Pat Nabong/Sun-Times
Every year for the last two decades, thousands of people ascend to North Avenue to dive into the frigid waters of Lake Michigan to raise money for Special Olympics Chicago and Special Children’s Charities.
In 2020, nearly 5,000 people charged into the lake, raising a record-setting $2.2 million during what turned out to be one of the last major events in the city to take place before the pandemic uprooted life as we knew it.
But that wasn’t the case this year. Like so many other traditions, this year’s Polar Plunge was forced to take place virtually, with Sunday marking the final day of the weeklong event.
9:10 p.m. Student mental health struggles intensify as high schools remain closed year into pandemic
Sara Cawley, 16, a junior at Walter Payton College Preparatory High School, created a Google classroom for the school’s Positive Mental Health Association, a club she founded to allow students to talk about mental health.
Ashlee Rezin Garcia/Sun-Times
When the coronavirus pandemic first closed schools last year, one Chicago mother watched as her son then a freshman at a public school on the North Side became hyper-focused on Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s daily briefings, spurring disappointment every time he announced a delay in reopening schools.
Photos: Polar Plunge, pandemic edition at St Patrick High School suntimes.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from suntimes.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Thunder By The Bay revs up
23rd Annual Thunder By The Bay By Justin Hobbs | February 19, 2021 at 8:47 PM EST - Updated February 19 at 8:47 PM
SARASOTA, Fla. (WWSB) -The 23rd Annual Thunder By The Bay Music & Motorcycle Festival is scheduled to take place this weekend (February 19-21) at the Sarasota Fairgrounds to benefit Suncoast Charities for Children. This year’s Festival is presented by Rossiter’s Harley-Davidson and S&S Motorsports and will feature two bike shows, a motorcycle stereo “sound off” competition, over 80 vendors, continuous live music, a motorcycle builders invitational, and more!
Featured headliner for this year’s Festival is Molly Hatchet. Other bands performing include Maiden Cane, Greg Billings Band, One Night Rodeo, The Tucci Project, The Lost Boys, Twinkle and Rock Soul Radio, and Nobody’s Fool. Guests are encouraged to bring their own lawn chair and/or blanket.