Kids & Family

Youth Hockey Players' Turkey Drive A Win for Families In Crisis

Cobras High School Hockey Club rake in turkeys and monetary donations for Together We Cope, with some help from WGN's Mr. Fix-It.

Oak Lawn was a hotbed of media activity on Saturday morning when the WGN Radio host Lou Manfredini broadcast his popular “Mr. Fix-It” home improvement show from in front of Stacked Pancake House.

Saturday’s remote broadcast was the season finale of “On the Road With Lou” series. Manfredini, a North Sider, ten minutes before the show started at 6:50 a.m.

Lou’s production crew remarked that he was always late. Dozens of callers were already on hold waiting to discuss their home maintenance concerns with “Mr. Fix-It.”

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Remarking that anything one needed in life could be found on 95th Street, Manfredini dove right into the broadcast, gently guiding a listener into describing exactly what was happening with her sagging kitchen ceiling.

The real focus of the morning was the Cobras High School Hockey Club’s turkey drive for Together We Cope, a non-profit agency that assists families in 22 Southland communities.

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Manfredini used WGN’s 50,000-watt blowtorch to encourage listeners in the area to drop off frozen turkeys and donations with the Cobras in front of Stacked at 5273 W. 95th St.

Owner Tom Demacopoulos's son plays for the team, which draws members from Oak Lawn, Evergreen Park, Stagg, Andrew, Chi-Tech, Shepard, Richards, Tinley Park and Oak Forest high schools

The Cobras collected more than 30 turkeys during the three-hour broadcast, to be distributed to the families that receive food assistance from Together We Cope.




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