Mount Everest Record Set By Naperville Teen
In her latest and most impressive climb, 18-year-old Naperville native Lucy Westlake at 5:36 a.m. Nepal time on Thursday became the youngest American woman to ever reach the summit of Mount Everest. The record had previously stood for 15 years, with Westlake reaching the peak one month and one day younger in age than the previous holder. Having begun her trip on April 18, Westlake’s total journey to the top of the world took just 25 days. A $12,500 grant from Grape-Nuts cereal helped to fund the trip, part of an initiative by the brand to support female pioneers. Westlake has now summited five of the seven highest points on each continent, with Papua New Guinea and Antarctica her next stops.
DuPage County ‘Vote Anywhere’ Plan
On Wednesday, DuPage County Clerk Jean Kaczmarek announced that on Election Day this year, DuPage residents may vote at any of the county’s 263 polling places. The “Vote Anywhere” plan replaces the traditional model of assigning residents to a voting precinct with specific options of where to vote. DuPage County will become the first county in Illinois to move to such a model. This is an expansion of the same policy that was already in place for early voting, which this year will begin as early as May 19 ahead of the June 28 general primary elections.
District 203 INCubatoredu Event
On Wednesday night, the Naperville Education Foundation (NEF) and Naperville School District 203 co-hosted INCubatoredu Pitch Night, where five teams of students from Naperville Central and Naperville North high schools pitched business concepts to investors with the goals of receiving seed money to advance their projects. The top prize of $3,000 was awarded to Scent Sacks, a small, scented beanbag that helps kill bacteria on and remove odors from shoes and gloves worn while playing sports. Second and third prize went to Gard-In-Home, an in-home garden support service, and Teen Force, an online job site tailored for high school students, respectively.
Spring Wine Walk
Tickets go on sale today for the annual Downtown Naperville Spring Wine Walk. The event, much like the recent annual Chocolate Walk, will feature numerous shops and businesses in a winding path through downtown. Fourteen different stops will each offer 1-ounce pours in exclusive wine glasses along with accompanying snacks. Proceeds from tickets sales will benefit NCTV17. Tickets and more information are available on the Downtown Naperville website.
