Friday Crystal Lake Kiwanis member Linda Gullo weathered an April snow shower at Joesph’s to collect money to fight neonatal tetanus..
In conjunction with Kiwanis International, Crystal Lake Kiwanis is collecting funds to finance a UNICEWD to eliminate neonatal tetanus.
It’s called the Eliminate Project.
Yesterday and today at Country Donuts and Joseph’s Market volunteers offered peanuts as they stood in the cold.
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People contributed $936.37.
Nikolas Archambean is four.
His mother Candie waits on the Crystal Lake Kiwanis when the club meets at Colonial.
She must have been talking about the St. Baldrick’s children cancer research fund raiser, because one time when I was having lunch, Candie told me that her son was going to have his head shaved to help the kids with cancer.
As luck would have it, I was at McHenry County College when Nikolas was on the barber stool.
Although it was his idea, Nikolas Archambeau seems a bit apprehensive before his hair-cut began.
At the same time, a McHenry County College student names Ashley was undergoing similar removal of her blond hair.
At another station Ashley Niemesz was preparing to be shaved.
My attention, of course, was on the three-year old.
With the job half done, Nikolas still doesn’t seem to think it’s a good idea, even though it was his own.
Crystal Lake Kiwanis President Molly Carp holds mirror for Nik to see how he looks halfway through the haircut.
The mirror is held for Nikolas to see the progress.
The haircut continued.
Almost done.
Nikolas raised over $500 by getting his head shaved.
Nikolas wanted to make sure all of his hair was cleaned up.
Meanwhile, Ashley’s haircut was done.
Ashly felt her new hairdo.
Bald apparently wasn’t comfortable.
Apparently Ashley wasn’t comfortable being bald.
Later Ashley took the microphone.
Ashley took the microphone and made an announcement.
She announced that she had shaved her head because her friend Bob Gibbons had a tumor.
Bob Gibbons expressed his appreciation to Ashley by giving her a thumbs up.
The two hugged.
Ashley Niemesz and Bob Gibbons hugged.
A couple of Bob’s other friends stepped up for a photo.
A couple of Bob’s other friends took the stage for a photo op.
I tried to get all four of the friends together, but one left before my camera recycled.
I almost got all four friends posing together.
Jo Anne Ollerenshaw before losing her tresses.
Stepping to the front to have her tresses cut on Wednesday was former Crystal Lake Kiwanis Club President Jo Anne Ollerenshaw.
Jo Anne Ollerenshaw after her locks were cut.
The cutting of her long hair was done to promote the upcoming St. Baldrick’s Pediatric Cancer Research Fund Raiser, which the local Kiwanis Club has sponsored for the last three years.
Besides this main event, which this year will be held at McHenry County College’s conference center, Crystal Lake South High School’s Key Club sponsors a similar fund raiser where students and faculty have their heads shaved to benefit the charity.
The Ollerenshaw event was held in conjunction with one of the service club’s two monthly meetings, this time at McHenry County College,. Ollerenshaw he teaches there.
Plastic was placed under the area where Crystal Lake Clip Joynt Salon’s Allison Vi set up her equipment.
Ollerenshaw discussed the relatives and friends who had fought various forms of cancer, some winning and some losing that battle.
Jo Anne Ollerenshaw and beautician Allison DeCicco of Crystal Lake’s Clip Joynt Solon pose next to a St. Baldrick’s banner after the hair cut.
Details of the March 2013 St. Patick’s Day Friday event at MCC are below:
Folks will have their heads shaved into raise funds to finance pediatric cancer at MCC from 3-6 on Friday, March 15.
At 9 AM sharp the Crystal Lake Kiwanis Santa Runners were off. Click to enlarge any photo.
Friday there were 501 registered for the first Crystal Lake Kiwanis Santa Run.
All that pent up energy came running at me as I stood in the middle of the street.
At the 9 AM race start there were 701.
Time for another picture before I run to side of Williams Street.
Organized by Kiwanis to benefit groups that help kids in McHenry County, the 5k Run/1 mile walk benefited from mild weather.
As the thundering herd of Santas got closer, I stepped aside.
It was so mild, in fact, I saw one man cross the finish line with his Santa suit, hat and beard still in its original bag.
As I got out of the path of the runners, I got this shot of the Santa Run participants.
Crystal Lake Santa Run logo.
Here are the groups that benefited:
Other highlights of the Crystal Lake Kiwanis year are below:
Look at this marvelous Santa Run graphic designed by McHenry County College student Christian Andrick.
Crystal Lake Kiwanis is sponsoring in conjunction with local charities which help kids.
