Fraternal Order of Police President John Catanzara walks with a supporter into a Chicago Police Board hearing in the Loop on Nov. 15, 2021. | Ashlee Rezin/Chicago Sun-Times

This kindred spirit of former President Donald J. Trump will fan the flames of racism, bigotry and fear. Sadly, that’s a campaign that may appeal in some quarters of this divided and divisive city.

He’s leaving, but he’s not going anywhere. In fact, John Catanzara will be bigger, brasher and more incendiary than ever.

On Tuesday, the controversial president of the Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 7 quit his job as a patrol officer and simultaneously declared he will challenge his abiding nemesis, Mayor Lori Lightfoot, in 2023.

The Chicago Police Board was poised to consider firing Catanzara on the recommendation of Chicago Police Supt. David Brown, following investigations by the Civilian Office of Police Accountability and the Chicago Police Department.

The uber-controversial, always tendentious union leader was elected by the 12,000-member FOP in May 2020, even though he has spent much of his 26-year police career under investigation.

He was charged with violating 11 police department rules in connection to 18 allegations, including making offensive and controversial statements on social media, insubordination and filing a false report.

Catanzara has amassed at least 35 complaints in his career, and previous police superintendents have tried to fire him twice, according to the Chicago Tribune.

This time, he’s a quitter, making the current charges moot.

In response, Mayor Lightfoot nailed it.

“Not a surprise that a man of hate — as John Catanzara has demonstrated over and over that he is — would run away from accountability,” she said in a statement.

FOP bylaws permit retired police personnel to serve as officers of the union. Catanzara remains popular among the rank and file.

A mayoral run gives him a mega-platform and a massive megaphone to burnish and grow his power. He can position himself as the chief spokesperson for a growing anti-Lightfoot contingent.

Here’s a taste of the credentials you won’t see in Catanzara’s campaign literature:

In one social media post, in response to the shooting of a Wayne State University police officer, he wrote: “Its seriously time to kill these (expletives).”

In another social media post about Muslims, he commented: “Savages they all deserve a bullet.”

In an interview with WBEZ, he declared the Jan. 6 Capitol insurrection was a mere “inconvenience.” While he “wouldn’t have partaken in” the event, he suggested the 2020 presidential election was stolen.

Defending the rioters, he said, “If the worst crime here is trespassing, so be it. But to call these people treasonous is beyond ridiculous and ignorant.”

Those comments triggered an uproar, and he later apologized.

Catanzara will certainly be a non-traditional mayoral candidate. He is a political novice who brings zilch expertise in managing a large government agency, much less a city.

No matter. In these tense times, in a city in turmoil, Cantanzara is sure to appeal to voters in law enforcement and public safety, and other blue-collar, union jobs.

He can build on the national media profile he earned through his feckless crusade against the city’s vaccine mandate.

Get ready, Chicago, for a slash-and-burn campaign. It will be “us” against “them,” and “let’s take our city back” from “those people.” Catanzara will rage against Lightfoot and Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx for coddling criminals and succumbing to “wokeness.”

“This city is a shadow of its former self,” Catanzara told reporters last week. “It’s disgusting, and if we don’t do something to change it sooner rather than later, I don’t know that it’s ever recoverable.”

This kindred spirit of former President Donald J. Trump will fan the flames of racism, bigotry and fear. Sadly, that’s a campaign that may appeal in some quarters of this divided and divisive city.

Laura Washington is a political analyst for ABC-7 Chicago. Follow her on Twitter @mediadervish

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SuperBook executive VP Jay Kornegay stands beside his cardboard likeness in his sportsbook. | Rob Miech/Sun-Times

Bet on it: You’ll get turkey and maybe some gravy

LAS VEGAS — Jenga’s wooden blocks and Balderdash’s intentionally deceptive definitions began boring Jay Kornegay, a Balderdash expert, around Thanksgiving 2010.

A confluence of events led the executive vice president of the Westgate SuperBook to concoct a new holiday tradition, a novel way to enjoy time with friends and family, injecting excitement into the occasion.

