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12 | February 27, 2020 | the orland Park Prairie news OPPrairiedaily.com FROM THE HOMER HORIZON LTHS recycling efforts the highlight of Challenge Accepted Summit Lockport Township High School students and teachers participated in the Challenge Accepted Summit on Jan 30. at Pontiac Township High School, where various Illinois high schools shared ways to reduce environmental impact. Teachers selected students from the Interact Club who had shown a particular interest in saving the environment and reducing waste, to put together a presentation for the summit. With the goal of preserving 30 percent of the world’s species and resources by the year 2030, students from across the state came looking for solutions to bring to their own schools. “We really wanted to bring back some new and fresh ideas,” said Sophia Marcial, a sophomore at the LTHS and member of Interact Club. “We also wanted to bring more awareness of our recycling program to our students.” The recycling program was a hit at the summit. Students from worked with the custodial staff to implement the program, which recycles paper, cardboard, aluminum and plastic bags in a specific receptacle. “We save the district about $20 a month with the program,” said Kathy Pratt, a Spanish teacher at LTHS. “There is a misconception that we don’t recycle. But it is all student-led, and they’re great problem solvers.” One problem students have encountered is a lack of community knowledge about the program. To remedy the issue, students proposed adding in an estimated 10-20 more plastic bag receptacles, as well as dedicating a week of school to raising environmental awareness. Reporting by Derek Swanson, Freelance Reporter. For more, visit HomerHorizon Daily.com. FROM THE NEW LENOX PATRIOT Boy raising money for Australian Wildfire relief Walking into Harrison Barker’s bedroom is like stepping into a jungle — but not in the way most 7-year-old’s rooms are. The New Lenox boy is the definition of an animal enthusiast. His room even START THE NEW YEAR BY ADVERTISING HERE CONTACT ADVERTISE YOUR BUSINESS IN The Orland Park Prairie DANA ANDERSON 708.326.9170 ext. 17 d.anderson@22ndcenturymedia.com ® has its own “zoo” — a wooden replica of a zoo’s exhibit cages — filled with stuffed animals. When Harrison heard about the Australian wildfires and how they are affecting the animals there, he knew he had to help. The soon-to-be 8-yearold set a goal of raising $600 by his birthday on March 16 to donate to relief efforts of Australian Wildlife. As of Feb. 24, he had raised $706.22. “I think he is the biggest animal enthusiast I’ve ever met,” said Rebecca Barker, Harrison’s mother. “When he learned about [the Australian wildfires] from a friend at school and the koalas were going to be possibly extinct, he got upset. But then, he got encouraged and said, ‘Well, how can I help?’” Rebecca found a program called Visionary Wildlife Warriors, which works in conjunction with the Australia Zoo Wildlife Warriors and the family of Steve Irwin to help children ages 4-17 learn more about animals, and raise awareness and funds to help them. Harrison enlisted the help of his parents to help spread the word about his fundraiser via social media. The Barkers reached out to friends and family and even went door-todoor to some of Harrison’s favorite local businesses. To donate to Harrison’s fundraiser or to learn more, visit vww2020.everyday hero.com/au/harrison. Reporting by Erin Redmond, Freelance Reporter. For more, visit NewLenoxPatriot Daily.com. FROM THE TINLEY JUNCTION Tinley-Frankfort girls BSA troop reflects on first year as group On Feb. 5, 2019, that Boy Scouts Troop 732 had its first official meeting. The all girls troop — which now has seven Scouts primarily from Tinley Park and Frankfort — is making a name for themselves as they continue to climb the ranks and achieve more milestones. According to Scoutmaster Dave Geekie, the Scouts have done greater than 70 hours of service in the last year, earned 38 merit badges and 14 rank advancements. “To be honest, I think the troop that we have now that’s growing together has probably achieved more things in the year than I thought they would initially,” Geekie said. “That’s ranks, merit badges and some of the outside experiences that we’ve done.” Lily Bonovich, a sixthgrader at Hilda Walker School in Tinley, said her favorite part of being a member of the troop is attending the meetings because she enjoys all the activities they do and seeing all of her new friends. “I see them normally when I go to troop, but there’s a few in the troop that go to the same school as