Mundelein Review

Siblings band together for Missiles

Mon, 10 Sep 2012 06:12:22 -0500

Past trips have included Omaha and Myrtle Beach, S.C. The big one this year was to Cooperstown, N.Y. Other excursions have seen them go west to Rock Island, downstate to Jacksonville, Ill. and crossing the border to Pleasant Prairie and Wisconsin Dells. The bulk of their 70-plus games this year were in the surrounding suburbs. The Mundelein Missiles are a 12U travel baseball team, and when they go somewhere, so do their siblings. A few players are the younger brothers or the youngest in their families. Justin Ehren, Ian Dir, and Carter Naughton were on a travel baseball team together, …

Mundelein Farmers Market is great addition

Mon, 06 Aug 2012 06:23:36 -0500

I spotted Laurie Murphy walking around in her volunteer vest making sure things were in order. As the market manager for the Mundelein Farmer’s Market, she is one of about 20 volunteers that help it run smoothly. The market is open every Friday from 3 to 7 p.m. through Oct. 12, but volunteers arrive a couple of hours early to assist vendors in setting up their wares, tables, tents and more. On hot days, they will cover for vendors and bring over water if necessary. Each Friday evening, they help take things down and clean up. Volunteers make up one …

Mundelein resale shop saves cats and dogs from kill shelters

Sun, 29 Jul 2012 06:05:05 -0500

When I walked in, I was greeted by Maury who, after being given a little attention, proceeded to follow me around the store. If I stopped, he found nothing wrong with laying across my feet for some more TLC. And I stopped quite often because I was finding all sorts of interesting things to investigate. Maury is a rescued cat who lives with Mickey and Marlee at Whiskers and Wags, an upscale resale shop and adoption center run by Cindy Geers. They are located at Route 176 and Midlothian in the former Hallmark store location of the Long Meadow Commons …

College search accelerates for juniors

Sun, 08 Jul 2012 08:28:02 -0500

Although most high school students are enjoying their first several summer days, many high school juniors still have school on the brain. While senior year awaits them, they are thinking ahead to college. This is the time when college searches start getting into high gear. Our mail carrier must have a love-hate relationship with us since each day brings anywhere from a few pieces of mail to a handful just for my daughter, who has been in this process for awhile now. Our mailbox is filled daily with postcards, large envelopes, stickers, packets and more. There are the well-known larger …

Mundelein High School sweethearts tie the knot

Sun, 27 May 2012 08:03:24 -0500

Ah, l’amour. Or in this case, ‘el amor’. For those of you still monolingual, the first is French, and the second is Spanish -- but both mean love. In celebrating Mundelein High School’s 50th anniversary, we get to know Mindy Sierzega and Jeff Korn, a couple of graduates that started out as high school sweethearts. Although they both were on the respective gymnastics teams for MHS, they met in, of all places, Spanish class. When Mindy came in after one weekend with an injured knee, Jeff asked her what had happened. It didn’t take long from there that Jeff and …

Coach Fehn is an asset for Carmel Catholic High School

Sat, 17 Mar 2012 08:10:47 -0500

To be good at something, you have to practice and have the right tools. To want to share that talent with others, you have to have a passion. Meet Nancy Fehn. She has been involved with junior tennis for 45 years. When she lived in Toledo, Ohio, Fehn’s three kids played at a young age and were later ranked in the Midwest across a five-state district. One son played at a Division I school, and Fehn herself coached at a local high school. Fast forward to 1998 when she became a Mundelein resident. With a friend’s encouragement, she became the …

Remember what Christmas is all about

Mon, 23 Jan 2012 10:02:27 -0500

The holidays are about tradition and giving, but many times wrapped up with those elements are stress and anxiety. So what better way to ease the tension than to take a step back, share a few laughs and reflect on the spirit of the season. Especially at this time of year, I think it’s important to take things lightly and go with the flow. At the tree-lighting ceremony in Mundelein a few weeks back, the warmth of the hot chocolate was matched by the warmth of the friends and neighbors that gathered at Kracklauer Park. The tree was lit, Santa …

