Donna Vickroy

The Feb. 19 lineup of storytellers for Stories R Us night at Nik and Ivy Brewing Company in Lockport were Errol McLendon, from left, Ruth Davies, Sandra Vincent, Simi Krishnan and Nicki Alander. (Meredith Morris, Stories R Us)

Donna Vickroy: Did you hear the one about the Lockport brewery that packs the house for live storytelling?

February 21, 2025 at 1:32 p.m.

Since the beginning of time, the story has been the conduit of relationship, the bridge across culture, proof of our humanity, and, when deftly told, a gift for the ages.

Getting old is not for the faint of heart they say, and columnist Donna Vickroy can attest to that as she considers the array of health issues and life concerns she and her friends are facing. (Tribune Content)

Donna Vickroy: Old age can be hell when all you want is calm, order, health and friends

February 14, 2025 at 12:43 p.m.

This is how I expected retirement to be: A nice stroll into a calm, slow, nonthreatening way of life as we put aside the chaos of the working world. Au...

Looking for ways to stay calm when everything seems to be under attack and changing is a trick easier said than done, columnist Donna Vickroy says.

Donna Vickroy: Looking for moments of zen amid the national chaos the only way to stay sane

February 7, 2025 at 12:44 p.m.

It didn’t take long to realize the new leadership’s manic attack on the status quo was by design. It also didn’t take long to realize the “shock and awe” was...

Cook County Judge Sheila Murphy shows the children's room she opened at the Markham Courthouse where children can go while their parents are in court, Aug. 11, 1999. (Frank Hanes/Chicago Tribune)

Sheila Murphy: Cook County’s first female presiding judge, champion for restorative justice

February 7, 2025 at 5:25 p.m.

Sheila Murphy was a Cook County public defender, a private criminal defense attorney and Cook County’s first female presiding judge.

You might know axolotls from video games like "Minecraft" and "Pokemon," but the aquatic salamanders with unique, adorable and popular with people who keep amphians as pets. (Shedd Aquarium)

Donna Vickroy: Amphibian creatures don’t come much cuter than axolotls, and they make great pets too

January 31, 2025 at 12:51 p.m.

You might know axolotls from video games like "Minecraft" and "Pokemon," but the aquatic salamanders with unique, adorable and popular with people who keep amphians as pets.

Eugene Parker, distinguished service professor emeritus in the Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics at the University of Chicago, accepts a replica of the Parker Solar Probe at the William Eckhardt Research Center at the University of Chicago in 2017. The Parker Solar Probe's first mission was to fly directly into the sun's atmosphere. (Antonio Perez/Chicago Tribune)

Donna Vickroy: Mission accomplished for late suburban astrophysicist who proved his doubters wrong

January 24, 2025 at 11:28 a.m.

While Earthlings were wrapping gifts and preparing holiday buffets this past Christmas Eve, a rocket named for a south suburban Chicago man was “touching” the sun. Traveling at “a blazing...

Residents embrace in front of a fire-ravaged property after the Palisades Fire swept through in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles, Jan. 8, 2025. (Etienne Laurent/AP)

Donna Vickroy: As the LA fires have shown, everyone needs a fire — and other disaster — safety plan

January 17, 2025 at 12:48 p.m.

It’s a long way from LA to Chicago, but the world is small if you have friends or relatives in Southern California, or if you simply have empathy for people...

Columnist Donna Vickroy poses for a photo with her sister Terese Langdon at Christmas in 2022, which was when Terese learned she had pancreatic cancer. (Donna Vickroy/Naperville Sun)

Donna Vickroy: What a year it has been since you left us

January 10, 2025 at 11:39 a.m.

It is better to hurt like hell because someone is gone than to never have known the joy that came from loving them.

These are some of the albums that had been collecting dust in a closet until columnist Donna Vickroy's husband gave her a Victrola record player for Christmas this year. (Donna Vickroy/Naperville Sun)

Donna Vickroy: Returning to my old record collection evokes myriad of emotions as it restores soundtrack of my life

January 3, 2025 at 11:07 a.m.

This Christmas, my husband gifted me a return ticket to my youth and to that great big collection of emotion that comes with it. He gave me a Victrola stereo.

It's not ususual that the pressures of the world and life can suck away the positive feelings we want to be experiencing during the holidays. A little self-care and analysis can help a lot to counter the negativity and depression, two experts say. (Tribune News Service)

Donna Vickroy: Not feeling so wonderful this holiday season? Make a plan to help yourself

December 19, 2024 at 2:35 p.m.

It’s not ususual that the pressures of the world and life can suck away the positive feelings we want to be experiencing during the holidays. A little self-care and analysis...

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