Village Free Press_022824

Get the basics on the March 19 Primary Page 4

D209 Appoints Interim CoSuperintendents, D89 Supt. Leaving

Alexander Aschoff and Luke Pavone to lead D209 until they find a permanent superintendent, D89’s David Negron finds a new job

By MICHAEL ROMAIN Editor

The Proviso Township High School District 209 school board approved the appointment of two interim co-superintendents last week as the board continues its search for ex-superintendent James Henderson’s permanent successor.

During a Feb. 21 regular meeting, the D209 board appointed Alexander Aschoff and Luke Pavone as the interim co-superintendents. The motion passed 4-0. Board President Amanda Grant and members David Ocampo, Rodney Alexander and Samual Valtierrez voted in favor. Board member Sandra Hixson abstained. Board members Jenny Barbahen and Della Patterson were absent.

Aschoff and Pavone will succeed Bessie Karvelas, who had been serving as acting superintendent from August 2023 until she went on a leave of absence earlier this month.

In a statement, D209 officials said Aschoff started his teaching career in 2004 as a science teacher at Proviso East High School in Maywood. Since then, he’s served in a range of roles, including as a science department chair, science division head and the district’s coordinator of science.

Aschoff has co-authored a book, “Teaching in a Competency-Based Secondary School,” and is enrolled in a doctoral program in Educational Leadership that he’s expected to complete next year.

Northlake library asks residents to vote ‘yes’ Page 3

A woman browses the Julian Legacy Museum, a temporary exhibition on display in the Oak Park Public Library through March 4. Read more on famed chemist and former Maywood resident Percy Julian’s moment on page 8.

Still ‘A Quiet Place With Come-Back Spirit’

As Berkeley

celebrates 100 years, a 30-year-old newspaper article offers a chance to reflect on the suburb’s rich history

By MICHAEL ROMAIN Editor

This year, the small suburb of just over 5,000 residents turns 100 years old. Village officials and community leaders have an array of programming to mark the centennial. You can read up on the plans at berkeleyilcentennial.com.

For our part, we’ll be celebrating the suburb in our own way. Throughout the year, we’ll be reflecting on the town’s rich history and its greatest asset — its people. If you know of anyone we should interview or story ideas related to Berkeley’s past, present and future you’d like us to explore, don’t hesitate to email michael@wearejohnwilk.com. I figured I’d kick off this year-long se-

ries, which we’re calling “Berkeley at 100,” by exploring Linda Young’s 1993 Chicago Tribune article on Berkeley, “A Quiet Place with Come-Back Spirit.”

No surprise, the notable Old Settlers Cemetery figures prominently in Young’s profile. Formerly known as the Bohlander

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The Problem With The Democratic Party That’s Hiding In Plain Site

By MICHAEL ROMAIN Opinion

In the contentious Democratic Primary race for the 7th Congressional District, there aren’t too many meaningful ideological differences separating the candidates.

They include 27-year incumbent Rep. Danny K. Davis, gun violence prevention and health care activist Kina Collins, Chicago Treasurer Melissa Conyears-Ervin, political strategist and community organizer Kouri Marshall, and educator Nikhil Bhatia.

“

The Village Free Press is published digitally and in print by John Wilk Communications LLC. The print edition is distributed across Proviso Township at no charge each week.

During a Feb. 24 town hall I moderated at Second Baptist Church in Maywood alongside political strategist Ashley Munson – and hosted by the church’s pastor, Rev. Chauncey Brown, and Min. Cameron Barnes – the candidates, all of whom but Bhatia appeared, dutifully made a range of liberal and progressive pledges.

ity (he’s a member of the powerful Ways and Means committee that practically controls the country’s purse strings) can’t be replicated by any of his younger, more vibrant opponents.

Collins, who nearly beat Davis in a pretty close race two years ago, brings her activist’s zeal and policy command of gun violence and healthcare issues earned from her experience as an advocate and nonprofit leader.

Marshall isn’t shy about touting his national political connections earned through his time working as a staffer on winning Democratic campaigns, such as Barack Obama’s successful 2012 presidential re-election bid.

The striking ideological similarities between the candidates naturally prompts onlookers to focus on their contrasting personalities.”

They all agreed that everyone, including prisoners, should vote and pledged their support for a bill introduced last year by two Democratic legislators that would restore voting rights to people in prison. In Illinois, felons can vote but prisoners cannot.

They all acknowledged the crisis of wealth inequality in the United States and pledged to support a bill introduced by four Democratic congresspeople that would tax people who hold between 1,000 and 1,000,000 times the country’s median household wealth and that outlines specific enforcement measures to fight tax evasion by the super wealthy.

They also all agreed that the federal government can do more to rectify the historical disinvestment it helped perpetuate in Black communities like Maywood by sanctioning banks’ systemic denial of loans and insurance to people of color.

The striking ideological similarities between the candidates naturally prompts onlookers to focus on their contrasting personalities.

At 82, Davis is subject to criticisms about his age, which he’s skillfully countered with the argument that his experience and senior-

And Treasurer ConyearsErvin, wife of powerful Chicago alderman and former Maywood village manager Jason Ervin, has humanized her candidacy by leaning into her identity as a working mother and caretaker of a sister who is a senior citizen.

But the focus on personalities — on who is too old or too young, who appears charismatic and energetic, etc. — redirects our attention from a much deeper structural problem within the Democratic Party that nobody is talking about (certainly not most candidates in congressional races).

Hiding In Plain Site

I thought about this structural problem after listening to a question posed to the candidates by my grandmother.

“We have all of these senior complexes being built, but it’s taking seniors just about their whole paycheck to pay monthly and then in the next year the rent is being raised,” she said. “How is that benefiting our senior citizens?”

Conyears Ervin and Davis honed in on the inadequate amount of Social Security that many senior citizens receive. Collins mentioned federal housing subsidies “for seniors to pay for their rent when entitlement programs get slashed.” Marshall said more

See HIDING on page 10

Northlake Public Library Asking Voters To Vote ‘Yes’ For ‘Zero Tax Rate Increase’

The Northlake Public Library trustee board is asking residents of the city to vote ‘yes’ on a critical referendum that will appear on their March 19 primary ballots:

“Shall the limiting rate under the Property Tax Extension Limitation Law for the Northlake Public Library District, Cook County, Illinois, be increased by an additional amount equal to 0.101% above the limiting rate for levy year 2022 for library purposes and be equal to 0.397% of the equalized assessed value of the taxable property therein for levy year 2024?”

According to a web page the library has added to its website to explain the referendum, if residents vote ‘yes,’ the tax rate would remain at .397 and the library district would “receive an increase in operating funds, which would allow it to increase hours, take care of deferred maintenance, and build a reserve for upcoming building costs for the 37,000 square foot facility and grounds.”

