FF_051619

18 | May 16, 2019 | the frankfort station news
frankfortstation.com
FROM THE ORLAND PARK PRAIRIE
Joe La Margo out as
Village manager at first
meeting for new officials
The search is once again
on for a new Village manager
after the Orland Park
Village Board voted 6-1 on
May 6 to accept the resignation
of Joe La Margo.
The vote came after a
short executive session,
after which Trustee Dan
Calandriello cast the lone
dissenting vote.
After the meeting, La
Margo said he was asked to
resign by Mayor Keith Pekau
shortly after the April
election.
“It was within two days
[after] the election, but he
has been a gentleman about
it,” La Margo said.
La Margo said he met
with all three of the newly
elected trustees recently
and that he thought he
would have been able to
work with them had he
continued working as Village
manager.
“They really do seem to
have a passion for the community,”
he said. “I wish
them the best.”
La Margo worked for the
Village for 13 years and
has lived in town for nearly
20 years.
After the meeting, Pekau
said there was no specific
thing about La Margo that
led to the decision to ask
the Village manager to resign,
and the mayor said he
would not comment on La
Margo’s job performance.
Pekau said the reason it
was on the May 6 agenda
— the first at which the
newly elected trustees were
seated — was to move the
Village forward.
Reporting by Jon DePaolis,
Freelance Reporter. For
more, visit OPPrairie.com.
FROM THE TINLEY JUNCTION
Odyssey Golf Foundation’s
community 5K fundraiser
set for May 19
There are many organizations
dedicated to helping
veterans cope with
post-traumatic stress disorder
and other disabilities
they must manage after returning
to civilian life.
Right in Tinley Park, the
Odyssey Golf Foundation
is working to do just that by
allowing veterans to golf
on a closed course among
their peers.
The five-year-old
501(c)3 organization is
headquartered at the Odyssey
Golf Foundation Golf
Course and supports roughly
1,300 veteran members.
“Our mission is to assist
veterans and individuals
with disabilities, and give
them the opportunity to
come and play golf at the
golf course, and it’s been
a very good experience for
everybody,” said Dakota
Stariha, who is the event
coordinator for an upcoming
5K fundraiser. “We
provide therapeutic services
through golf, so we have
outings every single week
for the summer.”
With its cause of providing
therapy through sport,
the foundation is hosting its
first community 5K fundraising
event, Run Fore the
Greater Good 5K. The 5K
walk/run is to take place
Sunday, May 19, with all
proceeds benefiting the
Odyssey Golf Foundation.
The 5K will take place at
8 a.m., with check-in and
registration starting at 7:15
a.m. The course will span
the Odyssey Golf Foundation
Golf Course, with
parking available at 19111
Oak Park Ave. in Tinley
Park. The cost of entry
for runners and walkers is
$25, and registration can
be completed at Odyssey
GolfFoundation.org/5K.
Reporting by Amanda
Del Buono, Freelance
Reporter. For more, visit
TinleyJunction.com.
FROM THE MOKENA MESSENGER
Alleged blackface incident
draws mixed responses
from community
A photo surfaced May 4
on Instagram that reportedly
shows Lincoln-Way
Central students in what
some people think to be
blackface at the Speedway
on Front Street and Wolf
Road in Mokena.
The photo appeared
to show three Caucasian
youths wearing black volcanic
ash charcoal acne
masks while inside of a
vehicle.
Mokena Police were
notified of the situation
and declined to pursue a
criminal investigation, but
referred the matter to a
resource officer with Lincoln-Way
D210, according
to Mokena Police Chief
Steve Vaccaro.
Mokena Mayor Frank
Fleischer said that while
the actions of the students
may have been ill-advised,
there was “no reason [for
anyone] to be offended,”
adding that, “There’s no
law or ordinance against
stupidity.”
The person who posted
the Instagram photo, Sylvester
Williams, said he
did so not to “bash” the
students but, rather, to
bring the adults of the community
together to have a
conversation about racial
issues.
