KCM-05-01-2013

’s en n m io o it W Ed

May 2013

houses

OF CARD Entrepreneur Jill Card Keeps St. Charles & Nearby Towns In Style With Three Fashion Boutiques

Special!

Women In Business:

Meet influential area females leading your community pg 35

Single Moms

A salute to Kane County mothers doing it on their own pg 56

Delightful Design

3

Renovate your dream space with Geneva Cabinet Gallery pg 14

Win a dream weekend getaway for two at the Herrington Inn! �� ����������� �� ��� ���������� ����� ���� ������������ ����� ������ ���� � ����� ������� ������� ��� ���� ��� ������ ���� ������� � ������ �� ��� ������� ���������� ������ ��� ���������� ��� ���� ������ ��� ���� ��� ����� ����� �� ��� �� ���������������������

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Left: Trina Krueger Right: Katie Manak

The Jewelry Makers of State Street State Street Jewelers has a rich history in downtown Geneva, providing its customers with fine jewelry and repair services for over 25 years. But who are the women who work behind the scenes, the ones who actually set, size, polish and customize the jewelry?

Meet Trina Krueger and Katie Manak, the jewelers who take a customer’s creative vision and turn it into sparkling reality.

“We make a good team,” said Krueger, who worked solo before Manak was hired two years ago as her much-needed and appreciated assistant. Interestingly, the co-workers have learned to communicate in a special way, because Manak is hearing-impaired.

“I’ve learned some sign language since working with Katie, and we just fell in love with her because she’s such a fast learner,” said Krueger.

Originally hired as a jeweler in Davenport, Krueger later married, moved to Aurora and ran a jewelry shop out of her home. She’s been at State Street Jewelers for six years, but brings over 30 years of jewelry making experience to the table. “Our designer will meet with a customer to create a unique, customized work of art and we’ll do the

setting and cleaning and finish work,” said Krueger, who uses sophisticated equipment like a laser welder and customized engraving machine as her tools of the trade. The busy jewelry team also handles a steady stream of repair work. “We repair everything from an antique Victorian ring that belonged to someone’s grandmother, to something new, and everything in between,” said Krueger.

Manak started out doing sizing and simple chain repair jobs, but has since moved into more complex work, like setting diamonds into engagement rings. The Elburn native now lives in Joliet, loves her job and enjoys taking old jewelry or pieces of jewelry apart and making new pieces. “I would like to learn all aspects of the business and get more proficient at the bench, because someday in the future, my dream is to own my own jewelry store,” said Manak.

In early summer, State Street Jewelers will move to a new location on the corner of State and Third Streets. Then Krueger and Manak will work their magic in front of a big, bright window, taking them out from behind the scene, to the forefront of the business. “I think it’s valuable for people see

the artistry of the actual design work and all the effort that goes into it,“ said store owner Jeff Hampton. The jewelry team is looking forward to the move as well. “I enjoy the people, the creativity, working on different pieces and learning new things… it’s just a fun place to work,” said Krueger. “And soon, everyone will be able to watch us in action,” added Manak.

FOR MORE INFORMATION Women of State Street Jewelers Designers at State State Street State Street Jewelers 214 West State Street Geneva, IL 630.232.2085 www.statestreetjewelers.com

INSIDE

‘‘

Women’s edition

Some of the newest women’s suit shades are ‘grassy green’ and ‘soft tangerine’...

pg 62

Elliot Staples, senior vice president of design for The Limited

Home & Lifestyle 8

14

18 25

Home Design — DIY Landscaping: Pick

up some easy landscaping design tips from representatives of Thornapple Landscape Inc. in Geneva and A Natural Choice Shamrock Landscaping in St. Charles and Elburn.

Cover Inset: Geneva Cabinet Gallery can do much more than renovate kitchens and bathrooms. The local company has won awards for its work, including a design award for a high-end basement bar!

Artist Profile: Catie Barron took a few different paths through life before she settled into art. Now, the St. Charles resident couldn’t be happier.

Wine Niche: Vince Balistreri of Niche Restaurant in Geneva pays homage to the women in the wine industry, including four special women who have influenced him throughout the years.

Health 26

32

Need a healthy Mother’s Day meal the kids can help prepare? Serve Mom breakfast in bed with these ideas from Selange Giannetto, a self-employed vegan chef based in St. Charles.

Learn about one of the newest crazes of preparing for pregnancy — Dancing For Birth classes, available in Gilberts with instructor Renee Page.

Women in Business 36

40 44 46

On The Cover: When Jill Card needed something to

wear on a date with her husband, he suggested “jeans and a cute top.” Today, Card owns three boutiques bearing the name of that suggestion, with Jeans and A Cute Top Shop locations in St. Charles, Wheaton and Downers Grove.

From the time she was small, Angie Fansler was picking up tips that still help her today in her Geneva interior design company, Angie’s Interiors.

Dr. Shannon Samuels balances family life with her own dental practice at Hamilton House Dentistry in Geneva.

Meet the professional businesswomen of Kane County!

Family 56

59 60

Success Lives Next Door: Being a single parent isn’t easy, yet 35 percent of American children live with just a mommy or daddy — most with their mommy.

Learn about the hard times — and good times — of single parenthood as we pay tribute to the single mothers in Kane County.

Write This Down: Stay-at-home mother Michelle Stien says moms gotta stick together. Find out what she thinks about “The Real Mothers of Kane County.”

Parents, what do you do when your college grad moves back home? Check out this quick guide with tips to keep you — and your graduate — on track.

Fashion & Beauty 3

Need to look professional, but don’t want to wear a frumpy old suit? Check out the bright, colorful styles of sophisticated business suits available at The Limited.

Out & About 66 67

68 71

WOD: Meet the final winner of our inaugural class of Women of Distinction — Carol Weber of St. Charles, who is the local director of Royal Family Kids.

Social Life: The Geneva Chamber of Commerce allowed women to participate in its annual 60 Men Who Cook fundraiser this year, aptly renaming it 30 Men Vs. 30 Women Who Cook. See what was cooked up!

Calendar: Find something fun to do with help from our calendar of arts and events.

Artist Showcase: David Hettinger of Aurora shares an oil painting depicting two sisters discussing boyfriends.

Your dream kitchen is more Affordable than you think!

Style. Quality. Value.

321 Stevens Street Geneva, Illinois 60134 321 • Stevens Street 630.232.9500 www.genevacabinetgallery.com

from the editor

I

Bringing Home The Bacon

t’s a fun time to be a woman.

I was reminded of this recently while attending a “Power Luncheon” — sponsored by our sister publication, McHenry County Magazine — that brought together a panel of five influential women in the area, including the founder and CEO of a highly successful bank, a politician, an appellate court judge, the president of a university and a business consultant.

None of the panelists was older than 65, I’d guess, but a few spoke of the difficulties of being a woman in a time when females simply did not have executive authority in their fields.

The banker, in particular, noted that when she started out, she didn’t have any female role models in her industry. And the few women who were in the business didn’t come together to support each other — they were fighting for the handful of positions of power that were open to their gender.

Listening to these women share their advice for becoming influential leaders was inspiring, and it made me grateful as I realized how fortunate I am to grow up in an era where my opportunities – as a woman — seem endless.

It hasn’t been all that long since women have really found an equal footing in many professions, and even today, it’s not always equal. I have the feeling many of our mothers and grandmothers can share stories of having to fight for the opportunity to prove themselves in

fields long dominated by men.

But it’s amazing to see how far our female family members, friends, neighbors and coworkers have pushed the envelope, and I’m thankful that their hard work has made it that much easier for younger generations to step up and be leaders in their communities.

Our May women’s issue congratulates the ladies in Kane County on their life successes, whether they’re female entrepreneurs, single mothers, artists or business leaders.

We start by profiling two successful women who started their own businesses. Jill Card, our cover model, used her fashion instincts to open not one, not two, but three Jeans and a Cute Tops Shops, which offer, of course, jeans and cute tops, plus more (page 36). And Angie Fansler utilized her long-hidden design skills to start her own interior design business (page 40).

Both ladies — plus Dr. Shannon Samuels, who owns her own dental practice in Geneva — are featured in our special Women in Business section, along with more than a dozen other females who showcase their talents in their own fields (page 46). Don’t miss their stories!

We also pay tribute to the single mothers of Kane County (page 56) by sharing the stories of local women who are raising their children without the support of a husband.

For all of the mothers out there, we offer a handful of simple, healthy recipes that are perfect for a Mother’s Day breakfast in bed (page 26). Our chef, Selange Giannetto of St. Charles, not only is a mother herself, but she also is classically trained and worked as a professional chef on and off for 15 years.

We also profile local artist Catie Barron (page 18), we explore Dancing For Birth classes (page 32) and we talk to the senior vice president of design for The Limited to learn how to find the latest in professional business attire with a flair for color and style (page 62).

Join us as we salute the women in our lives, and please enjoy the following pages!

— Stephanie N. Grimoldby Editor

kc

Kane County Magazine M Published by Shaw Media 7717 S. Route 31, Crystal Lake, IL 60014 Phone: 815-459-4040 Fax: 815-477-4960 www.KaneCountyMagazine.com

Publisher J. Tom Shaw 630-232-9222 jtshaw@shawmedia.com General Manager Jim Ringness 630-845-5228 jringness@shawmedia.com Editor Stephanie N. Grimoldby 815-526-4467 sgrimoldby@shawmedia.com Designer Allison McCaleb 815-526-4485 amccaleb@shawmedia.com Account Manager Sandra Petti 630-313-0251 spetti@shawmedia.com Account Manager Tricia Walter 630-845-5272 twalter@shawmedia.com Correspondents Elizabeth Harmon, Jacky Runice, Lauren Lynch, Erin Sauer, Jami Kunzer Photographers Melissa Emory, Jeff Krage Kane County Magazine is available by subscription for $24 a year. If you would like each month’s edition mailed to your home, send payment information and address to Kane County Magazine, 7717 S. Route 31, Crystal Lake, IL 60014 or via email at subscriptions@ shawmedia.com.

SNEAK PEEK In our June “Men’s” issue, don’t miss: Tips for home brewing Men who manage being Mr. Mom The best fishing spots in Kane County How to find fresh veggies at farmers’ markets

On The Cover Pictured on the cover is Jill Card, owner of Jeans and A Cute Top Shop in St. Charles, Wheaton and Downers Grove. In her shops, the former stayat-home mom sells exactly what her store name describes — jeans and cute tops, plus additional fashion items. To learn more about Card and other female entrepreneurs, see our Women in Business section on page 35.

Photo by Melissa Emory Hair and makeup by Laura Donckers and Veronica Hernandez, respectively, of Mario Tricoci Hair Salons and Day Spas in Lombard Cover inset photo by Rachel Ormond, VHT Studios

Grooming tips and tricks ... and more!

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May 2013 • Kane County Magazine

7

home & lifestyle / HOMEdesign

Changing The Landscape

By ELIZABETH HARMON

6Pergolas can provide shade on a patio but still maintain an open feeling. Photo provided

by A Natural Choice Shamrock Landscaping

5This pergola and brick patio was designed and installed by Thornapple Landscape Inc. in Geneva.

Photo provided by Thornapple Landscape Inc. Photo provided by Thornapple Landscape Inc.

Updating your landscape is a great home improvement project, whether you’re a novice or experienced. There are no walls to demolish, no heat vents to work around. Tools can be affordable and low-tech.

And the best part? You get to be outside.

One of the biggest trends in landscaping is the outdoor room.

Whether it’s simple patios with freestanding fire pits or a custom outdoor kitchen with grill island, prep area and built-in refrigerator, clients love living outdoors.

