Latest news with #HinsdaleCentral
Gulf Today
20-07-2025
- Sport
- Gulf Today
Years after his death, boy's legacy of kindness leads the way
At the end of every school year, Rob and Nora Tonn show up at Hinsdale Central High School and give away scholarships to graduating student athletes who are kind. Maybe the athletes are also fast and maybe they also won a lot and maybe they're going on to play their sport in college. But also, maybe not. 'We ask for nominations from coaches,' Rob Tonn said, 'and we say 'Tell us about the kid who reminds you of Brooks.'' Brooks is their son. He died Dec. 1, 2017, from rhabdomyosarcoma, a rare cancer that forms in the body's soft tissue. He was 10 years old. This spring, he would have graduated alongside the other kids at Hinsdale Central. Instead, his classmates — even the ones who never met him — honoured him with turquoise ribbons on their gowns. This fall, he should be heading to college. Instead, seven of his classmates will start their next chapter with scholarships in his name, spreading what he stood for: Kindness. Friendship. Radical, resilient, invincible joy. The summer of 2017, when he and his dad were taking the 7am Metra from Hinsdale to Chicago for regular rounds of chemo, Brooks played 57 baseball games. 'One game, he had chemo that morning, got to baseball, threw up in the bushes, went in and played,' Nora Tonn told me the first time I met her family. 'That's the day he hit a grand slam,' Nancy Keenan, Nora's mom, added. 'His teammates carried him off the field on their shoulders.' Brooks also played football for the Hinsdale Falcons. He walked up to his coach on the first day of practice and said, 'Hey! I'm one of the quarterbacks.' His coach said, 'Is that right?' One day all the Falcons gathered at a player's house and filled the boy's living room. Then-Northwestern football coach Pat Fitzgerald showed up on the TV screen with a message he recorded for Brooks. 'We're so inspired by you and your toughness and your grit and your ability to persevere and fight through tough times,' Fitzgerald said. Afterward, the team headed to the backyard and shaved their heads. They wanted to match Brooks, whose hair had fallen out from chemo. They couldn't cure his cancer. But they made sure he wasn't fighting it alone. Two years after his death, Nora and Rob Tonn launched Brooks Strong, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit with two goals: to fund pediatric cancer research and to cover the costs of youth sports for kids with cancer, whose parents are often struggling to cover medical bills and don't have the money for lessons and team fees and equipment. In 2020, they gave their first grant to a boy named Dylan Provenzano. Dylan and Brooks had met in the hospital when Dylan was 12. He was diagnosed with cancer a month after Brooks was diagnosed. They both loved baseball. When Dylan was 15, his mom, Sam Provenzano, learned about Brooks Strong and applied for — and received — a grant. The money covered Dylan's equipment and six months of travel baseball. 'He's so happy, and we can breathe,' Provenzano told me when she first got the news. 'We're forever indebted to them. Anyone who makes your kid happy, you owe them the world.' Dylan went on to play baseball at Carthage College. Over the years, the Tonns added $1,500 scholarships for graduating student athletes to the mix. It's another way to honor Brooks, they said. It's another reason to talk about him. 'You get so fearful that people will forget him,' Nora Tonn said. 'You know, people move on. But they haven't.' The day the Tonns handed out this year's scholarships, Rob Tonn read aloud letters about each kid. The coaches wrote them, explaining how the athletes exemplified what Brooks was all about. 'The fact that some of his friends were the ones nominated,' Rob Tonn said. 'That says something, right?' It says a lot of things. Tribune News Service
Chicago Tribune
18-07-2025
- Health
- Chicago Tribune
Heidi Stevens: Years after his death, Hinsdale boy's legacy of kindness leads the way
