Pope Leo XIV's hometown approves the purchase of his childhood home in hopes of reviving the village
Since white smoke billowed in May from the Sistine Chapel and Pope Leo XIV was elected Pope Francis' successor, the new pope's childhood home — a small, two-story house in Dolton, Illinois, about 20 miles (32 kilometers) south of Chicago — has drawn visitors from across the country with many treating it as a pilgrimage site.
Cardinal Robert Prevost made history by becoming the first pope from the United States — a stunning decision that Chicagoans celebrated by flocking to churches and sharing memes .
Prevost was born in 1955 in the South Side Chicago neighborhood of Bronzeville and grew up in suburban Dolton, near St. Mary of the Assumption , where he attended Mass and elementary school. He later studied theology at the Catholic Theological Union of Chicago in the Hyde Park neighborhood and taught in local Catholic schools, including at St. Rita High School.
Dolton Mayor Jason House called purchasing the pope's childhood home a 'once-in-a-lifetime opportunity' during a Tuesday meeting of the Dolton Village Board. The childhood homes of other popes have often been turned into museums or pilgrimage sites.
'This is a proud moment for our village and an opportunity, and we want to make sure that we're doing it justice,' he said.
Yet several residents at Tuesday's meeting were skeptical about any benefit to taxpayers, questioning whether the financially strained village could afford to purchase the home and maintain the streets surrounding it.
The board hired former Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot to probe the village's finances last year, and she found Dolton's bank accounts had been depleted. The village was $3.65 million in debt and had unpaid bills piling up.
Dolton gained national attention amid allegations of its former Mayor Tiffany Henyard's financial mismanagement, corruption and failure to follow state transparency laws by turning over spending and other records.
'Purchasing the pope's residence is admirable.' Dolton resident Mary Avent told the board on Tuesday. 'But with the state we're in right now, I guess my concern is, do we have the money?'
House said he is committed to repairing the streets surrounding Prevost's childhood home and assured residents he understood their concerns. Still, he said the sale will likely close within two weeks.
The house's listed owner did not immediately respond to a request for comment Wednesday.
'We can either seize this moment going forward or we can let that moment go to an investor,' House said. 'I would like our community to get the benefit of this opportunity.'
Other board members echoed the mayor's excitement over the purchase, as some spoke of how the childhood homes of Michael Jackson and Martin Luther King Jr. offered economic opportunity to their communities. A recent post on the village's Facebook account showed workers repairing the house's roof and celebrated the home for 'bringing new energy and attention to our village.'
Gino Ferrari, president of Windy City Construction Group, said he offered the full roof replacement for free to the current owner, saying he 'wanted to make sure this roof lasts a long time.' In front of the home, the company put up a sign with an image of Pope Leo XIV and the words 'Pope Leo's childhood home' and 'A roof for the pope's roots.'
As crews worked on the roof Tuesday, they chatted with neighbors who offered them water and bike riders who traveled along the lakefront from Chicago to see the house.
'Dolton has been through a lot in the last few years, so this is such a great, positive moment for Dolton,' Ferrari said. 'The community seems pretty excited.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
8 hours ago
- Yahoo
Zacks Investment Ideas feature highlights: Microsoft and Alphabet
For Immediate Release Chicago, IL – July 30, 2025– Today, Zacks Investment Ideas feature highlights Microsoft MSFT and Alphabet GOOGL. Will Cloud Results Boost Microsoft Earnings? The 2025 Q2 earnings season picks up considerable steam this week, with a wide variety of S&P 500 companies reporting results. Headlining the docket are several Mag 7 members, a list that includes Microsoft. A peer, Alphabet, already revealed its quarterly results, whose Cloud performance was largely positive and pleased the market. Given Microsoft's reliance on cloud performance, let's take a closer look at what to expect from the fellow tech titan. Alphabet Impresses Alphabet's results were largely positive, with Google Cloud revenue soaring 32% year-over-year to $13.6 billion. The growth rate reflected a nice acceleration, with operating income in the segment also more than doubling YoY. Notably, GOOGL upped its capital expenditures (CapEx) guidance for its current fiscal year to $85 billion, up $10 billion from the prior mark. The increased spend remains aimed toward the data center and broader AI infrastructure buildout, a theme we'll likely see discussed in MSFT's and Amazon's (AMZN) upcoming releases too. Up 1.5% YTD, Alphabet shares have lagged the S&P 500 but nonetheless saw a nice charge higher following the latest release. Microsoft Earnings Loom EPS and sales expectations for MSFT's upcoming release have largely remained unchanged, with the titan expected to see 14% EPS growth on 14% higher sales. While revisions haven't budged much, the stability here in the revisions trends is still a positive takeaway, with the YoY growth rates