Saturday service for former councilwoman, longtime volunteer
A memorial service for longtime Elgin volunteer Marlene Shales, a two-term Elgin City Council member in the 1980s, will be held from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 25, at Cornerstone United Methodist Church, 41W170 Russell Road, Elgin.
Shales died Nov. 24 at the age of 93.
During her lifetime, Shales worked as a nurse at Sherman Hospital in Elgin, director of Nursing at Four Seasons Nursing Home, patient coordinator at Jayne Shover Easter Seal Center and executive director of the Well Child Conference of Elgin, according to her online obituary.
In addition to her stint on the Elgin council, she also was involved with the Elgin Junior Woman’s Club, Elgin Daycare Center, YWCA of Elgin, Community Crisis Center of Elgin, Elgin Symphony Orchestra, Judson University, Jayne Shover Easter Seal Center, Gail Borden Public Library Foundation, ECC Foundation, VNA of Fox Valley, United Way of Elgin, P.E.O. Elgin Chapter, Altrusa Club of Elgin, League of Women Voters, U-46 Educational Foundation and numerous city of Elgin advisory committees, her obituary said.
Among accolades she received were the Cosmopolitan Distinguished Service Award, Elgin YWCA Marjorie Leonard Award for Volunteer and Community Service, Elgin YWCA Lifetime Achievement Award and a City of Elgin Image Award.
She was preceded in death by her husband Jack, who died in 2018 and whom she wed in 1954.
“They were high school sweethearts at Elgin High School, graduating with the class of 1949,” according to a post on the Gail Borden Public Library Foundation website. “Together they raised four children and created a life in Elgin.”
For more information on the memorial service, call 847-464-4673.
South Elgin HS alum nominated for college TV award
Derry Barnes, who graduated from South Elgin High School in 2020, is among the nominees for a Television Academy Foundation College Television Award.
Barnes and classmates at the University of Miami are nominated in the sports category for SportsDesk, UMTV’s 30-minute, live weekly sports show covering Miami Hurricanes athletics. Barnes was a producer on a nominated episode of the program, according to a news release.
Barnes is a multimedia reporter at Front Office Sports, a multiplatform media and news organization covering sports, business and culture, where he hosts and produces content across digital platforms. He graduated from the University of Miami in May 2024 with a degree in broadcast journalism.
“I put my heart and soul into the school’s TV department. So, it feels incredibly validating to know members of the academy voted for our show as one of the best,” Barnes said in the release.
Competition winners will be announced at an April 5 ceremony at the Television Academy in North Hollywood, California.
Art exhibit opens Friday at Kimball Cobblestone House
A grand opening reception for an oil painting exhibition, “Capturing the Moment,” by Elgin-based artist Nick Freeman will be held from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Friday, Jan. 24, at the Nancy Kimball Cobblestone House, 302 W. Chicago St., Elgin.
Freeman grew up in the Chicago area and moved to Elgin in 2018, according to the Elgin History Museum website. He has been painting for nearly 60 years, studied at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and the Minneapolis College of Art and Design, and is a former production director at a Chicago ad agency.
Wine and cheese will be served at the free reception. Donations will be accepted.
For more information, go to elginhistory.org/event/capturing-the-moment-art-exhibition-by-nick-freeman-opening-reception.
