Good morning, Chicago.
In the final push to defeat Nazi Germany during World War II, Edward Gorski Jr. was trying to shield himself inside a foxhole in the city of Berlin when the 19-year-old Chicagoan was struck by enemy fire.
It was May 2, 1945, days after Adolf Hitler’s suicide and days before the end of the war in Europe. The shrapnel struck Gorski in the face, and he nearly lost an eye, but he survived to share some wartime stories — including how he earned a Purple Heart for his combat injuries.
“He said you’d see bullets flying, especially at night, and you’d hear them zip,” said a son, Scott Gorski, 62, of North Carolina. “He told me as long as you hear them, you’re fine. It’s when you don’t hear the bullet, that’s when you’re hit.”
His father died in early 1993 after suffering a massive heart attack in his Westmont home. The retired private security captain had turned 67 one month earlier.
Another son, David, said that after his father’s death he put the Purple Heart and other medals in a bank safe-deposit box but lost track of the box.
The family assumed the contents of the safe-deposit box were gone forever until a recent December day when the Tribune tracked them down to say that their father’s medals, including the Purple Heart, had ended up in the unclaimed property section of the Illinois treasurer’s office.
Read the full story from the Tribune’s Christy Gutowski.
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Jimmy Carter, the 39th US president, has died at 100
Jimmy Carter, the peanut farmer who won the presidency in the wake of the Watergate scandal and Vietnam War, endured humbling defeat after one tumultuous term and then redefined life after the White House as a global humanitarian, has died. He was 100 years old.
The longest-lived American president died on Sunday, roughly 22 months after entering hospice care, at his home in the small town of Plains, Georgia, where he and his wife, Rosalynn, who died at 96 in November 2023, spent most of their lives, The Carter Center said.
- In the Presidents’ Club, Jimmy Carter was the odd man out
- Editorial: For Jimmy Carter, the presidency was prologue
Downward trend in homicides continues in Chicago, but officials aren’t celebrating
Chicago saw a 7% overall decrease in murders and nonfatal shootings in 2024, a year hallmarked by the Democratic National Convention and another annual uptick in summer gun violence. But each of CPD’s five patrol areas — clusters of districts that blanket the whole city — saw a reduction in killings year-over-year, city data show.
Chicago buildings to run on 100% renewable energy in 2025
The 411 buildings owned by the city of Chicago will run entirely on renewable energy beginning Jan. 1.
The feat will eliminate 290,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions annually, according to Angela Tovar, the city’s chief sustainability officer. That’s equivalent to taking over 67,500 passenger vehicles off the road each year.
Source of income discrimination still widespread despite new Illinois law, housing advocates say; recent lawsuits may change that
Within the last year and a half, housing attorneys have filed some of the first lawsuits allowed under Illinois’ nearly two-year-old statewide law preventing discrimination on the basis of someone’s source of income. All the complaints allege that the plaintiffs, who had housing vouchers, were discriminated against. Advocates said the discrimination is still widespread across the city and state despite the law, and they’re eager for legal rulings to help hold real estate professionals accountable.
ATVs are swarming Pembroke Township. Residents say a rare ecosystem and the community are defenseless.
Mihesha Gibbs-Lumpkin and her neighbors feel that their once-tranquil community is slowly slipping away. Conservation groups began buying property in the early 2000s to create nature preserves. In the past decade, out-of-town off-road enthusiasts have trespassed on the dunes. They shoot guns and make campfires late into the night, leaving behind bullet casings and beer cans.
The off-road activity has only increased in recent years, according to residents. Gibbs-Lumpkin said she saw droves of 200 to 300 riders at a time descend on the dunes on several occasions this summer. Another resident shared a video with the Tribune of riders revving their engines on an October Sunday at 5:30 a.m.
Lacking its own police force, the less-than-1,900-person township feels attacked and defenseless.
Wild Chicago: Hunters fend off coyotes for a shot at deer on city’s South Side
Joel Gomez, of Blue Island, knows the excitement of “buck fever.” He’s also among a growing number of hunters who have experienced the sensation within Chicago’s city limits.
Greg Gumbel, a Chicago native who spent more than 50 years in sports broadcasting, dies from cancer at 78
Greg Gumbel, a Chicago native who broke barriers calling some of the biggest sporting events, has died from cancer, according to a family statement released by CBS on Friday. He was 78.
“He leaves behind a legacy of love, inspiration and dedication to over 50 extraordinary years in the sports broadcast industry; and his iconic voice will never be forgotten,” his wife Marcy Gumbel and daughter Michelle Gumbel said in the statement.
Column: Why Pete Carroll makes sense as a candidate for the Chicago Bears coaching job
Perhaps Pete Carroll’s age feels like a legitimate deterrent to some, writes Dan Wiederer. He is, after all, a septuagenarian, turning 74 in September 2025. Do the Chicago Bears really want to roll those dice and unite with a gray-haired coach whose NFL career likely won’t reach the end of this decade?
Shouldn’t they be aiming to go younger, filling their head coaching vacancy with a similarly vibrant but much younger leader who might be able to stick around for a long time?
Springfield museum highlights Chicago sculptor Richard Hunt’s work
Chicago sculptor Richard Hunt’s inspiration as an artist was sparked in part by the murder of Emmett Till, the 14-year-old South Side boy who was tortured and lynched during a visit to Mississippi.
Through April, work by Hunt is on display at Springfield’s Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum in an exhibit entitled “Freedom in Form: Richard Hunt.”
Biblioracle: Concluding my 2024 Biblioracle Book Awards for fiction
Among John Warner‘s favorite works of fiction in the past year were books by Sally Rooney, Joseph O’Neill and Kate Greathead.
- Biblioracle: My 2024 Biblioracle Book Awards for fiction, the first half
- Biblioracle: The 2024 nonfiction Biblioracle Book Awards
Christmas trees go on to do good
When it’s time to say goodbye to your Christmas tree, where will it go?
“Live trees picked up from residential neighborhoods will be treated the same way as yard waste,” said Spencer Campbell, Plant Clinic manager at The Morton Arboretum in Lisle. “They will be ground up and processed for use as mulch and compost.”
A new look at Chicago history coming to your inbox
Starting today, the Vintage Chicago Tribune newsletter will publish twice each week. Since February 2022, the popular look back at the city’s history has provided in-depth stories and rarely seen photos from the Tribune archives every Thursday.
New for 2025, the Vintage newsletter will also give a weekly look ahead at significant people and events from Chicago’s past. Consider the Monday edition to be our take on a traditional almanac — with an opportunity to provide your feedback on any items that might be missing!
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