Good News Sunday: Single parents find support in online community during pandemic

This is Good News Sunday, a compilation of some of the more upbeat and inspiring stories published by the Daily Herald during the previous week:

For soon-to-be 12-year-old Tallen, a trip to the Mall of America in Minneapolis with his mom was all he wanted for his birthday.

They had done the trip once before and he could not wait to go back in early May.

But that changed when Gov. J.B. Pritzker issued the stay-at-home order and extended it in March, then April and beyond, in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

"He was having anxiety over it," his mom, Tara Micic of Hoffman Estates, said. "You know, saying, 'What are we going to do? We can't go anywhere.' He was worried for a good two months about his birthday and what would happen. It was always a source of either anger or sadness."

Micic knew she needed to do something to help make this birthday special - but as a single parent, that proved difficult.

So she decided to turn to an online community for support.

"I made a post, more venting than anything," Micic said.

She posted on a single-parent group's Facebook page, RespectGroup, about how upset Tallen was over his canceled trip and how she wished she could find a way to still make his day special despite the lockdowns.

For the full story, click here.

Arlington Heights boy makes PPE for hospitals

Instead of spending his stay-at-home time during the pandemic playing video games or goofing off online with his friends, 12-year-old Vince Radlicz jumped to action by making personal protection equipment for health care workers.

Using two 3-D printers, Vince created 341 headbands for face shields this spring as cases of COVID-19 climbed. With assistance from his family, he then attached the bands to plastic cut from report covers purchased at office supply stores to complete the shields.

The equipment was delivered to hospitals, nursing homes and other health care facilities in the Chicago area and as far away as Hawaii.

Vince said he was inspired by a desperate request for equipment from a neighbor who works as a nurse at Mount Sinai Hospital in Chicago.

"We started printing right away that day," he said.

The son of Arlington Heights Memorial Public Library digital services adviser Donna Radlicz, Vince uses his 3-D printer and one borrowed from the library to make the headbands.

For the full story, click here.

Churches slowly return to open, safe worship

It may take a few more weeks - or maybe months - but little by little, week by week, churches in the Northwest suburbs are returning to normal routines in the face of the coronavirus.

One of the largest parishes in the area, Our Lady of the Wayside Catholic Church in Arlington Heights, has been preparing to return to a normal routine in the face of the pandemic for several weeks.

On the July Fourth weekend, Wayside celebrated an almost full weekend schedule of Masses - one on Saturday and three on Sunday - with the doors open but a smaller (and carefully screened) congregation.

Attendance at all Masses is limited, and parishioners must preregister to attend. Seating capacity in the church has been reduced considerably.

Mass attendees, including children, must wear protective face masks. Attendees also must follow clearly-marked directions to approved pews, and they must maintain social distance when lining up to receive communion.

For the full story, click here.

District 220 schools get emergency backpacks

All Barrington Area Unit District 220 classrooms will have backpacks with emergency supplies, thanks to local nonprofit organizations.

District 220 spokeswoman Samantha Ptashkin said the delivery of the backpacks will continue through the summer. The Barrington Area Community Foundation awarded a $23,000 grant to the village's Breakfast and Noon Rotary clubs, which in turn used the funds to help buy the backpacks and supplies, she said.

Each Stop the Bleed kit costs $38 and includes items such as a lightweight tourniquet, emergency trauma dressing, compressed gauze, survival blanket and surgical-type gloves.

For the full story, click here.

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