Originally published on the Cook County Sheriff’s website brianasfightforlifePlease join Sheriff Dart and Cook County Sheriff's Office staff in support of IDOC Director Tony Godinez and his family as they host a benefit for their 24 year old daughter,Briana, who was recently diagnosed with a rare form of Stage 3 brain cancer, Anaplastic Astrocytoma. Currently, there is no known cure for AA. It is unclear the challenges that lay ahead, so they are hosting a benefit to cover mounting medical bills with the remainder being placed in a trust for Briana's 5 year old daughter.

Cook County Assessor Joseph Berrios announced that reassessment notices were mailed today to close to 18,000 residential property owners in Elk Grove Township. “Our goal at the Assessor’s Office is to ensure that all property owners are equitably assessed,” Assessor Berrios said. “I encourage all homeowners to review their reassessment notices carefully to be certain their proposed assessments are fair and accurate.” Each year, the Cook County Assessor’s Office reassesses one-third of the nearly 1.8 million parcels of property located in Cook County.

Cook County Assessor Joseph Berrios announced Tuesday that he has crafted pending legislation in the Illinois General Assembly to increase the amount of savings for the Homeowner and Senior Exemptions. The bill is designed to soften the blow caused by the sunset of the 7 Percent Expanded Homeowner Exemption, which was originally designed to provide relief from rising home values before the economic downturn. “Although homeowners will continue to automatically receive the benefits of the standard Homeowner Exemption, they will see increases in their bills when the 7 percent savings is gone,”

The Cook County Department of Environmental Control and The Rebuilding Exchange will host six free public workshops during March to educate contractors, municipal workers and the general public about the County’s Demolition, Debris and Diversion Ordinance, which came into effect last November. At each of the three-hour workshops, attendees will learn about: How to meet requirements quickly and cost-effectively The best materials for deconstruction and reuse Tools, resources and markets available to help them meet their deconstruction targets How to communicate about deconstruction and

Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle delivered a strong Why Counties Matter message to Capitol Hill during the National Association of Counties’ (NACo) 2013 Legislative Conference, March 2-6, in Washington, D.C. With talk of fiscal cliffs and sequestration cuts dominating the headlines, more than 1,500 county officials from across the country gathered in the nation’s capital to demonstrate to Congress and federal officials that the nation’s 3,069 county governments provide the essential building blocks to create healthy, vibrant and safe communities.

Forest Preserve District of Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle has appointed former Chicago Police Department Captain John J. Roberts to be the District’s new Chief of Police. Roberts will start this position on March 5, 2013. The District’s previous Police Chief, Richard Waszak, retired in late 2012 after ten years in the role. Roberts retired from the Chicago Police Department at the rank of Captain in 2004, after more than thirty years of service.

March is National Social Work Month and the 2013 theme is: “Weaving Threads of Resilience and Advocacy: The Power of Social Work.” Our health system social workers are often ‘behind the scenes’, working diligently to strengthen the social and medical safety nets for many of our patients. We salute their efforts!

Originally published at the Cook County Health & Hospitals website Date & Time: March 19, 2013 10:00 am - 4:00 pm Location: Stroger Hospital, Cafeteria, No appointment required. Kidney Screening Day, sponsored by the Stroger Hospital’s Department of Nephrology and the National Kidney Foundation of Illinois. All screenings are free and will include blood sugar, blood pressure and urinalysis.

The 2nd Annual Cook County Trauma Symposium was conceived as a learning & teaching crucible for physicians and other health-care professionals interested in injury. The Trauma and Burn surgeons at Cook County Hospital firmly believe in an egalitarian model of learning.  Evidence-based, cutting edge concepts taught by specialists in an interactive environment should lead to exemplary care for patients.  We believe that bringing together thinking individuals of different specialties will help find ways to deliver effective and efficient, yet compassionate care.

The Democratic nominee for the 2nd Congressional District will have the top ballot position in the April 9, 2013 Election following a drawing conducted on February 28th by Cook County Clerk David Orr and Deputy Director of Elections Noah Praetz. At 11 a.m., Orr displayed slips of paper with the parties' names written on them, one Democratic and the other Republican. Orr and Praetz each folded one slip of paper and inserted it into its own yellow pill bottle. The bottles were placed into a large fish bowl. Orr held the bowl, stirred the bottles and Praetz pulled out a bottle.