What’s New

Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot called the city employee vaccine requirement a “condition of employment” but stopped short of saying workers would be fired if they refuse the shot during a media conference Friday.

She said earlier this week that all city employees must be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 by Oct. 15. In the original news release announcing the mandate, the mayor’s office didn’t say what the consequences of not being vaccinated would be, just that “this policy applies to all City employees and volunteers.”

Employees can apply for medical or religious exemptions from the requirement, which will be granted on a case-by-case basis by the city’s Department of Human Resources, according to the release.

Lightfoot spoke about the new policy during an unrelated news conference Friday.

“We always want to engage with our unions on any issue that’s gonna affect their members and certainly their workplace,” Lightfoot said. “But it’s a condition of employment.”

The mayor stopped short of saying workers would be fired if they aren’t vaccinated.

“I don’t want this to be a punitive thing,” she said. “I want people to get vaccinated to save their lives.”

Chicago Federation of Labor President Bob Reiter said earlier this week that his member unions — which represent thousands of city workers — “believe in vaccines” and their ability to keep people safe. But Reiter said he thinks the effort to protect people against COVID-19 should be collaborative, and there should be a testing alternative in place.

“I’m on board with creating a vaccine policy of some sort. I’m not on board with making it a vaccine mandate that exists in a vacuum,” Reiter said. “At a minimum, if we are going to ask people to be vaccinated, we should also be presenting a testing alternative.”

The CFL has an ownership stake in Sun-Times Media.

The mandate has faced strenuous opposition from all four police unions, the Sun-Times reported.

In her remarks on Friday, Lightfoot emphasized COVID-19 testing isn’t the same as being vaccinated.

“There is a lot of conversation about testing and we’re having those conversations with our colleagues that represent the public employees,” Lightfoot said. “But to be clear, testing is a point in time indicator of where you are. It is not a substitute for the vaccine, it just isn’t.”

Contributing: Nader Issa

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Chicago police announced Friday they arrested a juvenile suspect tied to the murder of a 70-year-old woman in Hegewisch and said another young gunman involved in the deadly shooting remains at large.

Tipsters helped police identify the two minors, who shot Yvonne Ruzich as she sat in her parked car while she chatted with her stepson before reporting for her shift at Baltimore Food & Liquor on the morning of Aug. 16, Chief of Detectives Brendan Deenihan said at a news conference at CPD headquarters.

Surveillance video showed Ruzich chatting with her stepson, who was also in his car, when the male suspects approached from behind Ruzich’s vehicle around 4:30 a.m. and allegedly opened fire.

Ruzich, who was known in the Far South Side neighborhood as “Grandma Jo,” drove away in the 13300 block of South Baltimore Avenue before crashing, Deenihan said.

After shooting at Ruzich’s car, the suspects got back into their car, drove up to Ruzich’s crashed vehicle and and fired several more shots before driving off, Deenihan said.

Ruzich regularly arrived early at work, and her stepson would follow her to make sure she arrived safely, Deenihan said.

The stepson spotted the suspects pulling up, and shouted to Ruzich to drive away.

Deenihan did not know the motive for the murder, but pointed out that the suspects were in a stolen car and are believed to have been involved in multiple carjackings in the hours before the shooting. Investigators eventually tracked down four stolen cars that may be connected to the suspects, Deenihan said. One was recovered in Indiana.

“What’s going through their mind, they’re walking up and they want to take this car, and she drives away, and that quickly, they decide to fire,” Deenihan said. “There wasn’t a lot of interaction there, but that just shows how emboldened they are and how quick they are to discharge a firearm.”

After the murder, several witnesses came forward and were able to identify the two shooters in the surveillance video, Deenihan said.

The juvenile in custody has not given a statement to police, Deenihan said. He is expected to be charged as an adult with first-degree murder, Deenihan said.

One suspect wore all-black clothing and a black face mask during the shooting, police said. The other gunman wore a light-colored hooded sweatshirt, light pants with black shoes with white soles and a light-colored face mask. Deenihan declined to say which of the two suspects was in custody.

Ruzich had retired after working for the city Street & Sanitation Department for 25 years. She usually beat her boss to work during the years she worked at Baltimore Food & Liquor, Deenihan said.

