Welch Wins 209 Election Lottery!!!

The ballot is set in the Proviso High School District 209 race. A ballot lottery was recently conducted, and Board President Emanuel "Chris" Welch won the big prize...Top ballot position. The ballot will look this way:

1. Emanuel "Chris" Welch
2. Reatha "Sue" Henry
3. Daniel J. Adams
4. Brian M. Cross
5. Maria Desena
6. Kevin McDermott
7. Rebecca M. Smith
8. Carlos Anderson
9. Arbdella "Della" Patterson

School District 88 Ballot Set...

The Bellwood School District 88 election ballot is set. A lottery was recently conducted, and the order is as follows:

1. Drena Lanier
2. Maria Castrejon
3. Dorothy Smith
4. Marilyn Thurman
5. Avery Malik Thurman
6. Ronald C. Anderson
7. Patricia Crawford
8. Beverly Graham
9. Lekeya Shearill
10. Althea Busby

Mayoral Races Across Township

Maywood
1. Henderson Yarbrough
2. Demetrius Davis
3. Ralph Connor
4. Grady Rivers, Jr.

Melrose Park
1. Ronald Serpico
2. Jesse Martinez

Bellwood:
1. Frank A. Pasquale
2. Jeannette Johnson

Early predictions...Grady Rivers, Jr., Ronald Serpico and Frank Pasquale will win big!!!

Township Race is Mayors versus Yarbrough, Manzo and Peraica...

For Proviso Township, it appears as if there is a race between allies for the Township Mayors and allies for State Rep. Karen Yarbrough. Here's how the township race looks:

Slate backed by Mayors:
Supervisor Michael Corrigan
Clerk Readith Esther
Assessor Steven J. Zawaski
Collector Eric R. Sawchuk
Trustee Mari Herrell
Trustee Anthony "Tony" Williams
Trustee Tim Gillian
Trustee Don Sloan

Slate backed by Karen Yarbrough, Mike Manzo and Tony Peraica:Supervisor Theresa Kelly
Clerk William Daugherty
Assessor C. Michael Montino
Collector Ivan Williams
Trustee Lennel Grace
Trustee Patrick Doolin
Trustee Colin Brady
Trustee Michael Sheahan

Early prediction: Slate backed by Mayors will win big. Yarbrough will have egg on her face!

(Updated) Elections Filings End for Local Offices...

Election Filings ended on Monday, January 26, 2009 for local offices across the state including in Proviso Township. Here is a list of some of the filings:

Proviso High School District 209 (4 seats open)
1. Emanuel "Chris" Welch
2. Daniel J. Adams
3. Reatha "Sue" Henry
4. Brian M. Cross
5. Maria Desena
6. Kevin McDermott
7. Rebecca Smith
8. Carlos Anderson
9. Arbdella "Della" Patterson

Maywood, Melrose Park, Broadview School District 89 (3 seats open)
1. Regina Rivers
2. Jaime Anguiano
3. Veronica Bonilla-Lopez
4. Loretta Gustello
5. Gwendolyn Streeter-Walker
6. Angela Lockett
7. Eliazer Chavez
8. Corey Cooper
9. Antonio Favela

Bellwood School District 88 (4 seats open)
1. Dorothy Smith
2. Drena Lanier
3. Maria Castrejon
4. Marilyn Thurman
5. Avery Malik Thurman
6. Ronald C. Anderson
7. Patricia Crawford
8. Beverly Graham
9. Lekeya Shearill
10. Althea Busby

Early predictions: In Proviso 209, the incumbents will win big as they are backed by Township mayors and other elected officials. The slate led by Della Patterson is backed by Rep. Yarbrough, Mike Manzo and Tony Peraica. In SD 89, the Maywoodians will probably split the vote amongst each other and the Melrose Park candidates will all win. In SD88, the slate backed by Maywoodian Charles "Chuck" Baxter and former Bellwood Mayoral candiate David Ireland will lose big. Anderson and his group just needs to stay focused on education.

Proviso School District 209 Begins Busing Program For All Students!!!

Proviso School Board President Emanuel "Chris" Welch and the Proviso School Board announced that Proviso Township High Schools has launched its transportation program!

The program begins at Proviso East on Jan. 20th and at Proviso West on Feb. 17th.

