Good afternoon, Chicago. ✶
CPS students are officially back in school, marking the waning days of summer.
But that doesn’t mean it’s time to break out the cable-knit sweaters.
We’re looking at an intense heat wave moving our way this week, with heat indices that could reach up to 115 degrees.
The city’s beaches, pools, libraries and cooling centers are open if you need some respite from the high temps — just double-check the hours before you go.
Or you can always hit up the river for a nice evening float with your best friend.
Now before you drift, here are the stories you need to know this afternoon.
⏱️: A 7-minute read
— Matt Moore, newsletter reporter (@MattKenMoore)
TODAY’S TOP STORY
Illinois video gambling mogul Rick Heidner leased space for years to crooked bingo operation
Reporting by Tim Novak
A video gambling mogul’s past: Years before Rick Heidner became a major force in video gambling in Illinois, he was the landlord of a west suburban bingo palace whose operators went to federal prison for skimming $2.9 million in profits from veterans charities. Federal agents busted the operation in Northlake, and 10 men were indicted in 2002 on charges of racketeering, operating an illegal gambling business and money-laundering.
Heidner’s defense: Heidner, who wasn’t charged with any crime, says he had no involvement in the bingo operation. He did stand to collect $594,000 in rent, though, from the crooked bingo operation, according to the five-year lease signed in December 1993.
License granted despite scam ties: Illinois Gaming Board officials won’t say whether they were aware of the illegal operation that leased from Heidner when the state agency gave him a license in February 2012, allowing him to operate video gambling machines in bars, gas stations and restaurants. Now, Heidner’s Gold Rush Amusements is the third-largest video gambling terminal operator in Illinois. It has 4,000 machines placed in 748 businesses across the suburbs and downstate. People placed more than $3 billion in bets in the last year on Gold Rush machines, state records show.
BACK TO SCHOOL ✏️
Kindergarten students play with letter blocks at Brighton Park Elementary on the first day of school.
Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times
Chicago’s students kick off a new school year
CPS students headed back to school this morning, marking a brand new year for a district navigating pandemic learning losses, the enrollment of thousands of English learners, a new mayoral administration and more.
The Sun-Times and WBEZ are teaming up to bring you the latest back-to-school coverage in our updated live blog. Here are a few details from the day so far:
- Is CPS ready for the heat?: Temperatures are expected to top 100 degrees Wednesday and Thursday. CPS Chief Executive Officer Pedro Martinez said during a school visit this morning that the district is ready for the heat. He said all classrooms have air conditioning. Many schools have air conditioning units rather than central air. But CPS data shows some rooms, such as computer labs and libraries, lack AC.
- Mayor Johnson stops by class: Mayor Brandon Johnson this morning visited Brighton Park Elementary School, a small neighborhood school on the Southwest Side. It is one of many schools getting children of migrants who have arrived on buses from Texas. In a kindergarten bilingual classroom, kids were matching alphabet tiles and sorting small toy vehicles by color. A girl looked up from her activity to tell Johnson, “You look like my dad!”
- Urban Prep opens after uncertainty: After months of drama around CPS efforts to revoke the charter allowing Urban Prep Academy to operate, parents expressed relief this morning that they could drop off their children at the school’s Bronzeville campus. Urban Prep is an all-boys, mostly Black public high school with two South Side campuses. “It took a lot of stress off of me,” said Katina Herald, who drove her son to the school.
- Newly arrived family drops son off: Carolina and her partner Jose, who recently arrived from Venezuela, dropped off her 9-year-old son Abraham to school his morning. They’re part of a group of migrant families headed to Jordan Community School in Rogers Park, buzzing with excitement on the first day. Abraham said he wasn’t nervous, just glad he doesn’t have to wear a school uniform like he did back in Venezuela. His mom told him his new sneakers better be clean at the end of the day.
WHAT ELSE IS GOING ON?
A Chicago Times reporter (James Stewart) tries to prove a man imprisoned on a murder conviction is innocent in “Call Northside 777,” back on the big screen this weekend at the Music Box Theatre.
