Baby Boomer singles, this one's for you

When Karin Valerius moved from Park Ridge to the Elgin area three years ago, she had trouble meeting new people.

Valerius is an outgoing, single 53-year-old who loves to dance.

It wasn't for lack of effort she wasn't making connections, it was lack of opportunity. She discovered that there was a lot to do for young people and seniors, but there was a void for Baby Boomers like herself.

After some casual conversations with other single people of similar ages in the area, she found she was not alone -- and decided to do something about it.

Valerius has started Krystal Singles, a social club for singles of the Baby Boomer generation, ages 46 and up. Her goal is to organize events in the area for those looking for fun activities, friendships, or even a mate.

She started by creating a Web site that she launched just three weeks ago.

"I played around with this idea for a while. I thought, 'I'm just going to wing it and put up a Web site,'" she said.

"I have a lot of ideas for activities and travel, once the group gets bigger. I thought I'd just try it and see if there were any other people in the same situation that I'm in: single, widowed, divorced, whatever the case may be."

In just three weeks, 36 people joined her e-mail list, Valerius said, and 175 have bookmarked her site.

"I think that's phenomenal. That shows me that I'm not the only one out there," she said.

Based on the interest, Valerius has organized the club's first event. A "get-acquainted" party will be held this Sunday at OnQ Club, the first-floor sports bar found within Hennessy's Steak and Seafood, at 23 Bushwood Drive -- just off Randall Road, north of I-90 in Elgin.

The event will start at 7 p.m. There is no cover fee, and dress is what Valerius calls "casual elegant," meaning no caps or T-shirts.

"It's going to be a casual get-together for people my age to meet in a no-pressure situation, and have fun and go from there," she said.

"We need something to do in this area, and we need to meet other like singles. I just thought everyone could talk and get to know each other."

She looks forward to meeting other singles in her age group, and is anxious to find out what their interests are.

Valerius has lots of ideas of her own, like meetings at restaurants and coffee houses, bike rides, hikes, traveling, cruises, trips to Las Vegas or Wisconsin, boating, snowmobiling, horseback riding, wine tasting, and bus trips to Chicago or casinos in Indiana.

"I think we could have a lot of fun here," said Valerius.

For more information, call Valerius at (847) 238-3428 or visit her Web site, www.kane-mchenrycountysingles.org.