“People are looking to be outside and using their yard as another room,” says Kurt Miller, owner

of Thornapple Landscape Inc. in Geneva. “Having the kitchen and refrigeration out on the deck or by the pool cuts down on going back and forth.”

Vertical structures such as pergolas built with wood or PVC material also are in demand, says Steve Baier, president of A Natural Choice Shamrock Landscaping in St. Charles and Elburn. “I do quite a few pergolas, which give shade over the patio but still have an open feeling.”

Baier agrees that outdoor rooms with fire elements are popular and says that new concrete and clay products have made them affordable for a wider range of consumers.

“People are looking for a backyard paradise, and it can be

6(Top and bottom photos) A Natural Choice Shamrock Landscaping can lay pavers to create custom designs. Photos provided by A Natural Choice Shamrock Landscaping

done on a decent budget,” he says.

Customers also want their landscaping to be long lasting and easy to care for.

“There have been a lot of new perennial varieties that have come out that bloom longer,” Miller says. “There’s more color in landscape now than there used to be.”

Where to start

While it’s great to dream, it’s also important to have a plan, whether you’re hiring a pro or doing the work yourself.

Set a realistic budget, and realize that $6,000 to $10,000 is a good place to start for a simple patio and seat wall, pros say.

If you’re planning to do the work, consider your own abilities and the amount of time you have to devote to the project. And don’t neglect unglamorous, but vital, foundation work for patios, walkways and other structures to prevent do-overs later.

When planning a garden or shrub, keep scale in mind. Miller says a common mistake is to underestimate the amount of room a mature plant will need.

“They plant too close to the house or too close to a walkway and have to keep pruning

it back,” he says.

Too-narrow landscape beds often lack texture and variety, and a front walkway less than four feet across may feel less welcoming.

“You need to consider how it looks leading up to the houses,” Miller says. “Most of the time, it’s built too small.”

DIY tips

Proper mulching can make a big difference, not only in how your landscaping looks, but also in the health of your plants. But

Baier says that homeowners, and even some landscape professionals, often lay mulch improperly.

“When you mulch a tree ring like a volcano, it can cause the tree to rot at the trunk,” he says. “Small trees can snap off in a strong wind.”

56Pictured at right and below are examples of additional landscaping done by A Natural Choice Shamrock Landscaping. Photos provided

by A Natural Choice Shamrock Landscaping

LANDSCAPING MAINTENANCE CALENDAR Courtesy of A Natural Choice Shamrock Landscaping Inc.

JANUARY

• Remove heavy snow from trees and shrubs, especially evergreens, to prevent damage

• Divide perennials • Continue weed control (spot treatments, pulling by hand)

FEBRUARY

JUNE

• Complete structural pruning on trees and srubs

MARCH

• Remove winter protection materials • Check for pests • Schedule spring lawn fertilization • Transplant new trees and shrubs into the ground after it thaws

APRIL

• Cut back ornamental grasses • Prune summer flowering shrubs that have become too large • Apply preemergence herbicides (preventative weed killer) • Seed and fertilize lawn

MAY

• Plant annuals, new perennials and summer bulbs once the danger of frost has passed (no earlier than May 15)

• Apply mulches • Trim hedges • Control pests • Ensure that plants are receiving enough water • Continue weed control • Mow lawn at higher setting during the summer

JULY

• Plant new shrubs and perennials now to minimize the amount of water needed • Continue weed control • Ensure plants are receiving enough water

OCTOBER

• Plant bulbs for next spring • Prepare lawns for the winter; clear leaves/debris and complete one final mowing • Have a trained arborist inspect trees for health and maintenance issues

NOVEMBER

• Perform light pruning; heavy pruning in the summer can damage plants • Check for diseases in trees • Continue weed control • Control pests • Ensure that plants are receiving enough water

• Cut back perennials • Pull up annuals • Finish winter preparations • Structural pruning of trees and shrubs should be completed in the winter months when the leaves are off

AUGUST

DECEMBER

• Control pests • Continue weed control • Ensure that plants are getting enough water

• Grind unsightly stumps • Use sand on icy walkways to avoid salt damage to the lawn or any nearby plants

SEPTEMBER

For a more attractive yard all season, follow this maintenance calendar, provided by A Natural Choice Shamrock Landscaping Inc.

• Seed lawn (before Sept. 15) • Aerate and overseed bare spots

10 Kane County Magazine • May 2013

Instead, create a bowl shape with taller outside edges to capture water as it drips from the tree.

Baier also cautions against using mulch from public piles, which he says can be infected with insects.

Instead, he recommends using professional grade double or triple-processed mulch.

“Cheap mulch is cheap for a reason,” he says.

Evergreens, planted to hide a home’s foundation, should be intended as a backdrop for other plants, not to stand alone. Plant layers against them, starting with taller perennials in the back and working down to short annuals in the front.

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6Pots planted with colorful annuals can make the outside of your home more inviting.

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And keep in mind that art elements, such as birdbaths or stones, can add texture and interest.

Creating a strong first impression and improving your home’s curb appeal doesn’t have to be difficult or expensive. Pots planted with colorful annuals as well as a small bench or seat can make the outside of your home more inviting.

Miller also suggests planting a tree.

“It frames the front of your house, adds shade and color,” he says.

He likes the State Street Maple, developed locally by the Morton Arboretum.

Professionals agree that one of the easiest ways to improve the look of your home is to keep up with routine maintenance of your existing landscape.

“Keep your edges crisp; make sure your perennials are cut properly,” Baier says. “Turn your mulch and add to it periodically because that holds your moisture and makes a big difference.” kc

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www.wasconursery.com 12 Kane County Magazine • May 2013

KaneCountyMagazine.com

“

Cheap mulch is cheap for a reason.

— Steve Baier,

president of A Natural Choice Shamrock Landscaping in St. Charles and Elburn

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5Steve Baier of A Natural Choice Shamrock Landscaping recommends using professional grade double or triple-processed mulch. Photo provided by A Natural Choice Shamrock Landscaping

KaneCountyMagazine.com

May 2013 • Kane County Magazine

13

home & lifestyle

THE BEAUTY Of Renovation Geneva Cabinet Gallery Strives To Delight With Design

5Geneva Cabinet Gallery designer Glenda Swanson designed this Geneva kitchen for Peri Gange. Unique details include a lowered island and cook top, plus knife slots in the butcher block inset.

Photo provided

R

enovating a kitchen or bath can be an overwhelming project for homeowners ... unless they have the right team in place to walk them through the process.

For many local — and not so local — homeowners, Geneva Cabinet Gallery has become a trusted renovation team, with designers who continue to delight their customers with their outstanding design concepts and attention to detail.

Owner Lynn Havlicek says her team’s ability to create custom designs and help homeowners with all choices of a renovation — including cabinetry, flooring, lighting, appliances and more — is what separates Geneva Cabinet Gallery from other area renovators.

“We can take whatever you’re thinking and make it work in your home, and that prevents people from making costly mistakes,” she says. “It should be fun. By the time we finish the design and pick out the products, [our customers] are very excited to see it actually become a reality.”

“What seems to be impossible or perhaps won’t fit with your current style, we can fine-tune to make work for you,” she continues. “And that’s what a designer should do.”

I By STEPHANIE N. GRIMOLDBY I

Years of experience

Originally known as Cabinets at Danada in Wheaton, the company opened a satellite location in Geneva about five years ago, Havlicek says.

6Geneva Cabinet Gallery doesn't only design kitchens and bathrooms. The company also can renovate wine cellars, basements, family rooms, entertainment areas, bars, small additions and more. Photo provided

Then a year ago, she closed the Wheaton office, moved everything to Geneva and changed the name to Geneva Cabinet Gallery.

While her company name may be new, Havlicek has been an interior designer for more than 25 years, and her two top designers are right there with her. Glenda Swanson, from whom Havlicek bought the business years ago, has more than 30 years of design experience under her belt, and Gayle Safford, who has a degree in interior design, has been designing for more than half a decade.

Havlicek also has worked with the same installers and contractors for years, including Mike Nelin and Steve Mencel, and their work is simply top notch, Havlicek says. “[Our customers] can be comfortable knowing we’ve experienced everything that can happen,” she says. “In older homes around here, if you take down a wall, there’s sometimes surprises. Or, people might say you can’t do something. We’ll figure out how you can do it.”

Peri Gange has trusted Geneva Cabinet Gallery — and in particular, Glenda Swanson — so much that she’s currently working on her third kitchen remodel with the company.

Gange first met Swanson when Lynn Havlicek’s husband, George — owner of Havlicek Builders — was working with Gange to build her dream home in Geneva.

6Geneva Cabinet Gallery recently renovated the kitchen of Ali and Stan Biel of Geneva. Photo provided

BEFORE

AFTER

Gange hired Geneva Cabinet Gallery to design her kitchen, and ever since that first kitchen took place, she’s been hooked.

“Glenda’s wonderful on every level and every way,” says Gange, property operations director for Saunders Real Estate Solutions Inc. in Batavia.

“Her attention to detail is fantastic, and I just trust these projects — some bigger, some smaller — are always going to turn out great ... . That peace of mind is invaluable.

“She is the perfect combination of listening to my ideas and appreciating and respecting the style that I want to ultimately have, but if she thinks I’m making a mistake, she’ll tell me, so I trust her judgment,” Gange adds.

The Geneva kitchen Swanson helped design for Gange featured many “traditional” high-end options, such as glistening white cabinets, stainless steel appliances — including a double oven — and a large L-shaped island. However, it also was filled with specific details to make cooking easier for Peri, who is 5-foot-3.

The island and the cooktop were lowered several inches to be more comfortable for Gange, and a glass, front-lit cabinet was extended all the way to the countertop so Gange could put away dishes without having to reach for a higher shelf.

A butcher block inset in the island included knife slots — Gange’s idea, which Swanson executed for her — and wicker baskets were strategically placed to allow easy access to potatoes, onions, etc.

“My daughter [Chelsea] and I both love to cook, so it’s important to us that the kitchen be a working kitchen that’s easy to take care of ... not just for show,” Gange says.

When Gange bought a foreclosure in Elburn and gutted the kitchen, she knew just who to call for help.

“I like big islands, big work spaces,” Gange says, noting that Swanson was able to design the second point. “Glenda, she doesn’t just do super high end [remodels]. I feel like both kitchens have the same flavor and look and still feel like quality products, but the budget on the second one was much smaller.”

Today, Gange is planning to move back to Geneva, and she’s building a third kitchen with Swanson’s expertise.

“I like that you get the drawings ahead of time so there are no surprises, and it always does look like she promised,” Gange says. “The people

she works with, her contractors, right from the design process to the finish product ... they really pay attention to the details, and I trust them completely. I have a lot of faith in them.”

Photo by Melissa Emory

Designing outside the kitchen

Geneva Cabinet Gallery has six different lines of cabinets in all price ranges, so Havlicek says she is certain she can fit a certain look and kitchen design into a customer’s budget.

Her remodeling gallery showcases those cabinet lines, plus choices for countertops, appliances and more.

But it’s not just kitchens and bathrooms that Geneva Cabinet Gallery can remodel. Other projects can include basements, family rooms,

entertainment areas, bars, small additions and even mudrooms, laundry rooms and storage spaces, Havlicek says. Her team also can install woodwork, replace windows, move walls and more — whatever it takes to make a space complete.

Just last year, Geneva Cabinet Gallery was a platinum winner in the 2012 Elite Design Awards presented by Decor Cabinet Company for a basement bar designed by Swanson.

The winning design had a club-like feel with cherry cabinetry and wainscot, marble counters and a warm, comfortable feel, Havlicek says.

Another basement design Havlicek is quite proud of recently was completed in Naperville.

