The North Shore Weekend, July 22nd, 2023

S a v e u p

t o $ 1 2 0 0

w i t h a n e w

F e d e r a l Ta x C r e d i t o n s e l e c t H u n t e r

6 art in the village

The North Shore Art League recaps its annual event at Hubbard Woods

6 going green

Wilmette Park District launches a new sustainability initiative and invites community input

LIFESTYLE & ARTS

8 the shy flower

Winnetka's Lanie Coldwell pays tribute to the power of small gestures with her floral creations

10 the flood

Film critic Rex Reed enjoyed the thrills in this alligator-filled film about a Louisiana flood

10 the miracle club

A film set in Ireland in the 1960s has a group of women heading to Lourdes in search of redemption

12 #hashtag

Diana Keen of Wilmette, founder of the Roots & Wings Foundation, shares what's trending in her world

13

material pursuits

This weekend's must-have list includes bespoke rum, the new Nothing phone, and a flying car

LAST BUT NOT LEAST

14 sunday breakfast

More than 150 people attend North Shore Country Day School's Lindapalooza to sing farewell to lon time lower school music teacher Linda Kiracibasi

John Conatser FOUNDER & PUBLISHER

ADVERTISING @NSWEEKEND.COM

Jennifer Sturgeon

CONTRIBUTING EDITORS

Michelle Crowe, Dustin O'Regan, Kemmie Ryan, Sherry Thomas, Megan Weisberg

FASHION EDITOR

Theresa DeMaria

CONTRIBUTING WRITERS

Thomas Connors, Bill McLean, Monica Kass Rogers

DESIGN

Linda Lewis PRODUCTION MANAGER/GRAPHIC DESIGNER

Chris Geimer ADVERTISING COORDINATOR/GRAPHIC DESIGNER

PHOTOGRAPHY AND ART

Monica Kass Rogers

PHOTOGRAPHY

Tom Bachtell, Barry Blitt

ILLUSTRATION

Cheyanne Lencioni ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT

BY THOMAS CONNORS THE NORTH SHORE WEEKEND

It’s no secret that lower-income families face all kinds of challenges, from meeting the rent to putting food on the table. Every day can present a lack of one sort or another. And that includes diapers. According to the National Diaper Bank Network, one in three American families struggle to adequately diaper their children. It’s a dilemma that wouldn’t occur to most of us. But for Amy Kadens, a Glencoe mother of three, working to alleviate this situation has become a driving passion.

“Everyone thinks, ‘Oh it’s just a diaper.’ But it’s truly so much more,” says Kadens. “The effects of not being able to properly diaper a child are compounding and tragic. In my opinion, this is a public health crisis without a public solution. Diaper need is one of the leading causes of maternal depression. Children who don’t have enough diapers experience physical symptoms, such as rashes and infections. There is also a direct correlation between not having enough diapers and abuse and neglect. If you don’t have a sufficient supply of diapers, you cannot send your child to daycare, which automatically sets them behind from an educational standpoint. If a child cannot go to daycare, their parent likely cannot go to work and collect a paycheck for the family, which perpetuates the cycle of poverty. Exacerbating the problem, SNAP (food stamps) and WIC assistance can’t be used to purchase diapers.”

Kadens’ awareness of this pressing situation began when she co-founded Share Our Spare in 2011, which provides clothing and other essentials for infants and toddlers. “We lived in the city with an infant daughter and tons of stuff in not much space,” recalls Kadens. “So, I walked down the street to the Common Pantry on Damen Avenue to ask if my items would be helpful for another family. Everyone in my orbit also had something spare to share. So, in a matter of a few weeks, we had a room full of infant and toddler supplies.”

During COVID, Share Our Spare teamed up with the Greater Chicago Food Depository, and since 2020 has distributed nearly 10 million diapers to food pantries and other outlets. Now, Kadens is launching a new initiative to help get families the diapers they need—MOD Collective’s Diaper Dollars. MOD takes its name from the initials of Marion O’Brien Donovan, who invented the precursor to the disposable diaper. Diaper Dollars provides a monthly digital cash stipend of $40 that allows individuals to purchase diapers at hundreds of retailers. The six-month pilot program is administered in

collaboration with Family Connects, a home visiting program of the Chicago Department of Public Health.

