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Budget fight: No end in sight
REMEMBERING FOX RIVER GROVE’S SEVEN ANGELS
How did Ill. get to a four-month state budget impasse? By KEVIN P. CRAVER kcraver@shawmedia.com
Photos by H. Rick Bamman – hbamman@shawmedia.com
Fox River Grove Fire Chief Bob Kreher (left) and his brother, Deputy Chief Jim Kreher, visit the Seven Angels crossing recently. It’s been 20 years since the brothers worked the scene of a bus-train crash in 1995 at the intersection of Route 14 and Algonquin Road in Fox River Grove. Seven students – Jeffrey Clark, 16; Stephanie Fulham, 15; Susanna Guzman, 18; Michael Hoffman, 14; Joe Kalte, 16; Shawn Robinson, 14; and Tiffany Schneider, 15 – died. Jim Kreher was the incident commander on the day of the crash and runs a yearly blood drive in memory of the seven students.
Firefighters turn tragedy into life-giving legacy By CAITLIN SWIECA cswieca@shawmedia.com FOX RIVER GROVE – When Jim Kreher puts on his uniform each day, his sleeve bears a reminder of the darkest day in village history. Beneath the traditional red crest on the Fox River Grove Fire Department’s patch, there’s a navy blue and white ribbon. It serves as a memorial to the seven CaryGrove High School students who died in a
bus-train crash Oct. 25, 1995, at Algonquin Road and Route 14. Sunday marks 20 years since Jeffrey Clark, Stephanie Fulham, Susanna Guzman, Michael Hoffman, Joe Kalte, Shawn Robinson and Tiffany Schneider died in the crash. Kreher, who was the department’s incident commander that day, estimates he was on the scene 20 seconds after a Metra commuter train slammed into the back of a school bus as it waited at a red light. He said
it’s hard to believe two decades have passed. “Time went by pretty quick,” Kreher said. “It seems just like yesterday that it happened.” Of Fox River Grove’s 37 current firefighters, Kreher said five – including his brother, Fire Chief Bob Kreher – were working for the department at the time of the crash. Even though a number of first responders are no longer there, reminders of that
See LEGACY, page A9
ABOVE: Fox River Grove Fire Department ambulance 657 honors the memory of the seven students killed in a bus-train crash Oct. 25, 1995. LEFT: Deputy Fire Chief Jim Kreher and his wife, Angie, maintain the memorial at Seven Angels Crossing at the intersection of Route 14 and Algonquin Road in Fox River Grove.
State lawmakers came to Springfield on Tuesday for the fall veto session. They saw. They did little. They went home. They will not meet again for another two and a half weeks. When lawmakers next convene Nov. 10, Illinois will have gone more than four months without a budget in place since the July 1 start of the state fiscal year. Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner and the Democratic-controlled General Assembly remain deadlocked. While much of state government still is operating because of court orders and consent decrees, social service agencies that help the state’s most needy people aren’t getting paid. And while most of the state’s bills are being paid, the lack of a state budget means the fix when a
See BUDGET, page A11
Backed by mothers, gun-safety group grows By RYAN J. FOLEY The Associated Press A gun-control organization, backed by billionaire Michael Bloomberg, that enlists mothers to speak out against gun violence is racking up some modest victories around the U.S., employing the stateby-state strategy used so effectively to fight drunken driving and expand gay rights. Everytown for Gun Safety and its subsidiary, Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America, have helped push six states since 2013 to adopt more background checks on gun sales – what they consider the single most important measure to prevent shootings. They also have helped thwart legislation in several states that would make it easier
See GUNS, page A9
LOCAL NEWS
North Main Street project CL hires firm; plans include Route 176 traffic signal, upgrading water and sewer lines / A3 SPORTS
Reframing negativity Licensed clinical psychologist and former Crystal Lake resident Melissa Bailey shares breast cancer fight in book / Style 8
‘Win means so much for us’ Cary-Grove beats top-seeded Crystal Lake South for DeKalb Regional title / C1
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