Chicago Pastor Bruce Ray called to a ‘disruptive’ mission
Yingxu Jane Hao The Rev. Bruce Ray never planned to become a pastor. Son of a Kentucky pastor in a small town in northwestern Illinois, Ray longed to become a writer. So he went to the University of Iowa to study English with an emphasis in creative writing and a minor in social work. Though his life […]
The deal with diet pills—Weight loss supplements remain a ‘Wild West’
By Neil Murthy Meet Whitney—a 42-year-old wife and a mother living on the North Shore. Her favorite pastimes include performing in musical theater, actively participating in her child’s PTA, volunteering with various local charity organizations and mentoring her 7-year-old daughter’s busy round of school, homework and sports. She is also on a decades-long quest to […]
Hospital drug shortages: What is really causing them?
Valerie Lapointe Most of us assume that a saline IV drip for dehydration or a nitroglycerin injection for heart attack symptoms would be available at any hospital any time in the U.S. Yet both are on a growing list of drug shortages. Currently, the FDA’s Drug Shortage Program (DSP) lists 60 drugs, mostly generic injectables, […]
Robots and the human connection
By Patrick Martin “Robotics is definitely a big part of my life,” Kyle Granat said. He is a hardware engineer at Trossen Robotics in Downers Grove, just outside Chicago. The company sells kits for robotics enthusiasts. Granat was fascinated by a computer around the age of three. The person who first nurtured Granat’s love of […]
Chicago non-profit brightens new moms’ lives with candles
By Xiao Lyu The soy candles from Bright Endeavors are made with some special ingredients you can’t find in normal scented candles — the tenderness and determination of young moms. At the nonprofit organization’s pleasant-smelling manufacturing plant in West Garfield Park, new moms aged 16 to 24 learn hands-on skills of candle crafting as part […]
Rogers Park restaurant has put politics front and center for 40 years
By Max Greenwood It was a Thursday night in mid-April, and Kathleen Dillon dragged tables around the Heartland Café, carefully arranging them to give a good view of a projector screen. It was less than an hour before the New York Democratic presidential debate between Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton, and Dillon frantically prepared the […]
North side brewery keeps rats away with a feral feline brew crew
By Kat Lonsdorf Meet the cats that are making sure rats don’t get between you and your beer at Empirical Brewery in Chicago. Photo at top: Venkman the cat has a stretch as he watches over Empirical Brewery’s operation. He is part of a program that puts formerly feral cats to work. (Kat Lonsdorf/MEDILL)
Why ‘Girls Who Code’ is just for girls
By Lucia Maffei “You know, first prize is $10,000. It could be the first share of your college tuition.” The 10-something girl with a cat ear headband sits at a computer desk at DePaul University’s downtown campus. Two friends of hers work side by side. It’s Saturday morning and every Saturday, Nancy and her friends […]
Who helps homeless “L” passengers?
By Harry Huggins Nicholas Saldana met Sarah Levine-Miles on the “L.” He might not have met her at all if it wasn’t so cold that morning last year. And without the chance meeting, Saldana might still be homeless. Saldana survived the cold by sleeping on the CTA Blue Line, riding it all the way from […]
Kids serve as translators for parents who speak little English
By Shanshan Wang Idalia Cervantes still recalls vividly when she accompanied her mother to the doctor as her interpreter at age seven. Not yet knowing the word “cough,” she faked several coughs to help describe the symptom. “I was learning English myself and I only knew a few words,” Cervantes said. Even though she was […]