also remaining sizable. Microsoft Cloud and AI strength drove its latest set of strong results, with Microsoft Cloud revenue soaring 20% year-over-year to $42.4 billion. Demand has remained strong for the tech titan, with commentary alluding to the trend remaining for years to come. Importantly, its Intelligent Cloud (includes Azure) revenue totaled a strong $26.8 billion, up 21% from the year-ago period. For the period to be reported, the Zacks Consensus estimate for Intelligent Cloud revenue stands at $28.9 billion. Putting Everything Together The 2025 Q2 earnings season picks up notable steam this week, with several Mag 7 members on the docket. Microsoft is among the bunch, whose cloud results and capex commentary will be watched intently. Alphabet already delivered its quarterly results, with its cloud performance largely positive and providing decent read-throughs of what to expect from MSFT. Alphabet also upped its capex guidance, suggesting that MSFT might just do the same given the current AI frenzy. Free: Instant Access to Zacks' Market-Crushing Strategies Since 2000, our top stock-picking strategies have blown away the S&P's +7.7% average gain per year. Amazingly, they soared with average gains of +48.4%, +50.2% and +56.7% per year. Today you can tap into those powerful strategies – and the high-potential stocks they uncover – free. No strings attached. Get all the details here >> Media Contact Zacks Investment Research 800-767-3771 ext. 9339 support@ Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Inherent in any investment is the potential for loss. This material is being provided for informational purposes only and nothing herein constitutes investment, legal, accounting or tax advice, or a recommendation to buy, sell or hold a security. No recommendation or advice is being given as to whether any investment is suitable for a particular investor. It should not be assumed that any investments in securities, companies, sectors or markets identified and described were or will be profitable. All information is current as of the date of herein and is subject to change without notice. Any views or opinions expressed may not reflect those of the firm as a whole. Zacks Investment Research does not engage in investment banking, market making or asset management activities of any securities. These returns are from hypothetical portfolios consisting of stocks with Zacks Rank = 1 that were rebalanced monthly with zero transaction costs. These are not the returns of actual portfolios of stocks. The S&P 500 is an unmanaged index. Visit information about the performance numbers displayed in this press release. Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report Microsoft Corporation (MSFT) : Free Stock Analysis Report Alphabet Inc. (GOOGL) : Free Stock Analysis Report This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research ( Zacks Investment Research
Yahoo
9 hours ago
- Yahoo
US Rep. Danny Davis set to announce he won't run for reelection to Congress
Danny Davis, the 83-year-old dean of Illinois' U.S. House delegation and a voice for progressive politics for decades, is expected to announce Thursday that he will not seek election to a 16th term representing his downtown and West Side district — the latest move in a generational change sweeping the state's and nation's political scene. Davis is also expected to announce his endorsement of veteran state Rep. La Shawn Ford in a budding primary contest to succeed him for the Democratic nomination in March, a well-placed source close to the congressman's decision-making said Wednesday. Ford announced his congressional bid in May but said he would not run if Davis had sought another term. Davis' decision to retire at the end of his current term in January 2027 would create the fourth open-seat congressional contest for Illinois Democrats next year. U.S. Reps. Raja Krishnamoorthi of Schaumburg and Robin Kelly of Matteson have opted to seek the seat of retiring U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin, along with Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton. And U.S. Rep. Jan Schakowsky of Evanston announced in May she would not seek a 15th term in Congress. All four districts are regarded as safely Democratic, meaning the winners of next year's March 17 Democratic primaries will be the heavy favorites in the general election. Davis' expected endorsement of Ford, who has been in the state legislature for 18 years, comes as a lengthy list of potential successors have lined up with an eye on running for the 7th Congressional District seat. In addition to Ford, at least eight people have filed to run, including attorney Richard Boykin, a former Cook County commissioner and Davis' former chief of staff. Chicago businessman Jason Friedman has also filed to run for the seat. 'I'm no spring chicken,' Davis told the Austin Weekly News on June 13 as he pondered his decision. 