Good afternoon, Chicago.
Nearly 30 volunteers packed their cars to the brim with boxes and bags to deliver essential items like food and clothing to more than 100 immigrant families in Chicago and Aurora on Saturday afternoon. The items were delivered to families as part of a broader initiative coined Operation Midway Bliss, started by William McNiff as a way of countering the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown named Operation Midway Blitz.
“This is how I envision society to be,” McNiff said at the volunteering site at the Right Bee Cider brewery in the city’s Hermosa neighborhood. “When there’s someone (who) needs a hand up, people are there.”
Here’s what else is happening today. And remember, for the latest breaking news in Chicago, visit chicagotribune.com/latest-headlines and sign up to get our alerts on all your devices.
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Dita De Leeuw, a community organizer and volunteer, greets friends at Yalda, a Persian festival celebrating the winter solstice, at the Feldman Recreation Center in Niles on Dec. 19, 2025. De Leeuw has helped Afghan immigrant and refugee families settle in Chicagoland for the past four years. (John J. Kim/Chicago Tribune)
Afghans in Chicago are saddened after last month’s National Guard shooting, and now fear deportation
On Friday night, about 250 Afghans and others in the community gathered in Niles at a celebration of the Persian tradition of Yalda, a winter solstice festival that signifies rebirth. There they honored Spc. Sarah Beckstrom, 20, who was killed, and Staff Sgt. Andrew Wolfe, 24, who was critically wounded in the Washington, D.C., attack. Read more here.
More top news stories:
Woman killed and man injured after shooting and car crash in South Deering
Two men killed in hit-and-run in Morgan Park
A Union Pacific freight train crosses over I-290 on Dec. 8, 2025. Union Pacific plans to double the number of trains on a 2-mile stretch of track on Chicago’s West Side. (E. Jason Wambsgans/Chicago Tribune)
Union Pacific’s plan to add trains in the Chicago area raises alarms
To make money on its proposed cross-country railroad, Union Pacific plans to double the number of trains on a 2-mile stretch of track on Chicago’s West Side where workers still throw switches by hand and trains crawl across century-old bridges at less than 15 miles per hour. Read more here.
More top business stories:
Foundation sues financier who walked away from deal to buy Lake Geneva’s Aloha Lodge
Gold and silver hit all-time highs as geopolitical tensions rise
Minnesota Frost forward Kendall Coyne Schofield (26) tries to score on Ottawa Charge goaltender Gwyneth Philips (33) in the second period during the PWHL Takeover Tour at Allstate Arena on Dec. 21, 2025. (Eileen T. Meslar/Chicago Tribune)
Chicago makes an unofficial audition for a future PWHL team in league’s tour stop: ‘An excellent hockey city’
The Professional Women’s Hockey League made its first stop in the Chicago area on Sunday as a part of the league’s Takeover Tour. It was the second of 11 cities to host the tour this season. Read more here.
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Column: Chicago Cubs’ Matt Shaw enters a new world with his Turning Point USA appearance
Is Patrick Williams on his way to becoming the 11th man for the Chicago Bulls?
Column: Cheese grater hats and a new Japanese slugger for the White Sox? It’s a Christmas miracle.
Shea Serrano on a basketball court that he frequented when he was younger in San Antonio, Texas, on May 3, 2023. (Carter Johnston/The New York Times)
Shea Serrano tackles Michael Jordan’s numerology and Dennis Rodman’s brilliance in ‘Expensive Basketball’
When he began working on his fifth book, “Expensive Basketball” — available now in hardcover through Grand Central Publishing — Shea Serrano knew he couldn’t avoid writing about Michael Jordan. Read more here.
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Our 5 Hallmark Christmas rom-coms to watch this holiday season
Review: ‘Annie’ by Music Theater Works has a warm-hearted orphan and an over-the-top ending
President Donald Trump holds a cellphone with a call to Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang as he departs on Air Force One at Rocky Mount-Wilson Regional Airport in North Carolina on Dec. 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon/AP)
President Donald Trump removes nearly 30 career diplomats from ambassadorial positions
The chiefs of mission in at least 29 countries were informed last week that their tenures would end in January, according to two State Department officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss internal personnel moves. Read more here.
More top stories from around the world:
’60 Minutes’ holds off on airing critical piece on Trump deportation policy
Nicki Minaj surprises conservatives with praise for Donald Trump, JD Vance at Arizona event