Library district officials said the additional revenue would allow them to repair or replace broken and outdated equipment, install a new roof, replace the carpet, maintain the parking lot, replace doors and replenish the library’s savings, among other things.

If residents vote ‘no,’ the library district “would be required to reduce programs, books, and services by at minimum 25% in order to keep the library operational in the future.”

More specifically, the 25% decrease in the library’s operating budget would further limit the availability of new materials “and there would be even longer wait times for new books, movies, music, and downloadable content.”

For more information on the referendum, visit northlakelibrary.org/referendum/

Lung Transplant Recipient’s Generous Donation Creates Rehabilitation Area for Patients Recovering from Transplant

[Loyola Medicine Press Release] Loyola Medicine recently celebrated the dedication of the Chris and Neil Blitstein Rehabilitation Track with a ribbon cutting ceremony at Loyola University Medical Center (LUMC) in Maywood. This newly renovated space is designed to inspire patients recovering from a transplant by giving them a cheerful place to walk and track progress toward their rehabilitation goals.

The Blitsteins’ generous investment in the Chris and Neil Blitstein Rehabilitation Track has already made a positive impact on post-surgical transplant patients and their caregivers. Since its completion, patients have remarked that not only do they enjoy viewing the beautiful Chicago skyline as they walk, the track also inspires them to persevere and provides an opportunity to venture beyond the hospital unit where they spend so much of their day.

The Blitsteins, who live in Burr Ridge, made their generous gift in recognition of the exceptional care Mr. Blitstein received from Loyola Medicine’s lung transplant team. Mr. Blitstein, who received his transplant at in 2017, credits Loyola’s lung transplant team with saving his life. Dan Dilling, MD, medical director of lung transplant at Loyola Medicine, said, “It has been a privilege for Loyola’s multidisciplinary lung

team to be entrusted with Mr. Blitstein’s care and to see his life extended as a result.”

“Capital improvements like this one are critical to patient care at Loyola and at times are only possible as a result of the generosity of philanthropic supporters like Chris and Neil Blitstein,” said Tad Gomez, president of LUMC. “That is why we are so grateful to the Blitsteins for turning what before was simply a hallway into a source of beauty and inspiration for patients recovering from complex surgeries and working toward mobility and rehabilitation.”

Loyola Medicine is grateful to the Blitsteins for their many avenues of support including additional philanthropic generosity and volunteer leadership of patient and caregiver support programs. The Blitsteins explained, “It is an honor to support Loyola Medicine and the many caregivers who have given so much to our family. We are grateful beyond words.”

Loyola has the longest running and highest volume lung transplant program in Illinois. To date, our team has performed 1,195 life-saving lung transplants for patients from across Illinois, Indiana, Michigan and Wisconsin.

Lindop D92 Says It’s Returning $442K In Taxes To Broadview Residents

Lindop School District 92 officials announced on Feb. 19 that “Broadview homeowners and businesses can expect $442,343 in property tax relief in each of the next two years thanks to a continuation of a state tax relief grant program.”

Lindop was one of 32 school districts in the state and the only one in Proviso Township awarded a Property Tax Relief Grant from the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE). D92 officials said 155 school districts applied for the funding.

In a statement on Feb. 5, ISBE officials said the grant program “is part of the Evidence-Based Funding (EBF) for Student Success Act; it allows school districts to reduce local property taxes and replace that revenue with state funds. The $49.3 million in fiscal year 2024 grants will result in $54.2 million in property tax relief for Illinois residents.

“Governor JB Pritzker’s FY 2024 budget made the program possible with an approximately $50 million appropriation. Participating school districts must abate taxes for two consecutive years. A district’s grant amount becomes a permanent part of its EBF Base Funding Minimum going forward.”

D92 officials said the state will replace Lindop’s property tax revenue returned to taxpayers with a direct $346,123 cash grant.

“By receiving a direct, fixed cash grant, the state relieves the district’s budget uncertainties because each year we are unable to collect all property tax money owed to the district from economically distressed properties,” said D92 Board President Aaron Hannah.

“The Board of Education extends its gratitude to Governor J.B. Pritzker and Illinois state lawmakers, like House Speaker Emanuel ‘Chris’ Welch and Senate Majority Leader Kimberly Lightford, for their continued commitment to increasing funding equity and adequacy for Lindop 92, but also their commitment to lowering property taxes for Broadview residents,” Hannah said.

LOYOLA MEDICINE

Loyola Medicine officials cut the ribbon on the newly renovated Neil Blitstein Rehabilitation Track, designed to inspire patients recovering from a transplant.

ELECTION GUIDE A Guide To The Primaries

U.S. Representative, 4th Congressional District

• Jesus “Chuy” Garcia | #11

• Raymond A. Lopez | #12

U.S. Representative, 7th Congressional District

• Melissa Conyears-Ervin | #11

By MICHAEL ROMAIN Editor

Limited early voting for the March 19 Presidential Primary Election began on Feb. 19. Voters can go to all five suburban Cook County Circuit Courthouse locations and downtown Chicago at 69 W. Washington to vote Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

The only limited early voting location in Proviso Township is at 1311 Maybrook Drive (Room 104) in Maywood.

Traditional early voting will begin on March 4, when voters can choose from among more than 50 locations in Cook County to cast their early ballots. Traditional early voting ends on March 18.

For a full list of those locations, visit cookcountyclerkil.gov/elections/ways-to-vote/early-voting/early-voting-locations

For more information about when voters need and don’t need to present ID, visit cookcountyclerkil.gov/elections/voter-registration/ when-voters-do-and-dont-need-identification-id

To check your voter registration status, see a sample ballot and locate your polling place, among other things, visit cookcountyclerk. com/VoterInfo

Below, we’ve compiled a list of some of the most important contested, non-judicial primary races that will appear on the ballots of most voters in Proviso Township on March 19.

For a complete guide to candidates running in the Cook County judicial primary elections and to find your judicial district, consult the Injustice Watch Judicial Election Guide at interactives.injusticewatch.org/judicial-electionguide/2024-primary/en/

DEMOCRATIC CANDIDATES

U.S. President | Ballot #

• Joseph R. Biden, Jr. | #1

• Dean Phillips | #2

• Marianne Williamson | #3

• Frank “Frankie” Lozada | #4

• Danny K. Davis | #12

• Kouri Marshall | #13

• Nikhil Bhatia | #14

• Kina Collins | #15

Commissioner, Metropolitan Water Reclamation District

• Sharon Waller | #81

• Kari K. Steele | #82

• Marcelino Garcia | #83

• Daniel “Pogo” Pogorzelski | #84

Clerk of the Circuit Court, Cook County

• Iris Y. Martinez | #91

• Mariyana T. Spyropoulos | #92 State’s Attorney, Cook County

•Clayton Harris | #93

• Eileen O’Neill Burke | #94

Commissioner, 1st County Board District

•Tara Stamps | #101

• Zerlina A. Smith Members | #102

Commissioner, Board of Review 3rd District

• Larecia N. Tucker | #111

• Larry Rogers Jr. | #112

REPUBLICAN CANDIDATES

U.S. President | Ballot #

• Ryan L. Binkley | #1

• Ron DeSantis | #2

• Nikki Haley | #3

• Donald J. Trump | #4

• Chris Christie | #5

Commissioner, Metropolitan Water Reclamation District

• Claire Connelly | #81

• Richard F. Dale | #82

• Brendan Ehlers | #83

BERKELEY

Looking back

from page 1

Family Burial Grounds, named after one of the village’s first settler families, the historic cemetery has proven pretty durable. It still stands after falling into disarray after World War II, acts of vandalism and an attempt in 1993 to reclaim the grounds “for other uses.”