Mundelein offers host of holiday activities

Mon, 02 Jan 2012 08:14:27 -0500

As the holiday season revs up, that to-do list gets exponentially longer. Which is why it seems especially nice to find things to do close to home and not some far-flung activity that takes a full tank of gas in order to go. An annual favorite is the tree-lighting ceremony in Mundelein, which takes place Dec. 2 at 6 p.m. at Kracklauer Park. Here is something to enjoy with your family, neighbors and friends. The Jazz Spectrum will provide music while guests are able to savor some hot chocolate and sweets. Of course the big jolly guy himself will be …

Mundelein High School cross country runners are a hearty crew

Sun, 11 Dec 2011 08:04:32 -0500

So my daughter is a runner. I say this knowing that this is the sport she chose out of the many choices she had. When she was younger, she took gymnastics lessons, long enough to almost get her back handspring down. She did horseback riding for several years, walking, trotting and cantering her ways through various shows locally and also in Wisconsin and Iowa. She played soccer, AYSO for many years and on a travel team for a couple. She even took ice skating lessons and loved them. But her chosen sport is running. I remember thinking she would be …

Halloween decorations arrive too soon

Mon, 21 Nov 2011 08:36:25 -0500

Now that fall has begun, we are getting ready for the changes that it brings. Changes in the weather, our clothing, sports we watch, foods we prepare. But there are some other changes I’d like to see. Things that should change for a variety of reasons. People who start decorating too early. Yes, now it’s October, but there were some houses decked out for Halloween before some busses were done learning their back-to-school routes. I enjoy the late October festivities as do most people, but how about letting that 30th day of September lapse before putting gravestones in the yard …

Mundelein ready for inaugural arts festival

Fri, 04 Nov 2011 20:07:18 -0500

Thanks to a creative idea about a year ago, Mundelein will see its first fine arts festival this weekend at Kracklauer Park, 100 N. Seymour Ave. Graphic designer Christa Lawrence of Christa Lawrence Design (you may recognize some of her work through the Mundelein centennial logo, the logo for Golden Legs Running, or Mundelein School District 75 to name a few) started thinking. She came up with a threefold reasoning why Mundelein should have its own arts festival. Lawrence wants to promote artists and their creations, highlight the budding talent found in our two high schools and provide good PR …

You’ll always be a wiener at these hot spots

Wed, 02 Nov 2011 03:02:32 -0500

Although summer is winding down, we are still enjoying ice cream by the cartons, juicy watermelons, fresh summer salads and, of course, anything grilled. While I love a good juicy burger with all the trimmings or a chicken and veggie shish kebob, there’s something about hot dogs. Why -- according to a certain car manufacturer’s old commercial -- they are just as American as baseball and apple pie In my very unscientific poll, most folks around here stop in a few places around town for a succulent hot dog. For example, Franks for the Memories (a play on words of …

Dads deserve a lot of credit

Wed, 26 Oct 2011 01:06:13 -0500

With all due respect to my husband, who thought I focused too much on how much moms do day in and day out (although it was a column for Mother’s Day, honey), I would like to give equal, though belated, time to dads. I will be the first to admit that I cannot do it alone. On the occasional times that my husband is not around because of work or for a planned guys weekend, I cringe knowing that I have to be a “single parent” for those days. No back-up getting the kids out of bed and going for …

Millie Naughton: We are ready for spring

Sun, 03 Jul 2011 12:06:32 -0500

What is it about spring that not only awakens the blooms and animals, but our schedules as well? We begin to emerge from dwellings ready to welcome spring and the rebirth of nature. Somehow we get sidetracked with sports and parties for all kinds of occasions. Running and hurdling, bats swinging, well-shinguarded legs kicking soccer balls all over the county are just some of the sports being represented every weekend and several times during the week. With our three athletes, the logistics can get difficult. Practices, games and meets mean a tight coordination of driving schedules and meals made. Okay, …