Tri-cities club briefs
To list your club's meetings, e-mail to tricity@dailyherald.com, or fax to (847) 608-0849.
Toastmaster Club: The Talk of the Town Batavia Toastmasters Club invites you to hone your public speaking, communications, and leadership skills in a friendly and supportive environment. The group meets from 7 to 8:15 a.m. Fridays at the Panera Bread, 154 W. Wilson St. in Batavia. For details, e-mail pjmcgold@yahoo.com.
Sugar Grove Firefighters Auxiliary: The Sugar Grove Firefighters Auxiliary, along with the Sugar Grove Fire Department, will hold a blood drive with Heartland Blood Centers from 3 to 7:30 p.m. Monday, Sept. 14 at the fire department, 25 Municipal Drive. Appointments are encouraged but walk-ins are welcome. To make an appointment, call Joy at (630) 466-7190 or Kathy at (630) 466-4634.
Sierra Club: The Fox Valley group of the Sierra Club will hold an open house at 7 p.m. Monday, Sept. 14 at the Batavia Public Library, 10 S. Batavia Ave. This is a chance to discover the opportunities that are available with the Sierra Club in Kane and Kendall counties. Brief reports will be given on various Sierra Club projects, a 10-minute history of the local club will be presented, and several committees will have displays highlighting their activities. These include the Water Sentinels, who monitor local waterways for pollutants, and the rain barrel committee, which recycles old barrels used in whiskey production by the truckload, to collect rainwater for watering plants in dry weather. Group projects include several river and park cleanups each year and creating rain gardens for Aurora Parks. The energy, global warming and suburban sprawl committees foster awareness of these issues in the community, while the political lobbying committee helps keep our government representatives informed on current environmental issues. People wishing to become involved are welcome to apply for positions on these committees. The Batavia Public Library is located on Route 31 and Wilson Street in downtown Batavia. To receive e-mail notices regarding future speakers, contact the Sierra Club at craig.zabel@illinois.sierraclub.org. For information, call (630) 466-1808 or visit sierraclub.org/chapters/il/vof.
Batavia Mothers' Club Foundation: The Batavia Mothers' Club Foundation announces its annual Coat and Clothing Drive, benefiting area families in need, will be held Sept. 14-23 at locations throughout Batavia. Donations of clean, used winter coats, hats, scarves, gloves, mittens, sweaters, boots, pants, shirts, socks and shoes in good condition are needed in all sizes from infant to adult. These items can be dropped off at Batavia elementary schools, the Batavia Public Library, Curves on Wilson and Foltos Tonsorial Parlor on Main Street. All items are distributed to Fox Valley area charities and shelters. For information, call Michelle Brandseth at (630) 682-4831. Visit www.bataviamothersclub.org.
Batavia American Legion: The Batavia American Legion Post 504 meets at 7 p.m. on the third Tuesday of each month at the Batavia Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 1197 Canteen, 645 S. River St., Batavia. The next meeting will be Tuesday, Sept. 15. The Batavia American Legion Post 504 is currently looking for additional new members. If you were in the military or are currently serving in the military and would be interested in joining, call Don Nallenweg at (630) 406-9331 or visit www.bataviapost504.org.
Timely Talkers: Timely Talkers Toastmasters Club will meet from 7 to 8:30 p.m. Wednesdays in September at Valley Community Bank at Clock Tower Plaza, 75 S. Randall Road, North Aurora. Sept. 23 will be a special grab-bag meeting and Sept. 30 will be a Speech-athon, open to all clubs. Timely Talkers Toastmasters Club of North Aurora invites all persons interested in improving their oral communication and leadership skills to attend the supportive group. It is a community club and all guests are welcome. For information, call Lynne Noren at (708) 609-4983 or e-mail info@timelytalkers.org.
Batavia Lions: More than 150 volunteers from nine Batavia churches and the Batavia Lions Club will join Jewel and Berkeley's food stores to help restock the Batavia Interfaith Food Pantry on Friday, Sept. 18 to Sunday, Sept. 20. Eighteen years ago, a group of concerned citizens met to try to find a solution to help needy, local residents. From this grassroots beginning, Food Sharing Days were developed to assist and benefit the Batavia Interfaith Food Pantry. Volunteers in red aprons will be passing out lists of suggested items that the food pantry needs to shoppers entering the stores and will collect the food items that the shoppers donate to the food pantry. Containers for money donations will also be available for those not grocery shopping. All donations will be taken to the food pantry where another group of volunteers will sort and shelve the items for distribution to qualified, needy Batavia and Batavia Township residents. The food pantry serves 1,100-1,200 people each month. Food donations may also be dropped off at the food pantry, which is located at 100 Flinn Drive, 2 blocks south of Wilson Street in Batavia. Food pantry hours are 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. Mondays, 1 to 3 p.m. Tuesdays, and 10 a.m. to noon Fridays. For details, call (630) 879-3784.
St. Charles Mothers' Club: The St. Charles Mothers' Club invites all area women to attend its annual kickoff meeting for the 2009-2010 year. The event will be held at 7:30 p.m. Monday, Sept. 21 on the second floor of McNally's, 201 E. Main St. in St. Charles. The event is free to new or prospective members, $10 for members, and includes appetizers and a cash bar. For more information about the kickoff or membership, contact (630) 217-MOMS or stcharlesmothersclub.org.
The St. Charles Mothers' Club is a nonprofit organization which meets on the third Monday of every month usually at 7:30 p.m. Meeting locations vary so call (630) 217-MOMS or visit www.stcharlesmothersclub.org. In addition to the monthly meetings, the club offers other programs including playgroup, a book club, and mom's nights out.
Geneva Lions: Free hearing screenings will be provided by the Lions of Illinois Foundation in Geneva on Friday, Sept. 25. The Lions hearing screening bus will be parked from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the corner of James and Third streets, next to the courthouse. This event is sponsored by the Geneva Lions Club as part of their year-round community service in sight and sound projects, to help protect the hearing of the public by early alert measures. People found to have potential problems will be advised to see an audiologist for further attention. No advance signup is required. The hearing bus is staffed by an audiology technician. Anyone 18 years of age and older and minors 10-17 years of age accompanied by a parent, are encouraged to come. The screening test takes approximately 20 minutes. For information, call (630) 262-8311. In addition to sponsorship of the hearing screening bus, the Geneva Lions operate a hearing aid recycling program. Hearing aids collected in the community are sent to the Lions of Illinois Foundation, which refurbishes them in conjunction with an audiologist. People with hearing aids to donate may drop them off in any of the approximately 20 Lions Club eyeglass/hearing aid recycling boxes located in various places in Geneva and St. Charles, including in all eyeglass stores. To find the location of a convenient recycling box, visit www.genevalionsclub.org. People in need who are hearing-impaired can obtain refurbished hearing aids by obtaining a referral from one of the many local social service organizations. That organization will then contact the Geneva Lions Club, which covers the cost of providing the hearing aid.
Fox Valley Divorce Support Group: The Fox Valley Divorce Support Group meets at 7 p.m. on the first and third Tuesdays of the month at the Infusion Tea Shoppe, 205 W. State in Geneva. New members should come at 6:45 p.m. The meeting is free and open to all. The Fox Valley Divorce Support Group provides help and information to those in all stages of the divorce process and is open to people of all faiths. Besides providing information through guest speakers, the group offers fellowship and emotional support. David and Judy Janis are the group's facilitators. For details, visit www.foxvalleydivorcesupport.org or call (630) 208-1724.