In July, Berkeley will dedicate a military sign in Old Settlers to memorialize the veterans of the Mexican War, the Civil War, the Spanish-American War and World War I who are buried on its grounds.

Other Berkeley icons that figure prominently in Young’s Tribune piece have also proven to be profiles in staying power, namely Rosemarie Johnson, author of the 1974 book, “From Oats to Roses: The History of Berkeley;” LeDonne True Value Hardware, 1750 N. Taft Ave.; and the hulking Eisenhower Expressway.

Young looked to Johnson for juicy historical tidbits, including “how in 1924, despite fierce opposition from residents living east of Hillside Avenue, Berkeley residents–by

“Nobody knows for sure how Berkeley became Berkeley,” Young wrote.

“One theory has it that a settler, in from the west, had such a fondness for the California city of the same name that he insisted the Illinois community be named Berkeley.

True Value Hardware, told Young in 1993 that he sensed “a whole new spirit” in town, a resurgence of community involvement.

LeDonne Sr. died in 2004 at 81, but the hardware store bearing his name still stands and will figure prominently in this year’s Centennial celebration. A mural commissioned by the village and painted on the side of LeDonne will be unveiled on Aug. 11, the day of the Berkeley Family Fun Fest.

one vote–opted to incorporate their community of about 800 citizens.

“One wealthy resident, John Wolf, was so incensed at the notion of incorporation that he bought up all the land he could and had it annexed by nearby Hillside.”

Johnson may have also relayed to the reporter some interesting speculation about how Berkeley got its name.

Some Key Dates In Berkeley History

1835 - Peter Bohlander and family leave Rhinefalz, Bavaria for America. They settle at a home on property near St. Charles Road and Taft Avenue, which they bought from Daniel Deibert for $1.25 an acre. 1836 - St. Charles Road, a stretch of roadway from St. Charles to Chicago, is built.

1845 - Peter Bohlander donates land at the southeast corner of St. Charles Road and Taft Avenue for the purpose of burying family, friends and neighbors. “It has many graves that are merely marked by wooden crosses, blank stones, plants or barely marked at all,” Brian Litteral writes.

1902 - The “completion of the Chicago, Aurora & Elgin Railroad (interurban) gave the area its first passenger rail service at a stop called Berkeley,” the Enyclopedia of Chicago explains.

1908 - Robertson and Young Realtors “advertise the first subdivided plots of land for residential building in their newest development, the Wolf Road Highlands,” Johnson writes.

1924 - Berkeley incorporates as a village on May 20. “Berkeley was now officially being spelled with three E’s. For a while the idea of calling Berkeley ‘Waldo’, was con-

sidered.” The village also purchases its first fire truck.

1960 - After World War II, Berkeley’s population triples from 1,882 in 1950 to 5,792 in 1960. By this year, the village has lost houses after the “construction of the Interstate 290 extension in the late 1950s cut a north-south swath through the western section of the village,” according to the Encyclopedia of Chicago. “With traffic diverted to the new expressway system, the Chicago, Aurora & Elgin terminated its passenger service in 1957, but its route is still marked through the village by the Prairie Path for bicycling.”

1961 - The final stretch of the Congress opens, “running through DuPage County and ending in Elmhurst,” WBEZ explains.

1974 - Berkeley celebrates its Golden Jubilee, 50 years after its incorporation. Johnson’s history of the town, “From Oats to Roses,” is published.

2021 - Berkeley Village President Robert E. Lee, Jr. designates Rosemarie Johnson the village’s official historian and announces that an updated history of Berkeley, from 1974 to 2024, will be authored by former Berkeley police chief and Berkeley native Timothy Griffin.

“Another says that officials from the Aurora-Elgin Railroad, which then brought commuters through town, hacked up a sign that read ‘Berkley’ at the train stop. Berkeley added the middle ‘e’ to the town’s spelling in 1926 after briefly toying with the notion of renaming it ‘Waldo.’”

How Berkeley got its name may be unclear, but what’s unequivocal is Johnson’s place in the suburb’s history. In 2021, the village named her its official historian.

George LeDonne Sr., founder of LeDonne

The Eisenhower Expressway, formerly known as the Congress, literally ripped the area apart when it was built in the 1950s, severing Berkeley from Elmhurst, its DuPage County neighbor to the west, by way of concrete walls. The Eisenhower “took thehomes of many Berkeley citizens, some of whom settled in other neighborhoods in town.”

Rosemarie Johnson stayed put, though, a choice that came with both pain and progress.

“When they were building it, the noise was terrible,” the historian told Young. “The house would shake. We had to keep the windows closed all summer because of the dust.”

“But at least it makes Berkeley a convenient place to live in terms of transportation. ‘There’s a great convenience that we’re close to Chicago and anywhere else. We can just get on the expressway and go,’” Johnson said.

Nzingha Nommo

Roger Thomas

David Scott

Andrew Cooper

Cheryl Henry

Reatha S. Henry

Deanie Norfleet

Patricia Whittey

Yvonne Rivers

Brenda A. GibsonWilliams

Robert A. Jones

Cook County Treasurer Office

Habilitative Systems, Inc.

Lindop SD 92

Maywood Fine Arts

Suicide Prevention

Avid Business Advisors

Bellwood Library

Best of Proviso

Broadview Park District

Chicago Workers

Collaborative

Cook County

Suburban Publishers

Maywood Library

Maywood Park District

Memorial Park District

Speaker Welch

Stryker Orthopedics

The Monroe Foundation

This Is Me Fashion

Triton

Village of Westchester Westchester Community Church

Westchester Park District

NEWSPAPER CLIPPING

George Le Donne (front) and his son, Mike, pose in front of the family’s hardware store for a photo taken for a Chicago Tribune article.

