It's Labor Day

About Labor Day

The first Labor Day was held in 1882. Its origins stem from the desire of the Central Labor Union to create a holiday for workers. It became a federal holiday in 1894. It was originally intended that the day would be filled with a street parade to allow the public to appreciate the work of the trade and labor organizations. After the parade, a festival was to be held to amuse local workers and their families. In later years, prominent men and women held speeches. This is less common now, but is sometimes seen in election years. One of the reasons for choosing to celebrate this on the first Monday in September was to add a holiday in the long gap between Independence Day and Thanksgiving

In The Good Old Summertime----

McHenry County Department of Health (MCDH) reports that mosquito batches collected on July 31 and August 6 from mosquito traps in Nunda Township and Lake in the Hills have tested positive for West Nile virus (WNV).  These are the first positive tests for WNV in McHenry County in 2015.  MCDH has tested 311 mosquito batches as of August 18; all other batches tested negative for WNV.  IDPH reported 44 human cases in 2014, including 4 fatal.  One human case of WNV was reported in McHenry County in 2014. Two birds collected in McHenry County have been submitted and tested with negative results.

MCDH will continue to collect and test mosquito batches throughout the remainder of the season (mid-October) and will accept a limited number of dead birds for testing.  It is important to remember that the risk of WNV remains until the first hard frost. Residents should continue to use insect repellent when going out of doors in the evening, with long sleeved shirts and long pants for extra protection.  Other tips include emptying standing water from containers around the house and making sure doors and windows have tight-fitting screens. 

Illness from West Nile virus is usually mild and includes fever, headache and body aches but serious illnesses, such as encephalitis and meningitis and death, are possible.  Persons 50 and older have the highest risk of severe disease.  For more information on WNV, visit www.mcdh.info (Environmental Health) or call 815-334-4585.

Five McHenry County Beaches On Advisory Status

Following the recent heavy rains, McHenry County Department of Health (MCDH) resampled the 38 licensed beaches on Monday, July 20. Five beaches continue to be on an ADVISORY status while nine beaches are CLOSED due to elevated bacteria levels. Beaches will be resampled Tuesday, July 21.  They include –

ADVISORY

·         Indian Ridge, 2 North, 4519-4603 NE Lake Shore Drive, Wonder Lake

·         Lake Park Beach, 300 Lake Shore Drive, Crystal Lake

·         LeVilla Vaupell 1, 1115 W Northeast Shore Drive, McHenry

·         Veterans Park, 332 W State Road, Island Lake

·         Wooded Shores, 3221 E Lake Shore Dive, Wonder Lake

CLOSED

·         Deep Spring Woods 2, 3925-3927 E Lake Shore Drive, Wonder Lake

·         Highland Shores, 3500 W Lake Shore Drive, Wonder Lake

·         Indian Ridge 1 South, 4601 NE Lake Shore Drive, Wonder Lake

·         Indian Trails, Lake in the Hills

·         Lookout Point, 5206 E Lake Shore Drive, Wonder Lake

·         Shore Hills Beach, 3450 E Lake Shore Drive, Wonder Lake

·         Sunrise Ridge,3800 W Lake Shore Drive, Wonder Lake

·         Wonder Center, 4100 E Lake Shore Drive, Wonder Lake

·         Wonder Woods 4, 5200 Wonder Woods Drive, Wonder Lake

Residents should visit the MCDH webpage (www.mcdh.info) for the latest information on all beaches or call 815-334-4585.  To prevent illness associated with swimming, all licensed beaches on the 12 lakes in McHenry County are tested every 2 weeks for E. coli throughout the summer to determine water quality.  Water sampling results are reported to the appropriate beach authorities. MCDH will post an advisory or closed signage for beaches with elevated E. coli results. 

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Get All You Can From Today's Computers

In response to the ever changing needs of the community, the McHenry County College (MCC) Workforce, Community and Business Programs is offering Get the Most from Your iPad,® a hands-on workshop designed for the novice user, from 8 a.m. to noon on Wednesday, July 22.

Computer Skills instructor Kerrie Johnson will help you sync your iPad to your e-mail and calendar and show you how to connect to Wi-Fi. The course will cover basic settings, gestures, navigation, buttons and icons. Class participants will learn how to work with some of the factory installed Apps, such as notes, mail, and calendar as well as gain an understanding of the iCloud, backing up, and syncing.

The instructor will show students how to work in Safari, with Photos, downloading Apps from the App Store, as well as provide additional tips and tricks. Participants should come equipped with their own fully-charged iPad and power cords. Those who already have an Apple ID and/or e-mail ID, should bring that to class, along with passwords.

