Keeping the spirit: Religious groups adapt to COVID-19 but challenges persist
By Jake Holland Medill Reports Instead of preaching to a live crowd, replete with white-haired parishioners and toddlers wobbling up and down the nave, Pastor Ryan Kapple has found himself facing the empty pews, delivering sermons via livestream to no one in particular. High-definition cameras track and record Kapple’s every move and turn of phrase, […]
Brexit spells uncertain future for London’s financial services industry
By Carolina Gonzalez and Jake Holland Medill Reports Well before the word “Brexit” went from idea to reality, some of the world’s biggest banks began to loosen their ties with London, once one of the unquestioned leaders in finance. But now that Brexit is a reality, will the city of Shakespeare, Big Ben and, yes, […]
Knitting for a cause: Tempestry Project fuses art and science to illustrate climate change
By Jake Holland Medill Reports Dappled light streams through the wide windows of the Noyes Cultural Arts Center in Evanston. Streaks of sunshine stretch along light wood-paneled floors speckled with paint. Four women sit around a low plastic picnic table, chatting about their families and the recent stretch of nice weather. They’re bent over needles […]
One person’s trash may hold another person’s treasure
By Jake Holland Medill Reports Eleanor Ray weaves through rows of picture frames, thread, yarn and oil paints as she walks through her shop, pointing to miles of fabric, a mountain of art supplies and decorations for all seasons. Her store, the WasteShed, 2842 W. Chicago Ave., sells the fixings of any arts-and-crafts store, along […]
Love me tendr: How Stephen Council brought fried chicken to NU campus culture
By Jake Holland Medill Reports Stephen Council is no stranger to fried chicken. The 19-year-old Medill sophomore grew up in southern Virginia, where his father would sometimes make it, juice and grease dripping right off the bone. It wasn’t until a cold December night last year, however, that Council toyed around with the idea of […]
New Grounds in Town: Newport Coffee brings taste of Stockholm to the North Shore
By Jake Holland Medill Reports Coffee has been big in Chicago since the ’90s, but the North Shore, says Mikael Bengtsson, can now hold its own. “It’s bubbling up here,” says the engineer-turned-barista, who this summer opened Newport Coffee with his wife, Lotta. The Evanston cafe, 622 Davis St., serves high-end coffee (a standard latte […]