Proviso West Freshman Goes To State Wrestling Finals

Jamiel Castleberry went to Champaign with 30-1 record, took fourth place in the state

By MICHAEL ROMAIN Editor

Proviso West has a wrestling superstar on its hands after freshman Jamiel Castleberry secured the 3A 106-pound sectional championship and earned a spot in the state finals in Champaign.

Castleberry wrestled all the way to the semifinal matchup on Feb. 17, losing to eventual state final runner-up Rocco Cassioppi of Hononegah High in Rockton.

Castleberry lost the third-place match to Rocco Hayes of Sandburg High in Orland Park, placing his record at 33-3 on the year. The Panther freshman finished fourth in the state.

“Castleberry’s journey to the IHSA [Illinois High School Association] State Tournament is not only marked by his exceptional skills on the mat but also by his rich wrestling heritage,” Proviso Township High School District 209 officials explained in a statement.

D209

Changes in leadership

from page 1

“His commitment to personalized instruction and student agency has significantly contributed to improved teaching and learning in District 209,” district officials wrote.

Pavone started working at D209 in 2023 “and has served as the Deputy Superintendent for Operational Services, overseeing various departments such as Human Resources, Technology, Operations & Maintenance, and more,” D209 officials explained.

They added that Pavone has also worked as an assistant superintendent for human resources at Elmhurst Community Unit School District 205 and as executive director for human resources at Beverly Hills Unified School District.

Pavone and Aschoff will lead the district as the board continues to search for a permanent superintendent to replace Henderson, who resigned in August 2023 after a threeyear tenure that included a historic teacher strike in 2022 and widespread complaints from staffers and students about his job performance.

Proviso West freshman Jamiel Castleberry earned a trip to the state finals earlier this month.

“Hailing from a wrestling family, Castleberry’s passion for the sport runs deep,” officials added. “Notably, this year marks the third time in which Castleberry has claimed victory at the Illinois Kids Wrestling Federation (IKWF) State

Karvelas had been serving as acting superintendent since then. Her leave of absence, the reason for which D209 officials did not disclose due to employee privacy concerns, is through April 30.

In November 2023, the board hired Hazard, Young, Attea and Associates (HYA), an executive search firm based in Arlington Heights, to search for the district’s permanent top administrator.

During a regular meeting on Feb. 13, HYA representatives recommended the D209 school board hire two outside personnel, former superintendents Constance Collins and Kerry Foderaro, to serve as co-interim superintendents at $1,000 a day. However, board members decided to fill the positions internally.

“I think it will save the district a lot of mon-

Triton Women’s Basketball Player Breaks 43-Year, All-Time Scoring Record

Triton women’s basketball player Trinity Barnes broke Triton College’s 43-year scoring record on Feb. 20 in Chicago in a 65-39 win over Wilbur Wright College. Barnes surpassed the 1,033 in the game’s fourth quarter.

“I was trying to stay focused,” said Barnes, a secondyear Triton student who has averaged 21.1 points per game this season and is ranked fourth in the nation in the National Junior College Athletics Association (NJCAA) Division I, Triton officials said.

They added that Barnes is “the fourth Triton women’s basketball player in the program’s 50-year history to eclipse the 1,000-career-point total. Micki McEvoy held the previous career record with 1,033 points scored from 1979-1981.”

“There were no doubts in my mind that she would accomplish this dream,” said Head Coach Drew Winston. “The future for her is bright.”

Championship while representing Beat The Streets Bellwood, the feeder wrestling program for Proviso West.”

Last year, Castleberry, a team captain, upset a top-ranked and previously undefeated opponent in the semifinal match of the Dvorak Invitational, ultimately earning a secondplace overall finish in the tournament, officials said.

ey and taxpayers will be happy,” Hixson said at the meeting.

Earlier this month, the district hosted four public forums and focus groups to gather feedback from students, teachers, staff and community members about what they would want to see in a future permanent superintendent.

Board members have said they hope to start interviewing candidates for the position in early March.

District 89 Superintendent Leaving To Take Another Job

Dr. David Negron, the superintendent of Maywood-Melrose Park-Broadview School District 89, is leaving the district after being at the helm for nearly a decade. Negron has accepted the superintendent position at Summit School District 104, where he started his career. Negron will start his new job on July 1.

In a statement posted on the district’s website on Feb. 22, D104 officials said Negron “has a special connection to the community as he was baptized and married at St. Blasé Church in Summit.” Negron started his career at D104 “over 20 years ago and was the principal at Heritage Middle School before

becoming a superintendent.”

“When asked what he looks forward to most in his superintendent role at School District 104, Dr. Negron mentions, ‘I look forward to meeting all our students, families, teachers, and staff members. I know that by working together with the entire School District 104 community we can accomplish great things for our students and the community.’

In a letter to D89 community members, Negron said the decision to leave the district “was one of the most difficult decisions of my life because I have thoroughly enjoyed working here [...] for the past [nine] years.”

Negron said the D89 school board will be meeting “over the course of the next couple of weeks to discuss their next steps to find my replacement.”

Negron was hired by D89 in 2015. Before becoming a superintendent, he was a “school social worker, bilingual teacher, elementary school principal, middle school principal, director of elementary education,” D104 officials explained in the statement.

DAVID NEGRON

ALEXANDER ASCHOFF LUKE PAVONE

COURTESY DISTRICT 209

WHAT’S HAPPENING

bit.ly/vfp-community-calendar

There’s plenty of events happening across Proviso Township this week. Below, we’ve included just a few. If you’d like to add a local event for consideration, email the specifics to michael@wearejohnwilk.com

Wednesday, Feb. 28, 6:30 to 7:30 p.m., Maywood Public Library, 121 S. 5th Ave., Maywood

Join the library and Ms. Sophia and Friends as they celebrate Black History through storytelling, song, dance, and more. For more info or to register, visit maywoodlibrary.org/events-1/sophia-roscoe-bhm-ensemble

Thursday, Feb. 29, 9 to 11 a.m., Melrose Park Village Hall, 1000 N. 25th Ave., Melrose Park

Join Bellwood District 88 Supt. Victoria Stockton for her Speaking Series, “Brewing Success,” featuring coffee, conversations and commiunity. For more info, visit melrosepark.org

Thursday, Feb. 29, 5 to 6 p.m., Hillside Public Library, 405 Hillside Ave., Hillside

The library will celebrate Leap Day this year with their leaping friends, Frog and Toad. Join them for a late afternoon of fun with activities, stories and light refreshments.

On Feb. 24, community members across Proviso Township gathered at the Eisenhower Center, 700 Speechley Blvd. in Hillside, for the West Suburban Firehouse Chili CookOff Fundraiers hosted by Top Flight Defense, Inc. Bellwood Clerk Janel Moreland said on Facebook that the Bellwood Fire Department took home the first-place trophy.

