ESO to honor local veterans at concert

Twenty veterans from World War II through the Iraqi Conflict and their families will be honored during this Saturday's performance of Patriotic Pops by the Elgin Symphony Orchestra. Each veteran is a participant in the Library of Congress' Veterans History Project made available through the Elgin's Gail Borden Public Library.

The Veterans History Project launched in 2000, collects and preserves stories of wartime service from veterans of World War I, World War II, the Cold War, Korean War, Vietnam War, Persian Gulf War (1990-1995), as well as the Afghanistan and Iraq conflicts (2001-present) according to their Web site. U.S. citizen civilians who actively supported war efforts such as war industry workers, USO workers, flight instructors, medical volunteers and defense contractors are also invited to share their valuable stories.

The Elgin Symphony's salute to America honors President's Day and the 200th anniversary of Abraham Lincoln's birth, promising to be one of the most inspiring programs of the season with favorites such as "Stars & Stripes Forever" and "The Washington Post March" by "March-King" John Philip Sousa, and Aaron Copland's powerful "Lincoln Portrait."

The "Patriotic Pops" concert will feature Maestro Robert Hanson, the Elgin Choral Union and baritone James Rank. The concerts will be at 8 p.m. Friday, Feb. 20, at the Prairie Center for the Arts, Schaumburg; and 8 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 21 and 3:30 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 22 at the Hemmens Theatre in Elgin.

Tickets start at $25, limited availability. For information, call the ESO Box Office at (847) 888-4000 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday to Friday, or visit www.ElginSymphony.org. Groups of 10 or larger qualify for discounted tickets - speak to a box office representative for more details.