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Good News Sunday: Naperville District 203 to rebate taxpayers $10 million

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:

Faced with an unexpected surplus after schools shut down last spring, Naperville Unit District 203 plans to repay taxpayers a total of $10 million to help ease the financial burden of the COVID-19 crisis.

The statewide stay-at-home order halted in-person operations from March through the end of the 2019-20 academic year, saving the district money in areas of utilities, transportation, food service and staffing, Chief Financial Officer Michael Frances said.

The reduced expenses resulted in an unplanned budget surplus of about $14 million, he said. The school board unanimously approved allocating $10 million toward providing property owners with a one-time reimbursement.

"This is something that almost no other school district in the state, or at least the area, has done," Vice President Donna Wandke said. "It's really exciting that we have the opportunity to do this."

Determining which of the nearly 40,000 parcels within district boundaries are eligible for the rebate is "quite an undertaking," Frances said, noting the process is dictated by state statute. He and his team plan to issue more than 30,000 checks over the next several weeks.

Initial estimates suggest the owner of a $400,000 home could be rebated between $275 and $300, Frances said.

For the full story, click here.

Some suburban movie theaters open

Several suburban movie theaters have reopened with a mix of new and classic films after the Illinois Department of Public Health relaxed some COVID-19 health and safety mitigations.

AMC, for example, reopened Streets of Woodfield in Schaumburg, with more theaters to follow. Marcus Theatres has reopened its theaters in Addison, Elgin and Gurnee, and Studio Movie Grill reopened in Wheaton.

Cinemark has reopened several suburban theaters. Regal Entertainment Group did not return a request for information on that chain's reopening plans.

"Given what we've all been through in the past year, people seem anxious to return and safely go back to movie theaters," said Lynne McQuaker, the senior director of public relations and outreach for Dallas-based Studio Movie Grill.

AMC's website specifies that most theaters are operating at 40% capacity. The Marcus website states that masks are required except when eating or drinking.

For the full story, click here.

First-grader raises funds for West African kids

A globe given to a 7-year-old Vernon Hills girl as a Hanukkah gift inspired a fundraiser for schoolchildren in West Africa.

When Riley Ozan's dad, Steven, spun the metal globe, Riley's finger landed on The Gambia, a small country with a population of just over 2 million.

Over winter break, Riley Ozan started a GoFundMe page to raise money for the Malala Fund. "Schools in The Gambia are poor and some people don't have what we do," said Riley, who attends Laura B. Sprague school in Lincolnshire.

Through the Lincolnshire-Prairie View School District 103 Facebook page and her GoFundMe page, Riley hopes to raise $2,500.

Riley's teacher talked to the kids in her class about the difference between wants and needs. "I'm going to give some needs to the country, and after, if I have leftover money, I could give some wants in there," said Riley. "I feel very proud of myself for helping these kids, some grown-ups maybe, I don't know."

For the full story, click here.

• Good News Sunday will run each weekend. Please visit dailyherald.com/newsletters to sign up for our Good News Sunday newsletter.

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