Come dressed up in your best tea party attire or as Frog and Toad. Registration encouraged. For more info, visit hillsidelibrary.org/

Thursday, Feb. 29, 5:30 p.m., Q’s Pizza and Bar, 4841 Butterfield Rd., Hillside

Join the Westchester Chamber of Commerce for an After Hours Event. Topic: The cost of insurance featuring a presentation by Blaine Carragher from State Farm. $20 per person. For more info or to register, visit westchesteril.org/news/westchester-chamber-of-commerce-event

Saturday, March 2, 1 to 4 p.m., Westchester Public Library, 10700 Canterbury St., Westchester Westchester Trustee Victoria Vann will host a Veterans Business Resource Series. Learn more about veterans business grants, business development programs and veterans-owned businesses, among other resources. For more info, visit westchester-il.org/news/veterans-business-resource-series

COMMUNITY Spotlight

Maywood Church Looks To Bridge Digital Divide With Laptop Giveaway

J.W. James A.M.E. Church gave away 100 laptops to families in need

By MICHAEL ROMAIN Editor

A Maywood church has partnered with Cook County to give away free computers to community members who may need them.

Rev. Garry S. Mitchell Sr., the pastor of J.W. James A.M.E. Church, 907 S. 6th Ave. in Maywood, said last week the church would give the devices to 100 families during a Black History Month Digital Equity Event on Feb. 26. The event happened after this publication’s print deadline.

The church randomly selected the 100 families, who were notified by text or email if selected. J.W. James A.M.E.

Rev. Mitchell said his church has partnered with Cook County for the computer giveaway. Last year, the county launched its Digital Equity Action Plan that “offers a strategic framework to ensure that all Cook County residents have equitable access to the digital infrastructure, devices and tools to thrive in today’s economy and society,” the county’s website states.

The Action Plan also includes an interactive Cook County Digital Equity Map. The map provides a score to Cook County communities that measures how well their residents “can access digital technology based

on [a community’s] social and economic conditions.

The score “ranges from 0 to 100, with 100 indicating the highest level of digital equity. The score is calculated using demographic and socioeconomic factors from the United States Census.”

Rev. Mitchell said while registration is open to everyone, they’re particularly targeting families from Bellwood, Broadview and Maywood.

According to the county’s Digital Equity Map, Bellwood has a Digital Equity Score of just 33, Broadview has a score of 32 while Maywood has a score of 22.

In Maywood, for instance, only 58% of residents have broadband access and 65% of households have a computer, U.S. Census figures show.

“One of the steps in bridging that digital divide is providing devices at no cost to homes and people in our community,” Rev. Mitchell said. “These are fully refurbished laptop computers provided by CompuServe and meant for homes that don’t have a computer.”

The Cook County Digital Equity Action Plan’s interactive Digital Equity Map shows the digital equity scores for west suburban municipalities. Cook County’s Digital Equity Score is an 84.

SCREENSHOT

Percy Julian Gets His Due With National Historic Site Efforts, ‘Legacy Museum’

Efforts underway to make Oak Park home of famed chemist and former Maywood resident a national historic site while Oak Park library showcases temporary Julian Legacy Museum

By MICHAEL ROMAIN Editor

Percy Julian, the famous Black chemist who for a time lived in Maywood before moving to Oak Park, is having something of a moment in the west suburbs.

For starters, the main branch of the Oak Park Public Library, 834 Lake St. in Oak Park, is showcasing “The Julian Legacy Museum.” The temporary museum highlights Julian’s achievements and is located inside of the Idea Box, a small space just just inside of the library’s entrance.

The Idea Box museum is open Sundays,

Tuesdays and Thursdays, from 2 to 4 p.m. The Julian Legacy Museum exhibit will be on display through March 4.

Meanwhile, federal, state and local officials are hoping to raise funds to pay the taxes owed on Julian’s Oak Park home, where his daughter, Faith Julian, lives, and to have the home designated a national historic site.

Wednesday Journal, the Oak Park newspaper, reported that Congressman Danny K. Davis (7th) held a press conference on Feb. 22 outside of the historic home at 515 N. East Ave. in Oak Park to announce legislation he plans to introduce that would turn the house into a national historic site.

“I’m very optimistic that we’re going to be able to restore the building and grounds,” Davis said at the press conference, according to Wednesday Journal reporting. “We’re also going to be able to protect and keep articulating the value of what the good doctor and his wife did.”

Julian was just the third Black person in the country to hold a PhD in chemistry who

“ingeniously figured out how to synthesize important medicinal compounds from abundant plant sources, making them more affordable to mass produce,” the Science History Institute Museum and Library explains.

For a time, Julian lived in Maywood, where he had an active role in the local struggle for civil rights. Julian helped lead the NAACP’s struggle to desegregate Maywood’s public accommodations and was active in Maywood-Melrose Park-Broadview School District 89 before moving to Oak Park in 1950.

The Julians purchased their East Avenue home in the village in 1950. Shortly after they purchased the home, there were two attempts to set it on fire. Dr. Julian, however, refused to move.

Julian died in 1975 and his daughter, Faith, has been fighting to maintain the home. In 2021, she created a GoFundMe campaign to help pay down delinquent taxes on her family’s home and raise funds for other living expenses.

Wednesday Journal reported that Julian

“still owes delinquent taxes for 2018, as well as taxes for 2022 and 2023. As of Feb. 22, she has $54,759 raised in her GoFundMe. She still owes $90,386.39, including interest, according to the Cook County Treasurer’s Office. The market value of her home is $1.1 million.”

Faith Julian’s GoFundMe page is gofundme.com/f/preservation-of-the-percy-julianhistoric-home

Students Of Maywood Artist To Exhibit Work In Oak Park

Jesse Howard’s students to showcase their works during a March 2 exhibition at Oak Park Art League

By MICHAEL ROMAIN Editor

The Oak Park Art League (OPAL) will host multiple exhibits running simultaneously in its Carriage House Gallery, 720 Chicago Ave. in Oak Park, through early March.

This year, the annual figurative open call exhibition, “Figures & Faces,” will showcase contemporary viewpoints in all art mediums that portray the figure and face, paying homage to the tradition of figure study and life drawing that OPAL

has encouraged and sustained for its long history.

Peggy Dee, an artist and educator, judged the exhibit and announced her first-, second-, and third-place selections at an artist’s reception on Feb. 23 at OPAL.

In addition to “Figures & Faces,” a group of artists studying advanced drawing techniques and processes at OPAL with prominent Maywood-based artist and instructor Jesse Howard will exhibit approximately 20 of their works in a show titled “Essence of Mark Making” on Saturday, March 2, 2 p.m., at OPAL.

The group of artists will host an artist’s talk in the OPAL gallery and share their process and what is behind the drawings they create.

For more information, contact Bryan Northup, OPAL’s executive director, at (708) 386-9853 or email director@oakparkartleague.org.

