Community Relations Commission

APPROVED MINUTES OF A MEETING OF THE COMMUNITY RELATIONS COMMISSION NORTHBROOK, ILLINOIS SEPTEMBER 12, 2013 The meeting was called to order at 7:05 p.m., in the Pollack Room, at the Northbrook Public Library, by Chair Ray Wehr. Members Present: Elliot Bruckman, Bruce Doughty, Dale Duda, Scott Gertz, Linda Goldsher, Wileen Hsing, Kamyar Jabbari, Chris Kosla, Alice Lonoff, Dr. Rochelle Singer, Nancy Stoddard, Susan Weil, and Chair Wehr. Excused Members: Sue Huang, Ron Mantegna, and Marian Cross. Also Present: Alex Chachkevitch (Chicago Trib Local), Liaison Kendal Maltas, and Recording Secretary LeeAnn Artstein. Welcome Chair Wehr welcomed Chicago Trib Local Reporter Alex Chachkevitch to the meeting. Hear from Audience Chicago Trib Local Reporter Alex Chachkevitch stated she reports for Northbrook and Glenview and plans to attend our meetings. Chair Wehr extended his appreciation to her for keeping everyone informed. Approval of August 1, 2013 CRC Meeting Minutes Member Doughty moved, seconded by Member Singer, to approve the minutes of the August 1, 2013 meeting, as amended:  On page 5, 2nd line, “…squared off in the national debate finals…” replaced “...competitive debate finals…” On voice vote, the amended minutes were approved. For the record, Member Singer commended Recorder Stacy J. Seiden for the nice minutes she did for us. Approval of September 3, 2013 Youth Forum Subcommittee Minutes Member Singer moved, seconded by Member Doughty, to approve the minutes of the September 3, 2013 meeting, without corrections. On voice vote, the minutes were approved. Approval of the July 17, 2013 Youth Forum Subcommittee Minutes Member Singer moved, seconded by Member Doughty, to approve the minutes of the July 17, 2013, meeting without corrections. On voice vote, the minutes were approved. Village Forum Update Chair Wehr stated that the subcommittee met last week and are scheduled to meet again on September 25. The subcommittee meetings are open to the public. Anyone interested in attending can go to the Village website and click on the posted CRC Minutes to find dates for upcoming meetings. Chair Wehr thanked Liaison Maltas for doing an outstanding job collecting the repository information. To date, she has received responses from all but one of the agencies. Chair Wehr provided an update on the subcommittee’s progress for the Youth Forum and Northbrook Cares initiative. A template has been made for the Northbrook Cares website, which will provide a resource listing. There is interest in working with Glenbrook North High School to get student input for the website. It is important to have the website provide resources that are meaningful to the students. Member Hsing suggested that Facebook be considered as a way for students to find the website and its resources. From her teaching experience, she sees that students head to Facebook first for information. Liaison Maltas responded that the Village’s communication policy has some restrictions with Facebook and Twitter accounts. She will bring this suggestion to the attention of the Village Manager and the Village Communications Manager. The subcommittee is working towards completing the initiative’s first step which is to launch the website, NorthbrookCares.com. An idea presented was to have a presence at the Glenbrook North football game on October 18 where information could be distributed. Once the feedback starts coming in as to who is using the website and how it is being used, a determination could be made as to what type of information would be best. Chair Wehr thanked Liaison Maltas for organizing and keeping everyone on track with the initiative. Special thanks to Nancy Vacarro from the Police Department, members of the service organizations, Park District, and the North Suburban YMCA, for their participation in this initiative. Sister City Project Update Member Doughty updated everyone on the Sister City initiative that was proposed by Northbrook resident Sara Hamed at last month’s meeting. Ms. Hamed proposed that Northbrook connect with her hometown of Anabta, located on the West Bank. Since that meeting, he was able to get together with Chair Wehr and Ms. Hamed. They were able to come together in understanding as to what needs to occur for this initiative to be successful. Member Doughty noted that the CRC will use a similar procedure to one used a few years ago for the Character Counts initiative. The CRC will look at the Sister City initiative, research it, evaluate it, and come up with a recommendation for the Village Board. The Village Board would then look at it and decide how to move forward with it. The CRC will need to make sure the project is consistent with our values and our mission. The CRC will need to see how our values will be consistent with sister cities from all around the world. He reminded everyone that this is an apolitical commission. Our goal would be whether to establish more than one relationship between our village and other villages around the world. Diversity is very important for this project. Ms. Hamed’s town may be a great candidate. The CRC will be looking at various types of candidates and hoping to implement more than one type of program. The first step is finding U.S. cities currently part of the Sister City initiative, contacting them, and gathering information from them. We will need to see how much interest there is for the initiative, and if it is going to grow and reach out to other cities over time. Member Gertz asked about financial responsibility. Chair Wehr replied that if the village approved the project, it would approve the basic application fee. The CRC is not involved in fundraising or finding any additional funding. At last month’s meeting, Ms. Hamed had discussed fundraisers in her proposal. Chair Wehr and commission members commended Member Doughty for his update of the Sister City initiative. Update to Community Resource Guide Chair Wehr stated he will get the information out to everyone by email within the week. A status report should be available for the December 4 clergy luncheon. Commission Event/Activity Review Member Singer reported that Ron Mantegna will be helping her with next year’s Black History Month event. Anyone who would like to be on the subcommittee, please let Member Singer know before she starts selecting dates. She would like at least three people from the outside to be on the subcommittee. Member Hsing stated that she knows someone who may be interested. The program is still in the planning stages. Last year’s event was a panel discussion comprised of four (4) black panelists. The experiences they shared went beyond just Northbrook, and it became a North Shore experience. The panelists told their individual stories. A discussion with the audience followed. The event was well received with 55 people in attendance. 