On Wednesday, he again will visit the sportsbook at the nearby Red Rock casino. He’ll purchase a potpourri of parlay tickets that use every angle of the day’s NFL action.

Kornegay tries to keep the games’ rotation numbers organized. A teller might try to help, but it can be confusing. After making several wagers, if a line has formed, he will return to its rear to keep the patrons moving.

“Don’t want to be that guy,” he says, “holding up the window.”

He buys $5, $10 and $20 tickets, each with three to six or so legs. Kornegay spends about $175, a pittance to avoid the game closet or deck of cards in the drawer.

He crumples each into a ball and plops them into a hat. Turkey-day visitors pluck two or three. Everyone tracks everyone’s action, adding appeal to the NFL tripleheader.

“I’m now able to watch football,” Kornegay laughs, “instead of playing board games.”

ALWAYS THE LIONS

The Thanksgiving games see the Bears giving three points at Detroit, the Raiders -5.5 at Dallas and the Bills -1.5 at New Orleans.

On the SuperBook’s summer advance list of every game on the NFL schedule, it included respective totals of 45, 53 and 52 points on the aforementioned contests. We use those to show how Kornegay might select the tickets.

For one, he will pick a side and either over or under for all three games. A six-way parlay. He’ll make all opposite selections for another six-leg ticket. The $5 specials.

He’ll pick a side in the first game, an over or under in the second and a side in the third. Those three-way versions might cost $10. He’ll construct two-way parlays for $20 that pay $72.

Money-line options involve no points, picking teams to win outright.

The Bears are -145 (risk $145 to win $100, if solo) to beat the Lions, the Cowboys -210 over the Raiders and the Bills -130 over the Saints. If all three favorites just win, such a $20 ticket returns $68.26.

A $20 ducat on every underdog winning — the Lions at about +125, Raiders +190 and Saints +110 — would return $254.05. The combinations can seem endless.

“I spread it around,” says Kornegay, 58. “No strategy. Just random picks — what the lottery might call quick-picks — scattered all over the board. You never know what you’re going to get.”

He tries to limit the early game to just a few to guard against late arrivals getting stuck with a selection that has already lost.

“That’s the downside,” he says. “Like, ‘Oh, thanks. I’ve got the Lions +10.’ It’s always the Lions, too.”

The Lions have played on every Thanksgiving since it became an NFL institution in 1967. They lost 11 times in a recent 12-year run.

“Most of the tickets will lose,” says

Kornegay, “but there can still be a couple of live ones going into the late game. Everybody roots for them. There’s still interest going into the late game.”

If the Bills and Saints are tied 24-24 late, Kornegay’s might be the hottest, noisiest spot on his block.

He recommends the holiday twist to those in nascent legal sports-betting burgs, such as Chicago and neighboring states, that might be tiring of Jenga and other trivial pursuits.

“I’ve had others who have taken it up and done it for their households,” he says. ”They think it’s fun, and it is fun.”

A PAYDAY

A friend had said something off the cuff, about how having a bet on a game would have made it more interesting to watch.

The sports-wagering business had been Kornegay’s career for more than 20 years at that point, and he might have become a bit anesthetized to some of its allure.

About five years earlier, in 2006, the NFL introduced a third Thanksgiving game. A holiday tripleheader. Kornegay put it all together.

Voila!

From the start, the balled-up tickets were a hit. Friends and relatives stroll inside Casa Kornegay and paw into the hat. Probably seven of the last 10 holidays have produced winners, including a run of six in a row.

Someone won $600. A Kornegay niece hit the jackpot, a ticket that paid more than a grand, a few years ago.

Thanks, Uncle Jay!

“I can’t remember the game,” he says. “It was close, real close. She needed a total to go over in the very last game. She hung on, and it went over at the end. Hilarious. She was so excited. It was a payday.”

That fortunate niece lived with family in California and now resides in Colorado, which has legal sports betting. She continues the tradition in the Centennial State.

Jay and wife, Pam, who have an adult daughter and son, usually welcome six to eight visitors to their home. I try to inquire when they might open their doors.

Especially to someone he has known for nearly 20 years, who might arrive cradling an exquisite bottle of Papa’s Pilar limited-edition platinum blonde rum?