Cherry cabinets were highlighted with a shelving

5This basement bar, designed by Glenda Swanson, was a platinum winner in the 2012 Elite Design Awards presented by Decor Cabinet Company. Photo provided

unit backed with lit mirrors and two built-in TVs. A dishwasher, refrigerator and icemaker were included, and a copper sink and faucet accented copper lanterns placed on paneled columns.

Havlicek and the other designers at Geneva Cabinet Gallery are always coming up with interesting and unique designs, varying from classic to contemporary, she says.

She once took metallic paint and glazed wallpaper to make it look exactly like a tin ceiling; her team has designed vanities to look like furniture; and when a customer wanted her stand mixer to be hidden in the kitchen yet easily accessible, a pull-out cabinet was installed.

Havlicek even has a friend, Janet Weber of Janet’s Wall Art, who paints murals, which has provided additional design elements to remodels. Several of those details can be seen in the showroom on Stevens Street in Geneva, along several kitchen, laundry and entertainment area vignettes.

“We can do as little or as much [as a customer] wants,” she says.

Understanding the process

No matter what type of project a homeowner wants to take on, the process with Geneva Cabinet Gallery is the same, Havlicek says.

Homeowners can either come into the showroom for a free consultation with a designer, or the designer can visit the home itself to take measurements and discuss the homeowners’ needs. Then, the designer provides a free preliminary drawing of the room to be remodeled. Price points for cabinetry, appliances and other details are discussed up front so there are no surprises down the line.

When work starts, Havlicek’s team utilizes their installers Nelin and Mencel, who are neat, tidy and professional, Swanson says.

“They pay attention to detail,” she says. “Our 6The Biels of Geneva received a six-burner stove top and double oven in their newly designed kitchen. Photo by Melissa Emory

6This kitchen was designed

by Geneva Cabinet Gallery and reconstructed in the Geneva Ace Hardware, owned by Lynn Havlicek and her husband, George. Photo provided

installers are the best in the Midwest, and [they’re] conscientious — they clean up every night.”

Geneva Cabinet Gallery also works with local companies for plumbing, electrical and tile work and more so that homeowners don’t have to worry about contracting separate aspects of the job, though they are welcome to do so. If homeowners already have contractors, architects or designers they are working with, or want to do some of the work themselves, Geneva Cabinet Gallery is happy to work alongside them, Havlicek says.

The overall process should be a streamlined, painless and creative experience, Havlicek says.

And Anita and Steve Nelson say theirs was.

The Batavia couple hired Havlicek to work on their kitchen last year, and Anita Nelson describes her and her team as a “jewel to work with.”

“She is so gifted and artistic,” Nelson says. “She came in and looked at my kitchen — and I have a small, galley kitchen — she came up with this design, and I thought, ‘Yeah, that’s pretty good, I think I like that.’

Her team would come in, and if they said they were going to be there at 7 o’clock, they were there at 7 o’clock.

And when they left, here are these men sweeping and cleaning — that place was clean. They were pleasant; they were friendly; they were nice with each other. You could see they enjoyed each other’s company.”

Havlicek even did a bit of

troubleshooting for the couple.

“We have a narrow kitchen, and the table was too long,” Nelson says. “I shopped and shopped to find a table that would fit in my kitchen, and I could not find it ... . I even went to flea markets — I went all over. [Lynn] said, ‘You know, you can just saw off that end and have your husband repaint it.’ She came up with a creative idea when [we ran] into a roadblock.”

When the final design was done — with new cabinets, flooring and lighting, granite countertops, a white porcelain sink and polished chrome — it was fantastic, Nelson says.

“I just love my kitchen,” she says. “To this day, it’s just still so special. My kids love it.

Everything is quality, I feel, and I like quality.

[Lynn] is wonderful.” kc

Geneva Cabinet Gallery Visit our remodeling gallery at: 321 Stevens St. • Geneva 630-232-9500 Visit us at: www.genevacabinetgallery.com www.houzz.com/pro/lynnhavlicek/geneva-cabinetgallery www.pinterest.com/genevacabinets www.facebook.com/GenevaCabinetGallery

6The Geneva Cabinet Gallery team of designers and installers. Photo by Melissa Emory

home & lifestyle / ARTIST profile

6Omphalic-Triptych

Realizing A DREAM I By ERIN SAUDER

I

St. Charles

artist Catie Barron sees the development of her path in life like the growth of a tree.

“The way we’re born and raised, that’s our trunk,” she says. “Then, we go off on a branch of our own. And sometimes, we only go so far and need to come back to the trunk to find out what it really is we want to be.”

Barron, 48, had to come back to her roots a few times before realizing her true self as an artist.

In high school, the Villa Park native was a member of an elite art club, and after graduation, she had hopes to attend the Art Institute of Chicago.

But when finances held her back, Barron instead went to Iowa State University in Ames for two years, studying architecture and graphic design, and painting on the side. After college, she found work in mortgage lending and banking, eventually taking on the role of vice president of LaSalle Bank in the 1990s before going into the private sector.

But a cancer diagnosis 13 years ago changed her perspective.

“After the bout ended, I realized I had a second chance at life,” says Barron, now a cancer survivor. “I walked back down the branch to the trunk of the tree to realize what my true self was and what I really wanted to do with my life. It was always art.”

The artist’s journey

Barron finally was able to realize her dream of attending the Art Institute of Chicago, graduating in 2009.

Then, Barron’s husband and Harris Bank loaned her some 6Phoslaenopsis

5 (Above) Moonlit Moth Photos provided 6(Below) Lauren

commercial space in Libertyville for 90 days, and she opened a gallery and curated three different exhibitions, utilizing the work of artists from the Chicago metro area.

Barron also curated and managed the Auction Art Gallery for the American Cancer Society’s Discovery Ball in 2010. She put out a blind call for artwork across the country, and within 24 hours, had donations from artists as far away as California and New York.

“This experience was amazing. It showed me the power a collection of art can possess,” she says. “You can look at artwork, especially abstract, and have your own conversation with yourself about its meaning. However, when the artist includes the story of a loss of mother or the survival of a brother, it becomes some

Photographer

discussion completely different.”

“That was the life I grew up in,” she says. “I In 2010, her husband’s job took the couple was always putting my hands in the soil. I’ve from West Chicago to Wisconsin, and always been very fascinated by flowers and Barron transferred as an artist-in-residence to the whole sense of their survival. They make Cedarburg Cultural Center. themselves attractive so they can survive. I find “The artists were so welcoming,” she says. that a funny dichotomy.”

“I was new, so I thought it would be difficult Barron even pursued horticulture herself, to fit in. But they’re all about promoting studying at the College of Lake County before art. It was really refreshing to be in that attending the Art Institute of Chicago. environment.”

She and her husband were 6Red transferred back to the Fox Valley 6RedHerring area a year later and landed in St. Herring Charles.

Last July, Barron became a resident of Batavia’s Water Street Studios.

“It’s an amazing space,” she says. “I can’t say enough good things about the people there. I’m so excited to come back here and become a part of this.”

She also lauds the Fox Valley area as “a great place for artists.”

5Boerners Daylillies

The artist’s inspiration

Barron draws inspiration from nature, particularly orchids.

“It used to be flowers in general, but now it’s orchids,” she says.

Her subject matter is not that surprising, considering Barron is the daughter of a father whom she calls a “huge flower gardener.”

“I could tell even back then I was struggling,” she says. “I knew there was some other thing out there for me. It wasn’t finance and banking and accounting. There was something that pulled me, and I kept having to look and having to look. Horticulture was a little branch I had to go off on. And then I tried the art one. That’s been a really good one.”

Barron eschews the notion that art is gender specific, though she does see how female artists may feel more pressure than male artists to have a deep connection with their work.

6Catie Barron works on a painting.

Kim Byrne Last year, Kim Byrne, owner of KimberleeB Photography in Geneva, had to make a choice. Corporate America or her growing photography business. “I chose what fueled me,” Byrne said.

She began her photography business in 2007, while working in the Consumer Package Goods industry as a Sales Executive. “I was in corporate America for many years and did a lot of traveling.” Photography was a way for Byrne to express her creative side. “It was born out of my love for capturing images, but people saw my photos and started asking me to take pictures for them,” she said.

Byrne,a new member of the Geneva Chamber-of-Commerce, provides a wide variety of photography, from professional headshots to family portraits and weddings. “People are my passion!” she said

Kimberlee B Photography (630) 661-5828 kimberleebphotography.com photos@ kimberleebphotography.com

Don’t Forget Mother’s Day Sunday, May 12th

“I think we sometimes feel we need to have a deeper sort of connection for reasons to do our work rather than just create art for the sake of art,” she says.

“Sometimes, women feel it needs to be emotionally tied somehow.

I’m not sure Catie Barron why we do that Artist or if it’s just part of female evolution.”

She respects American artist Jeffrey Koons, known for his reproductions of balloon animals produced in stainless steel.

“You listen to an artist like Jeff, and he appears as though he’s creating artwork for the sake of doing it, as though he’s thinking, ‘How much fun can I have with this?’” she says. “For me, it doesn’t come with the deeper sort of, ‘I do flowers because of who I am and what I identify with.’”

The artist’s daily life

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Most weeks, Barron spends about three days in the studio and one day on what she calls a field trip.

“I grab my camera and drive anywhere I think I can find flowers — botanical gardens, garden centers, orchid shows and other flower shows,” she says.

And she’s always looking for exhibition opportunities.

She’s enjoying the celebratory feeling she gets from her line of work.

“It’s a feeling of weightlessness, like I’m doing the right thing,” she says.

“Everything is aligning. It’s pretty cool.”

To learn more about Barron, visit www. catarzina.com. kc

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home & lifestyle

Wine, Food

& Friends When I think of wine, I think of food, atmosphere and friends.

So, to just write about wine without talking about the others is nearly impossible.

At least once a year, I really like to give a shout out to the women in the food and beverage industry for all that they do and all that they have accomplished. I usually write about all the female all-stars and give statistics about how the number of females in the food-beverage industry is growing, but this year I want to just praise them all.

I have worked in this industry for a while now, at many different places, and I never used to see many female sommeliers, chefs, managers or owners.

But with the culinary world exploding, I see so much of that changing.

Still, it can be a struggle.

I personally co-run Niche Restaurant with our chef, Serena Perdue, who happens to be female. I see some of the stuff she still has to deal with, and sometimes I wonder how she keeps her cool.

A lot of the time, she will come out in

her chef coat and start talking to people, and they are so shocked when they find out that we have a female chef. Some people will even ask her, “Who is your chef?”

I have never spoken to her about this, but I’m sure she lets her food speak for herself.

This is why I feel we have to praise the women in this field because, in many ways, it is still a man’s world.

But with strong, strong women leading the way, I see that gap closing.

Whether it is cooking, managing, serving or teaching, and regardless of whether it entails wine, beer or booze, just remember this: Anything a man can do in this industry of food and beverages, a woman can do just as well … if not better.

Dedicated to my: Co-worker: Chef Serena Perdue of Niche Restaurant in Geneva Role model: Chef Jill Russell, program coordinator of culinary arts at Elgin Community College Mother: Judy Balistreri, who helped me pursue my dream Teacher of everything: Kim Rother, associate professor of hospitality management at Elgin Community College kc

Serena Perdue

Jill Russell

Judy Balistreri

Kim Rother

Wine Niche

with Vince Balistreri • Vince Balistreri is general manager and sommelier at Niche Restaurant in Geneva. He offers his expertise in the wine industry to the Kane County community. Photo by Megan Kelly

6 Apple French toast, apple compote, strawberries and orange slices.

health

Say ‘I Love You, Mom’

The Healthy Way

By JAMI KUNZER

W

hen it came time to serve her mother breakfast in bed years ago, Selange Giannetto just couldn’t make enough.

Scrambled eggs, cinnamon rolls, bacon, fresh-squeezed orange juice ... the list went on and on.