Cost is $99. Use course code #NTC C35 001 to register. This course takes place at McHenry County College Shah Center, 4100 W. Shamrock Lane in McHenry. To register, call (815) 455-8588 or register online at www.mchenry.edu/myMCC. For more information, contact the MCC Shah Center at (815) 455-8593 or send an email to shahcenter@mchenry.edu.

Employee Training Offered At MCC

McHenry County College’s (MCC) Workforce, Community and Business Programs offers a variety of manufacturing and warehousing industry fundamental courses for area businesses of all sizes. MCC offers a cost-effective opportunity for employee training with access to experienced trainers and consultants bringing quality programs to support the skill advancement of our area businesses.

The following courses are accepting registration:

Blueprint Reading: Covers print layout, holes, threads, machining details, and assembly prints. The lecture will be supplemented with individual class exercises to provide actual practice for participants, who will also learn how to interpret in-house drawings.  Participants are encouraged to bring prints from their organization to review. This course is designed for inspectors, maintenance and shop floor personnel in need of skill enhancement in this topic. Prerequisites: Basic shop math is recommended.  Class is scheduled for 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Tuesday, July 28. Fee is $229. Participants may register by referring to course code: NTE S61 001.

Geometric Dimensioning and Tolerancing (GD&T): Offers participants the ability to gain a working knowledge of GD&T as it applies to ANSI Y14.5M-1994.  Topics include interpreting GD&T symbols, Forma and orientation tolerances and profile, run out and location tolerance. This course is ideal for product engineers, process engineers, CAD technicians, lead personnel and inspectors.  Class takes place from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Tuesday, August 11.  Fee is $229. Refer to course code: NTE S64 001 when registering.

These courses are located at the McHenry County College Shah Center, 4100 W. Shamrock Lane in McHenry. To register, call (815) 455-8588 or register online at www.mchenry.edu/myMCC. For more information, call the Shah Center at (815) 455-8593 or email at shahcenter@mchenry.edu.

Real Estate Pre-licensing Program At MCC

McHenry County College's Workforce and Community Development Department is offering a Real Estate Pre-licensing program from 6 to 9:30 p.m. on Wednesdays, Aug. 19 through Nov. 11 in Room A119 at MCC.

This program is listed as two courses, which must be taken together: Real Estate Sales Broker Pre-License Topics and Real Estate Broker Pre-License Interactive. The Real Estate Sales Broker Pre-License Topics course is a blended home study course, which satisfies 75 hours of the 90 hours of instruction required by the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR) to become a real estate broker. This course is usually offered concurrently or consecutively with the Real Estate Broker Pre-License Interactive course. This course includes a study of the broad field of real estate with an emphasis on license law, real property, agency structure, buyer and seller relationships and counseling, Illinois law, Federal law, marketing and advertising, market analysis and appraisal, financing and contract knowledge, independent contractor/employee agreements and occupational disciplines.

In the Real Estate Broker Pre-License Interactive course, students will satisfy 15 hours of the 90 hours of instruction required by the IDFPR to become a real estate broker. Depending on how the class is presented, it could be included in the overall start and end dates of the topics class or it could be held consecutively to the topics class. The course includes role play, case study examples, demonstration examples, and “what if” situational examples in such areas as listing presentation, agreement and disclosure, writing purchase agreements, market analysis, seller net sheets, confronting fair housing violations/seller or buyer, distressed property issues, antitrust scenarios, and inspection/repair issues. The Illinois State Licensing Act will also be covered. 

These courses are IDFPR approved and their regulations require students attend all sessions. Successful completion of this set of classes, the Broker Pre-license Topics class and the Broker Pre-License Interactive class, including the required coursework, allows for students to sit for the Illinois Real Estate Broker Examination; students must be at least 21 and a high school graduate/GED.  For complete Illinois requirements, see www.idfpr.com.

Cost for the set of classes is $699, including all materials. For more information, contact Ruth Kormanak at (815) 479-7879 or by email at rkormanak@mchenry.edu. To enroll in both of these classes, please contact MCC registration at (815) 455-8588, or register online at: www.mchenry.edu/myMCC and use the course codes: URE U19-001 and URE U20-001. 

Crystal Lake Planning and Zoning Commission Meeting Canceled

NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the regularly scheduled meeting of the Crystal Lake Planning and Zoning Commission for Wednesday, July 15, 2015 is hereby canceled. The petitions that were originally scheduled, 2015-33 BMO Harris Bank – 5545 Northwest Highway and 2015-34 BMO Harris Bank – 1105 S. IL Route 31, are hereby continued to the August 5, 2015 meeting.

The next meeting of the Planning and Zoning Commission will be their regularly scheduled meeting on August 5, 2015 at 7:30 p.m. in the City Council Chambers located at 100 W. Woodstock Street.