The president of the Little League of La Grange is proposing, on behalf of his Board of Directors, permanently naming two baseball fields in Gilbert Park after two hometown men deserving of the honor.
Thomas Kushing, who presented the concept to Park District officials in November, is suggesting the fields be named after Jack Yelnick and Bob Bursin, both of whom lived by the park and were real role models of their time.
The Park Board is keen to the idea, but board President Tim Kelpsas says he wants to make sure all the bases are covered with the adoption of a district naming rights policy first.
Kushing said however it is done is fine with him, but he envisions a huge community gathering if and when it reaches fruition.
"Our community really has a sense of home and history ... and you often see people come home, having grown up here," he said. "And these men had hearts of gold."
Bursin was a former head of referees for Big 10 football and Yelnick played football for Northwestern, but both men were very involved in the parks and youth sports.
"Both of these men are very deserving of this type of an honor and this would really bring this community together," he said, adding their names could be erected behind home plate or ona rock between the two fields. "You would be hard pressed to find anyone in town who didn't know them."
Monday, November 30, 2009
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
CEP HAUNTED MANOR BACK IN ACTION
Larry Sala, called "Mr. October" by friends and family, can't wait to scare the crowds outside of his favorite haunted house this week when he pulls up in a giant funeral hearse to help kickoff the second coming of one of the area's most ghoulish Halloween activities.
"I'll be in the parking lot and in the waiting room scaring people," he said. "I live for Halloween."
After seven long years without a haunted house program teaching children and teens valuable leadership and teamwork skills, helping them build relationships with adults and lifelong friendships with their peers from other schools and towns, CEP Youth Leadership's once-popular Haunted Manor is back.
The unique haunted house, which benefits the La Grange-based nonprofit whose mission is to engage and empower junior high, middle school and high school students throughout Lyons Township is, according to its organizers and volunteers, resurrected from the dead.
"Surprisingly, little has changed," said longtime CEP board member and volunteer Scott Meyer, as he stood in the 4,000-square-foot shell of a former retail store helping put finishing touches on the final masterpiece earlier this week. "It's still very family oriented, yet you feel strange to be doing it again. Some of the scenes are similar and we have 11 rooms this year. Plus, roles of key players, and almost all our department heads, are identical."
Brian Thomson, 34, formerly of La Grange and now of Western Springs, has been Haunted Manor behind-the-scenes fixture since its inception in 1992, when he was a student at LT.
"I help with everything. I even put on makeup and I dress up, too," he said. "It's a lot of fun and it's so great top see the kids do such amazing things. It's a lot of kids from different areas getting to know each other; they're meeting good role models here."
The Halloween event, last held in 2002, was shelved seven years ago because of changes in leadership at CEP and due to the inordinate amount of staff time it took to monitor volunteer youth in building and operating the venue.
But after board member Amanda Perez of La Grange heard over the past few years about the success and excitement the activity generated from just about everyone she met, she convinced other members to get behind it again and to craft a business plan to map out its return.
And at 7 p.m. Friday, Oct. 16, the doors of Haunted Manor Resurrected open to the public at 40 S. La Grange Road in Countryside. The haunted house, open to all ages, is inside Countryside Plaza, roughly halfway between Home Depot and Best Buy.
"We used to have a huge following," said Cathy Pierson, CEP's senior program director and longtime haunted house worker and coordinator, who is confident its popularity will also return -- especially since the house this time is more contemporary (you'll love the "Saw" room taken from the popular horror flick).
She said more than 40 haunted house alumni, recruited in large part through networking on www.facebook.com, really helped pull it off this fall.
"They made a huge difference," she said, adding their return "shows it was successful ... and had a profound impact on them."
Perez said she has heard nothing but good about Haunted Manor, which is sure to scare the daylights out of teens and adults and thoroughly entertain the little ones.
"I would hear about it from the board, from staff members, from residents," she said, "about how outstanding it was, how fun it was."
She said what's neat about young participants' involvement with youth from other school districts and communities is that "it takes away the cliques" that so often form in other social settings.
One prime example can be found in former Nazareth and LT students Jason and Haley Safranek, who met as youth building and working Haunted Manor, who are now married and back lending a hand, said Pierson.
Brianne Lucke and Heather Rae are now career graphic designers who came back to design all of the posters, flyers and other marketing materials. Brianne, a former LT student, now lives in California.
Then there's volunteers like the Leininger Family of La Grange P:ark, whose haunted house activism is almost a family business.
Heidi Leininger was a house guide years ago and used to love hanging out there with her girlfriends.
"I was a guide when I was younger," she said. "Now, I'm in charge of the guides."
Her mother, Megan, is a board member and volunteer at the house, as is her sister, Heather, an American Academy of Arts grad who is from the LT Class of 2000.
"My whole family works here ... and I've been working here since I was four," she said. "Same as my mom, I am an artist and I absolutely love it all, the I(room) designs I work on ... just everything that goes into this entire project."
Her best friend, Libby Kollar of Brookfield, got her industrial design degree from the University of Illinois. She also worked on the house while attending LT.
"It actually helped me choose a major," she said. "I now work at the Art Institute, with the curators."
Since the house is so new to the latest generation of youth, dozens of adult volunteers and alumni have joined together this time around to construct the house, leaving the staffing and scaring up to the kids who in the past were involved every step of the way.
Those very kids already attended "monster training" workshops late last week and are ready, with other alumni, staff and others to make this year a whole new experience.
"The kids this year," said Perez, "they don't even know what to expect, and that's exciting."
Kicking off at 7 p.m. Friday, Oct. 16, the Haunted Manor Resurrected will be staged almost every night through Halloween Day.
That night and every Friday and Saturday through Saturday, Oct. 31, Haunted Manor will be open from 7 to 11 p.m. On Sundays, Wednesdays and Thursdays, the hours will be from 7 to 10 p.m., and matinees will be featured from 1 to 4 p.m. Saturday,Oct. 24 and 31.
General admission will be $10 per person. The "lights on" matinee shows will cost $5 per child.
Presented by PersonalizationMall.com, sponsors of the event this year include the Park District of La Grange, Health & Safety Associates Inc. industrial hygiene and safety consulting and Linda Sokol's Brookfield Financial Plans, Inc.
Extensive parking is available for visitors, some who may recognize the location as the original space of the haunted house 17 years ago.
Further information is available by calling (708) 579-5898 or visiting CEP's website at www.HauntedManorCEPYL.com.
"I'll be in the parking lot and in the waiting room scaring people," he said. "I live for Halloween."
After seven long years without a haunted house program teaching children and teens valuable leadership and teamwork skills, helping them build relationships with adults and lifelong friendships with their peers from other schools and towns, CEP Youth Leadership's once-popular Haunted Manor is back.
The unique haunted house, which benefits the La Grange-based nonprofit whose mission is to engage and empower junior high, middle school and high school students throughout Lyons Township is, according to its organizers and volunteers, resurrected from the dead.
"Surprisingly, little has changed," said longtime CEP board member and volunteer Scott Meyer, as he stood in the 4,000-square-foot shell of a former retail store helping put finishing touches on the final masterpiece earlier this week. "It's still very family oriented, yet you feel strange to be doing it again. Some of the scenes are similar and we have 11 rooms this year. Plus, roles of key players, and almost all our department heads, are identical."