As of last Wednesday’s Kiwanis luncheon, 482 people had signed up to run in Santa costumes on what will be a really good running Sunday.
Crystal Lake Santa Run organizer Mike Splitt shows off costume that each Santa participate will be provided. Reindeer Dash participants will get antlers. Kiwanis meets twice a month for lunch.
2012 Santa Run sponsors
This is a huge turnout for a first-time event.
No trudging through the snow on December 2nd (but no guarantees for 2013).
No sireee!
Low of 53% on Sunday this year. And cloudy.
The race is a 5k and the walk (called the Reindeer Dash- Saunter), designed especially for kids and parents, is 1 mile.
The cost is $35 for those in the Santa Run and $15 for those participating in the Reindeer Dash. (Race day registration is $5 more.)
People can sign up on the website Kiwanis Santa Run for Kids or in person at the Raue Center in Downtown Crystal Lake– where the race will start and end–from 10-3. The Raue Center’s phone is 815-356-9212
The organizations besides Crystal Lake Kiwanis that work with children throughout McHenry County that will benefit from the money earned at the run are
The projects Crystal Lake Kiwanis participate in can been seen below:
Crystal Lake Kiwanis programs for kids.
The annual Peanut Days for Kiwanis is coming up in McHenry County. Some details appear below.
Kiwanis Club Of Crystal Lake – Peanut Days, September 23-‐24th
Two years ago Lilttle Miss Peanut and her father were at Sam's Club in Crystal Lake.
Service is at the heart of every Kiwanis International club, no matter where in the world it’s located. Kiwanis members generate nearly 150,000 service projects, devote more than 6 million hours of service, and raise nearly $107 million every year for communities, families, and projects.
The primary purpose of the Crystal Lake Kiwanis Club is to serve the needs of children in our McHenry County Community. Over the past year, the C.L. Kiwanis club made financial contributions to local organizations benefiting children, e.g., a Shave-A-Thon raised over $33,000 for cancer research last spring.
Since 1951, the first Kiwanis Peanut Day in Chicago, volunteers have worn the official orange vest imprinted with: “Kiwanis Peanut Day” and “Please Give Freely” and will hand out small (¾ ounce) sealed bags of roasted peanuts.
Our very own, Little Miss Peanut will make appearances during the Event.
Kiwanis volunteer collectors will be at the following locations on Friday and Saturday and, perhaps, others:
This year Crystal Lake Kiwanis is offering an opportunity to 501(c)3 not- for-profit organizations who serve children to use Peanut Days to raise money for their groups. The details are below:
So if you are interested in a fun, easy way to raise funds for your cause, please join us on Friday, September 23, 2011 and/or Saturday, September 24, 2011. If you would like more information please feel free to contact Joe Johnson at 815-459-0707 or joe@kmtaxman.com.
Divina Arellano, the Crystal Lake Kiwanis' Little Miss Peanut, waves to the 4th of July Parade viewers in Kathy Gossett's convertible.
Each year Crystal Lake Kiwanis sponsors a Little Miss Peanut pageant.
It’s not a beauty contest, just a way to allow your girls to get some experience in front of 30-40 people.
The winner this year was Divina Arellano.
Bonnie Karp shared her background with Kiwanis members. Former Kiwanis Presidents Joe and Amber Johnson.
Crystal Lake Kiwanis had its second to last meeting at the current location of Colonial Cafe.
Notice to Colonial patrons of the coming switch in locations and pending addition of wine and beer to the offerings.
That’s where I met my wife at the now-defunct Crystal Lake Kiwanis Breakfast Club. The noon club has been meeting in the same room.
The sign on the Colonial Cafe door says that those wishing to visit the current spot have until Sunday, June 5th, to do so.
Then, it will be closed for five days to re-open on Friday, June 10th.
Moving into a remodeled Baker’s Square will allow Colonial Cafe to serve more people.
There is also a new feature being tested.
Wine and beer will be served.
Chief Chef Grant Werner was in Crystal Lake today. He told me the wine will be Fetzner, of which I am pleased to report has my wife’s approval.
Colonial Cafe Chief Colonial Chef Grant Werner preparing for the pending move to a new location.
That means I’ll be able to dine with her and have my favorite citrus tango salad and she can have a glass of wine.
In addition, about a month after the new location across Route 14 opens, Chef Werner says rib eye steak and bourbon glazed pork chops will be added to the menu.
I’m planning to take my wife to the old location this Thursday night, when there will be a “Colonial Cafe Cares“night to benefit the family of Brandon Peters, the Crystal Lake Central High School student who died of cancer last Thursday.
Colonial Cafe will donate 20% of the proceeds from 4:30 to 10 to the Peters’ family to defray the inevitable expenses that go with any long illness.