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Please send scores or corrections to [email protected]

Friday, August 27

FOX VALLEY

Crystal Lake Central at Huntley, 7

Crystal Lake South at Jacobs, 7

Dundee-Crown at Cary-Grove, 7

Hampshire at Burlington Central, 7

McHenry at Prairie Ridge, 7

UPSTATE EIGHT

Bartlett at Glenbard South, 7:30

East Aurora at Elgin, 7:30

Fenton at South Elgin, canc.

Larkin at Glenbard East, 7:30

Streamwood at West Chicago, 7:30

NONCONFERENCE

Ag. Science at De La Salle, 6

Argo at Joliet Central, 6:30

Aurora Central at Plano, 7:30

Bishop McNamara at Marmion, 7:30

Bolingbrook at Minooka, 7

Brooks at Eisenhower, 7

Brother Rice at Hillcrest, 7

Buffalo Grove at Lincoln-Way Central, 6

Carmel at Libertyville, canc.

Chicago Military at Marine, 4

Christ the King at St. Edward, 7:30

Clark vs. King at Gately, 1

Comer at Geneseo, 7

Conant at Lake Park, 7

Corliss vs. Julian at Gately, 4

Crete-Monee at Lincoln-Way East, 6

Curie at Marist, 6

Deerfield at Hinsdale South, 7

DePaul Prep vs. Payton at Lane, 4

East Peoria at Streator, 7

Elk Grove at Maine West, 7

Evanston at Kenosha Indian Trail, Wis., 7

Fenger vs. Chicago Richards at Stagg, 1

Fieldcrest at Aurora Christian, 7

Foreman at Speer, 7:15

Geneva at Metea Valley, 7:30

Glenbrook South at Rolling Meadows, 7

Hansberry at Chicago Christian, 7:15

Hersey at Lincoln-Way West, 7

Highland Park at Leyden, 7

Hoffman Estates at Downers Grove North, 7

Hubbard at Grayslake Central, 7

Hyde Park vs. Dyett at Stagg, 4

IC Catholic at Montini, 7:15

Kaneland at Andrew, 7:30

Kenwood at Lane, 7

Lake Forest at St. Francis, 7:30

Lake View at Niles North, 7

Lake Zurich at Fremd, 7:30

LaSalle-Peru at Morton, Ill., 7:30

Lincoln Park vs. Amundsen at Winnemac, 4

Lindblom at East Moline, 6

Lisle at Harvard, 7

Lockport at Joliet West, 6:30

Maine South at Stevenson, 7:30

Manteno at Evergreen Park, 7

Marian Central at Johnsburg, 7

Moline at St. Laurence, 7:30

Morgan Park at Fenwick, 7:30

Morris at Coal City, 7

Morton at Riverside-Brookfield, 7:15

Mount Carmel at St. Rita, 7:30

Mundelein at Grant, 7:15

Naperville Central at Hinsdale Central, 7

Naperville North at Benet, 7

New Trier at Lyons, 7

Niles West at Maine East, 7

Notre Dame at Glenbard North, 7:30

Oakwood at Momence, 7

Oswego at Neuqua Valley, 7

Oswego East at Waubonsie Valley, 7

Ottawa at Sandwich, 7

Palatine at St. Charles North, 7:30

Peoria Manual at Peotone, 7

Phillips at Batavia, 7:30

Plainfield Central at Addison Trail, 7

Plainfield North at Plainfield East, 7

Pritzker at Perspectives, 7:15

Prospect at Sandburg, 7

Proviso East at Bradley-Bourbonnais, 7:30

Proviso West at Wauconda, 7

Raby at UP-Englewood, 4

Reed-Custer at Elmwood Park, 7

Rich Township at Oak Lawn, 7

Richards at Nazareth, 7

Rochelle at Woodstock, 7

Round Lake at Wheeling, 7

St. Charles East at Lemont, 7:30

St. Patrick at Warren De La Salle, Mich., 6

St. Viator at South Elgin, 7:30

Salt Fork at Dwight, 7

Schurz at Ridgewood, 7

Shepard at Kankakee, 7

Simeon at Joliet Catholic, 7

Stagg at Zion-Benton, 7:30

Sterling at Lakes, 7

Sycamore vs. DeKalb at NIU, 7

Taft at Glenbrook North, 7

TF North at Homewood-Flossmoor, 7

TF South at Chesterton, Ind., 7

Thornridge at Bremen, 6

Thornwood at Marian Catholic, 7

Tilden vs. Carver at Gately, 7

Tinley Park at Reavis, 7

UIC Prep vs. Senn at Winnemac, 1

UP-Bronzeville at Richmond-Burton, 7

Vernon Hills at Grayslake North, 7

Von Steuben at St. Ignatius, 7:30

Warren at Barrington, 7:30

Waukesha Catholic, Wis. at Antioch, 7

West Aurora at Plainfield South, 7

Westmont at Walther Christian, 7