While diaper banks and the agencies that access them do address a critical need, they don’t address the full need. “I have seen par ents waiting in line for hours and when they get to the front of the line, the size of diapers they need isn’t available,” shares Kadens. “Or the mom has a little boy, and all that’s available are princess diapers. That is another reason why we’re doing the subsidy digitally, to allow people to shop where they typically shop and pay how they typically pay.”

“After moving to the suburbs, I wasn’t as close to Share Our Spare as I wanted to be, but I knew that there was still so much to be done. So many people aren’t aware of the pervasiveness of diaper insecurity. It’s a hidden symptom of poverty. I’m trying to peel back the layers and show how diaper in security touches on the economy, on mental

health, on community,” explains Kadens. With the recent launch of MOD Collective’s Diaper Dollars, Kadens is eagerly awaiting to assess its effectiveness. “The average cost to diaper a child is $80 a month, so we are testing to see if reducing the cost by $40 makes a difference. We will be monitoring the program with our research partner to see not only if people used the subsidy, but also if it had a positive impact— did they have enough diapers to get through the month, did it make them feel better, did they miss fewer days of work? We’re looking at it holistically to see how cash for diapers improves lives. Again, this is a pilot program. At the end of six months, we might find $40 didn’t move the needle. But I hope we will come out of this with the kind of data that will help legislators push policy forward. There is momentum right now—Il linois legislators have recently proposed a diaper stipend bill. However, there is a huge need and we are only scratching the surface. MOD Collective is here to change that.”

For more information, visit modcollective.org.

“Everyone thinks, ‘Oh it’s just a diaper.’ But it’s truly so much more...”

Photography by Monica Kass Rogers

The North Shore Art League’s recent event was a huge success.

ART IN THE VILLAGE GOING GREEN

Michigan. Honorable mentions went to Sally Brandl, Evanston; J.D Dennison, Troy, Michigan; Roberto Ferrer, Mundelein; and Luke Stretar, Richfield, Ohio.

Members of the NSAL board, staff, and volunteers were on hand to help with everything from setting up the show to monitoring the silent auction.

“Our volunteers, staff and board worked hard to bring our community another successful art event this year,” says Linda Nelson, NSAL Executive Director. “With over 3,500 in attendance, we saw many happy

Wilmette Park District kicks off a sustainability initiative with and related activities slated to begin early next year.

The Wilmette Park District has announced that the process has begun to create a Sustainability Plan that will guide the future of the Park District into a new chapter of green, sustainable practices.

With a target completion date in early 2024, the resulting plan will combine feedback and direction from both an internal steering committee and the Wilmette community.

The primary objective of the anticipated plan is to strengthen existing sustainable practices within the Park District while providing a roadmap for achieving greater sustainability goals in the coming years. Through the adoption of environmentally friendly strategies, the Wilmette Park District aims to protect and enhance the natural resources that make our parks and community special.

Sponsored by the North Shore Art League (NSAL), the annual Art in the Village was held at Hubbard Woods Park in Winnetka earlier this summer.

NSASL, a 99-year-old arts organization located in the historic Community House in Winnetka, was proud to host this annual juried show in the middle of the village’s Hubbard Woods Design District. The June boutique exhibition featured artists from across the country who showcased their work, including oil paintings, mixed media, photography, sculpture, and jewelry.

Delicious treats baked by the nuns of St. Roger Abbey were also featured at the fair. As an added attraction, faculty member and portrait artist Lisa DePinto was onsite to paint quick oil portraits.

A silent auction invited attendees to bid on donated work from the artists. Gift certificates were donated from local Winnetka businesses and restaurants for a raffle. All proceeds from the silent auction and raffle were donated to the North Shore Art League and their educational outreach.

Professional artist and NSAL faculty members Thomas Trausch and Janet Trierweiler served as judges for the annual juried show.

“It's always an honor to judge such well-curated shows. The talent among the artists made it difficult to choose the award winners. We wish we could have given to many more,” Trausch says.

