John C. Olin, longtime owner of Higher Gear bike shop in Wilmette and Highland Park, was one of the good guys. As one friend put it: “He always had a good thing to say, a ton of positive energy and was always helping people.” In fact, according the obituary appearing in the Chicago Tribune, he […]
It’s the “Age of Easy Altruism.” As our lives become busier and volunteering becomes harder, we sometimes opt for the easy way out. Instead of giving time, we give things. A canned good gets stuck in the backpack for a class food pantry drive, or we simply write a check to the local education fund. […]
“Just tell me one more time, which is the port side?” I shamelessly ask of Jenn Gibbons, our ROW coach. She laughs and points to the side of the boat I will be rowing. One would think I could get that straight, but the middle-aged brain is mysteriously sievelike at any given moment. My fellow ROW […]
Root2Fruit, the brainchild of Ann Balusek and her sister Nancy Mammel, is a grant program that nurtures grassroots not-for-profit organizations in Evanston. Just like the organizations that it helps, Root2Fruit started with a simple idea grounded in giving back to the community. Utilizing the resources of a family foundation set up by their father, Balusek […]
For many of our children, the beginning of school means a trip to Staples, Office Max or Target with a long list of school supplies. It’s a yearly rite of passage, and many hours are spent selecting just the right colorful binder or sparkly gel pen. But for more than a third of the elementary […]
As a designer with Space Defined, I delight in working on so many beautiful homes on Chicago’s North Shore. At the same time, however, I am constantly reminded that many have so much—while others have so little. I am often asked by clients for recommendations on where they can donate furniture that is no longer […]
