WAM 3 Communicator

 By Shayna Griffith Image Credit: eBusiness Weekly The coronavirus pandemic has set unprecedented challenges for small business, from early closing hours to complete shutdowns. It has not been an easy year for local business, and the Joliet Patch is looking to recognize a small business for 2020 Illinois Business of the Year. With Small Business Saturday and Black Friday last week, why stop supporting your favorite small business now?  Many small businesses are having to adjust to a new way of getting their products or services to their customers that they have never done before, such as curbside-pickup or expanded delivery. Despite the turbulent times, plenty of Joliet’s favorite businesses have continued to provide exceptional service to their customers. Now, the Joliet Patch wants to honor a local business that has been especially great this year. Any small business in the Chicago area is eligible for winning, one that has gone above and beyond to deliver exceptional serv...

            Love Walker, a 39-year-old Joliet man, was arrested and booked into the Will County Jail on November 27, 2020 following multiple physical altercations. According to the Joliet Police, they responded to a disturbance call on Thanksgiving night around 11:15 p.m. where Walker and his neighbor had gotten into a verbal altercation. For Walker, this altercation would lead to him putting an officer in a headlock, biting a St. Joseph Doctor, and biting an officer in the leg before being taken straight to the Will County Jail.              According to a police report, when the officers arrived on the scene “Walker was involved in a verbal altercation with his neighbors and was walking towards them in an aggressive manner.” The police report goes on to explain that as officers tried to gain control of the situation, Walker ran back towards his own home and push...

  John Raspante      Over the past few weeks, the WAM 3 Communicator has covered the scandal surrounding Joliet City Councilman Don “Duck” Dickinson. Dickinson filed a police report accusing Joliet Mayor Bob O’Dekirk of blackmail over nude photos that Dickinson had sent to another consenting adult. O’Dekirk has repeatedly denied the allegations and accused Dickinson of filing a false police report. (For full coverage on that story, go here .)      After weeks of the growing controversy, Dickinson announced on Friday, November 20 that he is resigning from the Joliet City Council. The resignation was effective immediately, and Dickinson issued a formal letter of resignation to the city clerk just yesterday, November 23. Dickinson said in a statement that he is looking forward to returning to living a private life and spending more time with his children and grandchildren.      Before his resignation, Dickinson seemingly cut himself o...

By Sarah Vandermolen photo courtesy of nytimes.com Although most Wisconsin high schools decided to compete in fall sports this year, it seems some schools will not have the same luck for the winter sport season. Unlike other states, Wisconsin does not have a statewide mandate in regards to high school sports. For this reason, the Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association (WIAA) has left school districts to decide whether they will be participating in winter sports.  Due to the increase of COVID-19 cases, many high schools in Wisconsin have decided to suspend their winter sport season, while others are charging forward with competitions. However, even if schools decide to hold their winter season, not all high schools will begin on time.  According to rivertowns.net , "Locally, River Falls and New Richmond have suspended all athletics and activities through Dec. 7, while Hudson, St. Croix Central and Somerset are beginning as planned."  St. Croix Central athletic dire...

              Three suspects have been arrested after an alleged carjacking in Joliet on November 18, 2020. Rickie Jones (a nineteen-year-old from Chicago), Cornelius Aaron (another nineteen-year-old from Chicago), and a third suspect (an unnamed fifteen-year-old from Chicago) were all taken into custody and charged with aggravated robbery and vehicular hijacking after getting caught the same day. According to the Joliet Police Department, officers responded to a potential robbery at the 1400 block of Mason Avenue. Once on the scene, the responding officers learned that a food delivery driver had been robbed at gunpoint. The victim told officers that she completed a delivery and was walking back to her car when she was approached by three people with guns. One of the suspects pointed a handgun at the victim and demander her belongings along with her car. After a description was relayed of the potential suspects and the veh...

 By Shayna Griffith Image by Small Business Saturday Central Illinois This Saturday November 28 is Small Business Saturday 2020. During the pandemic, small businesses are struggling to stay afloat with recent restrictions and fewer operating hours. With Black Friday approaching,  many small businesses in Joliet are hoping to make some new business by participating this Saturday.  2020 marks the tenth anniversary of Small Business Saturday, which was started by American Express in 2010. Ever since the very first one, American Express and other participants urge people to support their community by shopping locally. They even have an interactive map where users can find small business in their region on their website . Users even have the option to filter by only Black-Owned businesses to help minorities and those affected by Black Lives Matter.  "This holiday season looks a little different, but we can still share joy," American Express said. "Shop small and support ...

 By Jessica Stevens Plainfield’s St. Mary Immaculate Parish celebrates “Make a Difference Day” in their own way, despite COVID-19. Make a Diffrence day is an unofficial secular holiday that is generally celebrated on the third Saturday in October, this year St. Mary’s helped the celebration on October 17 th . This unofficial secular holiday gives families the opportunity to complete a Disciples of Christ Service Project.   It was iffy this year whether or not the celebration would go off because of COVID-19, but the church decided that the event was necessary. Make a Difference Day began with a morning Mass and a blessing of the volunteers. Various service projects took place between 8:30 a.m and 3:30 p.m.   Donation stations collected items for charities and organizations in the area. Many of the items went to women’s centers and food pantries. Volunteers decorated pumpkins for three assisted living facilities in Plainfield. 334 stress blankets were...

