OP_092916

16 | September 29, 2016 | The orland park prairie News
opprairie.com
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For more information,
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FROM THE TINLEY JUNCTION
Parent company of Kmart
announces plans to close
store’s Tinley location
Kmart recently announced
the closing of 64 stores nationwide,
and one store may
fall a bit too close for area
residents.
The Kmart located at
16300 Harlem Ave. in Tinley
Park, is one of six locations
that will close throughout
the state of Illinois. The store
began the liquidation sale on
Sept. 22 as part of the initial
closing process, and is expected
to close its doors in
mid-December.
Sears Holdings Company,
who merged with Kmart on
March 24, 2005, has been
evaluating the performance
of their stores, and made the
“difficult decision” to close
those that were deemed “unprofitable”
according to an
email by Howard Reifs, director
of corporate communications.
Trudy Wrzesinski is one
within the Tinley Park community
less than thrilled to
hear about the closing.
“I’ve been going here for
several decades, and you always
feel comfortable going
to a store that you’re familiar
with, and the [employees]
have always been nice,”
Wrzesinski said.
While Sears wouldn’t release
how many store associates
will be affected by the
closing, they did say that a
majority of the staff are parttime
or hourly employees.
“Those associates that are
eligible will receive severance
and have the opportunity
to apply for open positions
at area Sears or Kmart
stores,” Reifs stated.
Reporting by Brittany Kapa,
Assistant Editor. For more, visit
TinleyJunction.com.
FROM THE HOMER HORIZON
Bengtson’s Pumpkin Fest
continues to grow in 36th
fall season
Jeremy Bengtson has
more than 10 months each
year between seasons at
Bengtson’s Pumpkin Fest,
and the hardest part about
his job is waiting to fulfill all
his dreams for the 35-yearold
Homer Glen attraction.
“I wish we had 400 acres;
I wish we had all the money
in the universe so we could
just build our dreams today,
because it would be awesome,”
he said. “Waiting to
do the things we want to do
is the hardest thing.”
The Bengtsons continue
to look to the future for their
festival — one of the oldest
fall festivals in Illinois
— which began its 36th fall
season Sept. 17.
This year, the festival is
also open later than in previous
years: until 9 p.m.
Mondays through Saturdays,
and 8 p.m. on Sundays. A
discount admission price of
$9.99 is also now available
for most Mondays through
Thursdays. Bengtson said
this is to encourage more
guests to come during the
week in the hopes of reducing
weekend crowds.
The festival also added a
second children’s train ride,
food vendors and a chicken
coop, in addition to more
trees and land improvements,
said Pam Bengtson,
Jeremy’s aunt.
Last December, the Bengtsons
purchased the land they
had previously leased after it
went into foreclosure, which
expanded the farm’s property
to 80 acres.
For now, much of that land
is being used as a hay field,
but it has meant for “safer
and more efficient” parking
this year, Bengtson said.
For more information, visit
www.pumpkinfarm.com.
Reporting by Kirsten Onsgard,
Assistant Editor. For more, visit
HomerHorizon.com.
FROM THE MOKENA MESSENGER
Mokena residents get chance
to meet fire professionals
Assistant Fire Chief Joe
Cirelli, of the Mokena Fire
Protection District, wants
Mokena residents to join
his firefighters at the annual
open house on Sunday, Oct.
2, at Fire Station, #1, 19853
S. Wolf Road.
From 8 a.m. to noon, attendees
of all ages will have
the opportunity to meet Cirelli’s
team, ask them questions,
see their equipment
and vehicles and learn about
fire safety. The event centers
on showing guests what the
MFPD does for its community.
The event is also an allyou-can-eat
pancake breakfast.
The cost to attend is $5
for adults and $3 for children
between the age of 4 and 12;
children 3 and under are free.
“We make all the food
ourselves,” Cirelli said.
The MFPD has also invited
the Mokena Lions
Club to join in on the morning
affair. The club – whose
mission is focused on helping
those with vision and
hearing impairments – is to
bring a hearing bus, where
patrons can take a hearing
test administered by a Lions
volunteer.
The bus, which is provided
by the Lions of Illinois
Foundation, can accommodate
between six and eight
people at a time, and the test
itself should take roughly 10
minutes.
The MFPD is collecting
nonperishable items to donate
to the Frankfort Township
Food Pantry.
“We’re always grateful for
any donations that we get
and that people do remember
us and think about us,”
food pantry Director Jeannine
Hetfleisch said, noting
charitable acts like these and
partnering with local groups
helps replenish the pantry’s
stocks year-round.
Reporting by F. Amanda
Tugade, Assistant Editor. For
more, visit MokenaMessenger.
com.
LaGrange Road Widening construction to impact 159th
Street though 131st Street for the next several weeks
Submitted by Village of
Orland Park
For the next several
weeks, multiple crews will
be working on LaGrange
Road north of 159th Street
through 131st Street in both
the north and southbound
directions. Work includes
median curb and gutter,
median concrete nose installation,
brick paver stone
placement, parkway grading,
tree pit excavation,
parkway sidewalk installation
and street lighting.
Most of this work will require
a lane closure to be
able to maneuver equipment,
material trucks and
provide a safe area for
crews to work.
Sidewalk and street lighting
work is ongoing along
the parkways of the side
streets throughout the corridor.