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MY SUN DAY NEWS

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News & Features Columnists Editorials Hang Your Hat Obituaries My Huntley News

August 11, 2011

Arts & Entertainment

All in the family

Has the heat got you feeling the blues? Well, prepare to turn that frown upside down, and mark your calendars. At 7 p.m. on September 8 in Drendel Ballroom, prepare to have your funny bone strummed and your ears tickled by the Doug Gabriel & Family show. Doug Gabriel has won Male Vocalist of the Year seven times, and his show was awarded Branson Missouri’s best morning show six years in a row.

Sunflower Garden Club donates big to local charities

The Sunflower Garden Club this year has chosen the Grafton Food Pantry and NICA (Northern Illinois Center for Autism) for their annual donations. The Grafton Food Pantry was incorporated in 2006 and is run by friends with a passion to help out their community. Their mission is to provide food items and household products to people in need of assistance and seek to improve lives through education on nutrition and smart shopping. Their new Huntley location is on Smith Drive, and they serve about 500 residents from the areas of Huntley, Lakewood, and portions of Lake in the Hills, Crystal Lake, and Algonquin.

If the ‘show’ fits

If the shoe fits, Sun City resident Sheila Gillis definitely wears it. As Celtic Club Member and Ted O’Sullivan Show Part II writer, producer, director, she wears a lot of shoes. But when you’re following in the footsteps of Ed Sullivan himself, it would take that to put on a big “shoe” like The Ted O’Sullivan Show Part II, staring Paul Runkel as Ted O’Sullivan, among his many famous guests, not the least of which includes Marilyn Monroe.

Drifting into town

Folks, when you talk about The Drifters at this point, you’re talking about 58 years of musical history and it’s a history that’s been marked by some of the great voices of American music including people like Clyde McPhatter, Bill Pinkney, Ben E. King and Johnny More. And I can’t tell you how cool it is for the Mojo Man to be here today with another one of those great voices of the Legendary Drifters, Chicago’s very own Jerry Hendrix. Jerry, thanks so much for joining me here today.

Ask the Woodchucks: Live and in person

On April 20, every workbench in the Millgrove Woodshop was covered with broken furniture and parts of furniture. Small teams of Woodchucks hovered around each bench, squinting at their projects and talking to the other team members, deciding on the best way to fix the problems.

Service with a smile

“We give our customers value and service with a smile,” says Mike Akiti, who co-owns the newly opened Butler’s restaurant with his identical twin brother, Lui.

In full ‘swing’

It’s not everyone that gets a personal phone call from Tony Bennett whenever he came to “Chicago,” to not only rub elbows with but personally know Frank Sinatra and Sammy Davis. And it’s especially not everyone that’s one of only three radio announcers inducted into the Big Band Hall of Fame. But such is the life and career of Chicagoland radio announcer Denny Farrell.

The Peter Rabbit Lady

Do you remember a hedgehog by the name of Mrs. Tiggy Winkle? Please allow Sarah Hudgens of Neighborhood 3 to bring her to life as well as Peter Rabbit and Farmer McGregor.

Not all nest eggs have to be green

Add additional flair to your Easter table in less than 5 minutes with these super-easy-to-make birds’ nests—no special supplies needed! Spruce up your floral centerpiece or even top off individual place settings and treat each person at the table to their own nest filled with Easter eggs or candies. Supplies: — Brown paper shopping bag …

Making History

You could say that Sun City resident Fred Leznek of Neighborhood 18 has a “thing” for history. But after viewing his intricate and perfectly-crafted collages that will be on display in Prairie Lodge for ten days, from April 18th to the 28th, you may also add that he has a thing about art history or art and history. Nothing will take you back to the Middle Ages, Ancient Egypt, Native America, or many other popular time periods quite like Leznek’s detailed, colorful, and thought-out collages that prove a picture is worth a thousand words. And, in this case, hundreds of years.

Now what’s all this ‘nunsense’ about?

Who doesn’t like a little “nunsense” in their life now and then? So long as it’s fun, bold, and makes you laugh until you cry, there’s no harm. And in some special cases, it may even be better to make a habit of it.

Shamrocks, shenanigans, and … the Old West?

Fun, fun, fun, and more fun! That’s what the yearly St. Patrick’s Day Celtic Club plays are.

Majors & Minors

Nothing beats a good pairing. Abbott & Costello. Ginger Rogers & Fred Astaire. Tom & Jerry. Batman & Robin. The Lone Ranger & Tonto. Lucy & Desi. Bonnie & Clyde. Adam & Eve. (Although we know how those last two couples panned out.)

