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16 | March 1, 2018 | The frankfort station news frankfortstation.com FROM THE NEW LENOX PATRIOT Library emphasizes innovation, imagination in new makerspace New additions to the New Lenox Public Library’s makerspace are inspiring young minds to create, build and collaborate in an everexpanding area of the library. Gone are the days of silent libraries filled with only books and librarians hissing “shhh” to anyone speaking in voices louder than a whisper. Those who happen upon the makerspace in the youth services area of the library may hear the sounds of talking and laughing, as children and families find new ways to explore their creativity. The books have not gone anywhere, but more and more activities and learning opportunities are being integrated into library programming such as technology, arts and crafts and even social events. In the makerspace, children are challenged with a variety of activity prompts, but they also are given the freedom to create their own experiences. Dana Russell, manager of youth services at the library, said the area has been in the works for a few years now, but a recent memorial donation allowed them to purchase some new building toys and technology items. as well as build some things of their own. On the horizon for the makerspace are some iPad devices that are just about ready to be rolled out. The tablets will supplement other types of technology learning devices and toys already available to children in the makerspace that explore areas such as robotics, electrical circuits and engineering. “I think, traditionally, makerspaces provide and opportunity for people to create and work together,” Russell said. “Collaboration is kind of a core aspect of makerspaces.” Reporting by Amanda Stoll, Assistant Editor. For more, visit NewLenoxPa triot.com. FROM THE TINLEY JUNCTION TPFD set to receive top insurance rating A widely used statistical analysis firm that compiles risk data for insurance companies has recognized the Tinley Park Fire Department in its highest echelon of protection capabilities. Fire Chief Forest Reeder announced Feb. 20 that the department will receive a Class 1 Insurance Services Office classification, the highest rating on a scale of 10, which should result in property insurance reductions for residents and business owners. Formed in 1971 and acquired by Verisk Analytics in 2009, ISO formulates the Fire Suppression Rating Schedule, using standards set by the National Fire Protection Association and by evaluating four primary categories: fire department, emergency communications, water supply and community risk reduction. But its Public Protection Classification report is not made public. “I have the great privilege to represent the 100 plus members of Tinley Park Fire Department, both present and past, to let everyone know we have been recently evaluated as an Insurance Service Office, or ISO, Class 1 fire department, which places us in the less than 200 fire departments across the country of the 47,000 fire departments that are eligible for the rating,” Reeder said. The TPFD, established in 1901, has more than 125 personnel who serve around the clock in four fully-staffed stations around the Village. The department responds to nearly 3,000 fire emergencies and 5,000 emergency medical calls annually, according to information provided by the Village. The official presentation is to take place some time in March, but will not go into effect until July 1, Chief Reeder said. Reporting by Cody Mroczka, Editor. For more, visit TinleyJunction.com. FROM THE LOCKPORT LEGEND Third-grader gets ride to school in fire truck after winning contest Joey DiCiolla, a third-grader at Schilling School, has always wanted to be a firefighter when he grows up. “Then, I can go up the ladder and save people,” Joey said. The 8-year-old’s passion for the job paid off when he got to ride to school in a fire truck Thursday, Feb. 22, with four crew members of the Homer Township Fire Protection District. All classes in third and fourth grade at Schilling participated in a contest that instructed them to design a fire escape plan for their home. Joey’s plan caught the attention of Dave Bricker, division chief of fire prevention at HTFPD. “Part of knowing fire safety is having an escape plan and having two ways out,” Bricker said. “So, [the students] were just basically given the assignment of making an escape plan for your home, make sure you indicate two ways out of every room, and your meeting place. So they could have done a variety of things.” Joey created a large design with wired lights and plenty of detail showing his escape plan. “It was all accurate,” Bricker said. “The lights showed the exist paths and stuff. It was pretty cool.” Joey’s father, Joe, helped him over the course of four days to design the plan. Joey received the news that he won a ride in a fire truck the day before winter break in December and