St. Charles Dog Wins “World’s Cutest Rescue Dog Contest”

Here’s Good News Sunday, a compilation of some of the most upbeat and inspiring stories recently published by the Daily Herald:

Move on, Donnie Wahlberg and Jenny McCarthy. Another resident of St. Charles – one on all fours – is in the spotlight of People magazine.

A mixed breed dog from St. Charles called Heaven was recently named the 2021 winner of the “World’s Cutest Rescue Dog Competition”.

Heaven topped over 10,000 dog submissions with numerous online votes to become both a top 10 and then a top three. A panel of judges ultimately chose Heaven as the winner.

“She’s having a great day,” Heaven owner Jackie Rakers said as she responded to numerous media interviews.

Heaven wins a year of Pedigree brand dog food, as well as a $ 1,000 donation to the chosen Rakers charity. Rakers will donate dog food to the Kentucky River Regional Animal Shelter. Heaven was first rescued from this shelter in Hazard, Ky., Before becoming a foster dog by Starfish Animal Rescue, based in Plainfield and Batavia in 2019.

When Heaven was first taken in by Starfish Animal Rescue in Batavia, she had to be sterilized and undergo eye surgery. Jackie Rakers accepted paradise as a foster dog before adopting it outright.

“If you can’t adopt, consider volunteering, whether it’s fostering or just volunteering your time at a shelter,” Rakers said.

For the full story, click here.

Shatner talks to Rosemont about historic space flight

Four days after reaching the Last Frontier, William Shatner was speaking at a ballroom packed with supporters in Rosemont.

“So here’s what I did, okay? I went up there and I went back down,” Shatner said to the thunderous applause of hundreds of attendees at the Wizard World Chicago pop culture convention on the 17th. October.

The 90-year-old “Star Trek” actor and his three teammates took off on October 13 from Texas in a Blue Origin rocket, whose capsule peaked at just under 66 miles above the ground, transforming James T. Kirk into a real astronaut with a 10 minute flight.

No training could prepare Shatner to loosen his straps and float around the capsule.

“There are no words in the English language, nor in our experience, to tell you what weightlessness is,” Shatner said, calling the feeling “antithetical” to everything he has. lived.

For the full story, click here.

Muslim policeman breaks barriers in Bartlett

Maha Ayesh is the first of her extended Palestinian American family to become a police officer, joining the Bartlett Police Department last October.

The Lombard resident is also a pioneer in another area. Ayesh is the first Muslim female police officer in the suburbs to wear a hijab, an Islamic head covering.

“I am the first officer wearing the hijabi in Illinois,” said Ayesh, who turned 31 on Tuesday. “One of my biggest inspirations was that I really wanted to challenge cultural barriers.”

Although people are not used to seeing a “hijabi” policeman, there are more Muslim policemen, male and female, in the suburbs today, she added.

“It’s so essential because we bring an experience that a lot of people aren’t used to working with,” Ayesh said. “I want to make a difference, more of my culture and my values ​​to show that we work with people like me in our communities.”

For the full story, click here.

Mundelein seminary celebrates 100 years

One hundred years after the founding of the University of Saint Mary of the Lake / Mundelein Seminary, Cardinal George Mundelein’s original vision remains strong.

Mundelein seminary remains an incubator for seminarians who continue to share their faith and knowledge as Catholic priests in parishes across the country.

The campus celebrated its centenary on October 17 with a mass led by Cardinal Blase J. Cupich and Cardinal Wilton Gregory, Archbishop of Washington, DC, and former student and faculty member of Mundelein.

Cupich read an apostolic blessing from Pope Francis who praised the campus as a “training ground for future shepherds”.

Rev. John Kartje, rector and president of the seminary, said the work of many over the course of a century has led to its success. He mentioned the unsung heroes – gardeners, kitchen workers and housekeepers.

“This big old place looks pretty good for being a hundred years old,” he said.

For the full story, click here.

Lisle library collects donations for victims of domestic violence

The Lisle Library District is joining the Family Shelter Service of Metropolitan Family Services DuPage in organizing a #LovePurse fundraising campaign. A donation box will be in the library lobby at 777 Front Street until October 31.

October is National Domestic Violence Awareness Month, and the #LovePurse campaign provides handbags filled with personal care items to homeless women and girls and / or victims of domestic violence.

The following items are the most wanted: handbags for all ages, feminine products, deodorant, soap, lotion, hand sanitizer, oral hygiene products, face masks, mints, chocolates, lip balm, emery board nail boards, slippers, shower flip flops, socks, face masks, comb / brush, compact mirror and travel shampoo and conditioner.

For more details, visit www.lislelibrary.org.

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