Hi Neighbors, 

Happy Fall, neighbors! Welcome to the third edition of the Northeast Neighborhood's digital newsletter, The Link. This issue if full of updates and features. 

Here are three things things we can’t wait to share:

1.) The Northeast Neighborhood, NEN, has its own website, northeastneighborhood.org. The site features a calendar section and links to Notre Dame and Robinson Center's calendars. Don't miss sections like the neighborhood’s history, organizations that make it tick, and the resources that keep us going! 

2.) The NEN is on social media! Follow Northeast Neighborhood - South Bend on Facebook!

3.) In other big news, lifelong NEN resident Lu Ella Morrow Webster will be inducted into the South Bend Hall of Fame later this month. Lu’s sunny presence has welcomed neighbors and visitors into the Robinson Community Learning Center since it opened 25 years ago. Her “can-do” spirit helped the community realize big dreams like the RCLC and the Kelly Park playground. Congratulations, Lu Ella!

Linked as a neighborhood, 

Jessica McCrea, NNRO President, and Bill Stenz, NENC President

Lu Ella "Lu" Morrow Webster will be inducted into the South Bend Hall of Fame on Tuesday, October 13. A lifelong resident of the Northeast Neighborhood, Lu has become one of its most trusted advocates, bringing neighbors, organizations, and institutions together to create lasting change. If you plan to attend the Hall of Fame banquet, tickets must be purchased by tomorrow, October 6.

The NNRO will soon put up for sale four newly constructed 2-bedroom, 2-bathroom townhomes on Turnock Street through its Community Land Trust program. The CLT program makes home ownership more affordable because the buyer purchases the home but not the land the home sits on. Interested buyers must meet eligibility requirements and obtain mortgage financing. 

You may know Terry Meehan as the owner of Fiddler's Hearth, the Irish pub downtown. What you may not know is he's also a local history buff. Hiding in plain sight among the memorabilia at Fiddler's is a photo of his great-great-grandfather, Joseph Turnock, for whom Turnock Street is named.

Lisa and Felicia Caponigri grew up in Harter Heights, a neighborhood within the larger Northeast Neighborhood. Their extended family has lived in various houses here since the late 1950s. The mother and daughter take us for a stroll down memory lane—or rather down Napoleon, Pokagon, Peashway ...  

The Northeast and East Bank neighborhoods share a long history of authentic Italian cuisine. For example, Sunny Italy just celebrated 100 years and Rocco’s is turning 75 this year. Osteria Amici will open Monday, October 12. The guy behind it, Kurt Janowsky, grew up in the 46617 zip code. 

The NNRO will host a Fall Health Fair in the parking lot of Innovation Park, 1400 E. Angela Blvd., on Saturday, October 24, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. NNRO funding partners, Oaklawn and IHC (Indiana Health Centers), and other agencies will offer health screenings, including for cancer and behavioral health. Free candy for kids! It's free to attend and open to the public.

Dozens of Northeast Neighborhood residents and Robinson Community Learning Center families celebrated the start of the academic year with a cookout at Kelly Park on Friday, September 25. Notre Dame cheerleaders helped serve food at the NENC's Back to School Picnic, which this year included hotdogs, face painting, one-on-one basketball with a leprechaun, and fun on the playground.

Election Day is Tuesday, November 3, and the closest polling place for Northeast Neighborhood residents is Rise Up Academy, the former Perley School, at 740 N. Eddy Street. If you would like to cast your ballot ahead of time, early voting begins Tuesday, October 6, at the County Building, 227. W. Jefferson Boulevard. There are South Bend School Board, St. Joseph County, Portage Township, state, and federal seats up for grabs. Get to  know your ballot before you vote.

Fourth district councilperson Heidi Beidinger reminds NEN residents it's budget season and your voice can shape the 2027 budget. Email Heidi with your spending priorities or fill out a city survey to share how you would allocate dollars on public safety, streets, parks and more. 

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