As the nation celebrates its 250th anniversary, right here in Kendall County we’ll be celebrating a little quieter, but celebrating nonetheless our small corner of northern Illinois’ 185th birthday.

We get a real treat here during winter with the birds that use the Midwest for their wintering grounds.

Catch up on the week’s top Kendall County news in minutes. Hear the week’s 5 most popular stories, read aloud for you, for the week of Feb. 15-21

Millbrook United Methodist Church will hosts its annual all-you-can-eat country breakfast and homemade bakery.

From Capitol News Illinois: The debate over how to regulate data centers in Illinois is intensifying as lawmakers struggle to balance a host of competing interests.

A rural residence in Oswego that sold for $1.21 million tops the list of the most expensive residential real estate sales in Kendall County during the past week

Marmion's swimmers took second and Oswego Co-op third at Saturday's Metea Valley Sectional.

Oswego East's girls bowling team took fifth at the IHSA state meet and Jayden Riley poured in 45 points to lead Yorkville Christian past Freeport in the regular season finale.

From Capitol News Illinois: Providers warned that flat funding combined with rising operating costs and continuing funding cuts at the federal level could strain services statewide

Yorkville Public Library Hour is open Monday through Saturday, Curbside service is available for those who prefer not to enter the library. The library will be closed on Feb. 16.

Illinois Extension is launching a flexible vegetable gardening webinar series to help gardeners of all levels save money and grow produce successfully

Bishop McNamara battled to a 68-60 victory over Newark on Friday, Feb. 20, 2026, in their final home game and the last home game for coach Adrian Provost.

Check out photos of the potential site of the new Chicago Bears stadium in Hammond, Ind., by photo editor Scott Anderson. The sites include Wolf Lake Memorial Park in the 2300 block of Calumet Avenue and Lost Marsh Golf Course

The day after Indiana made a major play to lure the Bears, officials involved in negotiations with the team on this side of the state line played defense, saying the team still is very much interested in Arlington Heights

Chaske Roskopf was charged in 2022 following an investigation by the Kendall County Sheriff’s Office that revealed he had been sexually assaulting a child starting when the child was 9 years old, the Kendall County State’s Attorney’s Office said.

The widow of Chicago Bear and NFL Hall of Famer Steve “Mongo” McMichael was arrested by Will County sheriff’s deputies after she was accused of domestic battery.

The Fightin' Irish trailed at the end of each of the first three quarters of Friday's regular season finale against Newark, but in their final home game and the last home game for coach Adrian Provost, Bishop McNamara's seniors rose late for a 68-60 win.

Sandwich junior Cooper Corder advanced to Saturday’s state championship match at Champaign’s State Farm Center with a semifinal win Friday, while Yorkville junior Van Rosauer and Yorkville Christian senior Jackson Allen dropped their semifinal matches.

Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker is demanding billions of dollars in refunds from President Donald Trump following a U.S. Supreme Court decision striking down sweeping federal tariffs

There is a fatal neurological disease that makes deer lose their fear of humans. As the brain and central nervous system deteriorate, the deer “wastes” away.

The Copley Comedy Series begins with headliner Tim Walkoe Saturday, Feb. 28.

A tariff is a tax levied on imported goods. Reports estimate tariffs put in by the Trump administration have cost the average American household at least $1,000 over the past year. What happens now that the Supreme Court has struck down a wide swath of the tariffs?

A single-family home in Oswego that sold for $430,000 tops the list of the best real estate deals in Kendall County in the past week.

The Chicago Bears will travel to Indianapolis for the 2026 NFL Scouting Combine next week as they progress through the offseason. Shaw Local's Michal Dwojak and Joe Aguilar preview the combine and what they can learn from the Bears in Indianapolis, plus some stadium talk

The Supreme Court struck down President Donald Trump’s far-reaching global tariffs on Friday, handing him a significant loss on an issue crucial to his economic agenda. Furious about the defeat, Trump said he would impose a global 10% tariff as an alternative

Check out these restaurants the next time you make plans for your weekend brunch.

