Bremen Golf Ball Drop fundraiser collects over $2,600
Bremen High School hosted its first Golf Ball Drop, Oct. 20, raising more than $2,600 for Bremen’s Academic Boosters program. Golf balls were sold for $10 each and dropped from a Posen Fire Department ladder truck onto a target, with the closest balls to the center winning cash prizes.
There were 266 golf balls sold, with proceeds going to Bremen High School senior scholarships, student recognition programs and incentives and more. The first place winner won $1,000, second place won $100 and third place won $50.
The first place winner was Patti Cebulski (Bremen class of 1986) won $1,000, second place winner Joel Reyes received $100 and third place winner Chris Gonzalez (class of 1992) won $50.
Surprise pumpkin patches delivered to Matteson-area schools
Pumpkin Patch Days returned last week to schools in Matteson District 162, continuing a tradition begun two years ago amid the pandemic when field trips were canceled.
Instead, thousands of pumpkins were shipped in to grade schools in the district, which serves Matteson, Richton Park, Olympia Fields, Park Forest and University Park.
Each of the district’s schools has planned lessons and activities centered around pumpkins from Pumpkin Day games to petting zoos and face painting, according to a news release from the district.
Older students also got in on the fun, as members of the National Junior Honor Society at Huth Middle School in Matteson decorated pumpkins to donate to people at the Shirley J. Green Township Senior Center in Park Forest. The students participated in an exercise class with the seniors.
“It gives our students a chance to not only be a part of Pumpkin Day but to participate in community service,” said Brenda Calvin, Huth’s principal. “And it brings the joy of Pumpkin Day to seniors in our community.”
Why trash your pumpkin when you can smash it?
The Forest Preserve District of Will County offers a fun chance to recycle pumpkins after Halloween by “smashing them to smithereens,” according to a news release from the district.
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The 2023 Pumpkin Smash is set for 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Nov. 4, at Plum Creek Nature Center in Crete Township. Registration is not required. Just show up with your jack-o’-lanterns and choose their method of demise. You can pound them to a pulp, roll them into a heap or drop them over a railing. Pumpkins will be dropped from an overlook to the ground 40 feet below. And smashing options include hammers, mallets and more. After a fun day of smashing pumpkins, participants will be treated to a fire and roasted s’mores and hot dogs.
Last year’s Pumpkin Smash at Plum Creek collected 988 pounds of pumpkins that were composted.
Harvesting Hope fundraiser set for Christmas Without Cancer
Harvesting Hope, a fundraiser for the nonprofit Christmas Without Cancer, returns from 1 to 5 p.m. Nov. 11 at 115 Bourbon Street, 3359 W. 115th St., Merrionette Park. Now in its fifth year, Harvesting Hope is a way to kick off the holiday season with live entertainment, raffles and fun for the entire community.
Organizers hope this year’s Harvesting Hope will raise $50,000, which will be used to provide support to families battling cancer.
Open to those age 21 and up, admission to Harvesting Hope is $50 per person in advance, with tickets available for purchase at the door for $60. Advance tickets are available online by visiting christmaswithoutcancer.org/harvestinghope. Online sales will end at noon Nov. 10
Highlights of the event include music performances by acoustic duo Grace and John, games such as Plinko, Punch-A-Bunch and a “Booze Toss” ring toss, as well as a variety of raffles with the prospect of winning thousands of dollars in prizes.
For nearly two decades, Christmas Without Cancer has aided thousands of people across the Chicago area by adopting multiple families who are going through the devastation of cancer, and supplying them with gift cards for groceries, medications, gas, and other “need” items, as well as help with mortgage payments, rent, tuition, day care, and travel related expenses for treatment.
In 2022 Christmas Without Cancer was able to assist 361 families throughout the year, and 74 families during the holidays.
Southland preserves highlight Cook County’s fall color map
Fall foliage is peaking and the Forest Preserves of Cook County are highlighting fall color hot spot via a new interactive web map feature.
“This new filter makes it easier for folks to find fabulous fall foliage near them,” said Arnold Randall, general superintendent of the Forest Preserves of Cook County.
In the first update since launching the interactive web map at map.fpdcc.com, Forest Preserves staff compiled a list of spots most likely to feature dramatic fall color. The new Fall Color activity filter joins 28 other searchable activities, from fishing and biking, to nature centers and picnic spots, to canoeing and birding.
Among the preserves highlighted on the new map are Orland Grassland-South, Orland Grassland Land and Water Reserve and Orland Grove, just west of La Grange Road near Orland Park. While most people focus on woodlands and forests in the fall, the grasslands offer intense fall color too, with neon pink, yellow and orange, according to a news release from the county. Highlights include late-blooming goldenrods, asters and gentians.
The map also highlights Schubert’s Woods at Sauk Trail, west of Ashland Avenue, between Park Forest and South Chicago Heights. Schubert’s Woods features bright yellows in the understory and lovely burgundy oaks in the canopy, according to the news release.
The new feature’s release is timely, according to Nick Kuhn, a resource operations manager with the preserves. He said a dry spring followed by rainy summer and crisp September evenings means some of the most vibrant colors in nature can be expected this month.
“Now’s the time to enjoy exploring the stunning autumn scenery — and it’s all close to home,” he said in the release.
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