Join us for our Care About the Climate event on Thursday, Sept. 12 from 4-7 p.m. at the Illinois Beach State Park located at 1 Lake Front Drive in Zion.

Learn from Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) staff and interactive activities about coastal erosion, wildlife, composting and more. Don't miss this opportunity to learn and engage in environmental stewardship! For questions, you can contact my district office at (847) 548-5631.

GRAYSLAKE —State Senator Mary Edly-Allen (D-Grayslake) alongside State Representative Laura Faver Dias (D-Grayslake) are working together to host a community toy drive intended to bring joy to children who may have been overlooked, particularly over the past year.

“Every child deserves to wake up with joy in their hearts during the holidays, and this toy drive is our way of bringing a little magic to families who are hurting,” said Edly-Allen. “I am deeply moved by how our community shows up for one another and grateful to everyone helping make sure no child feels forgotten this season.”

GURNEE — Lake County State Senators Mary Edly-Allen (D-Grayslake), Julie Morrison (D-Lake Forest) and Adriane Johnson (D-Buffalo Grove) released the following joint statement regarding a pursuit of individuals involving federal agents near Warren Township High School in Gurnee on Thursday:

“Our community deserves safety, transparency and respect — not reckless behavior that endangers children and residents. Today’s event made it clear that federal agents were not taking residents’ safety into consideration, resulting in a reckless high-speed chase during a time when children were being dropped off at school.

GRAYSLAKE – The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) serves as the nation’s largest anti-hunger initiative, reaching more than 40 million Americans every month. Yet ongoing threats to its funding put millions including families, seniors, veterans and children at risk of food insecurity and poor health outcomes.

State Senator Mary Edly-Allen is urging the federal administration to resolve the ongoing government shutdown to prevent the halting of SNAP benefits, on Nov. 1. Nearly two million Illinois residents depend on SNAP to provide basic nutrition for themselves and their families.

“Without SNAP, parents have to choose between buying necessities for their children. The elderly may skip meals, causing their health to worsen - not due to age, but malnutrition. Children go to school hungry, struggling to focus in class because their stomachs ache. Parents skip meals so that their kids can eat,” said Edly-Allen (D-Grayslake). “I want to stress that a long-term solution requires immediate federal intervention and the absence of SNAP benefits does not just mean empty cupboards – it means more hospital visits, worse outcomes in school and a cycle of poverty that becomes harder to break.”