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  • February a time to feel the love - for your heart

    Updated Jan 31, 2024

    February is a month devoted to matters of the heart. With Valentine’s Day on Feb. 14 — wait, that’s not what we’re talking about here! February is American Heart Month, a time when people are encouraged to focus on cardiovascular health. For those who didn’t pay attention in health class — or are too many years removed to remember — the heart is the primary organ in the circulation system, pumping blood throughout the body, carrying oxygen to every cell. After delivering the oxygen, the blood returns to the heart, which sends...

  • Candor's impact healthy as ever on 50th birthday

    Updated Jan 24, 2024

    Candor Health Education is marking a milestone this year. Exactly a half-century ago, the organization’s precursor, the Robert Crown Center for Health Education, moved into 21 Salt Creek Lane in Hinsdale, becoming the nation’s first fully independent health education center. According to the agency’s website, the moniker was a tribute to the Robert Crown Family, who had provided funding for the groundbreaking endeavor. The agency’s actual incarnation dates back to 1958 as the Hinsdale Health Museum, a locally organiz...

  • Here's hoping for better weather in District 86

    Updated Jan 17, 2024

    It’s been a stormy eight months in Hinsdale High School District 86, but we see signs that the skies are clearing. Board members say they’re excited about their superintendent hire, Michael Lach, who currently works as assistant superintendent for curriculum, instruction and assessment in Township High School District 113. Lach, in turn, says he’s very excited about the opportunity. So what could go wrong? Well, we won’t dwell on that answer. But we will say that the board must remain as committed to working with Lach as...

  • Get new year flowing with a blood donation

    Updated Jan 10, 2024

    According to the American Red Cross, the country is experiencing an emergency blood shortage as it faces the lowest number of people giving blood in 20 years. With January’s designation as National Blood Donor Month, this is the perfect time to help address this critical situation with a donation of blood and/or platelets to help alleviate the shortage and help ensure lifesaving medical procedures are not put on hold. “One of the most distressing situations for a doctor is to have a hospital full of patients and an empty blo...

  • Bidding farewell to 2023, sesquicentennial coverage

    Updated Jan 3, 2024

    In our first January issue last year, we kicked off a new weekly series designed to celebrate Hinsdale’s 150th anniversary. Last week we ran the final installment. We learned a lot about our favorite village’s history over the past year — and not just from the weekly series. We also dedicated our summer series, “Quintessential Hinsdale,” to the places and events that make Hinsdale the special place it is. And, of course, we can’t forget the 120-page special section we published Sept. 28 honoring the sesquicente...

  • Make 2024 the best (or at least better) year yet

    Updated Dec 27, 2023

    Exercising more. Eating and drinking less. Spending less time on social media. Getting together more in person with friends. These are among the resolutions found on many lists as a new year approaches. Here at The Hinsdalean, we like to offer a different assortment of resolutions in our final issue of the year. So, as has become an annual practice, we offer our suggestions to local taxing bodies, agencies and residents for smooth sailing in 2024. • Take a time out If District 86 Board members hope to hire and keep a new s...

  • 'Twas the night before Christmas in Hinsdale

    Updated Dec 20, 2023

    '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...

  • Help Memorial Building thrive in next century

    Updated Dec 13, 2023

    The time to make a special contribution in support of Hinsdale’s enduring story is quickly running out. In commemoration of the village’s 150th anniversary, officials launched the Memorial Building Historic Plaza & Railing Campaign. Funds collected will go toward restoring the original Chippendale roof railing on the nearly 100-year-old village landmark as well as renewing the outdoor gathering space adorning Hinsdale’s “front lawn” on the south side of the structure. The iconic and treasured symbol of Hinsdale owes its exist...

  • Practice fire safety to help 'Keep the Wreath Red"

    Updated Dec 6, 2023

    How wonderful it is on a snowy December night to pull into the drive and see Christmas tree lights twinkling in the front window. But leaving those lights on while you’re not home is a safety hazard that can lead to a fire. And in the event of a holiday-related fire, the Hinsdale Fire Department will swap out a red bulb with a white one on the wreath hanging just inside the fire station’s mini museum near the main entrance at 121 Symonds Drive. The annual “Keep the Wreath Red” campaign is a joint effort between the Illinoi...

