Village Chronicles

When the Village Chronicles launches its new website, www.Vil­lageChronicles.net, next Saturday (Aug. 1), it intends to effect a sweep­ing change to the classic paradigm associated with most suburban newspapers.

As most of you know, the newspaper business and the rest of the print media world are experiencing an apocalyptic meltdown. Giants of the industry, begin­ning right here at home with the Tribune and the Sun Times are on life support. And they do not have long to live.

There are many planned unit developments (PUDs) in our community. Most are
known as an HOA (homeowners association), but there are several other types—
individual family homes in developments of different sizes (think Summerlakes

and River Oaks)—townhome PUDs like Maple Hill and Emerald Green)—other HOA types that cover condo chartered properties, and non-condo developments.

Whichever type it is, these communities are governed by HOA boards of directors. Complexities of law create many headaches for the volunteer boards. Most HOAs hire management firms to gain access to legal advice, management talent and policy develop­ment expertise.

But local decisions still have to be made to properly represent the needs and tastes of the unit owners. Those variations, coupled with economic challenges, land-use issues, and stormwater management problems, to name just a few, make the HOA board’s job even more difficult.

The City of Warrenville is practiced with HOAs and is supportive of their efforts. Learn­ing when, how, and to whom local expertise can be applied is not always easy.

An association of HOAs in Warrenville would address sharing of successes and failures. Perhaps only a quarterly gathering is needed. On the other hand a more formal structure may be useful in working toward the long-term success of all HOAs in our community?

For example, an umbrella organization could be helpful in facilitating the choices of contractors or vendors who had been found to be reputable in other situations.

Or, perhaps group training sessions could be structured for new board members.

An oversight entity might also prove useful in establishing stronger ties with various city and county departments.

If you are interested in pursuing this idea, please send an email to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it . We will report the strength of interest and help put respondents in con­tact with one another.

The differences between “place” and “home” are fleeting but profound. The person ahead of you, a stranger, holds the door open for you to pass through the doorway, or smiles when meeting on the street. A subtle signal to cut through a waiting line

of traffic to enter a parking lot, or a nonchalant waive from a passing car acknowledges your presence and signals you belong.

A small act of kindness softens the harshness of the world and makes us feel OK. The 4th of July parade gathers townspeople to celebrate not just the nation’s birthday, but the gathering of a place and its people, strangers, neighbors, citizens all. It is bigger than “me,” yet it allows me to feel larger, wanted, accepted.

Is that what defines “community?” Feeling accepted, belonging?

What about caring for an ailing neighbor? Taking him or her to a doctor’s appointment, or picking up a prescription at the drug store, or taking out the garbage on a snowy day, or getting the mail in icy weather? These acts of caring go beyond small acts of kindness; instead they affirm a sense that the neighbor “belongs here” and is helped to remain here.

Is that what defines “community”? Caring for the physical well-being of a neighbor?

Group sharing as in potluck dinners, or a pig roast; these require an act of sharing to be a part of the gathering. You share a favorite recipe with a larger group; you sample the shared dishes from others; a feast has been made. The mingling over food and new taste treats nurtures conversation among those unfamiliar to one another. The circle of friend­ship expands.

Is that what defines “community”? Sharing food and favorite recipes?

Shopping for routine goods and services locally. Meeting neighbors, co-workers, fellow church or organization members while out and about doing chores and shopping. Ex­changing personal greetings or information during those brief encounters grows aware­ness of the people around us and how they fit together.

Is this another defining moment of community?

Sharing constructive ideas with others in town is useful in addressing shared needs or problems. Such ideas form programs, even institutions, which serve community needs that make us all stronger or better off.

Is this more of the community definition?

We think so.

Taken together all of the above allows each of us to be our own self, to make the con­tributions we will, to accept help from others so we can be better or stronger.

The community gives us license to be ourselves while celebrating who we are as we all come together to make a strong, well-defined community. Being yourself is an act of com­munity, pure and simple.

It may seem trite to state “It’s all about community,” but we think it is all about com­munity.

Celebrate it.

Gather at SummerDaze in August. Participate in outdoor summer activities. Walk our plentiful trails and paths. Share your talents with a group to manage or address a common concern.

Be yourself but be with others. That is what makes our community strong.

Back in 2002, the DuPage County Forest Preserve District considered the construction of a new Fleet Services Maintenance building in the Blackwell Forest Preserve. At that time, District President D. “Dewey” Pierotti vetoed a proposal to proceed with the project.

