Fierce competition is expected on Saturday when 18 barbeque teams vie for the first-ever People’s Choice Award at the Lake Bluff RibFest. The organizing committee of the Lake Bluff Barbeque Society is introducing this new award, which will be given to the team that receives the most votes by the general public.

Here’s how it works: Go to the Village Green between 10 a.m. and 5 p.m. (follow your nose). Sample ribs that have been prepared by the Village’s most astute grillsmen and grillswomen. Place your vote for the best barbeque with the Boy Scouts, who will be collecting $1 per vote. The team with the most votes will be declared the winner of the inaugural People’s Choice Award, and the money that’s raised will be donated to a local food bank.

For more information on RibFest, we turned to Matt Nielsen, whose team Smokey & The Pit won The Grand Champion award last year. He provided this photo, as well as his one of his favorite barbeque sauce recipes (but this is not the one that helped him win last year’s championship!) Click on “continue reading” for more from Matt …

(more…)

Editor’s note: The following note comes from CenterStage Theatre, a sponsor of GazeboNews. Please support the businesses that support GazeboNews!

What could possibly be funny about road construction, the economy and other challenges of life in Lake Forest and Lake Bluff? You’d be surprised! Please join CenterStage and the Lake Forest/Lake Bluff Chamber of Commerce for the 3rd presentation of CommunityCapers as we poke a little fun and celebrate life in Lake Forest, Lake Bluff and Knollwood. This year’s theme is “What Are Nice Towns Like You Doing In A State Like This?”

The show has been sold out in the past, so don’t delay–reserve your seat today! You can make reservations online at CommunityCapers.org or call CenterStage at 847-234-6062.

The all-local cast includes JoAnn Avellone, Tom Beck, Jim Benton, Laura Brown, Rebecca Bruch, Caryl Davidson, Cathy Demetrio, Janice DiVincenzo, Ellie Doyle, Susie Duttge, Carol Goldthwaite, Idona Griffith, Stacey Guastaferro, Sandy Harlow, Stephanie Helander, Connor Kenehan, Lain Kienzle, Susan Kocanda, Eileen Kolasa, Kelsey Kolasa, Nate LeMahieu, Rick Lesser, Morgan Luttig, Leland Masek, Kim Minichiello, Bob Mullenbach, Kathy Mullenbach, Mac Myles, Emily Newberger, Elaine Opsitnik, Carlie Passalino, Liza Passalino, Olivia Passalino, Carl Phillips, Joanna Rolek, Justine Damico Santello, Doug Schuetz, Paul Tribbs, Mari Uchida, Linda VanEeckhout and Ron Weiner.

CommunityCapers takes place at the Gorton Community Center, 400 E. Illinois, Lake Forest. Shows are Oct. 2 at 7:30 p.m.; Oct. 3 at 7:30 p.m.; Oct. 4 at 3 p.m.; Oct. 8 at 7:30 p.m.; Oct. 9 at 7:30 p.m. and Oct. 10 at 7:30 p.m. The play is a presentation of CenterStage and the LF/LB Chamber, with support from Lake Forest Bank & Trust Co. and Lesser, Lutrey & McGlynn, LLP.

Here’s a peak at the opening song from the 2007 Community Capers, starring Joanna Rolek:

On Saturday, The Lake Forest Dance Academy and Academy at Citadel Theatre will hold auditions for a theatre-for-young-audience version of "Hairspray." Students must enroll in a Musical Theater program (Musical Theatre II or Intermediate to Advanced) offered through the Lake Forest Dance Academy.

The auditions take place at 400. E. Hastings Road, Lake Forest, at 2 p.m in Studio D. Those trying out should prepare to sing 16 to 32 bars of music with a CD or a Capella. At audition, students will learn a dance to a song from the show and will be asked to do a cold reading from the script.

Rehearsals are Oct. 10-March 20 on Saturdays from 2 to 3 p.m. or 5 to 6 p.m. The schedule will be determined after auditions, based on the actor's role and schedule conflicts. There is no class or rehearsal during Holiday Break, Nov. 23

(more…)

Lake Forester columnist and author of “When You Just Can’t Say Good-bye, Don’t,” Maria Malin will host “Life Directions,” an evening of hope, faith and purpose after life-changing experiences, on Tuesday, Oct. 13, from 7 to 9 p.m. at the Gorton Community Center auditorium in Lake Forest. “Life Directions” will include three motivational speaking presentations and will benefit the Steven Malin, Jr. Memorial Scholarship 2010 at Lake Forest High School. Tickets are $30 each and still available at www.movingforwardhangingon.com. 

The motivational speakers include Jeff Miller, a husband, father and frequent business traveler who was on board United Airline's flight 232 in 1989 when the plane's rear engine lost hydraulics. The plane was forced to make an emergency landing in Sioux City, Iowa, where it cartwheeled, broke into pieces and burst into flames. Of the 296 passengers, 184 lived and 113 lost their lives. Jeff was able to help others

(more…)

So maybe skydiving’s not your thing? But surely you’d love to view our fair land from above? Take a look at this video, which Lake Forest Open Lands posted on YouTube. Chris Rea, one of the kilt-clad divers from Chicagoland Skydiving Center, was kind enough (and brave enough) to videotape his descent from a plane onto the open savanna at Sunday’s Bagpipes & Bonfire event. Stay with the video until the end to see a lone piper playing “Amazing Grace” as the sun sets, and after that the lighting of the bonfire.

