Open Post

Open post for now... Bears are at home underdogs in a must win game... Writing may be on the wall for Lovie if they keep playing like group of Brother Rice rejects! Hey, Life is Good, how many days til opening day? Now, GET TO BLOGGIN!!!

Volunteers Needed

Courtesy of our friend Jim McMahon... Thanks Jim

The "Patriot Guard" is looking for volunteers tomorrow to ride their motorcycles as an escort in the funeral procession for this soldier from Queen of Martyrs Church at 103rd & Drake, to Holy Sepulchre Cemetery. If you can make it, get to the church by 10:30 because the mass starts at 10:00 AM.

It would be even better if you can go from Blake Lamb at 103rd, just east of Cicero at 9:00 AM to escort him to the church too, but you'll have to spend an hour waiting for the mass to end. Anything you can do would be appreciated.

PLEASE PASS THIS ON TO ANYONE YOU KNOW THAT RIDES A MOTORCYCLE TO HELP HONOR THIS YOUNG MAN.

CPD pension news

I know there alot of CPD in 60655 so I thought you might like this... I know just how important a pension is. Here is a youtube link to a Fox news piece and a copy of an email Trustee Shields sent out. From what my guy on the department tells me, this Shields guy is really shaking things up over at the pension board...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rNo0L6TK2eA

Last week, a Detective on the Police Department brought to my attention that Mike Masters was participating in our Policemen's Annuity and Benefit Fund of Chicago. As an appointed member of the exempt ranks, Masters has a salary of $155,000+. I then decided to investigate further with other exempt member. Weis, Brust, Daly and Klimas were all former FBI agents appointed to exempt ranks. They too are participating.

This is not simply a matter of sworn vs non-sworn members of the exempt rank. The fact that these member never participated to our fund prior to their exempt appointment eliminates them.

Here is the law: The Illinois Pension Code that governs our fund includes persons of exempt rank in our fund only if they meet the following criteria under Sec 5-109.

"Policeman" : (b) An employee as defined in sub-paragraph (a) immediately above who is serving in the regularly constituted police department of a city in a rank or position which is exempt from civil service and who, immediately prior to the time he began such service, was a participant in the Policemen's Annuity and Benefit Fund Act

The five exempt members have a salary ranging from $140,000 to $310,000. This is a lot of money to expose our pension fund to the risk of these members obtaining a pension. If these members were to be participants in our fund for 3 Years, they can take advantage of our loopholes in the pension code. If they get another "safety or investigative" job after the 3 years on our department, in either the County, the State, the City, the Federal Government, or become a police Chief outside of the city, they can continue to participate in our fund.

Here is the law: Sec 5-414 Credit For Service

Any participant in this fund (other than a member of the fire department of the city) who has rendered service as a member of the police department of the city for a period of 3 years or more is entitled to credit for the various purposes of this article for service rendered prior to becoming a member or subsequent thereto for the following periods:

(c) While performing safety or investigative work for the county in which such city is principally located or for the State of Illinois or for the federal government, on leave of absence from the department of police, or while performing investigative work for the department as a civilian employee of the department.
(d) While on leave of absence from the police department of the city and serving as the chief of police of a police department outside the city.

Not only does our Board need to remove them from this fund, we also need to explore how it is that these members were invited in to our fund in the first place. Who let them in? As we all take a closer look at this pension system, we realize that it is far too often that the chosen ones benefit from this fund, not the hard working men and women of this department. It takes a village to raise a child. In our case, it takes an entire police department to police our pension fund.

Michael K. Shields

Skating Rink Opening!

It's that time again boys and girls... Get those skates sharpened and hit the ice!

The skating rink at Mount Greenwood Park,3721 W. 111 St., will open for the 2009-10 season Friday, Nov. 27, the day after Thanksgiving.
Skating season runs through the end of February, weather permitting.
The rink is open Wednesday – Sunday from 12:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.
Skate rental is $5; admission is free. No food concessions are available.

For more information call (312) 747-3690.
Now, GET TO SKATIN!!!

First Annual Turkey Trot!!

Chicago's Beverly neighborhood is a family oriented neighborhood and a perfect place for fall festivals. This year Beverly will experience a new event. The Turkey Trot 5K Race and Family Walk will be held on Saturday, November 28. The race/walk will start and finish at Kellogg School, at 9200 South Hamilton Avenue, at 9AM.

The Turkey Trot is not just a fun walk/run. Proceeds from the event benefit the Maeve McNicholas Memorial Foundation and the 19th Ward Youth Foundation. The Maeve McNicholas Memorial Foundation was set up to honor Maeve McNichols who died from a brain tumor in 2004 at only two years of age. The foundation was set up to assist programs and hospitals who work with pediatric brain tumor patients and who contribute to pediatric brain tumor research. The 19th Ward Youth Foundation supports youth programs in the Beverly, Morgan Park and Mount Greenwood neighborhoods.

Get enough sleep before the fall festival Turkey Trot in Chicago's Beverly neighborhood. Don't eat a heavy meal before you run.
Now, GET TO RUNNIN!