me,” she said. Social snapshot Top Web Stories From opprairie.com as of Friday, Feb. 21 1. Men wearing masks, wielding handguns take vehicle by force in grocery store parking lot 2. Orland Park native to release country single about call from home 3. D135: Community survey shows diverse responses to lunchtime debate 4. Sandburg sends six wrestlers to state, Bosco stays perfect and Zimmer ties team pin record 5. Orland Park Village Board: Joint task force formed to battle crime amid political shots fired Become a Prairie Plus member: opprairie.com/plus Orland School District 135 posted the accompanying photo on Thursday, Feb. 20, with the note, “Last week, Jerling Junior High students participated in the American Heart Association’s Hoops for Heart program, raising $7,489.79! Congratulations on a job well done, and a special thanks to the PE department for organizing the fundraiser.” Like The Orland Park Prairie: facebook.com/opprairie “We are very proud of the efforts at each of our buildings. #WeAre146” @CCSD146Tweets — on Thursday, Feb. 20, in regard to our story on anti-bullying efforts Like The Orland Park Prairie: facebook.com/opprairie Lily’s mother, Anne, said they are a “Scouting family,” with her husband, Earl, as the Scoutmaster for boys Troop 237 and her son an Eagle Scout. “Seeing what my son went through, too, they do get a lot of skills,” Anne said. “From first aid to — you wouldn’t think tying knots would be useful, but it does become useful. They do the camping thing a lot, so they learn about cooking [and] cleaning up after themselves.” Reporting by Jacquelyn Schlabach, Editor. For more, visit TinleyJunctionDaily. com.
OPPrairiedaily.com sound off the orland park prairie | February 27, 2020 | 13 From the Editor ‘Next week on Orland Park...’ BILL JONES bill@opprairie.com If I were an optimist, someone who could “always look on the bright side of life” as it were, I’d say the silver lining is that at least Orland Parkers don’t need to leave home or tune into the debates to see a real spectacle. But I’m not. Meet “Paul O’Grady, citizen.” He is the Orland Township supervisor who finds himself in recent months tackling issues he has with the Village of Orland Park. While existing around the fringes of recent campaigns, he has long been rumored for a mayoral run of his own. Repainting the scene, if you will, with his comments on the Hope Covenant homeless shelter, his Facebook demands for action following a burglary at Joey’s, and his pitch to see the Pioneers moved to the vacant Andrew Corporation site. But any political ambitions rest in the middle of the road. He said he finds himself between no intention to run and “frustrated” with things happening around town. For now, there’s a signpost up ahead, and O’Grady’s next stop is the Sound Bite Zone. Scene 1 We open this episode on a shot of the Orland Park Village Board meeting from Feb. 17. A police task force has been approved with surrounding communities in the wake of thefts and burglaries across the area (Page 3). But the discussion doesn’t stop there. Flashback: O’Grady on Feb. 10 posted to Facebook following the recent burglary at Joey’s Red Hots — which he has since acknowledged he knows is on unincorporated land but argues is surrounded by Orland Park and thus Orland Park cops — “this has got to stop,” noting “crime in Orland Park seems to be on the rise” and “residents deserve to feel safe in their community, their homes and demand better protection from their police department.” Dissolve back to boardroom: Orland Park Police Chief Tim McCarthy defends against “misinformation” in the post, citing recent crime statistics. Your narrator: Reasonable response. McCarthy proceeds to mention an old Township employee embezzlement case handled by OPPD. Maybe unnecessary, but fair enough considering the recent callout of the Village. As is Mc- Carthy’s conclusion that O’Grady’s comment might have been “less about public safety and maybe more about something else.” I’d argue the Village officials had the high ground at this point, defending against a post that played more to a perception than facts. O’Grady all but admitted as much when I asked about the phrasing of the post. “Statistics? Do I have any data to back it up?” he said. “No, I don’t. But I read the news.” Had the scene ended there, I even would have raised the Village’s hand in victory, but then discussion veered into something questionable. Trustee Michael Milani presumably sought to shame O’Grady by asking the chief if it was true O’Grady’s car had been stolen from his driveway, unlocked and with the keys left in it. Recap: Milani just named a victim on the board