  • Many ways to count down the days 'til Christmas

    Pamela Lannom|Updated Nov 29, 2023

    My daughter Ainsley’s favorite Advent calendars are the ones you can find just about anywhere for $2.99. I’ve tried to substitute an upgraded chocolate calendar — whose windows contain more than a teeny tiny piece of the cheapest chocolate money can buy. But she wants the same kind of calendar her Gram and Papa, who are no longer with us, used to buy her. I love holiday traditions — some might even call me a stickler — and apparently I’ve passed on my passion/obs...

  • Shop local a profitable mantra for all seasons

    Updated Nov 29, 2023

    Small Business Saturday, a day to celebrate and support local shops and all they do for their communities, may have been observed last weekend. But that doesn’t mean the need to show love to local merchants is any less critical. Hinsdale stores are eager to welcome patrons with unique items hard to find elsewhere in the area. And we should welcome to the opportunity to patronize them. Here are some reasons why, as articulated in an essay by Forbes Finance Council member Joseph Lustberg: • By making a commitment to shop loc...

  • A cornucopia of reasons for which to give thanks

    Updated Nov 21, 2023

    "No amount of regret changes the past. No amount of anxiety changes the future. Any amount of gratitude changes the present." - Ann Voskamp Canadian author and blogger Ann Voskamp might not celebrate Thanksgiving, but she knows a thing or two about gratitude. One of our favorite Thanksgiving traditions is offering a list of reasons Hinsdaleans have to be thankful for - one for each day of the month leading up to Turkey Day. Nov. 1 - those who will not be with us this holiday s...

  • Generosity is one of the hallmarks of season

    Updated Nov 15, 2023

    Mark the holidays by making a life-impacting gift to a local nonprofit agency on Giving Tuesday, Nov. 28. At the Hinsdale Humane Society, funds donated as part of #GivingTuesday2023 will help save animals’ lives by enabling the organization to offer the programs and services people and pets in more than a dozen area communities rely on. Contributions will be used to shelter strays, adopt out hundreds of homeless pets and provide veterinary care for animals in need. Visit www.hinsdalehumanesociety.org/donate. Gifts to Wellness...

  • Special section honors veterans and their sacrifices

    Updated Nov 8, 2023

    Two-hundred and seven. That’s how many veterans are listed in our Veterans Day special section today. And it’s a record. The number of submissions we receive has grown each year since we ran our first pages in 2015 honoring 72 men and women who had served in the U.S. Armed Forces. Some of these men and women are neighbors here in town. Others are the parents, grandparents, children, aunts and uncles of Hinsdale residents. They are members of the Army, Navy, Air Force and Marines who fought in the Civil War, World War I, World...

  • D86 board is in crisis. Who can right the ship?

    Updated Nov 1, 2023

    Help wanted: Hinsdale High School District 86 superintendent Qualifications: • Ability to help foster a healthy, constructive dynamic on the board of education that emphasizes respect and transparency along with a deft conflict resolution touch that dissuades elected members from resigning mid-term out of futility and frustration. The fresh case studies in quitting of Debbie Levinthal (Sept. 18) and Kay Gallo (Oct. 26), both capable and motivated but compelled to depart because of “toxic” practices on the part of board colle...

  • Editors demonstrate frightening sense of humor

    Updated Oct 25, 2023

    Perhaps one of the most frightening things to happen the week before Halloween is our annual enumeration of scary scenarios that we have imagined afflicting our fair village. As always, we offer the following words of caution to readers: Beware the sarcasm. • The village takes a closer look at the old, weathered copy of its articles of incorporation and discovers it is actually dated April 4, 1874, requiring officials to coordinate yet another year of sesquicentennial celebrations. • The Hinsdale High School District 86 Boa...

  • Send substance-free message for Red Ribbon Week

    Updated Oct 18, 2023

    One in eight teenagers in the U.S. used an illicit substance in the last year. Sixty-two percent of high school seniors have abused alcohol and 50 percent of teens have misused a drug at least once, according to the National Center For Drug Abuse Statistics. Overdose deaths among 15- to 24-year-olds more than tripled from 1999 to 2017, climbing from 1,240 to 4,777. Statistics specific to Illinois are no more comforting. Almost 7 percent of 12- to 17-year-olds report using drugs in the last month and almost 9 percent drank...

