Kane County Magazine features Geneva doctor

Dr. James Sostak

Kane County Magazine photo

• Kane County Magazine features Geneva doctor James Sostak in its June edition. Elizabeth Harmon reports that Sostak, an orthopedic surgeon at Fox Valley Orthopedic in Geneva, was a noteworthy athlete in high school and played minor league baseball for the Rockford Riverwalks. Sostak is training to run the Chicago Marathon later this year. Kane County Magazine is published by our friends at Shaw Media, which also produces the Kane County Chronicle, the Northwest Herald in Crystal Lake and the Daily Chronicle in DeKalb. 


• While I'm mentioning the Daily Chronicle, I want to send out congratulations to its staff for producing the state's best small daily newspaper, according to the Illinois Press Association, which announced the honor during a recent awards dinner. In my humble opinion, the award is well deserved. I think the Daily Chronicle and the Kane County Chronicle do a fine job of featuring local news and events. Both newspapers excel in the coverage of prep sports.


• The Geneva Lutheran Church will host a Swedish pancake breakfast from 8 a.m. to noon June 23. The church is located at 301 S. Third St., Geneva. The cost is $6 for adults and $4 for kids younger than 12. For more information, call Karen at 630-232-0165. The church also invites children to enjoy a giant inflatable slide that will be set up on the church's lawn. The slide will be available from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. June 21 and 22. Children can also decorate cookies during their visits. 



• The Kane County Forest Preserve District will host a program about dragonflies from 10:30 a.m. to noon June 23.  at Hickory Knolls Discovery Center, 3795 Campton Hills Road in St. Charles. The program is for ages 16 and older. Registration is required and can be completed by phone at 847-741-8350. Craig Stettner of the biology department at Harper College will lead the program. The fee for the progam is $15. 

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Christian band building a fan base

The Christian rock band TOW is building a fan base.

Submitted photo

• The Daily Chronicle recently featured an article about my friends Steve Allen and Ann Seisser and their Christian rock band, TOW, which stands for Time of Worship. The seven-member band started at the Crosswind Community Church in Genoa and has developed a regional fan base. The band released its first album, Step in his Presence,"  in 2011 and is at work on a second album.  The band will perform at Genoa Days on June 14, at Kirkland's festival on July 3 and at Crosswind Community Church on July 21. Best wishes to Steve, Ann and the other members of the band. I plan to be in the audience on June 14.


• The Swedish American Children's Choir will host its 13th annual Swedish Pancake Breakfast benefit from 9:30 a.m. to noon June 2 at Bethany Lutheran Church, 8 S. Lincoln St., Batavia. Tickets are $12 for adults and $6 for children ages 6 to 10. The breakfast will feature Swedish pancakes, sausage, Swedish cardamom coffee cake and lingonberries. For more information, call 630-414-9700. I will be there early. Please stop and hello. I will be the guy with the big plate of pancakes and an even bigger smile on his face.


• I love a bargain, so I will be in Sugar Grove for the annual Community Garage Sales on June 1 and 2. The sales will be conducted from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. on both days at sites throughout the town. For more information about the event, call the Sugar Grove Chamber of Commerce at 630-466-7895.


• I also hope to attend the bird walk at 8 a.m. June 2 at Nelson Lake/Dick Young Forest Preserve in Batavia. The event is free and open to all ages. I've attended several of these walks, and I'm always impressed with the people I meet at the event and the amount of information they have to share about local birds. For more information about the walk, call 630-896-3219.


• The Village of Maple Park will conduct a free drive-through electronics recycling event from 8 a.m. to noon June 2 at the Maple Park Civic Center, 302 Willow St. Accepted items include computers, software, TVs, cellphones, microwave ovens and other small appliances. Sorry, no large appliances, chemicals or batteries will be accepted. For more information, call 630-208-3841. 


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Geneva welcomes Third Street Eyecare

Third Street Eyecare in Geneva conducted a ribbon-cutting May 1.

Shawmedia.com photo

• Members of the Geneva Chamber of Commerce took part in a ribbon-cutting ceremony May 1 at Third Street Eyecare, 500 S. Third St., Geneva. For more information about the new business, call 630-232-7800.

• Sycamore will host its 15th annual Cinco de Mayo Festival from 6 to 10 p.m. May 5 and from 2 to 9 p.m. May 6. The festival will be located on Bill Johnson Blvd., behind Taxco restaurant, 223 W. State St. The festival will include live music, food and a variety of children's activities, including a petting zoo and games. For more information about the event, go to www.sycamorecincodemayo.com.

• The Daily Chronicle in DeKalb recently won 20 awards, including five first-awards, in this year's Illinois Associated Press Editors Association News and Photo Contest. The Chronicle competed in Division C for small dailies. The awards will be presented in June. As a longtime reader of the Chronicle, I am happy for the newspaper's staff. In addition to the news and sports reports, I also enjoy the Chronicle's columnists.

• As a Batavia resident, it pains me a bit to share the Kane County Chronicle's sports report about St. Charles North's 10th straight baseball victory over Batavia May 2. North topped Batavia 14-7. The two schools will meet again May 9. Watch for updates.

• NIU men's golf will host the MAC Championships beginning May 4 at Rich Harvest Farms in Sugar Grove. The 72-hole contest will continue May 5 and conclude on May 6. The Huskies' team includes Bryce Emory and Kurtis Luedkte, juniors from Aurora, and Griffin Bauman of Crystal Lake. The event is open to the public and admission is free. Go Huskies.

KB 

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