HP_011917

10 | January 19, 2017 | The highland park landmark news
hplandmark.com
THE NORTHBROOK TOWER
Northbrook Holocaust
survivor releases memoir
For many years, Holocaust
survivor Irene Rogers
dreamed of finding her
parents’ and little sister’s
burial place in Andijan,
Uzbekistan. Both had died
from disease after escaping
the Nazis.
Finally, in 1998, she and
her husband, Gerald, realized
that dream, traveling
challenging roads and absorbing
cultures in regions
rarely explored by Westerners.
Now, the Northbrook
resident has written a
memoir about that remarkable
journey. But “Finding
Peace Is My Revenge”
(Balboa Press, 2016) is
far more than just a travelogue.
Rather, it takes on
multiple missions.
On the one hand, the
book “shares a true story
of the indomitable human
spirit, teaches lessons of
acceptance and respect,
and offers hope through
hardships.”
But it speaks in somber
tones, as well.
“By writing this book, I
wanted to bring attention
to the injustices perpetrated
on six and a half million
Jews and our families.
This experience brought
us hunger, diseases as
child and a loss of almost a
hundred relatives that died
in ghettos, concentration
camps and diaspora,” she
said.
In addition, Rogers expressed
remorse about the
past and concerns about the
future.
“I do not believe World
War II taught the lesson
of how to reach out and
achieve peace,” she wrote.
Reporting by Alan P. Henry,
Freelance Reporter. Full
story at NorthbrookTower.
com.
THE LAKE FOREST LEADER
Survey reveals increase
in alcohol use by LFHS
students
The Lake Forest High
School District 115 Board
of Education reviewed the
results of the Illinois Youth
Survey at its regular meeting
Monday, Jan. 9. The
survey revealed Lake Forest
High School students
have more occurrences
of alcohol use and binge
drinking than state averages.
The survey, which was
taken in April 2016 and
has been taken every other
year since 2006, measures
the use of drugs and alcohol
among students, as
well as factors like participation
in activities, the
views of peers and parents
regarding drug and alcohol
use and mental health as it
applies to using drugs and
alcohol.
The results of the most
recent survey showed that
41 percent of sophomores
had consumed alcohol in
the past 30 days, up from
32 percent in 2014. Results
among seniors showed 60
percent had consumed alcohol
in the past 30 days,
up from 55 percent in
2014. Binge drinking had
also increased 7 percent
among sophomores and 6
percent among seniors.
“What we are seeing is
that we as a high school
seem to not be making a
large enough impact when
it comes to alcohol use,”
said John Maher, a dean
and department chairman
of student services.
The survey also showed
that participation in sports
or extracurricular activities
did not have the impact it
once did to deter students
from drinking alcohol.
Reporting by Christa Rooks,
Freelance Reporter. Full story
at LakeForestLeader.com.
THE WINNETKA CURRENT
Recess supervision
reassessed amidst parent
concern
The Sunset Ridge
School District 29 Board
of Education presented its
analysis of the indoor recess
procedures Tuesday,
Jan. 10, following a parent’s
concern questioning
supervision practices of
indoor recess at Middlefork
School.
While parent-raised
issues are not typically
board agenda items, Superintendent
Edward
Stange explained that the
nature of this request warranted
board investigation
and review.
“It’s a little unusual that
a parent concern would be
brought as an agenda item
to the board of education
is strange for our district,”
Stange said. “I can’t think
of in my three years that
I’ve ever brought a parent
concern to the board for a
discussion. This one, I felt
like, talks about and references
some aspects of our
philosophy — how many
recesses we offer – and it’s
so unusual in our building
compared to anyone else.”
Currently, Middlefork
School offers up to three
recesses per day for students
depending on grade
level, schedules and time
of year.
Middlefork’s indoor recesses
are structured by a
supervision schedule per
classroom. Roughly half
of the classrooms have
one adult administrator per
room, while the remaining
are allotted one adult supervisor
per two adjacent
classrooms, according
to Middlefork Principal
Mary Frances Greene. She
explained that there are a
couple outliers where one
adult is assigned to supervise
three classrooms.
