Barrington Rotary sock hop to feature Dick Biondi
The Barrington Noon Rotary Club’s 2011 fundraiser — presented by Barrington Rotary Charities on Saturday, Sept. 17 — will feature a sock hop with nationally known disc jockey and legendary Chicago radio personality Dick Biondi.
A member of the Radio Hall of Fame Top 40, Biondi will provide the evening’s entertainment, playing music from the 1950s, ‘60s and early ‘70s.
The Sept. 17 event will be from 6 to 11 p.m. at the Barrington Park District’s new Langendorf Park facility. The music begins at 6:30 p.m. Tickets are $35 per person.
The event’s theme, “Celebrating a Community Hero,” features the presentation of Barrington Rotary Charities’ first Community Hero Award to Pat Karon.
Karon is the founder and executive director of Barrington Giving Day, an organized effort that every December since the 1950s has annually given boxes of food, warm coats, blankets, books and gifts to approximately 1,000 needy families in the Barrington area.
In addition to Biondi’s song spinning, the event will feature a casual pig roast dinner with an auction and raffle to benefit Barrington Giving Day, the food pantries of Barrington and Cuba townships and Barrington Rotary Charities. Participants are encouraged, but not required, to dress as if they are attending a high school dance of a bygone era.
Authentic music memorabilia from the extensive collection of Barrington resident Ted Clark will decorate the park district’s gymnasium, creating a nostalgic atmosphere reminiscent of a 1950s-era sock hop. An avid student of rock-and-roll history, Clark is among many researchers who assert Biondi was the very first disc jockey in the United States to introduce the Beatles’ initial single, “Please Please Me,” to American radio audiences in February 1963.
The event’s silent auction will include items such as sports and event tickets, electronics, vacation packages, and local “staycation” attractions. A live auction will feature larger items, and attendees are invited to purchase raffle tickets to be eligible for a $5,000 grand prize.
Tickets are available at branches of Harris Bank of Barrington as well as Barrington Bank & Trust, or online at www.biddingforgood.com/barringtonrotary. When purchased in advance or at the website, the $35 price includes the pig roast dinner and one coupon for a complimentary beverage. Tickets for admission-only may be purchased at the door the night of the event.
Marquardt Buick GMC of Barrington, The Personette Group of Wells Fargo Advisors, and Barrington Bank & Trust are Platinum sponsors of the event, joined by Gold sponsor Harris Bank.
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