Hibernian Radio Podcast, Sat. June 17, 2023

Kathleen Keane Chigaros Fox’s Pizza, Guinness, Big Corner Tavern, Madden Funds and Flood Brothers Disposal present the Hibernian Radio Hour as we return to our First Responders Tour at our new recording location, Big Corner Tavern, and this week we welcome back 28 year retired CPD veteran, Detective Kathleen Keane Chigaros to the show for the second time. Kathleen was raised in Hickory Hills and attended Bogan High School. She was attending pharmacy school but ended up taking the police test and joining the Force. She worked in the 8th and the 22nd district and later became a Detective in 2004. This Celtic Warrior has fought AND beaten breast cancer! Kathleen delves into chatting about her family – her daughter is a Detective for the Illinois State Police and her son decided to return to school. Kathleen isn’t afraid to discuss into her personal life, briefly discussing the tragic passing of her husband, Gary in a motorcycle accident back in ’96. She delves a little more into her Irish heritage during her visit this week and shares how it felt to see where her grandparents were baptized; they both hailed from County Mayo. She tells Houli about her new company, “Bastion Emergency Consulting”, which she is CEO of which she founded with some of her fellow colleagues. Kathleen teaches Active Shooter Incident Management at IFSI (Illinois Fire Service Institute),a branch of University of Illinois, and she explains the importance of following OSHA requirements and standards, especially when it comes to Active Shooter incidents. Risk assessment and training teachers in how to respond to a school shooter are just some of the other services they provide at the consulting firm and Kathleen reiterates the importance of having a solid plan, just in case! “We want safety in numbers, we want schools to be safe.” The importance of social media in marketing her consulting firm and the difficulty in finding officers who have the time to help her out are just some of the other topics covered by these old pals this week. She has a few family and friends supporting her at the show and she gives a special shout-out to her husband, Bill. When asked about her opinion on the ongoing social unrest in Chicago, Kathleen simply says, “People are getting what they voted for and it’s sad..” This lady is something else and we are so honored to have her back with us on Hibernian Radio! We take a musical break with Liam Durkin’s rendition of “The Field of Athenry” followed by a quick update on some upcoming events including the Emerald Society’s Annual Ribfest on June 26th at Lodge 7. Then it’s over to the obituaries followed by one final trip to “Houli-Town”.