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Published in the Chicago Hyde Park Herald
By Jamie Kalven
Contributing writer
Bruce Sagan, who died last Sunday at the age of 96, had two great loves: his wife (and partner in many ventures) Bette Cerf Hill and the city of Chicago.
Great love stories tend to be exclusive affairs. Not so in the case of Bruce and Bette. The love they shared was expansive. It welcomed others—a large family spanning four generations, a wide circle of friends and anyone who had the good fortune to encounter them—into a world that was gracious, convivial, playful and endlessly stimulating. To be in their presence was to be alive to life's possibilities.
A similar spirit animated Bruce's relationship with the city. At once modest and utterly self-assured, he left an enduring mark on Chicago but did not feel a need to affix his name or create monuments to himself. There is no Sagan Theater, no Sagan Center for the Performing Arts, no Sagan Institute. Yet it's hard to think of anyone who has made greater contributions to our common life. A number of treasured cultural spaces in the city—the Steppenwolf Theater, the Joffrey Ballet and the Printers Row Book Fair—would not exist in their present forms, were it not for Bruce's strategic clarity, entrepreneurial elan and personal generosity.
He brought the same qualities to the struggle for a more equitable city, serving as chair of the Illinois Housing Development Authority and playing a prominent role in the fight against redlining, but it is, above all, as a newspaper man that, I am quite sure, he would want to be remembered.
This publication was at the center of his life's work. Having purchased it at the age of 24, it became the nucleus of the publishing empire of community newspapers he ultimately built. After he sold the Economist Newspaper Group in 1988, he retained ownership of the Herald, finally converting it into a non-profit and merging it with the South Side Weekly in 2022.
In this time of economic precarity and uncertainty in journalism, no one in the field was more clearsighted, unsentimental and open to innovation than Bruce in his 90s. I always came away from our conversations with renewed clarity and an infusion of his contagious vigor.
It seems odd to describe someone so relentlessly practical as a visionary, but no other word will do. Bruce had a vision of urbanity— of the possibilities of urban life—and worked throughout his long life to realize it. In a sense, the city was his medium.
Bette reported to friends that, as death approached, Bruce said to her with characteristic ardor and fidelity to the facts, "I thought our love would last forever, I was wrong."
I can hear Brace's voice speaking those achingly beautiful words. They resonate with the uncanny combination of hardheaded realism and immense generosity of spirit that graced the lives of all who knew him and were privileged to witness the love he shared with Bette.
herald@hpherald.com
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: February 17, 2026 Contact Information: Katie Lewis (217) 525-8012 katie@ioaweb.org
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: February 16, 2026 Media Contact Information: Carrie Skogsberg carrie.skogsberg@countryfinancial.com
COUNTRY Financial and the Illinois High School Association (IHSA) are providing an opportunity for local high schools to win $5,000 to benefit their athletic department and student athletes through the “Sport Your School Giveaway.” Individuals can enter their school to win through May 30, 2026. This is the second time COUNTRY has held the Sport Your School Giveaway. Staunton High School was the winner of the first giveaway, which ran during the first half of the 2025-2026 school year. COUNTRY has been a sponsor of the IHSA for more than 50 years and is the presenting sponsor for 40 IHSA state championships for various high school sports throughout the 2025-2026 school year. “COUNTRY has a highly valued, longstanding relationship with the IHSA,” said Nikki Johnson, vice president of marketing at COUNTRY. “Schools are the lifeblood of our communities, and we are proud to be part of bringing championship opportunities to students and communities throughout the state.” Learn more and enter your school to win. Learn more about the partnership between COUNTRY and the IHSA.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: February 12, 2026 Media Contact Information: Bob Hubberts (847) 508-4995 bhubberts@firstillinoisrobotics.org
Chicago, Illinois – Creativity and science will come together this Saturday at the FIRST® LEGO® League Challenge Illinois State Championship at Elgin Community College, 1700 Spartan Drive, Elgin, Illinois, where 56 teams of 9- to 14-year-old students and coaches will demonstrate their problem-solving skills, creative thinking, teamwork, competitive play, sportsmanship, and sense of community. The tournament is open to the public. The robot table competition portion of the event starts at Noon on Saturday, February 14th. More than 650,000 students in over 75 countries will participate in the FIRST® UNEARTHED season. Teams will have to program robots, using LEGO Education technology, to solve a set of missions on an obstacle course set on a thematic playing surface. For the UNEARTHED challenge students will unearth hidden treasures and piece together the past as they embark on this thrilling journey of discovery. Students will identify and research a problem related to the season theme and then design and create a possible solution. They will also identify a mission strategy and design, create, and