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The Soapbox

A place for remembering:

If you’re looking for a chance to reflect and remember, a Healing Field of Honor opens Sunday near West Aurora High School. Sponsors hope to have 2,013 flags for the display, which runs through Nov. 13 to commemorate Veterans Day Nov. 11. That coincides with a Nov. 7-11 display of the touring Vietnam Memorial Moving Wall.

International exposure:

It’s a big deal when a TV crew visits a local school, but the attention at Warren Township High School this week was global in scale. A South Korean crew gathered for a documentary on the Gurnee school’s “flipped classroom” teaching method — teachers present lessons on video that students view at home, freeing up class time for discussion

Keeping their cool:

Kudos to the quick-thinking staff members at Streamwood High School who saved the life of a delivery man whose heart stopped. They called 911, and a dispatcher guided them while they performed CPR and used a defibrillator. The Streamwood village board will recognize the staffers next week.

Hey, guys, it’s Movember:

You may see more hairy upper lips than usual this month as supporters of Movember grow ’staches to promote awareness of men’s health issues like prostate and testicular cancer. A 5K race series, headed by Naperville-based Game Day USA, comes to Chicago on Nov. 9. The campaign follows Breast Cancer Awareness in October.

Gracious move by church:

It never seemed much in doubt that Orchard Evangelical Free Church in Arlington Heights had the legal right to tear down the eight houses it owns to expand the church parking lot. But this week, they decided not to, saying it was clear nearby residents were deeply opposed. That’s being a good neighbor.

Special player:

With the IHSA football playoffs under way, fans can see the best teams and their talent in action. Glenbard North running back Justin Jackson; is one of the elite. His eye-popping stats to start the playoffs: 2,550 rushing yards this season with 33 TDs. If the Panthers win two more games, he’s on pace to break the state season rushing record of 3,325.

Special perspective:

While Jackson’s stats are impressive, equally outstanding are his postgame comments, which always seem to focus on “we” and not “I.” The Northwestern recruit credits the team’s impressive blockers, the coaching staff’s game plan, the defense’s efforts to get the ball back and “our overall execution.”

New leader in District 211:

Residents in Palatine-Schaumburg High School District 211 who think the district overspends may not like the fact that its choice for superintendent, Dan Cates, is an insider. But Cates, the associate superintendent for administrative services who started in 1992 as a school psychologist, appears to have a good grasp of the needs of the entire district.

We can hope, can’t we?

Lawmakers return to Springfield next week for one last three-day hurrah for this year. Unfortunately, insiders seem to be discouraging expectations for a pension compromise. But let’s all press them to surprise us and finally do something to cheer about.

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