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As the new year begins, The Hinsdalean traditionally reaches out to the leaders of the village’s seven nonprofit agencies, inviting them to offer a recap of the previous year and to share one wish for the new year. This is the first of two installments. A Jan. 14 article will feature Candor (formerly Robert Crown), HCS Family Services, Hinsdale Historical Society and Wellness House. Community Memorial Foundation In 2019, leaders at Community Memorial Foundation chose a theme for the organization’s upcoming 25th ann...
'Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the town The Hinsdaleans were scurrying, they rushed all around. For last-minute gifts and cards they did sprint, Armed with lists and ideas and maybe some hints. Gateway and Grant squares and downtown they traveled. But with each stop, their nerves did unravel. The hustle and bustle had dampened their mood. They were tired and cranky and needed some food. They stopped for some lunch and looked over the list. To finish their s...
Sheela DeBartolo Kruse, 52, of Western Springs, died unexpectedly Nov. 27, 2020. She was born in 1968 in Oak Lawn. Sheela lit up the room wherever she was and her family and friends adored her. Sheela’s children were the most important thing in her life and they both felt her love daily. She will forever be missed. She is survived by her husband, Scott Kruse; her children, Kiely and Will; her mother, Maryellen DeBartolo; her parents-in-law, Cel and Bill Kruse; her sister, Meg (Steve) DeBartolo Rogers; and her nephews, M...
Sheela DeBartolo Kruse, 52, of Western Springs, died unexpectedly Nov. 27, 2020. She was born in 1968 in Oak Lawn. Sheela lit up the room wherever she was and her family and friends adored her. Sheela’s children were the most important thing in her life and they both felt her love daily. She will forever be missed. She is survived by her husband, Scott Kruse; her children, Kiely and Will; her mother, Maryellen DeBartolo; her parents-in-law, Cel and Bill Kruse; her sister, Meg (Steve) DeBartolo Rogers; and her nephews, M...
The pandemic may have disrupted a lot of our regular routines, but it did not diminish Hinsdaleans’ commitment for giving back. We’ve documented that bounty of benevolence in our Good News section over the past year, and, as we approach Thanksgiving, wanted to highlight a few of them as an expression of gratitude for those gifts: • The 2020 Pillars Ball raised $242,000 for Pillars Community Health to support medical, dental, mental health and substance use disorder services along with domestic and sexual violence services to...
Monica Rincon was one who always wanted to gather friends together to celebrate someone's birthday or achievement. So when her friends got the call July 6 from her husband, Chris Dooley, that Monica had passed away at age 49, they knew they had to do something for her. "When we got the news from Chris that Monica had passed, I think that the first thought for so many of us was, 'We have to get the ribbons up,' because that was what Monica would have done and that is what we...
October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. We probably don’t need to tell you that. With one in eight women in the U.S. battling breast cancer at some point in her life, you most likely have a friend or loved one who has faced that diagnosis. What is important to be aware of this month? The statistics are staggering. Breast cancer is the most common cancer among women in the U.S., accounting for 30 percent of newly diagnosed cancers. In 2020, more than 276,000 new cases of invasive breast cancer are expected to be diagnosed i...
Wellness House Board of Directors Chair Lauren Haarlow has had a front-row seat to the Hinsdale-based nonprofit's evolution since its early years helping those with cancer live and thrive. Her father-in-law, Bill Haarlow, was instrumental in the organization's founding in 1990, and Lauren Haarlow cherishes contributing to that legacy. "Wellness House was always part of what we did as a family," she said. Many families would undoubtedly attest to the vital role Wellness House...
When the COVID-19 pandemic hit in March, it was clear The Community House's annual spring fundraiser would not take place in April. What wasn't clear was whether the Walk the Walk for Mental Health would take place at all in 2020, said Dan Janowick, executive director of The Community House. But then, months passed and the realization set in that the fall would not bring a return to business as usual. "I think that's when we started to hear over and over again the theme of...
While the pandemic has affected everyone, young and old, those living with cancer have been particularly impacted. Wellness House has provided a constant source of support for the thousands of patients who rely on the cancer resource center. "Coping with the effects of cancer has not taken a back seat to COVID-19 for the patients and families Wellness House serves," said Deb Kwiatt, marketing communications manager at Wellness House. "They need Wellness House even more now...
How is COVID-19 affecting how people grieve? COVID-19 has left many on the cancer journey feeling alone and isolated, said Michael Williams, a Wellness House psychologist. Patients have to go to treatment alone while their caregiver waits in the car. Support groups can no longer meet in person and must be held via Zoom. And when someone dies, the pandemic prevents people from reaching out the way they normally would. Intimate caregivers, who have been in fifth gear trying to...
The Sanders family has done a fair amount of traveling, with annual visits to Jean's dad in Puerto Rico and Scott's family in Florida and a number of road trips. But they had never experienced anything like the 10 days they spent last summer in South Africa. The destination is offered in a rotation of incentive trips offered by Scott's company, Boston Scientific. He had never gone on that trip, but it piqued his interest. "It always comes back by far as the best location," he...
Ly Hart Hotchkin, 95, a community activist for more than 50 years, died peacefully Aug. 23, 2020. Ly attended Chicago Public Schools and the University of Chicago, Class of 1947. She was employed as executive director of The Community House in Hinsdale for 37 years. She was elected to two terms to the Community Consolidated Elementary District 181 Board and the Hinsdale High School District 86 Board. The Hinsdale Central High School Foundation inducted her into its Hall of Fame in 1999. Ly served on the following boards:...