“Oh,” he laughs, “about 9:30 in the morning.”

I think he thinks that first knock on his door won’t be mine.

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Alex DeBrincat ranks eighth in the NHL in goals entering Friday. | Steph Chambers/Getty Images

DeBrincat won’t acknowledge it himself, but he has ascended onto the same tier as Patrick Kane — in part by playing with him.

EDMONTON, Alberta — Alex DeBrincat still views fellow wing Patrick Kane as the Blackhawks’ best player, their superstar and the driver of their success.

During Wednesday’s game in Seattle, he fought Kraken forward Yanni Gourde in Kane’s defense.

“[He] went after Kane and cross-checked him,” DeBrincat said. “You go after our best player, I think we can’t let that happen.”

Kane, meanwhile, sees the obvious: DeBrincat has ascended to stardom himself.

“He’s just a special, special hockey player,” Kane said that same night. “He’s a superstar in the making. He’s already a superstar.”

The praise continued.

“He’s getting better every year,” Kane added. “All around the puck, his puck-handling [and] his playmaking is getting better. And then he’s able to step up like that, when he doesn’t like something that’s going on with his teammates, and able to fight like that. [He’s] pretty special.”

DeBrincat is tied for eighth in the NHL with nine goals (in 16 games) this season. Throw out his snakebitten 2019-20 season and that shouldn’t be surprising.

After all, DeBrincat finished third in the league last season with 32 goals (in 52 games). He tied for sixth in 2018-19 with 41 goals. Even in 2017-18, when he played fewer than 15 minutes per game, he finished third among rookies with 28 goals.

“He’s so good at finding open areas where he can get open and be able to get a shot off,” Kane said. “And his shot’s so good that he’s going to be able to score a lot of the time.”

Goalie Marc-Andre Fleury has learned that the hard way in practice.

“Seeing him in practice and having to stop him, he’s very deceiving,” Fleury said. “He can one-time pucks, he can shoot, he’s fast, and he can fight, too, right?”

Of course, DeBrincat becoming one of the NHL’s elite doesn’t knock Kane out of that tier. Even as the Hawks struggle to score regularly this season, Kane has been so productive — 17 points in 12 games — that he’s on track to finish with the highest points-per-game average of his career.

Interim coach Derek King also deserves immense credit for recognizing how exponentially dangerous DeBrincat and Kane can be together and identifying the center who best complements their styles.

His first real action was to create a new first line of DeBrincat at left wing, Kirby Dach at center and Kane at right, and the early results have been spectacular.

AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast
Alex DeBrincat and Patrick Kane have thrived on the Blackhawks’ top line together.

DeBrincat’s average ice time has increased from 19:46 in games coached by Jeremy Colliton this season to 22:47 in four games under King, during which time DeBrincat has tallied five points. Kane’s average ice time climbed from 20:25 under Colliton to 23:15 under King, with six points.

Kane’s spectacular rush and blind backhand pass to DeBrincat for a goal last Friday against the Coyotes — an assist-of-the-year candidate — earned each of them a point. That play alone exemplified their remarkable chemistry.

“Playing together for a while now, we know where each other’s going to be, for the most part,” DeBrincat said soon afterward. “I think he knew I was cocked over there. Anyways, I have my stick in the air most of the time in a game, so he usually finds me. It was nice to have that one.”

Earlier that day, Kane said the line with Dach and DeBrincat “could be one of the better lines in the league” — bold words from someone who has played with countless elite linemates and who follows the rest of the NHL religiously.

Dach hasn’t yet seen a boost in his own box-score stats — his assist Wednesday was his first point under King — but he has made a difference with powerful skating and zone-to-zone-to-zone puck movement.

“Playing with those two guys, it’s pretty easy,” Dach said. “[I’ve] got to drive the middle, create space for them, let them make their plays. But at the same time, [I need to] get in there, win puck battles.”

Said Kane: “[Kirby is] good both ways. He’s strong in battles with the puck. He’s a really good skater up the middle, so he pushes back the ‘D’ pretty well. And he’s still a pretty young player in the league, as far as games and experience. The best is yet to come from him, and hopefully we can pull it out of him.”

