🌱 Where To Find Free COVID Tests + D97 Honored + Eastland Anniversary

Happy Sunday, Oak Park and River Forest! Let's get to today's headlines.

First, today's weather: Not as hot with a t-storm. High: 87 Low: 71.

🏡 Attention, real estate pros in Oak Park-River Forest! We're now offering an exclusive sponsorship opportunity for an agent interested in attracting local clients and standing apart from the competition. Click here to learn more.

Here are the top 4 stories in Oak Park-River Forest today:

1. Six people are in police custody for attacking and stabbing a CTA Red Line passenger Friday on Chicago’s north side. The news comes just days after River Forest resident Ed McDevitt penned a letter to Wednesday Journal about the daily dangers of using the transit service. (WGN/WJ)

2. The Oak Park Department of Public Health is offering free COVID-19 testing almost every day of the week, according to the village website. Both PCR and rapid tests are available Tuesdays at Cheney Mansion, Wednesdays at the main fire station, during Thursday Night Out events downtown and on Saturdays at the Farmers Market. (VOP)

3. The Rotary Club of Oak Park-River Forest is offering grants for pre-teen girls to attend educational camps. Up to $600 are available for families in need. The application deadline is Aug. 1. (Wednesday Journal)

4. On this day in 1915, 10 Oak Park residents died when the S.S. Eastland sank in the Chicago River. The WTTW documentary "The Eastland Disaster" chronicles the tragedy, which killed more than 800 Chicagoans. (OPRF Museum)

Today in Oak Park-River Forest:

• "Christmas in July" at First United Methodist Church. (10 a.m.)
• Take a guided native plant walk at Trailside Museum. (10:30 a.m.)
• Donna Herula performs at Scoville Park’s Summer Concert series. (6 p.m.)
• See “The Great McGinty” at Lake Theatre as part of the Eighth Annual Irish American Movie Hooley. (7 p.m.)

From my notebook:

• Oak Park parishes are working on renaming their new communities, which consolidated from four congregations into two earlier this summer. (Bulletin)
• The Oak Park Public Library is suggesting books to read for International Self-Care Day. (OPPL)
• School District 97 was recognized by the Midwest PBIS Network for “implementing an equitable, multi-tiered system of support for students.” (D97)
• An addax calf was born at Brookfield Zoo earlier this month. (Instagram)

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Events:

• One-of-A-Kind Meerkat Experience Coming To Oakbrook Center (August 2)
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Thanks for following along and staying informed! See you tomorrow for another week of news.

— Georgi Presecky

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.

Have a news tip or suggestion for an upcoming Oak Park-River Forest Daily? Contact me at georgi.presecky@patch.com.