Prospects Hts. officers honored for saving man's life

Prospect Heights Police Sgt. Mike Stone and Officer Kevin Lange were presented with Departmental Life Saving Commendations March 28, for their efforts in saving the life of a man who had a heart attack March 25 at the Crowne Plaza Hotel. The duo used Cardio Pulmonary Resuscitation and an Automated External Defibrillator. With family, friends, co-workers and city officials present, Prospect Heights Police Chief Al Steffen, Deputy Police Chief Jim Zawlocki and Fire Chief Donald Gould Jr., presented the awards to Stone and Lange in the City Hall council chambers. Stone is a 25-year veteran of the Prospect Heights police force; Lange has been on the force for three years.

Petty Officer 1st Class Timothy Kelly, a Wheeling High School graduate and Arlington Heights native, is currently serving in the U.S. Navy aboard the amphibious assault ship, USS Bataan (LHD 5). Kelly is an aviation machinist's mate aboard the Wasp-class amphibious assault ship operating out of Norfolk, Virginia. Responsible for deconstruction and construction of aircraft engines, as well as the maintenance of the associated support equipment, Kelly is among the 70 officers and 100 enlisted men and women which make up the ship's company.

• Four veteran educators have been named to administrative roles for the 2016-2017 school year in Northwest Suburban High School District 214: Bruce French, a math teacher at Buffalo Grove High School, will become Wheeling High School's division head of math and science; Patty Merris Grow, an English and speech teacher at John Hersey High School, was appointed as the school's division head of English and fine arts; Mary Kemp, a science teacher at Hersey, will become Elk Grove High School's division head of math and science; and Jenna Korakakis, a special-education teacher at Hersey, has been appointed as Dean of Students there.

Bartlett High School juniors Sam Witz and Natalie Payne were given Accent on Achievement certificates March 7 by the by the U-46 Board of Education, for outstanding performances at the Illinois High School Association state champion speech tournament. Witz and Payne earned fifth place in the Dramatic Duet Acting category with a pivotal scene from Steven Fechter's play, "The Woodsman." The duo also earned several awards en route to the IHSA State Finals, including an Upstate 8 Conference Championship, an IHSA Regional Championship and a third place in the IHSA Sectional Honors Championship.

• Send your 'Neighbor in the News' items to Norrine Twohey at ntwohey@dailyherald.com.