A Harvard garden featured on this year’s annual MCC and U of I Extension Master Gardeners of McHenry County Garden Walk features a restored prairie in the homeowners’ front yard. This year’s event includes seven private gardens, along with the McHenry County College Demonstration Garden and the Harvard “Growing Together” Community Garden.

A Harvard garden features a shady garden with a dramatic look featuring groupings of plants based on textures and colors alongside a walking path. This garden is one of seven private gardens featured at the MCC and U of I Extension Master Gardeners of McHenry County Garden Walk.

Starting Point For An Enjoyable Tour At MCC

The Demonstration Garden at McHenry County College, tended by the U of I Extension Master Gardeners of McHenry County is the starting point for the annual MCC and U of I Extension Master Gardeners of McHenry County Garden Walk from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday, July 14. The demo garden features eye-popping annuals grown from seed by volunteers in the college greenhouse and perennials for both sun and shade, along with a theme garden.

Congressmen Ask Company To Keep Jobs In Illinois

U.S. Reps. Don Manzullo (R-Egan) and Bobby Schilling (R-Colona) urge the CEO of Massachusetts-based Sensata Technologies to abandon plans to offshore production to Asia and instead keep the work and the jobs in Freeport, Illinois.

In a letter to the company, Manzullo and Schilling expressed their concerns with Sensata’s plans to shut down its Freeport plant and move the production and jobs to China.

The Congressmen instead suggest Sensata should follow the lead of other multi-national corporations who are “reshoring” American jobs -- bringing back production from overseas – to boost lead times, innovation and quality.

Citizens of Freeport contacted both Manzullo and Schilling for help in appealing to Sensata to keep operations in Freeport.

“Labor costs in China are soaring, and energy costs are driving up the cost of shipping products,” Manzullo and Schilling said in the letter. “We would ask that you strongly consider these factors as well as the important value of the highly skilled, highly productive workforce in the northern Illinois region that is second to none in the global economy.”

The letter points out executives at Google Inc. have decided to manufacture the company’s new Nexus Q home entertainment device in the United States instead of China, reportedly to speed up innovation time.

According to a recent Boston Consulting survey of 106 U.S.-based manufacturing executives with sales greater than $1 billion, 37 percent were considering or planning to move production back to the United States from China.

Manzullo and Schilling added that Freeport has been a leader in innovative workforce development initiatives, such as the Work Keys program that assesses and trains workers to match the needs of area employers. The region is also supported by a superior transportation network led by United Parcel Services’ second largest air cargo hub at the Chicago-Rockford International Airport, as well as the Union Pacific Railroad Global III Intermodal Hub.

“These are just some of the many reasons that we respectfully request that you reconsider your decision to move your Freeport operations,” the letter stated.