Big Brothers Big Sisters is about Little Moments, Big Magic.
My husband and I had a chance to be part of the magic of smiles, laughter, long talks and shared memories. Years ago we were a Big Couple through Big Brothers Big Sisters and were matched with a local nine-year-old boy whose father was not part of his life. The emphasis was on spending time together, not money. We saw each other weekly the first year and then less time as we got more acquainted and comfortable in our relationship. We had a lot of fun times together over the years. We played board games, went swimming, took him along on our errands, went to his soccer games, brought him to my husband’s softball games, went to fireworks, a spook walk, and all sorts of other things.
The mission of Big Brothers Big Sisters is “to help children reach their potential through professionally supported, one-to-one relationships.” Research indicates that children matched with a Big Brother or Sister are significantly less likely to skip school or use illegal drugs, and have better relationships with their families and peers than children who do not have a Big Brother or Sister.
“The number of new matches has doubled when comparing the last two years,” according to Clyde Shields, Program Director of Big Brothers Big Sisters. “BBBS’ successful school-based program is credited for the program growth. We have 9 school partners that offer one-to-one mentoring in an after-school group setting.”
There are currently 297 children served this year with an additional 51 children ready to be matched with a community-based volunteer. More volunteers are always needed.
In this time of economic crisis, this program continues to grow and to experience greater need for funds in order to match children with adult volunteers and support those relationships. The cost to match a child and supervise the relationship for one year is approximately $1000 and last year 67% of this budget came from special events.
Bowl For Kids’ Sake is the organization’s annual fundraiser and is going on now. Five member teams are asked to raise a minimum of $100 per bowler.
“This year’s remaining bowling events will take place at Brunswick Zone in Naperville on Wednesday, March 3, and at Parkside Lanes in Aurora on Sunday afternoon on March 7 and later that evening at Funway Bowl in Batavia,” according to Kelly Clason, Assistant Executive Director at Family Counseling Service. “Visit www.aurorabfks.kintera.org to make a donation or sign up to raise donations and come to Bowl For Kids’ Sake.”
Big Brothers Big Sisters of Southern Kane and Kendall Counties has been a program of Family Counseling Service, a United Way agency, since 1980. Since then, over 2000 children have been paired with a Big Brother, Big Sister, Big Couple, or High School Big. Visit www.aurorabbbs.org to volunteer or get more information or call 630-844-9090.
Volunteer. Be a donor. Your help can make a big difference in the lives of local children.
Friday, February 26, 2010
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
2010-02-19 Eola Rd. & Molitor Traffic Signal
I can’t tell you how much time I’ve spent waiting at Eola Road at Molitor these past several months, but it’s a lot. This traffic light was added last summer and is necessary for the newly opened Metea Valley High School.
I use this intersection several times a day and the two things that annoy me the most are the long red on Molitor, and the short green left turn arrow on northbound Eola Road followed by more than two minutes of a red turn arrow. For almost ten years I’d been turning at this intersection to get home with no traffic light, not even a stop sign, and now I just wait and wait, frequently with little or no traffic coming from the other direction. It’s also been frustrating for my family and my neighbors.
This intersection is under the control of DuPage County. Last week I found myself being educated on traffic signal systems by Dave Ziesemer, DuPage County Division of Transportation Traffic Engineer. What I learned from Dave helps me tolerate the wait a bit more now that I understand it, and I’m glad to hear that he may be making some adjustments to this signal.
This particular signal is on a closed loop system with other nearby traffic signals, and they are all set up to move traffic through multiple intersections as efficiently as possible. Traffic counts are taken for both weekdays and weekend days in all lanes of an intersection and then progressive capacity analysis is used to determine the best settings to be used for various times of day. For example, in the mornings the traffic flow is heavier northbound, so the lights are in sync to move more traffic going north, while still allowing southbound traffic to get through, and reversed for the evenings. The signals in front of MVHS were put in too late in the year to allow traffic counts to be done.
Currently this signal timing is set up similarly to those in nearby signal systems, but later will have custom settings for current traffic flow that will need to be analyzed and potentially updated each of the next two years as the high school adds juniors and seniors. The county will also work with the school to deal with moving traffic for large functions.
Dave told me that this intersection currently has a 150 second cycle length, and he explained how the cycle works including the video cameras used to detect vehicles and how the length of green is determined for through traffic and left turns. The cycle differs for peak and off-peak hours and it’s possible that these hours need refining and that the cycle time could possibly be shortened for off-peak times, relieving some of the wait for those of us using Molitor while not causing backups on Eola.
It was interesting to find out how the signals work as a system, the impact to the cycles of pedestrian crossings and emergency vehicles, and the precision that goes into optimizing it all.