Hazardous Waste Collection

The Green Santuary Group of the Beverly Unitarian Church will be accepting household hazardous waste - including computer and electronic waste - from 8:30 a.m. to 10 a.m. Saturday in their parking lot at 103rd & Seeley.

All items collected will be taken to Chicago's Household Chemical Disposal and Computer/Electronic Recycling Center.

The following items will be accepted as long as they are properly sealed: antifreeze, used motor oil, old gasoline, oil-based paints, paint thinners, aerosol paints, herbicides, insecticides, pesticides, lawn chemicals, solvents, drain cleaners, cleaning products, pool chemicals, hobby chemicals, mercury-florescent lamps and bulbs, car batteries, computer equipment, televisions and cell phones.

The following items cannot be accepted: water-based paints, freon gas, incandescent bulbs, water-soluble chalk or bio-hazardous waste.

If you have any questions, call Eileen Klees at (773) 238-4221.

Now, GET TO RECYCLIN!!!

Friendly Reminder

We are happy to see that the 60655 blog is back and bringing quite a frenzy of posts... However, in order to make this blog more efficient, let us take a moment to remind everyone to try to post your comments within the appropriate thread. If your posts is political, please visit the politics thread, if it is about business, use the business thread etc etc... This will ensure the blog is most effective and certain comments reach its intended target! If you have already done this, thank you and disregard... if not, we welcome all of your comments, just in the appropriate threads... now that having been said... GET TO BLOGGIN!!!

Sad Day

Thanks Life for the info... Condolences and thoughts for the family only...

ARMY SPC. JARED STANKER OF EVERGREEN PARK WAS KILLED IN AFGHANISTAN BY A ROADSIDE BOMB. HIS WAKE IS FRIDAY AT BLAKE LAMB ON 103RD ST. THE FUNERAL IS AT QUEEN OF MARTYRS CHURCH ON SATURDAY AT 10 AM.

I BELIEVE IN SUPPORT OF THE FAMILY AND THE TROOPS, THE NEIGHBORHOOD SHOULD PACK 103RD STREET ABOUT 9 AM SATURDAY ALONG THE FUNERAL ROUTE. BRING OUT YOUR FAMILY AND YOUR FLAGS AND SHOW YOUR SUPPORT.

"The only thing necessary for evil to triumph, is for good men to do nothing."
~ Edmund Burke ~

Link to Alderman petition

Here is the link to the alderman petition... If you feel like it, print one off, get some signatures and send it to the following contact: And send completed AND notarized petitions to:

JOHN NORTHEN
1960 LINCOLN PARK WEST
CHICAGO, IL 60614


http://www.scribd.com/doc/21622034/Reduce-Alderman-Petition-2009

November community events

Any events that need some air time, post it here! Want to talk about block parties, get advice from other neighbors (we're not just readers here at 60655, we're neighbors!), advertise that bake sale or lemonade stand, talk about whats good for us on St Pattys day it all goes here! This will be where we get information about going ons in the neighborhood. So voice your thoughts people...NOW GET TO BLOGGIN!

November Chance Encounters :)

Ever walked into TRs, caught the eye of a cutie, but didnt get the courage enough to say hi? Maybe you were at the park and something about her/him just seemed right? Enjoying a late night La Fiesta and met the person of your dreams but woke up to find you used the napkin with the phone number on it as a bib? Here is your chance... put that shout out right here! Describe the person the best you can and see if he/she responds... you cant get in the way of fate, right! Just please dont post phone numbers or addresses here... only emails! Hey...NOW GET TO BLOGGIN!

November political post

Have an endorsement for a local, state, or federal candidate? Post it here. Have a gripe about a politician, need to debate the constitution, argue left vs right, this is the place! This is where I am guessing the most heated debates go down! Whether we agree or disagree with you, your voice will be heard... NOW GET TO BLOGGIN!

November business news

Any criticism/praise for any local businesses should be posted here. Had a good experience and want to let others know about it around and in 60655? Put it here. Had a terrible experience and feel the people should know? That also goes here. NOW GET TO BLOGGIN!

November Public Safety

Any issues regarding public safety should be posted here. Any unusual sitings, information of crime, suspicious activity, or suspicious individuals will have a home on this post. Need to vent about lack of police/fire/EMS service, or praise your men and women in blue, here's where you go! But before I call 9-1-1 on you, GET TO BLOGGIN!

blog format

Thanks for writing! We will most certainly have an email for you to write and voice concerns that you do not feel comfortable with posting here. And we attend every CAPS meeting so feel free to air your grievances here and I will certainly bring a laundry list to air at the meetings! Im retired so I have the time! As for the format here, this is what we were thinking... We would have an array of topics (i.e., public safety, local business, local events, politicians, MTG chance encounters etc etc and any additional that are suggested by our readers)that would be new for each month... under each topic would be open forum. At the end of each month, they would be archived (so you could go back and view/cut and paste/revisit a topic) and similar posts would start fresh for each month. As topics gained popularity and/or fell out of favor with readership, the topics would change, with a few being staples. Will get started on this and look forward to the challenge of being a good neighbor! Stay safe out there, MTG! Thanks for your patience, we will be up and running on all cylinders shortly...NOW GET GET TO BLOGGIN!