“It was always, ‘You’re making too much,’” remembers Giannetto of St. Charles.

These days, she still enjoys spending as much time as she can cooking, though the outcome is much healthier than it used to be.

A classically trained, professional chef on and off for at about 15 years, Giannetto specializes in vegan meals these days, having become an aerobics instructor at Delnor Health and Wellness Center about a decade ago and turning over a new, healthy page in her life.

“I no longer cook all those fattening, delicious meals everyone raves about,” she says. “Mine are still delicious, but not loaded with calories. I try to convince people that vegan cooking is not all tofu and salad.”

All of her recipes, she says, are tested by her husband, who is not a vegan.

“I figure if my meat-eating husband can enjoy them, anyone can,” she says with a laugh.

Her children, ages 8 and 5, also enjoy them, especially when they’re involved in cooking them, she says.

And they’ve followed in their mother’s footsteps, eager to serve her breakfast in bed on Mother’s Day and her birthday.

Giannetto sometimes helps out, preparing part of the recipes, such as the pancake or waffle batters, ahead of time and leaving them in the refrigerator.

They actually come out better that way, after sitting

•

Photos by JEFF KRAGE

overnight, she says.

“The French toast, the kids get to put their hands in there and mush it up,” she says.

“It helps them because they get in contact with the food,” she says, stressing the need to get children involved in the kitchen. “They have that attitude where, ‘I made it, I have to try it.’ That’s another good way to introduce different foods, different flavors, different ethnic backgrounds.”

The more exotic, the better, she says, noting her children love unique items, such as dragon fruit.

Giannetto remembers making her first cake at age 5, guided by an aunt that loved cooking and could make anything from scratch.

Instead of cartoons on Saturday mornings, she’d watch cooking shows with her father.

She went on to graduate from culinary school about 18 years ago and worked at various restaurants, including Blackbird in Chicago. She also worked in corporate catering as well as with her own private catering company before becoming more involved with nutrition and aerobics.

She teaches people in their homes how to create great-tasting vegetarian and vegan meals, she says.

“None of the recipes are fairly elaborate,” she says of her suggestions below. “Even though they’re vegan, the ingredients are fairly simple to find.”

And the recipes can be individualized, depending on additions, such as fruit and nuts. With the French toast, she says, she and her children once stuffed it with peanut butter and put strawberries on top to make it like a peanut butter and jelly French toast.

“I feel that peace of mind [and] love of the body will give you fulfillment of the soul,” she says. “What better way to take care of your body than with wonderfully delicious food.”

6 Southern Style Biscuits and strawberries.

Apple French Toast yield: 4 servings

This wonderful recipe was inspired by a brunch item served at San Francisco’s famed Millennium Restaurant.

1 tablespoon ground flax meal 1/2 cup unsweetened apple sauce 2 cups soy milk [vanilla works best] 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1 piece candied ginger 1/4 teaspoon sea salt 8 slices bread, stale bread works best 1/4 cup vegetable oil For the batter, combine the first 6 ingredients in a blender and puree until smooth. Dip slices of bread in the batter and coat evenly. Be sure to let the bread soak up the batter just a bit. Heat a large sauté pan or skillet and lightly coat with oil. Place the batterdipped bread in the pan and cook until brown on both sides. Repeat with the remaining slices of bread and serve with warm apple compote.

NOTE: This dish may be prepared one day in advance. Heat the oven to 375 F. Spray or lightly coat with oil a 9-by-13-inch baking dish; layer with bread.

Pour the flaxseed mixture over the bread and push down to ensure the mixture is absorbed. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until the bread is golden brown and no liquid remains.

Chef’s Tip: The addition of 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract and 2 tablespoons of grand marnier liqueur as well as 1 tablespoon of fresh orange zest makes this a gourmet dish. Top with cashew or vegan whipped cream and dried cranberries.

Bakers Choice Scones Yield: 6 large scones or 12 to18 2-inch rounds

Served warm and fresh from the oven, topped with your favorite preserves or spreads — this recipe is what I call a gateway.

You may change the flavor profiles to fit your moods or your pantry. So, what will you bake up next?

2 cups unbleached all purpose flour 1 tablespoon baking powder 2 tablespoons beet sugar 1/2 teaspoon sea salt 1/2 cup vegan margarine 3/4 cup vanilla soy milk 1 teaspoon vanilla extract * Add 1/4 to 1/2 of your favorite dried fruit, nut or chocolate to the batter to personalize the flavor.

Heat the oven to 425 F. Sift together the flour, baking powder, sugar and

salt into a large bowl.

Using a pastry cutter, work the margarine into the flour mixture until it resembles small peas. Add soy milk and vanilla extract and blend together until a rough dough forms.

On a lightly floured surface, continue to knead the mixture until it is smooth. Flatten into a large circle.

Wrap in plastic and chill for 30 minutes.

Remove from the fridge and roll out dough to 1/2 inch thickness.

Using a knife or cookie cutter, cut into desired shapes and place on 5 Selange Giannetto slices an apple. a parchment-lined cookie sheet. Bake for 16 to 18 minutes or until scones are additional seasonings if necessary. Pour the tofu and lightly brown. Dust with powdered sugar if desired and serve warm with vegetable mixture into the pie shell and bake for 35 to 40 minutes or until set. Let stand at for 5 to 10 your favorite jam or spread. minutes before slicing.

Breakfast Quiche

Crust 1 cup unbleached flour 1/4 cup whole wheat flour 9 tablespoons nonhydrogenated vegetable shortening 1/3 to 1/2 cup iced water Filling 3/4 cup diced peppers [assorted colors] 1/2 cup chopped green onion 2 cloves garlic minced 1 tablespoon olive oil to sauté 1 pound of extra firm tofu 1/2 cup unsweetened soy milk 1/4 teaspoon Dijon mustard 1/4 teaspoon sea salt 1 tablespoon fresh chopped parsley 1/4 teaspoon black pepper 1/2 teaspoon nutritional yeast 2 tablespoons tamari [soy sauce] 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flake [optional] 1/8 teaspoon black sea salt [optional] Heat the oven to 375 F. To form the pie crust, sift the flour, salt and corn meal together.

Using fingers, break up the shortening into the flour mixture until combined and the mixture resembles a crumb the size of a pea.

Add water, a small amount at a time, until the mixture just comes together to form a ball.

Chill for 30 minutes. Roll the dough out into a 13-inch circle. Gently line a 9-inch pie pan with the dough, pushing the dough up the sides of the pan. Prick the bottom with a fork. Bake pie crust for 12 to 15 minutes.

Sauté the onion for 1 minute in oil heated in a sauté pan. Add garlic and peppers and continue to cook 5 minutes or until the onion begins to brown; remove and cool.

In a blender, place tofu, soy milk, mustard, black sea salt and regular salt, red pepper flake and nutritional yeast. Blend until smooth.

Fold in the vegetable mixture and parsley; add

Breakfast Bread Pudding

This dish is best when prepared the day before and finished in the oven the day you want to serve it.

4 tablespoons vegan margarine melted 8 slices bread, cut into 1-inch cubes

6 Giannetto puts the finishing touches on her dish.

3 cups unsweetened soy milk 1/4 cup ground flax meal 1 teaspoon dried basil 1 teaspoon salt 1 tablespoon nutritional yeast 1/4 teaspoon black pepper 1/2 cup diced red onion 1/2 cup diced red pepper 1 cup halved cherry tomatoes 1/4 cup chopped fresh basil 1 clove garlic, chopped 1 cup fresh sliced mushrooms In a mixing bowl, whisk together soy milk, flax meal, basil, salt, nutritional yeast and pepper; set aside. In a 9-by-13-inch baking dish, pour margarine and coat the pan. In a medium mixing bowl, toss together the bread and remaining ingredients. Layer evenly in the baking dish. Pour soy milk mixture over bread to coat, pushing the bread down to ensure that it soaks up as much of the mixture as possible. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 1/2 hours-24 hours before baking.

The next day, heat the oven to 350 F. Bake for 60 to 75 minutes or until the pudding is nicely brown and no liquid remains. Let stand 15 minutes before serving.

Chunky Monkey

5 Selange Giannetto showcases some of her prepared meals.

1 cup vanilla soy milk 1 frozen banana 2 tablespoons chunky peanut butter

1 tablespoon cocoa powder 1 tablespoon agave nectar (plus more if needed) 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 1/8 cup crushed ice Combine all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth. For a garnish, add vanilla cashew whipped cream, chopped peanuts and a dusting of cocoa powder.

Southern Style Biscuits

2 cups unbleached all purpose flour or 1/2 cup whole wheat flour plus 1/2 cup unbleached all purpose flour 2 teaspoons baking powder 1/4 teaspoon baking soda 1/4 teaspoon sea salt 4 tablespoons vegan margarine 2/3 cup unsweetened soy milk 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar Heat oven to 450 F. Sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt and set aside. In a small bowl, whisk together the soy milk and vinegar; set aside. Using your hands, mix the margarine and flour together until the mixture resembles the size of small green peas. Add the soy milk mixture to the flour and knead until a soft dough forms.

Place the dough in plastic film and wrap tightly. Place in the refrigerator and chill for 30 minutes. Remove from the refrigerator and on a lightly-dusted work surface, roll out the dough to 1/2 inch thickness. Using Sig We n Up bsi te On fo F R Co EE r up on s!

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a biscuit cutter, cut into rounds and place on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Bake for 12 minutes or until biscuits are golden brown.

Place on a clean kitchen towel. Serve warm with butter and your favorite jam.

May Events Join Us at Heritage Woods of Batavia!

Wonderful Waffles

Whether it’s breakfast, brunch or even lunch, these waffles always feel like a special treat. Serve with warm apple compote, fresh fruit or your favorite maple syrup. * A waffle iron is needed for this recipe 1 1/2 cups soy milk (more if needed) 1 1/2 tablespoons lemon juice 1 1/2 cups whole wheat pastry flour 1/2 cup corn meal 3/4 teaspoon salt 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 1/2 teaspoon baking powder 3 tablespoons vegetable oil (plus more for waffle iron) 2 tablespoons real maple syrup Heat a waffle iron. In a small bowl, combine the soy milk and lemon juice; set aside. The mixture will curdle. Sift together the dry ingredients; set aside. Stir the oil and maple syrup into the soy milk mixture and add to the dry ingredients. The batter should become quite thick but still be pourable. If it’s too thick, stir in an additional tablespoon or two of soymilk. When the waffle iron is hot, brush it with oil. Pour 1/2 cup of batter of the surface and bake 5 to 6 minutes or until waffles are crisp and brown. Transfer to a cooling rack and keep warm in a 200-degree oven until ready to serve.

Flavorful additions: Walnuts Pecans Fresh berries Chocolate chips Sunflower seeds kc

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29

Is In The Giving A non-profit feature

No matter how tough things get there is always someone suffering worse than you.

Kane County has an assortment of nonprofit services providing support for families and individuals at their time of need. Each month, Kane County Magazine will feature a county-wide nonprofit organization. It is our hope that this will not only give you hope, but ideas on how to help others in your own way.

Without the support of hundreds of volunteers, Kane

County’s nonprofits would not survive. Take time to get to know the services available right here in Kane County.

Maybe someone you know needs support. Maybe you can give time or resources to help.

One great thing about Kane County is that we have so many excellent nonprofits and our communities are contributing to their success.

YOUR FAMILY AND MENTAL HEALTH

What do you know about mental health? The answers to the following questions may surprise you.