However, the rooms in
those situations are able
to be monitored simultaneously
due to classroom
layout.
Reporting by Lauren Kiggins,
Freelance Reporter. Full
story at WinnetkaCurrent.
com.
THE WILMETTE BEACON
Park board approves tree,
water plant contracts
A pair of contracts were
approved on the consent
agenda at the Tuesday,
Jan. 10 Wilmette Village
Board meeting including
a contract in the amount
of $574,282 with CDM
Smith of Chicago for
engineering design and
bidding services associated
with the water plant
electrical improvements
project. Based on a water
system assessment study
performed by the Village
in 2015, the water plant
electrical improvements
project was identified as a
top priority in the capital
improvements program of
the water plant. A followup
conceptual study completed
in 2016 identified
the best options for the
placement of new backup
generators and modifications
to the electrical room.
Based on the findings
of these studies, this project
has been identified as
the highest priority capital
improvement at the water
plant due to the very
high-risk nature of a potential
electrical failure.
This project is estimated
to cost $7.7 million. It is
anticipated that the project
including the engineering
design will be funded
through an Illinois Environmental
Protection
Agency low interest loan.
The selected engineering
firm will assist the Village
in filing its application to
the IEPA. Failure to obtain
the loan would require
the Village to issue debt
to finance the project at a
higher interest rate.
Additionally, a two-year
contract at an estimated
cost of $86,350 distributed
between Mike Greco
Landscaping of Gurnee,
Arthur Weiler Nursery of
Zion and Acres Group of
Wauconda for tree planting
services was approved.
This contract provides for
parkway tree planting services,
which includes replacement
and cooperative
plantings for regular and
Emerald Ash Borer tree
removals.
Reporting by Todd Marver,
Freelance Reporter. Full
story at WilmetteBeacon.
com.
THE GLENCOE ANCHOR
New Trier Township to
host property tax town
hall
New Trier Township Assessor
Jan Churchwell and
Deputy Assessor Leonard
Shifflett will host an informational
seminar and town
hall meeting for residents
who have experienced difficulty
obtaining property
assessment information
from the Cook County
Clerk’s office at 7:30 p.m.
on Wednesday, Jan. 25, at
the Township Offices, 739
Elm St. in Winnetka.
Churchwell says she
hopes locals come to the
event to both learn more
about property tax assessment
issues as well as
work on improving the assessment
process itself.
“If you have had difficulties
getting information
from the Cook County
Assessor Joseph Berrios’
office, or complications
getting inaccuracies in the
assessment information
for your property corrected,
then this meeting is for
you,” Churchwell said.
Staff Reporting. Full story at
GlencoeAnchor.com.
THE GLENVIEW LANTERN
Special service area could
support curb, gutter
improvements
The Glenview Village
Board hosted a public
hearing regarding the
adoption of a special service
area to fund the installation
of curbs and gutters
in The Circles neighborhood
during its Tuesday,
Jan. 10 meeting.
Residents of the neighborhood
— which includes
80 households located
along Raleigh, Baffin,
Drake, York and Hudson
roads — voted 61-19 in
support of the project in
June 2016 after successfully
petitioning the Village
for improvements in
October 2015.
Establishing the special
service area, a taxing
mechanism that charges
residents within a specific
geographic area to fund
their own improvements,
will cover the entire residents’
share ($418,000),
which totals 50 percent of
the overall cost.
While the public hearing
gave residents a platform
to oppose the project, no
one used the opportunity
to address the board with
concerns or objections.
Per State law, the date of
the public hearing initiated
a 60-day mandatory waiting
period during which 51
percent of property owners
or electors may submit a
petition to stop the proceedings.
The item will appear
on the consent agenda for
final approval during the
next Village Board meeting
on Tuesday, Jan. 7.
Reporting by Chris Pullam,
Contributing Editor. Full
story at GlenviewLantern.
com.