King said the line’s formation was a group effort among the coaching staff, which “hashed this out and made sure we’re all on the same page.”

Admittedly, it wasn’t an out-of-nowhere idea. Fans had been calling for Dach to center Kane and DeBrincat for weeks, ever since Colliton quickly abandoned using them together in the third game.

The first line’s dominance has been crucial to the Hawks’ four-game winning streak, especially with important secondary scorers Jonathan Toews and Dominik Kubalik enduring droughts and with Brandon Hagel, who might return Saturday against the Oilers, missing time with a shoulder injury.

But DeBrincat said Tuesday he’s “not satisfied,” particularly with his defensive play. After Kane’s praise of his play-making growth Wednesday, he pointed out with a laugh that he still only has three assists this season.

Even if DeBrincat doesn’t see it himself, others do: He’s now the Hawks’ bonafide second superstar.

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Bears rookie quarterback Justin Fields completed 17-of-29 passes for 291 yards, one touchdown and one interception and an 89.9 passer rating against the Steelers in Week 9. | Justin K. Aller/Getty Images

After gaining 414 yards vs. the Steelers, there’s still room for a lot of growth. And that’s where the focus is Sunday: Can this coaching staff, this quarterback and this offense build on their success?

After the Bears gained a season-high 414 total yards and 297 passing yards against the Steelers, coach Matt Nagy was playfully miffed when asked about getting running backs more involved in the passing game. At least I think it was playfully.

“You guys are tough, man,” Nagy said. “You got tight ends. You’ve got the wide receivers. Now you’re hitting us with the running backs.”

Nagy said he was being facetious and in reality was probably half-kidding. We’re just never happy, he probably is thinking. Then again, there are two truths here — the Bears gained 414 yards against the Steelers. But they’re still 31st in the NFL in total offense.

In other words, there’s still room for growth. A lot of it, actually. And that’s where the focus is against the Ravens on Sunday at Soldier Field. Can this coaching staff, this quarterback and this offense build on their success against the Steelers? As well-coached teams like the Ravens respond to what the Bears have done, can Nagy, offensive coordinator Bill Lazor and Justin Fields stay one step ahead with the right counter-move?

Incorporating the running backs seems like a logical next move. The Bears are last in the NFL in receiving yards from their running backs — 29 receptions for 178 yards (6.1) rom David Montgomery (8-66), Damien Williams (11-64), rookie Khalil Herbert (9-44) and Ryan Nall (1-4). Their long gain is Herbert’s 20-yard gain against the Buccaneers when the Bears trailed 35-3.

In fact, 23 running backs have more individual receiving yards than the Bears running backs combined. The leader is former Bear Cordarrelle Patterson, who has 39 receptions for 473 yards (12.1 avg.) and five touchdowns for the Falcons this season.

Patterson, though, is in a dual role as running back and wide receiver. He also has 77 rushes for 303 yards (3.9 avg.) and two touchdowns. Still, his production with the Falcons is notable after Patterson’s two seasons a wide receiver and running back in Nagy’s offense. Patterson has more total yards (776 on 116 touches, 6.7 avg.) and touchdowns (seven) in nine games with the Falcons than he did in 32 games with the Bears (550 yards, one touchdown on 113 touches, 4.9 avg.).

Be that as it may, Nagy’s offense is becoming more diversified with Lazor calling the plays. The Bears’ four pass plays of 25 yards or more against the Steelers not only equaled their 25-plus pass plays in the first eight games, but went to four different receivers — wide receivers Marquise Goodwin (50) and Allen Robinson (39) and tight ends Jimmy Graham (28) and Cole Kmet (25).

Nagy purposefully replaced Jordan Howard with Montgomery with an eye on Montgomery’s versatility. Herbert, the sixth-round draft pick from Virginia Tech, fits the same mold. So you know Nagy has plans for them in the passing game, eventually.

“If teams are going to try to take away shots and zone you out and do different things, the running back is an important position,” Nagy said. “We’ve got guys that can catch the football. We’ve got guys that can break tackles. We’ve got smart running backs.