2 Chair Wehr asked CRC members to provide Member Singer with feedback for the Black History Month, and a discussion followed. Member Doughty liked the idea that the 2012 event was more current. It is important that our kids learn about Black History at school. Our kids also need to learn what is currently going on with Black Americans. Member Jabarri suggested that people get together to talk about their individual reactions to scenes from the movies “Butler” and “Help”. Member Duda liked the programs that opened up to the audience for discussion. Member Bruckman suggested inviting a Black American (political) guest speaker. There was a short review of previous CRC Black History Month events that included plays held at GBN, a children’s group at the library, and the professor from Columbia College who showed scenes from Black movies followed with audience discussion. News from Clergy Association and Houses of Worship Member Kosla, the new representative for the Clergy Association, reported on the September 12 Clergy Meeting:  Northbrook United Methodist Church’s Links Pride Youth Program started Sept. 11, and will meet every Wednesday, at 4:15 pm. It is linked with LGBTQ. All middle school youth are welcome to attend.  Our Lady of the Brook will hold a book discussion about Mothers of the Church on Sept. 24, 8:30 – 12 noon, and serve a continental breakfast at 8:30 am.  Congressman Schneider will be at Gloria Dei on Oct. 15, 9 am, to discuss issues with clergy and the community. It is open to the public.  Harvest Fest will be held on Oct. 19, 5 – 10 pm, at St. Giles. There will be a potluck dinner and music. Everyone is invited.  Crop Hunger Walk will be held on Oct. 20, 1-3 pm, starting at Northbrook United Methodist Church, at Western & Cherry. Everyone is invited to participate in the fundraiser.  St. Norbert will host an expert panel discussing domestic violence on Nov. 2 & 3, followed by a meeting on Nov. 4, 7 pm.  Thanksgiving Celebration will be held on Nov. 27, 7 pm, at the Northbrook United Methodist Church.  The Clergy luncheon will be held on Dec. 4. CRC Liaison Maltas will check with the Village to make sure the date is okay.  Our Lady of the Brook will have guest speaker Amy Jill Levine, on April 3 & 4, 2014, to talk about her book, “The Misunderstood Jew.” It is an Orthodox Jew’s take on the New Testament.  St. Peter is currently renting a space on Wagner Rd., in Northfield, until they find another location. Rev. Jan Smith retired. The new pastor is Rev. Clint Collins.  There is a new Imam at the Islamic Cultural Center, who is from Bosnia.  Clergy are very interested in the Youth Forum and the Northbrook Care initiative. Liaison Maltas stated she will email the Approved June 19, 2013 CRC--Youth Summit Report to Member Kosla, who will forward it to the clergy. News from Schools Member Doughty reported that GBN is open and is off to a great start. The biggest change this year is the addition of Chromebook laptops for all freshmen, sophomores, juniors, and an option for seniors. It is part of a one-to-one digital learning initiative. This has changed the way things are done at school. Last night was Parents Night. Parents learned about some exciting new developments for teaching and the way homework is being done. 3 GBN Homecoming is coming up on Friday, September 27. Old Business  Northbrook United Methodist Church will be celebrating Martin Luther King Day on January 20, 2014. A MLK Day planned activity list was sent out to CRC members. If anyone has questions, etc., contact Member Lonoff.  Northbrook United Methodist Church held a very successful Spaghetti Dinner Food Pantry fundraiser on September 7.  Our Lady of the Brook CRC representative, Marian Cross, will not be able to attend CRC meetings for awhile due to family issues. Please keep her on the mailing list. She hopes to return in January.  Liaison Maltas reminded everyone of our Library meeting room schedule before construction begins in March, 2014: Oct. 3 Civic Room Jan. 2 Civic Room Nov. 7 Pollack Room Feb. 6 Civic Room Dec. 5 Civic Room  Due to a shift in the CRC’s September 5 meeting calendar, Park District Exec. Dir./CEO Rick Hanetho was not able to attend the rescheduled meeting on September 12. He will be here for our October 3 meeting. New Business There was no new business to report. Eyes & Ears on the Street  Member Duda invited members to catch a taped interview she had with some of the Farmers Market vendors on “Talk Around Town” with Jack Coombe and Susan Carrington. The segment airs on our cable stations during the month of Sept., 8 am and 8 pm daily.  Shermerfest, the major fundraiser event for the Northbrook Historical Society, will be held on Sept. 15. The Farmers Market and the Historical Society are co-sponsoring an apple dessert baking contest. Judging the contest will be Celebrity Chef Gail Gand, Sunset Food’s Ron Bernardi, and food critic Rob Gardner. The winner will receive a $100 gift certificate from Prairie Grass Restaurant.  Our Lady of the Brook will have a Priceless Treasurers Sale on Sept. 22, at 9 am. Monetary donations are requested for purchasing sale items without prices. The sale is open to the public.  Northbrook United Methodist Church will have a Rummage Sale on September 28.  Congratulations to Nbk Jr. Spartans Football League, who went 5 in 1 in their opening weekend. Next Meeting – October 3, 2013 The next meeting is scheduled for Thursday, Oct 3, 2013, in the Civic Room. Adjournment At 8:21 p.m., Member Gertz made a motion to adjourn, and it was seconded by Member Doughty. On voice vote, the motion passed. Respectfully Submitted, /s/LeeAnn Artstein Recording Secretary 4