Westville at Seneca, 7

Wheaton Academy at Brookfield East, Wis., 7

Wheaton North at Downers Grove South, 7:30

Wheaton-Warrenville South at Oak Park-River Forest, 7:30

Willowbrook at Providence, 7:30

Wilmington at Marengo, 7

Woodstock North at Westosha Central, Wis., 7

York at Schaumburg, 7:30

Yorkville at Romeoville, 7

Saturday, August 28

NONCONFERENCE

Bulls Prep at Leo, 7

Butler vs. Prosser at Rockne, 7

Chicago Academy vs. Catalyst-Maria at Stagg, 4

Clemente vs. Young at Rockne, 4

Collins vs. Bogan at Stagg, 1

Crane vs. DuSable at Stagg, 10 a.m.

Dakota at Ottawa Marquette, 1

Dunbar at Herscher, 2

Gage Park at Kelly, 10 a.m.

Grandville, Mich. at Glenbard West, 1

Harlan vs. Mather at Winnemac, 4

Hope Academy at Thornton, noon

Juarez vs. Sullivan at Winnemac, 1

Little Village vs. Kennedy at Rockne, 1

Marshall at Orr, noon

Milwaukee Marquette, Wis. at Loyola, 1:30

North Chicago at Waukegan, 11:30 a.m.

North Lawndale vs. South Shore at Eckersall, 4

Oak Forest at Westinghouse, noon

Phoenix at Back of the Yards, 4

Rauner at Bloom, 5

Roosevelt vs. Rowe-Clark at Rockne, 10 a.m.

Solorio at Steinmetz, 4

Vocational at Goode, 1

Woodlawn vs. Bowen at Eckersall, 1

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A music festival launched by a local media company with the aim of highlighting local artists and providing Chicago teens with a brief respite from the city’s ongoing horrific violence kicks off Saturday in Douglass Park.

From The ‘Go Fest, created by True Star Foundation and kicks off 12 p.m. Saturday, will feature local artists Dreezy, DCG, 8MatikLogan, Bianca Shaw, Heavy Crownz and Chanelle Tru, among others. It will be hosted by social media influencer and rapper Korporate.

The event is free for teens ages 13 to 19. Festival organizers are mandating proof of a recent negative COVID-19 test or COVID vaccination card.

The Truestar Foundation, which provides paid apprenticeships training young people to create, develop and market content on digital platforms, has provided jobs and opportunities for over 10,000 South and West Side teens.

“Young people in Chicago are experiencing so much grief right now due to violence and COVID-19,” said True Star Foundation’s executive director DeAnna McLeary Sherman in a news release. “True Star wants to give them something fun and safe to do to celebrate back-to-school with their perspective and interest in mind.”

During the festival, St. Anthony Hospital will be on-site administering the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine for youth with parental consent, and will host a vendor fair for local youth entrepreneurs, said festival officials.

“From The ‘Go Fest” is free for teens ages 13 to 19. True Star Media

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Good afternoon. Here’s the latest news you need to know in Chicago. It’s about a 5-minute read that will brief you on today’s biggest stories.

This afternoon will be mostly sunny with a high near 91 degrees and heat index values as high as 98. Tonight will be partly cloudy with a low around 75. Tomorrow will be sunny with a high near 92 and Sunday will be mostly sunny with a high near 91 and thunderstorms likely in the late afternoon.

Top story

Chicago dispatcher who helped the night Ella French was murdered: ‘I just want to help’

On Aug. 7, the night police officer Ella French was killed and her partner seriously wounded, a police radio dispatcher sprang into action.

In those tense moments, Keith Thornton, Jr., 32, an employee of the city’s Office of Emergency Management and Communications, seemed to know precisely what to do. What to say. Where to go.