Abigail Adams live in Sun City April 1, no joke

Meet Abigail Adams! She’s the wife of the second President of the United States, and Jessica Michna brings her to life in the Willow Room of Meadow View Lodge at 10 a.m. on Tuesday, April 1.

Radio flyer

For years, Sun City resident Allen Pollack has taken to the air above Huntley as a pilot of small-engine aircraft, but with the Senate’s recent passing of the Local Community Radio Act on December 18, 2010, Pollack and Sun City resident Dorothy Litwin, along with a group of like-minded partners, may soon have their chance to take to the airwaves over Huntley in a different form, with HCR, Huntley Community Radio, a not-for-profit low-power FM (LPFM) station Pollack and others have been working hard to develop … and, well, get off the ground.

One key at a time

The thought of taking up a new instrument can seem daunting at first, with all the keys, notes, and chords looking like a foreign language. But one local music store is using different techniques to help students avoid getting lost in translation.

A sweet education

Are you a chocoholic? On the morning of February 3, you can look forward to taking home a box of chocolate-covered delectable delights made up of a colorful tray of assorted items that will be dipped in premium chocolate fondue.

In the bag

There may be a baseball bat hanging over the register and caricatures of strong Italian hand gestures hanging on the walls, but the only thing that should feel intimidated by walking into the newly opened Mel & Mars Bistro To-Go in Algonquin is your hunger. Owner Chef Mario Arevalo will make that go away real quick with a menu of Italian and Mediterranean dishes that, Arevalo said, will remind native Chicagoans of their favorite Chi-Town classics.

No strings attached

Huntley High School students and Sun City residents have been creating exquisite music together for the past 3 years. Residents such as Sam Geati of N.33, who is a member of a men’s tap-dance group called “The Hunks,” the Tall Oaks Tennis Club, the “Travelers” softball team, the 51-piece Concert Band, the 18-piece Jazz Ensemble titled “Lets Dance,” and his own trio, “Blue Skies,” has been working with the students at Huntley High School for the past year.

100 voices plus 2 shows equals perfect harmony

One hundred voices talking all at once makes cacophony. But 100 voices all singing in harmony makes the 2010 Prairie Singers Christmas concert.

Affairs of the Art

If you are looking to add some pizzazz into your day or even your home, the biannual Affair of the Arts art show offers entertainment, beauty, and fellowship in a wooded setting at The Shores of Turtle Creek in Spring Grove on Sunday, November 14 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Back home again

John Denver once wrote, with help from Placido Domingo, in his song, “Perhaps Love,” “Perhaps love is like a resting place, A shelter from the storm, It exists to give you comfort, It is there to keep you warm, And in those times of trouble, When you are most alone, The memory of love will bring you home.” This sentiment will spread across Sun City on Saturday, November 20 during the John Denver Tribute Performance at 7 p.m. in Drendel Ballroom.

Part 2: The ‘Ides’ march into Sun City for a smash-hit performance

Sun Day music columnist Moonlight Mojo Man continues his conversation with band members.

What’s he wearing under his kilt!?

The Sun City Celtic Club celebrated their 9th anniversary on September 2nd in Drendel Ballroom. As always, the crowd arrived in rare form—some wearing Hawaiian Shirts, and some wearing Kilts. No matter what their choice of attire was, they were determined to have a great time.

Culture, beauty, and dance

From 7 p.m. to 8 p.m., Saturday, November 13, the Drendel Ballroom will light up with the culture and beauty of Korea, when the ADL Korean Dance Institute graces the stage for a once-in-a-lifetime evening experience.

The ‘Ides’ march into Sun City for a smash-hit performance

Sun Day music columnist Moonlight Mojo Man sits down with band members for a little Q&A.

Tooth and nail

There are no colorful props—no appropriate storefronts, houses, staircases, ships, merry-go-rounds, city streets, parks—nothing to lend visual authenticity to the production. In the Sound of Music, where’s the abbey? Or a staircase with seven charming children singing goodnight to party guests? In Some Like it Hot, where is the mysterious cabaret? Or a train car? In Brigadoon, where are the landscapes symbolizing Scottish moors? In Fiddler on the Roof, where are the rooftops?

Where memories live

Everyone has a story to tell, and April Jeffers of Stories, Inc. is in business to help you document yours.

Labor of love

With the approaching production of Rogers and Hammerstein’s Carousel, it’s business as usual for the Theatre Company of Sun City. And when each show’s production consists of thousands of man hours and managing fiscal responsibilities, the Theatre Company of Sun City operates very much like a business, a not so small one at that.