At the end of every school year, Rob and Nora Tonn show up at Hinsdale Central High School and give away scholarships to graduating student athletes who are kind. Maybe the athletes are also fast and maybe they also won a lot and maybe they're going on to play their sport in college. But also, maybe not. 'We ask for nominations from coaches,' Rob Tonn said, 'and we say 'Tell us about the kid who reminds you of Brooks.'' Brooks is their son. He died Dec. 1, 2017, from rhabdomyosarcoma, a rare cancer that forms in the body's soft tissue. He was 10 years old. This spring, he would have graduated alongside the other kids at Hinsdale Central. Instead, his classmates — even the ones who never met him — honored him with turquoise ribbons on their gowns. This fall, he should be heading to college. Instead, seven of his classmates will start their next chapter with scholarships in his name, spreading what he stood for: Kindness. Friendship. Radical, resilient, invincible joy. The summer of 2017, when he and his dad were taking the 7 a.m. Metra from Hinsdale to Chicago for regular rounds of chemo, Brooks played 57 baseball games. 'One game, he had chemo that morning, got to baseball, threw up in the bushes, went in and played,' Nora Tonn told me the first time I met her family. 'That's the day he hit a grand slam,' Nancy Keenan, Nora's mom, added. 'His teammates carried him off the field on their shoulders.' Brooks also played football for the Hinsdale Falcons. He walked up to his coach on the first day of practice and said, 'Hey! I'm one of the quarterbacks.' His coach said, 'Is that right?' One day all the Falcons gathered at a player's house and filled the boy's living room. Then-Northwestern football coach Pat Fitzgerald showed up on the TV screen with a message he recorded for Brooks. 'We're so inspired by you and your toughness and your grit and your ability to persevere and fight through tough times,' Fitzgerald said. Afterward, the team headed to the backyard and shaved their heads. They wanted to match Brooks, whose hair had fallen out from chemo. They couldn't cure his cancer. But they made sure he wasn't fighting it alone. Two years after his death, Nora and Rob Tonn launched Brooks Strong, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit with two goals: to fund pediatric cancer research and to cover the costs of youth sports for kids with cancer, whose parents are often struggling to cover medical bills and don't have the money for lessons and team fees and equipment. In 2020, they gave their first grant to a boy named Dylan Provenzano. Dylan and Brooks had met in the hospital when Dylan was 12. He was diagnosed with cancer a month after Brooks was diagnosed. They both loved baseball. When Dylan was 15, his mom, Sam Provenzano, learned about Brooks Strong and applied for — and received — a grant. The money covered Dylan's equipment and six months of travel baseball. 'He's so happy, and we can breathe,' Provenzano told me when she first got the news. 'We're forever indebted to them. Anyone who makes your kid happy, you owe them the world.' Dylan went on to play baseball at Carthage College. Over the years, the Tonns added $1,500 scholarships for graduating student athletes to the mix. It's another way to honor Brooks, they said. It's another reason to talk about him. 'You get so fearful that people will forget him,' Nora Tonn said. 'You know, people move on. But they haven't.' The day the Tonns handed out this year's scholarships, Rob Tonn read aloud letters about each kid. The coaches wrote them, explaining how the athletes exemplified what Brooks was all about. 'The fact that some of his friends were the ones nominated,' Rob Tonn said. 'That says something, right?' It says a lot of things. It says Brooks' kindness planted a seed. It says that seed keeps growing. Through his parents' hard work to honor him and stay close to him and make sure other kids get a chance to play (to play!), it keeps growing. I checked in with Keenan, Brooks' grandmother, a few days ago. 'He keeps doing so much good,' she told me. 'Even in his death.' Showing us the way. 'You have to look for the bright lights,' Keenan said. 'And there are plenty.' That's how we see our way through the dark.
Chicago Tribune
05-03-2025
- Sport
- Chicago Tribune
Hinsdale Central's Josh Bey sets records as he wins state titles. But ‘it was never about the destination.'
