Aurora Mayor Richard Irvin joined the Rev. Gregory Jones and the congregation earlier this month to celebrate the 80th anniversary of Greater Mount Olive Church of God in Christ in Aurora.
Founded on April 2, 1944, by Bishop William Bonner on Aurora’s East Side, Greater Mount Olive Church of God in Christ has been pivotal in the city’s Black community for eight decades, helping to guide it through the Civil Rights era into modern times, city officials said.
Bonner served as senior pastor at the church for 72 years until he passed away in 2016, a few days shy of his 95th birthday. He was also an advisor to Aurora mayors for seven decades, officials said.
In honor of the church’s 80th anniversary, Irvin proclaimed April as Greater Mount Olive Church Month in Aurora.
West Aurora Sports Boosters plan golf fundraiser
West Aurora Blackhawk Sports Boosters will host its 33rd annual Blackhawk Golf Classic fundraiser on Friday, May 31, at Bliss Creek Golf Course in Sugar Grove.
The event includes both a morning and afternoon round of golf, lunch, golf cart and steak dinner, as well as course contests, raffles and a silent auction, organizers said.
Registration is $125 per golfer for the morning round and $140 per golfer for the afternoon round. Participants may golf both rounds for $190.
Sponsorships are available. All funds raised at the event go directly to enhancing West Aurora athletic programs, including equipment and capital improvement projects, according to event organizers.
To register or for more information, go to www.blackhawksportsboosters.org/fund-raising/golf-outing/.
String quartet to perform at library
The St. Charles Public Library has announced a new community partnership with the Elgin Symphony Orchestra, with the first performance as part of the collaboration set for Sunday, April 28.
At 2 p.m. April 28 in the Carnegie Community Room at the library, 1 S. Sixth Ave. in St. Charles, a string quartet will perform Joseph Haydn’s String Quartet Op. 33, No. 2 “Joke,” and Antonín Dvorak’s String Quartet No. 12, Op. 96 “American.”
The members of the string quartet are Eric Pidluski, violin I; Maria Arrua, violin II; Loretta Gillespie, viola; and Matthew Agnew, cello, event organizers said.
The event, open to the public, is part of the library’s Sunday Concert Series, featuring a variety of musical performances. This performance is funded through donations to the St. Charles Public Library Foundation.
League of Women Voters sets event
The League of Women Voters Aurora Area will be hosting an event called “Wait, Wait, Wait, Don’t Tell Me” at 6:30 p.m. April 18 at the Montgomery branch of the Oswego Public Library, 1111 Reading Drive in Montgomery.
The program will feature elected officials from each of the communities served by the League of Women Voters Aurora Area including Aurora Ald. John Laesch; North Aurora Trustee Mark Guethle; Montgomery Trustee Theresa Sterling; Oswego Village Trustee Karen Novy; and Yorkville Ald. Dan Transier. Curtis Spivey, host of “Good Morning Aurora,” will be the moderator.
Those attending can test their knowledge of the local communities as elected officials respond to questions. The evening “promises to be filled with facts and comedy,” event organizers said.
There will be time at the end of the program to enjoy home-baked desserts and speak with the elected officials one-on-one, according to organizers.
Geneva plans Earth Day celebration
The Geneva Earth Day Celebration, sponsored by the city’s Natural Resources Committee and the Geneva Park District, will be held from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday, April 20, at Peck Farm Park, 4038 Kaneville Road in Geneva.
At the event, the public can recycle shoes, clothes, small electronics and holiday lights for free, officials said. Televisions and computer monitors can be recycled for a $25 (21-inch or less) or $35 (22-inch or greater) fee, depending on screen size, event organizers said.
Paper shredding will be offered for free at the Earth Day event. Other activities will include a scavenger hunt, Geneva Park District games, a chalk art Earth mural, a rain barrel sale, tree whip and tomato plant giveaways, a self-guided prairie tour and more.
Food and nature-related booths also will be available during the celebration.
The Earth Day event is free and open to all ages. For those interested in helping plant native prairie plants from 10 to 11 a.m. at Peck Farm Park that day, advance registration is required through the Geneva Park District.
For more information about the celebration, call the Geneva Park District at 630-232-4542 or go to www.genevaparks.org.
$25,000 donation to provide family meals at Edward Hospital
Northwestern Mutual Chicagoland has donated $25,000 to provide meals to those using the Ronald McDonald Family Room at Endeavor Health Edward Hospital in Naperville.
The donation to Ronald McDonald House Charities of Chicagoland and Northwest Indiana for its Meals from the Heart program provides more than 2,500 people and families affected by pediatric illness with meals for four months, organizers said.
Ronald McDonald Family Rooms offer a quiet place away from the medical area so families can regroup, eat, shower or rest during their child’s testing or treatments.
The Ronald McDonald House website says that for families with children in hospitals, the rooms gives people a way to step away from their child’s bedside to take care of themselves. They typically provide a kitchen, private bathrooms and showers, laundry service and a quiet room to recharge.