'Most people my age retired years ago.' Davis said he had been consulting supporters, his physicians and constituents. But he also acknowledged his tenure in the House and the role seniority plays on Capitol HIll, adding, 'I'm a senior member of Congress, not just a member.' Despite facing pressure in previous campaigns from younger challengers pushing a message of change in recent years, Davis survived primary reelection battles with the backing of the current Democratic establishment, a contrast to the old Democratic guard that he once fought against to win public office. Known for a deep, authoritarian bass voice that could have been used to voice movie trailers — and for his constant companion, his walking stick — Davis' tenure encompassed an evolution of Chicago politics over nearly a half century in public life. An Arkansas native, Davis after college moved to Chicago, where he was a community organizer with the Greater Lawndale Conservation Commission and also served as a teacher in the city's public schools. He and other civil rights advocates were part of the 1960s Chicago Freedom Movement led by Dr. Martin Luther King to challenge racial discrimination in city housing, education and employment. In 1979, he was elected 29th Ward alderman as a political independent, directly challenging the remnants of the Chicago machine three years after Mayor Richard J. Daley's death. He worked for the election of Harold Washington as the city's first Black mayor in 1983. In 1984 and 1986, he unsuccessfully challenged U.S. Rep. Cardiss Collins and, four years later, lost in taking on incumbent County Treasurer Ed Rosewell, but he won an at-large seat on the Cook County Board. In 1991, he entered the race for Chicago mayor in challenging incumbent Richard M. Daley in the Democratic primary and finished second, 33 percentage points behind. Two decades later, he dropped a mayoral campaign in favor of former ambassador and U.S. Sen. Carol Moseley Braun as a Black 'unity' candidate who unsuccessfully challenged frontrunner Rahm Emanuel's bid to succeed Daley. It was in 1996, when Collins retired, that Davis launched his congressional career. He won a 10-way Democratic primary race for the 7th Congressional District seat, defeating a field that included then-County Board member Bobbie Steele and then-Alds. Dorothy Tillman (3rd), Ed Smith (28th) and Percy Giles (37th). The general election in the heavily Democratic district was a political formality. Davis, a member of the powerful House Ways and Means Committee, is widely considered to be one of Congress' most progressive members as he often leans to the far-left of Democratic Party politics. He has long supported Medicare for All, pushed for the Green New Deal energy initiatives, advocated for a higher federal minimum wage and voted against the Iraq War in 2002. In 2013, he co-signed a letter with other Democratic members of the state's U.S. House delegation urging the General Assembly to approve marriage equity. His 15-year-old grandson's murder by two teens who fought over a pair of Air Jordans prompted Davis to call for 'every unit of government to call a state of emergency' to boost social and economic development in the city's neglected neighborhoods. 'I know what it feels like to have a loved one whose life was wiped out unnecessarily for no apparent reason,' Davis testified in 2019 before the Oversight Subcommittee of the House Ways and Means Committee. 'I have attended the funeral of so many children in my communities whose wonderful lives were interrupted by gun violence. I feel the devastation.' His tenure has not been without controversy. In 2004, he attended a religious ceremony at the Dirksen Senate Office Building in Washington, D.C., where he crowned Rev. Sun Myung Moon, who declared himself the Messiah, and Moon's wife, 'the King and Queen of Peace.' Davis in 2018 called Louis Farrakhan, the leader of the Nation of Islam, who has made antisemitic and homophobic remarks, an 'outstanding human being.' He later backtracked on his praise, saying, 'Let me be clear: I reject, condemn and oppose Minister Farrakhan's views and remarks regarding the Jewish people and the Jewish religion.' In 2024, Davis easily won a five-way Democratic primary with 52% of the vote, which included overcoming challenges from Melissa Conyears-Ervin, the city treasurer, and Kina Collins, a progressive organizer. Two years earlier, in a largely two-person primary race, Collins put a scare into Davis when he won by a relatively close margin, 52% to 46%. Collins also challenged Davis in 2020, losing the Democratic primary 60% to 14%. 'I'm calling this a victory … for senior citizens,' Davis told supporters after his 2024 primary win. But during the first half of this year, Davis had raised only $54,000. He had nearly $115,000 in his federal campaign bank account as of July 1, however, he also listed more than $66,000 in campaign debts. In a 2010 oral history that is part of the Chicago anti-apartheid collection at Columbia College, Davis reflected on what was then an already lengthy political career. 'Although I've won offices, I've lost them. I've campaigned. I've spent a lot of money, I've spent a lot of time, energy, and effort,' Davis said. 'I've neglected a lot of people that I love, I've neglected a lot of people that I like and would love to have spent more time with them. But the necessities of politics and the desire to do it kind of forced me to do what I do,' he said. Solve the daily Crossword
New York Times
9 hours ago
- New York Times
Cubs' clubhouse waiting to see what the front office has in store for trade deadline
