I have worked for Patch as a local editor since September 2010, when I launched the Northbrook Patch site. I ran that site until taking over as editor in Evanston in May 2012.
I have been involved with the news business since age 12, when my first job was stuffing papers (folding the arts section into the news section, which came separately) for a local newsstand in my hometown. Within a year, I was promoted to selling them on the street, where my biggest sales day coincided with the impeachment of Bill Clinton.
I attended college at the University of Chicago, where I majored in English and wrote for the school newspaper, The Maroon. I went on to earn a master of science degree from the Graduate School of Journalism at Columbia University.
While in New York, I covered community news for the weekly Our Town, in addition to writing for the alternative weekly New York Press.
Following graduation, I spent two years in St. Louis, working full-time as associate editor for the weekly newspaper Ladue News while freelancing for the West End Word.
Grace Deetjen and Jeffery Bogue are members of the Illini 4000, riding across the country to support cancer research this summer.
The most-read stories in Naperville last month include Ribfest headliners and a teen who called 911 after his mom disciplined him.
A motorcycle crash that killed a 54-year-old Geneva woman and construction of the Third Street pedestrian mall were among April's most read stories.
James Paul Eaton, 36, is charged with the 1997 murder of Amber Creek, who was 14 at the time and grew up in Palatine.
The most-read stories in Palatine this month include news on two new businesses and high rankings for Palatine high schools.
Charles White, who worked in Frank Lloyd Wright's studio, designed a Glen Ellyn home now on the market for $1.25 million.
Drivers can expect lane reductions through the end of May when the project wraps up.
Most-read stories during the month of April include a Wheaton teacher who helped save a man from the Fox River and a father who stabbed his 3-year-old daughter, then took his life.
Naperville Police Department reports for April 29, 2014.
The "Wandering Bandit" is believed to have committed a string of bank robberies in Illinois, Indiana and Mississippi. In one instance, he wore a cowboy hat.
Grant Van Muren, 21, of St. Charles, was charged with murdering a 55-year-old Naperville man eight hours after he moved in with him.
A Peterson Elementary School student stands to win a college scholarship, and Peterson could get a $50,000 grant if she wins the contest.
Naperville police are seeking the public's help in identifying one or more car burglaries responsible for a series of burglaries
The Batavia Public School District is cooperating with the Batavia Police Department to investigate "inappropriate nude images" taken by middle school students and disseminated via social media, according to the school district.
"Don't be discouraged because you can't win every time," Olympic gold medal-winner Aly Raisman told aspiring gymnasts in Crystal Lake.
Lake in the Hills Police Department reports for April 27-28, 2014.
Festival-goers can enjoy a craft beer garden at Swedish Days this year, assuming the City Council approves the license.
Ralph the mouse, the main character in Beverly Cleary's "The Mouse and the Motorcycle," made a special appearance at Western Avenue Elementary School.
John Gabel, 32, and his father, Gary Gabel, died in an attack in Afghanistan last week.
A 52-year-old Chicago man died of a heart attack while driving a semi-truck on Lake-Cook Road in Palatine.