 By Shayna Griffith Image by the Joliet Patch The highly anticipated Chick-fil-A Joliet location appears to be on schedule to open soon, as construction of the restaurant remains underway. The restaurant is located by Steak n’ Shake on Plainfield Road near the Louis Joliet Mall where the previous Lonestar Steakhouse building was bulldozed in July. Prairie Construction Company has been hard at work trying to get the building constructed in time since earlier this year, and a January opening was set in the summer. But now, the construction project appears ahead of schedule. Jolet may see a new, double-drive-thru Chick-fil-A serving customers just in time for the holidays.  Talk of opening a Chick-fil-A in the Joliet area has been happening for a while, but no serious plans of opening one were ever in the works until 2020. Now, it is finally happening and residents of neighboring cities such as Plainfield, Shorewood, Minooka and Channahon are looking forward to the new restauran...

  By John Raspante             Last week, the WAM 3 Communicator covered the controversy regarding Joliet City Councilman Don “Duck” Dickinson’s nude photos. The councilman filed a police report two weeks ago claiming that Mayor Bob O’Dekirk was blackmailing him over nude photos that Dickinson claimed he was exchanging with another consenting adult. The police report listed Joliet Park Board member Jennifer Jobe-Gavin as the consenting woman, and she has now come out to deny that claim.             On Tuesday November 10, Jobe-Gavin issued a news release denouncing Dickinson’s actions and threatening to sue him:             “The libelous and malicious statements made by Councilman Dickinson in thus said article, which have been subsequently reported by other various media outlets and online by Suzanna Christine Ib...

By Sarah Vandermolen photo courtesy of bucky5thquarter.com On November 13, the University of Wisconsin Madison released an article on their school website that discusses the new challenges that come with recruiting student-athletes. The article shares multiple perspectives, all from different coaches on how COVID-19 had impacted their recruiting process. The article explains that the biggest change that coaches have had to deal with is not being able to meet with athletes and their families in person. Madison states that the National Collegiate Athletic Association, also known as the NCAA, has put in new restrictions on recruiting. The article states: Most prominent is a dead period that's currently set to run through Jan. 1, 2021. Division I coaches in all sports are prohibited from recruiting prospects in-person, both on and off campus. Coaches cannot have face-to-face contact with college-bound student-athletes or their parents, nor can coaches watch a prospective student-athlet...

(photo via Joliet Police Department)               37-year-old Anthony Deray Dunn, the same man who was pepper sprayed by a bank security guard in downtown Joliet, was arrested three more times over the first full weekend of November. All of Dunn’s arrests that weekend took place from the same area of Joliet, the 300 block of North Ottawa street, according to the police records.              Dunn was previously arrested on Monday November 2, 2020 at a BMO Harris in Joliet after he allegedly kept touching a woman working at the bank and refused to stop, which eventually led to security guard stepping in. Once the security guard stepped in, Dunn ran to a stairwell behind the Rialto Square Theatre where the Joliet Police eventually arrested him.             Around 2:10 on the Saturday of Dunn’s eventful...

 By Jessica Stevens   Image Source: catholiccharitiesjoliet.org On Thursday November 11 the Diocese of Joliet announced that the Executive Director of Catholic Charities Glenn Van Cura will be resigning in early 2021. Bishop Ronald A. Hicks writes “ For over a decade, Catholic Charities in the Diocese of Joliet has been blessed with the leadership of Mr. Glenn Van Cura.” Glenn Van Cura has accepted a position with Catholic Kwangdong University in the Republic of Korea as a professor in the International Relations and Education Institute Department.   Glenn Van Cura was appointed as head of Catholic Charities in the Diocese of Joliet in September 2010 by then-Bishop J. Peter Sartain. While under Glenn Van Cura’s leadership, the Catholic Charities in the Diocese of Joliet has seen extraordinary growth and success. Glenn Van Cura has also served with the Archdiocese of Chicago, has prior experience with the Peace Corps in Korea and private sector execu...

 By Shayna Griffith Image by the Joliet Patch Shoppers in the Joliet area can expect a new place to shop soon, as a Joliet Costco location opens up this week. It is located at The Boulevard at Route 30. The new store officially opens at 8am on Wednesday November 11. The store is likely to draw customers from all around the area and neighboring cities, such as Plainfield, Crest Hill, Channahon, Minooka, Morris, and Coal City. Although the grand opening is expected to be busy and crowded, Dave Somodi, membership manager for the new location, says Costco stores all over America are staying on top of COVID-19 precautions. Employees and customers are required to face masks and sanitization will be a top priority.  The new Costco is also in a busy part of Joliet, right down the road from the Louis Joliet Mall on Route 30. Construction of the building was so large, in fact, that a new traffic light was put up to manage traffic around the construction easier.  Costco has already ...

