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10 | September 21, 2017 | The New Lenox Patriot New Lenox newlenoxpatriot.com Choice A Always Home Would Like To Welcome Melissa Kingsbury! Melissa Kingsbury 312-480-1350 • melkingbury27@gmail.com Melissa is a long-time resident of the Lincoln-Way area. Her Master’s Degree in IT, along with her experience in finance and education, will bring great value to the Always Home Team! THE GRANITE & MARBLE DEPOT INC. Cabinets • Granite • Marble • Tile • Custom Showers • Fireplaces Stop by and view more than 200 samples! We have more than 350 full slabs of natural stone and quartz and thousands of remnants in our indoor showroom. State of art precision equipment for a custom fit. Starting at: GRANITE $ 35 sqft QUARTZ $ 39 sqft 10 Colors 5 Colors Stacie McGlone Managing Broker/Owner 773.213.1150 Buying • Selling • Staging • Rentals • Property Management from the $180’s Brendan McGlone Broker/Owner 773.213.5181 Kevin Maney Broker 708.525.6778 Carrie Maney Broker 815.592.4652 Julia Labuda Broker 773.732.5629 301 N. White St., Suite A • Frankfort, IL 60423 Kevin McWilliams Broker 815.351.3440 815-534-5321 • ALWAYSHOME247.COM Designed With You In Mind (while supplies last, see an associate for details. Restrictions apply. Valid thru 10/21/17. FREE estimates and design ideas by our experienced on staff interior designers FREE 16 Gauge Undermount Stainless Steel Sinks and 15 Year Sealer * FREE removal of your existing laminate countertops * The Granite & Marble Depot *Min. Purchase of 45 sq.ft. of Countertops. Restrictions Apply- See Store for Details Valid thru 10/21/17. OR 19636 97th Ave. ~ Suite 1 • Mokena Showroom Hours M-F 8am-5pm • Sat. 9am-1pm • Sunday Closed A RATING 708-479-7770 • mygranite.com n Our open floor plans allow you to customize your home to fit your dreams and desires. n Ranch and 2-story townhomes feature a first floor master along In an established neighborhood on Joliet’s with West additional Side, these bedrooms. gorgeous ranch and 2-story designs are built the n Townhomes way they used worth to be. the drive, and • Energy Star rated, with 2x6 construction the ultimate in easy-living luxury. • Great neighborhood, close to public and parochial Ranch schools and and the University of St. Francis Two-story Townhomes • Experienced builder with tradition of quality from the communities mid $300’s in Chicagoland suburbs Located on the East Side of Parker Rd. Raynor Park in Joliet: Take Rte 53 to Theodore St. in Joliet, at turn 146th west St. 1 (across mile to the Hosmer street St., turn south 2 blocks to model at 1315 Hosmer from St. Open Culver Sat Park). & Sun, Sales 12-5 Off ice is at 14640 Aster Lane in Homer Glen. Phone: 630-323-7600 www.greystonehomesllc.com Phone: 630-381-1100 www.amberfieldcommunity.com HOMER GLEN New Homes, Old-Fashioned Quality Open Fri. – Tues. 11-5 or by appointment.
newlenoxpatriot.com News the New Lenox Patriot | September 21, 2017 | 11 ‘It’s OK to not be OK’ ForeverU builds support systems to tackle bullying Jason Maholy Freelance Reporter Early during his years as a student at Lincoln-Way East High School, Ryan Hesslau fell in with what he referred to as “the wrong crowds” and caved to the peer pressures many youths face during a period of life often filled with uncertainty, anxiety and insecurity. Fortunately for Hesslau, he was self-aware enough to soon realize that his behavior was driven by a fear of rejection and the need to be accepted. He broke away from the path he had taken, and instead of trying to fill his personal voids with superficial remedies, substituted for those by volunteering, mentoring and otherwise focusing on “the goodness of helping people.” “I was going through a transitional phase,” Hesslau, of Mokena, said about his life before his awakening. “And I became someone I wasn’t intended to be.” When he was 16, he created a Facebook page he dubbed ForeverU, which he hoped would bring together teens going through tough times and being victimized by bullies. The grassroots club had difficulty gaining traction at first – “We had meeting after meeting and people weren’t showing up,” Hesslau said – but people eventually took notice and started paying attention to the work Hesslau was doing. Five years after Hesslau founded that Facebook page, ForeverU on Saturday, Sept. 9 held its fourth 5k fundraiser. More than 50 people walked or ran the trail at Hickory Creek Barrens, at A group of people set out to walk the 3.1 miles of the fourth annual ForeverU 5K. the northeast corner of Route 30 and Schoolhouse Road, in support of the nonprofit organization’s cause. Hesslau acknowledged the growth and success of ForeverU is more than he ever anticipated it would become. The group – the mission for which Hesslau stated is “to ensure no student walks through life alone” – was recently rebranded as a youth empowerment organization and offers youth development programs, cultivates peer-to-peer communities and encourages students to embrace their lives, regardless of how imperfect they may seem. “I just wanted to use social media as a tool to deliver hope to the hurting, and from that point forward I began to recognize how much of an issue bullying was, and also how many students were struggling with various aspects of mental health,” he said. “I really wanted to do what I could to be a vessel of creating change and delivering hope to these students.” Hesslau’s message to youths facing challenges in their lives is to rise up and understand they are not defined by those battles, but Ryan Hesslau, a Lincoln-Way alumnus, speaks to participants of the ForeverU 5k on Sept. 9. Hesslau founded ForeverU as a Facebook page in 2012 as a means to provide support for teens facing bullying and other challenges in their lives. Photos by Jason Maholy/22nd Century Media Debbie Ribbons leads a pack of runners at the start of the ForeverU 5K, held Sept. 9 at Hickory Creek Barrens in New Lenox. can use those personal trials to help refine their perspectives on life. “We want to empower them to be courageous with that story they’re living, and how to show this world what they’re made of; even though there are times we feel we’re going through pain, hurt and hang-ups,” he said. “We’re teaching students it’s OK to not be OK. We all have our problems, but we’re living one heck of a story, a wild adventure and wild journey.” Hesslau is a senior majoring in entrepreneurial management at Trinity Christian College in Palos Heights. He plans to make ForeverU his full-time gig after graduation. Alyssa Whyard was one of several Trinity students who attended the 5k to support their friend and his organization. “I think it’s just a good way to promote that you’re more than what the world may say you are, and that you have value in your life,” Whyard said of ForeverU. “There’s trials that you’re going to go through, but you can always pull through them.” Mokena resident Kathy Wilson walked the 3.1 miles with three friends, and was particularly drawn to ForeverU’s cause because of its antibullying efforts. She said she appreciates the organization’s messages of strength in numbers and people empathizing with one another to let them know they’re not alone. “It’s a fabulous organization and it’s a great message that needs to be heard,” Wilson said. “Kids get bullied every day – in high school, in life, in grammar school. It starts young, and now with social media and all of the different avenues that can be taken to bully, it happens even worse now. I was bullied in high school, and I feel for these kids that have to deal with it on social media.” Jennie Sweeney is a fourthgrade teacher in Dolton, and sees first-hand the effects of bullying on children. “I see the tears, and I just try to explain to the kids it’s not acceptable, and it is hurtful,” said Sweeney, of Mokena. “When we grew up we had ‘sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me,’ but it does hurt and it’s something that’s permanent. Even as an adult I can remember the kids that picked on me. We need to build each other up and make each other better people, and encourage each other to be stronger.”
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