And his calm, commanding exceptionalism transfixed listeners to a 10-minute police radio transmission that hit the internet the next day.

Thornton’s clear and lightning speed bullet dispatches were lauded as exemplary; police Superintendent David Brown and Mayor Lori Lightfoot called to congratulate Thornton on his service.

But except for a brief Facebook post calling for public police support, he basically went silent.

Who is this guy?

In an exclusive interview with the Sun-Times this week, the elusive Thornton describes himself as a proud, gay, Black American who grew up on the West Side in Austin along with his parents, two sisters and four brothers.

And what he brought to the table the night of Aug. 7 was a confluence of all the jobs “I have ever held” — along with a gift from his dad when he was 4 years old: a fire scanner from Radio Shack.

“Being of service is a powerful thing,” Thornton said. “Working in the community in a leadership role is so important. I just want to help.”

Columnist Michael Sneed has more on Thornton and the events of that night here.

More news you need

Investigators in Lyons tomorrow plan to dig up the yard of a home where they suspect two bodies might be buried. Two brothers who live in the home told police they buried their mother and sister in the yard after each had died.

Illinois is ending the week with a daily COVID-19 caseload higher than any the state has seen since late January. Only 16% of the state’s ICU hospital beds are available a day after Gov. Pritzker announced a statewide indoor mask mandate.

Some Chicago settlement agencies say they are seeing an uptick in refugees coming from Afghanistan, though most will head to other parts of the country with larger Afghan communities. Elvia Malagon spoke to leaders from the groups about their efforts.

Investigators say a pregnant woman found floating in Lake Michigan earlier this month had been stabbed to death. The 19-year-old, whose identity will be confirmed pending test results, was reported missing from Chicago, officials said.

If you were hoping to look up a case on the Clerk of the Circuit Court of Cook County’s website, you may be out of luck for a “few weeks.” The website has been down since Aug. 13 after a breach that court staff say directed users to an NFL-related website.

A special prosecutor will handle eight cases in which defendants allege they were framed by retired Chicago Police detective Kriston Kato, who is married to a Cook County criminal court judge. In the cases, some dating back to the 1980s, Kato has been accused of fabricating evidence and intimidating witnesses.

Michael “Mick Rain” Ruane, known as the drummer for Chicago power pop group Pezband, has died of COVID-19 at 68 in Florida. Ruane’s family took out a death notice in the Tampa Bay Times that said his death was “courtesy of the U.S. and Florida state governments’ homicidal pandemic policy.”

After keeping fans waiting for two hours, Kanye West delivered a listening event for his long-delayed “Donda” album at Soldier Field last night. Read Selena Fragassi review of the show, which she calls “performance art on a scale we’ve never really seen before.”

A bright one

Washington Park beautification project brings flower farm to South Side

A new flower farm is bringing a splash of color to Washington Park, and if the idea takes root, others could sprout on the South and West sides.

The farm, at 5211 S. Prairie Ave., was planted by Chicago Eco House’s Southside Blooms, which just a couple of months ago opened its first standalone shop.

That Englewood store, which helps at-risk youth learn job skills, has been getting its flowers from gardens it planted on three other empty lots across the South Side. Southside Blooms workers will tend to the farm, which also will provide flowers for the Englewood shop to sell.

Quilen Blackwell, president of Chicago Eco House, plants ceremonial mariachi wiggles flowers at the new Washington Park flower farm Wednesday morning.Cheyanne M. Daniels/Sun-Times

Quilen Blackwell, president of Chicago Eco House, said the four-acre farm began taking form in late May. By July, flowers began to bloom. The farm uses no pesticides, herbicides or synthetic fertilizers and has a solar-powered irrigation system.

The new farm is a “pilot site” for expansion. Blackwell hopes to create more farms across the South and West sides.

“Today is really about trying to demonstrate to people the importance of not just the communities coming together, but how we already have solutions to the most pressing economic, social and environmental problems here,” Blackwell said at a ribbon-cutting for the farm Wednesday.

Cheyanne M. Daniels has more on the new flower farm here.

From the press box

Your daily question ?

How do you feel about Chicago Public Schools’ return to full in-person learning on Monday?

Email us (please include your first name and where you live) and we might include your answer in the next Afternoon Edition.

