Chicagotalks » Chicago

Families question support after loved ones’ killings

Caitlin Baxa — Thu, 06 Jun 2013 12:04:23 +0000

When Donna Howard’s 18-year-old son was shot to death more than a year and a half ago, she didn’t know where to turn for support. “We were exhausted, crying and speaking on Facebook,” says Howard. Her son Delvonta Porter was killed Oct. 24, 2011, in the South Shore neighborhood, just blocks from home. Howard found [...]

The post Families question support after loved ones’ killings appeared first on Chicagotalks.

Unsolved homicide not forgotten

Lori Amos — Thu, 06 Jun 2013 12:02:03 +0000

More than a year after a 20-year-old Chicago man was killed, friends and family continue to update his memorial Facebook page. “R.I.P Joel Verdugo” has garnered 275 likes with posts that express the sadness, anger and grief his friends and family have experienced since his death. An unknown assailant shot Verdugo in the head March [...]

The post Unsolved homicide not forgotten appeared first on Chicagotalks.

Lonely anniversary

Patrick Smith — Wed, 05 Jun 2013 12:10:43 +0000

Mother’s Day was the one-year anniversary of Christopher Reeves’ death. His mother, Kimberly Reeves, marked the occasion by going to the store, buying a single white balloon and setting it free above her house in West Englewood – the same ritual she observed when her middle child missed his 22nd birthday in December. But aside [...]

The post Lonely anniversary appeared first on Chicagotalks.

Homicide victim’s mother sees progress in Englewood

Patrick Smith — Wed, 05 Jun 2013 12:08:32 +0000

Christopher Reeves’ younger brother Jermaine Reeves dedicated himself to “making Chris proud” after his brother’s killing. Kimberly Reeves says he’s excelling at Benedict College in Columbia, S.C., but she’s nervous about summer break. “I just wish he could stay there at school. He’ll be home (in June), and he won’t go back until August, so [...]

The post Homicide victim’s mother sees progress in Englewood appeared first on Chicagotalks.

For some, the grieving never ends

Yvette Cruz — Wed, 05 Jun 2013 12:00:16 +0000

She never knows when it’s going to happen. The last time it did, Darlene Clair-Clark was in the bathroom at work when she suddenly remembered she’s lost two sons to homicide and broke down. The 55-year-old mother of three wishes she could forget the losses and just remember the lives, but the pain she feels [...]

The post For some, the grieving never ends appeared first on Chicagotalks.

Families say silence the norm after Chicago homicides

Sarah J. Pawlowski — Tue, 04 Jun 2013 12:00:18 +0000

Victoria Alvarez, Veronica Lewis and Annette Cannon wonder if anyone will ever be charged with killing their sons. The three women share the same sad, seemingly unending journey of seeking justice for a loved one lost to violence – one that hundreds of other Chicago families know all too well. Cannon, whose 29-year-old son, Steven [...]

The post Families say silence the norm after Chicago homicides appeared first on Chicagotalks.

Family seeks answers after 8th grader’s murder

Grace Cain — Tue, 04 Jun 2013 11:58:56 +0000

Rocio Alvarado wonders if anyone will be charged with the shooting death of her 14-year-old brother. An unknown assailant shot Alejandro “Alex” Jaime May 18, 2012, as he rode his bike with a friend near his family’s home in Brighton Park just two weeks before the family had planned to move to a safer neighborhood. [...]

The post Family seeks answers after 8th grader’s murder appeared first on Chicagotalks.

Argument over basketball game takes parents’ only child

Mario Lekovic — Tue, 04 Jun 2013 11:56:38 +0000

Basketball posters cover the walls of Tony McCoy Jr.’s room. Trophies from the sports teams he played on line the shelves, and an unorganized collection of CDs can be found throughout the room. There are enough gym shoes to equip an entire basketball team. It looks like any other teenage boy’s bedroom, except there’s a [...]

The post Argument over basketball game takes parents’ only child appeared first on Chicagotalks.

Left in the dark

Christopher Svymbersky — Tue, 04 Jun 2013 11:54:17 +0000

More than eight months after the killing of an Uptown salon owner, friends and family are growing impatient with the Chicago Police Department’s progress in finding her killer. Since Sept. 2, 2012, when 45-year-old Yolanda Holmes was found dead of multiple stab wounds and a gunshot wound to the head in her apartment, police have [...]

The post Left in the dark appeared first on Chicagotalks.

Latino Policy Forum Gets Parents to Springfield and Beyond

Cesar Morales — Tue, 04 Jun 2013 11:52:11 +0000

Aimee Santiago is a Chicago native and mother of two children, 3-year-old Emiliano and 5-year-old Tlanextli. She had tried for four to five months to find a preschool for her oldest child. There was a waiting list. She and her husband qualify financially for a local program but if she got a raise at work, [...]

The post Latino Policy Forum Gets Parents to Springfield and Beyond appeared first on Chicagotalks.