Tri-Cities briefs

ECC hosts Darfur fundraiserElgin Community College students will host a "Dance for Darfur" to raise funds to help stop genocide. The fundraiser will be from 7 to 10 p.m. Wednesday, March 17 at ECC's Events Center, 1700 Spartan Drive. It is sponsored by college's Writers Center, Amnesty International, Black Students Association, Spartan Design Club and ECC's Office of Student Life, the dance will feature a live performance by The Qballs, a blues, funk, rock and soul band. It's free and open to the public. Donations are encouraged and will be accepted at the door. Since 2006, ECC has raised more than $6,000 for the cause. For details, call Rachael Tecza at (847) 214-7578.Book campaign under way"Playing With the Enemy" by Gary W. Moore is the 2010 "One Book, One Batavia" selection. Moore will speak about his book at noon and 7 p.m. Thursday, March 18 at the Batavia Public Library, 10 S. Batavia Ave. There is also an online book discussion at bataviapubliclibrary.org, where you can see a list of events related to the book.Landscaping workshopSpring Bluff Nursery, on Norris Road off Bliss Road in Sugar Grove, will host a free landscape workshop Saturday, March 20 with a landscape designer. To sign up, call (630) 466-4278. Visit springbluffnursery.com/contact.htm for more information.History showHumanities scholar and author Clay S. Jenkinson will portray explorer Meriwether Lewis from 10 to 11:15 a.m. Saturday, March 20 at the Geneva History Center, 113 S. Third St. Jenkinson is known for his portrayals of Thomas Jefferson and Theodore Roosevelt, and has received honors from the National Endowment for the Humanities for his work. Tickets are $25. To make a reservation, call (630) 232-4951. Attendees will receive a voucher for a discount on tickets to see Jenkinson portray physicist J. Robert Oppenheimer at Waubonsee Community College at 7 p.m. Saturday, March 20.Charity pub crawlThe Geneva History Center's "Tapping 175 Years" fundraising pub crawl is from 6 to 11 p.m. Saturday, March 20. Tales of old Geneva will be told at the different pubs and restaurants. Advance tickets are $25 for center members, $35 for others. On the date, add $5. To purchase, visit genevahistorycenter.org, or visit the center at 113 S. Third St. Participating businesses are Cabooses Pub and Grill, Citizen Kane, Front Street Cantina, FoxFire, Geneva Ale House, Graham's 318, Gratto Italian Tapas Bar, The Little Owl Restaurant and Flagstone Pub, Old Towne Pub and Eatery, Sanfratello's Pizza, Sergio's Cantina, Urban Grille and Villa Verone Ristorante. A trolley bus will be available all night, or participants can walk to their destinations. Call Dave Oberg at (630) 232-4951.