immediately called his father when he got home from school. “I was in a meeting, and he’s like, ‘Dad, dad, I won the fire truck,’” Joe said. Reporting by Assistant Editor Jacquelyn Schlabach. For more, visit LockportLegend.com. FROM THE HOMER HORIZON Homer resident enters into Saint Xavier University Athletics Hall of Fame When Kathy Young was just 11 years old, she would sit on her porch and watch across the street as girls her age practiced softball in the park. She would walk over and join their practices, playing the catcher position, which nobody preferred, or took the place of players who were not at practice. “I would do whatever they needed,” Young said. “They had missing players. I would play whatever position they needed.” Her love for the game only grew, as she went on to play second base at Saint Xavier University in Chicago for three seasons before graduating in 1990. She was captain her senior year, and she was also voted most valuable player her last season, earning National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics All- American honors. Young started every game in 1990, batting .332 with a .468 slugging percentage, according to the Saint Xavier athletics website. “As a player, I just enjoyed it so much,” Young said. “I just loved the game and loved competing and loved having my teammates out working for a common goal. After I graduated, I started coaching right away. So, I really never left the game.” The Homer Glen resident’s accomplishments throughout the years were recognized Feb. 17 at Saint Xavier University, when she was one of seven people inducted into the university’s Athletics Hall of Fame. “That’s the highest individual award you could receive from a university,” Young said. “So, it’s very, very special, and I’m very honored.” Reporting by Assistant Editor Jacquelyn Schlabach. For more, visit HomerHorizon.com. FROM THE MOKENA MESSENGER Board approves community relations liaison candidate, more After considerable discussion and a split 4-3 vote, the Mokena School District 159 Board of Education approved the hiring of a community relations liaison to assist the district in communication and fundraising. Nicole Swanberg is expected to begin next week with a variety of tasks assigned to her, including internal communications and those with parents and the community. She also will be tasked with serving as a liaison between the district and the media, researching and submitting grant proposals, coordinating crisis management communication, writing and editing content for the district’s website, and coordinating photography at programs and events. While board members agreed on the benefits of having someone in the position, members Jim Andresen, Anna Briscoe and Lisa Zielinski voted against the hiring based on general concerns about funding and incoming changes in district leadership with the hiring of a new superintendent. The board also approved the retirement of Eileen Parente, director of special education, at the end of the current school year. Parente has worked at D159 for six years, but spent 35 years working in public education and, more specifically, special education. Reporting by Assistant Editor Amanda Stoll. For more, visit MokenaMessen ger.com. FROM THE ORLAND PARK PRAIRIE Officials approve plans, special use permits for theater at mall A proposal for a new theater to be constructed at the Orland Square moved ever closer to happening Feb. 19, as the Orland Park Village Board of Trustees voted 5-1 to approve a host of plans and special use permits for the project. The petitioner, Seritage Growth Properties, is planning to construct a 10-screen, 49,777-square-foot AMC theater with approximately 100,000 square feet of remodeled retail space in the soon-to-be-vacant Sears lot in the mall. Trustee Kathleen Fenton — who earlier in the meeting explained her hesitation with the project — cast the dissenting ballot, while Trustee Michael Carroll chose to abstain from voting after arriving late to the meeting. The theater item was discussed during the Development Services, Planning & Engineering Committee meeting held earlier in the evening. Assistant Village Manager Karie Friling said the item was for approval of the site plan, preliminary landscape plan, elevations for the second floor of the Sears facility and a special use permit. She noted that it went before the Plan Commission a week prior and was recommended unanimously for approval. During the discussion, Fenton asked a number of questions of the developer. “I have a lot of questions, because I feel there was a lot of homework that wasn’t done here and [answers] that we don’t have,” Fenton said. Her concerns focused on whether Seritage would take businesses already leasing space from Simon Property Group (the operator of Orland Square), whether or not it could fill the space it was proposed to build, and security. Reporting by Jon DePaolis, Freelance Reporter. For more, visit OPPrairie. com.
