U of I senior from St. Charles a finalist in Barilla contest

Emily Thornton of St. Charles studied in Rome, Italy, last spring as part of a cultural exchange program through the University of Illinois.

The University of Illinois senior didn't expect to get back to Italy so soon, but she was in Milan two weeks ago as a top 10 finalist in the global Barilla Center for Food and Nutrition Foundation's Young Earth Solutions contest.

Thornton and fellow U of I student Shana Axelrod of Highland Park didn't capture the top prize of 10,000 euros for the idea they submitted that addresses both hunger and lack of education for women in Nigeria. But it's an idea other organizations may ultimately pursue, Thornton said.

Their idea was to implement a system in which families in Nigeria are given one plot of land in a community garden for every male child they send to school and two plots for every female child sent.

The family is trained to cultivate the land as women learn to become farmers, nutritionists or agricultural specialists.

It motivates families to send kids to school, while they also learn to sustain a healthy diet and battle hunger.

"If we had won, the foundation money would have been used to pay professionals to train and implement the program," said Thornton, a graduate of St. Charles North High School.

"At the conference, there were many different types of people from organizations from across the world," Thornton added. "If someone heard our presentation or read about it online, they could possibly want to help implement it, or take on the program on their own."

Thornton and Axelrod were classmates while studying in Rome, and their teachers brought the Barilla contest to their attention.

"We started thinking about the region of the world to focus on, and how we could help with farming and other areas," Thornton said.

It was a "crazy week" traveling to Milan, then back to St. Charles and then Champaign to get ready for final exams, Thornton said.

"But it was a great experience," she added.

Some holiday choices

As usual, holiday entertainment choices abound in the Tri-Cities area. There are almost too many to pick from.

But some "different" holiday events jumped out at me.

How cool is it that the actress who played Jimmy Stewart's daughter Zuzu in "It's a Wonderful Life" will be at the Arcada Theatre next weekend during special showings of that holiday classic?

Karolyn Grimes will forever be known as the little girl holding onto father George Bailey's (Stewart's) neck in the movie's final scene, telling her family every time a bell rings, an angel earns his wings.

After the Arcada shows, she'll be part of a special reception, which will also feature memorabilia from the film set. For details, visit oshows.com.

Another show that breaks away from tradition a bit takes place at Steel Beam Theatre in St. Charles. "Jacob Marley's Christmas Carol" goes into its final weekend, starting Thursday.

This one-man retelling of the Charles Dickens' classic is seen through the eyes of Scrooge's business partner. Pat Able of Geneva takes on the role of Marley, as well as other characters in the story. Tickets are available at SteelBeamTheatre.com.

In another twist, Fox Valley Repertoire at Pheasant Run in St. Charles is staging "Christmas on Broadway" through New Year's Eve. In this story, anyone who can sing or dance might find themselves living out a Broadway fantasy with four characters portraying tourists who get snowbound in a closed Broadway theater on Christmas Eve. What to do when stranded like this during the holidays? Sing and dance, of course.

And after holidays

Even with all of the holiday-themed shows unfolding now, my attention is focusing ahead to February.

That's when the B-52s are coming to the Arcada. My wife and I can't wait. We have always enjoyed this rock dance band and haven't seen them live since 1985 or so. It's very convenient the band is coming to St. Charles this time.

More food thoughts

St. Charles Episcopal Church reminds us that after the holidays we can still think about cooking and eating if we are so inclined.

The church at 994 N. Fifth Ave. will host a cooking class with Mike Zema, a professor at Elgin Community College's culinary arts department, from 1 to 3 p.m. Jan. 10.

The class, which costs $30 per person, raises funds for programs the church supports, such as Hesed House and Trinity Soup Kitchen.

Zema will teach participants how to whip up beef stew, Hungarian goulash, braised short ribs and gluten-free desserts.

Call (630) 584-2596 to reserve a spot.

She'll carry flag

When Northern Illinois University's college of health and human sciences holds its undergraduate commencement Sunday at the Convocation Center, a Batavia woman will play an important role.

Kelsey Patricia VandenBorn will be flag bearer for the ceremony.

The 2010 Batavia High School grad will earn her bachelor of science degree in nursing.

She's not a bad volleyball player either, having played at Kankakee and Waubonsee community colleges prior to attending NIU.

Players at Fusion South Volleyball Club in Batavia should know her well. VandenBorn is a coach at that club.

Taxing questions

Last week I mentioned the IRS could be tough to get a hold of if an elderly person fears being a victim of a scam. A tax expert dropped me a note, saying it is more efficient to report an incident to the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration at (800) 366-4484 or the Federal Trade Commission at FTC.gov.

dheun@sbcglobal.net