Artists were presented certificates and prize checks by North Shore Art League’s Executive Director Linda Nelson. Prize winners were as follows: First place, Nancy Koltun, Chicago; Second place, Jeff Condon, Grand Rapids, Michigan; and Third place, Samuel Yao, Ann Arbor,

artists and art lovers. Art in the Village has become a fun summer tradition and we look forward to next year- celebrating our 100th birthday!”

The North Shore Art League also thanks its lead sponsor Byline Bank; supporting sponsor Hubbard Woods Design District; and local partners the Village of Winnetka, Winnetka Park District, and Winnetka/Northfield/Glencoe Chamber of Commerce.

For more information about the North Shore Art League’s classes, workshops, summer art camps, programs, special events, or to make a tax-deductible donation, contact the NSAL office 847-446-2870 or visit northshoreartleague.org.

“Creating a Sustainability Plan is such an exciting venture for the Wilmette Park District. I’m thrilled to embark on the planning process with strong support from the Park Board, fellow staff members, and the broader community,” says Lucy Mellen, Wilmette Park District Sustainability Coordinator.

To initiate the planning process, the Park District invites residents and park patrons to participate in a brief twominute survey. The survey, accessible at lp.constantcontactpages.com/sv/2KlL6Wo, will enable the Park District to gauge community perspectives and ensure that their ideas are understood during the initial planning phase.

“If there’s one thing we’re certain of, it’s that our community deeply values our parks and natural spaces, and they have a strong investment in maintaining these resources for their children and future generations,” explains Executive Director Steve Wilson. “We are very excited to begin establishing a plan that will align with our community’s values and help the Wilmette Park District move forward into the future with sustainable practices.”

For more information and updates on the sustainability planning process, please visit the Wilmette Park District website at wilmettepark.org/projects-planning/wpdsustainability-planning-process/ or contact Park District Sustainability Coordinator, Lucy Mellen, at sustainability@wilmette.com.

JOIN US FOR YOUR FAVORITES INCLUDING ALL-NATURAL WET-AGED PRIME STEAKS, BIG CRUNCHY SALADS, AND DAILY SPECIALS.

OPEN SEVEN DAYS A WEEK FOR DINE-IN AND TAKEOUT STARTING AT 4:30PM.

COMPLIMENTARY VALET IS AVAILABLE NIGHTLY. BOOK YOUR RESERVATION

THE SHY FLOWER

BY MONICA KASS ROGERS THE NORTH SHORE WEEKEND

When Lanie Coldwell opens the door to The Shy Flower floral studio in Hubbard Woods’ design district, sunshine pours in and the scent of fresh flowers pours out. Arranged hither and thither on worktables throughout, fluffy white ranunculus nod in the breeze, next to cream and peach poppies, purple and green parrot tulips, ruffled green lemonade roses, and little sprays of grape hyacinth adorned with lacy ferns. Tucked in the corner of the Tower Court artist’s alley, this charming space is where Coldwell creates the artistic arrangements and teaches the floral classes that have made The Shy Flower so popular for North Shore flower lovers.

“This is far better than working out of my home, where we had flowers spilling over every surface, including my kids’ air hockey and ping pong tables!” laughs Coldwell, who started The Shy Flower in her basement in January 2021.

She comes by her floral passion naturally. Growing up in a large Southern family whose matrons gardened and arranged what they grew, Coldwell’s formative years were flowerfilled.

“I had two amazing grandmothers,” says Coldwell, “one in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and the other in Chattanooga, Tennessee, where I grew up. I have many flower memories from both of them. My Louisiana grandmother used to hand pollinate her yellow and pink ‘four o’clock’ flowers so that the seeds would produce blooms striped with yellow and hot pink the next summer. It was slow work, but was really fun to see the flowers bloom the next year.”

Meanwhile, Coldwell’s Tennessee grandmother, affectionally known as “Brooksie,” loved to entertain, her tables set with full silver services and arrangements of cut flowers

Floral artist Lanie Coldwell’s meditative masterpieces pay tribute to the power of small gestures.

Photography by Monica Kass Rogers

from her garden. “Roses and hollyhocks, different kinds of lilies and, in the spring, Lily of the Valley,” Coldwell remembers. “She used to make me little dolls from hollyhock blossoms. And she was on the altar guild at the Episcopal church. So on Saturdays, if I was lucky, I got to go with her to help carry the buckets while she’d be up on the ladder arranging the altar flowers.

