Mary Compton –

Lisa McClowry performs as Cher in her The Beat Goes On show last month at CD&ME in Frankfort. McClowry, of Mokena, takes her self-produced show on the road when she gets a break from performing as Cher as part of an ongoing engagement in Las Vegas.

Amid Las Vegas residency as Cher, Mokena’s McClowry pops back home for a quick show

September 15, 2022 at 12:41 p.m.

As the lights grew dim inside CD&ME in Frankfort, a familiar voice flowed from the stage, "I have climbed the highest mountains ... only to be with you." Dressed in...

JoAnn Stellwagen, left, and Rosemary Schroader watch Carol Podkulski throw the dice during a recent bunco game in Mokena. The women have gotten together each month for 55 years around the game, forming strong friendships along the way.

The Bunco Babes have been rolling the dice together for 55 years, forming ‘true friendship’ along the way

September 4, 2022 at 9:58 a.m.

It was kind of a big deal when a group of south suburban women, mostly stay-at-home moms, got together for their first bunco night. "We were all dressed to the...

Tony Burton, of Frankfort, creates a serving bowl from a chunk of maple wood spinning on a lathe on a recent Saturday at the Midwest Carvers Museum campus in South Holland. "My next goal is to make larger salad bowls for the house," he said.

South Holland’s Midwest Carvers Museum a place to turn wood into art, teach craft to new generation

August 30, 2022 at 3:38 p.m.

Frankfort resident Tony Burton recently retired from the Navy and was keeping an eye out for what to do next. That search brought him to South Holland, where he could...

Aaron Gutierrez, of Midlothian, eyes a 2006 Corvette during a recent Chicago Heights Southside Cruisers car show at Chevrolet of Homewood.

Chicago Heights Southside Cruisers still popping their hoods, making friends at area car shows

July 8, 2022 at 6:00 a.m.

Ron Mascitti and his wife, Mae, had a choice in 1988 of how to celebrate their 20th Anniversary: go on a cruise or purchase a new car. Shortly afterward, the...

Jennifer Szwajkowski, of Palos Heights, releases a monarch butterfly with ovarian cancer survivors, Shari McAdams and Sue Straatman at a National Ovarian Cancer Coalition retreat Saturday at Lake Katherine in Palos Heights.

A day for hope: Teal Sisters gather in Palos Heights to share battle stories, tips for beating ovarian cancer

June 30, 2022 at 3:45 p.m.

A group of women battling ovarian cancer joined survivors of the disease last weekend for a day of rejuvenation at Lake Katherine in Palos Heights. They call themselves the Teal...

Tony LaRocque checks out coins during the June meeting of the Oak Forest Numismatic Society at Trinity Lutheran Church in Tinley Park. LaRocque just joined the club in January.

Oak Forest Numismatic Society members gather to show off their coins, share their love of their hobby

June 23, 2022 at 2:52 p.m.

One of Tony Sarto's favorite coins is out of circulation. That's because it was minted during the days of the Roman Empire and likely was spent in ancient Greece, he...

Homewood resident Julie Willis listens to a program about Love INC of Tinley Park during a recent women's luncheon at St. John's Lutheran Church in Country Club Hills.

‘We can be that shining example’: Tinley Park group links church resources to better help people in need

May 25, 2022 at 11:56 a.m.

About 17 years ago, Crestwood resident Renee Boros traveled south to help victims of Hurricane Katrina. It would be a trip that changed her life. "We were fed, warmed and...

Sue Ernst, lunch coordinator for Bremen Township Senior Services, holds a tray of food available to anyone age 60 and up at the Senior Cafe in Oak Forest. Lunch is available for $4, but some say the companionship available there is priceless.

More than just an inexpensive meal, Bremen Senior Cafe helps fight loneliness, offers ‘an escape from everything else’

May 25, 2022 at 5:00 a.m.

Pam White heard about the good lunches and great people at the Bremen Township Senior Cafe from her husband, Carlos White, a driver for the Bremen Senior Wheels until he...

Diane Carroll, of Lockport, holds a book she wrote titled "Adventures with Jesus: Celebrating 20 Years of Miracles and Blessings," during a banquet late last month for My Joyful Heart. The book tells stories of the ups and downs of the nonprofit Carroll started 20 years ago to help children in the Chicago area.

Lockport-based My Joyful Heart started with a couple of anonymous Christmas gifts; 20 years later, it’s helped over 1,000 kids

May 14, 2022 at 5:00 a.m.

Imagine being a fifth grade student and living in a car with your mom and siblings on a cold night in Chicago, or walking to school having no socks and...

Athlete Karen Nolan, left, is congratulateed by Samuel A. Giordano Jr., lieutenant governor for Kiwanis Division 23, and Aurelio "Doc Paul" Balducci during the Kiwanis Games last month in New Lenox.

Nearly 40 years after organizing first Kiwanis Games in Frankfort, ‘Doc Paul’ is still putting in the hours for the kids

March 23, 2022 at 5:00 a.m.

When the Kiwanis Club of Frankfort hosted its 37th annual Kiwanis Games last month at Lincoln-Way Special Recreation in New Lenox, Aurelio "Doc Paul" Balducci made sure he was there....

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