Cary-Grove Clarion from Cary, Illinois • Page 1

CLARION AN EDITION OF THE NORTHWEST HERALD JCs sponsor Halloween Parade The Cary Park District In conjunction with the Cary-Grove Jay-cees will be sponsoring their annual Halloween Parade on Sunday, Oct. 27. The costume parade will meet at 12:45 p.m. at the Cary Park District Community Center and finish at Maplewood School. Award ribbons will be given to the First throuh Third place winners in seven age divisions.

The categories are: Funniest, Scariest, and Most Original. For more information, call the Park at 639-6100. Friends gather to pray 'With everybody's prayers it will come about Defenders hold recylcllng day October is a good time to clean out garages and basements and bring any cans, glass, oil, and newspaper to the monthly recycling drive in Crystal Lake on Oct 19 from 9 a.m. -1 p.m. This month's drive is Sponsored by McHenry County Defenders, a local environmental organization.

Proceeds from the drive will be shared with the Barrington Middle School. People are encouraged to recycle all of their newspaper, corrugated cardboard, glass, steel and aluminum cans, as well as used motor oil. Recycling saves energy and landfill space, and helps conserve natural resources. Aluminum cans are the only items which are purchased during the monthly drives. Newspapers must be bundled with twine or stacked in paper bags, with all glossy paper and magazines removed.

The Crystal Lake Recycling Drive is located at 6006 Route 14 next to the Ski and Bike shop, and across from the Showplace Theaters. For further information, call the McHenry County Defenders at 815-459-0450 By Donna Duncan Herald staff writer "We need the gift of healing for Paul and we need the gift of faith to enter Into each of us." Thote were words spoken by Tom Miller, a layman who presided at an interfalth prayer meeting held Monday night for Paul Natsch, a sophomore football player from Crystal Lake Central High School About 60 people, Including students wearing lettermen jackets. sang songs and reflected quietly during a touching service at Resurrection Center, 2710 Country Club Rd Woodstock. The service included Bible readings and songs and reflection. Natsch, 15, has been hospitalized since Sept 16 when he was Injured while making a tackle during a football game.

He remains paralyzed and is receiving therapy at the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago. Natsch's grandparents from Michigan and a grandmother from New York attended the service with his parents, Lance and Jeanette Natsch. After a reading from the gospel of Mark, Miller said, "that's what we're doing carrying Paul to Jesus and asking him to heal." He added that the prayers are "to seek the miracle healing of Paul." At one point during the service, Miller asked that everyone stretch out their arms, symbolizing a healing touch, as he said, "Paul cannot be with us today but everyone In spirit can lay our hands on him In spirit." "It was really uplifting. It gave us a feeling of strength and hope. The miracle we really need is going to happen," Lance said, adding, "with everybody's prayers, It will come about." He addej that seeing the other students there made him feel good.

Natsch said his son is In "basically good spirits" and said that Paul had smiled when he heard about the prayer service. Natsch also expressed a positive attitude for his son's progress. "We're working It one day at a time," he said, adding that Paul is naturally competitive. "He's a fighter, definitely," he said. One family friend said of the service, "I was glad to see so many (of Natsch's) friends here." Before the service ended with an uplifting song, "Sing A New Song," a parishioner, Leo Bezdek said Paul and his family are not alone "because we are with them and Christ is with them." Almanac 3 Comics 12 Obituaries 4 Classified 13-19 Brides 8 You want to help, but Scam returns to area ftR BPit mmaaaaaaawaau HHl rfB.

mMtUtlNik By Peter GUI Herald staff writer You receive a call from a man who says he's a bank examiner and he needs your help to catch an employee who is suspected of being crooked. This is the bank that you have entrusted your savings to for years. You feel obligated to lend a hand. But wait! There may be something seriously wrong with this entire situation. According to area bankers, they would not use an em- goyee In an sternal investigation, ut when the phW call comes from someone caiiing nim a bank examiner, the initial reaction is to help out the bank.

Your best reaction would be to call the bank and talk to someone you know works there, or go straight to the police. The bank examiner is probably a con-artist and the fraud he is trying to pull has worked on many unsuspecting savings holders. It happened last year at the First National Bank in Crystal Lake and again on Friday at the Algonquin State Bank. While no one was swindled in either case, no one has been caught by police yet either. The most recent incident was very similar to last year's Crystal Lake Incident.

An elderly woman from rural Dundee Township received a call on Friday from the so-called bank examiner. The man told her that he was testing for a dishonest employee at the Algonquin State Bank. She could help out, he told her, by taking $1,500 out of her savings account and bringing it to him at the Algonquin Post Office. This way, he explained, he could find out if the employee was actually taking out the right amount or withdrawing more money and pocketing some for htm or herself. The woman agreed to help and went to the bank's drive-up teller.

