Buffalo Grove honors hometown Olympic hero
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U.S. Olympic hockey player Megan Bozek, left, receives a commemorative "Megan Bozek Way" street sign from Buffalo Grove Trustee David Weidenfeld. Bozek, a Buffalo Grove native, returned to her hometown last week. Steve Zalusky | Staff Photographer
Olympian Megan Bozek may live in Canada, but she will always belong to Buffalo Grove.
The village board held a special meeting last week to honor Bozek, one of the community's favorite daughters and a member of the silver medal-winning U.S. Women's Olympic hockey team.
It was the culmination of a celebration that began with her arrival in town the week before, when Bozek was given a police and fire escort from the Continental Restaurant to her parents' home. Later, the Buffalo Grove Park District opened its Community Arts Center for a meet-and-greet, during which Bozek showed fans and supporters her silver medal and posed for photos.
On Thursday, trustees read from a proclamation recognizing Bozek's accomplishments -- she also won silver at the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi -- and then she was presented with a commemorative street sign for Megan Bozek Way, while Village President Beverly Sussman conferred upon her the high honor of the village's Buffalo pin.
"She serves as a stellar example to everyone in Buffalo Grove of what can be achieved through hard work and dedication," Sussman said.
Bozek, a Stevenson High grad, called the trip to Beijing for this year's Olympics "incredible," adding that she was honored and humbled to be a part of it.
"I think it's so fun to bring something like this back to Buffalo Grove again," she added. "Knowing that you guys are cheering from afar makes it all worth it."
Trustee David Weidenfeld presented her with the street sign that he called "a permanent memorial for what you've done."
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