Brian Thomson, 34, formerly of La Grange and now of Western Springs, has been Haunted Manor behind-the-scenes fixture since its inception in 1992, when he was a student at LT.
"I help with everything. I even put on makeup and I dress up, too," he said. "It's a lot of fun and it's so great top see the kids do such amazing things. It's a lot of kids from different areas getting to know each other; they're meeting good role models here."
The Halloween event, last held in 2002, was shelved seven years ago because of changes in leadership at CEP and due to the inordinate amount of staff time it took to monitor volunteer youth in building and operating the venue.
But after board member Amanda Perez of La Grange heard over the past few years about the success and excitement the activity generated from just about everyone she met, she convinced other members to get behind it again and to craft a business plan to map out its return.
And at 7 p.m. Friday, Oct. 16, the doors of Haunted Manor Resurrected open to the public at 40 S. La Grange Road in Countryside. The haunted house, open to all ages, is inside Countryside Plaza, roughly halfway between Home Depot and Best Buy.
"We used to have a huge following," said Cathy Pierson, CEP's senior program director and longtime haunted house worker and coordinator, who is confident its popularity will also return -- especially since the house this time is more contemporary (you'll love the "Saw" room taken from the popular horror flick).
She said more than 40 haunted house alumni, recruited in large part through networking on www.facebook.com, really helped pull it off this fall.
"They made a huge difference," she said, adding their return "shows it was successful ... and had a profound impact on them."
Perez said she has heard nothing but good about Haunted Manor, which is sure to scare the daylights out of teens and adults and thoroughly entertain the little ones.
"I would hear about it from the board, from staff members, from residents," she said, "about how outstanding it was, how fun it was."
She said what's neat about young participants' involvement with youth from other school districts and communities is that "it takes away the cliques" that so often form in other social settings.
One prime example can be found in former Nazareth and LT students Jason and Haley Safranek, who met as youth building and working Haunted Manor, who are now married and back lending a hand, said Pierson.
Brianne Lucke and Heather Rae are now career graphic designers who came back to design all of the posters, flyers and other marketing materials. Brianne, a former LT student, now lives in California.
Then there's volunteers like the Leininger Family of La Grange P:ark, whose haunted house activism is almost a family business.
Heidi Leininger was a house guide years ago and used to love hanging out there with her girlfriends.
"I was a guide when I was younger," she said. "Now, I'm in charge of the guides."
Her mother, Megan, is a board member and volunteer at the house, as is her sister, Heather, an American Academy of Arts grad who is from the LT Class of 2000.
"My whole family works here ... and I've been working here since I was four," she said. "Same as my mom, I am an artist and I absolutely love it all, the I(room) designs I work on ... just everything that goes into this entire project."
Her best friend, Libby Kollar of Brookfield, got her industrial design degree from the University of Illinois. She also worked on the house while attending LT.
"It actually helped me choose a major," she said. "I now work at the Art Institute, with the curators."
Since the house is so new to the latest generation of youth, dozens of adult volunteers and alumni have joined together this time around to construct the house, leaving the staffing and scaring up to the kids who in the past were involved every step of the way.
Those very kids already attended "monster training" workshops late last week and are ready, with other alumni, staff and others to make this year a whole new experience.
"The kids this year," said Perez, "they don't even know what to expect, and that's exciting."
Kicking off at 7 p.m. Friday, Oct. 16, the Haunted Manor Resurrected will be staged almost every night through Halloween Day.
That night and every Friday and Saturday through Saturday, Oct. 31, Haunted Manor will be open from 7 to 11 p.m. On Sundays, Wednesdays and Thursdays, the hours will be from 7 to 10 p.m., and matinees will be featured from 1 to 4 p.m. Saturday,Oct. 24 and 31.
General admission will be $10 per person. The "lights on" matinee shows will cost $5 per child.
Presented by PersonalizationMall.com, sponsors of the event this year include the Park District of La Grange, Health & Safety Associates Inc. industrial hygiene and safety consulting and Linda Sokol's Brookfield Financial Plans, Inc.
Extensive parking is available for visitors, some who may recognize the location as the original space of the haunted house 17 years ago.
Further information is available by calling (708) 579-5898 or visiting CEP's website at www.HauntedManorCEPYL.com.
Friday, October 2, 2009
INTRODUCING GRADUATE KATIE JUSTAK
This year's chairwoman of the Citizens Council of La Grange -- public relations professional and lifelong "political junkie" Katie Justak -- has joined the ranks of an esteemed group of Illinois Republican women who serve as proof that a lack of female political leaders is a vestige of the past.
Justak, this year's class coordinator of 10 GOP community activists who were selected to attend the 2009 Illinois Lincoln Excellence in Public Services Series which recruits and provides tools for women to become more involved in the political arena and seek positions in government, was just one of two Cook County women to graduate from the program this week.
The other, Wynita Wozniak, is a Biblical entrepreneurship studies graduate student and former Forbes Media/Conde Nast advertising sales representative who hails from Homewood.
“It has been a remarkable year for our class from the first program in January on the structure of our party to our informative trips to Springfield and Washington, D.C., and finally our session on media relations just a couple weeks ago in Champaign," said Justak at the Lincoln Series 14th annual graduation ceremony at the Bloomingdale Golf Club in DuPage County -- historically one of the largest bastions of Republicanism in the nation.
During the fellowship, Justak said she and her classmates -- and newfound friends and professional acquaintances -- learned more about themselves, each other and set goals for their future political involvement.
Justak reminded everyone that since, its inception in 1854, the Republican Party has been an advocate of women’s rights, that a Republican-controlled Congress passed the 19th amendment which gave women the right to vote. And time and time again, she added, the GOP has led the way on women’s issues.
"Yet," she stressed, "the popular portrayal of our party appears more often than not the complete opposite. With our party’s consistent message of limited government, fiscal and personal responsibility and the advancement of liberty, the voice of Republicans will resonate with voters (in 2010)."
The Illinois Lincoln Series provides a vehicle for the advancement of qualified women in government, public policy and politics. and, she said, the fellowship "is a microcosm of what the future of our party will bring to the people of Illinois and to Americans nationwide.”
The 9-month program, which teaches all facets of politics from ethics in government to handling the media and political fundraising, has graduated 165 women -- a fellowship that has catapulted many to achieve and/or maintain elected office, state and federal public service careers and campaign management roles over the past 15 years.
Past graduates include current and former state senators, county board and municipal representatives and lieutenant governor.
This year's other graduates included the secretary of Jackson County's Republican Central Committee, a real estate professional and philanthropist, the elected treasurer of McLean County, the executive assistant for the Wirtz Corp. and Chicago Blackhawks, a Mundelein state representative's legislative aide and a student in international studies at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
Katie, whose father once ran the New Lenox GOP and whose earliest campaign work was with State Rep. Renee Kosel, R-81st District, had a diverse P.R. career -- first in the consumer marketing field for GolinHarris, in healthcare at Edelman then as program manager of education at the American Academy of Periodontology
Justak, who oddly enough is nearing completion of another 9-month experience -- the now-fulltime stay-at-home Mom is pregnant and expecting her third child in November -- was joined at the dinner party by her husband, Mel, and her brother and his wife from neighboring Western Springs.