PERCY JULIAN

GOOGLE EARTH

The historic Oak Park home of Percy Julian.

Jesse Howard at his studio in Maywood in 2015. Howard’s Oak Park Art League students will exhibit their work on March 2.

Pritzker Proposes Over $2B In Spending Growth

Governor’s budget fills previously projected deficit with changes to tax code

By Jerry Nowicki Capitol News Illinois

SPRINGFIELD – Gov. JB Pritzker on Feb. 21 proposed growing state spending by over $2 billion in the upcoming fiscal year while making a handful of corporate, sports wagering and other tax changes to pay for the increase.

Pritzker’s plan, laid out to lawmakers during his annual budget address, does not alter or increase state income tax rates. But it would more than double the tax rate paid by sportsbooks on gross revenues and extend an existing cap on operating losses businesses can claim on taxes.

Those two changes would raise about $726 million in revenue, erasing much of what had been projected as an $891 million deficit for the upcoming fiscal year.

“Now, I expect that some of you will want to spend more, and some of you will claim you want to spend less,” Pritzker said in his speech to lawmakers in the House chamber. “Know this: I am always open to good ideas that members of both parties have to more efficiently and effectively fulfill our obligations.”

The governor’s budget office is also projecting current-year revenues will come in $199 million above previous estimates. The state expects the current fiscal year to end with $52.2 billion in total revenues, far outpacing the $50.4 billion in authorized spending in last year’s budget.

When including a proposed $1.2 billion supplemental spending plan for the current year, next year’s budget proposal would spend about $750 million more than the current year.

Revenue changes

Pritzker’s spending plan calls for a total of about $1 billion in revenue he proposes generating in the upcoming fiscal year through changes in the tax code or state operations.

That includes $526 million by extending a cap on the amount of net operating losses that corporations can claim on taxes. Lawmakers created a $100,000 cap on such deductions in 2020, but it was set to expire in the 2025 tax year.

The proposal seeks to extend it while expanding the claimable losses to $500,000. The governor’s office estimated that over 90 percent of losses claimed by corporations will not be impacted.

Another major change would increase the

sports gambling tax to 35 percent from 15 percent. That tax is applied to the total profits collected by sportsbooks and will bring in about $200 million, according to the governor’s office.

Since sports gambling revenues were originally earmarked for infrastructure projects, the governor’s office proposes dedicating the first 15 percent for that purpose while allocating the rest to the general revenue fund.

Other revenue changes include raising $101 million by capping a sales tax credit retailers are allowed to claim. Retailers receive a discount of 1.75 percent of the sales tax they collect as reimbursement for their efforts in collecting them. The governor’s change would allow retailers to claim a maximum of $1,000 per month. The change would generate another $85 million for local governments as well.

That proposal drew rebuke from groups such as the Illinois Chamber of Commerce and the Illinois Retail Merchants Association.

The governor’s office also proposed freeing up another $175 million in the general revenue fund by transferring some payments to public transit agencies to the road fund, which is separate from the state’s main discretionary spending account.

Since the road fund generally goes to infrastructure projects, that proposal was especially panned by the Transportation for Illinois Coalition, which is made up of several union, infrastructure and business groups.

The governor also proposed permanently eliminating the state’s 1 percent grocery tax. His office didn’t give further details, but when a one-year reprieve from the tax was passed in 2022, the state estimated it would save Illinois

a roughly $450 million increase, or about 4.3 percent above current year spending. That’s about $200 million less than the Illinois State Board of Education had requested.

Migrant, noncitizen programs

Pritzker had previously said he would ask lawmakers to dedicate $182 million to address the influx of migrants from border states, particularly Texas. That sum was included in his proposal.

The governor’s office is proposing to cut $110 million in general revenue funding for a pair of health care programs for noncitizens that became a lightning rod last year amid quickly rising costs. But when combined with other funding sources, including a $100 million federal match for emergency services, the total grows to $629 million, outpacing last year’s general revenue allocation of $550 million.

shoppers about $400 million. Because local governments receive those tax revenues, the state reimbursed them over two fiscal years. But neither the governor nor any budget documents outlined such a plan Wednesday.

This year’s budget proposal leaves in place a statutory inflationary increase to the state’s standard deduction for the 2024 tax year but limits its increase. According to budget documents, the standard deduction – a specific dollar amount used to reduce a taxpayer’s adjusted gross income – will be capped at $2,550 as proposed by the governor. Capping the inflationary growth at one year instead of two would create $93 million in revenue, according to budget documents.

Republicans generally criticized the budget for relying on the revenue proposals which are not yet contained in law, criticizing the governor for taxing businesses to provide the revenues for his new spending proposals.

Education, human services funding

As he has done in previous years, Pritzker called for sizeable increases in education funding. But those proposed increases are substantially smaller than many advocates had hoped.

“Every single year I have been governor, we have increased our investments in education, because a quality education is the foundation of a good life and the cornerstone of a strong society,” Pritzker said.

For Pre-K-12 education, Pritzker proposed

The Health Benefits for Immigrant Seniors and Adults programs provide state-funded health care to low-income noncitizens who are in Illinois without legal permission or who have green cards and are on a waiting period. That group is separate from many of the migrants being flown or bused to Illinois from Texas. Individuals seeking asylum in the U.S. more likely qualify for other preexisting state or federal benefits.

Amid controversy last year as cost estimates continued to rise, lawmakers allocated $550 million in general revenue to the programs and gave Pritzker the authority to cap enrollment and put other cost-saving measures in place, including copays.

Pension changes

The spending plan includes fully funding the state’s $10.1 billion required pension payment in the upcoming fiscal year. But the governor also proposed altering the state’s so-called “pension ramp” in a way his administration hopes will be viewed positively by credit ratings agencies.

The proposal includes increasing the target funding percentage for pension funds to 100 percent, up from 90 percent, while adding another three years for the ramp to reach that point. The fully funded goal would be moved to fiscal year 2048, from FY 2045.

It would also call for increasing pension payments in 2030 and 2033 when outstanding general obligation debts are retired.

Eric Kim, head of state government ratings at Fitch Ratings, issued a statement Wednesday noting the plan “could help reduce risks associated with the state’s pension obligations and improve credit quality.”

BRIAN CASSELLA/CHICAGO TRIBUNE/POOL

Governor J.B. Pritzker arrives to deliver his State of the State and budget address before the General Assembly at the Illinois State Capitol, Wednesday, Feb. 21, 2024.

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elected officials need to conduct on-the-ground outreach to senior citizens to address these kind of issues.

What went unmentioned is the very ideological air breathed by virtually every Democratic politician gunning for a high office in this country. In summary, it’s the tendency for the Democratic Party to defer to the market and private capital to address social problems, particularly those involving wealth inequality.