I’d been curious about why this intersection has a red left turn arrow while many busier intersections do not. It’s good to know the reason even though I don’t believe I’ve ever encountered a situation where there are vehicles in both left turn lanes going from Eola into MVHS. According to Dave, “newly constructed intersections are routinely designed to provide a sufficient number of lanes in order to allow motorists to pass through on no more than one green cycle of the signals during heaviest travel times. Roadways having double left turn lane approaches to a traffic signal automatically require ‘Left Turn on Arrow Only’ operation for both approaches as required by the Illinois Department of Transportation Traffic (IDOT) Signal Design Requirements. Motorist sight to oncoming vehicles during the double left turn movement has proven to be easily restricted causing significant safety concerns if permitted in combination with the opposing thru vehicle green movement.”
DuPage County controls about 330 signals within the county and I appreciate that people there have been willing to take the time to explain the system and take my concerns seriously.
I use this intersection several times a day and the two things that annoy me the most are the long red on Molitor, and the short green left turn arrow on northbound Eola Road followed by more than two minutes of a red turn arrow. For almost ten years I’d been turning at this intersection to get home with no traffic light, not even a stop sign, and now I just wait and wait, frequently with little or no traffic coming from the other direction. It’s also been frustrating for my family and my neighbors.
This intersection is under the control of DuPage County. Last week I found myself being educated on traffic signal systems by Dave Ziesemer, DuPage County Division of Transportation Traffic Engineer. What I learned from Dave helps me tolerate the wait a bit more now that I understand it, and I’m glad to hear that he may be making some adjustments to this signal.
This particular signal is on a closed loop system with other nearby traffic signals, and they are all set up to move traffic through multiple intersections as efficiently as possible. Traffic counts are taken for both weekdays and weekend days in all lanes of an intersection and then progressive capacity analysis is used to determine the best settings to be used for various times of day. For example, in the mornings the traffic flow is heavier northbound, so the lights are in sync to move more traffic going north, while still allowing southbound traffic to get through, and reversed for the evenings. The signals in front of MVHS were put in too late in the year to allow traffic counts to be done.
Currently this signal timing is set up similarly to those in nearby signal systems, but later will have custom settings for current traffic flow that will need to be analyzed and potentially updated each of the next two years as the high school adds juniors and seniors. The county will also work with the school to deal with moving traffic for large functions.
Dave told me that this intersection currently has a 150 second cycle length, and he explained how the cycle works including the video cameras used to detect vehicles and how the length of green is determined for through traffic and left turns. The cycle differs for peak and off-peak hours and it’s possible that these hours need refining and that the cycle time could possibly be shortened for off-peak times, relieving some of the wait for those of us using Molitor while not causing backups on Eola.
It was interesting to find out how the signals work as a system, the impact to the cycles of pedestrian crossings and emergency vehicles, and the precision that goes into optimizing it all.
I’d been curious about why this intersection has a red left turn arrow while many busier intersections do not. It’s good to know the reason even though I don’t believe I’ve ever encountered a situation where there are vehicles in both left turn lanes going from Eola into MVHS. According to Dave, “newly constructed intersections are routinely designed to provide a sufficient number of lanes in order to allow motorists to pass through on no more than one green cycle of the signals during heaviest travel times. Roadways having double left turn lane approaches to a traffic signal automatically require ‘Left Turn on Arrow Only’ operation for both approaches as required by the Illinois Department of Transportation Traffic (IDOT) Signal Design Requirements. Motorist sight to oncoming vehicles during the double left turn movement has proven to be easily restricted causing significant safety concerns if permitted in combination with the opposing thru vehicle green movement.”
DuPage County controls about 330 signals within the county and I appreciate that people there have been willing to take the time to explain the system and take my concerns seriously.
Friday, February 5, 2010
2010-02-05 Tomcats getting reconnected
East Aurora Tomcats are getting reconnected with former classmates more easily than ever thanks to newer online resources.
Back in 2005 the Class of 1985 20 year reunion turned into a fairly small gathering when the organizers had a hard time locating everyone. Internet resources have changed vastly since then and now there are several easy ways to find others who attended East High. These will be a big help in planning this year's 25 year reunion. So far the organizers have had contact with about 120 of 380 on the class list. The email address for the Class of 1985 reunion is eastaurora.class85@att.net.
The web page www.easthighconnect.com has over 1200 members so far. The page offers many features such as an event calendar, groups, photos, and discussion boards. There are 30 groups, including groups for some class years as well as special interests such as Thespians. It is free and easy to join this web page and once there one can join a group for a class year or create a new one.
The District 131 homepage hosts the East Aurora Alumni Association page at http://www.d131.org/alumni.asp. This page offers a lot of information and provides the opportunity to buy EAHS alumni apparel.
Plus, "a large committee has contacts with many classmates and helps to get recent addresses. The EA Alumni Association has a 10,000-person database, but we have to rely on reunion groups to give us their reunion booklets. It is the only way we can keep our database in good shape. The alumni group has a guide for reunions available," according to John M. Roesch, vice president of the association.