Before accepting her diploma, she recognized Topinka and other Lioncoln Series dignitaries, and on behalf of the graduates promised to help the former state treasurer get elected in her race for Illinois comptroller in 2010.
"Your story inspires us," she said, "and we're behind you 100 percent. Every fellow has committed to collecting (petition) signatures, which we've already stared doing."
In her remarks, the typically colorful Topinka exuded as much "Girl Power" as she could, but not before taking the opportunity to bash her onetime nemesis, former Gov. Rod Blagojevich before an obviously captive audience.
"What was I thinking?" she asked, recalling the campaign slogan Blagojevich used during the gubernatorial campaign against her after she became the first woman to win a GOP primary for governor. "Everything I was thinking ... has come to pass. Everything."
The former state party chairwoman said she ran for governor in 2006 because she knew the state "was in a mess" and opined it has gotten worse "than in (her) wildest dreams could ever have thought."
Although known for her bright, eye-catching outfits and uncanny wit, she drew laughter from the 100-plus crowd when she issued a guilt-by-association indictment against all Democratic officeholders who once sung the ex-governor's praises and, referring to Blagojevich's myriad
transgressions, added, "(prison) orange is not my color."
Even though the room was filled with such party leaders as gubernatorial candidate DuPage County Board Chairman Robert Schillerstrom, DuPage County Clerk Gary King and others, she took no pains to promote the party's female agenda, suggesting more women are needed in public office instead of just "white men" all the time.
However, she praised Mark Kirk as a great fundraiser and formidable U.S. Senate opponent to her successor, Democratic treasurer Alexi Giannoulias, and lauded legislator Dan Rutherford in his GOP bid for treasurer, saying if she and he both win they can work together to combine the two somewhat duplicative offices.
With Schillerstrom sitting nearby, she also speculated next year's governor's race was "too close to call" between GOP frontrunner challengers Schillerstrom, State Sen. Kirk Dillard, former party chair Andy McKenna and conservative Bill Brady.
"Your guess is as good as mine," she said. "We're probably doing better with the Olympics."
She urged the leading Republican women and graduates to "pick a candidate, work hard for that candidate, then be prepared to come over and support whoever receives the nomination," adding, "We really have to send Gov. (Patrick) Quinn -- the governor by default -- packing!"
But she spent much of her time talking up the graduates and their roles in the future of the party.
"Your training as graduates here .. you got a real good opportunity to jump in and make things happen and change the course of history," she said, crediting her mother as her earliest role model for breaking ranks with the predominantly male business world by opening a real estate business on her own in the 1940s and never taking "no" for an answer.
"She was a role model ... just as you see role models in this room," she said, later suggesting, "The first woman elected governor: that's the next step."
She praised the many women who have already succeeded in seeking public office, but cautioned any future office-seekers to enter the arena well-prepared.
"Politics is a contact sport," she said. "You could get bruised ... but you need to volunteer and don't worry who gets credit. Don't talk about change; just make it happen. Remember the five W's: When Women Work We Win. It's more true today than it ever was."
She then revved up the graduates before they were individually recognized for their positions in the community and with the party.
"You don't have to vote for a woman because she's a woman, but for God sakes if the woman is good and a Republican vote for her," Topinka concluded. "Don't sit on the sidelines. Always remember the old saying: 'The rooster may crow, but the hen delivers.' "
Justak, who accompanied her father in Republican party circles since the age of seven, worked on political campaigns as a youth and young adult and enjoyed a career in public relations before she started raising a family.
After just one year as a member of the Citizens Council, the nonpartisan La Grange organization that evaluates and recommends candidates for village, library and park board seats every two years, she became its chairman this past spring.
A member of the Chicago Republican Women's Network who is committed to assist the Republican National Committee as an advocate for government reform and healthcare, she holds a bachelor's degree in communications with a minor in business from St. Mary's College, Notre Dame, Ind.
"Katie is an amazing woman ... ready to soak up knowledge like a sponge," said Pamela Fenner, president of the Lincoln Series. "She continues to grow and I know she has a bright future.
Justak's next meeting of the Citizens Council is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 14. The Village Hall meeting, open to the public, will feature Village Manager Robert Pilipszyn as guest speaker. A question/answer session will follow.
Justak, this year's class coordinator of 10 GOP community activists who were selected to attend the 2009 Illinois Lincoln Excellence in Public Services Series which recruits and provides tools for women to become more involved in the political arena and seek positions in government, was just one of two Cook County women to graduate from the program this week.
The other, Wynita Wozniak, is a Biblical entrepreneurship studies graduate student and former Forbes Media/Conde Nast advertising sales representative who hails from Homewood.
“It has been a remarkable year for our class from the first program in January on the structure of our party to our informative trips to Springfield and Washington, D.C., and finally our session on media relations just a couple weeks ago in Champaign," said Justak at the Lincoln Series 14th annual graduation ceremony at the Bloomingdale Golf Club in DuPage County -- historically one of the largest bastions of Republicanism in the nation.
During the fellowship, Justak said she and her classmates -- and newfound friends and professional acquaintances -- learned more about themselves, each other and set goals for their future political involvement.
Justak reminded everyone that since, its inception in 1854, the Republican Party has been an advocate of women’s rights, that a Republican-controlled Congress passed the 19th amendment which gave women the right to vote. And time and time again, she added, the GOP has led the way on women’s issues.
"Yet," she stressed, "the popular portrayal of our party appears more often than not the complete opposite. With our party’s consistent message of limited government, fiscal and personal responsibility and the advancement of liberty, the voice of Republicans will resonate with voters (in 2010)."
The Illinois Lincoln Series provides a vehicle for the advancement of qualified women in government, public policy and politics. and, she said, the fellowship "is a microcosm of what the future of our party will bring to the people of Illinois and to Americans nationwide.”
The 9-month program, which teaches all facets of politics from ethics in government to handling the media and political fundraising, has graduated 165 women -- a fellowship that has catapulted many to achieve and/or maintain elected office, state and federal public service careers and campaign management roles over the past 15 years.
Past graduates include current and former state senators, county board and municipal representatives and lieutenant governor.
This year's other graduates included the secretary of Jackson County's Republican Central Committee, a real estate professional and philanthropist, the elected treasurer of McLean County, the executive assistant for the Wirtz Corp. and Chicago Blackhawks, a Mundelein state representative's legislative aide and a student in international studies at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
Katie, whose father once ran the New Lenox GOP and whose earliest campaign work was with State Rep. Renee Kosel, R-81st District, had a diverse P.R. career -- first in the consumer marketing field for GolinHarris, in healthcare at Edelman then as program manager of education at the American Academy of Periodontology
Justak, who oddly enough is nearing completion of another 9-month experience -- the now-fulltime stay-at-home Mom is pregnant and expecting her third child in November -- was joined at the dinner party by her husband, Mel, and her brother and his wife from neighboring Western Springs.
