Jaycees offer taste of French Quarter
2-minute drill
A quick chat with a Naperville newsmaker
Mardi Gras is celebrated in many ways, but it always promises a good time.
The Naperville Jaycees' seventh annual Mardi Gras offers a double-header that organizers hope will draw 250 people on Feb. 2. The good times begin at the Meson Sabika Pavilion with music and raffles, then roll on to Sullivan's Steakhouse.
The Jaycees' Adam Clemen discusses the group's efforts to bring a bit of the French Quarter to Naperville.
Q. Why did the Jaycees want to do a Mardi Gras?
A. We wanted to have some fun while having a fundraiser at this time of year. Our major fundraiser is the Last Fling in September. So this keeps things balanced.
Q. How does the group interpret Mardi Gras?
A. The main thing we try to replicate is the party atmosphere.
Q. How closely do you reproduce New Orleans?
A. We will decorate the Meson Sabika Pavilion like the French Quarter with lampposts and street signs, along with balloons, masks and beads.
Q. Do people come in costume?
A. Yes, they do; they dress in their Mardi Gras style. People like to dress up and wear masks and beads. There are some in makeup and others who come dressed casual.
Q. What kind of music will you have?
A. We will have a four-piece Cajun band with Jesse Lege and Joe Savoy who are out of New Orleans. They are coming up to impress us with their Cajun-style music.
Q. What does the ticket include?
A. The $85 ticket includes premium open bar and a four-course tapas meal -- (we're) deviating a little from the Cajun there. We will have a caricature artist, two psychics and raffles. All of that is included in the ticket price.
Q. Do people bring their families?
A. This has always been an adult event.
Q. What are the largest items in the raffle?
A. The largest items currently are an overnight stay at The Abbey Resort in Lake Geneva and a performance by musician Josh Holmes.
Q. What are the smallest items you will raffle?
A. We are doing a diamond raffle apart from the silent auction and that probably is the smallest item. What you do is pick out an envelope. Inside there will be a real diamond or a fake one. At the end of the night, a jeweler comes in with his eyepiece to look at your diamond and tell you whether or not it is real.
Q. What else takes place?
A. We will have a live auction that will include a 42-inch plasma TV.
Q. Where do proceeds go?
A. It all goes into the many charities the Jaycees support, but the silent auction benefits the Edward Foundation CARE Center. The center cares for sexually abused children and provides professional help in court cases.
Q. What will happen when the party moves to Sullivan's Steakhouse?
A. We partnered with the steakhouse for an After Party, and that separate ticket will include appetizers and open bar. We will have a raffle there as well.
Q. Do you need to be a Jaycees' member to come?
A. No. Everyone is invited.
Q. How can someone join the Jaycees?
A. We have a general membership meeting the second Tuesday of every month at 7:30 p.m. at the VFW in Naperville, 908 W. Jackson Ave.
Q. Why did you join the Jaycees?
A. I was looking for a way to give back to the community. I found the Jaycees do a stellar job at that besides developing leadership and having fun. Those three things all appealed to me. Anyone can join. In our regular membership, you need to be between the ages of 21 and 40. Our associate membership is for those over 40.
-- Joan Broz
If you go
What: Naperville Jaycees Mardi Gras Party
When: Mardi Gras from 5:30 to 10 p.m. Feb. 2; After Party from 10:30 p.m. to midnight
Where: Meson Sabika Pavilion, 1025 Aurora Ave., Naperville; After Party at Sullivan's Steakhouse, 244 S. Main St., Naperville
Tickets: $85 Mardi Gras party; $25 After Party
Info: naperjaycees.org or (630) 961-9375