But even more influential, Brooksie learned the art of Ikebana, the meditative practice of Japanese flower arranging. Her Ikebana texts and vases were passed on to Coldwell, who followed in her grandmother’s footsteps and became certified in the art herself. “I trained in the Ohara School of Ikebana under Yuko Inoue-Darcy, president of the Chicago Chapter, and hold an instructorlevel certificate,” says Coldwell.

“I think what I love about Ikebana is that it is a meditative art,” shares Coldwell. “Also, having a math degree, I love that Ikebana prescribes proportions for each part of what you do, the angle at which you place each flower or stem. You create triangles and shapes as you work that look very natural in the finished arrangement but are actually quite calculated in their placement.”

Prior to opening The Shy Flower, Coldwell was busy raising her three children but nurtured her interest in everything floral by volunteering to take school field trip groups to the Chicago Botanic Garden. She then worked at Evanston’s Bloom3 flower shop and started taking professional florist classes.

When her kids were older, she took the leap to launch the business, naming it The Shy Flower in a casual reference to a principal she loved in Ikebana: “The term refers to the flower that sits behind the focal point. It is meant to stand in the background and highlight the arrangement.”

The Shy Flower is a perfect metaphor for Coldwell’s approach not only to her business but also to life. “There are so many times when you can do the smallest thing on the side or in the background and it makes all the difference,” she says. “People face so many hardships, my family included, and I think

when we take a little time to recognize the small things we can do to help in the background, we change the world for the better.”

The arrangements Coldwell sells online are not Ikebana but are made with similar intentionality and underpinnings of mathematical principles. They have a natural feel to them, artistic and dancing with movement. Coldwell sources her blooms primarily through local wholesalers using the sustainable guidelines she admires from the Slow Flowers Society. Once flowers for arrangements have arrived and are properly hydrated, The Shy Flower team gets to work creating and then delivering the finished arrangement.

“There is nothing better than meeting someone at their door who is not expecting you, and seeing their face light up when they realize you are delivering flowers,” says Coldwell.

When not arranging flowers, Coldwell is often prepping for one or another of the classes she offers. Some sheer fun and others

practical, they range from flower arranging classes that change topically each month to immersive sessions in “flower bathing”—the meditative practice of steeping all senses in the scent, sight, and touch of flowers while creating an arrangement. She often holds private events such as a recent bachelorette party that featured flower wearables and is working out details for upcoming kids’ summer flower camp sessions.

Coldwell says the work is challenging but also rewarding. “Floral work is surprisingly physical, often not the glamourous thing that people imagine,” she observes. “I learn something new every day. And just as the forsythia I have behind my house needs a little pruning as it grows, there are always tweaks I am making with The Shy Flower. But no matter how a day is going, when you are working with flowers you can’t help but feel good.”

For more information, or to sign up for classes, visit theshyflower.com.

THE FLOOD

A film about alligators descending on a Louisiana town in the middle of a storm may not be the best movie you’ve seen this year, but it’s filled with thrills and won’t bore you.

BY REX REED ILLUSTRATION BY TOM BACHTELL

RUNNING TIME: 1 hour, 31 min

RATING: 3 stars

In one respect only, film critics are no different from anyone else. We all have individual hangups personal preferences, and guilty pleasures. Some hate westerns, others love musicals, but we all have our own weaknesses. I have two: Nazis and crocodiles.

Give me a Holocaust drama where you can always tell the good guys from the bad guys, because the good guys are always the victims you root for and the bad guys wear swastikas. I like it even better when you

can’t tell the difference. His fans hated it, but I even liked it when the centerpiece Nazi in a thing called Valkyrie was played by Tom Cruise.

As for crocodiles, the reptilian versions of Nazis, my fascination never wanes every time they slither into the water in an endless search for lunch, especially when Tarzan is on the menu.

There are no Nazis in a thriller called The Flood. No actual crocodiles, either, but alligators, their evil cousins with shorter snouts, are in full supply.

