, who at the age of 88 passed away Friday, December 13, 2019.
Deepest sympathy is expressed to the family of Michael J. Pstrong, who at the age of 65 passed away Tuesday, December 10, 2019.
Sincere sympathy is extended to the family of Ronald Duncan Howard, who at the age of 87 passed away Saturday, December 7, 2019.
Deepest sympathy is expressed to the family of Rd Ryan Bussler, who at the age of 59 passed away Friday, December 6, 2019.
For Thanksgiving, St. Andrew Lutheran Church collected several bags of non-perishable food for the Neighborhood Food Pantries at the West Chicago location, 123 Fremont Street. Also, St. Andrew Church hosted the bilingual Thanksgiving Eve ecumenical service held with First United Methodist Church. The total amount collected at the offering was $439, which was donated to NFP.
Nathan Bradley, a senior at West Chicago Community High School, was the Student of the Month for November. His dedication to activities and going the extra mile are the reasons for his selection. Bradley has been on the Honor Roll almost every semester of high school. He has a cumulative weighted Grade Point Average of 4.372.
Bradley serves as a Student Ambassador, and is currently the president of Film Club. He has been involved in WeGo Drama since freshman year and has 23 productions to his credit. He currently serves as the Vice President Travel Coordinator. Bradley has served on the Tech Crew, and is a member of Thespians, Speech Team, and Marching Band.
Upon graduation, Bradley plans to attend college, either at an art school to enhance his acting skills or to study education. (www.merleburl.com)
Frosty Fest was fun for those attending and those working the event. Activities included the lighting of the Community Holiday tree, refreshments provided by the Lions Club and Rotary Club, crafts organized by the West Chicago Park District, visits with Santa and Mrs. Claus, viewing gingerbread houses, art demonstrations and shopping at Gallery 200, carriage rides and ice sculptor Joe Gagnepain creating his masterpiece.
Providing musical entertainment were choral groups from Gary and Wegner schools, First United Methodist Church of West Chicago and Mariachi los Rayos de Leman Middle School.
The popular cookie decorating activity provided a creative and tasty touch, plus contributed to a worthy cause. Through the donations of participants, the amount raised was $208.34, which is $30 more than last year. FNBC Bank & Trusts matches this amount and the total check will be presented to the Neighborhood Food Pantries in West Chicago. (www.merleburl.com)
Persons taking part in the West Chicago City Museum’s scavenger hunt discovered the snowballs to make the snowman plump. (www.merleburl.com)
The West Chicago Police Department announced the arrest of Guillermo Medina-Velazquez, age 28, of West Chicago in connection with multiple burglaries from various landscaping companies. The burglaries occurred during the overnight hours from August 30 until November 27, 2019. During the course of the investigations, Detectives from Police Department identified Medina-Velazquez as the suspect in the burglaries. On December 4 he was arrested and the DuPage County State’s Attorney’s Office approved burglary charges against him. The combined total value of the stolen items was in excess of $100,000. Detectives recovered many of the stolen items and returned those items to their rightful owners. Burglary is a Class Two felony punishable by not less than three and not more than seven years in prison.
West Chicago Public Library, 118 West Washington Street, hosted its annual Holiday Open House, which had the theme of “An Old Fashioned Holiday.” Activities included games, crafts, refreshments, visits with Mrs. Kringle and the Canterbury Carollers. (www.merleburl.com)
The Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 6791 and its Auxiliary placed wreathes on the graves of veterans at Calvary Cemetery, Glen Oaks Cemetery and St. John’s Cemetery in Winfield. Auxiliary President Terry Adams said, ”The total number of wreathes was 1,000.”
The Illinois Principals Association named Leman Middle School Principal Lea Deluca, as Middle School Principal of the Year for the DuPage Region. (www.merleburl.com)
Renewal Church recently hosted Breakfast and Books with Santa at Gary Elementary School. More than 200 families received free books and pictures with Santa. (www.merleburl.com)
Santa and his special helper Pat Wilson, former secretary at Indian Knoll Elementary School, enjoyed their thirtieth year of “Cookies with Santa” at the School. (www.merleburl.com)
Gary School kindergarten teacher Michelle Lewis received the MVP KIDS Award at the KIDS Summit. Nominating Lewis was her mentor Pat Chamberlain. KIDS is an observational tool designed to help teachers, administrators, families and policymakers with a better understanding of the developmental awareness of children entering kindergarten. (www.merleburl.com)
Currier Elementary School, 899 Gary’s Mill Road, celebrated their 25th Anniversary Tuesday, December 10, 2019. Attending the special assembly were the first principal, Dr. Vicky Zarillo, along with other former staff, District Superintendent Kristina Davis, Mayor Ruben Pineda and State Representative Karina Villa (D-49). Doug Orlyk, Media Specialist, performed a song he wrote. (www.merleburl.com)
We Go Wildcats Special Olympics Wildcats Club basketball team won the game against School District 200 with a score of 38-32.
The 56 year-old Pheasant Run Resort is now on the auction block with an online auction scheduled to take place Monday, January 27 through Wednesday, January 29, 2020. The bidding starts at $2 million according to the website ten-x.com.
My email is merleburl@earthlink.net.