Proviso East parents are encouraged to check the mail for bus route information and to contact the school if bus route information is not received by January 15th.

Students are asked to arrive at their designated bus stop locations five (5) minutes before the scheduled pick-up time in the morning. At the end of the school day (after dismissal) the buses will leave Proviso East at approximately 3:25 p.m.

If you have any questions, please contact Proviso East Principal Mr. Milton Patch at 708-202-1611. Proviso West parents can look for their students' bus route information to be mailed no later than Friday, January 23rd.

La Secundaria Proviso East tiene gusto en informarle que el servicio de transportación empezara el 20 de Enero. Usted recibira por correo información acerca de las rutas del bus escolar, le pedimos que este pendiente. Si usted no recibe esta información antes del 15 de Enero, por favor comuniquese con nosotros.

Breaking News....Consultant Anthony B. Bruno Charged by United States!!!!

Consultant Anthony B. Bruno, of Illinois Development Services Corporation, Inc., has been charged in a criminal complaint by the United States government. Anthony B. Bruno was filed in criminal complaint number 09 CR 0018 on January 8, 2009. Records from Clerk Michael W. Dobbins of the U.S. District Court show the case was assigned to Judge Ber-Yeghiayan and Magistrate Judge Ashman. The complaint alleges a violation of Title 26 of the United States Code Section 7206(1) which means the government is alleging that Mr. Bruno either committed fraud or made false statements in a tax document.

Illinois Governor Rod Blagoyevich Impeached By House of Representatives...

The Illinois House of Representatives voted 114 to 1 on Friday, January 9, 2009 to impeach Governor Rod Blagoyevich. The Governor will now face a trial in the senate, and if convicted, he will be thrown out of office.

Economy Costs Proviso Township Local Newspaper...

The tough economy has cost the Proviso Township community is best source for comprehensive local news, The Proviso Herald, a pioneer press newspaper. The Herald has been a Wednesday staple for years in the Proviso community, and will print its last edition on Wednesday, January 15, 2009. Pioneer Press Newspapers are owned by the Chicago Sun-Times News Group.

Application Deadline Nears For Proviso Math and Science Academy Admissions...

Proviso Math and Science Academy will hold its final admissions assessment at 9 a.m. Saturday for students interested in attending the school for the 2009-2010 school year.

Students applying to the academy must participate in an assessment event administered at PMSA as part of the admissions process . It involves a non-verbal ability test and the writing of an essay.

This event, held at PMSA, 8601 W. Roosevelt Road, Forest Park, begins promptly at 9 a.m. and is scheduled to end by 11:30 a.m. Students may be admitted for testing at 8:30 a.m.

Approximately 350 students have already completed the admissions assessment for the 2009-2010 school year, according to TaQuoya Kennedy, spokesman for Proviso High School District 209.

Students interested in attending PMSA should contact the school's main office, (708) 338-4100, to schedule an assessment appointment.

All completed PMSA applications with signatures and supporting materials must be submitted or postmarked by Jan. 15.

Reverend Demetrius Davis Announces Run For Mayor Of Maywood...

Reverend Demetrius Davis of the Proviso Community Church announced in a post on this site that he is running for Mayor of Maywood. Here is the post:

This is horrible! Another example of poor leadership. Even when we finally get a grocery store, it'll take us 5 or more years to recoup the half million we just lost. The very reason I'm running for Mayor of Maywood is to root out this sort of incompetence, neglegence, and reckless spending. This 490K is perhaps more than the village spent all year on recreation. With this type of money we could've hired 10 more men and women to work within the village. We could've hired more police officers to patrol the streets. We could've even given dozens of summer internships to our college students returning home for summer.

My campaign led a protest and press conference on the old site of the grocery store several weeks ago. It's time for us all to stand up to demand a better community.

Pastor Demetrius L. Davis
"Maywood's Next Mayor"

Proviso West Plays Morton For Tournament Championship!!!

Proviso West High School Panthers will play the Morton Mustangs in the Championship game of the Proviso West Holiday Tournament. Both teams are surprising stories this year. Game starts at 8pm. It promises to be fun.