A single-family home located at 141 River Mist Drive in Oswego has a new owner since Feb. 5.

The Chicago Bears will head to Indianapolis next week for the NFL Scouting Combine as the NFL offseason takes shape. Here are three things that we can learn from the Bears at the combine.

Here are Jon Cunningham's photos from Thursday's Class 4A Benet Regional final between Benet and Oswego East.

Sandwich junior Cooper Corder, Yorkville junior Donovan Rosauer and Yorkville Christian senior Jackson Allen all advanced to the state semifinals with two wins Thursday at the IHSA state wrestling meet in Champaign.

The Midland girls basketball team received a huge 3-pointer from senior Emma Franks in the final minutes of a 52-45 victory over Yorkville Christian in the Class 1A Serena Regional championship game om Thursday. It's the Timberwolves first postseason title since 1999.

From Capitol News Illinois: Two Illinois high school students worked with a legislator and stakeholders to draft a bill mandating disposal programs for electronic smoking devices like vapes

U.S. Rep. Lauren Underwood, D-Naperville, is sponsoring legislation to rename the post office at 14855 South Van Dyke Road in Plainfield in honor of Staff Sergeant Jose Duenez Jr.

From Capitol News Illinois: Fidel Marquez, a former executive for electric utility Commonwealth Edison, was sentenced to two years of probation Thursday for his role in a yearslong bribery scheme intended to influence ex-Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan

The Chicago Bears made their first cost-saving move of the offseason Thursday. Chicago announced that it released linebacker Amen Ogbongbemiga.

From Capitol News Illinois: Republicans were less generous in their assessment of the budget picture Pritzker painted. But they found some items to agree on, including slightly less charged rhetoric than his 2025 speech, which was delivered just weeks into Trump’s second term

Fox Valley Winery in Oswego will host a guided wine pairing event on Thursday, Feb. 19.

National Drink Wine Day is Wednesday, Feb. 18.

Yorkville junior Van Rosauer, who won the 150-pound sectional championship at the Class 3A Edwardsville Sectional with an overtime decision to qualify for state, is the Record Newspapers Athlete of the Week in an online vote. Here is his Q&A with Sports Editor Joshua Welge.

The Chicago Bears announced Thursday that they promoted Jeff King to be the team’s new assistant general manager. He'll replace Ian Cunningham, who left to become the general manager of the Atlanta Falcons last month.

The Chicago Bears’ potential move to Northwest Indiana took a key step Thursday morning. The Indiana House Ways and Means Committee passed an amended Indiana Senate bill 24-0 that would set up a framework for a new Bears stadium in the area.

The village officially broke ground on the 143rd Street Corridor project in 2024. The corridor improvements aim to alleviate congestion in the downtown area, expedite travel time, improve safety and promote responsible growth.

The long-stalled legislation would allow the Bears to negotiate directly with local taxing bodies over the amount of taxes that should be paid on at least a portion of the sprawling property for up to 40 years

From Capitol News Illinois: In his eighth State of the State address, Pritzker focused on affordability issues affecting Illinois residents and blamed President Donald Trump for the state’s tight financial condition

Now that the Bears are good, the payroll decisions only become more of a puzzle, and shedding DJ Moore's salary could impact the defense more than his skillset affects the 2026 team and beyond, Marc Silverman writes

Jayden Zepeda's 21 points led Plano past Richmond-Burton, plus Sandwich results in Wednesday's roundup.

Here are the Record Newspapers-area qualifiers for the IHSA individual state wrestling meet.

If you woke up feeling like your car needed a bath Wednesday, you’re not imagining it. A wide swath of northern Illinois was hit with “dirty rain” overnight.

The Kiwanis Club of Oswego and Oswego East Band Boosters are joining together to host an all-you-can-eat pancake breakfast fundraiser.

From Capitol News Illinois: Gov. JB Pritzker is proposing a $56 billion budget for fiscal year 2027 with minimal new spending. Pritzker’s plan does not include major new taxes but would create a new tax on social media companies