Classmates.com has thousands of EAHS people listed and is in the process of changing policies to make it easier to connect there without paying the previously required annual fee
Facebook is considered by many to be the very best resource for finding old friends. On Facebook I'm friends with dozens of people that I met at Bardwell, Waldo, or East. I’ve recently enjoyed reminiscing with people who were good friends I’d lost touch with as well as with others whom I barely knew in school but have now found we have a lot in common due to sharing memories of some of the same people, places, and events.
Carol BulasCrowell Honkanen has found Facebook to be very useful, but somewhat limited as many of her classmates have not joined yet. She "had gathered e-mail addresses along the years, as I had coordinated our Class of 80's Silver 25th Reunion. It took lots of time and effort and networking with other classes, to find people. But, initially it was the website I had put out there http://65.108.233.221/EAHS that helped me to get in touch with people. Alumni still come in from that site and I lead them to Facebook. Of over thousands of e-mail addresses that I have, only a handful have connected on Facebook. So, we all still need to get our friends on-board."
One of my classmates, Esmeralda Zepeda Tellner, says that Facebook has helped her find many friends from East High, including me! She says "I think I can honestly say and I'm sure many people will agree that 20-25 years ago we had an awesome group of people we went to school with! I believe starting those friendships in grade school, junior high (whether you went to Waldo or Simmons), then EAHS, kind of gave us all that Red/Black Tomcat bond that we will always carry with us throughout our lives. I'm sure if you ask anyone about their high school relationships they will tell you the same. I know the friendships, memories, good times and yes some bad times we had will always be memorable. I honestly believe we had a special group of classmates in the 80's because EAHS was a mixture of races, cultures, color, and personalities and we all got along!"
I agree with Esmo and I look forward to getting together with even more Tomcats this year.
Back in 2005 the Class of 1985 20 year reunion turned into a fairly small gathering when the organizers had a hard time locating everyone. Internet resources have changed vastly since then and now there are several easy ways to find others who attended East High. These will be a big help in planning this year's 25 year reunion. So far the organizers have had contact with about 120 of 380 on the class list. The email address for the Class of 1985 reunion is eastaurora.class85@att.net.
The web page www.easthighconnect.com has over 1200 members so far. The page offers many features such as an event calendar, groups, photos, and discussion boards. There are 30 groups, including groups for some class years as well as special interests such as Thespians. It is free and easy to join this web page and once there one can join a group for a class year or create a new one.
The District 131 homepage hosts the East Aurora Alumni Association page at http://www.d131.org/alumni.asp. This page offers a lot of information and provides the opportunity to buy EAHS alumni apparel.
Plus, "a large committee has contacts with many classmates and helps to get recent addresses. The EA Alumni Association has a 10,000-person database, but we have to rely on reunion groups to give us their reunion booklets. It is the only way we can keep our database in good shape. The alumni group has a guide for reunions available," according to John M. Roesch, vice president of the association.
Classmates.com has thousands of EAHS people listed and is in the process of changing policies to make it easier to connect there without paying the previously required annual fee
Facebook is considered by many to be the very best resource for finding old friends. On Facebook I'm friends with dozens of people that I met at Bardwell, Waldo, or East. I’ve recently enjoyed reminiscing with people who were good friends I’d lost touch with as well as with others whom I barely knew in school but have now found we have a lot in common due to sharing memories of some of the same people, places, and events.
Carol BulasCrowell Honkanen has found Facebook to be very useful, but somewhat limited as many of her classmates have not joined yet. She "had gathered e-mail addresses along the years, as I had coordinated our Class of 80's Silver 25th Reunion. It took lots of time and effort and networking with other classes, to find people. But, initially it was the website I had put out there http://65.108.233.221/EAHS that helped me to get in touch with people. Alumni still come in from that site and I lead them to Facebook. Of over thousands of e-mail addresses that I have, only a handful have connected on Facebook. So, we all still need to get our friends on-board."
One of my classmates, Esmeralda Zepeda Tellner, says that Facebook has helped her find many friends from East High, including me! She says "I think I can honestly say and I'm sure many people will agree that 20-25 years ago we had an awesome group of people we went to school with! I believe starting those friendships in grade school, junior high (whether you went to Waldo or Simmons), then EAHS, kind of gave us all that Red/Black Tomcat bond that we will always carry with us throughout our lives. I'm sure if you ask anyone about their high school relationships they will tell you the same. I know the friendships, memories, good times and yes some bad times we had will always be memorable. I honestly believe we had a special group of classmates in the 80's because EAHS was a mixture of races, cultures, color, and personalities and we all got along!"
I agree with Esmo and I look forward to getting together with even more Tomcats this year.
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