Bremen High School Student raises $2,000 for American Diabetes Association
On April 27, students from Bremen High School made their way to the football field to lend a helping hand, and participated in
The first students versus staff soccer game at Bremen High School in Midlothian was an unqualified success, according to school officials.
Bleachers filled with students who bought $2 tickets to see if staff or students would score the most goals on a warm late April day. All proceeds for the event were donated to the American Diabetes Association, thanks to a determined student.
The event was sparked by junior Susann Cabrejo, who was inspired by the National Honors Society’s passion project to give back to a cause that affects some of her friends and family members.
She discovered the American Diabetes Association and the efforts they make to help those struggling with the condition.
“I wanted to help them help other people, and hopefully set off a chain reaction that could make its way back to help my family,” Cabrejo said.
Cabrejo began planning this event in November by working with school administrators, and her love for soccer eventually led to an event that drew nearly 1,000 students and staff to watch or play. Students got the win, and $2,000 was raised for the organization.
The event was so successful that Cabrejo was selected to be a Bremen High School District 228 Keeper of the Light, which is awarded to D228 students and staff who go above and beyond in the classroom and community.
Morgan Park coach inducted into hall of fame
Morgan Park Academy varsity girls basketball coach Tom Drahozal was inducted last week into the state basketball hall of fame, capping a historic year for the program that he built at the school in Chicago’s Morgan Park neighborhood that serves students from prekindergarten through grade 12.
Drahozal has amassed 524 wins in 35 seasons at the Academy: 418 in 28 seasons as varsity girls coach after winning 106 with the boys. He ranks in the top 50 in the history of Illinois girls basketball for the most wins with one school.
“It is wonderful to have this occasion to celebrate the success that Coach Drahozal and his teams have achieved,” MPA athletic director Vinson Williams said. “He is one of the most outstanding coaches in our school’s history, with a legacy of leadership that has positively impacted the lives of so many students and colleagues across three decades.”
In the 2022-23 season, Drahozal was district coach of the year for the fifth time as the Warriors extended their run of outstanding play in recent years, setting program records with 23 wins and a .793 winning percentage en route to the Class 1A Sweet Sixteen.
“This milestone is more about the players and assistant coaches that have played or coached with me,” Drahozal said. “Without them I would not have been able to have been able to get here.
“When I started coaching girls basketball at MPA in 1994, my goal was to show that the girls program could be successful. I think that we have been able to do that.”
Drahozal joined the MPA faculty in 1987 as a social studies teacher and has been Upper School principal since 2010. He was inducted in the school’s athletics hall of fame in 2011.
Children’s Museum in Oak Lawn joins Blue Star program
The Children’s Museum in Oak Lawn, 5100 Museum Drive, will join museums nationwide in the Blue Star Museums initiative, a program that provides free admission to currently serving U.S. military personnel and their families from May 20 through Labor Day.
Blue Star Museums is a partnership between the National Endowment for the Arts and Blue Star Families, in collaboration with the Department of Defense and participating museums across America.
The free admission program is available for those currently serving in the Air Force, Army, Coast Guard, Marine Corps, Navy and Space Force, as well as members of the Reserves, National Guard, U.S. Public Health Commissioned Corps, NOAA Commissioned Corps, and up to five family members. Identification is required.
Park Forest Historical Society sets Ice Cream Social
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The Park Forest Historical Society an Ice Cream Social at 2:30 p.m., May 21 at St. Mary’s Catholic Church, 227 Monee Rd., Park Forest.
The event offers a chance to share stories of Park Forest, visit with friends and tour the 1950s Park Forest House Museum. Free and open to everyone, the event also is a way to thank members, friends, special donors and volunteers.
More information is at parkforesthistory.org.
Annual festival celebrates Wolf Lake
A morning bike ride and an afternoon walk will be featured at the 23rd annual Wolf Lake Bi State Wetlands, Wind & Water festival on Saturday, May 27.
Sponsored by the Association for the Wolf Lake Initiative, the festival begins at 9 a.m. near the Visitors Center parking lot at William W. Powers State Recreation Area, 12949 Avenue O, Chicago.
The 15-mile bike ride through the Wolf Lake watershed includes the new connection with Powderhorn Lake, Indian Creek, Eggers Grove, George Lake and Wolf Lake. Riders should arrive by 8:45 a.m. and will return to the Visitors Center about 11:30 a.m.
A hike will depart from the east lot at 1 p.m. at Eggers Grove Forest Preserve. Entrance is at East 112th Street and S. Avenue E.
Marianne Kozlowski, co-steward at Eggers Grove, will lead the hike. It will be a tour of spring wildflowers such as mayapple, bellwort, early meadow rue, sandwort, spring cress, sedges such as oak sedge, fox sedges, and shrubs such as blue-fruited dogwood, viburnum, American hazelnut.
“The hawthorns will probably have finished blooming,” she said, “but the viburnums may have just started and there are spectacular sweeps of viburnum flowers for hundreds of feet along the east marsh.”
Kozlowski also will give an overview of Eggers: history, environments, past restoration work and future plans.
Registration is required at www.wolflakeinitiative.org before May 24.
Tech Thursdays begin in June at Mercy Circle
Tech Thursdays, a free, three-week series sponsored by 19th Ward Ald. Matt O’Shea and Mercy Circle, is planned to help older residents learn more about how to use features on their smartphones and tablets including communications such as FaceTime, WhatsApp and Zoom, along with how to download useful apps, and tips for staying safe online.
Sessions meet from 1:30 until 3 p.m. on Thursdays, June 1, 8 and 15, at Mercy Circle, 3659 W. 99th St. in Chicago. Classes are free, but participants must make reservations for each of the three classes by calling the 19th Ward office at 773-238-8766 or registering online at the19thward.com.
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