“If [opponents] are going to give you that opportunity, the we want to take that. Some games you’ll get more than others. And it just depends where that defensive coordinator’s mindset is against you that day.”

That sets the stage for Sunday’s game against a Ravens defense that ranks 24th in yards allowed and 22nd in points allowed. They now have to account for open tight ends and receivers that have produced big plays. Whether it’s the running backs, Darnell Mooney downfield or Justin Fields throwing the ball to himself, it’s up to Nagy, Lazor and the Bears to have the right answer.

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Jackson has a 100-plus passer rating for his career and was NFL MVP in 2019. | Getty

The cohesion between Jackson and Harbaugh illustrates what the Bears hope to establish with Fields and Nagy, and that’s much more so on the coach than the player. Nagy is the one who needs to figure out a way to work with Fields, not the other way around.

Bears coach Matt Nagy hammers, “Be you,” as his mission statement, encouraging players to embrace the unique qualities that have the potential to make them extraordinary.

There have been times, though, when it seemed like what he really meant was, “Be who I want you to be,” which is quite the opposite and proved unsuccessful with former quarterback Mitch Trubisky — a player who built his career on athleticism but was constantly told to win from the pocket.

That experience left lingering concern that Nagy might be too inflexible to maximize a multi-faceted talent like rookie quarterback Justin Fields.

When the Bears host the Ravens on Sunday, Nagy will get a firsthand look at one of the NFL’s great success stories of a coach landing an uncommon quarterback and resisting the urge to make him conform. Lamar Jackson’s approach to the position was good enough to dominate college football and win a Heisman Trophy, so it made total sense to coach John Harbaugh to reshape his offense around Jackson rather than vice versa.

“We got a steal because everyone passed Lamar up because they didn’t want to go with a running quarterback,” Harbaugh’s wife, Ingrid, told ESPN in 2019. “But John goes, ‘We can do this. We can mold our offense to him.'”

That was a particularly big leap for Harbaugh and the Ravens, who had relied on conventional pocket passer Joe Flacco for 11 seasons.

Jackson is probably the most extreme example of “being you” working out, because he spent most of his childhood rebuffing doubts that he could play quarterback, then won NFL MVP at the position. All he ever heard was that he should be something else, but he was steadfast.

“He proved everybody wrong, and the Ravens proved everybody wrong,” Nagy said. “What a great credit to him to work as hard as he has to be an NFL quarterback. And he’s different. He’s unique in how he plays the game.”

College recruiters often left open the possibility that he could move to safety. A Chargers scout proposed he work out at the combine as a wide receiver. Former Colts general manager Bill Polian infamously said he should switch to that position permanently because he was “clearly not the thrower the other guys are.”

Make sure to congratulate him on his forthcoming $40-million-a-year contract extension, Bill.

Over the last three seasons, Jackson has completed 65% of his passes (nearly even with Patrick Mahomes), thrown 76 touchdown passes (sixth in the NFL) and posted a 102.7 passer rating (ahead of Dak Prescott).

He is averaging a career-high 271.9 yards passing this season and adding 71 per game on the ground. He has 16 total touchdowns, with 14 as a passer.

“There’s not many guys who are like Lamar Jackson,” Fields said. “He does stuff that some receivers, running backs can’t even do. All of the backlash he got coming out of college, [people] saying he was a running back and stuff like that, he’s just proving everybody wrong. He’s one of the best in the league right now.

“So just seeing that young, Black quarterbacks can get the job done, and we don’t have to be old-fashioned pro-style passers to get it done. It just shows that it’s a new wave coming and that athletic guys can play quarterback also.”

Fields’ path isn’t quite as dramatic as Jackson’s, but there are similarities.

There were Fields doubters, certainly, as Georgia started Jake Fromm ahead of him, ultimately prompting his transfer to Ohio State, and at least six quarterback-needy teams bypassed him in the draft before the Bears traded up to take him at No. 11.

