Kids can build roller coasters during Spring Break with 4-H, and they also can explore their family tree, how weather works, and a wide variety of arts and sciences. (Photo courtesy of Extension Office)

 KENDALL

Extension offers kids’ Spring Break mini camps

From acting to weather, the tri-county 4-H program has a workshop or mini-camp to offer your family this spring. These interactive opportunities are designed to help youth to grow in a specific area of study or just to try something new.

“These workshops and mini-camps all have a fun, hands-on approach targeted at helping kids build knowledge and skills,” said Amy Henschen, 4-H Youth Educator with University of Illinois Extension of DuPage, Kane and Kendall counties. “There is something for everyone. We have multi-day sessions where kids can explore something in-depth, as well as single-session workshops that focus on a specific activity. Plus, we strive to keep the excitement high and costs low, and youth do not need to be 4-H members to participate.”

These learning opportunities feature topics such as: robotics, heritage/genealogy, engineering, meteorology, environmental science/ornithology, critical thinking/mathematics, sewing/fashion, leathercraft, and theatre arts. Different options are available in each office: Naperville, St. Charles and Yorkville. To learn more about each and find out how to register, visit http://go.illinois.edu/info4Hdkk and look for the Spring Break section.

If you need a reasonable accommodation to participate in this program, contact your local University of Illinois Extension office.

Sheriff’s Office names Employee of the Year
The Kendall County Sheriff’s Office has named Detective Tom Hagerty its Employee of the Year.

Hagerty was nominated by a fellow employee of the Kendall County Sheriff’s Office Operations Division for his exemplary performance over the past year.

The Sheriff’s Office employee recognition program is focused on recognizing employees for the great acts they perform. This program helps identify those employees that deserve special recognition whenever his/her duties are performed in an exemplary manner.

Citizens may also be recognized under this program for an act deserving of recognition.

Hagerty started his career with the Kendall County Sheriff’s Office in April 2008. He is currently assigned as a special investigator with the Kendall County State’s Attorney’s Office.
He is assigned to the Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Taskforce and is responsible for investigating high technology crimes involving children.
In January 2019, Hagerty received a Cybertip through the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) regarding a social media user disseminating child pornography. Hagerty obtained multiple court orders to gather further information and ultimately identified a ring of individuals sharing child pornography on social media. Det. Hagerty also identified an individual who may have been sexually abusing his child in the United Kingdom.

Hagerty worked with the Department of Homeland Security and the UK police who were able to identify and arrest the individual and save the child from potential future abuse.

Further investigation has been initiated into numerous additional social media accounts in other jurisdictions as a result of Det. Hagerty’s work.

Free Fox River Education series

The Kendall County Forest Preserve District is hosting a public educational series on topics related to the Fox River for the Oswego-Yorkville-Plano communities and surrounding area.

The programs have been organized by The Conservation Foundation to provide opportunities to those living within this area of the Fox River watershed to learn more about the life of and connections between the Fox River and our communities.
The talks, given monthly January through May, are supported by TCF’s Fox River Education and Outreach Initiative. A different topic with guest speakers will be offered each month.
All meetings will be held from 7 to 8 p.m. in the East Wing Conference Room of the historic Kendall County Courthouse, 110 Madison St., in Yorkville.

• Wednesday, Feb. 26 – Winter Birds of the Fox River:  How Are They Doing?  What Are We Seeing? Bob and Kathy Andrini with the Kane County Audubon Society;
  • Wednesday, March 25 – Fox River Dams:  Should We Live With Them?  Can We Live Without Them?  Deanna Doohaluk, water quality scientist and Watershed Project Manager at The Conservation Foundation, and Karen Clementi, interim regulatory and public outreach manager with Fox Metro Water Reclamation District;
  • Wednesday, April 29 – Coyotes to Bees: Wildlife of the Fox River Valley. Pam Otto, author and outreach ambassador, St. Charles Park District, member of St. Charles Natural Resources Commission;
  • Wednesday, May 27 – Why We Need the Fox River.  Brook McDonald, president and CEO, The Conservation Foundation

: Kendall County Detective Tom Hagerty (left) with Sheriff Dwight Baird. (Photo courtesy of Kendall Co. Sheriff Dept.)