Brandon Peters
A place to donate sits on the check-out counter. Click to enlarge.
Most restaurants require those benefiting from such programs to have a not-for-profit status. It seems that Colonial does not. Now, that is true charity.
Those whose schedules will not allow them to dine at Colonial Thursday night, can donate in a big ice cream container on the
15-year old brain cancer survivor Josh Brent speaking to Crystal Lake South High School assembly.
When you take a speech course, the teacher gives this advice:
In Crystal Lake South High School’s Freshman Josh Brent’s speech, he followed two-thirds of that advice.
Josh Brent had fun giving the speech.
The first two-thirds.
“I’m going to bring tears to your eyes,” was his opening line as he stood on the stage of Crystal Lake’s South High School at a St. Baldrick’s Day rally sponsored by the Key Club, a high school version of the Crystal Lake Kiwanis.
The summary was not needed. Handkerchiefs were.
What’s St. Baldrick’s Day? Take a look at the web site.
It’s something a couple of New York City advertising folks dreamed up after a discussion that St. Patrick’s Day should be about more than going out and getting drunk.
People shave their heads and end up looking like chemo patients.
But there were some serious memories Josh Brent had to process.
They ask people to donate money for kids’ cancer research.
Here’s what’s been done locally:
(McHenry West Assistant Principal Carl Vallianatos says that $45,000 is expected to be raised in McHenry.)
Total raised by the self-described “world’s largest volunteer-driven charity for childhood cancer research?”
While several teens were shaved or had at least eight inches of hair cut off (in the case of girls) on the auditorial stage, most got their extreme haircuts after school in "The Pit."
Over $100 million raised since its founding in 2000.
But, let’s get back to Josh.
Six years ago this month, Josh was in third grade. He had head aches. When he started watching TV with a hand over his eye, his parents ramped up from the pediatrician to an ophthalmologist (an eye doctor).
Very soon he was off to a hospital, where his family was told that he had a 40% chance of surviving the brain cancer that had been diagnosed.
The Bear Necessities Foundation held a McDonald’s Party for him and some friends. The Make-a-Wish Foundation couldn’t deliver on a wish Josh had regarding the Cubs. His second choice, a swimming pool in the back yard was more lasting, as he said with a broad smile.
The surgeon said that the tumor was wrapped around Josh’s eye. When he touched it, it opened like a the fingers of a closed fist. Not a common occurrence.
The folicals are cut away.
The physician told Josh’s parents that it wasn’t his hand operating.
He became known as the “miracle child.”
After Josh’s talk several students had their heads shaved on stage. Many more lined up in “The Pit,” when I returned after school.
Josh was first.
He’s an old hand at this.
Off came the hair, including a little pony tail that he had rubber banded at the middle of the back of his head.
There were two scars.
The first, his father Richard told me, was to relieve the pressure on the brain before the operation to remove the tumor.
Josh's father Richard Brent smiles at his son. His turn for a total haircut came later.
The second ran down the back of his head.
Afterward, as I saw upperclasswomen gathered around, I figured out and told him his scars were “chick magnates.” That thought had not occurred to him.
The barbers had lots of fun taking off the teens’ and teachers’ hair.
I had fun showing the boys who had the middle of their heads shaved first what they would look like thirty years from now.
Horns showed up on one boy’s head.
Josh Brent seems surprised at what he sees in the mirror
Not to worry, though.
There were wings on the back.
The shavee didn’t accept my suggestion that he go like that to church.
He ended up bald.
So did thirty-three others.
The shaving was not finished until 5:30 and it started after school at three.
Two long-haired girls decided on the spot to donate eight inches of their hair.
Had to get permission from Mom first.
After the snipping, one commented, “I feel lighter already.”
Carol Heisler reads the instructions from the Gulf Coast Vacation in a Box Christmas gift which the imaginative Donna Mayberry, sitting to her left, prepared.
Former Supervisor of Assessments Donna Mayberry, a new member of Crystal Lake Kiwanis, came up with the funniest Christmas present for the under $15 exchange at the Crystal Lake County Club party last night.
The imaginative lady came up with a Gulf Coast vacation in a box, the outside of which you see below:
GULF COAST BEACH VACATION IN A BOX
Can’t get to the Gulf Coast for a winter vacation?
Congratulations!
You have the next best thing! Please follow instructions and enjoy!
Note: To enhance ambiance, a small fan (not provided) might be strategically placed to duplicate ocean breezes.
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Included in the box were a plastic palm tree, a container of sand, sea shells, a bottle of oil, a book of short stories by John Grisham entitled, “Ford County,” and sun glasses.
Laughter surrounded the table.
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