Good morning, Chicago.
After an outpouring of support following her arson attack on a CTA Blue Line train, the family of Bethany MaGee has established a GoFundMe campaign to help offset costs as she continues her recovery.
MaGee, 26, was set on fire as she rode the CTA Blue Line through the Loop last week in a jarring attack allegedly carried out by a career criminal with dozens of prior arrests and a questionable mental health history.
“Many of her immediate medical expenses are covered by insurance and a victims fund, but with such a long road ahead of her, the freedom from financial worries would be a tremendous blessing,” MaGee’s family said in a GoFundMe campaign launched yesterday. “No gifts are expected, but any that are given will go directly to Bethany.”
Within hours of its opening, the campaign received nearly $10,000 in donations.
And here are the top stories you need to know to start your day, including the latest on mid-census redistricting in Indiana, a fresh look at the 1985 Bears and a local couple manning the Butterball turkey hotline.
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FBI Director Kash Patel speaks with reporters during a news conference at the Department of Justice, Nov. 19, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)
FBI seeks interviews with Democrats who urged US troops to defy illegal orders
Democratic lawmakers who appeared in a social media video urging U.S. troops to defy “illegal orders” say the FBI has contacted them to begin scheduling interviews, signaling a possible inquiry into the matter.
Marimar Martinez speaks at the Dirksen U.S. Courthouse in Chicago, Nov. 20, 2025, after federal prosecutors abruptly moved to dismiss all charges against her. Martinez was shot by a federal agent after she allegedly rammed a vehicle in Brighton Park during Operation Midway Blitz. (Terrence Antonio James/Chicago Tribune)
A criminal probe tied to Chicago woman’s shooting by Border Patrol agent continues, feds say
A federal prosecutor revealed in court that despite assault charges being dismissed, a separate criminal investigation remains ongoing into an incident in Chicago’s Brighton Park neighborhood last month where a woman was shot by a Border Patrol agent.
Tara Reid attends GLSEN’s Rise Up LA Benefit Gala at NeueHouse Hollywood on Oct. 28, 2023, in Los Angeles. (Kevin Winter/Getty Images/TNS)
Actress Tara Reid alleges she was drugged at Rosemont hotel bar
Actress Tara Reid told TMZ on Monday that she was hospitalized early Sunday after drinking a glass of wine she alleged had been spiked.
In a news release last night, Rosemont’s Public Safety Department confirmed the incident involving Reid, stating the department responded to a call of a sick person at Rosemont’s DoubleTree Hotel just before 12:40 a.m.
The Indiana Statehouse appears on May 5, 2017, in Indianapolis. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)
Indiana legislature to meet in December to take up mid-census redistricting
The Indiana legislature plans to reconvene in early December to vote on mid-census redistricting, leaders for both legislative chambers said yesterday, marking a reversal from last week.
Morgan Geyser appears in a Waukesha County courtroom, Jan. 9, 2025, in Waukesha, Wis. (AP Photo/Morry Gash)
Slender Man attacker won’t fight extradition to Wisconsin after fleeing group home
The Wisconsin woman who won release from a mental institution after almost killing her sixth grade classmate in the name of horror villain Slender Man only to flee the state weeks later won’t fight extradition from Illinois.
Susan and Michael Maddox, faculty members for the College of DuPage Culinary Arts program, pose for a photo at one of the College’s culinary kitchens on Nov. 12, 2025. During the holiday season, the couple take calls for for the Naperville-based Butterball Turkey Talk-Line. (College of DuPage)
Married College of DuPage professors help man Butterball turkey hotline in Naperville
Michael Maddox has a simple job: Save turkeys and relationships, one phone call at a time. Or at least, that’s what he and his wife Susan like to jokingly tell each other.
The pair are among more than 50 people who spend their time during the holiday season answering questions about everything from thawing to brining to spatchcocking turkeys. They are joined by a team of culinary and food science experts at the Naperville-based Butterball Turkey Talk-Line, a hotline designed to help people make the best turkey possible for Thanksgiving or Christmas.
Mayor Harold Washington, second from left, does his version of the “Super Bowl Shuffle” at City Hall on Dec. 16, 1985, with Richard Dent, left, Otis Wilson and Willie Gault, right, of the Bears. The players appeared with the mayor to announce that a portion of proceeds from the players’ new record will be donated to the Sharing-It program. (José More/Chicago Tribune)
Column: ‘The Shuffle’ is one more documentary on the 1985 Chicago Bears, the team that keeps on giving
The stories have all been told and retold, but there never seems to be a moment in time when someone doesn’t believe we want to hear them again, writes Paul Sullivan. The ’85 Bears are the gift that keeps on giving, reminding us of how wonderful a time it was, and how long it’s been since Super Bowl XX.
The latest reminder is courtesy of HBO, which yesterday begins airing a 40-minute documentary titled “The Shuffle.”
Pierre Andresen and Kenny Beecham discuss the NBA during the filming of an episode of “Numbers on the Board” at Enjoy Basketball in Oak Brook on Nov. 11, 2025. (Talia Sprague/for the Chicago Tribune)
Kenny Beecham stays true to his roots in new NBC partnership: ‘Before I was a creator, I was a Bulls fan’
NBC’s offer to fold Enjoy Basketball into its larger portfolio of NBA content reflects a shift across the sports media landscape to diversify offerings of nongame content.
A visitor explores the “American Prophets” exhibit, Nov. 20, 2025, which is now open at the American Writers Museum in Chicago. (Terrence Antonio James/Chicago Tribune)
Column: In ‘American Prophets,’ how writers feel about religion and spirituality
You can hear the sound upon entering the American Writers Museum. It is the sound of typewriters, that ancient writing instrument, being banged on by a bunch of first and second graders on a school field trip. It was last Thursday and, as usual on most any school days, the museum was an active place, not only with kids but with a staff eager in anticipation of the opening of its latest exhibition.
“American Prophets” opened Friday in one of the city’s youngest but also one of its most important places, an increasingly artful blend of information, entertainment and enlightenment, writes Rick Kogan.
Gospel singer Floriene Watson, seated on left with Sylvia Watson Hoston, surrounded by Amos Watson (from left), Alice Watson, Irvin Watson, Romance Watson and Vivian Watson of the Watson Singers, as well as friend and fellow gospel singer Ozella Weber. (Provided by the Willis family)
Floriene Watson Willis sang in the early days of gospel music. She taught Aretha Franklin a hymn. She’s turning 99.
There are only a handful of people alive today who participated in the formation of modern gospel music in Chicago during the 1930s and 1940s. Fewer still worked directly with the genre’s founding mothers and fathers in those early days. Perhaps only one of them can claim to have also taught Aretha Franklin a hymn that became her first commercial single as a soloist.
Floriene Watson Willis is the one.
Turning 99 on Dec. 6, she never became a major star, but she nevertheless held a prominent position in the sanctuary as gospel music formed and flourished in Chicago some 90 years ago.