A storm rages in Louisiana, sending an army of swamp gators into a frenzy. It’s the worst disaster since the region was devastated by Hurricane Katrina, and director Brandon Slagle works overtime to get it on film with lip-licking gore.

Enter a bus carrying a gang of five vicious criminals locked up for the usual

crimes—armed robbery, hate murders, cop killers, and other assorted prison inmates— en route to a new jail, guarded by a lady sheriff and her deputies, all of them at the mercy of predatory reptiles with no qualms about easily upstaging a cast of low-budget unknowns. Since the monsters look like the real deal instead of computer-generated movie constructs, the terror seems unbearably genuine and the dangers doubly believable.

Roads are washed out, making escape impossible, as well as the convicts’ rescue plans. It’s pretty scary, replete with wild weather, “gotcha!” moments, special effects, and constant outbreaks of brutal violence from both animals and humans alike. Action is intercut with grim closeups of the gators feasting on human flesh, leavened by down-home Southern colloquialisms.

Example: “After Hurricane Ida, my sis-

ter’s husband got eaten right in front of us on the front lawn. It was two weeks before they found what was left of him inside of a 500-pound gator’s belly. I been tanglin’ with ‘em since I was knee high to a crawfish.”

The dialogue, to a Louisiana expatriate like me, is crude but familiar. With the predators devouring their victims one by one, the cops and the crooks are forced to join forces in order to survive.

It all leads up to the big finale, when all of the jaw-snapping reptiles converge on everyone who is still alive at the same time. Is The Flood a good movie? Of course not. But it kept my pulse throbbing, which is more than I can say about most of the big-budget fiascos I’ve seen lately.

It’s not dull, you won’t dare doze, and there’s something to be said about a cast of bloodthirsty carnivores in the middle of an actor’s strike.

THE MIRACLE CLUB

Sweet and well-intentioned but bland and disappointing, The Miracle Club is one of those slow, meandering Irish dramas that inspire more respect than excitement.

RUNNING TIME: 90 minutes

RATING: 3 stars

Set in a seaside town near Dublin in 1967, it centers on a disparate group of women who travel to Lourdes to honor a friend and the various ways the spiritual influence of the trip

changes them forever.

Chrissie Ahearn (played by a miscast but nevertheless distinguished Laura Linney, in another noble, polished performance) returns home for her mother’s funeral, chagrined to discover the chapel is empty. Everyone, it seems, is going to a talent show charity benefit in her mother’s honor. The first prize

is two tickets to Lourdes chaperoned by the local priest.

Laura has been living in America for the past 40 years. Her mother’s old friends are not happy to see her. A good chunk of the movie that follows is devoted to the complex reasons why Chrissie left town in anger, resentment, and disgrace.

Starring such acting talents as Laura Linney, Maggie Smith, and Kathy Bates, this film set in rural Ireland in the 1960s is admirable but fails to go beneath the surface.

Seems she loved a boy named Declan Fox, who drowned at sea in 1927 at the age of 27, leaving her pregnant and desperate. Declan’s mother Lily (the great Maggie Smith, struggling with a hugely unintelligible Irish accent for the first time in her illustrious career) has never forgiven Chrissie for aborting her child after Declan’s death. Chrissie has never forgiven Lily’s best friend Eileen (Kathy Bates) for divulging her personal secrets to the entire town, making Chrissie the object of ridicule and more than a bit of local hostility, as well as a pariah to her own mother.

A multitude of facts, whispers, and lies are revealed in a long-winded screenplay that fails

to adequately explore anything beyond surface character development. On the pilgrimage to Lourdes, Chrissie’s late mother’s three best friends—Eileen, Lily, and a younger woman named Dolly—board the bus with hope and anticipation, but Chrissie, who looks on the entire adventure as a religious joke, goes along too, out of guilt for ignoring her mother’s love for 40 years. In the film’s only attempt at irony or humor, Lourdes is revealed as a rather embarrassing tourist attraction, replete with a “Hotel Bernadette” that features a gift shop for souvenirs of the Virgin Mary.

