Lila Hempel-Edgers

Lila Hempel-Edgers is a general assignment reporting intern at the Chicago Tribune. She previously worked as a weekend reporter at The Boston Globe, as a stringer for The New York Times, and interned at the Portland Press Herald and the Charlotte Observer. A recent graduate of Northeastern University, Hempel-Edgers is from the Boston area.

Melody Smith hugs her son, Chicago State University wide receiver Arshawn Powell, 7, after CSU’s first ever football game, played against the Roosevelt Lakers in Bridgeview on Saturday, Aug. 29, 2026. (Arthur Maiorella/Chicago Tribune)

Tailgaters kick off Chicago State’s first football season: ‘A historic moment’

August 29, 2026 at 5:54 p.m.

Fans gathered before Chicago State, the city's first Division I football team since the University of Chicago dropped the sport in 1939, faced off against Roosevelt in the first of...

Kids Triathlon junior racers run toward the water, marking the start of Chicago’s Triathlon weekend, at Foster Beach on Aug. 22, 2026. The kids junior race sees competitors swim 100 yards, bike 2.2 miles and run one kilometer. (Arthur Maiorella/Chicago Tribune)

Chicago’s youngest athletes kick off major triathlon weekend

August 22, 2026 at 2:35 p.m.

Hundreds of young athletes kicked off Supertri Chicago Saturday morning on a course designed for younger competitors.

Mel Kulatilake, center left, and Kevin Liang, center right, learn South Asian dance moves with fellow attendees of Chicago SummerDance at Spirit of Music Garden on a beautiful summer evening in Grant Park, Aug. 20, 2026. Many events in the Chicago area have been postponed or canceled this summer because of severe weather. (John J. Kim/Chicago Tribune)

We fall in love with Chicago every summer. This year’s weather has us wondering, are we on a break?

August 21, 2026 at 2:04 p.m.

Weather carries an outsized cost for a city that stakes so much on three short months, as hazardous smoke and relentless storms have made especially clear this year.

Richard Morris, browses books provided by the Chicago Teachers Union at their “Back-2-School Summer Jam,” which provides free backpacks, haircuts, books and entertainment for children returning to school at the CTU Center in the Near West Side on Aug. 15, 2026. (Arthur Maiorella/Chicago Tribune)

From free haircuts to vaccines, Chicago teachers help families gear up for school

August 15, 2026 at 4:35 p.m.

Hundreds of parents who brought their children to this year’s Summer Jam, which is hosted by the Chicago Teachers Union, ahead of students’ return to the classroom on Aug. 24.

Montrell Jackson and his daughter Livy, 4, work to clear a tree that fell onto their neighbor's front lawn from Tuesday's storms in the 2200 block of Travers Lane, Aug. 12, 2026, in Flossmoor. (John J. Kim/Chicago Tribune)

‘A bit more bark than bite’: Wednesday storms less severe than Tuesday for areas battered by weather this week

August 12, 2026 at 7:01 p.m.

Another round of dangerous weather hit the Chicago region just a day after two tornadoes touched down in the south suburbs.

Omar Gomez, from left, Jasmine Arnold and Jen Arnold carry a tree limb from their backyard to the curb after storms hit the area on Aug. 11, 2026, in Lansing. (Vincent D. Johnson/for the Daily Southtown)

Severe storms bring two tornadoes and up to 99 mph winds to Chicago area, weather service says

August 11, 2026 at 8:04 p.m.

One person died in a structure fire in Portage, Indiana, as thunderstorms rolled through again in a year with a record-breaking number of tornados.

Ambar Merlin, center, walks with her son Uriel, 2, as Andrea Avila, right, carries her son Sebastian, 2, at the end of the day at Brightpoint’s Mitzi Freidheim Child & Family Center on Aug. 7, 2026. BrightPoint operates six early learning centers in the state that provide Head Start services, including this Englewood location. (Chris Sweda/Chicago Tribune)

As Trump proposes deregulating Head Start, Illinois providers worry what the changes could mean for families

August 10, 2026 at 5:00 a.m.

The Trump administration is proposing sweeping changes to Head Start that would eliminate federal requirements for services that Illinois leaders say offer crucial support for families in need.

Kids in the Goins family catch T-shirts thrown at the Bud Billiken Parade through Bronzeville and Washington Park on Saturday, Aug. 8, 2026. (Arthur Maiorella/Chicago Tribune)

Generations flock to Bronzeville for the Bud Billiken Parade’s 97th year

August 8, 2026 at 5:47 p.m.

Chicago’s 97th annual Bud Billiken Parade, a celebration of Black culture and community, kicked off Saturday morning at the intersection of 39th Street and South King Drive.

Alex Blacio's mother, Maria Mizhquiri, and father, Herman Blacio, gather in the 4000 block of North Western Avenue in Chicago on Aug. 5, 2026, to mourn the death of their son, age 16, who was struck and killed while riding an electric scooter there. (Terrence Antonio James/Chicago Tribune)

Teen’s death in North Center highlights danger of electronic scooters: ‘They don’t make it very safe for them’

August 6, 2026 at 5:00 a.m.

Alex Blacio is at least the third teenager to die this year in a crash while riding an electric scooter in Chicago.

Teens look over their cards they received at the National Sports Collectors Convention in the Donald E. Stephens Convention Center in Rosemont on July 31, 2026. (Antonio Perez/Chicago Tribune)

Baseball cards are worth more than ever. And kids are making a fortune.

August 2, 2026 at 3:34 p.m.

Baseball cards are hotter than ever. And kids are making a fortune because of it.

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