She requested to withdraw $1,500, but was not allowed to take more than $500 unless the transaction was made inside. She then drove to the post office to explain to the bank examiner that she was not allowed to get the correct amount. But the man was not at the post office, so the woman went back to the bank, puzzled. Bank officials were relieved that no one had taken her money when she explained the situation to them. They reported it to the Algonquin police.

The police then gave the information to the Kane County Sheriff's Office, since the woman lived in Kane County. "It's the first incident in many years," said George Lazansky, vice-president of the Algonquin State Bank. He said that he wanted to make sure that employees and customers knew enough about the attempt. "We tried to (alert) both," Lazansky said, "to make people in general aware of it. We want to protect our customers.

Lazansky explained that the drive-in tellers are only authorized to give customers a limited amount of money. One of the reasons is that the drive in teller only holds so much money, another reason is that a bank officer may he needed to take a look at a large transaction. "We try to keep our tellers informed," he added. "We hold security meetings from time to time." The other people that Lazansky informed were the police. Although the police have no definite leads yet, they have a procedure that they go through and are SCAM-Page 2B Clarion Photo by Amy Brown Friends of Paul Natsch attend prayer service Crystal Lake Plaza marks 25th Shopping center has survived fire, tornado, growth and change bined with new brick tiers.

New signs were installed which include all bronze sides and different colored letters. "It has always been a pretty good impact on growth of the city and contributed to progress of the city," Home said. Like any retail center, the plaza has had Its ups and downs through the years, but has maintained a fairly full occupancy. Now, three or four store sites are vacant. Home noted that many new companies moved in within the last few years.

These include Engs Restaurant, Maggies Irish Boutique, Car Quest and New Life Bookstore. Nelson's Jewelry Store is celebrating its 23rd anniversary this month. The owners are Art and Alice Nelson and are assisted by their sons Bob and Rich. Their store was one of the few untouched by the tornado of 1965, which destroyed much of the plaza, Bob recalls. He said the business seemed to grow at a "tremendous rate" after the tornado.

The growth of Coventry subdivision also promoted more business at the plaza, he said. ued to grow. The first fire completely destroyed the old Mays Drug Store in 1977. That same year, a fire damaged a cleaners store and in 1979, a fire swept through True Value. Thanks to fire insulation walls, the fires did not spread to adjoining businesses, said William Home, architect.

Home opened his business at the plaza in 1974 and was Involved in rebuilding the former Mays Drug Store and the new True Value. Since then, he has redesigned store interiors. In 1962, the plaza received a new image, as Home worked on revamping the entire facade of the plaza. The purpose of the remodeling was to improve the appearance by unifying the signs and facing, Home said. The front of the center was done with plaster and stone, com disasters, including three fires and a tornado, and continued to thrive as a major retail center In the city.

In 1961, the area known as the was built, which included the First National Bank, now the home of All American Sports. The plaza expanded to the east of the In 1962-1964 which was the former site of Niesner's, a variety store, now a True Value hardware store. The last buildings were completed in 1972 at the far end, where Western Auto used to be. Now the New Life bookstore occupies half of that space. Two of the oldest businesses to have remained at the plaza through at least two decades are Nelson's Jewelry and the HC.

Stamp Coin Co. Despite three fires and a tornado, the Crystal Lake Plaza has contin By Donna Duncan Herald staff writer Crystal Lake Plaza on Route 14 Is celebrating Its 25th anniversary this week, Oct 14-19. In celebration of the, anniversary, the Crystal Lake Plaza Merchants Association will host a drawing to be held at 3 m. on Saturday In the A grandmother's clock and a VCR will be given away, along with 27 125 gift certificates from participating merchants. Built in 1959, the plaza is deemed the oldest shopping center of its size in Crystal Lake, which had originally included a Piggly Wtggly supermarket plus a scattering of other stores.

Now, the shopping center has a total of 33 businesses plus office space all within 165,000 square feet. The plaza survived its share of Clarion photo by Scott Brook Two of the two oldest businesses at the Crystal Lake Plaza, Nelson's Jewelry and the HC Stamp It Coin Company, are among a vanishing breed of family-owned businesses being surrounded by corporations. At left, is what Nelson's looked like in 1961, before the plaza remodeling. It has been in the same location for 23 years this month. At right, Harry Choklad, owner of HC Stamp Coin Company, stands by a coin display at bis business, which has been at the Crystal Lake Plaza since 1962.

He and his wife, Hilda, and son Steve, are the sole operators o( the store, "rve dm a smau business and kept the same location because the price and size was right," he said..