Twentieth Century Fox
- ‘Call Northside 777’ returns to silver screen: Based on a real-life wrongful conviction case, James Stewart’s gritty Chicago newspaper drama is turning 75 and will play at the Music Box Theatre’s Noir City festival this weekend.
- Remembering Willis Johnson: The co-founder of Classic Cinemas, Johnson was a lifelong Downers Grove resident who spent his life finding historic, pushed-aside buildings and turning them into downtown movie theaters and community hubs.
- Could City Council be more independent?: Some say what the council needs is a parliamentarian, a robust budget office and some legal counsel. Others say the city needs a new constitution for true reform.
- Steve McMichael awaits word on Hall of Fame: Bears great Steve McMichael will find out Tuesday whether he advances in consideration for the 2024 Hall of Fame class. McMichael, a two-time All-Pro defensive tackle, is one of 12 finalists to earn a nomination through the senior committee.
- S&C Electric builds pollinator garden: On the northwest corner of S&C Electric Co.’s 46-acre Rogers Park campus, a new garden features 45 plant species and serves as a safe haven for birds, butterflies and bees.
- 3 stars for ‘The Adults’: Michael Cera delivers subtle greatness as an eccentric man visiting his sisters after being away for years, writes Sun-Times critic Richard Roeper.
SUN-TIMES STAFF SUGGESTS 🤎
Caffeinate at Sip of Hope Coffee
I talked with Sun-Times reporter Andy Grimm, who suggests stopping by Sip of Hope Coffee in Logan Square the next time you’re in the area.
“It’s a big space that is seldom too crowded, with the standard Logan Square coffee shop features, like high-end pastries and generally good, chill music,” Andy says.
Also, the coffee is excellent — all specialty roasts by local roaster Dark Matter Coffee. Plus, Andy tells me, “You can buy a bag of beans in-store, and each one comes with a free cup of coffee.”
Most notable about Sip of Hope is its focus on mental health — 100% of its profits go to suicide prevention and mental health education, Andy says.
You see that theme in messages like, “It’s OK not to be OK,” that are on the shop’s walls and printed on its merch items.
📍Sip of Hope Coffe, 3039 W Fullerton Ave.
BRIGHT ONE ✨
Sister Jean turns 104 today.
Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times file
On her 104th birthday, Loyola’s Sister Jean reflects
Reporting by Mary Norkol
Born Aug. 21, 1919, in San Francisco, Sister Jean Dolores Bertha Schmidt, the Sisters of Charity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, known simply as “Sister Jean,” is celebrating her 104th birthday today.
Sister Jean rose to icon status in 2018 when the Loyola University Chicago men’s basketball team made history with its underdog run to the NCAA Final Four during March Madness. As the team’s chaplain, Sister Jean traveled around the country with the team, capturing the hearts of those in Chicago and beyond.
She is older than the Internet, television and sliced bread. She’s seen things change quite a bit, especially in the realm of media, she says. But Sister Jean says she looks to the church for something that remains steadfast. She draws from the teachings of Pope Francis, urging people to follow his example to help others, especially the poor and migrants.
“I think we owe it to people to be kind to them,” Sister Jean said during a recent interview with the Sun-Times. “If we look back in our own families, most of our ancestry would notify us that our grandparents or great-grandparents were all migrants … and somebody was kind to all of them.”
For Sister Jean, the year ahead is an exciting one, as always. But she’s especially looking forward to having students back on campus. Perhaps most of all, Sister Jean is ready for basketball season.
She’ll celebrate her birthday with a ceremonial first pitch at a Chicago Cubs game and on Aug. 31, with festivities at Loyola’s annual block party at its downtown campus. With so many different things on her mind, she says one thing is not.
“I don’t really think about being old,” she says.
YOUR DAILY QUESTION ☕️
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Editor: Satchel Price
Newsletter reporter: Matt Moore
Copy editor: Angie Myers
