Found in 2007 at a McHenry Marlins swim meet, this sticker from Hope Lutheran Church says, “Our Christian Family will
“Declare God’s Love. Do God’s will. Dance with the Spirit,” says this sticker from Long Grove’s Hope Lutheran Church.
Whenever I go to a business expo, I look for politicians.
McHenry Marlins line up for an interclub race.
Saturday was McHenry Marlins swim meet day. The McHenry Business Expo was also occurring at McHenry West High School.
State Rep. Jack Franks confers with constituent at the McHenry Expo.
State Rep. Jack Franks (D-Marengo) and State Sen. Pam Althoff (R-McHenry) shared a booth.
State Senator Pam Althoff gestures a lot when she talks.
Both had left by three o’clock, Franks on his way to his big fundraiser in Downtown Chicago and Althoff to prepare for a Raue Center affair at which a scholarship was to be awarded in her late husband Tim’s honor.
I approached Althoff about whether she would vote for a bill to register homeschoolers.
She said she wouldn’t.
Last year this was where I met the Democratic Party candidate for McHenry County Sheriff, Mike Mahon. His presence convinced me that he was going to put on a real campaign.
The McHenry County State's Attorney's booth.
Last year and this year both the State’s Attorney’s and Sheriff’s Office had booths.
Last year Lou Bianchi was in attendance. This year he wasn’t.
The Sheriff's Department's booth.
Sheriff Keith Nygren delegated deputies to staff his county both last year and this year.
John Sherman giving his all at a fall swim meet.
Gusto.
That’s the word that leaped to my mind when I heard that my son’s swimming coach John Sherman had been killed in a motor cycle accident in Southern California.
He gave his all in every endeavor.
Homeschooled, he attended McHenry C0unty College before joining the Marines.
John Sherman found a way to protect his face from the sun at the 2007 Rockfrod Sectional Swim Meet.
At first he was a volunteer coach for the McHenry Marlins Swim Team.
Some of the kids gave him a "Muffin Man" trophy at the end of season swim party.
He received a “Muffin Man” trophy right before his 18th birthday.
Then he became an official coach.
Coach John.
He had such a way with kids.
To get this photo of him in front of the posted one, I had to take a couple of shots.
At the end of season parties he would subject himself to their attempts to pull him under water.
And he expressed his sense of humor in his selection of tee shirts. One I remember said, “I like people. They taste like chicken.”
He had finished his basic training and was taking instruction in intelligence.
The tallest man in the photo is John Sherman.
The men in his unit looked up to him.
The day Boot Camp was over.
And not just because of his height.
Hugging Dad on graduation day.
And was his family proud of him.
You bet.
Below is the obituary posted at McHenry’s Justen Funeral Home:
In Loving Memory
Lance Cpl. John Field Sherman
10/16/1989 – 11/21/2010
Lance Cpl. John Field Sherman, age 21, died November 21, 2010, in San Diego, California following an off duty motor vehicle accident while serving with the 2nd Battalion, 5th Marines,1st Marine Division, Weapons Co. CAAT Plt.
He was born October 16, 1989, in Woodbury, New Jersey, to Brian and Melissa (Field) Sherman.
A resident of McHenry since July of 2004, he was formerly of Chicago.
John Sherman looks a bit uneasy receiving praise at his McHenry Marlins going in the Marines party.
After receiving his high school diploma in May of 2007, John attended McHenry County College, and received his associate degree in December of 2009.
He was a coach for the McHenry Marlins, and a swimming instructor for the Parks and Recreation Department of the City of McHenry.
He also served as a lifeguard at the City of McHenry pool as well as the McHenry High School-West Campus pool.
Listening to more accalades.
He was a junior naturalist at the North Park Village Nature Center in Chicago. John earned his black belt at the Peace School in Chicago, and was a volunteer at the Chicago Public Library System.
From the age of 10, he had always wanted to be a U.S. Marine.
He is survived by his parents; two sisters, Gabrielle and Nora, all of McHenry; his maternal grandmother, Janet Field of Wall, New Jersey, and his paternal grandmother, Janet Sherman of Brick, New Jersey; and his aunts and uncle, Jennifer Field, Allison (Robert) Denton, Andrea (Daryl) Bauter, and David (Dawn) Sherman.
He was preceded in death by his paternal grandfather, John D. Sherman, and his maternal grandfather, John L. Field.
Visitation will be from 4 p.m. until 6 p.m. on Wednesday, December 1, 2010 at Justen Funeral Home & Crematory, 3700 W. Charles J. Miller Road, McHenry, IL 60050.
The funeral service will be at 6 p.m. on Wednesday, December 1, at the funeral home.
Memorials would be appreciated to the USO of San Diego, Downtown Center, 303 A Street, Suite 100, San Diego, CA 92101 or to the McHenry Marlins, P. O. Box 343, McHenry, IL 60051
Friends may send an on-line condolence to the family at www.justenfh.com. For information, call the funeral home at 815-385-2400.
If you want to see how desperate Illinois Democrats are to keep enough Democrats in office to re-elect Mike Madigan House Speaker, consider the following fabrication:
This mailing would have voters think the non-incumbent Republican challenger Jeffrey Junkas is a pawn of Democratic Party House Speaker Mike Madigan.
Democrat Jack Franks, being challenged by Republican John O’Neill, is labeling himself “McHenry County’s Independent Voice.”
Of course, he won’t answer Tribune columnist John Kass’ question about whether he will support Mike Madigan for another term as House Speaker.