Yesterday we asked you: It’s National Dog Day, so we want to know, how did you meet your furry friend? Here’s what some of you said…

“He was at a meet-and-greet at a rescue. Still a puppy and VERY energetic. Very sweet and loving. He was the first one I met. As we went to leave an hour or so later he jumped up to get my attention, so I sat down and pulled him up on my lap. Within 30 seconds he was asleep. He picked me.” — Rich Mathews

“I told my 3-month-old German Shepherd stray: ‘I’ve never had a puppy before and you’ve never been a puppy before so we’ll learn this together.’ Alfie was then always patient with me for 13 years until his last breath this past January.” — Jamie Taerbaum

“He was on a float for a local parade. The local humane society chose him and several other dogs to show to the public.” — Gerald Heeren

“I looked on the internet and came across the Anti-Cruelty Society website. Looked through the website and found the 8-year-old cockapoo. Fell in love with him as soon as I saw him and he was so excited and happy to leave. Three years later, we’re inseparable!” — Halona Jackson

“A friend of mine had him — she was going to take him to the pound because nobody wanted him since he was the runt of the litter. Best decision of my life. He is now 7 years old and he is my world.” — Lola Mccario

Thanks for reading the Chicago Afternoon Edition. Got a story you think we missed? Email us here.

Sign up here to get the Afternoon Edition in your inbox every day.

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Please send scores or corrections to [email protected]

Friday, August 27

FOX VALLEY

Crystal Lake Central at Huntley, 7

Crystal Lake South at Jacobs, 7

Dundee-Crown at Cary-Grove, 7

Hampshire at Burlington Central, 7

McHenry at Prairie Ridge, 7

UPSTATE EIGHT

Bartlett at Glenbard South, 7:30

East Aurora at Elgin, 7:30

Fenton at South Elgin, canc.

Larkin at Glenbard East, 7:30

Streamwood at West Chicago, 7:30

NONCONFERENCE

Ag. Science at De La Salle, 6

Argo at Joliet Central, 6:30

Aurora Central at Plano, 7:30

Bishop McNamara at Marmion, 7:30

Bolingbrook at Minooka, 7

Brooks at Eisenhower, 7

Brother Rice at Hillcrest, 7

Buffalo Grove at Lincoln-Way Central, 6

Carmel at Libertyville, canc.

