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16 | November 10, 2016 | The Homer Horizon news
homerhorizon.com
Police Reports
Tractor, trailer reported
stolen from Morris Park
A chain-link fence was
disassembled and a 1988
Kubota groundskeeping
tractor as well as a trailer
were stolen Oct. 19 at Morris
Park, 15365 W. 163rd
St., according to police.
The tractor and trailer were
owned by the Homer Soccer
Club, police said.
Oct. 27
•Jeffrey T. Leach, 26, of
16463 Craig Drive in Oak
Forest, was cited for allegedly
driving at S. Gougar
Road and W. Shady Lane
while his license was suspended.
Oct. 24
•Christian Jimenez-Corona,
25, of 15309 S. Sulky Drive
in Homer Glen, was cited
for reportedly speeding and
not having a valid driver’s
license at S. Rosarie Drive
and W. 151st St.
•Between the hours of 4-6
p.m., a vehicle was reportedly
broken into and had a
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purse stolen from the trunk
at Bengtson’s Pumpkin
Farm, 13341 W. 151st St.
Oct. 20
•Two men — who police
described as white and Hispanic
— along with one
woman — who police described
as white — reportedly
entered the Meijer at
14169 S. Bell Road and
placed three bottles of Johnnie
Walker, five bottles of
Hennessy, two bottles of
Patrón, one bottle of Jack
Daniel’s and one bottle of
Rémy Martin into their cart
and left the store without
paying. The trio was allegedly
observed leaving in a
tan Chevy Cavalier.
Oct. 19
•A home was reportedly
broken into on the 14000
block of S. Independence
Way and had jewelry and
cash stolen.
•Stephen Rubens, 61, of
17501 S. Crystal Lake Drive
Sherry Ranieri
in Homer Glen, was cited
for reportedly disregarding
a traffic control device, no
valid registration, operating
an uninsured motor
vehicle and driving while
his license was suspended
at W. 159th St. and S. Bell
Road.
Oct. 18
•Two men — who police
described as white and Hispanic
— reportedly entered
the Meijer at 14169 S. Bell
Road and filled their basket
with one bottle of Canadian
whisky, one bottle of scotch,
five bottles of cognac and
a bottle of vodka. The two
then allegedly left the store
without paying.
Editor’s note: The Homer
Horizon’s police reports come
from the Will County Sheriff’s
Department’s online news bulletin
service. Anyone listed in
these reports is considered to
be innocent of all charges until
proven guilty in a court of law.
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FROM THE LOCKPORT LEGEND
Lockport Prairie closes to
improve endangered species
habitat
The Lockport Prairie Nature
Preserve is to be closed
for most of the winter to
remove power lines in order
to improve the habitat
of endangered and globally
rare wildlife.
The LPNP closed Nov.
1 and is expected to stay
that way until March
2017, allowing ComEd
to remove existing utility
poles that are bisecting the
prairie, allowing for
restoration of the preserve
and conditions for the
endangered Hine’s emerald
dragonfly.
Roughly 5 miles of poles
will be cut at ground level
and lifted by helicopter
from the 320-acre preserve
to ensure its rare dolomite
prairie is not disturbed. The
poles will be dismantled,
stored in dumpsters and
then removed from the site,
according to Ralph Schultz,
chief operating officer of
the Forest Preserve District
of Will County.
The ComEd removal
is primarily aimed at
restoring and maintaining
habitats occupied by the
federally-endangered
Hine’s emerald dragonfly,
the only dragonfly on the
endangered species list. The
dragonfly’s habitat is unique
and occurs in globally rare
areas such as the Lockport
Prairie, said Kristopher
Lah, U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service endangered species
coordinator.
In Illinois, the adult population
of the dragonfly is
between 80 and 320 individuals,
Lah said, which is
“extremely small.”
“Its numbers are really
low and are in a downward
trajectory,” he said.
Reporting by Kirsten Onsgard,
Assistant Editor. For more, visit
LockportLegend.com.
FROM THE FRANKFORT STATION
Former Lincoln-Way East
soccer coach hired to coach
at Downers Grove North
Illinois soccer legend
and former Lincoln-Way
Community High School
District 210 teacher Brian
Papa may have retired at
the end of this past school
year, but that does not mean
he is ready to hang up his
whistle.
Papa, who most recently
coached the Lincoln-Way
East girls soccer team and
worked an assistant coach
on East’s boys squad, has
been hired to lead the girls
program at Downers Grove
North High School. Papa
remains officially retired,
since he will not be teaching
at North, but he made the decision
to bring his coaching
skills to the girls program
earlier this fall.
“I know I retired, but I still
got some [coaching] years
left,” Papa said in a phone
interview Oct. 28.
Papa said before he
went on vacation this past
summer, he received offers
from a couple of schools
to continue his coaching
career. Papa interviewed
with Downers Grove North,
and things progressed from
there.
“I got to meet some of the
kids, and they really took
[the interview] seriously,”
Papa said. “I’ve never went
through an interview process
like that, so I was really impressed.”
For Papa it is a fresh start,
but he won’t be “reinventing
the wheel.”
“Soccer is a simple game,”
he said. “I’m not going to
walk in and say, ‘This is
what works for me.’ No, it is
what works best for the kids.
I definitely want to make
sure they are comfortable,
and I’ve got to identify
talent. I have to see what we
have, and then I have to fit
the system to the kids. Then,
we can go from there.”
Reporting by Jon DePaolis,
Freelance Reporter. For more,
visit FrankfortStation.com.
FROM THE ORLAND PARK PRAIRIE
Orland Park Crossing
highlights trick-or-treating,
family fun
The Orland Park Crossing
shopping center was bustling
the afternoon of Oct. 30, as
businesses were busy filling
the treat bags of local children,
as they trick-or-treated
from business to business
throughout the center.
The Orland Park Crossing
shopping center hosted an
afternoon of Halloween family
fun that day, and hundreds
of families from Orland Park
and surrounding communities
dressed up in their Halloween
costumes to trick-ortreat
at the shopping center.
“We like to have an opportunity
for kids to be able to
dress up and walk around,”
said Ramzi Hassan, vice
president and principal of
Edwards Realty Co., owner
of Orland Park Crossing. “As
a parent, you spend a lot of
money on costumes. ... This
is another opportunity to get
a little more bang for your
buck.”
The Halloween event also
included a stilt walker, a balloon
artist and a station for
participants to decorate miniature
pumpkins.
Michelle and James Overfelt,
Palos Hills residents,
brought their 3-year-old son
Noah to trick-or-treat at the
event.
“He’s little, and it’s a nice
little area to come out to,”
Michelle said. “This is perfect
for a 3-year-old.”
The shopping center is to
host the Santa Holly Trolley
from 1-3 p.m. Dec. 11. Information
about the community
events hosted by the Orland
Park Crossing shopping
center can be found online
at shoporlandparkcrossing.
com.
Reporting by Amanda Del
Buono, Freelance Reporter.
For more, visit OPPrairie.com.