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Community Corner

Chelios' Shout-Out to the EP Missing a Few People

The Evergreen Parker doesn't think Chris Chelios and Ted Kaczynski are the only two people from Evergreen Park who have "made it."

Watching the news the other night, I saw After the main story, in what I call the "feel good" portion of the newscast, which is to say the pandering bit at the end of the show, Chelios was shown saying that he and Ted Kaczynski - the Unabomber - were the only two guys from Evergreen Park to ever really "make it."


At first I thought, cool, a shout-out to the EP. Which is I'm sure how Chelios intended what he said. But the more I have thought about it, the more what he said bugs me. 

Chris Chelios is a great hockey player and a champion, and for that reason Evergreen Park should be proud to claim him. But he was truly inartful in what he said.

First, The Unabomber? Really? As someone who's "made it?" I guess in a world where being famous for any reason - good or bad - counts, I can see it. Sort of like any press is good press when you're Lindsay Lohan. But let's review what Ted Kaczynski did to become famous: he sent bombs through the mail with the intent to hurt or kill people. He killed three people and injured 23 others between 1978 and his arrest in 1996. Famous? OK, I guess so.

Second, I think Chelios left some people off the list. Ed Farmer, former big-league pitcher and now play-by-play voice of the Sox, comes to mind. And Farmer isn't even the only baseball player on the list. Donn Pall and Billy Pierce are both from here. Tom Gorzelanny went to Marist High School, according to Wikipedia, by no means the beginning or end of all knowledge.

There's Wayne Huizenga, who founded Blockbuster Video, the Florida (now Miami) Marlins baseball team, the Florida Panthers hockey team and who owns the Miami Dolphins football team. There's George Wendt, the comedian and actor, best known as "Norm" on the TV Show "Cheers." There's Jenny McCarthy the model and actress. The list goes on.

But third, what difference does this list make, anyway? So because these people are listed on Wikipedia they've "made it?" I know people here, neighbors, who are successful at their jobs and who have raised families. Could they be considered as having "made it?" Not by any celebrity standard, perhaps, but by most people's standards, yes. I guess there are too many of them to list.

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I don't mean to pick on Chris Chelios. He's destined for the Hall of Fame. And he is the only famous hockey player from Evergreen Park.

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