Naperville Mayor Steve Chirico, along with several Naperville Park District officials, offered words of support to local tornado victims at Sunday night’s “Concerts in your Park” at Meadow Glens Park. Their remarks opened the event held near the area where an EF-3 tornado ripped through parts of Naperville and Woodridge.
“What a crazy, crazy week it was around here,” Chirico said. “To think about this… at the beginning of the year they set this concert up and it’s almost poetic… to be here tonight with all of you is quite something.”
“Naperville Strong”
The concert was among the more light-hearted weekend events; others included the opening of an aid center for those impacted by last week’s storms and the ongoing rebuilding efforts throughout storm-affected communities. Naperville Park District Executive Director Ray McGury said he hoped the concert would be a much needed morale boost for the Naperville community.
“God bless you all for coming out here tonight and supporting this community, as you have for years,” McGury said. Who would have thought a week ago, at about 11 o’clock, disaster would strike this community… what you represent is what we call, truly, Naperville strong.”
Tornado Damage Assessment Still Underway
As of this weekend, representatives from the Illinois Emergency Management Agency (IEMA) and Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) said their agencies are still working with DuPage and Will County officials to assess damage in the storm-affected areas. Representatives from both institutions said they have not yet received a request for aid from either county or any local municipalities.
Clean-up in the affected areas of the city also continues apace, using the labor of both professional work crews and volunteers from around the Chicagoland area. It is work that the Park District commissioners wished to acknowledge.
“I can’t imagine the loss some of you are dealing with right now,” Park District Commissioner Mary Gibson said, “and I want to make sure you know that you have the backing of one of the strongest, most community-centered, volunteer-oriented communities in this area… I’d also like to express my thanks to everybody who who stepped up over this past week and helped us get through this tough time.”
Naperville News 17’s Aysha Ashley Househ and David Byrnes report.
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