Before accepting her diploma, she recognized Topinka and other Lioncoln Series dignitaries, and on behalf of the graduates promised to help the former state treasurer get elected in her race for Illinois comptroller in 2010.
"Your story inspires us," she said, "and we're behind you 100 percent. Every fellow has committed to collecting (petition) signatures, which we've already stared doing."
In her remarks, the typically colorful Topinka exuded as much "Girl Power" as she could, but not before taking the opportunity to bash her onetime nemesis, former Gov. Rod Blagojevich before an obviously captive audience.
"What was I thinking?" she asked, recalling the campaign slogan Blagojevich used during the gubernatorial campaign against her after she became the first woman to win a GOP primary for governor. "Everything I was thinking ... has come to pass. Everything."
The former state party chairwoman said she ran for governor in 2006 because she knew the state "was in a mess" and opined it has gotten worse "than in (her) wildest dreams could ever have thought."
Although known for her bright, eye-catching outfits and uncanny wit, she drew laughter from the 100-plus crowd when she issued a guilt-by-association indictment against all Democratic officeholders who once sung the ex-governor's praises and, referring to Blagojevich's myriad
transgressions, added, "(prison) orange is not my color."
Even though the room was filled with such party leaders as gubernatorial candidate DuPage County Board Chairman Robert Schillerstrom, DuPage County Clerk Gary King and others, she took no pains to promote the party's female agenda, suggesting more women are needed in public office instead of just "white men" all the time.
However, she praised Mark Kirk as a great fundraiser and formidable U.S. Senate opponent to her successor, Democratic treasurer Alexi Giannoulias, and lauded legislator Dan Rutherford in his GOP bid for treasurer, saying if she and he both win they can work together to combine the two somewhat duplicative offices.
With Schillerstrom sitting nearby, she also speculated next year's governor's race was "too close to call" between GOP frontrunner challengers Schillerstrom, State Sen. Kirk Dillard, former party chair Andy McKenna and conservative Bill Brady.
"Your guess is as good as mine," she said. "We're probably doing better with the Olympics."
She urged the leading Republican women and graduates to "pick a candidate, work hard for that candidate, then be prepared to come over and support whoever receives the nomination," adding, "We really have to send Gov. (Patrick) Quinn -- the governor by default -- packing!"
But she spent much of her time talking up the graduates and their roles in the future of the party.
"Your training as graduates here .. you got a real good opportunity to jump in and make things happen and change the course of history," she said, crediting her mother as her earliest role model for breaking ranks with the predominantly male business world by opening a real estate business on her own in the 1940s and never taking "no" for an answer.
"She was a role model ... just as you see role models in this room," she said, later suggesting, "The first woman elected governor: that's the next step."
She praised the many women who have already succeeded in seeking public office, but cautioned any future office-seekers to enter the arena well-prepared.
"Politics is a contact sport," she said. "You could get bruised ... but you need to volunteer and don't worry who gets credit. Don't talk about change; just make it happen. Remember the five W's: When Women Work We Win. It's more true today than it ever was."
She then revved up the graduates before they were individually recognized for their positions in the community and with the party.
"You don't have to vote for a woman because she's a woman, but for God sakes if the woman is good and a Republican vote for her," Topinka concluded. "Don't sit on the sidelines. Always remember the old saying: 'The rooster may crow, but the hen delivers.' "
Justak, who accompanied her father in Republican party circles since the age of seven, worked on political campaigns as a youth and young adult and enjoyed a career in public relations before she started raising a family.
After just one year as a member of the Citizens Council, the nonpartisan La Grange organization that evaluates and recommends candidates for village, library and park board seats every two years, she became its chairman this past spring.
A member of the Chicago Republican Women's Network who is committed to assist the Republican National Committee as an advocate for government reform and healthcare, she holds a bachelor's degree in communications with a minor in business from St. Mary's College, Notre Dame, Ind.
"Katie is an amazing woman ... ready to soak up knowledge like a sponge," said Pamela Fenner, president of the Lincoln Series. "She continues to grow and I know she has a bright future.
Justak's next meeting of the Citizens Council is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 14. The Village Hall meeting, open to the public, will feature Village Manager Robert Pilipszyn as guest speaker. A question/answer session will follow.
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
LP YOUTH HAVING THEIR SAY
La Grange Park Trustee Scott Mesick likes the idea of junior high and high schoolers sharing their opinions about the issues of the day with the village's elected leaders.
And while the monthly civics lesson dubbed the Youth Advisory Commission regular meeting gets underway, observers say it's the closest exercise to the real thing.
On the second Monday of every month, young students from Park Junior High School in La Grange Park and both Lyons Township High School in La Grange and Nazareth Academy in La Grange Park assemble in the Village Hall meeting room at 7 p.m. -- and just like their real-life counterparts -- they debate and discuss every issue in that month's standard board packet.
When all is said and done, after the young pseudo-government representatives reach consensus on the issues they have reviewed and researched all weekend, they choose one of their own to appear at the following night's real Village Board meeting to report on their opinions.
"It's real interesting; it gives us a read on what young people are thinking," said Mesick, a father of six elected to the board in 2007. "One youth sits in at every meeting and we ask questions. It's interesting how they went about reaching their decisions ... but some are more vocal than others."
Mesick said society seems to think the kids in that age group are glued to the TV screen, computer monitor or busy texting, emailing or calling their friends every night. These are kids who "take the initiative" to make their voice and opinions count.
"The Youth Commission is a very workable thing," he added. "We really have seen some good ideas expressed. If we just listen to them we might learn something."
Assistant Village Manager Julia Cedillo is the staff liaison to the youth panel and admits in her seven years of municipal work in Cook, DuPage and DeKalb counties -- she worked for Woodridge's village manager for six years before coming here a year ago -- she has never heard of anything of the sort. She also worked for the City of DeKalb.
"Youth Advisory is a great commission and is really one of the (unique) programs as far as villages are concerned," she said.
The program, which selects students based on applications downloadable on the village website, has been around since 2002 and its revolving 10 members are appointed by Village President Jim Discipio for 2-year terms. Members must attend the 7th through the 12th grade.
Current members include Daniel Golden from Nazareth, Grace Flaherty from LT, Grant Lundahl from LT, Abby Gies from Fenwick, Mitchell Serafin from Nazareth, Aubrey Aikens from Park, Margaret Brewick from Nazareth, Matt McGuinn from Park, Jack Roache from Nazareth and Jordyn Faron from LT.
The students receive a packet, just like trustees, delivered to their home once a month, on the Thursday before each monthly meeting, at which the Roberts Rules of Order govern the parliamentary procedures at every session. They assign a new chairman for every meeting to keep things fresh and to give everyone the chance to assume the leadership position.
"I am just impressed with the level of engagement and discipline they bring to each issue," Cedillo said. "I am amazed they have such (well-researched) view of the issues."
She cannot recall a time when the young commissioners changed a board's viewpoint. And though the kids neither call or are counseled by the trustees, they just so happen to agree with them on most matters. They often come to meetings with opinions, ready to debate.
Cedillo said the kids are learning "an incredible skill" by discussing and researching the pros and cons of municipal issues.
And, she said, they are also learning that not everyone attends public meetings, as evidenced by many of the Village Boards in the region, including their own.
