Tri-Cities briefs

Legion suppersThe Fox River-Geneva American Legion Post 75 is offering a "Family Night Supper" from 5 to 7 p.m. every third Thursday of the month, starting tonight at the Post, Second and James streets. The first supper will be soup and sandwich. Tickets are $6 to $8 depending on the sandwich chosen; a peanut butter and jelly sandwich is available for $3 for children. There is a cash bar. Call (630) 232-2171.Pumpkins at MarmionThe Marmion Abbey Farms Pumpkin Daze is open from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturdays and noon to 5 p.m. starting this weekend through Oct. 30 at the abbey, 850 Butterfield Road, Aurora. General admission is $10 (family discounts are available) and include admission to two corn mazes, a hayride, bouncy huts, a pedal racecourse, games, a pumpkin-painting station, s'mores and a campfire. On Oct. 9 and 23 there will be nighttime maze runs. For details, visit abbeyfarms.org.Buy Hossa's old cabinetsHabitat for Humanity of Northern Fox Valley ReStore and Murco Recycling will host an auction of high-end furniture and home improvement materials on Saturday, with a kitchen cabinet set and vanity sinks donated by Chicago Blackhawks winger Marian Hossa. The live auction will he held at 10 a.m. at Habitat's Restore office, 800 N. State St., Elgin, with a preview beginning at 9 a.m. Hossa recently bought a condo in downtown Chicago and donated his old cabinets, granite countertops and two bathroom vanity sinks. ReStore accepts donated construction materials and resells them to help fund Habitat's mission. For details, call (847) 742-9905 or visit restoreelgin.org.Garden photographyWasco Nursey and Garden Center will offer a seminar, "Beyond Flowers: Capturing the Light in Your Garden with MaryEllen Malinowski," from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sept. 25 at the center, 41W781 Route 64, St. Charles. Malinowski is owner of The Infrared Light Gallery in St. Charles. This workshop will include a review of the ideas that Malinowski presented in her July workshop as well as providing new inspiration. Learn how to see light differently, compose elements of design, visualize in black and white, capture the essence of your garden, and inspire others. Proceeds from the $20 fee will benefit the St. Charles North High School AP Photographic Art Scholarship in horror of aspiring young photographers. For more information, call (630) 584-4424 or e-mail sales@wasconursery.com.NIU gets broadband grantNorthern Illinois University announced Tuesday it has been awarded the largest grant in its history, a $68.5 million grant to fund the development of a broadband Internet network throughout northwest Illinois. The grant includes $46.1 million in federal stimulus money; the rest is from state and local sources. The money will enable NIU, which has campuses in DeKalb, Hoffman Estates, Naperville and Rockford, to build a high-speed network in the following counties: Whiteside, Stephenson, Ogle, Lee, Jo Daviess, Carroll, Winnebago, Boone and LaSalle. The network will connect to existing hospitals, schools and government bodies. Officials expect the network to be in place in about two years.