1) Depression is the ___________ cause of disability worldwide. a) leading b) fifth most common c) third 2) At any point in time, it is estimated that 1 of every ______ adults suffer from a diagnosable mental disorder. a) 4 b) 10 c) 100 3) ______ of children & adolescents living in the U.S. suffer from serious mental & emotional disorders that cause significant functional impairment in their day-to-day lives at home, in school and with peers. a) 10% b) 5% c) 2% 3) ________ of people with a diagnosable mental illness do not treatment because of stigma, age-old fears and misinformation. a) 2/3 b) 1/3 c) 1/4 The answer to all of these questions is A. Mental illness, as well as the importance of general mental health and wellness, are areas of human life that are not shouted out loud, celebrated, or even acknowledged as often as one would think given constant effect on people’s daily lives.

May is Mental Health Awareness Month and good time to take stock of you and your family’s mental health. If it’s great, great! If not, TriCity Family Services can help. At TriCity Family Services, our business is the mental and emotional health of the community and we celebrate those who utilize and support our programs and services every day.

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Our services extend to local businesses and organizations, offering employee assistance programs to sustain and improve the overall health and productivity of their workplaces. Our multi-dimensional approach provides a variety of supportive services to promote lifelong mental health.

We are dedicated to being a trusted mental health resource not only for individuals and families, but also for all community organizations that share our commitment to strengthening the entire TriCity community.

Our accessible programs and services are made possible by the generosity of the community. To make a donation to TriCity Family Services or learn how you can get involved through volunteering or supporting one of our many special events throughout the year, visit www.tricityfamilyservices.org.

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health

6Stephanie Larson founded Dancing For Birth in 2000, hoping to help women around the world give birth in a more pain-free, natural way. Photos provided

Dance Partners Dancing For Birth classes help expectant moms through labor and beyond I By Jacky Runice

When your granny was “in the family way,” she was probably told to take it as easy as possible, hike up the support hose and put her feet up.

5Renee Page believes Dancing For Birth will take off in the Kane County area, just as yoga and Zumba classes gradually have become popular.

I

Your mom may have popped a pregnancy exercise video in the old VCR and signed up for a Lamaze class to learn how to breathe through labor when you were in utero.

You? You’re dancing with guitars.

Dancing For Birth prenatal/postpartum dance classes feature world music and dance moves from around the planet that prepare a woman for the laborious road to motherhood.

It aims to give you physical and mental strength to endure labor and even beckons your return postpartum so that ab rehab isn’t quite so grueling.

It’s not surprising that Stephanie Larson, the founder of Dancing For Birth, has been dancing since birth.

“I’ve always been a dancer, and when my first child was born in 1998, I became interested in [the] birth process, so I became a doula and childbirth educator,” the St. Louis resident says. “I had danced my way through my first two births and shared my great birth stories with people who I was coaching as a doula. I started teaching the Dancing For Birth classes, and medical professionals embraced it right from the beginning.”

By 2005, Larson was a nationally known speaker on the topic, and a certification program began in 2007.

“Up until 2007, there was just my class in New Jersey available to women,” Larson says.

“Today, there are more than 100 certified Dancing for Birth instructors in 10 countries and on four continents.”

One of those certified teachers is Renee Page of Gilberts, another woman who has been a dancing queen for most of her life.

“I’m a lifelong dancer, starting with ballet as a child and then other dance forms,” she says. “And I’m still a part of a professional Polynesian dance troupe. I heard about 6Today, Dancing For Birth classes are available in 10 Dancing for Birth countries on four continents. from my sister, who is a doula, about the same time I was dabbling in belly dancing.”

Page made a trek to Minnesota to train and gained her certification in June 2012.

So, what’s it all about?

According to Larson, the premise of the method can

6 “One of the things Dancing For Birth does is it helps the baby rotate and descend through the pelvis, which for Mom can result in a shorter, easier labor,” Larson says.

[Dancing For Birth] is also rooted in indigenous dance forms from the Caribbean, Africa and Latin America as well as the Middle East.

— Stephanie Larson, founder of Dancing For Birth 6 “Renee Page teaches Dancing For

Birth classes in Gilberts. be traced back to belly dancing, but it’s also rooted in indigenous dance forms from the Caribbean, Africa and Latin America as well as the Middle East.

A typical class is about 90 minutes long and costs roughly the same as a yoga or Pilates class.

“You can begin when can help alleviate postpartum blues by raising you’re just thinking about becoming pregnant oxytocin levels, which is known as the love because it improves fitness and gets your hormone. She’ll bond better with baby and body ready for pregnancy, but it can be her partner by diminished pain and more helpful even if your due date is next week,” endorphins.”

Larson says.

Page observes that it’s not really a new, but If you’re thinking you can just hit the rather ancient process. treadmill for the same effect, Larson begs to “It’s going back to the way women were differ. meant to give birth before hospitals and “One of the things Dancing For Birth doctors got involved,” the Kane County does is it helps the baby rotate and descend instructor says. “You learn all the different through the pelvis, which for Mom can result moves that help mother and baby. You can in a shorter, easier labor,” she says. “It’s not get the baby to turn in the proper position, only helping her stay active so she can stay and in labor, you can stand instead of lying active during labor, [but it] provides feelings in a bed. of well being during pregnancy and after. It “I hear that cognitive skills are advanced

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with babies whose mothers get into Dancing For Birth,” she adds.

The method is constructed so that women can continue for an entire year after Baby arrives, too.

“You wear your baby on your body and keep dancing,” Larson says. “I have had participants who stay with it through more than one child.”

According to Larson, Dancing For Birth has been embraced by the medical community, including doctors, midwives and childbirth educators who are passing along the information to their patients.

Page has contacted local park districts and obstetricians who now have brochures that explain more about the classes she teaches in her Gilberts’ studio. She’s waiting for the dancing women to follow.

“Dancing For Birth is kind of like where yoga and Zumba were a few years ago,” Page says. “Once it takes off around here, it’s really going to fly.” kc

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Fox Valley Orthopedics Celebrates 40 Years of Keeping the Community Moving by Saying Thanks and Inspiring Motion Fox Valley Orthopedics’ (FVO) forty-week celebration

is in full swing. FVO is saying thanks, ‘in motion’, to its patients, staff, partners, and the community. To kick off the milestone anniversary, FVO is supporting the City of Geneva’s Bike + Rack = Art Sculptural Bicycle Rack Public Art Program. Other thanks ‘in motion’ initiatives to date include the 13th Annual Fox Trot 5K Run/Walk for the Batavia Mothers’ Club, Ozzie’s Home Run and Walk, Geneva High School Lacrosse, and the Geneva Baseball Association.

“We are saying thank you to our community in forty ways that inspire motion,” says Dr. Craig Torosian, medical director at Fox Valley Orthopedics. “From the beginning, FVO has had a single driving vision...Providing the best orthopedic care possible to help people get back to work, increase their mobility, return to sports, and keep doing what they love to do at every stage of life.”

“One in four Americans has a bone or joint health problem, and ����� ������ � ���������� ���� �� ������ ��������� ����� ���� ��� Kevan Ketterling, a sports medicine orthopedic surgeon at Fox Valley Orthopedics. “We’re committed to continuing to make a difference through advanced care and prevention efforts in our community.”

In 1973, FVO’s founders - Drs. Eugene Wittenstrom and Merle Denker - recognized the need to offer Fox Valley residents access to specialized, high quality orthopedic care in their own backyard.

Over the years, the group has continued to expand vital access to comprehensive sports medicine and orthopedic care, culminating in the recent launch of OrthoFirst - walk-in care for acute orthopedic injuries such as sprains and strains, broken bones, and sports injuries.

For forty years, FVO has kept the community moving, helping patients with their knees, shoulders, hips, back, ankles, feet, hands, wrists, joints and muscles. And, thousands of professional and amateur athletes have been able to get back in the game with specialized sports medicine care.

Here are a few of the many ways Fox Valley Orthopedics has helped keep the community moving with advanced orthopedic care, leadership, and community involvement: � Providing fellowship-trained orthopedic surgeons to Geneva area residents � Advancing orthopedics through sub-specialized care for every joint, bone, and muscle � Being active nationally in organizations such as the Illinois Association of Orthopedic Surgeons (IAOS) � Performing total joint surgery and minimally invasive arthroscopy; platelet rich plasma (PRP) therapy to heal tendon and ligament injuries, and osteoarthritis; and cartilage restoration for repairing, regenerating, and replacing damaged cartilage � Being a leader in orthopedic research and development � Providing free sports physicals for athletes at several area schools � Serving as team physicians for the Kane County Cougars and area high schools � Supporting local youth sports and charitable organizations � Participating in injury prevention partnership programs such as the STOP Sports Injuries and Decide to Drive campaigns

For more information on Fox Valley Orthopedics' anniversary celebration to keep the community moving, go to www.fvortho.com.

40 YEARS OF KEEPING OUR COMMUNITY MOVING JOIN OUR CELEBRATION! Connect with us on Facebook and check for updates at fvortho.com as we reveal the 40 ways we are saying Thanks ‘in motion’ with anniversary surprises that are sure to Move You!

GENEVA • ELGIN

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A Special Section Of Kane County Magazine

WOMEN 2013

BUSINESS

CLOTHING

DESIGN

DENTAL

LOCAL

BUSINESS

BUSINESS

BUSINESS

Fashionista. Extrovert. Former stayat-home mom. Meet Jill Card, who started selling jeans and cute tops out of a 900-square-foot boutique space and now has three successful stores in the western suburbs.

Artist. Interior designer. Life-long learner. Angie Fansler never thought she’d grow up to design and decorate homes, but she says she inherited “artistic sensibilities” from her parents that now help her business thrive.

Doctor. Trainer. ‘Drill’ sergeant. Even with three children and a husband at home, Dr. Shannon Samuels manages to balance her personal life with her professional life as owner of her own dental practice.

Jeweler. Financial advisor. Fitness guru.

Take a look at the women who make Kane County businesses click, from savvy executives to dynamic managers all working toward the same common goal — taking care of their customers.

BUSINESS

women in business / on the cover

Houses Of

Card

St. Charles Resident Has Opened Three Successful Clothing Shops

An

eye for fashion and a heart for people has helped entrepreneur Jill Card turn Jeans and a Cute Top Shop into a successful business.

The downtown St. Charles boutique opened in 2010 and is actually Card’s second of three locations. The first opened in Wheaton in 2009, and the newest store opened in Downers Grove last fall. The store’s name is an apt description of its merchandise, with accessories and even a few shoes rounding out the mix.

In addition, the store offers styling assistance and complimentary alterations.

“I’m filling a niche,” Card says. “I’d always wanted to find a store like this, so I created what I couldn’t find.”

Card and her staff like to tell customers that when it comes to jeans, they’re three deep knee bends away from the perfect fit.

“Everyone’s shape is different, every pair of jeans is different and we’ll always be honest about how it looks,” Downers Grove store manager Cathy Jankiewicz says. “If it’s not right, we’ll say, ‘We can do better,’ and we keep looking until we find the right pair.”

4Jill Card and he Card compares the experience matching outfits. r sister, Lisa, in Photo provided customers receive at her store to shopping with a girlfriend.

“You don’t have to shop alone, unless you want to,” she says. “We can be that girlfriend who couldn’t come with you. That’s what we love to do, and it makes our job more fun.”

Lifelong Fashionista

4Jill Card owns three fashion boutiques in the western suburbs.

Fashion has been part of Card’s life since childhood.

Growing up in Elgin, she and her sister, Lisa, wore carefully coordinated outfits put together by their mom,

6All three of Card’s stores offer styling assistance and complimentary alterations. The St. Charles shop is located at 161 S. First St.

Judith Imming. Imming recalls a trip to the Merchandise Mart when Jill was 3 and her sister was 5 when everyone was captivated by the little girls in matching Kelly green and white dresses, coats and tams.

“We couldn’t get anyone to show us anything, they only wanted to talk about my daughters,” Imming says.

