Without Limits will partner with the Aurora Area Convention and Visitors Bureau, the Aurora Area Sports Appliance, and the Fox Valley Park District for the event which will take place Aug. 4-5 at Stuart Sports Complex in Montgomery. (Photo courtesy of Fox Valley Park Dist.)

Aurora

Montgomery woman charged with sixth DUI

Aurora police felony charges through the Kane County State’s Attorney on a 33-year-old Montgomery woman after she received her sixth DUI on Feb. 6.

Leah R. Behrens of the first block of Chatham Pl., was charged with three felonies: DUI, obstructing justice and driving on a revoked license.

The DUI is a Class-X felony which calls for enhanced prison time upon conviction. She was also charged with a litany of misdemeanor and traffic charges including two additional counts of DUI, failure to yield while turning left, operating an uninsured vehicle, driving without insurance, leaving the scene of a property damage crash and failure to reduce speed to avoid an accident.

The charges stem from two crashes that occurred about five minutes apart where Behrens was the driver of a 2002 Mitsubishi Gallant. The first was around 6:35 p.m. at Lake Street (Rt. 31) and Illinois Avenue, when she hit two vehicles stopped at a stoplight: a 2000 Honda Civic driven by a 23-year-old Aurora man and a 2005 Saturn Vue driven by a 27-year-old Glendale Heights man. The only additional occupant was a 25-year-old woman in the Saturn. All three people declined medical attention.

Behrens fled the crash but was involved in another one around 6:40 p.m. at Broadway (Rt. 25) and Hazel, about 2.5 miles away from the initial incident. She was driving southbound on Broadway and tried to turn left onto Hazel, but instead went in front of a northbound 2011 GMC Sierra pickup truck driven by a 36-year-old Plano man.

The pickup was also occupied by the man’s three boys, ages 14, 12 and 4. Nobody in the pickup required medical attention.

The second crash happened to occur near a restaurant where a couple of Aurora Police officers were eating dinner. They were alerted to the crash by another patron and when they went to investigate, they found Behrens outside her vehicle and displaying obvious signs of intoxication. It was quickly learned she was also involved in the initial crash at Lake and Illinois.

Behrens was treated and released at an Aurora hospital. The felony obstructing justice charge stems from when she was later taken to another Aurora hospital for a court-ordered blood and urine draw with which she refused to cooperate.

Third “Ultimate” event announced for Aurora area

Without Limits, an organization that develops training and tournaments for women ultimate Frisbee players, has announced it will bring its largest and longest-running club tournament, Heavyweights, to the Aurora Area of Illinois this summer.

Without Limits will partner with the Aurora Area Convention and Visitors Bureau (CVB), the Aurora Area Sports Appliance, and the Fox Valley Park District for the event which will take place Aug.  4-5 at Stuart Sports Complex in Montgomery.

Heavyweights is expected to attract many ultimate players and spectators to the region. The tournament is scheduled to host a combination of women’s, open, and mixed teams.

“For several decades, Heavyweights has brought many ultimate teams across the Midwest to Chicago, and we are thrilled to host our event in Aurora, IL this year,” said Kyra Catabay, a representative for Without Limits. “We are excited to work with the Stuart Sports Complex and Aurora Area Convention & Visitors Bureau to provide an amazing experience for 1,500 players and fans.”

Ultimate players participating in Heavyweights are required to be USA Ultimate members. The Aurora Area CVB announced earlier in the year that USA Ultimate, the national governing body for the sport of ultimate Frisbee in the United States, and a member of the U.S. Olympic Committee, will host its second-largest tournament in the Aurora Area.

The 2018 Masters Championships will be held at Stuart Sports Complex from July 20-22.

Another ultimate tournament, the 2018 Neuqua Knockout, will be held April 21-22 at Stuart Sports Complex, with 90 high school teams from throughout the Midwest expected to participate.

Kendall County

Departments participate in STEM Scholars Program

The Kendall County Sheriff’s Office and the Kendall County Coroner’s Office participated in the Hultgren STEM Scholars Program.

U.S. Representative Randy Hultgren (IL-14) announced the launch of STEM Scholars Program in 2016, a 14th Congressional District youth leadership program encouraging highly-motivated and energetic high school students to become ambassadors in their communities for the possibilities provided by science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM).

The STEM Scholars program includes programming specifically designed to expose students to STEM careers and to build STEM leadership qualities and skills. STEM Scholars will grow their leadership skills through presentations, higher-level discussions and on-site visits to some of the 14th District’s premier facilities.

There are 30 STEM Scholars that come from seven different counties which include: Lake, McHenry, Kane, DeKalb, DuPage, Kendall and Will counties.

On Jan. 20, the Kendall County Sheriff Office and the Kendall County Coroner’s Office gave a presentation to over 20 STEM Scholars. Kendall County Coroner Jacqueline Purcell provided a tour of the morgue. Purcell explained the procedures of an autopsy and Purcell answered questions regarding death, investigations, toxicology and autopsies.