Chicago Military at Marine, 4

Christ the King at St. Edward, 7:30

Clark vs. King at Gately, 1

Comer at Geneseo, 7

Conant at Lake Park, 7

Corliss vs. Julian at Gately, 4

Crete-Monee at Lincoln-Way East, 6

Curie at Marist, 6

Deerfield at Hinsdale South, 7

DePaul Prep vs. Payton at Lane, 4

East Peoria at Streator, 7

Elk Grove at Maine West, 7

Evanston at Kenosha Indian Trail, Wis., 7

Fenger vs. Chicago Richards at Stagg, 1

Fieldcrest at Aurora Christian, 7

Foreman at Speer, 7:15

Geneva at Metea Valley, 7:30

Glenbrook South at Rolling Meadows, 7

Hansberry at Chicago Christian, 7:15

Hersey at Lincoln-Way West, 7

Highland Park at Leyden, 7

Hoffman Estates at Downers Grove North, 7

Hubbard at Grayslake Central, 7

Hyde Park vs. Dyett at Stagg, 4

IC Catholic at Montini, 7:15

Kaneland at Andrew, 7:30

Kenwood at Lane, 7

Lake Forest at St. Francis, 7:30

Lake View at Niles North, 7

Lake Zurich at Fremd, 7:30

LaSalle-Peru at Morton, Ill., 7:30

Lincoln Park vs. Amundsen at Winnemac, 4

Lindblom at East Moline, 6

Lisle at Harvard, 7

Lockport at Joliet West, 6:30

Maine South at Stevenson, 7:30

Manteno at Evergreen Park, 7

Marian Central at Johnsburg, 7

Moline at St. Laurence, 7:30

Morgan Park at Fenwick, 7:30

Morris at Coal City, 7

Morton at Riverside-Brookfield, 7:15

Mount Carmel at St. Rita, 7:30

Mundelein at Grant, 7:15

Naperville Central at Hinsdale Central, 7

Naperville North at Benet, 7

New Trier at Lyons, 7

Niles West at Maine East, 7

Notre Dame at Glenbard North, 7:30

Oakwood at Momence, 7

Oswego at Neuqua Valley, 7

Oswego East at Waubonsie Valley, 7

Ottawa at Sandwich, 7

Palatine at St. Charles North, 7:30

Peoria Manual at Peotone, 7

Phillips at Batavia, 7:30

Plainfield Central at Addison Trail, 7

Plainfield North at Plainfield East, 7

Pritzker at Perspectives, 7:15

Prospect at Sandburg, 7

Proviso East at Bradley-Bourbonnais, 7:30

Proviso West at Wauconda, 7

Raby at UP-Englewood, 4

Reed-Custer at Elmwood Park, 7

Rich Township at Oak Lawn, 7

Richards at Nazareth, 7

Rochelle at Woodstock, 7

Round Lake at Wheeling, 7

St. Charles East at Lemont, 7:30

St. Patrick at Warren De La Salle, Mich., 6

St. Viator at South Elgin, 7:30

Salt Fork at Dwight, 7

Schurz at Ridgewood, 7

Shepard at Kankakee, 7

Simeon at Joliet Catholic, 7

Stagg at Zion-Benton, 7:30

Sterling at Lakes, 7

Sycamore vs. DeKalb at NIU, 7

Taft at Glenbrook North, 7

TF North at Homewood-Flossmoor, 7

TF South at Chesterton, Ind., 7

Thornridge at Bremen, 6

Thornwood at Marian Catholic, 7

Tilden vs. Carver at Gately, 7

Tinley Park at Reavis, 7

UIC Prep vs. Senn at Winnemac, 1

UP-Bronzeville at Richmond-Burton, 7

Vernon Hills at Grayslake North, 7

Von Steuben at St. Ignatius, 7:30

Warren at Barrington, 7:30

Waukesha Catholic, Wis. at Antioch, 7

West Aurora at Plainfield South, 7

Westmont at Walther Christian, 7

Westville at Seneca, 7

Wheaton Academy at Brookfield East, Wis., 7

Wheaton North at Downers Grove South, 7:30

Wheaton-Warrenville South at Oak Park-River Forest, 7:30

Willowbrook at Providence, 7:30

Wilmington at Marengo, 7

Woodstock North at Westosha Central, Wis., 7

York at Schaumburg, 7:30

Yorkville at Romeoville, 7

Saturday, August 28

NONCONFERENCE

Bulls Prep at Leo, 7

Butler vs. Prosser at Rockne, 7

Chicago Academy vs. Catalyst-Maria at Stagg, 4

Clemente vs. Young at Rockne, 4

Collins vs. Bogan at Stagg, 1

Crane vs. DuSable at Stagg, 10 a.m.

Dakota at Ottawa Marquette, 1

Dunbar at Herscher, 2

Gage Park at Kelly, 10 a.m.

Grandville, Mich. at Glenbard West, 1

Harlan vs. Mather at Winnemac, 4

Hope Academy at Thornton, noon

Juarez vs. Sullivan at Winnemac, 1

Little Village vs. Kennedy at Rockne, 1

Marshall at Orr, noon

Milwaukee Marquette, Wis. at Loyola, 1:30

North Chicago at Waukegan, 11:30 a.m.

North Lawndale vs. South Shore at Eckersall, 4

Oak Forest at Westinghouse, noon

Phoenix at Back of the Yards, 4

Rauner at Bloom, 5

Roosevelt vs. Rowe-Clark at Rockne, 10 a.m.

Solorio at Steinmetz, 4

Vocational at Goode, 1

Woodlawn vs. Bowen at Eckersall, 1

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You might have noticed that when I review multi-episode documentaries and streaming series for the Sun-Times, I often mention I’ve seen six of the total eight chapters, or the first eight of 10, etc. The various platforms providing these series for critics often withhold the final episode or two — sometimes because editing hasn’t been completed, sometimes because they want to be 100%, rock-solid certain the ending won’t somehow leak into the Twittersphere.

When I recently reviewed Spike Lee’s HBO documentary series “NYC Epicenter,” I had seen three of the four episodes, and I was mightily impressed by Lee’s sweeping, epic, journalistically sound and timely look at how his beloved home city reacted to 9/11 and its aftermath, not to mention the pandemic, the emergence of the polarizing Donald Trump from Big Apple super celebrity to the president of the United States, and the Black Lives Matter movement. It was six hours of brilliance — but I hadn’t seen the final episode when I wrote the review.