"I wish they would (attend)," said Cedillo, noting how fascinatng it is to see the kids at work. "They're seriously dedicated."
And while the monthly civics lesson dubbed the Youth Advisory Commission regular meeting gets underway, observers say it's the closest exercise to the real thing.
On the second Monday of every month, young students from Park Junior High School in La Grange Park and both Lyons Township High School in La Grange and Nazareth Academy in La Grange Park assemble in the Village Hall meeting room at 7 p.m. -- and just like their real-life counterparts -- they debate and discuss every issue in that month's standard board packet.
When all is said and done, after the young pseudo-government representatives reach consensus on the issues they have reviewed and researched all weekend, they choose one of their own to appear at the following night's real Village Board meeting to report on their opinions.
"It's real interesting; it gives us a read on what young people are thinking," said Mesick, a father of six elected to the board in 2007. "One youth sits in at every meeting and we ask questions. It's interesting how they went about reaching their decisions ... but some are more vocal than others."
Mesick said society seems to think the kids in that age group are glued to the TV screen, computer monitor or busy texting, emailing or calling their friends every night. These are kids who "take the initiative" to make their voice and opinions count.
"The Youth Commission is a very workable thing," he added. "We really have seen some good ideas expressed. If we just listen to them we might learn something."
Assistant Village Manager Julia Cedillo is the staff liaison to the youth panel and admits in her seven years of municipal work in Cook, DuPage and DeKalb counties -- she worked for Woodridge's village manager for six years before coming here a year ago -- she has never heard of anything of the sort. She also worked for the City of DeKalb.
"Youth Advisory is a great commission and is really one of the (unique) programs as far as villages are concerned," she said.
The program, which selects students based on applications downloadable on the village website, has been around since 2002 and its revolving 10 members are appointed by Village President Jim Discipio for 2-year terms. Members must attend the 7th through the 12th grade.
Current members include Daniel Golden from Nazareth, Grace Flaherty from LT, Grant Lundahl from LT, Abby Gies from Fenwick, Mitchell Serafin from Nazareth, Aubrey Aikens from Park, Margaret Brewick from Nazareth, Matt McGuinn from Park, Jack Roache from Nazareth and Jordyn Faron from LT.
The students receive a packet, just like trustees, delivered to their home once a month, on the Thursday before each monthly meeting, at which the Roberts Rules of Order govern the parliamentary procedures at every session. They assign a new chairman for every meeting to keep things fresh and to give everyone the chance to assume the leadership position.
"I am just impressed with the level of engagement and discipline they bring to each issue," Cedillo said. "I am amazed they have such (well-researched) view of the issues."
She cannot recall a time when the young commissioners changed a board's viewpoint. And though the kids neither call or are counseled by the trustees, they just so happen to agree with them on most matters. They often come to meetings with opinions, ready to debate.
Cedillo said the kids are learning "an incredible skill" by discussing and researching the pros and cons of municipal issues.
And, she said, they are also learning that not everyone attends public meetings, as evidenced by many of the Village Boards in the region, including their own.
"I wish they would (attend)," said Cedillo, noting how fascinatng it is to see the kids at work. "They're seriously dedicated."
Wednesday, September 23, 2009
CITIZENS' COUNCIL SWITCHES GEARS
Long before Katie Justak became chair of the Citizens' Council of La Grange, the La Grange wife and mother had an idea to transform the decades-old nonpartisan candidate-recommending organization into one that will help educate its members and the community year-round about the practices, policies and day-to-day issues of the government leaders they need to know about every election season.
And now that Justak has firmly taken hold of the reins of the Council's 2009-10 season, this may be a year that goes down in the history books for the organization that has usually only shown its face in the six months preceding local elections for the village, park and library boards.
This season is also an intriguing one for the always hoped-for 88-member group (representing 11 geographically precise districts) because it has experienced some growing pains in the past few years, perhaps due to changing demographics in town but more visibly in the impact candidate selections have on the community and just how that delicate process is laid out. The group changed its bylaws and took on new leadership.
For the first time in its history, the Council is hosting monthly public information forums in which various government officials, both elected and appointed, can meet face-to-face with the public and field questions from them. The first such event is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 14, and features Village Manager Robert Pilipszyn following a brief business meeting.
Former chair Orlando Coryell and others have occasionally brought in speakers in the off-season past, but not as concerted of an effort or as regularly as the current Council hopes to do this coming year.
"I asked (Pilipszyn) to focus on the process (and) how he works with the board," said Justak, but she's not sure how he will handle the task. "or he may choose to be more interactive."
She hopes the night is well-attended and said they will be ramping up their efforts to bring more public awareness to its activities. If for no other reason, changing things in this manner could bring about more enthusiasm in local politics and a more informed electorate.
For those who like to mark their calendars, Public Library Director Jeanne Dilger-Hill is slated to appear before the Council, along with a Library Board member, in January 2010.
The Council is exploring the airing of its meetings on cable, although she said that's fell on deaf ears in the past.
At the Council's first meeting since the spring elections held Sept. 9, some 20 people showed up, the typical core of die-hard members plus a few newbies anxious to join its ranks. No district boasts the maximum number of members allowed just yet and a few have none, as usual.
"We got the ball rolling and we've decided as a council to re-look at the process we use (in candidate vetting, evaluating and choosing," she said, noting a committee will be formed this fall charged with producing two or three options by the spring."
Justak believes she is leading "a solid group of people dedicated to the mission of the Council."
This fall, members Robert Wessel and Carolyn Pann dropped out. Pann is the wife of Nicholas Pann, who was recommended by the Council in 2007 but failed to win. One new member has been inducted: District 1 member Peggy Carlson, who also is a member of the village's Economic Development Commission.
The Council, she implored, is in dire need of District 2 members, or those coming from the north side of the village between the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railroad and the east side of Brainard Avenue. District 2 is in the same straits and covers the opposite side of Brainard to the village's western limits.
The first meeting also resulted in two main objectives: to focus on the variety of publicity outlets to explore to more efficiently get the word out and to appoint so-called "board reporters" to serve as liaisons between the Council and the three main elected municipal boards in town.
Member Ray Bishop also has been named parliamentarian, a role Justak said may or may not be needed but one that will help meetings and debates on issues run more smoothly.
"We're excited about the year ahead with the speakers and are just plugging along," said Justak. "We have some real work ahead of us."
A new beginning
The Council may not have met formally until last month, but Justak said "a couple laid-back meetings" with core members this past summer helped everyone get up to speed with the coming year or two.
"It was basically done to let me know what their thoughts and ideas are and possible agenda items," she said. "I definitely think we're in a new different place. The members we have are excited to be members and want many people to be part of it. They want to make sure at slating time, we have good, honest discussions like never before."
She said she asked those who showed up to the informal July sessions to speak what was on their minds and to tell her, their new chair, why they were involved with the Council. And, she said, they were more than open to the idea and gave her some new perspectives to consider.
In the last couple of years, there was a lot of talk amongst members who expressed displeasure with what was happening during meetings, how vetting and slating was carried out, and so new bylaws were enacted to address some of those issues.
