Copyright 2013 Daily Herald, Paddock Publications, Inc. http://www.dailyherald.com/community/StCharles/ en-us Wed, 19 Jun 2013 03:35:30 -0400 http://www.dailyherald.com/article/20130618/news/706189957/ http://www.dailyherald.com/article/20130618/news/706189957/ Tue, 18 Jun 2013 04:58:48 -0400 As 1st Sgt. James Hicks shook hands with the residents of Delnor Glen retirement community in St. Charles and passed out coins with his Army company's slogan on them, he delivered a thank you for nine months of continued support. "You can't go wrong with sending personal hygiene items to troops," Hicks said. "Just going to the bathroom over there is a 100-yard hike. And the Slinkies, we just had a blast with everything they sent." http://www.dailyherald.com/article/20130617/news/706179713/ http://www.dailyherald.com/article/20130617/news/706179713/ Tue, 18 Jun 2013 12:49:31 -0400 Changes to the Elgin Area School District U-46 grading scale were never intended to be issues requiring school board approval. After weeks of intense opposition by some teachers and parents, the board's newest members — Frank Napolitano and Veronica Noland — pushed for a vote anyway. It isn't going to happen. The change will eliminate the bottom half of the traditional 0-100 scale, making a 50 the lowest grade students can get. The goal is to equalize the interval between each letter grade but opponents say it will reduce achievement. http://www.dailyherald.com/article/20130617/news/706179725/ http://www.dailyherald.com/article/20130617/news/706179725/ Tue, 18 Jun 2013 08:45:38 -0400 Coming into Monday night's St. Charles City Council meeting, the only mystery would be what new Third Ward Alderman Todd Bancroft would say after being sworn into office. Bancroft was selected from a pool of 13 candidates who applied for the open Third Ward seat. "What an honor it is," Bancroft said. "I'm very excited. Thank you, all." http://www.dailyherald.com/article/20130617/news/706179827/ http://www.dailyherald.com/article/20130617/news/706179827/ Mon, 17 Jun 2013 12:52:36 -0400 Laura Rush can't remember a single year that she hasn't made it down for at least one day to Geneva's Swedish Days. "I knew summer was here when Swedish Days started," Rush recalled from her childhood. She is now in her third year of planning the event, working to bring back the Swedish culture portion of the 64th annual festival, which opens Tuesday, June 18 and runs through Sunday, June 23. http://www.dailyherald.com/article/20130617/news/706179961/ http://www.dailyherald.com/article/20130617/news/706179961/ Mon, 17 Jun 2013 11:02:06 -0400 The appeal process for a proposed suburban virtual charter school was cut short last week — but not before 18 suburban school districts spent more than $320,800 in legal fees fighting the issue. Not to mention the hundreds of hours school staffs spent researching the proposal, officials say. http://www.dailyherald.com/article/20130614/news/706149747/ http://www.dailyherald.com/article/20130614/news/706149747/ Fri, 14 Jun 2013 16:02:06 -0400 The four highest leaders in Kane County's judicial and public safety system (state's attorney, sheriff, chief judge and coroner) put forward a joint warning that heroin is not at an epidemic level in the local area. Not only are prosecutions involving heroin up by 30 percent so far this year, but heroin-related deaths are on pace to triple what was seen just two years ago. The heroin problem will likely become a tax problem as the costs for the felony prosecutions and treatment of addicts in both the jail and youth detention center will rise, officials said. http://www.dailyherald.com/article/20130614/news/706149818/ http://www.dailyherald.com/article/20130614/news/706149818/ Fri, 14 Jun 2013 15:20:02 -0400 The former manager of a St. Charles bank pleaded guilty Friday to stealing from one of its clients. Lynn Pranga was sentenced to 200 hours of community service, two years of probation, and has to repay $21,900. http://www.dailyherald.com/article/20130613/news/706139676/ http://www.dailyherald.com/article/20130613/news/706139676/ Thu, 13 Jun 2013 21:30:33 -0400 St. Charles police responded to 11 calls about vehicle burglaries Thursday morning. All the incidents occurred between midnight and 3 a.m. and involved vehicles that were left unlocked by their owners. http://www.dailyherald.com/article/20130613/news/706139719/ http://www.dailyherald.com/article/20130613/news/706139719/ Thu, 13 Jun 2013 17:57:13 -0400 St. Charles officials have named Todd Bancroft as the new Third Ward alderman. The city council must take an official vote Monday, but seated aldermen have already agreed upon Bancroft in a closed-door meeting. Bancroft fills the vacancy created when Ray Rogina became