Chrissie is forced to share a room with the ladies who have made her homecoming

wretched, which makes no sense, but affords them all a contrived chance to confront their true feelings. In the third act, the movie splinters into a series of tearful narratives in which they all pray for their pilgrimage to bring them miracles— Eileen has breast cancer, Lily and Chrissie suffer from traumatic memories that must be resolved, and Dolly (Agnes O’Casey) has a young son named Danny who hasn’t spoken a word, for unexplained reasons known only to the director, Thaddeus O’Sullivan.

The movie is about how Lourdes, despite numerous challenges and drawbacks, has a strange, restorative spiritual effect that

reconciles them all in epiphanies of love and forgiveness that are not entirely plausible.

The badly needed charm missing in the script for this lackluster film falls to the ladies who inhabit it, and they work hard to make it work. Managing their diverse Irish accents is daunting, trying to understand them is even more of an uphill slog.

The solemn direction and lack of tempo come uncomfortably close to a dirge. The Miracle Club is a sincere and meritorious effort, enhanced by John Conroy’s beatific cinematography that vividly captures the quiet stoicism of rural Ireland, but it leaves you empty, undernourished, and wanting more.

EDITED BY DUSTIN O'REGAN ILLUSTRATION BY TOM BACHTELL

#ON MY NIGHTSTAND

My favorite book is Little Women by Louisa May Alcott because my daughters and I have been taking turns reading it aloud after busy summer days. Residing next to it, I have a stack of health and wellness books, including a recent recommendation, Outlive, The Science & Art of Longevity by Peter Attia, MD. I’m also bouncing between 101 Essays That Will Change The Way You Think by Brianna Wiest and a fantastic summer read, Romantic Comedy, by Curtis Sittenfeld.

#ON MY MOBILE

I follow family, friends, and fellow advocates like @METAvivor, who advocate for MBC research, and @ picklesgroup, which supports children impacted by their parent’s cancer. I’m inspired by a long list of bespoke artists, designers, and photographers, and some of my favorites are @Studio Gild, an interior design firm based in Chicago and Los Angeles; @vincentjamesdesigns, a clothing line of chic foundational pieces; @martefrisnes_jewellery, a Norwegian born British based designer; @ magsderoma, a Los Angeles interdisciplinary artist and published illustrator; @karagreenwellart an abstract artist from San Diego; and @erinkonrath a Chicago lifestyle photographer.

#IN MY

EARBUDS

As a mom of a busy family, in addition to my numerous medical appointments, I spend more time driving than I would like. To make the most of it, I listen to comedic podcasts such as SmartLess, It’s Not a Book Club Podcast, and Off Menu, which keep me laughing as I navigate through the intense Chicago area traffic. I often tune into The Burn Podcast, hosted by April Stearns, the editor of Wildfire Magazine. The podcast features empowering stories and interviews with women under 50 who have been diagnosed with breast cancer. These tales of strength and resilience are genuinely inspiring, regardless of whether or not you’ve experienced cancer.

DIANA KEEN, the founder of the Roots & Wings Foundation, had to halt her career in art and architecture when she was diagnosed with metastatic inflammatory breast cancer at age 36. Metastatic breast cancer (MBC), stage IV, is an incurable and lifelong condition where breast cancer spreads to other parts of the body. The Wilmette resident has been living with MBC for nine years. The quote by Salman Rushdie, “What can’t be cured must be endured,” has been fundamental to her thriving and to Roots & Wings’ mission to help members of the MBC community receive support as a whole patient. The Foundation advocates for MBC patients and provides complimentary integrative wellness care such as functional nutrition, acupuncture, meditation, yoga, and other medically proven therapies that support the mind, body, and spirit during treatment. Roots & Wings partners with the MBC community at renowned cancer centers like NorthShore, RUSH, Northwestern, Dana-Farber, Duke, UCLA, and OSU. She says the Roots & Wings supporters are incredibly grateful for the support from the North Shore community and invite everyone to participate in the Foundation’s annual fundraiser, MOVE IV MBC, on August 6.  Register for a suggested donation of $25. You can run, walk, bike, swim, or move any way you see fit; just move for MBC. For more information, to register, and for sponsorship opportunities visit rootswingsfoundation.org/mivm23.

MATERIAL PURSUITS

This weekend’s curated luxury trends

MODEL A

"Roads? Where we're going, we don't need roads."