 MONTGOMERY

 Mill Street bridge planters for sale

The Village of Montgomery Beautification Committee is pleased to announce the continuance of the flower box program for 2020. Your support is essential to an ongoing commitment to enhance Montgomery’s beauty.
Each summer the Mill Street Bridge is lined with beautiful flower boxes and residents and businesses have a chance to have your name displayed in support of Montgomery’s beautification. For your donation, you can have your family name, business name, or personal message printed on a 4-inch-by- 22-inch sign which will be displayed along the Mill Street Bridge. (Addresses, Phone Numbers and Political ads are strictly prohibited.

All signs are displayed along the Mill Street Bridge in the spring and taken down in the fall.
Space is limited and filled on a first come, first served basis.

Deadline is May 1 or until all spots are filled; whichever occurs first. Visit www.montgomeryil.org for a sign-up sheet.

OSWEGO

 Village offering discounted rain barrels

The village, Upcycle Products and the Illinois Conservation Foundation have partnered to offer Oswego residents the opportunity to buy rain barrels for about half their retail price.
Rain barrels collect rain runoff from roofs and gutters and store it for later use on gardens and lawns. In addition to saving the community’s water resources and reducing water bills, rain barrels are often beneficial to gardens because rainwater can be softer and have fewer minerals in it than groundwater.
A portion of proceeds from rain barrels purchased through the village’s partnership with Upcycle Products also benefit The Conservation Foundation, which is responsible for conservation projects across Oswego and the region. Local projects have included rain gardens, native plantings, and watershed protection plans.
Rain barrels are available in black, grey, blue and terra cotta red and cost $60, about half the price of similar models purchased on Amazon. They are made from food-grade upcycled materials, including former pickling containers, and are specially washed clean for garden use.
Residents may purchase barrels at www.upcycle-products.com/oswegoil.html, for pick-up at the week of April 20-24. Residents will be able to pick up barrels between 7 a.m. and 3 p.m., at the Oswego Public Works Facility, 100 Theodore Drive.

Online orders must be placed by April 15 to be ready in time for pickup. Mail-in orders must be received by April 10 to be ready in time for pickup.
Home delivery Monday, April 20, through Friday, April 24is also available throughout the year for an additional $5.
For more information, visit www.upcycle-products.com/oswegoil.html or call Upcycle Products directly at 815-735-9535.

Residents’ input sought on entertainment venue
The Village of Oswego recently accepted the donation of three acres of property immediately west of the Park N Ride facility, near the intersection of Orchard and Mill Roads, for the purpose of developing a public park and a live music and entertainment venue.
Before planning the venue begins, community members are invited to complete this survey to provide input into the site design.

Once the conceptual design is created, there will be additional opportunities for public review and input.
Take the survey at www.oswegoil.org.
As always, residents may also comment during the public forum portion of upcoming Village Board meetings, which are typically held on the first and third Tuesdays of the month. View the full calendar at oswegoil.org.
Residents may also email the members of the Village Board with comments at info@oswegoil.org.

YORKVILLE

Police investigate battery of 22 -year-old man

On Thursday Feb. 6, at approximately 6:45 p.m., police were notified of a person in distress in the area of the 100 block of West Main Street, Yorkville.

Police were able to locate a male 22 years of age from Plano lying in the front yard of a residence. The male had suffered facial injuries from an altercation.

It is alleged that 3 unknown males battered the victim in the area of Main Street and Church Street. The subjects fled the area prior to police arriving at the scene.

The victim was treated by Bristol Kendall EMS for non-life threatening injures and transported to an area hospital. Police are seeking information from any possible witnesses.

This investigation is active and ongoing. This is believed to be an isolated incident with no threat to the public. Yorkville Police were assisted on scene by the Kendall County Sheriff’s Office.