Last Monday, the New York Times reported Lee had devoted about a half-hour of that final chapter to wholly unsubstantiated and categorically false conspiracy theories about the terrorist attacks, and in particular to a group known as Architects & Engineers for 9/11 Truth, including the organization’s founder, one Richard Gage, who has been peddling fictional garbage about 9/11 for years. (Gage is also a major proponent of COVID-19 hoaxes; as reported by Slate, he has said the pandemic is a “deep state…hoax” and a “false flag event” and the government has “locked us into our own homes and…poisoned us with vaccines that are going to kill us.”)

As a longtime admirer of Spike Lee the filmmaker and Spike Lee the human being, I was devastated to hear this. It’s one thing for Lee to have questions about certain circumstances surrounding the 9/11 attacks — though I would be more than happy to answer those questions, as I first did in my book “Debunked,” which included a full chapter dissecting and tearing apart many of the biggest lies perpetrated by conspiracy theorists who always ask us to prove a negative but never, never, EVER have provided significant evidence of their hurtful and delusional theories. It’s quite another thing for Lee to sully and sour what could have been a defining and lasting look at New York City over the last 20 years by ceding his platform to such garbage.

Here’s the good news. After the Times broke the story, there was widespread and deserved outrage, which led to Lee sending out a message saying, “I’m back in the editing room and looking at…the final chapter of NYC Epicenters. I respectfully ask you to hold your judgment until you see the final cut.”

Fair enough — and that’s exactly what I did. Courtesy of HBO, I was given access to the last episode of “NYC Epicenters,” the version that will be seen by the public on September 11, and I’m so pleased to report there’s not even a hint of a whisper about any conspiracy theories regarding 9/11. In fact, this final chapter is the crowning moment of the entire series, as Lee pays tribute to the fallen heroes, the firefighters, the rescue workers, the volunteers, the survivors, the loved ones and celebrity activists such as Jon Stewart, who has worked tirelessly to advocate for benefits for the families of 9/11 victims. It is a passionate, beautiful, respectful, deeply moving and resonant piece of work, with unforgettable images, e.g., footage of rescue workers saluting as the remains of a victim are carried to a waiting ambulance, while Lee’s longtime composer Terence Blanchard provides the perfect musical eulogy for the moment.

Logic and facts and reason and decency spoke up, and Spike Lee listened. The final cut of “NYC Epicenters” is a masterwork.

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GUYRA, Australia — An Australian farmer couldn’t go to his aunt’s funeral because of coronavirus pandemic restrictions. So he paid his respects and expressed his love by arranging dozens of sheep in the shape of a heart and sending the video to the funeral.

Drone-shot video of pregnant ewes munching barley while unwittingly expressing Ben Jackson’s affection for his beloved Auntie Deb was viewed by mourners at her funeral in the city of Brisbane in Queensland state.

Posted online, the video also drew an emotional response on social media.

Jackson was locked down across a state border at his farm in Guyra in New South Wales state, which is 270 miles away.

“It took me a few goes to get it right,” Jackson said. “And the final result is what you see. That was as close to a heart as I could get it.”

Jackson started experimenting with making shapes with sheep to relieve the monotonous stress of hand-feeding livestock during a devastating drought across most of Australia that broke in the early months of the pandemic.

If he spelled the names of his favorite musical bands with grain dropped from the back of a truck, he found that the flock would roughly adopt the same shape for several minutes.

“It certainly lifted my spirits back in the drought,” Jackson said. “This heart that I’ve done for my auntie, it certainly seems like it’s had a bit of an effect across Australia.

“Maybe we all just need to give ourselves a big virtual hug.”

Jackson said he was lucky to have any grain left on his property after a mouse plague this year that followed the drought.

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It was extraordinary.

On Aug. 7, the night police Officer Ella French was killed and her partner seriously wounded, a police radio dispatcher worked his magic.

All at once, in the blink of instant tragedy, Keith Thornton, Jr., 32, an employee of the city’s Office of Emergency Management and Communications, seemed to know precisely what to do. What to say. Where to go.