That famous line from Doc to Marty McFly in the Back to the Future film franchise predicted a tomorrow we have yet to see, until now. Last fall, California-based Alef Aeronautics announced that it is designing and developing the first flying car. The Alef “Model A” will be the only flying car with street driving and vertical take-off, allowing it to fit within existing urban infrastructure. With a driving range of 200 miles and a flight range of 110 miles, the vehicle has been in development since 2015—ironically, the very year Marty McFly travels to in the film. “The Alef Model is a modern solution for both urban and rural transportation needs in the 21st century because it is the fastest and most convenient transport ever created from the point of origin to the final destination,” says Alef CEO Jim Dukhovny. “By enabling consumers to choose driving or flying mode, the Alef flying car allows the optimal path depending on road conditions, weather, and infrastructure.” Alef has been test-driving and test flying the full-size prototype since 2019 with plans to begin production and initiate first deliveries in late 2025.

When released, the price of this flying vehicle is expected to be around $299,999 but you can get a spot in the pre-order queue for just $150 (or $1,500 for priority status) at alef.aero/preorder.html.

ON THE BRIGHT SIDE

Android lovers are raving about the Nothing Phone OS 2.0, a revised and slightly elevated version of its predecessor. It’s simple, it’s sleek, and it’s got a vibe that’s all tech with minimal bling. The new Glyph Interface assigns different light and sound sequences for each of your contacts and notification type, allowing you to be one step ahead of who’s getting in touch. Designed for those users who crave “more metime and less screen-time,” the Nothing Phone (2) has all the essentials (6.7" OLED display, powered by a Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 chipset and paired with 12GB of RAM); none of the distractions. Taking inspiration from the phone’s iconic hardware design, the software has a new visual identity that feels “unmistakably Nothing.” With an emphasis on functional customization, it allows interactions with your smartphone to be more intentional and mindful. Available for $699 at us.nothing.tech.

VINTAGE POUR

With aromas of orange essence, butterscotch, virgin American oak, pipe tobacco, ripe banana, and honeydew on the nose, BHAKTA 1990 Rum is quite literally time in a bottle. This decadent spirit from Raj Peter Bhakta’s bespoke brand blends two rare vintages of rum with two distinct distillation methods, only to be aged for three years in bourbon and rye barrels. The result is a layered palate of fig, red fruit, allspice, and clove, finishing dry with strong notes of whipped frosting, apricot, nutmeg, and licorice. Uniting brash New World flavors with the ancient craftsmanship of the Old World, BHAKTA 1990 Rum is meant to be savored. You can sip as you would your finest bourbon or most prized Armagnac, neat over a large ice cube in an heirloom crystal or be as bold as its creators—stashing a bottle on the yacht to be shared with your closest confidants. Either way, it’s possible that you may never taste a rum like this again. Available for $500 at my.shopbhakta.com or your favorite spirits shop.

LINDAPALOOZA

North Shore Country Day feted retiring lower school music teacher Linda Kiracibasi—a faculty member at the Winnetka school for 45 years—by staging a festive, on-campus retirement concert.

BY BILL MCLEAN ILLUSTRATION BY BARRY BLITT

Singing at home was never limited to the shower for a young Linda Kiracibasi.

“I sang all the time when I was growing up, because music was always my thing,” recalls Kiracibasi, who was born in Los Angeles and attended high school in New Jersey. “Bless my parents (Ray and Margaret) for having to listen to me sing everywhere in our house.

“They never asked me to stop singing, so I took that as a good sign.”

This past spring, Kiracibasi, 71, concluded a wonderful 45-year run as a lower school music teacher at North Shore Country Day (NSCD) in Winnetka. For the last 37 years of her tenure, she served as a junior kindergarten-through-fifth-grade instructor.

NSCD showered the uber-popular Kiracibasi with praise on May 19, staging an on-campus retirement concert—Lindapalooza—in her honor. More than 150 people attended the event, including alumni and the families of current families at the college-preparatory school.

A third grader sang a moving rendition of “Tomorrow,” from the musical Annie

“Good thing I had a large pile of Kleenex nearby,” says Kiracibasi, an alto who later joined several other warblers on stage, ages 4 to 19, to perform 10 songs. That set—“Puff the Magic Dragon” and Love Grows,” to name a couple of tunes—turned into a series of sing-along numbers with the audience members and capped the festive occasion.