Proviso West Holiday Tournament Begins

PTHS District 209 Board President Emanuel "Chris" Welch and the Board of Education invites everyone out to the Proviso West Holiday Basketball Tournament which begins Friday, December 26, 2008. Games will be played December 26, 27, 29 and 30. Catch some good high school basketball where basketball is best. Local favorites Proviso West, Proviso East and St. Joseph are in the tournament as well as state contenders Whitney Young and Zion Benton. It promises to be fun.

Happy Holidays To Everyone In Proviso Township!!!

Happy Holidays to everyone in Proviso Township.

Sun Times Names Notable Proviso West Alumni...

The Chicago Sun-Times has named a number of individuals as notable alumni of Proviso West High School. On page 50 of the December 24, 2008 edition, among those listed were:

1. Flozell Adams, Offensive Lineman with the Dallas Cowboys
2. Ray McElroy, Former NFL player with the Bears, Colts and Lions,
3. Famous Hulbert, current varsity football coach at PW High School,
4. Joseph Spagnolo, former Director of PW Holiday Tournament; and
5. Emanuel "Chris" Welch, current President of the PTHS Board of Education.

Kudos to all of the notable PW alumni.

Rev. Dwayne Black Has Died...

The Rev. Dwayne Black from Freedom Baptist Church has died. Black died early December 23, 2008 from a bout of intestinal cancer.

Maywood Settles Grocery Store Lawsuit For $490,000

The Village of Maywood has settled a lawsuit with the Springbrook Grocery chain for reneging on a contract to develop the old Rite Way Grocery store at 5th Avenue and Washington. The suit cost the village $490,000, and they still don't have a grocery store.

Forest Park Pays $350,000 to settle lawsuit!!!

The Village of Forest Park has settled it's lawsuit with former Forest Park police sargeant Dan Harder for $350,000.

Theresa Kelly Travels On Taxpayer Dime!!!

Sources report that Proviso SD209 Board member Theresa L. Kelly is circulating petitions for Township Supervisor. Say it aint so. Theresa Kelly wants to be the head of the Township. Ohhhh nooooo!!!! She wants to spend the township's tax money and hurt our seniors. As a school board member, Kelly has used our money to fly all over the country. Look at where she has been at our expense:

1. Orlando, Florida, November 7, 2006-November 12, 2006 $1,114.29
2. Chicago, Illinois, April 8, 2006-April 11, 2006 $1,023.56
3. Detroit, Michigan, November 15, 2005-November 20, 2005 $1,199.25
4. San Diego, California, April 16th-19th, 2005 $1,540.66
5. Dallas, Texas, November 16th-21st, 2004 $1,205.00
6. Reno, Nevada, November 18th023rd, 2003 $1,500.00
7. San Francisco, CA, April 9th-13th, 2003 $2,106.55
8. Springfield, IL, March 22, 2003 $822.36
9. Chicago, Il, November 22-24th, 2002 $1,000.00
10. Atlanta, GA, November 12th-17th, 2002 $1,310.00
11. Seattle, Washington, October 2nd-6th, 2002 $994.00
12. New York, NY, June 20th-24th, 2002 $1,270.00
13. Washington, D.C., May 14th-16th, 2002 $1,000.00
14. New Orleans, LA, April 5th-9th, 2002 $1,000.00
15. Los Angeles, CA, November 13th-18th, 2001 $2,311.47
16. San Diego, CA, May 24th-27th, 2001 $1,461.44
17. Philadelphia, PA, November 14th-19th, 2000 $1,261.00
18. Jackson, MS, November 2, 2000 $1,500.00
19. Chicago, Illinois, May 14, 1999 $1,000.00

Total: $24,619.58

2007 and 2008 trips are not yet listed. Stay tuned.

SD209 Board Member Theresa Kelly Goes On Junket And Recommends Company For Hire!!!

Proviso SD209 Board Member Theresa L. Kelly was recently flown on an all expenses paid junket to Arizona by ENI School Consultants. Since returning from the trip, Kelly has been an advocate for hiring the company as a consultant in Proviso. At the December 15, 2008 board meeting, ENI consultants were on the agenda for hire for over $500,000. Kelly voted in favor of hiring the company, but the motion failed. Kelly is the same SD209 Board member who has used tax payer money to fly to over 30 different cities across the country. To date, taxpayers have spent over $30,000 for Kelly to fly across the country.