"We are moving forward; now we have a clear set of (rules) that will help govern us better," she added.
Justak said one goal she raised was for greater visibility and publicity, even in the off-season.
"People don't know what the Citizens' Council is about," she said, noting she would love to have a stronger community presence at fairs, festivals, parades and other civic events. "I would like to propose a grassroots effort of reaching out to people more."
She said the Council wants voters to know it is taking a closer look at how it carries out the slating process so they, too, can become more educated about the selection of candidates its members deem most qualified and why.
"We want to move toward a Council that can help educate the community on what they're doing so they can develop solid questions at slating time," she added. "This can provide some real insight."
In turn, more residents may decide to join the Council, to have a voice, a pride in ownership of the process and "to have their finger on the pulse of the community" regardless of whether they feel comfortable speaking publicly or normally have time to attend meetings. The Council typically only meets monthly, except perhaps at slating time every two years.
Justak wants to develop an email list of anyone and everyone interested in Council affairs so they can be regularly updated when things are going on.
In recent past, there was a lot of questions raised at meetings about the integrity of the group and people with political agendas who try to alter the process. So, the bylaws were updated to ensure that was harder to happen.
For instance, immediate family members cannot vote for each other, such was the case of a couple years back when a member voted for her husband who is now a sitting trustee.
Others were concerned about members individually speaking to the media "who were not representing the Council in a good way" because they had different goals.
"We're a non-partisan organization within the community whose charge is to recommend qualified candidates to the community and that's about it," she said, adding the oft-criticized closed meetings are only those in which secret votes are cast for slated candidates.
The bylaws have also stiffened up what membership means by strengthening attendance requirements.
"This (coming) year," said Justak, "you have the opportunity (through the Council) to educate yourself on how local government works."
And now that Justak has firmly taken hold of the reins of the Council's 2009-10 season, this may be a year that goes down in the history books for the organization that has usually only shown its face in the six months preceding local elections for the village, park and library boards.
This season is also an intriguing one for the always hoped-for 88-member group (representing 11 geographically precise districts) because it has experienced some growing pains in the past few years, perhaps due to changing demographics in town but more visibly in the impact candidate selections have on the community and just how that delicate process is laid out. The group changed its bylaws and took on new leadership.
For the first time in its history, the Council is hosting monthly public information forums in which various government officials, both elected and appointed, can meet face-to-face with the public and field questions from them. The first such event is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 14, and features Village Manager Robert Pilipszyn following a brief business meeting.
Former chair Orlando Coryell and others have occasionally brought in speakers in the off-season past, but not as concerted of an effort or as regularly as the current Council hopes to do this coming year.
"I asked (Pilipszyn) to focus on the process (and) how he works with the board," said Justak, but she's not sure how he will handle the task. "or he may choose to be more interactive."
She hopes the night is well-attended and said they will be ramping up their efforts to bring more public awareness to its activities. If for no other reason, changing things in this manner could bring about more enthusiasm in local politics and a more informed electorate.
For those who like to mark their calendars, Public Library Director Jeanne Dilger-Hill is slated to appear before the Council, along with a Library Board member, in January 2010.
The Council is exploring the airing of its meetings on cable, although she said that's fell on deaf ears in the past.
At the Council's first meeting since the spring elections held Sept. 9, some 20 people showed up, the typical core of die-hard members plus a few newbies anxious to join its ranks. No district boasts the maximum number of members allowed just yet and a few have none, as usual.
"We got the ball rolling and we've decided as a council to re-look at the process we use (in candidate vetting, evaluating and choosing," she said, noting a committee will be formed this fall charged with producing two or three options by the spring."
Justak believes she is leading "a solid group of people dedicated to the mission of the Council."
This fall, members Robert Wessel and Carolyn Pann dropped out. Pann is the wife of Nicholas Pann, who was recommended by the Council in 2007 but failed to win. One new member has been inducted: District 1 member Peggy Carlson, who also is a member of the village's Economic Development Commission.
The Council, she implored, is in dire need of District 2 members, or those coming from the north side of the village between the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railroad and the east side of Brainard Avenue. District 2 is in the same straits and covers the opposite side of Brainard to the village's western limits.
The first meeting also resulted in two main objectives: to focus on the variety of publicity outlets to explore to more efficiently get the word out and to appoint so-called "board reporters" to serve as liaisons between the Council and the three main elected municipal boards in town.
Member Ray Bishop also has been named parliamentarian, a role Justak said may or may not be needed but one that will help meetings and debates on issues run more smoothly.
"We're excited about the year ahead with the speakers and are just plugging along," said Justak. "We have some real work ahead of us."
A new beginning
The Council may not have met formally until last month, but Justak said "a couple laid-back meetings" with core members this past summer helped everyone get up to speed with the coming year or two.
"It was basically done to let me know what their thoughts and ideas are and possible agenda items," she said. "I definitely think we're in a new different place. The members we have are excited to be members and want many people to be part of it. They want to make sure at slating time, we have good, honest discussions like never before."
She said she asked those who showed up to the informal July sessions to speak what was on their minds and to tell her, their new chair, why they were involved with the Council. And, she said, they were more than open to the idea and gave her some new perspectives to consider.
In the last couple of years, there was a lot of talk amongst members who expressed displeasure with what was happening during meetings, how vetting and slating was carried out, and so new bylaws were enacted to address some of those issues.
"We are moving forward; now we have a clear set of (rules) that will help govern us better," she added.
Justak said one goal she raised was for greater visibility and publicity, even in the off-season.
"People don't know what the Citizens' Council is about," she said, noting she would love to have a stronger community presence at fairs, festivals, parades and other civic events. "I would like to propose a grassroots effort of reaching out to people more."
She said the Council wants voters to know it is taking a closer look at how it carries out the slating process so they, too, can become more educated about the selection of candidates its members deem most qualified and why.
"We want to move toward a Council that can help educate the community on what they're doing so they can develop solid questions at slating time," she added. "This can provide some real insight."
In turn, more residents may decide to join the Council, to have a voice, a pride in ownership of the process and "to have their finger on the pulse of the community" regardless of whether they feel comfortable speaking publicly or normally have time to attend meetings. The Council typically only meets monthly, except perhaps at slating time every two years.
Justak wants to develop an email list of anyone and everyone interested in Council affairs so they can be regularly updated when things are going on.
In recent past, there was a lot of questions raised at meetings about the integrity of the group and people with political agendas who try to alter the process. So, the bylaws were updated to ensure that was harder to happen.
For instance, immediate family members cannot vote for each other, such was the case of a couple years back when a member voted for her husband who is now a sitting trustee.
Others were concerned about members individually speaking to the media "who were not representing the Council in a good way" because they had different goals.
"We're a non-partisan organization within the community whose charge is to recommend qualified candidates to the community and that's about it," she said, adding the oft-criticized closed meetings are only those in which secret votes are cast for slated candidates.
The bylaws have also stiffened up what membership means by strengthening attendance requirements.
"This (coming) year," said Justak, "you have the opportunity (through the Council) to educate yourself on how local government works."
