Hey Western Springs readers,

I just wanted to take a moment to introduce myself to the community. My name is Matthew Hendrickson and in addition to being the editor of La Grange Patch, I'm now pleased to announce I will be taking on editorial duties in Western Springs as well.

Editor Darren McRoy will be off working on some new assignments for Patch and helping launch two new sites in Illinois: in the Beverly neighborhood of Chicago and in Forest Park. Darren has done an amazing job building a popular site for Western Springs readers to get their news, learn of events going on around town and share their stories with their neighbors. I know residents who have worked with him and read his stories on the site will miss him. He'll still be around helping me cover Western Springs from time to time, and I hope to be able to fill his shoes.

I began my career at Patch in June 2010, shortly thereafter launching the Glen Ellyn site in September that year. When an opening became available at our site in La Grange, I jumped at the opportunity to fill the position and cover my hometown.

I grew up in La Grange and have strong ties to the community here. I attended Lyons Township High School and worked for the school's radio station, WLTL. I spent a lot of time in Western Springs growing up: hanging out with friends in high school and working my first job at True Value Hardware on Burlington Avenue.

If you have story ideas, tips about events in Western Springs, or just have general questions, please feel free to send me an email at Matthew@Patch.com, or give me a call at (630) 926-3866.

Following me on Western Springs Patch is easy: just sign up for our daily newsletter here, and follow me on the Western Springs Facebook page for alerts about news going on around town as it happens.

I'm looking forward to serving as your editor in Western Springs, learning more about this amazing community and continuing to provide news coverage of the highest quality to its residents.

I hope to see you all around town!

- Matthew Hendrickson, Editor