floor (public official as he may be), in a roundabout way blamed said victim for becoming a victim (as much as yes, again, people need to lock their doors) and put the Village’s typically apolitical chief on the spot to answer a question like that. Mayor Keith Pekau piggybacked on those comments. And Trustee William Healy took the scene from bad to worse, bringing up a political action committee from last election and O’Grady’s attempts to stop the People Over Politics slate. Fine dialogue to be had at Papa Joe’s during election season but inappropriate for a boardroom. Though, O’Grady doesn’t much seem to care about it. He acknowledged that the burglary at his residence and the details are more or less being true. He also recognized that as a public official he is subject to more scrutiny. “I’ve been pretty vocal about it, so I’m not bothered by it,” he said. Scene 2 On-screen text: One day earlier… O’Grady pitches a plan for the Village to buy the vacant Andrew Corporation property and turn it into a permanent facility for the Orland Park Pioneers, who have recently been sparring with certain Village officials over where the program will go during and after John Humphrey Complex renovations. His plan pulls from an old Village study. It suggests the Village help fund it through grants. And it champions the Pioneers’ cause. Except, it’s light on details. “What is the value of the land?” O’Grady paraphrased my question. “I don’t know.” It also might not be something of real interest to the Pioneers. While Jenny Czerwonka, president of the Orland Park Pioneers Board, said the org is “open to any and all proposals that provide a safe quality facility for the boys and girls of Orland Park to practice and play games,” she understands there might be some environmental issues with that land, but declined to comment further because she didn’t know much about the proposal. When asked to clarify, Czerwonka early last week noted the first she 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 Orland Park Prairie 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 Orland Park Prairie reserves the right to edit letters. Letters become property of The Orland Park Prairie. Letters that are published do not reflect the thoughts and views of The Orland Park Prairie. Letters can be mailed to: The Orland Park Prairie, 11516 West 183rd Street, Unit SW Office Condo #3, Orland Park, Illinois, 60467. Fax letters to (708) 326-9179 or e-mail to bill@opprairie.com. saw of O’Grady’s plan was in a news story, and “he has never spoken to our organization.” O’Grady said he came up with the idea after speaking with some dads. He emailed it to one of them but acknowledged he was not certain it made it to the rest of the group. “I guess I inferred they forwarded this on,” he said. Cut to Narrator doing that Jim Halpert look. Fade to black. Scene 3 Open on close-up of O’Grady. “Part of me — this is just Paul O’Grady, citizen, trying to find a solution.” Ignoring, for a moment, that the Joey’s post came from a “Township supervisor” Facebook account, O’Grady — despite rumors that have swirled about a potential bid for mayor and his recent jabs at three major issues hanging over Orland Park — said he has no intention of running for Village office. Then, he hedged his bet in the same breath. “I have no plans to run for mayor at this point,” he says. “That may change.” Later: “I just think we need to be more forward-thinking. I’m invested in my community. I have spoken out on issues I would have been quiet about in the past [because] I’m getting frustrated.” O’Grady said crime is a big part of that frustration. He said he had a stolen car found in the city’s Englewood neighborhood, and he found that to be an “alarming” sign of people from outside of the village coming here to commit crimes. “This isn’t neighborhood kids ransacking cars and looking for loose change,” he said. He brings up what became of Orland Park’s Triangle project, the town’s focus on the mall and more, suggesting either his frustrations truly are boiling over or... “I’m talking about this as Paul O’Grady, citizen,” he insists. And maybe it is that simple. O’Grady speaks like an open book. Under his leadership, the Township has provided vital health resources and a wonderful slate of programming, especially for senior citizens. Maybe there are no political ambitions. Maybe O’Grady is simply a resident demanding better. Maybe he truly just cares about the well-being of Orland Park residents. I’d like to think so. Call that optimism. Call it a bit of gallows humor. Just don’t miss next week’s episode.
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