14 | January 24, 2019 | The winnetka Current Winnetka winnetkacurrent.com STAY INFORMED. STAY INVOLVED. STAY CURRENT. 80 MORE THAN %* OF YOUR NEIGHBORS AGREE is the No. 1 source for local news and information — once again. Direct Link *According to the annual Winnetka Caucus survey of residents Subscribe today at SubscribeWinnetka.com or 847.715.9163
winnetkacurrent.com SOUND OFF the winnetka current | January 24, 2019 | 15 Social snapshot Top Web Stories From winnetkacurrent.com as of Jan. 21 1. D36’s tax levy gets hiked nearly 3 percent 2. Third year of music fest to have new layout, acts 3. Winnetka, Northfield required to address affordable housing shortages 4. 10 Questions with Celia Satter, Loyola girls basketball 5. News From Your Neighbors: State trooper from Highland Park fatally struck on I-294 in Northbrook Become a Current Plus member: winnetkacurrent.com/plus Village of Winnetka posted on Jan. 18: “When Officer Beskur needed backup on his traffic stop today, Jonas pulled up to assist. Thanks for the help, Jonas! Like The Winnetka Current: facebook.com/ winnetkacurrent From the Sports Editor Overcoming hardships with the help of a local organization Michael Wojtychiw m.wojtychiw@22ndcenturymedia.com I sat here for a long time wondering on how to start this editorial. At the end, I just realized there’s no better way than just jumping right in. I had my first seizure at the young age of 3. Soon after, doctors diagnosed me as having a childhood seizure disorder, or epilepsy. For my family, this came as a shock because none of my relatives had ever had a history of seizures in the past. That set off years of going on and off of different medications, teasing and you name it. All of it led me to not tell many people about my diagnosis. In fact, I’m pretty sure some of my best friends, and possibly even family, don’t even know. Very few, if any, previous co-workers knew, my bosses at 22nd Century Media are the first bosses that have known, all because I wanted to be like everyone else, not someone that’s “different.” For those of you who know me, you know I’m pretty much a quiet and private person. So coming out and writing this editorial isn’t really something I thought I’d ever do. That changed three years ago at the War on the Shore. This past weekend, Evanston High School hosted the ninth annual War on the Shore, a basketball shootout featuring Loyola, New Trier and Evanston’s boys basketball teams against three teams from across Chicagoland. Proceeds from the shootout go to the Danny Did Foundation, a charity named after Danny Stanton and whose mission is to prevent deaths caused by seizures with these main goals in mind: advancing public awareness of Sudden Unexpected Death in Epilepsy (SUDEP), enhancing the SUDEP communication model between medical professionals and families afflicted by seizures, and the mainstreaming of seizure detection and prediction devices that may assist in preventing seizure-related deaths. After covering the 2017 version of the War on the Shore for our publications, I reached out to one of the co-founders of the charity, Tom Stanton, looking to see how I could get involved. Seeing a charity that had multiple connections to myself made me want to get involved. Soon after, I was invited to join the charity’s Young Professionals Board, on which I still serve to this day. Joining Danny Did has really helped me be able to talk about having seizures. I’m not afraid of what people might say anymore and that’s all a testament to what the charity does for everyone involved. I mean, a couple years ago I wouldn’t have told anybody. Luckily, I’ve been seizure-free since Sept. 8, 2002. For the complete editorial, visit WinnetkaCurrent.com. The Winnetka Current “A group of civics students are interviewing State Rep. Laura Fine this morning as part of their unit on effecting policy change! #GoTrevs” @NewTrier203, New Trier High School, posted on Jan. 18 Follow The Winnetka Current: @winnetkacurrent go figure 2 An intriguing number from this week’s edition The amount of homes honored Preservation Awards for rehabilitation. LETTER TO THE EDITOR Thank you, Winnetka Police We wish to express our deepest gratitude to Winnetka Police commander Brian O’Connell and the entire Winnetka Police Department. On the evening of Jan. 31, 2014, our daughter Sarah, 19, while walking with Bard College friends in upstate New York, was struck and killed by a drunk driver. Within hours, New York police contacted the Winnetka Police Department to report Sarah’s death. At approximately 4:30 a.m., commander O’Connell and two other officers knocked on our front door. We had no idea why they had come. Bravely and compassionately, Brian sat us down and delivered the horrific news. Our worst possible nightmare had come true. Through the difficult years since this tragedy, we have felt extremely grateful to commander O’Connell and the Winnetka Police Department. As crushing the experience of learning of our daughter’s death was, Brian’s duty to deliver this news must have been gut-wrenching. He too is a parent. Sarah was one of two girls killed by the drunk driver (a 63-year-old woman, second-time offender, now serving a seven-year prison sentence). Two days after the tragedy, when we met the other girl’s parents, they described how their local police had informed them of their daughter’s death. Their experience was a vague and impersonal phone call. In these times, we hear much negative publicity about the police. Often, the essential good things they do are overshadowed. We thank commander O’Connell and the Winnetka Police Department for their extraordinary professionalism and compassion. Andrew and Sandra McCausland, Winnetka residents 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 Winnetka Current 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 Winnetka Current reserves the right to edit letters. Letters become property of The Winnetka Current. Letters that are published do not reflect the thoughts and views of The Winnetka Current. Letters can be mailed to: The Winnetka Current, 60 Revere Drive Ste. 888, Northbrook, IL 60062. Email to megan@ winnetkacurrent.com.
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