Then there was Nagy’s handling of him, starting with a rigid plan to keep him on the bench his entire rookie season — an idea already shown to have been misguided — rather than give him a chance to compete for the starting job immediately despite him entering the draft as the most polished and accomplished quarterback other than Trevor Lawrence.

Nagy only turned to Fields as the starter when forced to by Andy Dalton’s knee injury, then faced a mountain of public pressure to make the change permanent. Even then, after spending much of the offseason fawning over Fields’ elite speed, Nagy unveiled a game plan devoid of plays that utilized his mobility.

It was ugly enough to force Nagy to surrender play calling to offensive coordinator Bill Lazor. It was also an alarm going off about the possibility of the Bears misusing his skillset.

The cohesion between Jackson and Harbaugh illustrates what the Bears hope to establish with Fields and Nagy, and if Nagy can’t find it, they’ll look for a coach who can.

That’s a huge piece of what Nagy must prove over these final eight games, because Fields is assuredly part of the Bears’ future, but that’s far from guaranteed for Nagy. He’s the one who needs to figure out a way to work with Fields, not the other way around.

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A man poses for a photograph with the online gambling website Bet365 displayed on a smartphone, in London on December 2019. | PAUL ELLIS/AFP via Getty Images

Gambling is an unstable source of revenue that comes with high societal costs.

Illinois is saturated with gambling. Yet the CEO of an online gambling company wrote a letter to the Chicago Sun-Times promoting another massive expansion of gambling in homes.

Making gambling so accessible on cell phones, computers and tablets 24 hours a day, seven days a week will increase youth gambling and addiction. Having a gambling app in your pocket is a constant temptation to gamble.

Online gambling companies “track a person’s betting activity” to predict what offers or promotions work best to get people to gamble more. Countless offers of “free bets” could lead to non-stop gambling for hours or days.

SEND LETTERS TO: [email protected]. We want to hear from our readers. To be considered for publication, letters must include your full name, your neighborhood or hometown and a phone number for verification purposes. Letters should be a maximum of approximately 350 words.

In New Jersey, 14 gamblers filed complaints against the manufacturer of an online slot game who paid them less than they won because of “a bug” in the product. The attorney general’s office fined the company $1,000 for failing to ensure the game was functioning properly, the Associated Press reported. Is this a better experience?

Children as young as 15 are losing large amounts of money gambling online in Ireland. They start gambling around age 11 in Australia, and there are 55,000 problem gamblers under the age of 16 in the UK. These countries are introducing reforms to limit bets and gambling advertising to address increases in underage gambling, suicide and addiction.

Gambling is an unstable source of revenue that comes with high societal costs. Legislators should protect children and not legalize online gambling.

Anita Bedell, executive director, Illinois Church Action on Alcohol and Addiction Problems, Springfield

Reactions to Rittenhouse

The verdict in the Rittenhouse trial was no surprise. The judge did everything he could to rig the trial, so that rittenhouse could get away with murder.

Michael Shepherd, Bellwood

Justice in black and white: Rittenhouse intentionally travels out of state, carrying a gun and kills people. He escapes justice. George Floyd was suspected of passing a counterfeit $20 bill and was killed by police before he could get his day in court.

Tom DeDore, Garfield Ridge)

Now that Kyle Rittenhouse has been found innocent, it should be obvious to everyone that Wisconsin has sanctioned the use of force to settle arguments, even for gun-toting out of state residents. How sad for our democracy.

Bob Ory, Elgin

Police will be better off without Catanzara

John Catanzara has retired from the Chicago Police Department rather than face being fired and likely losing whatever retirement benefits he is entitled to. Hopefully he will be replaced as head of the Chicago FOP.

He now says he will run for mayor. By all means, he should go for it so he can swallow embarrassing defeat and maybe try to become one of Fox News’ talking heads, spewing their brand of venom that he could easily write in his sleep.

If they have no use for him, other similar propaganda outlets might welcome him. He could become the next Steve Bannon, doing pushups in quicksand.

Then we can all breathe a sigh of relief, CPD can belatedly embrace its court-ordered reforms, and at last, perhaps Chicago can have the enlightened advocate for police officers they deserve without the self-defeating opposition at every turn of Catanzara. With him gone, the holdouts in the department might even decide it makes sense after all to shield themselves and their families from COVID by getting vaccinated.