As a teen, Card worked at The Limited and dressed the store mannequins. Classmates at Larkin High School voted her best dressed.

Still, fashion wasn’t in her sights as a career.

She majored in advertising at the University of Illinois in Champaign and worked in Chicago as a membership manager for two private clubs.

There, she learned the importance of customer service and how to market intangibles.

“We worked to create an experience that made them want to come back,” she says. “I had no idea that transferred so perfectly into a retail boutique.”

After marriage and eight years as a stay-athome mom of her two boys, Card took a job at Ann Taylor, which proved a natural fit for her style sense and outgoing personality.

“I just talked to people, asked what they wanted and gave them ideas for little things

they could do to update their look,” she says.

It was during this time that she began to consider opening her own store, incorporating ideas she’d had over the years such as personal fittings, styling assistance and alterations.

She investigated franchises but ruled them out because they didn’t offer the freedom to incorporate her ideas.

Her husband, Richard, was behind her 100 percent, Card says.

“He thought this was a winning idea, and after two years of doing research, we were prepared for what we were getting into,” she says. “We figured out ways to manage our schedules and our family.”

What she lacked was a business name.

Though she’d described her store’s merchandise as “jeans and cute tops,” it didn’t occur to her initially that the right name was staring her in the face.

“Then one day it just hit me,” she says.

The phrase even had a connection to her personal life, as it was what her future husband had suggested she wear on their first date. With the name and online domain in place, she developed the store’s logo, color

By ELIZABETH HARMON Photos by MELISSA EMORY

scheme and website, and secured a 900-square foot location in downtown Wheaton.

The shop was a hit, despite its small size and lines for fitting rooms.

“I think being busy put us on the map, and we turned a challenge into a benefit,” Card says.

Another early challenge was the steady stream of donation requests from schools and other local groups. Although she didn’t want

6Jeans and a Cute Top Shop also carries accessories, shoes and more.

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5Jill Card utilizes her support system and her staff members to successfully run three boutiques.

to refuse anyone, Card felt overwhelmed until she hit upon an idea and enlisted her mother’s help, creating silent auction baskets with a gift certificate, small accessories coordinated in the school colors, and an invitation for an in-store private styling and shopping party.

“It’s a way to help the community and get our name out,” Card says.

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The shop’s success brought expansion offers, but Card was wary of growing too quickly, setting aside all offers except for one from St. Charles.

“It piqued our interest to be part of the rebirth of downtown St. Charles,” she says.

With two stores to run, Card learned to rely on her staff, and in 2011, she was contacted by downtown Downers Grove about a vacant storefront. Yet, after visiting the location, Card and her husband felt it wasn’t quite right.

“We told them to keep us in mind, and then we started doing some investigation, going out to dinner in Downers Grove, looking at foot traffic and getting an idea for where we’d like to be,” she says.

A few months later, another store in that area became available, and the Cards grabbed it. The shop’s September opening coincided with Downers Grove’s popular downtown art fair.

“We opened our door, and there were 1,000 people KaneCountyMagazine.com

walking past,” she says.

“We couldn’t have planned it better.”

Card says one of her biggest lessons as an entrepreneur was learning to delegate and rely on her skilled team, as well as her personal support system.

“No small business owner knows how allconsuming it is until they’re knee deep,” she says. “Make sure you have good backup in place — friends, husband and parents — because you can’t do it alone.”

And just as Card is quick to credit her employees for the shop’s success, Jankiewicz returns the compliment. “[Jill] has energy and fashion sense,” Jankiewicz says. “People love working with her. We all bring something different, and Jill brings the sunshine.” kc

6Fashionable hand bags are available at Card’s stores.

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May 2013 • Kane County Magazine

39

women in business

6 A bouquet of flowers sits on a table inside Angie Fansler’s studio at 205 1/2 W. State St. in Geneva, now home to Designer’s Playhouse. Below is Fansler, who started Angie’s Interiors at the urging of a friend. (Hair and makeup by Carla and Leighton, respectively, of Mario Tricoci Hair Salons and Day Spas in Geneva.)

The

Art of Success E

ven before she recognized it, Angie Fansler was developing her artistic talent.

Growing up in Kansas City, Mo., she was surrounded by artisans and artists. One aunt painted. Her grandmother painted, made her own clothes and mixed her own wood stains in pie tins. Her sister grew up to become a successful illustrator. Mom was the neighborhood’s answer to Martha Stewart.

And Angie?

“I was not the least bit interested in any of it,” she says with a laugh.

Today, however, all that has changed. As the owner of Angie’s Interiors in Geneva, Fansler has built a successful career as an interior designer, offering custom design, decorating and installation services.

“I absorbed more than I thought, and now I use all of those things,” she says. “I even mix my own stains in plastic butter tubs.”

Lynn Beeh, a floral designer and a friend of Fansler for more than 35 years, says that Fansler’s ability to see the big picture allows her to connect with clients and direct others to complete a project.

By Elizabeth Harmon • Photos by MELISSA EMORY

at her friend’s urging, she obtained a sales tax identification number.

“I was standing in line with all of these people who were opening Dunkin’ Donut shops and kept thinking, ‘What am I doing here?’” she recalls.

54 (Above and at right) Several artists now utilize Fansler’s library of supplies and materials through the co-op Designer’s Playhouse.

“She’s enthusiastic and energetic, with great leadership ability,” Beeh says.

Starting from scratch Fansler says she always enjoyed interacting with others, and in high school, she was drawn toward the outdoors and an active social life. She enrolled in Taylor University, a Christian liberal arts college in Indiana, and majored in political science with an eye on a career in government.

Falling in love changed her plans. She married Jim Fansler and worked while he attended art school in Chicago. A few years later, he launched a career as an advertising agency art director, and the couple moved with their two young sons to a “fixer-upper” in Geneva.

At 1,100 square feet, the 1940s saltbox home demanded creative use of space. With more time than money, the Fanslers did most of the work.

“We enjoyed being able to make something old and tired look fresh and new,” Fansler says. “We got great pride from doing it ourselves, and what I learned has helped me as a designer.”

She tried new ideas, took classes and even taught some of the techniques she learned to others. The finished home — with creative storage, stenciled cabinets and designer flare — caught the attention of friends and neighbors, including a fellow church member, who encouraged Fansler to start her own design business.

Fansler had no intention of doing so, but

To get her tax number, she also needed a business name.

“I named it after myself, as I hadn’t had time to think of anything else,” she says.

Finding direction

Angie’s Interiors started slowly, and for the next six years, Fansler dabbled in interior design, floral arrangement and other endeavors until a meeting with the couple’s financial consultant provided the necessary direction.

“I voiced concern about how we were going to pay for our young sons’ college, and he told me I should pick one of my interests and get serious about it,” she says. “So, I chose this one.”

Yet even then, transitioning favors to friends into paying work wasn’t easy.

“I didn’t know what I was worth, because I’d never worked in a design firm,” she says.

The turning point came in 1998, when downtown Geneva businessman Mike Abts mentioned his interest in renting out an unfinished space above his paint store.

Though Fansler was not sure she could meet the rent, Abts promised not to evict her if she had a slow month.

He need not have worried.

“In 16 years, I’ve never missed a payment,” Fansler says.

Having a design studio gave Fansler the confidence to turn Angie’s Interiors into a viable business. She hired a receptionist to answer the phone and greet clients who came to her studio.

“That really set me apart from other designers,” she says.

Fansler’s reputation spread, as satisfied clients were quick to refer her.

John Janisch of St. Charles discovered Fansler though his homebuilder when she was doing design work for another client. They began collaborating during the design phase of Janisch’s home.

“She handled everything, ordering fixtures, molding, paint colors, ceiling treatments, everything,” he says.

The collaboration was a good one, and Janisch has passed Fansler’s name along.

“My business partner is using her now,” he says.

Fansler’s biggest challenges were the daily tasks of running a business, such as handling finances and managing employees. Initially, she hired others to oversee her accounting and bookkeeping, but over the years, she has become more hands-on.

6 Fansler stands with independent interior designer Cheryl Campbell-Kelley, who works for Bobbi Alderfer, owner of Lifestyle Design and the “lynchpin” of Designer’s Playhouse, Fansler says..

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“I would advise anyone thinking of going into business to work in the field first in order to give yourself a jumpstart,” she says.

Staying afloat

The recession and subsequent slowdown in home construction brought more challenges.

Fansler had to let several employees go, and she invited another designer to share her studio space.

She also formed a co-op, Designer’s Playhouse, which allows other designers to meet clients at the studio and use Fansler’s library of supplies and materials. Currently, Designer’s Playhouse includes Fansler, manager Bobbi Alderfer, who also is owner of Lifestyle Design, and Cheryl Campbell-Kelley, Jill Davis, Cheryl Ploshay, Helen Brazeau and Helen Sauter.

Fansler’s husband, Jim, designed the logo for Designer’s Playhouse as well as for Angie’s Interiors and continues to encourage her and help however he can.

“He’s been my illustrator, my handyman around the studio and he’s even gone out to client’s homes to make small fixes to the drapes or fixtures,” Fansler says. “I couldn’t have done this without him.”

Fansler and her husband now live in Batavia, remain active in the community and their church, and are thinking about purchasing another fixer-upper.

After almost 20 years in business, Fansler still loves working with clients to create a pleasing environment where they truly feel at home.

“She’s helped me express my personality in my homes,” says client Julie Wilmington of St. Charles. “Some people just want their homes decorated, but I want people to walk in and see me. She was able to see through my eyes and decorate.”

Fansler’s career also has taught her the importance of being open to new ideas and directions.

“Be a life-long learner,” she says. “I tell young women that when you leave home, you don’t always know what your special gifts are or what God has in store for you. As it turns out, I did inherit artistic sensibilities from my parents and learned valuable skills, even though I wasn’t intentionally listening.” kc 6 Color libraries and books of material and pattern selections can be found throughout the studio space.

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May 2013 • Kane County Magazine

43

women in business

6 Dr. Shannon Samuels of Geneva believes dentistry is a flexible career that’s ideal for women because it allows a person to work part-time if desired.

Drill Sergeant Geneva Dentist Balances Occupation And Family Life I By JACKY RUNICE

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Photos by JEFF KRAGE

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merican poet Ogden Nash which include the occupations that offer a summed up the feelings of mix of good employment prospects, salary, many when he wrote, “Some work-life balance and job security. tortures are physical, and No. 1? Dentists. some are mental, but the one “I think dentistry is a fabulous career, that is both, is dental.” especially for women, as it allows one to work Apparently this does not apply in Geneva. part-time if desired,” says Samuels, a Geneva You won’t find cowering clients tiptoeing resident of 19 years. “A dentist can therefore into Hamilton House Dentistry. On the balance her occupation with a full family contrary, patients seem to be thrilled to be life.” there.

“We have excellent patients,” says Dr. Shannon Samuels.

“People come in gracious and happy for the dentistry.”

It could be because the lady loves her job.

“I love my patients, and it’s a pleasure to come in to work every day,” she says.

Her positive attitude reflects the findings of a recent report, U.S. News 100 5 Pictured are Dr. Shannon Samuels, center, with staff (from left) Best Jobs of 2013, Jacqueline Mowers of Hampshire, Ann Hudon of Geneva, Lois Coklan

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Tricks Of The Trade

Even though her brother is a dentist, Samuels wasn’t exactly born with mouthwash in her veins.

“I didn’t know what I was going to do until I graduated from college, but was leaning toward being a scientist,” she says. “When I was a senior in college, my advisor said to me one day, ‘Consider dentistry because it is a very good field for women.’ I was thrilled to death when I got accepted to dental school at the University of Nebraska and got a very good education.”

