🌱 First Ever Food Aid Festival + River Forest Traffic Study

Happy Monday, OPRF. Let's get to the headlines.

First, today's weather: Mostly sunny and warmer. High: 88 Low: 72.

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Are you a parent in Oak Park looking for summer activities for your child? Magical Minds Studio hosts a series of week-long summer art camps for children from PreK through Middle School, from June 13 to August 19th. Programs include puppet making, Legos, ceramics, clay, painting, photography and Outdoor Adventure for middle schoolers. Enroll by May 15 with the code PATCH2022 and receive a 10% discount. To learn more and to see this summer’s schedule visit Magical Minds Studio today.

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Here are the top 3 stories today in Oak Park-River Forest:

1. State officials are seeking grants to improve the CTA Blue Line, including the Forest Park portion of the train line running alongside the expressway. CTA is also looking to rebuild Austin and Cicero Blue Line stations. (Paid source: Tribune)

2. The first annual Food Aid Festival will be held this weekend in locations throughout Austin and Oak Park. According to AWN, proceeds will benefit “the Oak Park Community Fridge, Beyond Hunger, A House in Austin, Austin Coming Together, Best of Proviso Township and the Westchester Food Pantry.” (AWN)

3. At a meeting next week, River Forest officials will review the results of its northeast neighborhood traffic study. The public is welcome to attend the meeting July 26. (VRF)

Today in Oak Park-River Forest:

• A “Super Seniors” event is held at the River Forest Community Center. (10 a.m.)
• Join the OPRF Chamber of Commerce for “Meditation Monday.” (12:15 p.m.)
• River Forest Public Library offers summer programs in a bag. (All day)

From my notebook:

• Tickets are on sale now for The Book Table’s upcoming event featuring authors W. Kamau Bell and Kate Schatz at Dominican's Performing Arts Center. (Book Table)
• Friday is the final day to donate items to the Friends of the Oak Park Public Library summer book fair, which begins Aug. 5. (Instagram)
• The Park District of Oak Park’s “Pop-Up Bike” will be at Fox Park this morning and in Austin Gardens this afternoon. (PDOP)

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See you tomorrow for more local stories.

— Georgi

About me: Georgi is a Chicago-based newsletter writer and partner content curator. She spent five years on the entertainment beat for FF2 Media covering film festivals across the U.S. Her feature articles have been recognized with awards from the Illinois Women's Press Association and National Federation of Press Women. As editor-in-chief of the Lewis University newspaper, she and her staff earned honors from the Associated Collegiate Press and American Scholastic Press Associations. She began working for Patch in 2019.