Hilary Decent

Judith and John Lee on their 40th wedding anniversary in 1996. The couple were married 63 years when Judith died in 2019, and their love story has been incorporated into their gravemarker in Naperville Cemetery.

Decent: Naperville gravestone reflects couple’s long love story with symbols from their lives together

February 10, 2023 at 5:37 p.m.

As Valentine's Day approaches, it's comforting to know some lifelong romances can continue to the grave and beyond. One of the more recent additions to Naperville Cemetery is an unusual...

Naperville firefighter/paramedic Daryl MacDonald demonstrates how to use an automated external defibrillator machine at a recent First Aid class at Safety Town, Naperville.

Decent: CPR helped save a man’s life while he was out on a run. Now, he and his wife are learning the life-saving technique and paying it forward

February 4, 2023 at 1:44 a.m.

There are plenty of reasons to take a first aid class: It can help you to help others in an emergency, it can help paramedics even before they arrive on...

Lisa and Mike Rue, whose Naperville home was badly damaged in the tornado that hit in 2021, say remnants of an outdoor brick fireplace were among the debris that kept surfacing in their yard until they paid to have the dirt removed and replaced.

Decent: Metal, plastic and glass shards in the grass keep the tornado alive in the memories of its victims

January 27, 2023 at 3:23 p.m.

There was good news for Naperville tornado victims earlier this month when state Rep. Anne Stava-Murray, D-Naperville, was able to help secure $1 million for environmental cleanup work. While most...

Gretchen Gannon, a deaf actress, is hoping to inspire others through her performance in Magical Starlight Theatre's production of "Matilda the Musical" at North Central High School in Naperville.

Decent: Actress hopes her deafness serves as inspiration in Magical Starlight Theatre’s ‘Matilda’ production

January 20, 2023 at 2:08 p.m.

Although she's just as excited as her castmates when she takes her bows at the end of Magical Starlight Theatre's production of "Matilda the Musical," actress Gretchen Gannon can't hear...

Lisa Hillman, a member of The People Tree, tells a story during a program at Empire Burgers + Brew in downtown Naperville. The process of proposing a story idea to performing it onstage can take as long as three months, members say.

Decent: It’s harder than it looks but telling a story to a group is intimate, empowering: ‘You look at your life differently’

January 13, 2023 at 10:32 p.m.

A crowd gathers around the stage at one of downtown Naperville's many bars. The atmosphere is buzzing as the anticipation grows among the performers. But this is no ordinary performance....

All Stories

Decent: Naperville gravestone reflects couple’s long love story with symbols from their lives together

Decent: CPR helped save a man’s life while he was out on a run. Now, he and his wife are learning the life-saving technique and paying it forward

Decent: Metal, plastic and glass shards in the grass keep the tornado alive in the memories of its victims

Decent: Actress hopes her deafness serves as inspiration in Magical Starlight Theatre’s ‘Matilda’ production

Decent: It’s harder than it looks but telling a story to a group is intimate, empowering: ‘You look at your life differently’

Decent: Lest my ‘kakorrhaphiophobia’ kicks in, I plan to embrace Word Nerd Day till I’m seeing ‘phosphenes’

Decent: Forget ‘resolutions’ and set a realistic new year goal that focuses on baby steps and patience

Decent: Could there be any better setting for a Hallmark Christmas movie than dear old Naperville?

Decent: Nothing like cozying up with a good book, but an American nail-biter or a serene British whodunit?

Decent: NBC-5’s Stefan Holt’s putting down roots in Naperville as his family celebrates their second Christmas here