Hinsdale Central senior Josh Bey has never felt weighed down by expectations. The weight of all the awards he won is another story. Bey won 13 state medals, including 10 state titles, and led the Red Devils to three consecutive team titles. But the Indiana-bound Bey says the massive haul was neither his greatest motivation nor his greatest satisfaction. 'The awards were a great part of the career, but it was never about the destination,' Bey said. 'It was about the journey. 'The memories I made along the way with these boys, that was what really made my high school career. I'd love to go around saying I made all these accomplishments, but everything — all the training, all the time I've spent with these boys — has been amazing.' Bey capped his high school career with an historic performance at the state meet at FMC Natatorium in Westmont on Feb. 28 and March 1. His final meet was his finest, which is saying a lot considering he won four state titles and set state records in the 100-yard breaststroke and the 200-yard individual medley as a junior. But he won four more state titles and set more records. During the preliminaries on Feb. 28, the Red Devils broke the national record in the 200 medley relay, as Bey teamed with sophomore Luke Vatev, senior Henry Guo and junior Matthew Vatev to time 1 minute, 26.75 seconds. 'That could definitely be a highlight,' Luke Vatev said. 'It felt amazing. That was the goal coming in. Everyone swam so great, and seeing everyone else do phenomenal, go best times, it's just a great feeling all around for everybody.' That performance was only the beginning for the Red Devils, who began the finals on March 1 by winning the medley relay in 1:27.01. Bey then won his second consecutive state title in the 200 individual medley, lowering his state record to 1:43.96 in the event widely considered to determine the state's most versatile swimmer. Bey's third race was the 200 free relay, which he got started for the Red Devils. Matthew Vatev, junior Brandon Suliga and senior Frankie Adamo followed, and they won it in 1:21.33, just 0.07 of a second off the state record Hinsdale Central set in 2023. For his final performance, Bey timed 53.32 to become only the fourth boy to win three consecutive state titles in the 100 breaststroke. That was just 0.34 of a second shy of the state record he set last year. But Bey wasn't the only one setting records for the Red Devils, who have a deep pool of talent that includes several other stars like Guo and Matthew Vatev, who have committed to swim at Penn, and Luke Vatev. Luke Vatev won the 100 free in 43.57 and the 100 backstroke in 46.95. During the preliminaries, he swam a state-record 46.52 in the backstroke, becoming just the third swimmer in IHSA history to set a state record as a sophomore. He joined a select club that also includes St. Charles North's Thomas McMillan, who accomplished the feat in winning the 100 butterfly on Saturday, and former Lake Forest star Matt Grevers, a four-time Olympic gold medalist. 'It feels absolutely amazing,' Luke Vatev said. 'I'm just so fortunate I have everyone around me to support me, and it wouldn't have been possible without them. 'It's an amazing feeling, but that was kind of the expectation going into the meet. So achieving that is fantastic.' Bey has always had high expectations for himself. As a freshman, he finished second in the breaststroke at the state meet. 'The summer after my freshman year, I got a little too cocky, and I had a rough summer season, so that kind of drove me,' he said. 'It's kind of an uphill thing where I get high up and confident, and then it goes down. It goes back up, though.' Getting to the top required some sacrifice for Bey. When COVID-19 restrictions shut down swimming clubs, Bey had to look elsewhere for places to train. What followed was an example of his dedication. 'I had to leave the club that I had been with for the past five years,' he said. 'My dad started emailing clubs in different states like Wisconsin and Indiana, and the Highland Hurricanes in Highland, Indiana, was the only team that reached out back. 'So we went over for a practice. I fell in love with the team, and ever since I've been there.' Bey travels an hour each way to club practice. His commute to Hinsdale Central's practices is much shorter, of course, but his workouts are no less intense. 'There's a lot of fighting for spots, so it made it a very tense environment in the pool,' he said. 'We were all fighting for spots, and of course people are going to be angry with each other and hateful toward each other. But at the end of the day, we all love each other, and that's what is most important. 'We're all putting our hearts into this. It's all been our passion since a very young age, and it's just been our lifestyle, so it's brought us all together.' Bey has never been one to rest on his laurels. That's an example his teammates followed. 'He definitely led by example this year in practice, worked the hardest he's ever worked, made people work harder,' Hinsdale Central coach Bob Barber said. 