HIGH SCHOOLERS MAKE HONOR ROLL Several Hinsdale students earned place on the honor roll at Nazareth Academy for the second semester of the 2019-20 school year. The “A” Honor Roll indicates a grade point average of 3.8-4.0 or above on a 4 point scale. The “B” Honor Roll indicates a grade point average of 3.33-3.79 on a 4 point scale. A honor roll — Diana Anos, Sarah Battaglia, Sophia Cacciatore, Isabelle Cameron, Gracie Carstensen, Dylan Colbert, Emma Francis, Adam Fuechtman, Kathleen Gerth, Harrison Gianares,...
Like most people, Isabella Xu was finding it hard to escape the constant flow of news, headlines and updates regarding the spread of COVID-19. But despite the 24-7 onslaught of information, Xu could find very little about how the pandemic, the abrupt end to the traditional school year and the sudden need to stay at home was affecting people her age. Rather than sit and wonder, the soon-to-be Hinsdale Central sophomore took it upon herself to initiate a research project to...
Monica Rincon, 49, of Hinsdale died July 6, 2020. She is survived by her husband, Christopher P. Dooley; her children, Nicolas and Santiago Dooley; her parents, Edgard Daniel Rincon and Aurora Rincon Baquero; her mother- and father-in-law, James and Constance Dooley; and her siblings, nieces and nephews. A funeral Mass at St. Isaac Jogues Church and interment are private. A memorial visitation will be announced at a later date. Please show your support for the family by...
For more than two decades, people have gathered one spring morning each year to stroll together through the streets of Hinsdale in support of Wellness House. Known as the Walk for Wellness House, the event raises money for the organization's cancer support programs and awareness of the services provided for people with cancer and their loved ones. "It's something that the community has grown to expect and look forward to being part of," said Executive Director Lisa Kolavennu....
Mental Health Month has been observed the fifth month of every year since 1949. But the month of May has never looked quite like it does in 2020. "A lot has changed, obviously, in the last couple of months," said Greg DiDomenico, president and chief executive officer of Community Memorial Foundation in Hinsdale. "The coronavirus has affected all of us in different ways. That's why self-care, particularly mental health, is so important." Among those who are feeling the emotiona...
AGENCIES receive COVID-19 GRANTS The Community House and Wellness House are two of 21 nonprofit agencies that received a total of $300,000 from the DuPage Foundation in its first round of COVID-19 Response Fund Grants. The Community House received a $6,000 grant and Wellness House received an $8,000 grant for technology to support virtual health and education. Sixty-nine agencies filed applications for funding totaling more than $1.3 million. ROTARY DONATES FACE SHIELDS The Rotary Club of Hinsdale has donated 225 face...
SPRINGFIELD – Gov. JB Pritzker said Monday that the spread of the novel coronavirus disease, COVID-19, is showing signs of slowing down and that the social distancing measures put in place have saved thousands of lives. “Our curve is bending the right way,” Pritzker said during his daily COVID-19 briefing in Chicago. His comments came as the Illinois Department of Public Health reported 1,151 new cases of the disease and 59 virus-related deaths over the previous 24 hours. That brings the statewide total to 31,508 confi...
In the midst of social distancing, one quarantine-approved activity has brought so many of us out of our homes — walking. For Wellness House, the influx of pedestrians taking to the streets signified an opportunity. Rather than cancel its annual fundraising walk, which traditionally draws more than 3,000 and raises vital funds for the organization’s free-of-charge cancer programming, this year’s walk will be virtual. The Virtual Walk for Wellness House will take place Sunda...
DEPAUW SENIOR EARNS FELLOWSHIP Natalie Brunini of Hinsdale is one of five seniors at DePauw University who has received an Orr Fellowships. The fellowships place students after graduation in jobs in Indianapolis for two years. Brunini will work for DemandJump, a marketing company. She is earning a major in communication and minor in film studies. Fellows typically begin work in mid-June of their graduating year. Hannah Scifres, the public relations coordinator for the Gov. Bob Orr Indiana Entrepreneurial Fellowship, said...
Emma Rose Robinson, nee Nowskie, 80, of Downers Grove and formerly of Burr Ridge, died April 2, 2020. Emma was a registered nurse at Hinsdale Hospital for more than 20 years. She was preceded in death by her husband, Gary L. Robinson. She is survived by her children, Susan (Greg) Buckley, Sandra Robinson and Cathy (Steph) Hiltz; her grandchildren, Emma (Mike) Paluchniak, Alex Buckley, Maggie (Matt) Friede and Ben Hiltz; her great-grandchildren, Maeve, Michael and Owen; and...
Thirty-six hours. That's how long Executive Director Lisa Kolavennu and the staff at Wellness House gave themselves to convert all the programs they offered in person into ones that could be delivered online. "We challenged ourselves in a pretty bold way and gave ourselves 1 1/2 days to figure out how to turn every program we offer into an online virtual experience for participants," Kolavennu said. The decision was made the afternoon of March 12, the day before Gov. JB...
What a difference a week makes. Last week, Gov. J.B. Prtizker banned events with more than 1,000 attendees, canceled Chicago’s St. Patrick’s Day parade and urged businesses to allow employees to work from home. The state had only 32 confirmed COVID-19 and no deaths. This week, the governor has closed schools, restaurants and bars. The number of cases in Illinois is approaching 300 and the state reported its first COVID-19 death. Hinsdaleans, like Americans across the cou...
