🌱 Reflections On MLK Day + Chicago Restaurant Week Kicks Off Thursday

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• 🙏🏽 Those who participated in MLK Day viewed the holiday as a call for service
• 🏒 Saint Ignatius College Prep honored first responders at the first JV hockey game since the November crash
• 🍽️ Chicago Restaurant Week kicks off Thursday

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🌧️ The weather:

Breezy; a shower in the a.m. High: 43 Low: 34.

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📰 Top 5 stories in Chicago:

1) Rifle-wielding robbers targeting Pilsen businesses sought by police. Back-to-back robberies in Pilsen Sunday have businesses on edge. Several suspects exited a car and robbed at gunpoint the owner of Angel's Tire Shop, an employee and a customer. According to police, a group of men robbed some street vendors near 21st Street and Damen Avenue a few minutes later but have not said whether the incidents were related. Community members and organizations have stepped up to provide protection, but some feel the response from the police has not been adequate. (WGN-TV)

2) High-minded high finance: City sells bonds to the masses. The city of Chicago's "social bond" program lets residents invest in and earn money from neighborhood improvements for as little as $1,000, not the usual $5,000. Interest is paid twice a year and will be determined by the demand—the more the better for the city. Nine financial firms will manage the bond offering and ensure it gets out to a wide audience. This is the first time since 2005-06 that the city has taken a straight-to-the-people approach in bond sales. (Chicago Sun-Times)

3) First responders honored at Saint Ignatius College Prep's first JV hockey game since bus crash. Two months after 16 junior varsity hockey players were injured in a crash in northern Indiana, the hockey team returned to the ice Sunday at Fifth Third Arena to face the Marmion Academy Cadets. Before the ceremonial puck drop, police officers, EMS personnel and others were honored for their lifesaving actions on the night of Nov. 12. While the three most critically injured players are out for the season, they're expected to rejoin their teammates next season. (NBC 5)

4) MLK Day: 'It's so important to really delve into your history so you know where your roots are.' Those who participated in Martin Luther King Jr. Day events said they viewed the holiday not simply as a day off school or work but as a call for service and reflection on the activism and teachings of King. "As African Americans, as Chicagoans, as Americans, as this next generation, to me it's important to make sure they understand their history," said Tiffany Rogers of Hyde Park. "Because so much of it is repeated." (Chicago Tribune)

5) 'Chicago Restaurant Week' offers best bites from hundreds of local eateries. For 17 consecutive days, participating dining establishments will showcase specially curated prix fixe menus with prices set at $25 for brunch or lunch, and $42 and/or $59 for dinner (excluding beverages, tax and gratuity). The highly anticipated event begins Thursday and will feature more than 335 restaurants representing 34 distinct Chicago neighborhoods. (ABC 7)

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📌 Today in Chicago:

• MS Excel Basics at YWCA Metropolitan Chicago (12:00 PM)
• 2023 Silver Skates Speed Skating Competition at McFetridge Sports Center (5:15 PM)
• The Sound of Animals Fighting at Concord Music Hall (6:00 PM)
• National Day of Racial Healing 2023: Transformation Through Solidarity at The Promontory (6:00 PM)
• Write Club Chicago — Thirteenage Wasteland at GMan Tavern (7:00 PM)
• Big Gay Gayme Show at Meeting House Tavern (7:00 PM)
• The Brother Brothers with Todd Kessler at SPACE (7:30 PM)
• Daniel Seavey at Lincoln Hall (7:30 PM)
• Chicago The Musical at CIBC Theatre (7:30 PM)
• Erthe St. James at City Winery (8:00 PM)
• Friendsh*t at The Annoyance Theatre (8:00 PM)
• Trivia Tuesdays: The Real Housewives Edition at Sidetrack (8:00 PM)
• Mariokart Tournament Tuesdays at Replay Lakeview (8:00 PM)
• Comedian Cabaret at The Annoyance Theatre (8:00 PM)
• Noches Sin Ti Release Party at Bourbon on Division (8:00 PM)
• Rajiv Halim Quintet feat. Anabel Gil Diaz at Jazz Showcase (10:00 PM)

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📱 Social chatter:

• Ebenezer Missionary Baptist Church: "Ebenezer Missionary Baptist Church is widely regarded as one of the early incubators of American gospel music. It was originally constructed as the Isaiah Temple synagogue when the neighborhood was predominantly German Jewish. In 1921, the synagogue was purchased by Ebenezer Missionary Baptist Church to serve the area's growing African American community.⁠" (Chicago Architecture Center via Instagram)
• Work the Chicago election: "The Chicago Board of Elections is hiring. Early voting officials will earn $17 an hour at early voting sites across the city, and up to $230 if they work on Election Day. Training will be provided. You can apply on the city Board of Elections website." (FOX 32)
• South Loop architecture: "Exploring Chicago's historic South Loop architecture." (Classic Chicago Magazine)

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Events:

• 43rd Ward Aldermanic Candidates Forum (January 17)
• Learn for Life Webinar: Reinventing Yourself (January 18)
• "History, Heritage & Myth: Modeling the Settlement of Polynesia" (January 19)
• DePaul's Master of Arts in Applied Professional Studies Information Session (January 25)
• Science, Art, and the Search for Meaning: Opening Conversation with Dario Robleto (February 4)
• Come Celebrate Rescue Rides with Rescueber! (February 11)
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Announcements:

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• Gino Blefari Tops List of Most Powerful and Influential Leaders in Real Estate Industry (Details)
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Thanks for following along and staying informed.

— Nicole Cvetnic

About me: I'm a Midwesterner and very happy to call Chicagoland home. I love the outdoors—especially hiking—performing arts, photography, good food, travel and gardening. You can find me reading to my toddler, watching tv with my husband or cuddling with our rescue dog.

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