Mokena's Front Porch - The Mokena Podcast
Mokena's Front Porch - The Mokena Podcast
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Mokena's Front Porch Podcast

Mokena's Front Porch PodcastMokena's Front Porch PodcastMokena's Front Porch Podcast

About MFP

Mokena Historian Matt Galik

Historian/Co-host Matt Galik

 Matt has been researching the history of our Village for decades and has written two books about Mokena.  Mokena, Images of America and The 1926 Orland Park Murder Mystery. Matt has a passion for Mokena, its people and its history. He is a life long Mokenian. Matt also writes a history blog called, Matt's Old Mokena and contributes his extensive history research to our Mokena's Front Porch podcast. 

the Podcast

The idea for this podcast came about in the driveway of the historic McGovney-Yunker Farm. Mokena. Our town was built around the Rock Island Railroad and became a highlight along the railroad, with Mokena being the only stop between Blue Island and Joliet for a period of time. Today we reflect on the glory days of Front Street and the village, along with its amazing people and what they did to make our community stronger.  Our focus is history & community, as the two are so deeply intertwined!

Israel Smith, Podcast host and producer.

Host/Producer Israel Smith

Host/Producer Israel Smith

Israel, along with his wife Mairim and son, Grant, have lived in downtown Mokena since 2016 and quickly fell in love with our Village. Israel is on the board of the Mokena Lions Club, active in the Mokena 159 school district and a lover of Mokena and its history! Being inspired by Matt's history blog, he started the Mokena's Front Porch podcast as a way to share and preserve the history of our Village, as well as encourage the sense of community that has made Mokena such a great place for so long! 

A Tour of The Dock on Front Street With Rick trafton

 The most anticipated Mokena business of 2025, the Dock on Front Street is almost open! Restaurant owner, Rick Trafton and I walked through this active construction zone to get an update on the progress and find out how soon the doors will be open! There was an AMAZING addition added since our last tour which is really exciting for the community! While everything is very NEW throughout, it still holds the history & charm that you would expect from what is possibly the oldest building in Mokena. 

4.21.25 Village Board Meeting: Mayor Fleischers last meeting

 It was an emotional night of memories and words of thanks as Trustees James Roberts and Rob Dauphinias and Mayor Frank Fleischer say their goodbyes. It is the first time in 12 years that Mokena has a new Mayor, who will be sworn in next week, Monday April 28th, at 7pm.   We want to say thank you to the Mayor and Trustees for your service and dedication to our Village and we wish you all the best going forward!  

a walk down historic front street #3

 Join Matt and Israel as we continue our walk down Mokena's historic Front Street! This is part 3 of this series, working our way towards Schoolhouse Road! See the home of Mokena's first Mayor and a number of buildings that are believed to predate the Civil War.

McGovney & Hatch Family Memories Return To Mokena

On Christmas Day, 2022, Carol Norton passed away. In December of 2024, we get a call from the Marion Wilcox Corporation that there is a photo album of someone who lived in Mokena for a long time. We got the box before Christmas and waited to open it until we were together! 

Join us as we open this box together! 

Dominic "Tootsie" Palermo; A "Crime Boss" At Rest in Mokena

 This episode is very different than anything we have done before! Israel partnered up with Tommy D of Chicago Gangland History on Instagram, who shared with me the fact that Tootsie is buried in our very own, St. John's Cemetery.  Tommy and Israel take you on a tour of Tootie's past homes, and businesses as well as visit his final resting place, here in Mokena. We share about how his connection to the Spilotro brother's murders, from the movie Casino, put him away for the rest of his life. 

Deputy Walter Fisher Remembered - Mokena Honors Their Fallen

We are very excited to share the video from the Mokena Village proclamation remembering Deputy Walter Fisher, who was Mokena's only law enforcement officer to be killed in the line of duty. After the proclamation is the episode we did in March of 2023 about Deputy Fisher, over some beautiful Mokena scenery! After 98 years we are proud to have been a part of making this recognition happen. 

A Day on the farm with eddie yunker - a family movie

This is the most in depth video recorded conversation with Mr. Yunker, the last owner of the historic McGovney-Yunker Farm, that we know of. If you never knew Mr. Yunker, you will feel like you know him after watching this video. If you knew him, you will probably remember how much you miss having him around. We want to extend a huge thank you to Brian Yunker, for sharing this video with us and allowing us to share it with you. 

Assessor Joe Kral - Talking Tax Bills and Mokena Community

 Frankfort Township Assessor Joe Kral is running unopposed in the April 1, 2025, consolidated election. In this episode, we get to know Joe, explore the role of the Assessor, and break down the property tax process—from how your home is valued to paying your tax bill. We also discuss how this important position impacts homeowners and the steps you can take if you disagree with your assessment. 

guest appearances

Israel's guest appearance on gifted with sheila white

I was proud to be asked  to be a guest on Sheila White's podcast, Gifted! We talked about Mokena and it's history as well as what brought Matt and I together to start this podcast. It was a great opportunity to share about what we are doing with others! Sheila's podcast is out of Joliet, so we are practically neighbors! I was happy to share with her and her audience why I think Mokena is such a great town to live in! I hope you enjoy it! Here is a like to the episode! https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-rich-history-behind-the-city-of-mokena-episode/id1559635750?i=1000664408214

Israel Smith's appearance on Gifted with Sheila White Podcast

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If you are enjoying the Mokena's Front Porch podcast or have an idea of someone we could talk to or a story we should share, please send us a message!  Click the button below or send us an email at podcast@mokenasfrontporch.com 

Mokena's Front Porch Podcast

Mokena, Illinois, United States

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  • MFP YouTube Page
  • Video Gallery 1
  • Video Gallery 2
  • Audio Only Episodes
  • Matt's Blog
  • Local Stuff
  • Photo Gallery
  • Local elections 1
  • Local elections 2
  • Local elections 3