After dental school and a residency at Illinois Masonic Medical Center, Samuels’s first job was at a Chicago practice with two other women.

When she and her husband, who has worked at Argonne National Labs for more

of Bartlett and Jill Giudice of Aurora at Hamilton House Dentistry.

44 Kane County Magazine • May 2013

KaneCountyMagazine.com

than 20 years, made the move to Geneva, Samuels found the commute painfully long.

She moved a dental office in DeKalb and then another in Geneva.

“By 2006, I knew it was time to get my own place,” the mother of three says. “It was a completely empty office condo, and I had it built out to my specifications, spent six months designing the office, had equipment installed and opened April 10, 2007.”

Becoming a business owner has its challenges.

6 Samuels spent six months designing her dentist office, which opened its doors in 2007.

AApparently, Successful Practice the science of dentistry and

the art of business are coalescing nicely at 309 Hamilton St. in Geneva.

Patient Dorie Nicoletto, a paraprofessional in the Kaneland School District, is one enthusiastic subscriber to Samuels’ practice.

“Hamilton House was different from the moment I walked in,” the Elburn resident says. “My first appointment began with a little tour of the office and the treatment rooms and a warm introduction to the

Dentistry,” says Jon Barr, who lives in Geneva with wife Chris and four little Barrs.

“The delightfully cheerful staff is always very welcoming, and they are a pleasure to work with. They are very accommodating when scheduling our children to minimize disruption to our busy lives. The exam rooms are inviting and feel very comfortable while also maintaining the highest level of hygiene.

“Dr. Samuels is warm and caring and is always asking about the rest of the family,” he adds.

After learning the tricks of the trade —

Hamilton House was different from the moment I walked in. My first appointment began with a little tour of the office ...

— Dorie Nicoletto, patient at Hamilton House Dentistry

“There’s a lot of behind the scenes work that goes along with having a paperless office,” Samuels says. “The actual running of the business, the financial part, I have no problems with that because I kind of like crunching numbers. I had to teach myself how to do marketing and come up with marketing and advertising ideas.”

Another matter Samuels had to learn to wrangle as a business owner was staff.

“The harder thing for me is being stern with an employee,” the Nebraska native says.

“I want to educate and talk to them, and sometimes you have to be firm. Sometimes people don’t get what you mean and it’s time to say goodbye.

“Staffing has been an ongoing issue because it’s hard to find people who can work part time, and it’s a job that requires a lot of on-the-job training,” Samuels continues. “In Illinois, it’s not required that a dental assistant go to dental assistant school.

While I love teaching and training, it’s hard to do that and do dentistry, and the dentistry has to be my first priority.”

KaneCountyMagazine.com

staff. Along with the great surroundings, it and figuring out how to coax patients to be really added a little warmth to an otherwise thrilled with the notion of coming in for anxious morning.” dental work — Samuels has learned a few Nicoletto’s cheerleading worked on her great strategies to pass on to business ownershusband, Tom, who became a patient of to-be.

Samuels’ a few months ago.

“First, don’t even listen if people tell you, “You cannot help but be impressed ‘Oh, that can’t be done,’ just go right ahead with the level of technology that she and do it and don’t waste time arguing with offers, making treatment so much easier them,” she says. “Next, don’t settle. If it’s not to understand,” Dorie Nicoletto says. “I done right, have them redo it. Lastly, don’t had changed my dentist for that reason, be afraid to be assertive. Remember that it’s and Dr. Samuels didn’t disappoint. I had your candy shop and you can run it any way extensive work done over the course of you want to.” kc last year, and I can assure you that I would happily recommend Hamilton House 6 Dr. Shannon Samuels talks about Dentistry and their dental care with Brittany Sommer of wonderful staff to Geneva at Hamilton House Dentistry. anyone.”

While the Nicolettos are empty nesters, all six members of the Barr family regularly visit Hamilton House for their dental health.

“We absolutely love visiting Hamilton House

Pictured from left to right: Cathy Dobson, Tracey Gniewek, standing Lori Vargas, Jeanne Hahn sitting Debbie Fields standing by table.

Women run the show at Pheasant Run Resort in St. Charles It was 50 years ago when Pheasant Run Resort opened its doors to business and leisure travelers looking for a unique place to stay. Using that milestone, five women are leading the charge to take the St. Charles resort to a new level.

The five women are: Jeanne Hahn, director of sales & marketing, Cathy Dobson, finance director, Tracy Gniewek, director of human resources, Debbie Fields, senior catering manager, and Lori Vargas, founder of Spa Vargas Wellness Center. This talented group has invested a total of 90 years working in the hotel and hospitality industry.

According to Hahn, the team is energized by the resort’s 50th anniversary, a recent change in management, and a laundry list of projects to upgrade the property and its 473 guest rooms.

“We are modernizing the entire tower, so that means new carpet, new linens, new flat screen televisions and technological advances for the business traveler,” said Hahn.

Pheasant Run is an ideal spot for those traveling for business in and around the Chicago area. The resort boasts 100,000 square feet of meeting space, for everything from corporate group business and associations, to government groups and collectible and hobby shows. “Moving forward, we’re trying to capture more new client business,” Hahn reported. The resort is also open to the public, with golf, tennis, and swimming available to residents through day pass and membership programs.

Cathy Dobson can make everybody happy, as long as she comes up with the cash. “Finance gives me the opportunity to enhance the property with the resources we take in, so we can take care of our associates, guests and owners, while improving the overall business and guest experience,” said Dobson.

“It’s an exciting time here because we’re making large investments in everything our future guests will see,” she noted.

The new leader of human resources, Tracy Gniewek, spent 20 years in Las Vegas, opening the MGM Grand and Aladdin Hotels before returning to the Chicago area. Pheasant Run may have a different scale than her Vegas properties, and fewer Elvis impersonators, but the job itself is much the same. “The energy here is comparable, I’ve been embraced by a great leadership

team, and I’m really starting to feel at home,” she said.

In her 22 years as senior catering manager, Debbie Fields has planned 500 weddings and numerous business conventions. She said while the industry has changed, one thing remains consistent. “Pheasant Run is a one-stop shop for weddings and business meetings, with staff available to handle every detail,” said Fields. Often, the weddings turn into family reunions. “People may choose to stay and play golf or tennis, see a show at our live theater or comedy club, use the spa, or enjoy brunch together,” reported Fields. “It’s all here, so they really don’t have to leave!”

Lori Vargas left corporate America to open Spa Vargas and Wellness Center. She notes the newest industry trend is a focus on health and wellness. “Our guests come to the spa, not just to get their hair or nails done, but for the overall experience,” said Vargas. The full-service spa offers a wide array of facials, nail services, hair and makeup, and a selection of body treatments, including the spa’s signature Tranquility Massage.

Pheasant Run Resort has been in business for 50 years.

Now, Jeanne Hahn and her management team are gearing up for next 50. “We appreciate the experience of our people who’ve been here, and respect the expertise of our new people,” said Hahn, smiling at her team. “Besides, it wouldn’t be any fun to do it alone.

FOR MORE INFORMATION

Women of Pheasant Run Pheasant Run Resort 4051 East Main Street St. Charles, IL 60174 800.474.3272 www.pheasantrun.com

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Flip Family Hair Care – Business Profile

Back row from left to right: Tony, Esther, Sara, Megan and Walter. Front row, left to right: Kate and Ryan.

Experience the Flip Side of Family Haircare

W

hen the down-to-earth ambiance of a corner barbershop, meets the styling excellence found in upscale salons, the result is Geneva’s Flip Family Hair Care.

Owner Walter Gould opened the business in 2010 and loves being able to offer the best of both worlds. “We want to keep our prices low. Contrary to what many believe, people around here can’t afford to spend hundreds of dollars on family haircuts,” he said.

Flip Family Hair Care offers basic styling services, such as haircuts for men, women and kids, plus coloring, perms, hair straightening, hair extensions, special occasion styling and more. Spa services include facial waxing, eyebrow grooming and manicures.

The shop employs eight stylists, including Gould who has been in the beauty industry for sixteen years and worked in the area for nine years. After experiences in both mid-priced and high-end salons, Gould’s goal was to create a business where customers could enjoy

affordably priced quality service, as well as the comfortable feel of a neighborhood shop.

“This is the kind of place where everyone knows everyone else and when you come in to get your hair cut, there’s a good chance you’ll see someone you know,” Gould said.

Gould and his staff also love working with kids. “They’re crazy fun. Everyone here has kids, including me, so it makes it enjoyable to work with them and we’ve loved watching them grow up with us,” he said, adding that one of his favorite parts of his job is running into clients outside of the salon. “To be in Meijer and hear someone say ‘Hi Mr. Flip,’ makes my day.”

He also strives to give back to the local community, through ongoing collections for the Northern Illinois Food Bank, participation in Locks of Love, and informal efforts to help those in need. “If someone has something they want to donate, we’ll help put the word out, to find someone who can use it,” he said.

The same spirit drives Gould’s interest in

helping local businesspeople connect with those who need their services. The salon has a community bulletin board where people can place announcements and business cards.

“People are very genuine here. There’s no cappuccino machine, but we will run next door and get you a Coke. It’s just a fun place to be, and I like to think that in my own way, I’m helping people to feel better,” Gould said.

FOR MORE INFORMATION Walter Gould Owner, Barber Stylist 500 Lark St., Geneva, IL 60134 630-232-8200 www.flipfamilyhaircare.com

Kane County Women: Who’s Who

Business Profile

Owner - Wax A Peel/B. Bronzed Airbrush Tanning Combining an interest in health and skincare and a desire to educate others while working a flexible schedule, Michele DeFoney started Wax A Peel four years ago. Since then, Wax A Peel has grown and expanded services thanks to repeat clients and continued success.

Michele, a graduate of Naperville Skin Institute, has enthusiastically pursued her interest in providing a service to help others learn and follow a healthy routine for skincare. Since skincare plays such an important role in protecting our bodies, as an esthetician, Michele feels that proper care in creating healthy skin will result in an attractive and healthy appearance.

Wax A Peel has services for women, men, and young adults.

Services include full body waxing, eyebrow and lash tinting, chemical peels, microderm abrasions, facials, skin tag removal, permanent make up, to name just a few, and now, sunless professional airbrush tanning.

Michele recently launched B. Bronzed, a professional airbrush tanning studio to offer a healthier alternative to give your skin a healthy glow without the risk of skin cancer.

One year ago, Michele added to her staff. Sandra Olavarria, RN Clinical Esthetician, who has had thirteen years of experience and several years of that experience has been with noted cosmetic surgeons.

Michele and Sandra both are committed to not only treating their clients’ skin, but educating and encouraging them to embrace healthy living.

Wax A Peel • 328 South Third Street • Geneva, IL 60134 630-999-5442 • www.waxapeelgeneva.com

Kids Connection, Inc. Renee Gust, owner and director of Kids Connection, Inc. in St. Charles followed her passion to work with children, especially those with special needs.

Her 6,400 square foot center offers early childhood education programs and summer programs for school age children. The early childhood program is a play-based curriculum. “We believe that children learn through play, but academics are important to prepare them for the rigors of elementary school,” she said.

The school age summer program includes outdoor play, offsite field trips and hands-on activities in academic areas.

Beginning in June, Kids Connection will introduce a full day preschool, and extended care for school age children in addition to their over 10 years experience with part day preschool programs.

“Because of the economy, more parents are working part-time or working from home. They may not need care five days a week, but need the flexibility of having care two days a week for longer periods,” she said.

The need is especially strong for parents of special needs children. Kids Connection has been inclusive since it opened in 2003, Gust said. “Outside of school, childcare is very difficult to find for these families. We have a gym, we have equipment and we have therapy consultants from the school districts and community who come in and help,” she said.