mayor. http://www.dailyherald.com/article/20130618/entlife/706189971/ http://www.dailyherald.com/article/20130618/entlife/706189971/ Tue, 18 Jun 2013 14:21:54 -0400 Naper Nights return this weekend at Naper Settlement with rock tribute bands American English (playing music of the Beatles on Friday) and Heartache Tonight (playing music of The Eagles on Saturday) in Naperville. Fans of comic books, cartoons and graphic novels won't want to miss Mighty Con at Pheasant Run in St. Charles. Plus, the Filipino Kingz of Comedy takes the stage at The Improv Comedy Showcase in Schaumburg. http://www.dailyherald.com/article/20130618/news/706189858/ http://www.dailyherald.com/article/20130618/news/706189858/ Tue, 18 Jun 2013 11:18:29 -0400 When Allison Cherry stepped onto the Children's Theatre of Elgin stage in 1992 as a second-grader, she never dreamed that she would one day end up running the show. But 20 years later, Cherry, a 28-year-old teacher at Prairie View Grade School in Burlington, will direct "iSing: Sounds of a New Generation," which will be presented June 21-23 and June 28-30 at the Elgin Community College Arts Center's Blizzard Theatre. http://www.dailyherald.com/article/20130618/news/706189750/ http://www.dailyherald.com/article/20130618/news/706189750/ Tue, 18 Jun 2013 17:30:52 -0400 Janet Tyner, 50, of South Elgin, was charged with driving under the influence of alcohol, failure to reduce to speed and failure to wear a seat belt after authorities responded to a crash at 9:58 p.m. Thursday in the 44W600 block of Ellithorpe Road near Hampshire, according to a sheriff's report. http://www.dailyherald.com/article/20130618/news/706189752/ http://www.dailyherald.com/article/20130618/news/706189752/ Tue, 18 Jun 2013 17:26:47 -0400 Campton Township officials will host an open house from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday at the township's original town hall, 4N498 Town Hall Road, Campton Hills. The open house is the first since the township landed a $60,000 grant to repair the foundation and use the building, which was erected in 1874, for educational purposes. http://www.dailyherald.com/article/20130617/news/706179754/ http://www.dailyherald.com/article/20130617/news/706179754/ Mon, 17 Jun 2013 17:19:53 -0400 A wrongful death lawsuit is filed against an Oswego man seeking damages for a Feb. 15, 2013, crash in Batavia that killed David Schele, 61, of Sugar Grove. Craig Schindlbeck was ticketed for failure to yield but is fighting it in court and is set to go on trial in early July. http://www.dailyherald.com/article/20130616/news/706169837/ http://www.dailyherald.com/article/20130616/news/706169837/ Sun, 16 Jun 2013 18:10:18 -0400 Sunday's 103rd Swedish Day Midsommar Festival gave Swedes and non-Swedes alike lessons in language and culture during the daylong event at Good Templar Park in Geneva. http://www.dailyherald.com/article/20130614/news/706149642/ http://www.dailyherald.com/article/20130614/news/706149642/ Fri, 14 Jun 2013 20:36:43 -0400 A state appellate court on Friday voided a 35-year prison sentence for a man who pleaded guilty to killing a woman in Aurora in 2005. Gareng Deng, now 21, was 17 when he accepted a plea agreement with Kane County prosecutors for the Oct. 31, 2005, murder of 47-year-old Marilyn Bethell of Aurora. On Friday, the Second District Illinois Appellate Court overturned a circuit court ruling, allowing the case to go back to that court where Deng can enter a new plea. http://www.dailyherald.com/article/20130614/news/704039542/ http://www.dailyherald.com/article/20130614/news/704039542/ Fri, 14 Jun 2013 10:45:57 -0400 Mark Domagalski of Campton Hills is the purest kind of fisherman you'll find. The avid fly fisherman crafts his own flies from many different types of materials, and says he really enjoys wading into a stream and catching a fish on something he created himself. "It's really fulfilling when you tie your own fly and you actually catch fish on it. It's really a full circle," he said. http://www.dailyherald.com/article/20130613/news/706139754/ http://www.dailyherald.com/article/20130613/news/706139754/ Thu, 13 Jun 2013 16:46:12 -0400 The annual Batavia Green Walk Saturday has grown, with plans for 70 exhibitors and vendors on all manner of topics related to healthful living, reducing waste, using less fossil-fueled energy and more. http://www.dailyherald.com/article/20130613/news/706139825/ http://www.dailyherald.com/article/20130613/news/706139825/ Thu, 13 Jun 2013 14:53:45 -0400 Did the Geneva Library annex a narrow piece of land to prevent the Batavia Library from annexing its land, or was it just the side effect of the Geneva Library pursuing its long-held objective of providing service to Geneva school district residents?