Det. Jason Flanders covered the basics of evidence processing, fuming, fingerprinting and how fingerprints are recovered. Det. Michael Disera discussed the basics of crime scenes related to recovery of blood evidence such as blood stain pattern analysis and luminol to detect blood and phenolphthalein presumptive blood test.

“The KCSO is proud to offer support and encouragement to students in this program. It is a commitment to bettering our community through education and training,” Sheriff Dwight Baird said.

FVOAS benefits from Essential Bed Fundraiser

Communities that work together and pull together form the backbone of America. An important aspect of small town living is supporting and encouraging agencies that provide vital services.

As our society has become more mobile and fragmented, and families frequently spread out across the country, local agencies become more important to the family unit. Fox Valley Older Adult Services (FVOAS) is one of our area’s vitally important service providers, and deserves the support of everyone to continue their great work.

FVOAS is hosting a Mattress Sale Benefit Fundraising Event on Saturday, March 17 and Sunday, March 18 at Fox Valley Community Center, 1406 Suydam Road, Sandwich, right across from the Sandwich Fairgrounds.

Proceeds from this event will go to supporting the many programs and services provided to area Seniors.

For more about this event, visit EssentialBed.com/FVOASFundraiser. If you need a bed and want to support FVOAS but are unable to attend this event, you can contact Essential Bed at (815) 378- 5189 to arrange selecting a new bed.

Montgomery

Village seeks to fill Plan Commission vacancy

Montgomery Village President Matt Brolley is seeking a village resident interested in serving on the Montgomery Plan Commission.  The Plan Commission provides guidance to the Village Board regarding growth and development within the village.

Requirements for the position are as follows:

• Attend one Plan Commission Meeting each month.  Meetings typically are held at 7:00 p.m. on the first Thursday of each month.
• Attend Zoning Board of Appeals meetings as needed.  Meetings are scheduled on an as-needed basis on the same evening as Plan Commission.

Brolley estimated Plan Commissioners spend approximately two hours attending meetings each month.

Any resident of Montgomery interested in this position should provide a cover letter with an attached resume by Friday, March 16 to Village President Matt Brolley, 200 N. River St., Montgomery, IL  60538 or via email to brolley@ci.montgomery.il.us.  Questions should be directed to Senior Planner Jerad Chipman at (630) 896-8080, Ext. 9022.

Oswego

High schools congratulates wrestlers

Community Unit School District 308 congratulates Oswego High School wrestlers, Gannon Hughes (senior) and Allen Swanson (senior); along with Oswego East High School wrestler, Jackson O’Reilly (senior) for qualifying for the Illinois High School Association (IHSA) State competition.

IHSA provides leadership for the development, supervision and promotion of good sportsmanship through interscholastic competition in which students engage.  Oswego High School seniors, Gannon Hughes brought home the first place victory within his 145 lb. weight class, and Allen Swanson, finished with second place within his 160 lb. weight class. 

The awards were given for both the IHSA Regional and Sectional competitions qualifying them for state. 

Oswego East High School senior Jackson O’Reilly finished third at both the IHSA Regional and Sectional tournaments within is 182 lb. weight class.  This season, Gannon has accomplished 42 wins and only two losses, Allen managed 40 wins with only four losses and Jackson triumphed by winning his 100th career match this season, overcoming multiple significant injuries in the process.

“We are very proud of the amazing accomplishments of Jackson, Gannon and Allen.  These young men have put in countless hours of work in the weight room and on the wrestling mat, and their grit, determination, and hard work has paid off.  Jackson, Gannon and Allen are great representatives of our district, schools, and community,” said Robert Kaminski, Oswego East High School Athletic Director.  Both Oswego and Oswego East wrestlers, along with their coaches have set their sites for an IHSA Individual State Championship win in Champaign.

Police participate in One Mind Campaign

The Oswego Police Department is pleased to announce that they have pledged to take action in support of the International Association of Chiefs of Police’s One Mind Campaign, with the intent to unite local communities, public safety organizations, and mental health organizations in such a way that the three become “of one mind.”

The One Mind Campaign seeks to ensure successful interactions between police officers and persons with mental illness. To join the campaign, the department must commit to implementing four promising practices over a 12-36 month timeframe. The four strategies include:

1. Establishing a clearly defined and sustainable partnership with one or more community mental health organization(s),

2. Developing and implementing a model policy addressing police response to persons affected by mental illness,

3. Training and certifying 100 percent of the agency’s sworn officers (and selected non- sworn staff) in the campaign’s Mental Health First Aid for Public Safety, and

4. Providing Crisis Intervention Team training to a minimum of 20 percent of the agency’s sworn officers

The Oswego Police Department recognizes the need to address societal, cultural, and technological changes that impact law enforcement responses to person with mental illness.

The strategies that the department has pledged to adopt create an opportunity to expand the department’s training in mental health issues and enhance partnerships with mental health organizations in the community. Pledging to support the One Mind Campaign is an important step towards creating a safer community for all.

For more information on the One Mind Campaign, as well as additional resources, visit http://www.theiacp.org/onemindcampaign. A list of all agencies that have taken the pledge is also available on the website.

–Kendall County News Briefs–