“I live in the area, and
I know how the area can
sometimes be,” Williams
said. “I know that there are
good people and bad people
everywhere; however,
this was a situation that had
just came up with the high
school not to far away,
Homewood-Flossmoor. …
These are things that have
been in the news, have
been in the media, and for
the young people to still do
it, to say, ‘Hey, it’s not a
big deal; it’s just a charcoal
mask,’ is kind of like a way
of brushing it off and saying
that it’s OK.”
Reporting by T.J. Kremer
III, Editor. For more, visit
MokenaMessenger.com.
FROM THE NEW LENOX PATRIOT
Triple Play Concert tickets
still available, but going
fast
If any resident is still
considering buying tickets
for the Triple Play Concert
Series, they are in luck,
because some tickets still
remain but will for much
longer, Mayor Tim Baldermann
said.
Tickets for all three con-
Please see nfyn, 19
police
From Page 7
lice Chief Kevin Keegan
said the loss prevention
officer saw Bernacki enter
the store alone and recognized
him from previous
incidents of theft at other
Mariano’s locations.
Bernacki allegedly
placed several bottles of
alcohol, toiletries and food
products into a shopping
cart and headed toward
the store exit with the cart
without making a purchase
When the loss prevention
officer tried to detain
him, he reportedly pushed
the officer in the chest,
causing both men to fall
against the wall, and began
to pull the officer’s fingers
back towards his wrist before
attempting to headbutt
the officer
The two men fell a second
time, but this time, the
officer was able to wrap
his arms around Bernacki,
gain control, and escort
Bernacki to the store’s loss
prevention office to wait
for the police, Keegan said.
The merchandise was
valued at about $690.
May 5
• Oliver J. Kearns, 20, of
4936 N. Mont Clare Ave.
in Chicago, was charged
with felony possessio nof
cannabis and felony possession
of a controlled
substance, and Isaiah L.
Rolon, 20, of 5149 N.
Leclaire Ave. in Chicago,
was charged with felony
possession of cannabis.
Keegan said an officer
responded to the Frankfort
McDonald’s located at
21011 S. La Grange Road
in reference to an anonymous
complaint of people
smoking marijuana.
The officer observed
a white Honda Prelude
parked on the south side
of the business and noted
a strong odor of raw cannabis
emitting from the vehicle,
which was occupied
by three subjects.
A search of the vehicle
allegedly revealed 11 individual
bags of suspected
cannabis, along with a prerolled
blunt and an edible
cannabis cookie. The total
weight of all the cannabis,
excluding the cookie,
amounted to 321.9 grams.
Additionally, 37 tabs
of suspected LSD and 5
grams of suspected psilocybin
mushrooms were reportedly
discovered in the
vehicle.
Kearns was identified
as the owner of the LSD,
psilocybin mushrooms and
half of the cannabis, while
the remaining cannabis belonged
to Rolon, Keegan
said. The third suspect was
released without charges.
April 30
• Julie L. Gaines, 41, of
551 Tanglewood Lane in
Frankfort, was cited in the
area of Laraway and La
Grange roads for alleged
failure to reduce speed to
avoid an accident, illegal
transportation of alcohol,
DUI and having a blood
alcohol content above .08.
According to Keegan, police
were dispatched to
the intersection regarding
an accident. Upon arrival,
the officer observed a gray
Kia Forte with front end
damage and a black Honda
Pilot SUV with rear end
damage.
The driver of the Kia,
identified as Gaines, told
police she attempted to
stop in the left turn lane
for the red light on eastbound
Laraway Road at
La Grange Road when she
slid on the wet pavement
and rear-ended the Honda,
Keegan said.
Gaines allegedly had difficulty
verbalizing what had
occurred and had slurred,
slow speech, and the officer
noted a strong odor of
alcohol coming from her
breath and person.
Gaines was taken into custody
after reportedly failing
field sobriety testing
and allegedly had a blood
alcohol concentration
more than double the legal
limit.
EDITOR’S NOTE: The
Frankfort Station’s Police
Reports are compiled
from official reports found
online on the Frankfort
Police Department’s
website or releases issued
by the department and
other agencies. Individuals
named in these reports are
considered innocent of all
charges until proven guilty in
a court of law.