Chef Roby wants you to visit his kitchen
You've read about his world-record chocolate creations, now you can see how he does it - and help a charity researching congenital heart disease in children.
Chef Alain Roby, senior corporate pastry chef for Hyatt Hotels, will be creating an "All-Chocolate Kitchen" at 507 S. Third St. in his hometown of Geneva for the next four months.
He'll open the doors to this creation at 6 p.m. Friday in a 2,000-square-foot suite, donated for Roby's use by the Shodeen family.
Don't be confused by the name. The chef is actually going to be building a replica of his own kitchen, entirely out of donated Callebaut chocolate from Belgium.
All donations and glad tidings are steered toward Roby's goal of raising money for the Saving tiny Hearts Society organization, which has special meaning for Roby.
"Our son, Jonathan, had congenital heart disease and we had no idea until he collapsed during a football game," Roby said. "We were able to treat him and he is OK, but some families lose their children."
Roby said after he decided he wanted to do this project in Geneva, "things fell together like a puzzle" with numerous people helping with donations.
Visitors to the chocolate kitchen shop will be able to watch Roby work on his kitchen, or look over various other life-size chocolate sculptures on display - a Neil Armstrong astronaut, a Chicago Blackhawks player, and a "Jurassic Park" scene.
His wife Esther will oversee the retail portion of the shop, selling chocolate items and cookbooks.
"We have no real expectations about how successful this may be," Roby said. "Our wildest imagination is just one day at a time, to be sure we open on time. This is a very big project and we've had a lot of support, but it is still overwhelming.
"When we put our focus back on the reason for doing it, we know it is worth it," Roby said of the store, which will be open Friday through Monday through December.
Roby said people wonder how he finds time to do a project, in addition to his demanding job.
"I just ask them, how do you find time to play golf or go fishing?" he said. "I do this instead, and it is a small sacrifice to make for a great cause. And this is a project for my family to do together."
For the animals: It appears our mention of Anderson Animal Shelter needing used jewelry for its fourth annual fundraiser this weekend at the Geneva American Legion was heard loud and clear.
Event chairman Belynda Hudspeth said more than 4,000 pieces were donated - well more than last year.
Help the shelter by checking out this jewelry fair at the Legion hall, 22 S. Second St., between 11 a.m. and 4 p.m. Saturday, and noon to 4 p.m. Sunday.
Try that turf: Here's a way to get everyone convinced that artificial turf is needed at Geneva's Burgess Field. Take a walk on Aurora Christian's beautiful, soft artificial turf, then walk on Burgess Field's soft, mushy turf after a heavy rain. Enough said.
dheun@sbcglobal.net