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The recent events in Ukraine have been horrific. In just one week over 600,000 refugees have fled Ukraine, with that number potentially rising to 5 million over the coming weeks. These refugees were forced to leave their homes, jobs, family and friends behind, only taking their most important possessions, to then wait in multi-day long lines in freezing temperatures to escape Ukraine. Simultaneously hospitals in Ukraine are running dangerously low on medical supplies such as oxygen, yet continue to take care of the public...
If you are anything like me - a parent who spends countless hours in the car because your kids have a more robust social calendar than you do - your driving playlist has been one thing and one thing only as of late: the "Encanto" soundtrack. Hard to believe, but even after hearing it on repeat for the last month-plus, I still love it. When the tunes aren't streaming through our car speakers or the Echo, it's blaring from the television. My college roommate and I regularly exch...
Tomorrow night is opening night. I am certain I can speak for all of the cast of "Hinsdale Unmasked" - the 2022 Community Revue - when I say we can't wait to perform for an audience. We've had our fill of applauding for each other and laughing at our own jokes and are ready to share this hilarious show with you, dear residents of Hinsdale. Before I proceed, I should let you know that all of us have been SWORN TO SECRECY about the show's contents. I wrote a column 18 years ago...
“From the first settlers who came to our shores, from the first American Indian families who befriended them, men and women have worked together to build this nation. Too often the women were unsung and sometimes their contribution went unnoticed. But the achievements, leadership, courage, strength and love of the women who built America was as vital as that of the men whose names we know so well.” — President Jimmy Carter With those words, our nation’s 39th president designated March 2-8, 1980, as National Women’s History W...
I am a former board member (and president) of school District 86. I recently posted a petition on www.Change.org/StopPrentiss, which gathered over 800 signatures in a few days. It calls for the removal of Superintendent Prentiss because of board policies I believe she has failed to uphold and because she has broken the trust of our community. By contract, Superintendent Prentiss must abide by policies approved by the elected members of the BOE; however, she has failed to uphold this obligation. Policy 3:40 states:...
In looking for the silver lining with the controversy surrounding the D86 equity consultant, I’m very encouraged by the letters and sponsored ads in The Hinsdalean in support of listening to each other and continuing the conversation of diversity and equity in our community. I think all would agree that understanding (and progress) happens when people engage with each other with civility and respect. Even if some believe this is all just “equity drivel” and “Hinsdale kids already know right from wrong,” it doesn’t m...
For no reason in particular, my son and I have an out-of-town hockey tournament tradition of streaming classic country on our way to games. Hopefully I've passed the torch in keeping alive one of my favorite musical genres to the next generation. Most country artists who were popular from the '40s through the '70s have long passed (Willie and Loretta are the remaining icons), but the music lives on forever. This is American music to the core with very little exposure these day...
I first discovered Charles Mackesy in November 2020 when CBS Sunday Morning was doing a piece on him and his book, "The Boy, The Mole, The Fox and The Horse." We were enjoying our annual Thanksgiving weekend getaway in Saugatuck, so I had time to sit down with my coffee and enjoy the show. "In a quaint barn in the English countryside, there's a man, with a dog, documenting the human condition in its simplest form, through sketches about kindness and empathy, as we all...
February is American Heart Month, an annual reminder not to neglect the life-sustaining organ. Heart disease is the leading cause of death in the U.S., underscoring the vital importance of heart-healthy living. Prioritizing your heart can help prevent severe illness and reduce the risk of COVID-19 complications. Lung damage caused by the virus prevents oxygen from reaching the heart muscle, which in turn damages the heart tissue and prevents it from getting oxygen to other tissues. Self-care can keep our hearts healthy, and...
I have been so inspired by the athletes competing in the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing. Here are a few of my favorites: • Colby Stevenson, the silver medalist in the men's big air competition, who almost died in a 2016 car accident that left him with a broken skull in 30 places. He had been driving from Oregon to Utah to see a friend who broke his leg when Stevenson fell asleep at the wheel and rolled his car six times. Doctors weren't sure he'd walk again - or even live -...
A recent FOIA request revealed emails between D86 Superintendent Tammy Prentiss and Valda Valbrun, a consultant based in North Carolina. Ms. Prentiss and Ms. Valbrun were jointly revising language of the Jan. 13 letter in which Valbrun withdrew her firm from potential engagement by D86. In her email to Ms. Valbrun dated Jan. 13, 2022, Ms. Prentiss added the following to the letter: “I ... really think Hinsdale is a dangerous place and (I) would not be comfortable there.” Ms. Prentiss also wrote “It’s shameful and I feel so...
When I was young, my mom gifted me a beautiful red traditional Chinese dress, called a qipao. Qipaos are of Manchu origin and are typically slim-fitting with a high neckline and have intricate designs woven in. I wore mine everywhere: to formal dinners, holiday gatherings, other special occasions, and I even threw it on to strut down our long hallway (starting the trend of borrowing my mom's clothes from a young age). My dramatic walks down the runway were a weekly...
