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The last couple of weeks have been doozies. Fights are breaking out online among neighbors, coyotes are prowling the streets and the unusually warm weather has meant that gangs of middle school e-bikers look like the 2024 update to "The Fast and the Furious." Last week, when emotions were running particularly high on both sides of the political aisle, I met my fellow members of the Garden Study Club of Hinsdale at Graue Mill to make the giant annual holiday wreath that hangs...
While balancing motherhood with a strenuous job as a scientist, Dominique Stepinski was looking for an activity that would provide her with an escape from the pressures and responsibilities of work and family. When a friend suggested a Zumba class, Stepinski never dreamed it would have such a profound impact on her life. Stepinski, who had no background in dance or music before taking that first class, said it wasn't long before she knew she had found what she was looking...
O'BYRNE NAMED TOP VOLUNTEER Susan O'Byrne of Hinsdale received the Katharine Van Dusen Sylvester Service/Volunteer of the Year award from The Community House at the organization's Stewardship Society Reception Sept. 12. O'Byrne has been a Community House player since 2011 and became a Community Revue producer in 2017. She performed in "A Christmas Carol" for two years at The Community House, playing the role of Ms. Cratchit, and has taught Shakespeare Sessions through the...
Norman Victor Chimenti, 83, of Westmont, a former longtime Hinsdale resident, died peacefully on April 7, 2024, surrounded by family after being ambushed by a rare and fast-moving form of cancer. Norm was born in Chicago in 1940 to Dante and Laura (Magrini) Chimenti of Chicago. He spent his early years on Chicago's west side, moving further west when it became time to attend Hinsdale Township High School. Norm inherited a good mind and a strong body from his parents. These...
I’d like to thank the people of the Hinsdale community who attended the 2024 Community Revue, “Artificial Hinstelligence.” Our opening weekend was a spectacular success, with audiences raising the rooftops with their laughter. We hope that those who have not yet had an opportunity to see this original musical revue skewering all things Hinsdale will come to Kettering Hall for our final weekend. It will be our pleasure to entertain you, with proceeds benefiting the incredible programs that The Community House offers. And r...
Many Women's History Month pieces focus on women whose names we all know - pioneers like Marie Curie or Rosa Parks. Or they might highlight less prominent figures like Rosalind Franklin, the British scientist whose work led to the Noble Prize-winning discovery of the double helix, the credit for which went to a group of men. I'm taking a different approach and saluting women who, during the time they lived or worked here, left their mark on Hinsdale. And on me. • Ly Hotchkin I...
A host of actors, filmmakers, composers, costume designers and other talented individuals will take home an Academy Award Sunday night. With Hinsdale being such a high-achieving community, we thought it only right that some local people, places and things receive an award as well. So, without further ado — or a big opening number or jokes from Jimmy Kimmel — we recognize the following: • Best performance during an election — Cat Greenspon presented herself as a reasonable individual whose priority was district student...
Opening night is in less than two weeks, and the cast of "Artificial Hinstelligence" is rehearsing at The Community House. Bags of high-heeled shoes, pairs of sequined gloves and a sack of Santa outfits are strewn about the room, raising some questions about what crazy plot twists this year's show will take. Choreographer Amanda Snooks is leading a group through a dance number on stage while Hinsdale's Tim Fowler works through an Elton John song with help from music director G...
n Holiday Magic Nov 30 & Dec. 1-31 Brookfield Zoo 3400 31st St. (630) 688-8400 www.czs.org/holidaymagic Bright lights and magical nights await guests at the 42nd annual event. Visitors will enjoy more than 2 million twinkling LED lights, a 41-foot tall tree choreographed to seasonal tunes, photo opportunities in the ever-popular 20-foot-tall orb and 3D 16-foot-tall gingerbread house, a 600-foot-long “Tunnel of Lights” and more. Many of the zoo’s animal buildings will be open as well restaurants and gift shops offering an ar...
n ‘A Christmas Carol’ Nov. 24-Dec. 30 Drury Lane Theatre 100 Drury Lane, Oakbrook Terrace www.drurylanetheatre.com (630) 530-0111 Continue a tradition or start a new one by gathering the whole family for this heartwarming 30th anniversary production of Dickens’ Christmas classic. Complete with falling snow, magical illusions and special effects, the play is a visually-stunning experience, and at one hour long, perfect for children of all ages. On select performance dates, families will have the opportunity to have break...
During the 2004 Community Revue, Joel Nelson and Tommy Harris made a cameo appearance during a skit about Kramer Foods. "A day without Kramer's is like a day without sunshine," they said, and the place went wild. Audience members were on their feet, cheering and applauding. Who knew people could feel that strongly about a grocery store? But Kramer's is an institution in Hinsdale, a place where generations of family members have shopped and where some things - like the toy...
In the final article in this annual two-part series, leaders of Hinsdale’s nonprofits take a look back at 2022 and share one wish for 2023. The Hinsdale Historical Society, Hinsdale Humane Society and Wellness House were featured in the first installment Jan. 5. Candor Health Education After offering more than 90 percent of its sex ed and drug eduction courses online in 2021, Candor Health Education is back to putting educators in front of students. “March picked up and April and May were just crazy,” Executive Direc...