But Franks isn’t charging that O’Neill is a “pawn” of Mike Madigan.
Jack Franks' Lincoln SUV with State Rep. license plate 46.
Franks was campaigning in McHenry today.
The license plate on Jack Franks' Cadillac convertible is "BAC JACK."
But he wasn’t driving the snazzy Cadillac convertible he was the last time I saw him in Woodstock.
These teens were pointing the way to the Fun Fair Saturday. The Key Club, Student Council and Honor Society were raising money for UNICEF.
I thought he might have been at the Fun Fair being held at the McHenry West High School gym. But he wasn’t. I guess he was knocking on doors near John O’Neill’s precinct.
The kids loved the big fire truck and army vehicles.
The Fun Fair had a McHenry Township Fire Protection District hook and ladder truck with ladder fully extended to attract attention.
Swimmers lined up for their races late in the meet.
The reason I was at McHenry West was for the swim meet between the McHenry Marlins and the Zion Dolphins.
We sell pickles. As an incentive to sell all in a jar, we give away pickle juice after they are all gone. One girl drank about 24 ounces last year.
I was selling pizza and pickles.
= = = = =
Thanks to Illinois Review for publishing the absolutely false Kevin McCarthy mailing.
I have been told one or more parents offered District 155 a swimming pool at Prairie Ridge High School.
McHenry has an indoor pool at McHenry West High School. The McHenry Marlins, sponsored by the City's Recreation Department, practice and hold meets there, as do the high school water sports teams
But the offer was turned down by either the administration or the school board because the decision-making authority did not want one school have a swimming pool while the other three did not.
No big surprise that families living on the north side of Crystal Lake in the vicinity of Prairie Ridge are better off than families attending the other three high schools.
Last month the Chicago Tribune ran a front page article about how school districts coped with parental financing of school activities in districts with diverse demographics.
So, I’m not surprised that that one or a couple of parents were able to finance a pool.
The logic of all schools getting a swimming pool or none at all is interesting.
From an egalitarian point of view, I guess it can be defended, but look at the location of Prairie Ridge High School.
It is close enough to Cary-Grove High School that those with Cary addresses near East Crystal Lake Avenue in Lake Kilarney were assigned to Prairie Ridge when it opened.
And, it certainly isn’t a world apart from Crystal Lake Central and Crystal Lake South.
Now, District 155 have a combined swim team that practices at the YMCA.
It would be hard to argue that the team could not easily have beeen transported to Prairie Ridge for practice.
So, that leaves gym class.
Prairie Grove students would have been able to take gym in a pool, while those attending the other high schools wouldn’t have been able to do so.
Inequality of instruction, then.
I found this T-Shirt at the McHenry Marlins Swim Team Awards Dinner.
Coach Ben Merwin was wearing it.
He’s a member of the Fellowship of Faith on Mason Hill Road just off what Crystal Lakers call the McHenry Blacktop. (It’s the Crystal Lake Blacktop to McHenry residents,)
The church held a retreat in Lake Geneva last year and the
INCITE ’09
Are you a chocolate milk Christian?
was its theme.
One of the most exciting races pitted McHenry's Elise Raquel against Mt. Prospect's Bianca Haas in the age 9-10 girls relay. If it were a horse race, it would have been a photo finish. Raquel edged Haas out by a quarter of a second (.27, actually), according to the timers.
Last Saturday, the McHenry Marlins beat the Mt. Prospect Sharks 705 to 414 last Saturday at the Mt. Prospect SportsPlex pool.
Part of that was probably because the McHenry team has more members. One Mt. Prospect mother commented on that fact.
McHenry Marlin 12-13 year-old boys urge on clean-up swimmer,
Next up for both teams and others in the Northern Illinois Winter Swim Conference is the Saturday, March 6th conference meet in Zion.
I found this tee shirt at a Knox Pool McHenry Marlins Swim Team meet.
When I first looked at it, I thought the “CPS” stood for Chicago Public Schools.
Seemed strange since the Marlins were up against the Oswego River Rats.
As I got closer, I see it is short for
Today’s tee shirt was found at Knox Pool in McHenry, where the McHenry Marlins were practicing.
It says
In the background is what looks like a bicycle jumping over a row of school buses.
I got a photo of this young man’s tee shirt at the DeKalb Dual Meet on Thursday that will show up some day, too.
Were you ever the first person to a sporting event?
My son and I achieved that distinction when I overestimated the distance to Buffalo Grove High School.
A placid pool.
Note the boy finishing his double fist splash in the second photo.
Diving not quite up to form.
Then, a team mate doing a better job.
Thrashing through warm-up.
I love the splashes from the butterfly.
The end of a leg of a relay.
Part of the crowd, mainly McHenry Marlins.
Touch for the butterfly.
Teenage girls starting the backstroke.
In the middle of a freestyle relay.
Boys turn.
And, finally praise for the official running the meet.
The Schaumburg man is Emil Barbato and he’s been at it 24 years.
Why mention him?
Our experience at Buffalo Grove was so bad last year I didn’t want to return.
The guy in charge yelled all the timke during the meet and had the loudest starting horn I have ever heard.
The concrete block construction made his noise even louder.
I finally had to go out to the corridor by the concession stand because I couldn’t take the noise level.
Mr. Barbato’s officiating was the exact opposite.
He spoke softly.
When people were not quiet enough, he did not shout into his bullhorn.
All we heard most of the time was an amplified,
“Shhhh.”
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