There is a debate in the editorial section of this paper about DEI — diversity, equity and inclusion — at Hinsdale schools. My experience this past weekend in the Grant Square parking lot reminded me why equity training is necessary for Hinsdale residents. I grew up in Clarendon Hills, and was visiting this past weekend with my sister. We stopped at Kramer’s to pick up a fruit plate on a slow Sunday morning. I dropped her off at the entrance and idled outside with my blinkers on to prevent her from walking in the cold. After...
The Hinsdale High School District 86 Board meeting Feb. 10 prompted two responses: hope and disgust. We saw many things to appreciate — audience members who were brave enough to say they believe equity work is important work for the district to do, board member Peggy James’ call for her colleagues to be more willing to talk about issues and audience members who presented their comments thoughtfully and professionally. We are particularly inspired by the Hinsdale Central junior who had the courage to stand up and make an emo...
On Valentine’s Day, most people are thinking about romantic love. I always think about Valentine’s Day my sophomore year in college. My boyfriend made me a homemade card and asked me to wear his lavaliere (a step before getting pinned). He was smart enough not to buy it in advance, as I had rejected this idea previously. But once I said yes, he walked a mile and a half in the snow to buy me one. He’s now my husband and has done many nice things for me on Valentine’s Days over...
Patricia Ann Bates, 69, of Oak Brook died Feb. 7, 2022. She is survived by her husband, Gary R. Bates; her children, James "JJ" (Alison) Bates, Christopher Bates, and Meghan (fiancé Matt Pittman) Bates; and her grandchildren, Colt, Maddy, Ellie, Henry and Malia. Visitation is from 5 to 8 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 12, at Sullivan Funeral Home, 60 S. Grant St., Hinsdale. Interment is private. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made online to the Arthritis Foundation at...
Many people in our beloved community are hurting right now; and as members of Redeemer Lutheran Church’s Church and Community Group, we do not feel comfortable sitting idly by. We are people of faith who believe that all are created in God’s image, that diversity is built into God’s creation and that we are called to love our neighbors. As parents and members of the community, we care about how our children are educated. We want academic excellence. We also want our children to succeed in their lives and future careers. This...
Let’s talk straight. Hinsdale D86 parents need not feel ashamed, demoralized, guilty for their hard-earned efforts that blessedly allows them the choice of communities and school districts. There is a sacrificial price to pay in order to live in Hinsdale and that is, hard work. Equity consultant? Why? To belittle, shame, demoralize and lay guilt on the children of this community that do not deserve it. Parents protect their children from this kind of assault. Teachers of Hinsdale are hired to protect their students, too. T...
I consider myself an enforcer of the oft-neglected and seriously misunderstood apostrophe. After 15 years of teaching in college, I can tell you for sure its days are numbered. Few students can write beyond texting and that, of course, is a language all its own. The little old apostrophe just gets no respect. My students consider its placement to be strictly optional and a serious impediment to their creativity. "A little dot with a tail. What's the big deal, huh, professor?"...
As a 30-year resident of Hinsdale High School District 86 who raised three graduates, I am grateful for the great educations that they received from kindergarten through 12th grade. We all made wonderful, life-long friends, too. However, my adult children have told me that their friends of color had some negative experiences in school and that the curriculum omitted history about marginalized peoples. My kids lament the lack of diversity in our schools and community. It does not reflect the world that they live and work in...
Giving is central to the Valentine’s Day spirit, and so at this time each year The Hinsdalean recognizes those who give their time and energy through community organizations committed to making this corner of the world a better place through their diverse missions. Here are the 2022 “Valentine” recipients as recommended by the leaders of the agencies they serve. • Joan Chiaviello and Susann Oakum have been the steadfast greeters for clients arriving at each HCS Family Services pantry distribution — even throughout the pande...
After two failed attempts, the D86 superintendent persists in pursuit of an equity consultant for the school district. The superintendent points to a strategic plan ratified by a prior school board in 2018. It says nothing about an equity consultant. In October 2025, regulations will require new teachers to have been trained in culturally responsive teaching and these govern training facilities, not high schools. Local school boards have no duty to implement these measures, ever. The superintendent tells us she is bound by...
Growing up, I didn't know a soul who was adopted. As an adult, I find the opposite is true. Adopted people are everywhere. At a 2020 Community Revue cast party, I learned that two of my castmates were also adopted and that all of us either had met or hoped to meet our birth parents. A fellow cast member came up and asked us what we were discussing so intently. "Finding our birth parents," one of us offered. She promptly turned around and headed back to the bar. One of the folk...
I read a weekly email called “3-2-1” Thursdays” by James Clear, the author of “Atomic Habits.” And I usually agree with his personal writings and the poems and literature he shares, under a focused theme, from other authors. However, one week in late 2021, I disagreed with what he wrote on the topic of resilience and growth. “Growth demands a temporary surrender of security,” he wrote. “It may mean a giving up of familiar but limiting patterns, safe but unrewarding work, values no longer believed in, relationships t...
Racism isn’t always blatant. Sometimes it’s very subtle. The perpetuation of stereotypes about physical traits associated with certain ethnicities. A repeatedly mispronounced name. Slight differences in treatment. An assumption about where a person of color lives. This type of racism still exists in the world and, from everything we’ve heard, in Hinsdale High School District 86. Dozens of stories on Hinsdale’s Black Lives Matter webpage offer examples. And at last week’s school board meeting, one brave mom stood up and share...