Ted Z. Manuel, Hyde Park

Corrupt politicians? In Illinois?

We should be shocked that a corrupt local mayor, Crestwood Mayor Louis Presta, was taking bribes from a red light camera company to beef up ticket enforcement and send more money into the coffers of the company. I’m not, this is Illinois.

It is being proven time and again that these cameras are nothing more than a money grab in an industry ripe with corruption. Combine it with a few less-than-honorable politicians looking to pad their retirement funds, and this is what we get.

This technology needs to be reined in or better yet abolished. The tickets being doled out are not saving any lives; they are mostly frivolous violations they do not warrant pursuance.

Scot Sinclair, Third Lake

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One person was killed and seven others — including three teens — were wounded in citywide shootings Friday. | Sun-Times file

Two men were shot, one fatally, Friday night in West Englewood on the South Side.

One person was killed and seven others — including three teens — wounded in citywide shootings Friday.

Two men were shot, one fatally, Friday night in West Englewood on the South Side. A 45-year-old man was found with gunshot wounds inside a vehicle about 9:30 p.m. in the 7100 block of South Seeley Avenue, Chicago police said. He was struck in the head and chest and was taken to Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn, where he was pronounced dead, police said. His name hasn’t been released. Another man, 35, was found inside a home with a gunshot wound to the hip, police said. He was taken in good condition to the same hospital, police said.
In nonfatal attacks, two teenage boys were wounded in a shooting Friday afternoon in Fernwood on the South Side. The teens, 15 and 16, were on the sidewalk about 5 p.m. in the 10000 block of South Parnell Avenue when someone opened fire, police said. They were both shot in the leg and were taken in good condition to Christ, police said.
Less than an hour later, a third teen, a 17-year-old girl was grazed by a bullet in Englewood on the South Side. She was stopped at a red light about 5:45 p.m. in the 6000 block of South State Street when another vehicle pulled up next to her and someone from inside fired shots, police said. She was grazed in the back and was taken to the University of Chicago Medical Center in good condition, police said.

Three others were wounded by gunfire in Chicago Friday.

Two people were killed and seven others were wounded in shootings in Chicago Thursday.

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After a year off due to the pandemic, people were once again invited to the annual lighting of Chicago’s Christmas tree in Millennium Park. | Pat Nabong/Sun-Times

Crowds gathered at Millennium Park on Friday night for the lighting of the city’s official Christmas tree.

Chicago’s holiday season officially kicked off Friday night with the lighting of the city’s official Christmas tree, in Millennium Park.

The 51-foot blue spruce, donated by the Benavides family of Logan Square, was decorated with an array of lights and ornaments. Noemi Benavides was celebrating her birthday on Friday as well. The tree had stood in their yard for 34 years.

This year’s event marked the return to a full-on, in-person celebration for the first time since 2019. Last year’s ceremony pivoted to a virtual event due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The festivities, which boasted a fireworks display, also included a pre-show hosted by DJ DJ Selah Say, with additional entertainment provided by Mariachi Herencia de Mexico (performing their new single, a mariachi take on “It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year”), the cast of Chicago Opera Theater’s production of “Becoming Santa Claus,” a youth dance ensemble from the Kenwood School of Ballet, and special guests Dreezy Claus and Sister Claus.

A concert featuring Grammy Award-nominated singer Brian McKnight, a performance by the cast of Cirque du Soleil’s “‘Twas the Night Before…,” and the Chicago Soul Spectacular rounded out the musical extravaganza for the assembled crowds on the Great Lawn.

Friday’s celebration, emceed by WGN-TV’s Tonya Francisco and Amy Rutledge, marked the 108th annual City of Chicago Christmas tree lighting. The tree will be on display through Jan. 9, 2022, and the park will be open 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily.

Pat Nabong/Sun-Times
This year’s official Chicago Christmas tree, in Millennium Park, is a 51-foot blue spruce, donated by the Benavides family of Logan Square. It had stood in their yard for 34 years.

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