code a robot to complete missions during a 2.5-minute Robot Game. The competition is judged in three areas: innovation project; robot design, and core values, which embody aspects of teamwork and good sportsmanship. Top robot game scores are also honored. FIRST LEGO League is an international program for 9- to 14-year-olds (ages vary by country) created in a partnership between FIRST and the LEGO Group in 1998 to get students excited about science and technology – and teach them valuable career and life skills. Using LEGO® Education technologies and materials, students work alongside adult mentors to design, build, and program autonomous robots and create an innovative solution to a problem as part of their research project. After several intense weeks, the competition season culminates at high-energy, sports-like tournaments. Like any other organized “sport,” teams also fundraise, create a team identity, and go on field trips. The tournament is being run by FIRST Illinois Robotics, a 501 c3 organization focused on delivering FIRST programs in Illinois. Contact us for a list of the area schools and youth organizations with teams participating in the competition. About FIRST® FIRST® is a robotics community that prepares young people for the future through a suite of inclusive, team-based robotics programs for ages 4-18 (PreK-12) that can be facilitated in school, in structured after-school programs or by other organizations or groups of parents. Boosted by a global support system of volunteers, educators, and sponsors that include over 200 of the Fortune 500 companies, teams operate under a signature set of FIRST Core Values to conduct research, fundraise, design, build, and showcase their achievements during annual challenges. An international not-for-profit organization founded in 1989, FIRST has a proven impact on STEM learning, interest, and skill-building well beyond high school. Participants and alumni of FIRST programs gain access to education and career discovery opportunities, connections to exclusive scholarships and employers, and a place in the FIRST community for life. Learn more at firstinspires.org.
### To learn more about FIRST programs in Illinois, go to www.firstillinoisrobotics.org.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: January 7, 2026 Media Contact Information: Christopher Weishaar Digital Public relations Specialist (515) 273-7140 cweishaar@studentloan.org
WEST DES MOINES, IOWA (January 7, 2026) — Six high school seniors will each earn a scholarship valued at $1,500 through the 2026 ISL Midwest Senior Scholarship program. This program is sponsored by ISL Education Lending and is designed to make higher education more accessible while equipping students with essential financial literacy skills. Who Can Apply? All high school seniors attending school in Illinois, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, South Dakota and Wisconsin are eligible to enter. No essay is required—making it simple and stress-free to apply. Parents Can Register Their Student Parents now have the option to register their student for the scholarship program, ensuring every eligible senior has the opportunity to participate. What Makes This Program Unique? Every participant will learn valuable financial literacy tips during the process, helping them prepare for life after high school. How to Apply Applications open on January 5, 2026, and close on April 30, 2026. Students and parents can apply online at www.iowastudentloan.org/Midwest. Winners will be announced in June 2026. Scholarship Details
Why It Matters “Student loan debt is a huge concern for new college students,” said Steve McCullough, president and CEO of ISL Education Lending. “As a nonprofit, we provide tools and resources to help high school seniors plan so they can reduce the amount of debt they need to take on while achieving their education goals. Students sign up for a chance at a $1,500 scholarship, and we take that opportunity to share information with them about our free resources.” Additional Resources Available In addition to offering student loans, ISL Education Lending has other resources for families planning for college and for students who intend to pursue advanced degrees. The Parent Handbook consists of valuable tips to help families of students in sixth through 12th grades prepare for success in college and other postsecondary options. Parents of students in eighth through 12th grades can also sign up to receive twice-monthly emailed tips on academic, college and career planning through the Student Planning Pointers for Parents program. The College Funding Forecaster helps families understand the total cost of four years of college based on a freshman-year financial aid offer. Information about these resources is available at www.IowaStudentLoan.org/SmartBorrowing.
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About ISL Education Lending Established in 1979 as Iowa Student Loan Liquidity Corporation, a private, nonprofit organization, ISL Education Lending helps students and families obtain the resources necessary to succeed in postsecondary education. ISL has helped nearly 400,000 students pay for college, offering student loans and other products under the name ISL Education Lending. The organization, based in West Des Moines, Iowa, also provides an array of borrower benefits, financial literacy tools and community reinvestment programs, including support for free college planning services for students and their families. For more information, visit www.IowaStudentLoan.org.
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