“Linda has a knack for understanding people from the inside, and she has that special talent for finding the kid that needs a little extra something,” says Lisa McClung Ristic (NSCD Class of 1987), one of four Lindapalooza emcees and the mother of two daughters/NSCD graduates. “She knows how to make music transform people to think better of themselves and to become better for others.”

But Kiracibasi’s career in music education didn’t end with the farewell at NSCD. The Skokie resident plans to teach this fall at Family Matters, a K-4th-grade school based in Rogers Park. She’ll instruct two classes two days per week.

“I can’t quit teaching music to kids cold,” admits Kiracibasi, who earned a degree in music education at Northwestern University

in 1973, after graduating from Governor Livingston Regional High School in Berkeley Heights, New Jersey. “The joy I see on kids’ faces while they’re learning music has always thrilled me, and there’s nothing better, from a teacher’s perspective, than watching them grow as musicians and as human beings. I enjoyed teaching the four-year-old at North Shore Country Day as much as I did the fifth grader.

“Music can do something for kids that academics can’t—and I mean that as a positive,” adds Kiracibasi, who’s trained to teach voice, guitar, and piano. “Music allows kids to express themselves and gain confidence along the way.”

Kiracibasi received a record player from her mother, Margaret, at the age of 5 or 6. Margaret’s dream was to sing in a big band one day. The mother—

“She had a beautiful voice,” Linda says— and daughter watched television shows together in the 1950s and 1960s, especially ones featuring performances from singers Perry Como, Andy Williams, Dean Martin, or Nat King Cole. They also bonded while listening to The Andrews Sisters.

Margaret’s collection of albums at home included every record produced by The Ray -

the song “Volare” on The Dean Martin Show and loved song in Italian I got hooked theatre when I was 12 and The Sound of Music, , and

at Art Linkletter’s theater in San Fernando“I was going toracibasi shifted

sights to a career in teaching as she entered high school, thinking the position of school choral director would be a fulfilling one. She student-taught at Colorado Academy, a K-12 school, during her senior year at Northwestern.

NSCD hired Kiracibasi in 1978.

“I always wanted North Shore Country Day students to enjoy music class, even when it was all about hard work,” says Kiracibasi, who once accompanied eight NSCD students and their parents to Carnegie Hall in New York. “Music to elementary students doesn’t always have to be cute or fun. It can be beautiful. Young kids can be creative and thoughtful.”

Linda and Sedat Kiracibasi, a native of Turkey who worked in the technology industry, got married at Northwestern University’s Alice Millar Chapel in 1995. Sedat, who loved classical music, died in 2015. Linda still owns a house in Turkey.

The owner of five cats, Kiracibasi, the semi-retiree, will start volunteering one day a week at Barb’s Precious Rescue and Adoption Center in Palatine and continue to sing with 19 others in the Evanston-based Chamber Choir, which stages two concerts per year.

Kiracibasi’s voice has been part and parcel of the choir for 35 years.

“What’s important to me is caring about other people,” Kiracibasi says. “It’s also important to take responsibility for yourself, and that if you make a mistake, fix it and move on—there’s too little of that these days.”

Decades ago, when she was about to begin her second year at NSCD, Kiracibasi did an on-campus demonstration with parents at the lower school’s Go To School Night. Some of them played Orff instruments, such as the xylophone and chime bars.

Dick Hall, NSCD’s head of school in 1979, took it all in and approached Kiracibasi later that evening.

“He told me, ‘You’re going to retire from this school,’” Kiracibasi recounts. “I was all of 28 years old, and I hope I gave a polite response, but I am sure I was thinking he was a bit crazy and that retirement was a long way off. Well, here we are, and his prediction came true.”

North Shore Country Day is located at 310 Green Bay Road in Winnetka. For more information, call 847-446-0674 or visit nscds.org.

The joy I see on kids’ faces while they’re learning music has always thrilled me, and there’s nothing better, from a teacher’s perspective, than watching them grow as musicians and as human beings.

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