Five years went by and nothing happened. Then in June, 2007, the district au­thorized the expenditure of upwards of $500,000 in design and architectural fees for the building, a sure sign that it intended to revive the project’

Sure enough, at its budget meeting last June 30, the district approved a new fis­cal-year budget that accommodates the expenditure of approximately $7.5 mil­lion on the proposed project.

Meanwhile, on May 5 of this year, the district held an “open house” at which residents of the county were encouraged to share their concerns, ask questions, and gain more insight into the details of the project.

Shortly thereafter, according to Dennis Clark, President of West-Win Home­owners Association, whose members live close by, the district promised to hold a meeting in June to consider the project. That meeting was never scheduled, and Clark says the project was slated for discussion at a meeting on July 14 that has now been moved to July 21.

However, the district’s public relations department has told Clark that the mat­ter will not be discussed on July 21, while President Pierotti says “indeed it will be discussed.”

All of this leads to the conclusion that the district is waffling and attempting to tire out its constituency, so that this fall the project can proceed. This is a typical political ploy, and perhaps can be thwarted if enough people show up at the dis­tricts July 21 meeting and voice their concerns.

The merits of the project are not the real issue here. What is clear is that the dis­trict has not done its due diligence or incorporated this project into its long-range plans in appropriate fashion. Until it does its homework, we urge residents to be vigilant, since the Forest Preserve is immune from such things as public hearings, bidding, and other processes that the ordinary Joe would have to endure in order to get approval of a project of this magnitude.

In its July 3 issue, the Village Chronicles published a story concerning this proj­ect, outlining a number of valid concerns and questions that we feel are appro­priate and deserving of answer and response. We urge you to review these and make your concerns known to the forest preserve district either in person at a dis­trict meeting, or via email or other form of communication.

Suggestions keep coming our way. The other day someone suggested that the Village Chronicles could do something about getting a local medical clinic or­ganized and operating. Another has suggested a local group of homeownerassociations might be useful. Yet another feels that stop signs or traffic signals would be a good thing at a specific intersection.

What to do with these ideas?

Letters to the editor allow our readers to get their thoughts beyond us and out in the open. Our letters section is named “Voices” and reflects our philosophy that the individual thoughts of our local citizens should become the voice of each person having a particular idea, which can then be shared with the rest of us.

The reaction to that single voice is often magical. Others may echo the same thought and frequently a group effort is formed to address the idea.

This newspaper is not the single voice of the community—rather it is a chan­nel for communicating the many voices that wish and are willing to be heard. The process of sharing ideas in one central channel helps identify issues with “legs” and determines whether the citizenry supports a resolution to the issue as a priority.

Village Chronicles lends itself to this process in several ways. The paper re­ports news that is important for citizens to know. It provides background in­formation on why some news items have deeper importance. It makes available guest editorial space for a thorough analysis of complex issues. And it publishes letters to the editor that reveal new ideas or reactions to previously publicized opinions.

Thus, the newspaper serves as a civic communication channel, useful to the entire community.

We only ask that you be civil and polite. Being angry about something is OK— being rude, insulting or personal is not. Focusing on the idea is the primary ob­jective. Few will listen if your thoughts are lost in a sea of emotion, anger or ranting.

Calm consideration of ideas benefits us by providing a deeper understanding of issues and of one another.

Care to participate?

The Fourth of July. The very name stirs memories for each of us. The special times together as a family; those moments when we were breaking out of the “kid shell” and moving toward adulthood; exploring larger social contexts; early years of raising our own family; the ticking by of years as the children matured, each age giving us a glimpse of our own past; empty nester status when the Fourth still remains a special day to celebrate.

Celebrate what exactly? Well the nation’s wholeness for one; individual freedom for an­other; and togetherness of a people of purpose as another..

But for us the Fourth of July is also a time when we reflect on how all of us really do mat­ter in bringing our nation together, one community at a time. In larger communities that may be a neighborhood thing, but in Warrenville, it is our whole town.

In a first of its kind partnership in the greater Chicago area, Macy’s and DuPage, Metropolitan andNorth Suburban Library Systems, along with 17 local arts and cultural organiza­tions throughout the area, recently an­nounced “The Museum Adventure Pass, presented by Macy’s” and available at your suburban public library.

The Museum Adventure Pass is a partnership between more than 100 suburban area libraries and 17 local arts and cultural organizations and provides suburban Chicago library cardholders free passes to local museums, zoos, and historical sites.

The program is designed to enhance the learning experience for people of all ages through books and other library materials, and to provide access to arts and cultural organizations.

