Sorted by date Results 76 - 100 of 121
Working as a Chicago Public Schools speech pathologist, Clarendon Hills mother-of-two Jen Alsman saw first-hand the struggles low-income families faced while striving to provide quality health care and resources for their families. Because of this, Alsman and others have devoted countless hours of service to fundraise for the Infant Welfare Society of Chicago's Angel Harvey Family Health Center via the organization's Clarendon Hills chapter and its annual benefit. "I saw the...
When anxious behavior and emotions show up in life it often feels all-encompassing. For a parent of an anxious child, having just the right tools to guide your child through their anxious feelings can feel extremely challenging. Learning how to show up for your anxious child, to walk with them in their feelings and guide them takes practice. There will be struggles and tough moments. The important thing is to work together, helping them with the tough feelings and emotions of...
We usually associate ghost stories with Halloween, but Victorian England considered them to be an essential part of the celebration of Christmas. In fact, they were so integral that magazines often published serials in the weeks leading up to the holiday and authors often wrote spooky tales specifically for the season. Some historians say the pairing began with the Druids, who believed that the membrane between the living and the dead thinned out during the dark of winter. So, much the way we appreciate a good fright in safe...
A six point snowflake holiday ornament, which now adorns the trees of The Community House Holiday Ball's friends and supporters, has become a symbol of hope and thanksgiving during this pandemic. In lieu of hosting its annual Holiday Ball - the unofficial start of the holiday season for so many in Hinsdale and the largest fundraising event for The Community House - the organization presented steadfast donors and supporters with a surprise gift, acknowledging their commitment...
Two weeks ago, I wrote about focusing on tips for dealing with discomfort, something 2020 has provided us in spades. As we continue to experience the perfect storm of physical, psychological and financial distress, let's consider why things can feel uncomfortable and shifting your relationship with discomfort. So, how comfortable are you with being uncomfortable? Some people seem able to go with it, while others fervently avoid discomfort. Some folks, consciously or...
Three years ago, the Hinsdale Public Library was thrilled to be selected as local author Cristina Henriquez’s favorite place. The New Yorker Radio Hour visited the library on a late October afternoon with Cristina to record a segment for their podcast, which aired in December 2017. As she toured her favorite library haunts, Cristina took a turn down the fiction aisle including authors whose last names start with “H” to find her book, “The Book of Unknown Americans,” on HPL’s shelves. We were delighted to be acknowledge...
How is everyone doing? This has officially been The Year of Discomfort. We've collectively experienced uncomfortable circumstances and events, lived our lives in uncomfortable ways and had uncomfortable conversations about uncomfortable topics. As if 2020 hasn't provided enough opportunities for unease, the holiday season is now upon us. The holidays will look and feel different for most. What we thought would be a sprint has become a marathon, and the distress in our lives...
When Karen Vrdolyak attended last fall's 100 Women Who Give a Damn fundraiser in Western Springs, she was unsure that her organization, the Harvey-based Restoration Ministries' Tabitha House, would be selected. Two other nonprofits were also presenting that night to the group of 100 women philanthropists and she knew that the topic of addiction wasn't warm and fuzzy. She did know that the Tabitha House graduate selected to present on the organization's behalf - a recovering...
The coronavirus has many people preoccupied with how to avoid getting sick and what the future holds. People are stressed. They’re stuck in a worry loop of anxious thoughts. They could use some mindfulness in their daily lives. Jon Kabat-Zinn, a known expert in mindfulness-based stress reduction, defines mindfulness as “awareness that arises through paying attention, on purpose, in the present moment, non-judgmentally.” Mindfulness can help people stop their mind’s constant chatter about COVID-19. It can help people center...
While my son was growing up, I was deeply involved in our local schools - as PTO president at Hinsdale Middle School and on different task forces and groups related to Districts 181 and 86. Like a lot of other active volunteers in town, every couple of years I'd invariably get the question: Why don't you run for the school board? A busy working mom, I honestly wasn't sure I had the time or the inclination. But one year when the election cycle began and someone asked me about...
Five years ago, Tara DeGeer's teenage son expressed concern about the well-being of his peers after the suicide of a local high school student. He worried about how others were doing with news of the student's death and that there could be copycat suicides. In response, DeGeer created The Parent List, a Hinsdale Central PTO-supported online platform where parents may leave an anonymous positive review of a professional who was helpful to their child. The Parent List contains...
Raising funds for cancer research continues to serve as a pillar for Scoreboard Charities as it prepares to host its fourth annual charity wine event. This year to stay one step ahead of COVID restrictions, organizers have moved to a virtual event they say will still be rewarding. "It is important to Scoreboard Charities to continue to help in the fight against cancer and to help provide kids with the disease a chance at being a kid," said Beth O'Malley, production manager...