'It's going to be really hard to replace his competitiveness. He has the ability to turn it on.' Bey's competitiveness is matched only by his enthusiasm. 'Joshua is a phenomenal swimmer,' Luke Vatev said. 'He just brings so much joy and so much happiness to the sport. 'Every practice he's smiling, having a fun time, and I feel like that spread throughout the team. So without him, it wouldn't look the way it is, and we're just so fortunate to have him. He's going to do great things at IU, and we're all excited for him.' Bey will leave behind a sterling legacy at a program whose tradition of excellence dates back generations and includes 21 team state titles. The Red Devils scored 338 points on March 1 to tie their state record set last year, with the 400 free relay team of Guo, senior Noah Pelinkovic, Luke Vatev and Adamo capping the meet by setting a state record of 2:59.38. Hinsdale Central's 148-point margin of victory over runner-up Marmion was the second highest of all time. 'I'd like to think that I made a huge difference on this team culture, bringing everyone together, getting everyone to hang out as a team, because that had been on the downfall for the past few years,' Bey said. 'I'm really excited to help the team culture.' Barber was excited too. 'We're really proud of Josh's accomplishments throughout his four-year career here, in particular setting so many state records and helping the team just climb to another level,' Barber said. 'It's going to be really hard to see these seniors go. 'I'm so excited and happy for them and all their accomplishments over the years. A trophy every year they've been a part of the program and to finish with three state championships and all of the state records this year, it's very special.'
CBS News
24-02-2025
- Sport
- CBS News
Senior standout Josh Bey helps lead Hinsdale Central swimmers to glory
The loaded Hinsdale Central High School boys' swimming team will be well represented at next weekend's state meet with state qualifiers in all 12 events, as they vie for another team championship. One of their senior standouts, Josh Bey, is chasing more history at that meet and beyond. "From a young age, I loved being in the water. Like, I had a passion for being in the water," said Bey. "Every time I was in the water, I'd be having the time of my life." This is a good thing, since Bey spends a good chunk of his life in the water. The Indiana commit is one of the top high school swimmers in the country. "Josh has a lot of internal drive. I think he's known that he can do things that not everybody can, and sometimes that gets in people's ways. Josh has been able to navigate the success to still have very large goals," said Hindsale Central swimming coach Robert Barber. "He's not only helped himself be successful and improve, he's definitely helped our program be successful." At last year's state meet, Bey set state records in the 200 Individual medley and the 100-yard breaststroke — his premiere event — and was part of a pair of winning relay teams that helped Hinsdale Central capture not only their second straight team title, but also put them among the best high school teams in the entire country. "These guys are motivated to try and do things I've never even tried to do as a coach. This is my 25th year. They're talking about being competitive with the best ever, national records, three-peat on a state title," said Barber. "You need a lot more than one guy. Josh is definitely a leader that group, but I think that there are about four or five guys we lean on very heavily." Hinsdale Central swimmer Henry Guo emphasized just how monumental the team's achievements and goals have been. "It gives me great confidence to swim on this team. It's so unique. We're contending for the number one team in the country right now," said Guo. "Especially considering it's a public school, right? Really like a once in maybe a decade moment for us." Bey nearly had a once in at least every four years moment last summer. At the U.S. Olympic trials in Indianapolis, he made the finals in the 200 breaststroke, finishing as the top junior in that event. "I was in the top eight that actually ended up competing for the Olympic spot. That was one of the. by far, scariest experiences of my life. These guys, you know, tower over me. They're twice the size of me. I actually had a very good swim, and I was able to punch my ticket to go to Australia with the junior pan-Pacific teams," Bey said, "and so hopefully come 2028, I can represent the USA at the LA Games." Bey has won state championships, set records, and competed internationally and at the U.S. Olympic swim trials. But when asked what his greatest accomplishment is, he pointed to something else. "One part of me wants to say like all the achievements I've made inside the pool," Bey said. "But I think my greatest accomplishment is the discipline which I've established in myself outside of the pool." It is that discipline and drive that should have Bey and the Hinsdale Central Red Devils adding a few more records to the big board before they're done.
