Demolition of Buildings Surrounding Kroehler Mansion
Work to demolish the buildings around Kroehler Mansion has started. They’re being cleared to make way for a new townhome complex in the Naperville Historic District. The complex, named Heritage Place, will be 41 units including two in the mansion itself. In August 2020, Little Friends, which owned the mansion and surrounding buildings, moved to Warrenville, selling their former site to developer Ram West Capital.
Naperville Native Wins #MaskUpIL
The Illinois Department of Public Health announced Naperville native Hannah Mondel as the winner of the #MaskUpIL competition after she entered her custom-designed mask. Naperville Mayor Steve Chirico, Councilman Benny White, Naperville Central High School Principal Bill Wiesbrook, and IDPH Director Dr. Ngozi Ezike presented her with the award outside the Municipal Center. The winning mask depicts three racially-diverse people standing six feet apart holding signs that together read “Yes U Can” which was the theme of the #MaskUpIL competition. IDPH replicated Mondel’s mask and sent them to all Naperville elementary schools for young students to wear.
DanceOn Gives 50th Scholarship
Local nonprofit DanceOn announced it reached a major milestone – awarding its 50th scholarship to aspiring young dancers. The group started in 2018 in the wake of a bullying episode directed at their male dance team. DanceOn began selling apparel and fundraising to promote and financially assist aspiring male dancers. They’ve since expanded their focus and made donations to theatre groups and special needs arts programs, but most scholarships still cover studio and competition fees. DanceOn even caught the attention of Michelle Obama in 2018 and the Today Show back in December.
Independent Bookstore Day
Tomorrow is Independent Bookstore Day. Anderson’s Bookshop in Downtown Naperville will be celebrating with some giveaways. You can win a free United Readers of Anderson’s membership or renewal by entering the store, earn free audiobooks from libro.fm, exclusive merchandise you can only get that day, along with other in-store freebies.
Naperville Resident’s 95th Birthday
Naperville resident Dick McLaughlin received a surprise car parade yesterday for his 95th birthday. American Legion Post 43, and Dick’s wife Tita, helped organize the event to honor and celebrate the World War II veteran. The parade featured refurbished war vehicles, friends of McLaughlin, and fellow veterans. Around 20 cars participated in the drive-by parade, with some community members stopping to sing McLaughlin “Happy Birthday.”