Monday, September 21, 2009
UPCOMING LIBRARY EVENTS
La Grange Public Library Offers Program on Sept. 30
to Help People Change One Thing
Author and executive image consultant Anna Soo Wildermuth will present a program called Change One Thing at the La Grange Public Library on Wednesday, September 30 at 7 p.m.
Wildermuth will present tips from her book, Change One Thing, on how to discover what’s holding you back and fix it by changing something in your life. Whether you’re a job seeker, soccer mom, or CEO, you’ll learn something new from this program. Wildermuth will focus especially on changing one’s image and improving communication skills.
Registration is strongly encouraged for this free program. To register or for more information on Change One Thing program or other programs at the La Grange Public Library, visit the Library’s website at www.lagrangelibrary.org or call (708) 352-0576.
La Grange Public Library Presents Comedy Night on Oct. 2
Kid’s Comedy Corral Offers Parents a Night Out
The La Grange Public Library will present a Comedy Night on Friday, October 2 at the Library from 7 to 8:45 p.m. The evening features performances for adults and teens, as well as a special comedy program for kids ages 5 to 10.
The evening will open with Lyons Township High School senior and budding comedienne Emily Toops and finish with The Improv Commandos. A long-time student at Second City, Toops will jumpstart the evening with her humorous take on the life of a teenager in the western suburbs. Next, The Improv Commandos will continue the fun with their hilarious routine and improvisational games based on current events and issues relevant to the audience.
The Comedy Night is appropriate for people ages 16 and up.
On the same evening from 6:45 to 8:45 p.m., the Library’s Youth Services Department will offer a Kids’ Comedy Corral for children ages 5-10. Funny films and humorous activities will be offered.
Since space is limited for both kids and adults, registration is required at least one week in advance. To register or for more information on the Comedy Night or Kids’ Comedy Corral, visit the Library’s website at www.lagrangelibrary.org or call (708) 352-0576.
Lyric Opera Lecture on Faust is Featured at La Grange Public Library on October 4
The La Grange Public Library will host a Lyric Opera lecture featuring the opera Faust on Sunday, October 4 at 2 p.m.
A docent from the Lyric Opera of Chicago will present the lecture with an emphasis on the story line, character analysis and music. The second opera of the Chicago season, Faust is one of the most popular operas ever composed.
Registration is strongly encouraged for this free program. To register or for more information on the Lyric Opera lecture on Faust or other programs at the La Grange Public Library, visit the Library’s website at www.lagrangelibrary.org or call (708) 352-0576.
to Help People Change One Thing
Author and executive image consultant Anna Soo Wildermuth will present a program called Change One Thing at the La Grange Public Library on Wednesday, September 30 at 7 p.m.
Wildermuth will present tips from her book, Change One Thing, on how to discover what’s holding you back and fix it by changing something in your life. Whether you’re a job seeker, soccer mom, or CEO, you’ll learn something new from this program. Wildermuth will focus especially on changing one’s image and improving communication skills.
Registration is strongly encouraged for this free program. To register or for more information on Change One Thing program or other programs at the La Grange Public Library, visit the Library’s website at www.lagrangelibrary.org or call (708) 352-0576.
La Grange Public Library Presents Comedy Night on Oct. 2
Kid’s Comedy Corral Offers Parents a Night Out
The La Grange Public Library will present a Comedy Night on Friday, October 2 at the Library from 7 to 8:45 p.m. The evening features performances for adults and teens, as well as a special comedy program for kids ages 5 to 10.
The evening will open with Lyons Township High School senior and budding comedienne Emily Toops and finish with The Improv Commandos. A long-time student at Second City, Toops will jumpstart the evening with her humorous take on the life of a teenager in the western suburbs. Next, The Improv Commandos will continue the fun with their hilarious routine and improvisational games based on current events and issues relevant to the audience.
The Comedy Night is appropriate for people ages 16 and up.
On the same evening from 6:45 to 8:45 p.m., the Library’s Youth Services Department will offer a Kids’ Comedy Corral for children ages 5-10. Funny films and humorous activities will be offered.
Since space is limited for both kids and adults, registration is required at least one week in advance. To register or for more information on the Comedy Night or Kids’ Comedy Corral, visit the Library’s website at www.lagrangelibrary.org or call (708) 352-0576.
Lyric Opera Lecture on Faust is Featured at La Grange Public Library on October 4
The La Grange Public Library will host a Lyric Opera lecture featuring the opera Faust on Sunday, October 4 at 2 p.m.
A docent from the Lyric Opera of Chicago will present the lecture with an emphasis on the story line, character analysis and music. The second opera of the Chicago season, Faust is one of the most popular operas ever composed.
Registration is strongly encouraged for this free program. To register or for more information on the Lyric Opera lecture on Faust or other programs at the La Grange Public Library, visit the Library’s website at www.lagrangelibrary.org or call (708) 352-0576.
Monday, September 14, 2009
GAYLON & JOYCE LIGHTNER RECOGNIZED
When Joyce McCain Lightner came to La Grange from her hometown Lynchburg, Va. with sister Bernie in 1955, the village was a whole different place than she expected it would be.
Thinking her move up north would be a breath of fresh air, away from all the prejudice and discrimination she faced since her youth and through her young adulthood back home, she unfortunately was dead wrong.
She found a comfortable neighborhood of fellow African-Americans living between East Avenue and the Indiana Harbor Belt Railroad tracks, but soon learned the stigmas associated with the so-called East Side.
Some people who lived there had their homes physically picked up and moved decades earlier from the West Side of town into the East Side because of their race, and it didn't stop there. Any blacks who wanted to lease apartments west of Bluff Avenue found none available.
She was glad to see city-like merchants lined up along what was then referred to as Fifth Avenue (present-day La Grange Road), but she quickly learned her "people" were not allowed to cross Fifth Avenue to patronize the dress shops, at least not when white folks were there.
And in an almost Rosa Parks-esque "back of the bus" incident, more discriminatory practice reared its ugly head when blacks were not allowed to sit at the dime store lunch counter.
But not long after that injustice come to light than does Joyce recall a group of young men who exercised their not-yet legalized civil rights and staged a sit-in. Within time, the restriction was lifted.
That's just a microcosm of the African-American experience in La Grange and that faced by Joyce and her husband of 37 years, Gaylon Lightner, a couple of the community's earliest civil rights activists who were behind such accomplishments as the village's open housing ordinance in June of 1972, activism in many NAACP committees, initiatives and events.
At Sunday's 18th Annual Race Unity Rally sponsored by that same group, a yearly celebration acknowledging society's cultural and racial differences, The Lightners were presented with a lifetime achievement Diversity Award by their peers -- before a diverse crowd of neighbors and town leaders.
The award was given out by the Rev. Sherri Robinson, pastor of the African Methodist Episcopal Church on East Calendar Avenue. A prolonged standing ovation followed.
"This lifetime achievement award is for Joyce and Gaylon's outstanding support of diversity," she said, noting their efforts "in helping to make our community a better place to live."
"They were always a team working with the La Grange Area NAACP," said the Rev. Robinson, who noted Gaylon and Joyce were both former board members and members of committees who attended annual state, regional and national conventions. In present day, they are active members of the CommUNITY Diversity Group.