  • National week exposed as a truly local celebration

    Updated Oct 4, 2023

    Read any compelling stories recently? We hope so. After all, that’s what we aim to deliver every week. Whether it’s an update on a school board or village board activity, the latest exploit by a Red Devil sports team or a write-up to let patrons know of new arrivals to Hinsdale’s shopping and dining scene, The Hinsdalean is committed to providing news that informs, enlightens and enriches our readers’ experience as members of this community. This first week of October 2023 marks the 83rd celebration of National Newspap...

  • Resignation highlights continued disorder in D86

    Updated Sep 29, 2023

    Before the April election, we hoped the addition of some new faces on the Hinsdale High School District 86 Board would create a more cohesive governing body with less dysfunction. How naive. The recent resignation of board member Debbie Levinthal highlights continuing problems on the school board. The argument could be made that Levinthal hasn’t been happy since Cat Greenspon became board president immediately after being newly elected. Levinthal clearly had hoped to be president herself and believed someone with e...

  • Get on board with observing rules of rail safety

    Updated Sep 20, 2023

    Eighty-one percent of crashes at public railroad grade crossings in Illinois occur where active warning devices, such as flashing lights, ringing bells and/or gates already exist, according to government statistics. During 2022, 129 vehicle crashes were reported at public highway-rail grade crossings, resulting in 30 fatalities and 39 personal injuries in Illinois. An additional 62 pedestrians trespassing on railroad rights-of-way were struck by passing trains, resulting in 39 fatalities and 23 personal injuries. Sept. 18-24...

  • Talking can help save someone's life

    Updated Sep 13, 2023

    September is Suicide Prevention Month and this week is National Suicide Prevention Week. This isn’t a topic most are eager to talk about. But talking is sometimes the one thing that can save someone’s life. Most people who are having thoughts of suicide feel relief when someone asks after them in a caring way, according to the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline. Individuals are more likely to feel less depressed, less suicidal, less overwhelmed and more hopeful after speaking to someone who listens without judgment. And hel...

  • Sept. 11 still has lessons to teach

    Updated Sep 6, 2023

    Monday marks 22 years since the terrorist attacks that shook the nation and launched a global battle against Islamic extremism that continues today. Hinsdale residents Bob Rasmussen and Jeff Mladenik were among the 2,996 lives lost in those shocking acts of mass murder committed the morning of Sept. 11, 2001, searing images of both unspeakable horror and awe-inspiring heroism into our collective memory. More than 6,000 were injured. For those of us who can remember the horror of that day, the memory of the experience likely...

  • A reading assignment for drivers as school opens

    Updated Aug 30, 2023

    As students get acclimated to their class schedules, locker combinations and homework, adults also have some adjusting to do now that school is back in session. Traffic patterns have changed dramatically since the first day at Hinsdale Central Aug. 21 and District 181 schools Aug. 22. More students are heading to and from school on foot or on their bikes — or getting a ride from mom or dad or even a classmate. They might not be paying as much attention as they should be, so drivers need to be extra vigilant. To that end, w...

  • Students, start smart this new school year

    Updated Aug 23, 2023

    Hinsdale youth are back in class! Stepping up a grade means a higher level of academic rigor — and a greater need for effective study habits. Here are some tips from “The Princeton Review” to help make the year a success. 1. Have multiple study spaces. A quiet place at home is key, but variety can help, too. Libraries, parks or even just moving from the bedroom to the kitchen table can stimulate the brain to retain information better. 2. Keep a catch-all calendar. In addition to jotting down homework assignments, mark extra...

  • Series ends, 150th anniversary coverage goes on

    Updated Aug 16, 2023

    The beautiful historic buildings in the central business district, the Robbins Park subdivision and many other neighborhoods in Hinsdale. That delicious smell when you walk into Kramer Foods. The crowds that line the streets the morning of July 4, waiting for the parade to begin. These and so many other things make Hinsdale the wonderful town that it is. We celebrated almost a dozen of them in our summer series, Quintessential Hinsdale. It is not a coincidence that we chose this topic in 2023, the year the village is...

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