About Half of Morton Grove Candidates Attend Unity Breakfast

With pencils and pens poised, eleven people gathered around a conference table for a "Unity Breakfast" on Saturday morning at the American Legion Memorial Civic Center, at 6140 Dempster St.

Over coffee and doughnuts, Morton Grove election candidates, as well as Village Mayor Dan Staackmann and Village Trustee Larry Gomberg, discussed the future of the community.

Staackmann, who organized the event, said the event aimed "to share and discuss information regarding current and upcoming challenges facing the Village of Morton Grove community as a whole."

Issues discussed included the idea of "branding" the village for marketing purposes; the need to include immigrant communities who speak languages other than English; and the desire to make Morton Grove a more welcome place for pedestrians. 

By the end of the hour-long meeting, those in attendance all agreed it was a worthwhile discussion and should be repeated. 

According to Staackmann's attendance sheet, the people who attended the meeting are: Paul Berg, Georgianne Brunner, Jerry Coursey, Sheldon Marcus, Paul McGivern, John Pietron, John Thill, Maria Toth and Richard Toth. 

The mayor did note that several election candidates were out of town, but said he was disappointed with the turn-out.