“The Museum Adventure Pass is a truly innovative approach to education that Macy’s is thrilled to support,” said Brad Poterack, Macey’s District Vice President. “Our hope is that people who may not have access to the wonderful local arts and cultural scene will use this program as a learning tool for them­selves and their families, and realize that libraries are a great way to explore and learn something new.”

Beginning Sept. 1, the Museum Ad­venture Pass presented by Macy’s will be available at 146 public libraries in the Metropolitan, DuPage and North Sub­urban Library Systems. Library card­holders can receive up to four complimentary passes to 17 museums including the Brookfield Zoo, Chicago Botanic Garden, Kohl Children’s Mu­seum and many more. Each Museum Adventure Pass expires within one week of the checkout date.

For more information, area residents can visit or call a public library in the Metropolitan, DuPage and North Sub­urban Library System, or log on to www.museumadventure.org.

“Libraries and museums are a natural partnership. Both present opportunities for people to explore culture, history and so much more,” said Sandy Whitmer, di­rector of the Warrenville Public Library District. “We’re grateful to Macy’s and the participating cultural organizations for partnering with suburban libraries to provide this priceless opportunity for our library cardholders. Our staff is ex­cited about the fact that a library card is the key to unlocking these museums and their treasures.”

Participating organizations include Arlington Heights Historical Museum, Bronzeville Children’s Museum, Brook­field Zoo, Cantigny Park, Chicago Botanic Garden, Cuneo Museum and Gardens, Elgin History Museum, Elgin Public Museum, Graue Mill and Mu­seum, Hellenic Museum, Kids Work Children’s Museum, Kohl Children’s Museum, Lake County Discovery Mu­seum, Mitchell Museum of the Ameri­can Indian, Morton Arboretum, Oriental Institute Museum, and St. Charles Heritage Museum.

“Cantera Shares” was held Wednes­day, July 22 at two hotels and three restaurants. Patrons were asked to drop off food donations for St. Irene’s Food Pantry at either SpringHill Suites or Hilton Garden Inn, both in Cantera. The hotels provided a brochure with restaurant offerings for free appetizers and free dessert tastes. Dinner entrees were at regular price to the diners, but prizes and drawings were also offered by each establishment. Rock Bottom Brewery and Restaurant, Stir Crazy and Buffalo Wild Wings were the restaurant partners.

An hour can mean a lot to an incarcer­ated teen! Tutor in reading, writing or basic math skills. Help a student prepare for her GED.

The JumpStart program works with teenage girls at the Illinois Youth Center in Warrenville. We need you! Many girls en­rolled in the school program both want and need extra one-on-one help.

You might help read and discuss a short story or explain how to add fractions. Per­haps help is needed in resume writing or tips on how to interview to get a future job.

You can help teenage girls gain confi­dence and skills that will go with them far into their futures. The need is great. So are the possibilities!

You can tutor during the school day (8:30 AM- 3:30PM) for an hour or two a week. Please contact airdgrlake@ aol.com for further information.

The new Farmers’ Market, sponsored by the Warrenville Park District, will be held every Wednesday throughout the summer from 3:00 to 7:00 p.m. in the Rec Center parking lot at the intersection of Warren and Curtis Aves.

A total of 20 vendors are participating, offering everything from fresh produce to bakery goods, glass jewelry, fresh flowers, crafts, and even homemade dog treats.

The market is open to the public and ad­mission is free.

Registered vendors include Sunrise Bakery (Bakery and Crafts), Total Health & Wellness (Chair Massage), Tulips & More (Plants and Flowers) Pooper Scoop­ers (Dog Treats), Twin Garden Farms (Produce), Black ‘N Tar Soaps (Home­made Soaps), KAP Farms (Produce), Wellhausen Group (Plants and Vegeta­bles), Heartland Meats (Meats and Produce), Pawprint Bakery (Dog Treats), Juarez Sewing (American Girl Doll Clothes and Accessories), El Gringo Loco (Hot Sauces and Chips), Designs by In­grid (Placemats and Napkins), Northern Lite Ups (Ceramic Decorations), Glasscat (Glass Jewelry), Breadsmith (Homemade Breads), Rainbow Panache (Handcrafted Jewelry), Amy Peterson Chocolates (Gourmet Treats), and Kernel Dan’s (Ket­tle Corn)

The Warrenville Public Library holds a free concert following the Farmers Market at 7:00 p.m. in the Bob Walters Commons Area between the library and city hall.

The Farmers’ Market and library con­certs are sponsored in part by the City of Warrenville Hotel/Motel Tax Fund. Please contact the Warrenville Park District at (630) 393-7279 or visit www.warrenville parks.org for more information.