  By John Raspante One of the biggest ongoing stories in local politics is that Joliet City Councilman Don “Duck” Dickinson made accusations that Joliet Mayor Bob O’Dekirk has blackmailed him over alleged nude photos taken by Dickinson. On Monday November 2, Dickinson filed a police report against the Joliet mayor and his report was immediately supplied to a local newspaper. That same night, Dickinson read a prepared statement at the Joliet Council meeting suggesting he has been a blackmail victim these past several months. “Over the last six months, I have been put in a position that has been very uncomfortable for me with my role in the Council. This has affected all the decisions that I need to make to help the city of Joliet move forward,” Dickinson said in his statement at the meeting. “I feel I have been harassed, badgered, tormented and now blackmailed unfairly. This is over a personal relationship that I had a few years ago with another consenting adult. Photos were sen...

  By Sarah Vandermolen photo courtesy of adexchanger.com A recent study conducted by the University of Wisconsin Madison suggests that high school sports do not increase the spread of COVID-19. According to the Chicago Sun Times , "Researchers led by Dr. Andrew Watson surveyed 207 schools that restarted fall sports in September, representing more than 30,000 athletes, more than 16,000 practices and more than 4,000 games." The results showed "271 athletes contracted the virus overall compared with 2,318 Wisconsin children aged 14-17 over the month of September," according to the Chicago Sun Times . Research also showed that no sports were found to have a higher incidence rate of COVID-19. Luckily, none of the research cases resulted in hospitalization or death.  The Chicago Sun Times  also states, "All the schools reported they had a formal plan in place to reduce the risk of transmission, including monitoring for symptoms, temperature checks at home and on site...

Image via Shorewood Police Chief             Around 10A.M. on the morning of November 7, 2020 the Troy Township Fire District was called to a structure fire in the 800 black of Phelps Lane in Shorewood. Caution of the raging fire dictated that the Troy Township Fire District call for help from the Minooka, Channahon, and Plainfield fire departments. Thankfully, the families from both damaged homes escaped without any injury.              According to Troy Fire Lt. Dan Rozak, the victims of the fire who first called authorities reported that a vehicle was on fire inside their own garage. The victims reported that massive flames and smoke was flying into the sky as the Troy fire trucks arrived. The houses are located behind the Troy Hofer Elementary School, but the property received no damage.             ...

 By Shayna Griffith Image by Joliet Patch Joliet’s Old-Fashioned “Made From Scratch” Milano Bakery is selling election-themed sugar cookies this Tuesday. Customers can now show their support for either Trump or Biden in a new tasty way.  Milano’s Bakery, located at 433 S. Chicago Street in Joliet, has been operating since 1915, but they have never made presidential candidate themed desserts until this year. Apart from their typical baked goods like bread and pastries, sweet treats are a big seller for Milano’s Bakery. Owners got the idea to do so from other bakeries across the country who have had success doing the same thing.  Although it’s no attest of who will win the popular vote this Tuesday, Milano’s manager says the Trump cookies have been outselling Biden ones. This is no surprise to her, she said in an interview with the Joliet Patch , since she’s been seeing more Trump campaigns in the area than Biden campaigns.  If Biden or Trump are not your choice, Milan...

  By Sarah Vandermolen photo courtesy of clickondetroit.com Merely a day after their season opener, Wisconsin Badgers quarterback, Graham Mertz, tested positive for COVID-19. Since then, 11 football players and 10 members of staff have also tested positive.  The abundance of cases led the Badgers to cancel their game against Nebraska, which was scheduled to take place on October 31. However, there is a chance that the team will also have to cancel their upcoming game against Purdue.  "We're still having additions in our cases, and that's something we've got to get our arms around and control it," said Wisconsin athletic director Barry Alvarez. The Badgers also cancelled practice for a week, with the earliest they could resume being November 4, only three days before their game against Purdue. According to sports.yahoo.com : If Wisconsin can't play Purdue, that game would be declared a no contest as well [as the Nebraska game]. It would also be the last game Wi...

     By John Raspante                At the time of this writing, it is Election Day 2020, and more than 3 million Illinois residents have voted early. As more people line up at the polls today, voters are seeing a constitutional amendment on their ballot asking them to approve of the proposed Illinois “fair tax” by repealing the state’s constitutional requirement that the state income tax is a flat tax across income levels.             This “fair tax” amendment, like all constitutional amendments, must pass by either 60 percent of votes cast on a ballot itself or a simple majority of all those voting in the election. If approved by enough voters, this amendment would allow lawmakers to set a graduated income tax rather than the flat tax rate that currently exists.             As it stands currently, the Illinois state ...

Mugshot via Joliet Police Department By Tyler D.             23-year-old Reno Giacomo of Channahon lead Joliet Police officers on multiple chases in the very early morning of Friday October 23, 2020. Giacomo allegedly came very close to hitting one of several officers that was parked in the street in order to block traffic on Essington Road due to a previous accident. The suspect fled the scene and led police on not one, but two high-speed chases.              According to police reports, “officers observed a vehicle being driven by a shirtless male, later identified as Giacomo, northbound on Essington Road approaching the scene of a prior traffic collision,” This is where Giacomo allegedly decided to go around the parked police cars, with their lights flashing, before almost running down an officer that was outside of his vehicle.      ...