Influenza viruses become widespread each year beginning as early as mid-fall and running as late as mid-spring. This coming year's influenza season will also compete with COVID-19. The virus that causes COVID-19, SARS-2-CoV, can cause symptoms that are similar to influenza: fever or chills, cough, shortness of breath or difficulty breathing, fatigue, muscle or body aches, headaches, sore throat, congestion or runny nose, nausea or vomiting and diarrhea. So how can someone tell...
A friend of mine recently texted me a picture of the iconic children's book character Miss Viola Swamp with the message, "I can't go into it right now. But I need to know what book this is from." I quickly typed back, "Miss Nelson is Missing" by Harry Allard. Illustrations by James Marshall ("George and Martha," "The Stupids," all the good fairy tale retellings.) You're welcome." This year more than any other, there is special comfort in reading about classrooms and lockers...
While the pandemic has affected everyone, young and old, those living with cancer have been particularly impacted. Wellness House has provided a constant source of support for the thousands of patients who rely on the cancer resource center. "Coping with the effects of cancer has not taken a back seat to COVID-19 for the patients and families Wellness House serves," said Deb Kwiatt, marketing communications manager at Wellness House. "They need Wellness House even more now...
As a health educator, the most common question I am asked by adults is, "How do I talk to my teenager about drugs?" Some of the most important work around these conversations is properly preparing ourselves to have them. There are all types of different drugs in this world and doing research on them all can be overwhelming and for many flat out impossible. A great starting point is to gather information on a specific drug that may be impacting a family/community or simply the...
During puberty programs, Robert Crown Center’s Health Educators commonly break the ice with students by asking “Can anyone identify any puberty survivors in this room today?” After some giggles and a quick scan of the room, most students start to count the adults present and eagerly raise their hands to be the one chosen to give their proud answer. While simple, this approach helps to ease anxiety and nervousness regarding the topic at hand and allows for a perfect transition into relaying the health educator’s important mess...
With so much uncertainty right now, it's a great time to take comfort in some classic books and movies. You can stream or download thousands of familiar eBooks, eAudiobooks and movies from the Hinsdale Public Library's website at https://www.hinsdalelibrary.info. If you prefer the feeling of a book your hand, the library is now offering curbside service! Give us a call at (630) 986-1976 to request items. Need some suggestions? Here are some oldies-but-goodies for summer. • "...
Coronavirus has flipped our lives upside down in the past few months. Most areas of our lives have changed dramatically, including our work, school and social lives. With all these changes, it is not uncommon to experience higher than normal feelings of anxiety, irritability and sadness. Along with sadness, a number of us may be experiencing feelings of grief due to recent losses. When we hear the word grief, we often think of the death of a loved one or the end of a...
Hinsdale Junior Woman's Club recently stepped up to the plate to answer a call for help by those directly impacted by COVID-19 - the village's frontline heroes at AMITA Health Adventist Medical Center Hinsdale. Given HJWC's long-standing track record of fundraising for local organizations (over the past five years the club has raised more than $1 million for nonprofits) hospital staff knew the club would take action. "When HJWC's leadership received word of the hospital's...
As a kid, or maybe even as an adult, have you ever wished for a superpower? (My pick? Teleportation!) Nowadays, though, I suspect an increasing number of us would wish for an immune system of steel. For those of us who weren't born with a healing factor or bitten by a radioactive spider, the only known methods for combating COVID-19 effectively are social distancing (give 'em space - six feet!), practicing proper hygiene (i.e., washing your hands for the time it takes to sing...
Overwhelming anxiety can have a marked impact on the quality of our lives - our overall functioning, our relationships, our work, our parenting abilities and our self-care. At the AMITA Health Behavioral Medicine Institute, we believe healthy strategies to manage anxiety are critical to our physical and mental health and general well-being. Managing one's reaction to stressors, such as COVID-19, is no easy task, especially when there is such a heightened level of anxiety and...
When the Hinsdale Public Library celebrated its 125th anniversary in 2018, we perused old newspapers for nostalgia and remember seeing that the library closed its doors during the flu epidemic of 1918. At the time, it seemed like an interesting tidbit of an era past. We couldn't have known then that two years later, our physical building would be off limits again. As we watch the current pandemic unfold in real time, we wondered how Hinsdale was impacted in epidemics past. We...
Dear parents, I feel your pain. If you were ambivalent about your child's screen time pre-pandemic, now you might really be feeling that way. Our kids are exclusively learning online and have fewer options for entertaining themselves. Perhaps you're not only concerned about how much time your child is spending online, but also about the quality of what they're spending it on beyond schoolwork. You might rely on your child being on a screen to get through your work day or...
In the midst of social distancing, one quarantine-approved activity has brought so many of us out of our homes — walking. For Wellness House, the influx of pedestrians taking to the streets signified an opportunity. Rather than cancel its annual fundraising walk, which traditionally draws more than 3,000 and raises vital funds for the organization’s free-of-charge cancer programming, this year’s walk will be virtual. The Virtual Walk for Wellness House will take place Sunda...