Senior citizens can’t afford to live in decent housing because the federal government has deliberately handicapped itself when it comes to providing basic needs for the most vulnerable people and protecting most people from predatory capitalists.

In her 2022 book, “Left Behind: The Democrats’ Failed Attempt to Solve Inequality,” historian Lily Geismer provides a thorough outline of how the Democratic Party has undergone a structural change since the New Deal.

You see, old-fashioned Democrats (think FDR, Kennedy and Johnson) “believed that stimulating capital markets was the best path to creating economic growth and security (doing well). The job of the federal government, as they saw it, was to fill in the holes left by capitalism with compensatory programs to help the poor, like cash assistance and Head Start, and to enact laws that ended racial and gender discrimination (doing good).”

In the 1980s, young Democratic politicians including Al Gore and Bill Clinton began a political project spearheaded by a group called the Democratic Leadership Council (DLC) with the “explicit goal of reinventing the party through a new electoral strategy and policy agenda.

“Calling themselves ‘New Democrats,’ the DLC declared that Democrats should make it their fundamental mission ‘to expand economic opportunity not government,’ which would be achieved through free markets and free trade. They also called for introducing choice, competition, and market incentives into the public sector and stressed that marketoriented solutions could encourage individual responsiblity and empowerment among the poor,” Geismer writes.

The New Democrats’ vision “contended that the forces of banking, entrepreneuralism, trade, and technology, which had created the economic growth and prosperity of the 1990s, could substitute for traditional forms of welfare and aid and better address structural problems of racial and economic segregation.”

These New Democrats treated poverty and discrimination as a market failure and “looked for ways to both bring the market to poor people of color and to integrate them into the capitalist system.”

This is the political thinking behind programs like Enterprise Zones, Opportunity Zones, and a multitute of tax credits that are setup as programs to help poor people in places like Maywood but that, in reality, mostly line the pockets of out-of-town investors. Don’t get me wrong, there are tax credit programs that have helped alleviate social ills like childhood poverty, but they are piecemeal reforms compared to, say, a direct spending program like Social Security.

Ronald Reagan supercharged the tendency for the federal government to ignore the needs of the poor and people of

color while catering to the interests of the rich, but since Reagan, Democrats — particularly Presidents Bill Clinton, Barack Obama and Joe Biden – have too willingly taken up Reagan’s mantle by avoiding solutions that call for direct government spending for the poor and marginalized, or tough government regulations for predatory capitalists.

Back to those exploited senior citizens who can’t afford to pay rent in so-called affordable housing.

In the 1980s, Reagan sharply reduced support for low-income people just as jobs were bleeding from the country’s manufacturing sector and mentally ill people were leaving long-stay psychiatric hospitals in droves. This produced a marked increase in homelessness.

“The shock of visible homelessness spurred Congressional action, and the McKinney Act of 1987 (later renamed the McKinney-Vento Act) created new housing and social service programs within [the Department of Housing and Urban Development, or HUD] specially designed to address homelessness,” according to an overview of affordable rental housing by the National Low Income Housing Coalition.

“The Department of the Treasury’s Internal Revenue Service was given a role in affordable housing development in the Tax Reform Act of 1986 with the creation of the Low Income Housing Tax Credit, which provides tax credits to those investing in the development of affordable rental housing,” the overview explains.

“That same act codified the use of private activity bonds for housing finance, authorizing the use of such bonds for the development of housing for homeownership, as well as the development of multifamily rental housing.”

The problem with this approach is that private affordable housing owners don’t own affordable housing for it to be affordable. They own affordable housing to enrich themselves and make a profit.

In addition to giving money to private investors to build affordable housing, the federal government also offloaded the responsibility for providing affordable housing to local

authorities that often don’t have the capacity to do so.

Nowadays, when you see virtually any affordable housing facility being built, it’s the result of an elaborate patchwork of tax credits, grants and private loans quilted by the overworked and undercompensated hands of nonprofit leaders, community bankers, government bureaucrats and local politicians. The result has been affordable housing that is neither sufficient in volume nor very affordable.

How does this arrangement benefit senior citizens? It doesn’t, because it’s not designed to. It’s designed to benefit investors and the wealthy. And it’s a ploy to persuade people that our democratic government is just a patchwork of complicated tax credits and grants and market-oriented funding schemes and not a trillion-dollar leviathan that could, if it really wanted to, just build truly affordable housing for people who need it the most or stop private, profiteering interests from harming the poor.

I’d have answered by grandmother’s question this way. The federal government should have never outsourced and privatized its responsibility for providing affordable housing in the first place. The solution is for the federal government to take back that responsibility from the private sphere and profit-seekers, and from ill-equipped local authorities, and start shouldering the burden again.

Mettler writes that by embracing indirect tax provisions like tax credits as a means to solve major social problems, liberal Democrats have allowed conservative Republicans to take the lead “in restructuring and actually enlarging” government, but in “ways that elude the public” and that often benefit the super wealthy at the expense of the rest of us.

In other words, if the federal government can afford to spend nearly a trillion dollars on military spending each year (it literally gives away money to private contractors with little accountability for how the money is spent), then the government can afford to build affordable housing for every citizen who needs it.

Yes, it’s that simple.

Congressman Danny K. Davis, Kina Collins, Ashley Munson, Michael Romain, Kouri Marshall and Treasurer Melissa Conyears-Ervin during a Feb. 24 town hall at Second Baptist Church in Maywood.

The

TO 65 ILCS 5/11-74.4-4(c)

The license agreements are in furtherance of the redevelopment objectives of the McDermott / St. Charles Road TIF District No. 2 in Berkeley, Illinois. The proposed use of the property authorized by the

agreements is for food trucks. Copies of the latest draft of the license agreement is available for review at the Village Hall at 5819 Electric Avenue, Berkeley, Illinois 60163. Any party interested in submitting an alternative proposal, bid, or that is interested in operating a food truck on the property should contact the Berkeley Village Administrator, Rudy Espiritu, at (708) 4498440 or submit a written proposal to: Village of Berkeley, Attention: Village Administrator, 5819 Electric Avenue, Berkeley, Illinois 60163.