frankfortstation.com sound off the frankfort station | March 1, 2018 | 17 Social snapshot Top Web Stories From FrankfortStation.com as of Monday, Feb. 26. 1. Lincoln-Way students selected to showcase artwork in Illinois High School Art Exhibition 2. Lincoln-Way District 210 chess teams attend state tournament 3. Lincoln-Way hopes to continue strong performance in playoffs 4. Host Griffins claim sectional crown at swim meet 5. LW East’s O’Rourke takes fifth at state Become a member: FrankfortStation.com/plus “Thank you Scales & Tails for visiting preschool today! We loved starting with chinchillas!” — Frankfort Square Park District from Feb. 122 Like The Frankfort Station: facebook.com/frankfortstation “Congrats to @LWEGirlsBball Head Coach Jim Martin. Inducted into the Staff Hall of Fame. Well done, Coach Martin. @ LWEGriffins” — @LWEAthletics from Feb. 20 Follow The Frankfort Station: @FrankfrtStation From the Editor Get out and vote in March Nuria Mathog nuria@frankfortstation.com Frankfort voters will have several decisions to make in the upcoming primary elections. Two resolutions will appear on the ballot: a Frankfort Park District land sale proposal and a Frankfort Square Park District proposal to issue $1.5 million in park bonds to improve parks and facilities. Three candidates — incumbent Board Speaker Jim Moustis, Board Member Cory Singer and Frankfort Village Trustee Keith Ogle — are competing for the two District 2 seats on the Will County Board, while Democrats Max Solomon, Debbie Meyers-Martin, Cecil Matthews Jr. and David Bonner have filed to run in a four-way race for the General Assembly District 38 seat. We have sent questionnaires to all of the candidates in contested primary races and plan to publish their responses in next week’s letters to the editor Treasure Chest Foundation thanks Frankfort organizations for support The mission of the Pediatric Oncology Treasure Chest Foundation is to provide comfort and distraction from painful procedures to children and teens who have been diagnosed with cancer by providing a toy, gift or gift card from a Treasure Chest. During this past December, two local businesses, two families, one school and an organization hosted holiday toy drives which resulted in an enormous donation of toys. Each year I am amazed by the fact that these organizations—all located within close proximity to our Orland Park headquarters—are able to provide enough toys to directly benefit more than 13,000 children and teens monthly at 52 children’s cancer treatment centers in 19 states across the nation. As the Founder and CEO of the Treasure Chest Foundation, I would like to convey my personal thanks and deep sense of gratitude to the following organizations: Brownie Troop 75153, Dunkin Donuts, Rich and Theresa Mommsen, Brandon Eppolito, KidsWork Children’s Museum and Peace Community Preschool MORTGAGE ALERT! CONTACT THE CLASSIFIED DEPARTMENT 708-326-9170 22ndcenturymedia.com edition of The Frankfort Station. I hope voters will take the time to read about and research all of the candidates participating in the primaries in advance of Election Day. While the deadline to register by mail or in-person has passed, residents can still register online through Sunday, March 4 or at their designated polling place on Election Day. Voters who opt for the latter option should keep in mind that they must present two forms of identification: one form of identification that shows their current name and address, such as a driver’s license, birth certificate or Social Security card, while the second all located in Frankfort. On behalf of the children and teens who have been diagnosed with cancer, the Treasure Chest Foundation Board of Directors and staff wish to thank the parents, students, staff and administration of our community schools along with the area businesses for their tremendous response. We truly feel blessed to have such support. Sincerely and with gratitude, Colleen M. Kisel Founder and CEO Pediatric Oncology Treasure Chest Foundation LOCK-IN MORE BUSINESS. ADVERTISE LOCALLY. form of identification can be a piece of mail that has been postmarked within the last 30 days. I hope to see a strong turnout from Frankfort voters on March 20 — after all, voting is a crucial part of the democratic process, and one of the simplest and most important ways for citizens to make their voice heard in local politics. I am also glad to see a variety of candidates participating in local races and bringing healthy competition to our elections. Sound Off Policy Editorials and columns are the opinions of the author. Pieces from 22nd Century Media are the thoughts of the company as a whole. The Frankfort Station encourages readers to write letters to Sound Off. All letters must be signed, and names and hometowns will be published. We also ask that writers include their address and phone number for verification, not publication. Letters should be limited to 400 words. The Frankfort Station reserves the right to edit letters. Letters become property of The Frankfort Station. Letters that are published do not reflect the thoughts and views of The Frankfort Station. Letters can be mailed to: The Frankfort Station, 11516 West 183rd Street, Unit SW Office Condo #3, Orland Park, Illinois, 60467. Fax letters to (708) 326-9179 or e-mail to nuria@frankfortstation.com. www.frankfortstation.com.
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