The daughter of a former 8th Avenue fish market owner, Joyce was a village planning commissioner in the early to mid-1980s, about the same time she coordinated the LaGrange leg of the Hands Across America fundraiser. She was secretary of the Eastside Neighborhood Preservation Area Committee, registrar for the La Grange Share Food Program, member of the Gregory Topps Medical Fund Committee and helped organize the La Grange Sunday Mixed Bowling League in 1960.
Gaylon, who joined Joyce in the league when they started dating around 1967 and still bowls with her religiously every week, has served with the Citizens Council of La Grange that helped usher in the first African-American trustee, served on educational panels and neighborhood preservation groups and, like his bride, was a board member of the CommUNITY Diversity Group, which formed n 1992 following the Rodney King beating and the racial strife that ensued.
"I really feel some of you are here because of us being here," said Joyce, her 6-foot-4-1/2-foot husband towering over her and, as always, standing close. "But we still have a long way to go."
As humble as they always are, Gaylon also shared his appreciation for their accolades.
"It wasn't something we went after (or) looked for," he said, "we were about community ... We do what we do we don't anticipate any awards or accolades. We do things because we feel it's necessary."
To that, CommUNITY Diversity Group President Linda Eastman added, "We could never fill their shoes, especially Gaylon's ... we are just the extras."
A portion of the 29-member CEP Youth Leadership "Watch My Feet" perfomance group then entertained the 100-plus crowd with a multi-ethnic diversity skit to "Man in the Mirror," a once-popular tune of the late Michael Jackson, which brought tears to some eyes in the room.
The group comprised of Argo Community, Fenwick, Lyons Township, Nazareth and Riverside-Brookfield high schools performed interpretive dance as a loudspeaker seemed to do the rest about effecting change.
"If you want to make the world a better place, look around yourself and make a change," Jackson sung, the words undeniably resonating with the crowd.
A couple of children seemingly most impressed with the afternoon affair -- which included a unique flower-sharing ceremony and group picture -- were Josie and Jamie, the 7-year-old daughter and 5-and-4-month-old son of Park District of La Grange Commissioner Timothy Kelpsas.
"It was real good," said Josie, a second grader at Ogden School. "I like that we shared flowers."
Jamie, clutching a large bouquet of red and white carnations he collected from everyone he could, said he really liked the dancers.
"But I like the flowers most," he said.
Thinking her move up north would be a breath of fresh air, away from all the prejudice and discrimination she faced since her youth and through her young adulthood back home, she unfortunately was dead wrong.
She found a comfortable neighborhood of fellow African-Americans living between East Avenue and the Indiana Harbor Belt Railroad tracks, but soon learned the stigmas associated with the so-called East Side.
Some people who lived there had their homes physically picked up and moved decades earlier from the West Side of town into the East Side because of their race, and it didn't stop there. Any blacks who wanted to lease apartments west of Bluff Avenue found none available.
She was glad to see city-like merchants lined up along what was then referred to as Fifth Avenue (present-day La Grange Road), but she quickly learned her "people" were not allowed to cross Fifth Avenue to patronize the dress shops, at least not when white folks were there.
And in an almost Rosa Parks-esque "back of the bus" incident, more discriminatory practice reared its ugly head when blacks were not allowed to sit at the dime store lunch counter.
But not long after that injustice come to light than does Joyce recall a group of young men who exercised their not-yet legalized civil rights and staged a sit-in. Within time, the restriction was lifted.
That's just a microcosm of the African-American experience in La Grange and that faced by Joyce and her husband of 37 years, Gaylon Lightner, a couple of the community's earliest civil rights activists who were behind such accomplishments as the village's open housing ordinance in June of 1972, activism in many NAACP committees, initiatives and events.
At Sunday's 18th Annual Race Unity Rally sponsored by that same group, a yearly celebration acknowledging society's cultural and racial differences, The Lightners were presented with a lifetime achievement Diversity Award by their peers -- before a diverse crowd of neighbors and town leaders.
The award was given out by the Rev. Sherri Robinson, pastor of the African Methodist Episcopal Church on East Calendar Avenue. A prolonged standing ovation followed.
"This lifetime achievement award is for Joyce and Gaylon's outstanding support of diversity," she said, noting their efforts "in helping to make our community a better place to live."
"They were always a team working with the La Grange Area NAACP," said the Rev. Robinson, who noted Gaylon and Joyce were both former board members and members of committees who attended annual state, regional and national conventions. In present day, they are active members of the CommUNITY Diversity Group.
The daughter of a former 8th Avenue fish market owner, Joyce was a village planning commissioner in the early to mid-1980s, about the same time she coordinated the LaGrange leg of the Hands Across America fundraiser. She was secretary of the Eastside Neighborhood Preservation Area Committee, registrar for the La Grange Share Food Program, member of the Gregory Topps Medical Fund Committee and helped organize the La Grange Sunday Mixed Bowling League in 1960.
Gaylon, who joined Joyce in the league when they started dating around 1967 and still bowls with her religiously every week, has served with the Citizens Council of La Grange that helped usher in the first African-American trustee, served on educational panels and neighborhood preservation groups and, like his bride, was a board member of the CommUNITY Diversity Group, which formed n 1992 following the Rodney King beating and the racial strife that ensued.
He chaired the Eastside preservation panel, was a member of the now-defunct Main Street downtown marketing organization and the La Grange Rotary Club. And he was a member of the most recent Comprehensive Plan for Northeast La Grange Committee.
The couple also are longtime parishioners of the LaGrange/Brookfield Seventh-Day Adventist Church.
Upon receiving the award in front of a roomful of longtime neighbors, friends and supporters, the Lightners gracefully accepted the recognition."I really feel some of you are here because of us being here," said Joyce, her 6-foot-4-1/2-foot husband towering over her and, as always, standing close. "But we still have a long way to go."
As humble as they always are, Gaylon also shared his appreciation for their accolades.
"It wasn't something we went after (or) looked for," he said, "we were about community ... We do what we do we don't anticipate any awards or accolades. We do things because we feel it's necessary."
To that, CommUNITY Diversity Group President Linda Eastman added, "We could never fill their shoes, especially Gaylon's ... we are just the extras."
A portion of the 29-member CEP Youth Leadership "Watch My Feet" perfomance group then entertained the 100-plus crowd with a multi-ethnic diversity skit to "Man in the Mirror," a once-popular tune of the late Michael Jackson, which brought tears to some eyes in the room.
The group comprised of Argo Community, Fenwick, Lyons Township, Nazareth and Riverside-Brookfield high schools performed interpretive dance as a loudspeaker seemed to do the rest about effecting change.
"If you want to make the world a better place, look around yourself and make a change," Jackson sung, the words undeniably resonating with the crowd.
A couple of children seemingly most impressed with the afternoon affair -- which included a unique flower-sharing ceremony and group picture -- were Josie and Jamie, the 7-year-old daughter and 5-and-4-month-old son of Park District of La Grange Commissioner Timothy Kelpsas.
"It was real good," said Josie, a second grader at Ogden School. "I like that we shared flowers."
Jamie, clutching a large bouquet of red and white carnations he collected from everyone he could, said he really liked the dancers.
"But I like the flowers most," he said.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)