7 hours Ago By The Editorial Board
We’ve made it through the 10 darkest weeks of the year. The weeks surrounding the winter solstice — Dec. 21 — have little light, and can seem bleak and unforgiving.
That has an effect on our spirits. We leave for work in the dark. We come home in the dark.
Our kids can’t play outside, the weather’s up and down (mostly down), and it’s hard to feel hopeful that spring is coming. Spring is still many weeks away, but the days are already getting longer. The sun isn’t setting until about 5:30 p.
m., and we’re getting a taste of temperatures warm enough to allow for time spent outside. Chicago needed this.
But even in the darkness, Illinoisans found a way to lift up one another. One of the best parts of living in the Midwest is the strong sense of community in many of our towns. Here are some ways ordinary folks made the 10 darkest weeks of the year considerably brighter.
Aurora postal worker saves elderly man Would you stop to help a stranger in need? Too often we look the other way, but not Aurora postal worker Jaylen Lockhart. While working a route in Aurora’s 9 th Ward, Lockhart noticed an elderly man out walking his dog who was unsteady, ultimately falling and injuring his head. Lockhart came to the aid of 78-year-old Guy Miller, corralled several neighbors to sit with Miller and then tracked down Miller’s family to make sure he got the help he needed.
“It wasn’t just that he stopped,” Marcia Miller, Guy’s wife, told the Aurora Beacon-News . “What’s so remarkable is that he came to my house, let me know my husband was going through a crisis — he took time to come find his family.” Not only was Lockhart honored by the Aurora City Council, but the community also chipped in to make sure the Millers had proper snow removal for the winter.
The Lockharts and the Millers celebrated Thanksgiving together. Southwest suburban community saves local pizzeria As much as we grumble about the ill effects of social media, good news out of suburban Plano shows how it can be used for good. Former Marine Steven Oleksy opened Planet Pizza two years ago, but his business was slow and he wasn’t sure how his pizzeria would survive if things didn’t pick up.
After a Thursday in December with no business, he posted on a community page asking people: “What can I do as a business owner to draw in customers?” The Yorkville Area Moms Facebook page reposted Oleksy’s message, sparking an outpouring of support for Planet Pizza. “Ever since then, it’s been pretty crazy,” Oleksy told NBC 5 . Today, business is booming.
When in doubt, call in the moms. 30 kids in foster care downstate adopted At the end of 2024, 30 children in foster care in downstate Madison County finally got what every child deserves — a home and a family. Adoptions were finalized in a joint ceremony on Dec.
27 in Edwardsville. Yet for every child celebrating a fresh start in 2025, many more are still waiting. Thousands of children in Illinois remain in foster care with the goal of adoption — kids longing for stability in a world that has often failed them.
To learn more about becoming a foster or adoptive parent, visit the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services website at dcfs.illinois.gov .
Longer days and better weather help us get past the darkness of winter. Let’s embrace the light and all that comes with it, without forgetting that even in the harshest time of year we can all lift up one another. Submit a letter, of no more than 400 words, to the editor here or email letters@chicagotribune.
com ..
