Special happy birthday to 1-year-old Lily O’Neill, daughter of Ed and Amanda O’Neill. Lily’s birthday is Oct. 10.
Welcome home to the Forest Parkers who spent a week up in Door County where they said it was almost as hot as it was here. Among the Forest Park travelers were John and Maira Cloherty transplanted from County Galway. John can speak, read and write Gaelic, a very difficult language to learn since it doesn’t seem to have any rules. Their Door County venture began with a boat ride on Lake Geneva. They said the name comes from the Lake Geneva in the Finger Lakes in the northeast, not from Lake Geneva in Switzerland.
The New Harvest Church, 500 Hannah Ave., has many activities for old and young. Every Saturday from 6 p.m. till 9 p.m. there are, free of charge for young people age 12 to 18, games, foosball tables, Play Stations, Xbox games, contests and more. That’s New Harvest Fellowship, call (708) 788-2025 for more information.
Have you noticed the exciting window displays at Quitsch Florist lately? The new designer is a crazy, creative, delightful artist Rita Contraveos, who is as colorful and exciting as her artwork. Her Christmas displays will be worth watching for.
Sydney Gray, fourth-grader at Field-Stevenson and daughter of Rich and Donna Gray has started a “Books for the Bayou” drive to send books for children and adults to New Orleans. You can drop off books at R. Quitsch Florist, 7405 Madison St., Ed’s Way at Beloit and Harvard, or Howard Mohr Community Center at Desplaines and Jackson. Or shop at www.amazon.com and view the wish list under Sydney M. Gray. You can also donate a gift certificate from your favorite bookseller or mail your book donation to Sydney Gray, Books for the Bayou, P.O. Box 1459 Oak Park, Ill. 60304. You can arrange to have your books picked up by calling (708) 363-6162.
In case you haven’t heard, the Community Center’s November and December activity fliers are out. Cookbooks are available at the center and village hall for $5, Tai Chi classes began Oct. 5 from 1 p.m. until 2 p.m. and cost $25 for six weeks or $5 per class. Bingo/lunch for seniors is on Oct. 25 at 1 p.m. Bingo is $2.50, the lunch is $6. Reservations are being taken for the New Year’s Eve party, which will be $23. The Health Fair will be held on Nov. 7 from 11 a.m. till 3 p.m. Lots of great trips and you better sign up early just to get on the waiting list. The trips include “The Greatest Show on Earth.” The Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Circus will be in Chicago Nov. 14; a trip to Lake Delevan for shopping and the musical “Home for the Holidays” on Nov. 28; Mystery Trip Dec. 5; “The Snow Queen” and Piazza Bella on Dec. 12.
A small group of concerned Mothers Walking for Others from Florida is raising funds for Save the Children. All donations will be given to a reliable receiver in Darfur. The women will be walking from Dunedin, Fla., to Kay Largo beginning on Nov. 3. If you would care to donate: Mothers Walking for Others 1846 Pinehurst Road, Dunedin, Fla. 34698. Or visit their website, www.motherswalkingforothers.com. You can also phone (727) 743-5667 to get more information.
The Symphony of Oak Park and River Forest is about to begin its 2007-2008 season. The first concert will take place Oct. 21 at the First United Church, 848 Lake St. in Oak Park at 4 p.m. Soloists on the program are Amy Pickler playing recorder in the Vivaldi Recorder Concerto; she will also perform with her famous father, Charles Pickle, a violinist, along with Debbie Barford on oboe and Dale Kerner on trumpet, who will be doing the Bach Brandenberg Concerto No. 2. The orchestra will also present Beethoven’s “Eroica,” (Symphony no. 3). Following the concert a wine tasting party will be held at House Red in Forest Park. Reservations for this event are limited so phone (708) 771-7RED or check online at www.house-red.com Tickets are $25. It was a big hit last year.
Oct. 10 happy birthdays to Morgan Hosty, Anthony Bartolotte, Kevin Doss and happy anniversary to Mike and Eve Dudzik; on the 11th, Bob Sullivan, Mark Hosty and Eve Dudzik, and happy anniversary to Roberta and Fred Marunde; on Oct. 12, Charlotte and Frank Chero will celebrate anniversary number 11; happy birthday to Bob Scheiwe and Bernice Abbott; on the 13th, Bill Plumtree, Laura Hein, Barbara Sedlak; on the 14th, Nicholas Radkiewicz, John rice, Jack Vainisi, Georgia Becker, Anna Snyder, Sean Patrick Sullivan; Oct. 15, Jim Murray, Laurie Kokenes; the 16th, Jillian Dorney, Rich Boyer, Pat Mullen, Hannah Fink; on the 17th, Susan Blazek, Catherine Trieber, Carl Bachner, Bridget Cote and Beverly Thompson.