VILLAGE OF BERKELEY

Belia Nowak, Village Clerk

Published in Village Free Press February 28, 2024

IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF COOK COUNTY, ILLINOIS

COUNTY DEPARTMENT - CHANCERY DIVISION

NATIONSTAR MORTGAGE LLC

D/B/A MR. COOPER

Plaintiff, -v.VIRGINIA A HAADEE, UNKNOWN OWNERS AND NON-RECORD

CLAIMANTS, UNKNOWN HEIRS AND LEGATEES OF FREDDIE

SAMPSON A/K/A FREDDIE M

SAMPSON A/K/A FREDDIE MODEAN SAMPSON

Defendants 20 CH 02128

1309 SOUTH 7TH AVENUE

MAYWOOD, IL 60153

NOTICE OF SALE

PUBLIC NOTICE IS HEREBY GIV-

EN that pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale entered in the above cause on August 16, 2023, an agent for The Judicial Sales Corporation, will at 10:30 AM on April 9, 2024, at The Judicial Sales Corporation, One South Wacker, 1st Floor Suite 35R, Chicago, IL, 60606, sell at a public sale to the highest bidder, as set forth below, the following described real estate: Commonly known as 1309 SOUTH 7TH AVENUE, MAYWOOD, IL 60153

Property Index No. 15-14-126003-0000

The real estate is improved with a brown brick, two story multi unit home, detached two car garage.

Sale terms: 25% down of the highest bid by certified funds at the close of the sale payable to The Judicial Sales Corporation. No third party checks will be accepted. The balance, in certified funds/or wire transfer, is due within twenty-four (24) hours. The subject property is subject to general real estate taxes, special assessments, or special taxes levied against said real estate and is offered for sale without any representation as to quality or quantity of title and without recourse to Plaintiff and in “AS IS” condition. The sale is further subject to confirmation by the court.

Upon payment in full of the amount bid, the purchaser will receive a Certificate of Sale that will entitle the purchaser to a deed to the real estate after confirmation of the sale.

The property will NOT be open for inspection and plaintiff makes no representation as to the condition of the property. Prospective bidders are admonished to check the court file to verify all information.

If this property is a condominium unit, the purchaser of the unit at the foreclosure sale, other than a mortgagee, shall pay the assessments and the legal fees required by The Condominium Property Act, 765 ILCS 605/9(g)(1) and (g)(4). If this property is a condominium unit which is part of a common interest community, the purchaser of the unit at the foreclosure sale other than a mortgagee shall pay the assessments required by The Condominium Property Act, 765 ILCS 605/18.5(g-1).

IF YOU ARE THE MORTGAGOR (HOMEOWNER), YOU HAVE THE RIGHT TO REMAIN IN POSSESSION FOR 30 DAYS AFTER ENTRY OF AN ORDER OF POSSESSION, IN ACCORDANCE WITH SECTION 15-1701(C) OF THE ILLINOIS MORTGAGE FORECLOSURE LAW.

You will need a photo identification issued by a government agency (driver’s license, passport, etc.) in order to gain entry into our building and the foreclosure sale room in Cook County and the same identification for sales held at other county venues where The Judicial Sales Corporation conducts foreclosure sales.

MCCALLA RAYMER LEIBERT PIERCE, LLC Plaintiff’s Attorneys,

One North Dearborn Street, Suite 1200, Chicago, IL, 60602. Tel No. (312) 346-9088.

THE JUDICIAL SALES CORPORATION

One South Wacker Drive, 24th Floor, Chicago, IL 60606-4650 (312) 236-SALE

You can also visit The Judicial Sales Corporation at www.tjsc.com for a 7 day status report of pending sales.

MCCALLA RAYMER LEIBERT

PIERCE, LLC

One North Dearborn Street, Suite 1200 Chicago IL, 60602 312-346-9088

E-Mail: pleadings@mccalla.com

Attorney File No. 20-03463IL

Attorney Code. 61256

Case Number: 20 CH 02128

TJSC#: 43-4370

NOTE: Pursuant to the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, you are advised that Plaintiff’s attorney is deemed to be a debt collector attempting to collect a debt and any information obtained will be used for that purpose.

Case # 20 CH 02128 I3238932

IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF COOK COUNTY, ILLINOIS COUNTY DEPARTMENT - CHANCERY DIVISION

ALLY BANK

Plaintiff, -v.-

PATRICIA ANN HENNESSY, FKA

PATRICIA ANN CROSSE, AKA PA-

TRICIA HENNESSY, WESTCHESTER PLACE HOMEOWNER’S ASSOCIATION

Defendants

2021 CH 05828

11037 EATON COURT WESTCHESTER, IL 60154

NOTICE OF SALE

PUBLIC NOTICE IS HEREBY GIV-

EN that pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale entered in the above cause on August 7, 2023, an agent for The Judicial Sales Corporation, will at 10:30 AM on March 26, 2024, at The Judicial Sales Corporation, One South Wacker, 1st Floor Suite 35R, Chicago, IL, 60606, sell at a public sale to the highest bidder, as set forth below, the following described real estate: Commonly known as 11037 EATON COURT, WESTCHESTER, IL 60154

Property Index No. 15-29-317010-0000

The real estate is improved with a single family residence. The judgment amount was $195,577.41.

Sale terms: 25% down of the highest bid by certified funds at the close of the sale payable to The Judicial Sales Corporation. No third party checks will be accepted. The balance, in certified funds/or wire transfer, is due within twenty-four (24) hours. The subject property is subject to general real estate taxes, special assessments, or special taxes levied against said real estate and is offered for sale without any representation as to quality or

quantity of title and without recourse to Plaintiff and in “AS IS” condition. The sale is further subject to confirmation by the court. Upon payment in full of the amount bid, the purchaser will receive a Certificate of Sale that will entitle the purchaser to a deed to the real estate after confirmation of the sale. The property will NOT be open for inspection and plaintiff makes no representation as to the condition of the property. Prospective bidders are admonished to check the court file to verify all information.

If this property is a condominium unit, the purchaser of the unit at the foreclosure sale, other than a mortgagee, shall pay the assessments and the legal fees required by The Condominium Property Act, 765 ILCS 605/9(g)(1) and (g)(4). If this property is a condominium unit which is part of a common interest

community, the purchaser of the unit at the foreclosure sale other than a mortgagee shall pay the assessments required by The Condominium Property Act, 765 ILCS 605/18.5(g-1).

IF YOU ARE THE MORTGAGOR (HOMEOWNER), YOU HAVE THE RIGHT TO REMAIN IN POSSESSION FOR 30 DAYS AFTER ENTRY OF AN ORDER OF POSSESSION, IN ACCORDANCE WITH SECTION 15-1701(C) OF THE ILLINOIS MORTGAGE FORECLOSURE LAW.

You will need a photo identification issued by a government agency (driver’s license, passport, etc.) in order to gain entry into our building and the foreclosure sale room in Cook County and the same identification for sales held at other county venues where The Judicial Sales Corporation conducts foreclosure

sales.

For information, contact MANLEY DEAS KOCHALSKI LLC Plaintiff’s Attorneys, ONE EAST WACKER, SUITE 1250, Chicago, IL, 60601 (312) 651-6700. Please refer to file number 20-008577.

THE JUDICIAL SALES CORPORATION

One South Wacker Drive, 24th Floor, Chicago, IL 60606-4650 (312) 236-SALE

You