For 18 days, goldendoodle rescue Mia was lost in the 3,400-plus-acre Glacial Park Conservation Area in Ringwood. It took tireless dedication from her owners, volunteers and drones – and plenty of hope – to get the dog back home safe. Owners Donna and Jim Davis of Spring Grove had adopted Mia from a rescue organization about three months before she got lost. They were walking her with their other dogs in the park on Feb. 12 when their leashes got tangled and Mia, described as “very skittish,” took off running, Donna said.
A family of five children and a community is in mourning after a traffic crash claimed the life of a former Batavia kindergarten teacher. Maggie Espinosa, formerly Maggie Lesk, was a kindergarten enrichment instructor at Louise White Elementary School during the 2023-24 school year, according to Batavia School District 101. Prior to that, Espinosa taught for around a decade through the Batavia Park District’s kindergarten program held in Batavia 101 schools, according to the park district.
The Will County State’s Attorney’s Office released a termination letter regarding one of its employees after they were found to have violated a state transparency law. Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul’s Office issued a rare binding opinion on Feb. 10 that found State’s Attorney James Glasgow’s Office violated the Freedom of Information Act by improperly withholding the termination letter for Amy Burgett-Masse, 44, of Elwood.
A hailstone reported in Kankakee during Tuesday evening’s severe storms could become the largest hailstone ever recorded in Illinois, according to the National Weather Service. Meteorologists with the National Weather Service said a hailstone measuring 6 inches in diameter was reported in Kankakee as powerful supercell thunderstorms moved across northern Illinois and northwestern Indiana.
La Salle County prosecutors have lodged a complaint alleging bullying and verbal harassment against the chief judge. The complaint was tendered to a state agency that polices the bench. A message left Thursday with the Judicial Inquiry Board was not returned. Historically, the agency does not comment on pending cases and releases information only when it renders a finding of wrongdoing.
Workers for a major bus transportation provider for DeKalb School District 428 and other districts in northern Illinois could soon be headed for a strike, effective March 31, according to a news release. On Wednesday, the union group Teamsters representing school bus workers from First Student authorized a measure to make it happen in a vote by an 88% margin.
Hour after hour, Yorkville residents spoke before the City Council on March 24 asking members to put a moratorium on approving data centers, all the while saying they knew the city would not go along with their wishes. Few of the residents in attendance said they were surprised when a four-hour meeting concluded with city approval for the annexation, rezoning, and PUD for the 540-acre Project Steel data center, with 16 two-story warehouses.
A new restaurant serving wood-fired pizzas and Chicken George opened Monday in Sterling and owner Matt Prescott says he’s “never had one go so smooth.” Artisan Oven, at 3203 E. Lincolnway, is the latest business venture for Prescott, who also owns the Candlelight Inn restaurants in Rock Falls, Lanark and Clinton, Iowa.