And his calm, commanding exceptionalism transfixed listeners to a 10-minute police radio transmission that hit the internet the next day.

Thornton’s clear and lightning speed bullet dispatches were lauded as exemplary; police Supt. David Brown and Mayor Lori Lightfoot called to congratulate Thornton on his service.

But except for a brief Facebook post calling for public police support, he basically went silent.

Who is this guy?

In an exclusive interview with the Chicago Sun-Times, the elusive Thornton describes himself as a proud, gay, Black American who grew up poor on the West Side in Austin with his parents, two sisters and four brothers.

And what he brought to the table the night of Aug. 7 was a confluence of all the jobs “I have ever held” — along with a gift from his dad when he was 4 years old: a fire scanner from Radio Shack.

“I learned about fire routes and ambulances on that little scanner when I was a kid,” he said. “And I’ve basically worked alongside police officers and firemen and paramedics and ambulances most of my adult life.”

The jobs include when he moved to California in 2012, “where I worked as a member of the L.A. police department for five years focusing on community police work — as well as a stint as an emergency medical technician.”

After returning to Chicago, “I’ve worked or volunteered in the emergency management world in some capacity since I moved back,” he said.

“So I felt prepared, but please don’t let it sound like I’m bragging. I just slipped into a frame of mind and started running.”

Thornton’s trajectory into that dark August night began at 9:08 p.m. when a police call came through from West Englewood.

“At first, it sounded like a broken frequency transmission … but it turned into the sound of someone running, someone almost breathless,” he told Sneed.

On excerpts from his police radio transmissions, Thornton can be heard asking, “Who is running? Somebody’s running. Who is running out there?” He was working the third watch OMEC shift and looking forward to dinner in 45 minutes.

It turned out to be policeman Joshua Blas gasping for air at 63th Street and Bell Avenue.

“Who is this and what you got?” asked Thornton, shortly after a deadly traffic stop led to the shooting death of police Officer Ella French and the catastrophic wounding of Officer Carlos Yanez Jr.

“Officer Blas was heroic,” Thornton now says. “He gave us everything we needed immediately to get things rolling.”

The excerpts show Thornton in a commanding position.

“Two ambulances, two ambulances needed for two officers down, two officers down . . . six-three and Bell,” he says.

“I want a perimeter set up three blocks north, south, east, west of that location,” he added in breakneck speed.

His orders were interspersed with authoritative directives: “Make it quick.” “Get it there.” “Be safe.” “I got my job — do yours.” “Take care of my officers out there.”

Thornton also called for a helicopter search and gave medical advice.

“OK, listen to me: Take that damn vest off right now, and start compressions,” he told officers taking an unresponsive Officer French to the hospital.

“Start breathing, whatever we got to do. Start it now. While you’re driving, the officer in the back with her, take the vest off, and start compressions now.” They already had.

Keith Thornton wears a bracelet emblazoned with Chicago Police Officer Ella French’s name.Ashlee Rezin/Sun-Times

He insisted officers taking the wounded to a nearby local hospital reroute instead to University of Chicago Medicine and its world-class trauma center. He provided directions to the hospital and ordered street closings so they could get get there faster.

Soon after learning Officer French was dead, Thornton momentarily choked up.

After that fateful night, Emonte Morgan, 21, and his brother, Eric Morgan, 22, were charged with killing French and critically wounding Yanez Jr. and ordered held without bail.

In addition to his training, Thornton credits his attendance at the James Otis Elementary School as providing an irreplaceable learning curve in other areas.

“I had to be bussed there because our schools were full. I got to truly see life from many sides, … observing the school’s service to many other students who were blind and deaf and had special needs. It taught me to really respect life,” he said.

He tells Sneed: “I guess I’ve always wanted to be a fireman first. And I came back to Chicago to get into the emergency management field. Being of service is a powerful thing … Working in the community in a leadership role is so important. I just want to help.”

In a world where leaders often seem to have no answers, Thornton seemed to have had them all one night when it mattered most.

And now he is headed out of town on a much-needed vacation.

Sneedlings . . .

Saturday birthday: Jack Black, 52; Shania Twain, 56; and Jennifer Coolidge, 60. … Sunday birthdays: Liam Payne, 28; Lea Michele, 35; and Chris Hadfield, 62.

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