Holiday Magic Dec. 8-11, 14-18, 26-31 Brookfield Zoo 3400 31st St. (630) 688-8400 www.czs.org/holidaymagic Bright lights and magical nights await guests at the 41st annual event. Visitors will enjoy more than 2 million twinkling LED lights, a 41-foot tall tree choreographed to seasonal tunes, photo opportunities in the ever-popular 20-foot-tall orb and 3D 16-foot-tall gingerbread house, a 600-foot-long “Tunnel of Lights” and more. Many of the zoo’s animal buildings will be open as well restaurants and gift shops offer...
Craig Milkint is likely a familiar face to many in Hinsdale as a mainstay of the Community Revue shows that grace The Community House stage every other spring. Poking a little fun at the place Milkint loves to entertain audiences is rewarding, as is serving on the village's board of fire and police commissioners to ensure the hiring and promotion of top police officers and firefighters to protect residents' safety. The Evergreen Park native, who works as the major gifts...
SEPPANEN RECEIVES VOLUNTEER AWARD Hinsdale’s Stephanie Seppanen received the 2022 Katharine Van Dusen Sylvester Service Award from The Community House earlier this month. Seppanen’s involvement with The Community House began with her first performance in the Community Revue “Addicted to Hinsdale” after moving to town in 2011. Seppanen connected with many long-time TCH trustees while rekindling a childhood passion for musical theater. Since then, Seppanen has been in four more Revues and makes mental notes on Hinsdale life to...
Sometimes I wonder whether Teri Goudie was a figment of my imagination. Surely, no one individual could embody so much love, energy and life. She was the stuff that tall tales are made of: Supermom of five, Professional Guru, Adventure Enthusiast, an absolutely tireless Seeker of Light. Do I make her sound intimidating? She wasn't. Warm and caring, Teri was a woman who simply loved her family, her work, her faith, her friends. She was buoyed up by a boundless energy that...
Corrections Allison’s name should have been included in a paragraph of Community Revue cast members in Pamela Lannom’s March 17 column. Sixth-grader Charles Davis, seventh-grader Samuel Gilman and eighth-grader Nick Podolak were named to the principal’s honor roll at Clarendon Hills Middle School for the first semester of the 2021-22 school year. Their names were omitted when the list was published March 17. The names of eighth-graders Johnathan Feiro and Carmen Prieto, who also are on the CHMS principal’s honor roll, w...
I celebrated my 55th birthday on Monday. I remember distinctly when my mom turned 55. At that time, drivers were not allowed to travel 65 mph on the highway, and we joked how she was turning the speed limit. That year — 1996 — I was a college graduate who had been working for eight years and married for three. This year, my daughter is in seventh grade and won’t graduate from college for another nine years. In some ways, having a kid late in life allows you to remain in denia...
We stood in the green room Saturday night before our final performance of "Hinsdale Unmasked" and talked about all that's happened since our last Community Revue in 2020. We've lost three longtime cast members - Dick Johnson, BJ Chimenti and Ly Hotchkin. We've dealt with individual losses and unwelcome diagnoses and other challenges. Oh, and there's been that other little thing: the global pandemic. It was the most emotional pre-show gathering I've experienced in the eight...
Tomorrow night is opening night. I am certain I can speak for all of the cast of "Hinsdale Unmasked" - the 2022 Community Revue - when I say we can't wait to perform for an audience. We've had our fill of applauding for each other and laughing at our own jokes and are ready to share this hilarious show with you, dear residents of Hinsdale. Before I proceed, I should let you know that all of us have been SWORN TO SECRECY about the show's contents. I wrote a column 18 years ago...
When life deals a pandemic, you can be sure The Community House Players will tease the humor out of it. The veteran troupe is back with its 2022 Community Revue, "Hinsdale Unmasked," on stage at 6:45 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, March 4-5 and 11-12 at The Community House, 415 W. Eighth St. The musical parody of the village's vagaries and hot-button local issues may be just the tonic people need after a crazy two years of hardship and polarization, according to producer and...
Growing up, I didn't know a soul who was adopted. As an adult, I find the opposite is true. Adopted people are everywhere. At a 2020 Community Revue cast party, I learned that two of my castmates were also adopted and that all of us either had met or hoped to meet our birth parents. A fellow cast member came up and asked us what we were discussing so intently. "Finding our birth parents," one of us offered. She promptly turned around and headed back to the bar. One of the folk...
During the final performance of "Hinsdopoly," the 2019 Community Revue, the curtain wouldn't open. The cast - including audience favorite Dick Johnson - waited backstage, holding their collective breath. Finally a crew member came to the rescue and the show went on. After Johnson passed away in June 2020, and friends began planning a way to honor his contribution to community theater at The Community House, that memory came flooding back. "If we're going to do anything, we...
I don't remember the last movie I saw in a theater. Do you? Ooh, wait - I do. I saw "Frozen 2" on March 8 of last year - the day after I was out much too late at the cast party for "Hinsdolopy," the 2020 Community Revue. (I discovered after the previous revue that watching a movie in a reclined seat with some snacks helps with post-show/post-party recovery.) Since then, I've seen "Troop Zero," "Onward" and "Soul" from the comfort of my family room, where the seats don't...
