Through Friday, Sept. 12, Pace is not charging fares on Route 714, which runs from downtown Wheaton to Naperville with stops at College of DuPage in Glen Ellyn along the way.

Dancing, singing, joking seniors have fine tuned their acts in preparation for the big Senior Idol talent competition at the Northeastern Illinois Area Agency on Aging's Senior Lifestyle Expo at Drury Lane Theatre and Conference Center in Oakbrook Terrace. The Senior Lifestyle Expo is Chicagoland's largest event of its kind with more than 4,500 people attending over two days and it's all for a good cause, since proceeds benefit Holiday Meals on Wheels.

Tightened credit and increased down payments are just two indications of the new reality in lending practices. To find out how these changes impact potential homebuyers, the DuPage Homeownership Center is offering free classes for first time home buyers from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. on the following dates:

With about two months to go till Election Day, national media reports have led two local groups to question the accuracy and security of electronic voting machines used in DuPage County. Meanwhile, election officials are seeking to assure voters that their ballots will be properly counted.

Three bats have tested positive for rabies so far this year in DuPage County, and eight people throughout the county have been treated for the disease, according to the DuPage County Health Department.

Jared Bruns was in third grade when terrorists flew airplanes into the World Trade Center twin towers, the Pentagon and a Pennsylvania field on Sept. 11, 2001. Five years later as a Boy Scout, he started working on an idea for a living memorial to all the people who were killed that day.

An updated list of registered sex offenders and where they live is available to the public.

Dewey Pierotti, president of the Forest Preserve District of DuPage County, will be the grand marshal of the “Last Fling 2008” Labor Day parade at 10 a.m. Monday in downtown Naperville.

Low-income people with disabilities will soon be able to join senior citizens in riding buses and trains in the Chicago area for free, but there is no indication how the program will be funded.

Bejing’s air pollution attracted worldwide attention during this summer’s Olympic Games, but the Chicago area is struggling with its own air-quality problems.

Serenity House in Addison has been treating people with substance-abuse problems for more than 20 years. Now the program and others like it may have to cut services because of a slash in state funding.

Local artist Judith Barath will be showing her work at the Forest Preserve District of DuPage County’s Mayslake Peabody Estate in Oak Brook at an exhibition called “Oak Brook Celebrates: An Oak Brook Artist.”

The DuPage County Health Department is offering seven-week classes through the county to help residents quit smoking.

Several DuPage County residents with potential exposure to rabies are undergoing preventive treatment measures, according to the county Health Department. Three bats have tested positive for rabies so far this year in DuPage County.