MILWAUKEE – The message for July 29 was spelled out in black marker on the small, white dry-erase board positioned on Craig Counsell's office desk: If you're worried about something else other than today, today is going to kick your ass. Counsell, the Chicago Cubs manager, attributed the writing to Phil Rozewicz, the longtime visiting clubhouse manager at American Family Field. It still sounded like something Counsell would say in the final hours before Major League Baseball's trade deadline to minimize distractions. Advertisement Now, though, the Cubs can turn their undivided attention to Thursday's 5 p.m. deadline. In beating Freddy Peralta and avoiding a three-game sweep with Wednesday afternoon's 10-3 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers, the Cubs moved back to one game out of first place, the position they had held for 111 days before recently getting passed by their small-market rival. The National League Central race could get shaken up again with a flurry of deals in a late-breaking market. Armed with a new contract extension, will Cubs president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer feel emboldened to maximize the club's World Series odds this year? Or will Hoyer and general manager Carter Hawkins focus more on incremental improvements and long-term sustainability? 'I know Jed's working really hard, and there's time to go left,' Counsell said. 'You got to be responsible to this team and to the future of the Cubs. 'This team has played well, for sure, and we're excited about what lies ahead. No matter what lies ahead, we're excited to get after it for the next two months.' Pitching remains the club's top priority, both in the form of at least one dependable starting pitcher and at least one reliable late-inning reliever. Amid that search, it was reassuring that Shota Imanaga at least bounced back from one of his worst starts in a Cubs uniform. Shōta Imanaga's 3Ks in the 1st. — Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) July 30, 2025 After a 12-5 loss last weekend on the South Side, the Cubs faced questions about whether the Japanese lefty was injured or tipping pitches against the Chicago White Sox. Though not quite dazzling, Imanaga mostly contained the Brewers in Wednesday's win, allowing three runs in five innings while putting up eight strikeouts against zero walks. 'We've put ourselves in this position to let Jed go do his work,' said Pete Crow-Armstrong, who was acquired for Javier Báez during Hoyer's huge sell-off on July 30, 2021, and has since blossomed into an All-Star center fielder. Advertisement 'That's the best, most confidence-building thing ever, like, 'You know what, man? If we don't do a single thing, I got the same confidence in this team to go play very well in the playoffs and make a really good run.'' The churn already started with Tuesday's decision to designate Chris Flexen for assignment. The Cubs wrung what they could out of Flexen, a swingman who signed a minor-league deal during spring training and did not allow an earned run in his first 12 appearances with the major-league club. A bullpen largely made up of castoffs is due for more regression. The Cubs pressed another button for Wednesday's game, promoting Moisés Ballesteros from Triple-A Iowa and designating Vidal Bruján for assignment. Ballesteros, widely considered a top 100 prospect in the sport, got the big hit with a three-run double off Peralta in the third inning, a highlight that won't exactly stop the speculation that he could be traded for an established pitcher. 'I'm focused on just doing my job,' Ballesteros said through an interpreter. 'I'm not really the type of person who goes on social media to check a lot of those things. I just want to help the team and contribute.' The morning after Tuesday's sloppy 9-3 loss to the Brewers, the Cubs went back to work with playoff probabilities that ranged from 94.6 percent to 98.7 percent to 99.6 percent, according to the respective forecasts by FanGraphs, Baseball Reference and Baseball Prospectus. The Cubs, though, haven't necessarily looked like a postseason lock recently. Especially when All-Star pitcher Matthew Boyd had an off night Monday in Milwaukee and All-Star outfielder Kyle Tucker had such a quiet July (.625 OPS before Wednesday's 2-for-3 with two walks). The defensive play has been a little erratic. After the trade deadline, the Cubs and Brewers will play a five-game series at Wrigley Field over four days in August, which will mark the end of their head-to-head competition in the regular season. Advertisement 'The group has handled every part of this year pretty maturely,' Cubs second baseman Nico Hoerner said, 'and done it with the big picture (in mind) but also staying day-by-day. Yeah, of course, this series means a lot. We're playing the other top team in our division. 'The deadline does sometimes carry some weight. I don't think that's affecting anything on the field right now. But, yeah, it is a unique time in the season. Fortunately, we play these guys again. 'There's plenty of opportunity, but it's on us to seize them.' Shortly after Thursday's deadline, Hoyer is scheduled to meet with the Chicago media on the second floor of the Wrigley Field office building. In trying to manage expectations at a long ago Winter Meetings, it was Hoyer who once said, 'I don't think you have to walk out of here with deer antlers.' But when a team has a chance to play in October, you have to show up with some kind of trophy. 'They're probably on the phone all day today and tomorrow,' Cubs outfielder Ian Happ said. 'Our job is to focus on the game today, the matchup today and doing the best we can to win this baseball game today. Our job isn't to be fortune tellers. 'Jed, Carter and our front office are doing everything they can every day to identify players and put the best product out there.' (Photo of Shota Imanaga: John Fisher / Getty Images)