The Lake Forest Shop issued the following invitation:

Don’t forget the Lake Forest Shop’s 7th Annual Shop Your Cause Event starts this Thursday with a fashion show and great evening at the shop! Come celebrate the great charitable causes in our community. Your donations benefit nine local charities including:

Elawa Foundation
Lake Forest Symphony
Stirling Hall
CROYA
Deer Path Art League
Lake Forest Hospital Women’s Board
Lake Forest Preservation Foundation
Gorton Community Center
Ragdale Foundation

So leave the kids with a sitter, grab a girlfriend and come to the shop to see the latest fashions and enjoy a glass of wine. The “What Not To Wear” fashion show will help you find the looks that will work for you this fall, and 10% of everything you buy goes to the charity of your choice. So whether you spend $50 or $5,000, you will be doing some good! See you Thursday night–5:30 to 7:30 p.m. for an evening of fashion and fun. The Lake Forest Shop is located at 265 East Market Square, Lake Forest.

Editor's note: The following is an open letter to the community from the president of the Lake Forest/Lake Bluff Community Associates of the Art Institute of Chicago.

By Lisa Stokes Higley

Did you know the Art Institute of Chicago has 16 local groups focused on enhancing your enjoyment of the arts? Your local chapter, the Lake Forest/Lake Bluff Community Associates of the Art Institute of Chicago, is located right here in your community. I would like to invite you to enhance your AIC membership by joining our group. This year we are celebrating 40 years of serving our community with visual arts education. Our programs have included Art Institute lectures, public and private gallery tours, including visits to artists' studios and other private collections, as well as many other art-related events.

For 2009–2010, we have a wonderful slate of programs lined up. This month our season began with a lovely membership tea where we toured a remarkable and eclectic private art collection. October is for Frank Lloyd Wright devotees. You will not want to miss this trip to the S.C. Johnson Company in Wisconsin, considered a mecca for architects from around the world. Other 

(more…)

GazeboNews loves to focus on all things local, but sometimes it's fun to let the mind wander to distant lands abroad. So we were excited when the editor of a community news site in Paris suggested that we partner up as sister sites. Le Daily Neuvième covers the 9th arrondissement, which is very close to The Grands Boulevards in the center of Paris. It's home to about 60,000 people, but Editor Katia Kermoal Chatjimikes said the 9th arrondissement is very much like a village. 

There's somewhat of a precedent for establishing a partnership between Chicago suburbs and a Parisian district, given that Chicago and Paris are "partner cities." Even the name "Chicago" has French roots; it's a French rendering of the Native American word "shikaakwa," meaning wild onion, from the Miami-Illinois language, according to Wikipedia.

But the main reason we're partnering up is that we think it will be fun. Also, Le Daily Neuvième and GazeboNews have much in common. They are community news sites that are independent, professionally reported and tightly focussed, and both sites rely on interaction with readers via tips, story ideas and other contributions. 

And who doesn't love Paris? The GazeboNews/Le Daily Neuvième sister arrangement will be very simple. We'll summarize interesting stories from each other's news sites every week or so–translated in our native tongues. And GazeboNews readers who who want to read the news of the 9th arrondissement in French can do so by clicking on the link to Le Daily NeuvièmeSHARETHIS.addEntry({ title: "GazeboNews Et Le Daily Neuvieme", url: "http://gazebonews.com/2009/09/29/gazebonews-et-le-daily-neuvieme/" }); -->

Here's a summary of a few recent stories from Le Daily Neuvième. If you'd like to read them in French, please visit LeDailyNeuvieme.com (and if you want a good laugh, click on the google translator, which needs its own translator!)

Residents of the 9th arrondissement are not accustomed to the sound of gunfire in their district. But last week, two shots were fired following an altercation at the corner of Rue Frochot and Rue Victor Masse. One man was wounded in the thigh and was transported to a hospital, and he is expected to recover. The police are investigating this worrisome event. A few days prior to the shooting incident, an elderly woman was hit by a car and killed. Police in the district are hoping witnesses will step forward to help them solve this tragic hit-and-run crime.

But Le Daily Neuvième was not only filled with bad news last week. A book store owner offered recommendations on a number of French-language children's books, and the editors did a blind taste test of honey, which is considered a "super food" in France and can be found in many varieties, price points, and shops —including honey from the roof of the district's Opera House. Another fun feature of Le Daily Neuvieme is that readers send in photos of the view from their Parisian windows, such as this one that was submitted by "Peter" and was taken from his window on Rue Condorcet.

The Anniva Partnership is hosting a women's leadership conference called "The Spirit of Leadership: Reawakening the Feminine." It's billed as a first-of-its-kind event for Lake County women, and it includes as its keynote speaker Marianne Williamson, best-selling author and internationally acclaimed speaker on spiritual, political and personal issues. Her latest book, "The Age of Miracles," was No. 2 on the New York Times Bestseller list.

The conference will offer numerous lectures and experiential workshops facilitated by some of Chicagoland’s most inspirational women. Its goal is to provide support, tools and key strategies so that women can lead powerfully, successfully and soulfully. The conference will be held on Oct. 2 and 3, from 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m., at Gorton Community Center. For a full list of speakers and topics, and/or to register for the conference, visit www.thespiritofleadership.net or call 847-309-8621. Space is limited.

The Anniva Partnership was formed last year by two local women, Chris Moses and Faith Curtis, to support and empower women around the world. Ms. Moses is founder of Featherheart Holistic Ministries, which provides counseling and guidance for personal and spiritual growth. Ms. Curtis is a life coach who specializes in helping women who are burned out and depleted because they have spent their lives pleasing and being defined by others. She has a background in clinical social work and has planned many retreats, workshops and presentations.