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Ten Illinois firefighters, paramedics and EMTs appear to have joined the ranks of the far-right Oath Keepers, more than in any other state, according to a report by the Anti-Defamation League Center on Extremism.

Illinois also saw 21 law enforcement officers, three elected officials and two members of the military sign up for the extremist group, the ADL said. The findings are based on a 2021 leak of the Oath Keepers’ purported membership rolls, posted online by the transparency collective Distributed Denial of Secrets.

Meanwhile, after a blowout loss, the Chicago Sky return to Wintrust Arena Thursday night for a decisive Game 5 with a trip to the WNBA Finals on the line.

Here are the top stories you need to know to start your day.

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Alberto Zambrano, 36, of Venezuela, blows bubbles as his son, Samuel, 3, tries to kick them out of the air as the group of migrants accept clothing donations from Rack Em Ent Car Club members outside of the Salvation Army, 825 N. Christiana Ave. in Chicago, following their arrival in Chicago on Sept. 7, 2022.
Alberto Zambrano, 36, of Venezuela, blows bubbles as his son, Samuel, 3, tries to kick them out of the air as the group of migrants accept clothing donations from Rack Em Ent Car Club members outside of the Salvation Army, 825 N. Christiana Ave. in Chicago, following their arrival in Chicago on Sept. 7, 2022.

Third group of migrants settling in after arrival from Texas, Chicago officials say

A group of more than 100 migrants arrived in Chicago Wednesday afternoon from the Texas border, city officials confirmed.

The two buses carrying 103 people were the third group to arrive in the last week to Chicago’s Union Station. One week ago Wednesday the first group arrived, while a second wave rolled in by bus on Sunday.

Editorial: Trafficked to Union Station? Migrants are not interstate political pawns

Gregory Bratton is a South Side-based gardener that has helped create 100 urban gardens across the city, in Chicago, on Aug. 24, 2022.
Gregory Bratton is a South Side-based gardener that has helped create 100 urban gardens across the city, in Chicago, on Aug. 24, 2022.

Gregory Bratton tends to 100 community gardens. Now he’s fighting cancer and needs help.

If you visit a community garden in Chicago — or if you get your cabbage, tomatoes, peppers or carrots from one — chances are Gregory Bratton helped establish it. Bratton, 69, has helped create close to 300 gardens in low-income neighborhoods across the city that have little access to fresh food. He has personally managed and tended to about a third of those gardens in the last decade.

Now, he’s fighting lung cancer again, four years after the disease went into remission. And he needs help with his gardens in the form of volunteers, funds, lumber and prayers.

Village Manager Randall Recklaus speaks after listening to Brian Costin, Illinois Director of Americans for Prosperity, speak during a Village Board meeting at Arlington Heights Village Hall, Sept. 6, 2022, in Arlington Heights, Ill.
Village Manager Randall Recklaus speaks after listening to Brian Costin, Illinois Director of Americans for Prosperity, speak during a Village Board meeting at Arlington Heights Village Hall, Sept. 6, 2022, in Arlington Heights, Ill.

Arlington Heights trustees hire consultants for financial, traffic studies of Chicago Bears’ stadium plans

The Arlington Heights Village Board approved two resolutions for consulting contracts to analyze the economic and traffic impacts of redeveloping Arlington Park International Racecourse into a new Chicago Bears stadium.

Hiring the consultants is a distinct step forward in the village’s tenuous back-and-forth with the football team, which on Tuesday released new plans for an entertainment, retail, housing and sporting district it would develop on the 326-acre property.

Petition submitted to Arlington Heights board calls for law that may impact the Bears’ stadium plans

Chicago Bears fans during a preseason game, Aug. 13, 2022 at Soldier Field.
Chicago Bears fans during a preseason game, Aug. 13, 2022 at Soldier Field.

The 2022 NFL season begins tonight. From the Chicago Bears’ projected win total to changes in the broadcast booths, here’s what to expect.

What are oddsmakers saying about the 2022 Chicago Bears? Who are the Super Bowl favorites? What were the changes in the broadcast booths? Here’s a primer for the 2022 NFL season.

‘You can see the hunger.’ What drives Justin Fields to change perceptions of the Chicago Bears offense in the QB’s 2nd season?

Soldier Field gets a new Bermuda grass surface. The Chicago Bears hope it’s stronger, faster and safer.

A selection of Chicago Tribune beer reporter Josh Noel’s “tastier tailgating” alternatives, photographed, Sept. 1, 2022, in Chicago.

First and 10: For a first-class tailgate this football season, pack your cooler with these 10 beverages

Football season is here again, which means it’s time to grab some parking lot, pop the trunk, light the grill and pull something cold from the cooler. Tailgating has returned.

Here are 10 recommendations to spruce things up, a list grounded in the fact that tailgating is the proverbial marathon. Treat it like a sprint and you won’t even make it to kickoff — let alone halftime.

Just opened: A Hyde Park po’boy shop with chef cred among 9 new restaurants around Chicago