One month later: How Downers Grove has adapted to living under social distancing guidelines
More stories from Luc Alvarez
As the COVID-19 pandemic ensues and Illinois’s death toll continues to rise, health care workers fight against the virus on the front lines. Outside Good Samaritan Hospital a sign stands in their support saying “Hero[e]s work here.”
As the COVID-19 pandemic ensues and Illinois's death toll continues to rise, health care workers fight against the virus on the front lines. Outside Good Samaritan Hospital a sign stands in their support saying "Hero[e]s work here."
As the COVID-19 pandemic ensues and Illinois’s death toll continues to rise, health care workers fight against the virus on the front lines. Outside Good Samaritan Hospital a sign stands in their support saying “Hero[e]s work here.”
While health care workers battle COVID-19 each day, Downers Grove residents follow the CDC’s new guidelines of social distancing and wearing face masks in public to stay safe at this Jewel-Osco.
Typically a hot spot for community members to shop and eat, the Promenade Bolingbrook sits vacant on a Saturday night as shops have been forced to shut their doors following Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s stay-at-home order.
While non-essential businesses have been forced to close, ones deemed essential remain open such as restaurants like this one, Pierce Tavern, in downtown Downers Grove. However, with restrictions on seating, fears of COVID-19 and tightened budgets of community members, many small businesses have experienced drastically reduced revenues leading many to post signs telling residents to shop small businesses so they can stay open.
As the shelter-in-place order continues to be enforced, parks around Downers Grove stay closed to slow the spread of COVID-19. McCollum Park has been covered in police tape to prevent residents from violating the order and gathering in groups.
With parks closed, many residents find other ways to stay active, turning places typically thought of as “hidden gems” like the 2,492-acre forest preserve Waterfall Glen into busy and crowded recreation sites.
Other residents meanwhile frequent their local private parks and neighborhoods to stay active. Some private parks like this one in Bruce Lake remain open despite the forced closure of public ones giving residents places to go to get out of the house.
Under the shelter-in-place order, places of worship like churches, synagogues and mosques stay vacant, even as holidays such as Easter and Passover occur. This has forced residents of faith to find other ways to connect to their religion like individual prayer, online services or worshiping at religious sites like this statue at the National Shrine of St. Therese.
Even though some public transportation remain open, like the Metra located in downtown Downers Grove, the want and need for residents to use it remains limited as some residents fear coming into contact with COVID-19 while many no longer need to travel as they now work from home. Those that do use public transportation remain vigilant of the risks, taking extra precautions such as wearing as face masks and avoiding close contact with others.
Despite the current COVID-19 pandemic taking a toll on the community and the country as a whole, District 99 remains hopeful that graduation can still take place, now scheduled for July 1 in the newly renovated stadium.