Kids Connection, Inc. • www.kidsconnection.info 2011 Dean Street, St. Charles, IL • 630-587-9400

From left to right: Michele DeFoney and Sandra Olavarria.

Business Profile

Kane County Women: Who’s Who

Chiropractor - Integrative Family Healthcare St. Charles native Dr. Colleen Noe loves being back in her hometown as a new business owner.

Dr. Noe is a chiropractor and the owner of Integrative Family Healthcare in St. Charles. The practice specializes in comprehensive care for patients of all ages, as well as active rehabilitation, and massage therapy.

“It’s about more than just correcting the spine, the most important component is how the musculo-skeletal system functions as a whole” she said, adding that she also works in conjunction with medical doctors and osteopaths in order to offer patients the highest level of care possible.

“The best treatment is the one which makes the patient well.”

Dr. Noe is also in the process of becoming a certified doula, which she describes as a pregnancy and labor support system. “It attests to the range of our practice, which treats patients in every cycle of life, pediatric through geriatric,” she said.

She discovered the benefits of chiropractic during college, after a sports injury. “I went to see a chiropractor and within a week, the pain was gone. That was my light bulb moment, when I decided that this is what I was meant to do,” she said.

After completing her bachelor’s degree, she matriculated as a doctoral student at Logan College of Chiropractic in Chesterfield, Missouri. During her outpatient clinic experience she was chosen for a prestigious chiropractic residency in a private practice where she went on to work as an associate chiropractor. “I’ve learned so much, and look forward to using that knowledge to help patients here in the community.”

Integrative Family Healthcare • 1400 Lincoln Hwy. • Ste C St. Charles, IL 60174 • 630-549-7199

Owner - K. Hollis Jewelers Owner and Jewelry Designer, Karen Hollis of K. Hollis Jewelers in Batavia, explains that, “From fun to fine means we carry thousands of great jewelry items - from handmade $18 earrings to custom designed diamond engagement rings and everything in between”.

Having just celebrated eight years and recently expanded to over 4,000 sq. ft., K. Hollis specializes in special occasion, custom and everyday jewelry. With a team of thirteen, including some of the most talented on-site jewelers in the area, guests of K. Hollis are treated like friends – not just customers. “We want everyone that walks through our doors to become customers for life”, says Hollis.

Beyond warm hospitality, Hollis and her team loves bringing new life to old jewelry. “I love redesigning old jewelry into something new and beautiful, such as an engagement ring reset to commemorate an anniversary or putting gems from grandma’s ring into a new pendant for her granddaughter. The possibilities are endless and it’s a fun, affordable way to create a family heirloom that will be passed down for generations” Hollis states.

With a store that feels like a friend’s home, it’s easy to understand why customers return to K. Hollis again and again.

K. Hollis Jewelers • 147 S Randall Rd Batavia, IL 60510 630-879-8003 • www.khollisjewelers.com

Kane County Women: Who’s Who Fox Valley Orthopedics Fox Valley Orthopedics is celebrating forty years of keeping the community moving. And, for forty percent of her life, Mary O’Brien, chief executive officer, has been at the helm.

Fox Valley Orthopedics opened in St. Charles in 1973, and when O’Brien came on board as office manager in 1985, it was a small practice with three physicians and four exam rooms. “At that time, most surgery was done in the hospital and there was very little outpatient treatment. But that has evolved as technology, patient care and pain control have improved,” she said.

During her first two years with FVO, O’Brien was also a student at Northwestern University’s Kellogg Graduate School of Business, taking evening classes to earn in MBA in health care administration and finance.

When she finished her MBA in 1987, the physicians offered her an exciting opportunity, to help them grow their small office into a full-service musculoskeletal practice offering outpatient surgery, physical therapy, physician practices and MRI services.

O’Brien accepted and worked to make the goal a reality. In 1994, FVO opened its Geneva offices and in 1996, a full ambulatory surgery center was established. The practice continued to grow to its current compliment of twelve physicians, two adjacent locations in Geneva and an office in Elgin.

The physicians at Fox Valley Orthopedics serve as team physicians for seven high schools in the area, providing immediate access to treatment and rehabilitation services for local athletes.

When asked what she likes best about this practice she stated “ I love the fact that at Fox Valley Orthopedics the patient is always first. The ultimate goal is to achieve patient satisfaction and provide the highest quality orthopedic care to our community”

Fox Valley Orthopedics • www.fvortho.com Geneva and Elgin, IL • 630-584-1400

Lead Designer - Design Essentials Rose Giliberto, Principal and Lead Designer with Design Essentials in Geneva, believes the best design is both beautiful and functional. We understand that design has to work from a practical standpoint. But that doesn’t mean it can’t be beautiful! It is our belief that the most creative and successful design solutions come from an interactive, client-designer relationship.

Design Essentials is approaching their fifth year anniversary in business. Giliberto brings her 25 years of experience in the design field to the Geneva community, focusing on creative design solutions. Giliberto holds a B.A. in Interior Design from Harrington College in Chicago, IL. Her staff members are also degreed designers. The advantage is a thorough knowledge base that includes all facets of design and remodeling, including kitchens & baths.

The Geneva retail location is a small boutique interior design studio by choice, allowing us to offer our clients more personalized attention and highly customized design solutions tailored to reflect your personal needs, tastes and lifestyle. Design Essentials is driven by quality, focused on providing timeless, yet forward-thinking, design, whether traditional or modern. The showroom features fine furniture, accessories, artwork, mirrors, area rugs, bedding, with an array of fabric and wall covering samples to provide inspiration.

Design Essentials • 219 West State Street • Geneva, IL 60134 630-444-2144 • www.designessentialsco.com

Business Profile

Business Profile

Kane County Women: Who’s Who

Owner - Oscar Swan Country Inn For everyone who’s ever dreamed of retiring from the rat race and opening a Bed and Breakfast, Nina Heymann, owner of the Oscar Swan Country Inn in Geneva, has actually done it.

A former home economics teacher and University of Illinois Cooperative Extension educator, Heymann and her husband purchased the inn in 1988. “We found the property and thought it was special. I grew up on a farm, so I know a lot about food, and gardening, and as a teacher, I’m used to working with people. This is my retirement job,” Heymann said.

Built in 1902, and the former home of Oscar and Jessie Swan, the Colonial Williamsburg revival inn has eight bedrooms each with private bath, and is filled with antiques throughout. Behind the inn is a fenced in back garden with a small in-ground pool. An 1836 barn on the wooded, eight-acre property has been renovated into a banquet facility.

In addition to relaxing overnight getaways, the Inn is also known as a beautiful spot for weddings, anniversaries and other special events. “People love to come here for Sunday breakfast. We have delicious food and a unique environment.

This is truly a place to create memories,” she said.

Oscar Swan Country Inn • 1800 W State St Geneva, IL 60134 630-232-0173 • www.oscarswan.com

Seeing Everyday Life Through A Lens RCG Photography is a custom, on-location photography business founded in 2009 by local Geneva resident, Kathy Green. Using the latest digital equipment, RCG is dedicated to capturing everyday moments in life and specializes in creating affordable, high quality portraits that reflect the genuine personalities of its clients.

With three young sons serving as her muses, she specializes in capturing candid pictures in natural settings. Expecting mothers, newborns, children, teens, families and special events are her areas of expertise. “As a mother, I enjoy having the authentic moments of my kids captured so I can treasure them forever,” said Green.

“Whether it’s a heartfelt smile, a belly laugh or a mischievous look, I’m committed to uncovering the simplicity and honesty of my clients in their truest form.” The name ‚ RCG” stems from the first initials of her children Ryan, Colin and Gavin.

RCG Photography has also branched out in many ways besides photography sessions. Recently, she and her husband, Pat Green (CPA),developed Foto-Flow, a workflow and financial management tool for photographers www.foto-flow.com. In addition, RCG Photography also offers “walking workshops” to help teach people how to use their DSLR cameras more effectively and also is a photographer on retainer for several local businesses.

Kathy enjoys giving back to the community and offers free photo sessions for cancer patients and their families. As a volunteer in the tri-cities area, RCG is involved in a variety of community organizations including DayOne Network, LivingWell Cancer Resource Center, Mother’s Club of Geneva, Paul Ruby Foundation, St. Peter Parish, and St. Peter School. RCG has also been featured in The Beacon News, The Geneva Republican, The LivingWell Cancer Resource Center Newsletter, Mill Creek Life, Go West Young Mom (online publication), and has been named among the “Best of the Fox” by readers of the Kane County Chronicle for two years in a row.

RCG Photography • www.rcgphoto.com Geneva, IL • 630.251.3696

Kane County Women: Who’s Who

Business Profile

Owner - Dancer’s Dream Penny Anderson, owner of Dancer’s Dream, launched her business in 2012 to fill a need she knew well. As a former dancer and the mother of two dancing daughters, Anderson knew the difficulty of finding dancewear and properly fitted dance shoes in Kane County. “You can’t just walk into a store and buy a pair of pointe shoes off the shelf,” she said.

And as hard as it was for female dancers, for male dancers the problem was even worse. “To find anything, you had to go into Chicago,” she said.

But Dancer’s Dream is the local source for all things dance.

The Geneva shop carries dance and performance apparel, shoes and accessories for dancers of all ages and both genders.”We take dancers from the studio to the stage and have clothing and shoes for ballet, tap, ballroom and many other styles of dance,” she said.

The store also carries shoes for performing arts as well as gymnastics wear and specialized footwear for dance-based fitness workouts such as Zumba.

Anderson also loves putting her creativity to work, designing and creating costumes, and working with local studios and companies to promote the arts in community. “I’ve been able to take the passion of what I love and turn it into a business. For me this isn’t work, it’s pure gratification.”

Dancer’s Dream • 322 W. State Street, Suite 104 Geneva, IL 60134 • 630-465-0830 • www.dancersdream.us

Geneva Home Works Catherine Cushing and Janet McCormick love working in their family’s furniture business, Geneva Home Works, with their brother John McConnaughay.

“We strive to make shopping a pleasant experience,” said McCormick, vice president and store manager. “You can come in and look around, with no pressure. We can also draw up a floor plan for you, pull out colors to help you get exactly the right piece,” she said.

Opened in 1990, Geneva Home Works carries upholstery, dining room, home office, bedroom and kids furniture, many available in custom fabrics and stains, as well as artwork, lamps, accessories, and area rugs. “It’s quality furniture at everyday low prices. From traditional to transitional, everything you need to finish a room, ”said McCormick.

Geneva Home Works also offers interior design service, complementary in the store, or fee-based for an in-home consultation.

Cushing says the friendly locally-owned family business attracts customers not only from the Tri-Cities area but throughout Chicagoland. “What I really enjoy is meeting all of the customers who come into the store. It’s fun to see all the new furniture designs, colors and trends,” she said.

Geneva Home Works • www.genevahomeworksfurniture.com On Roosevelt Rd, East of Kirk •Geneva, IL • 630-208-0040

Left to Right: Janet McCormick, Kate Radman, Miss Elizabeth, Lynn Mitchell, Catherine Cushing

Business Profile

Kane County Women: Who’s Who

Owner - Cocoon Sherie McGowan, owner of Cocoon, enjoys her downtown Geneva location. “We’re a home furnishings and gift shop, located in a two-story ten room vintage home, and we love being part of the downtown Geneva community,” she said.

Cocoon carries an eclectic array of affordably priced gifts from jewelry, hats, scarves and purses to scented soaps, candles and bath products, as well as home items, such as sofa, rugs, wall décor and more. “It’s a fun, slightly crazy mix.

We have grandmothers, moms and daughters come in and everyone can find something they like,” she said.

And women aren’t the only ones who love coming into Cocoon. “For guys who are looking for a gift for their wife, girlfriend or even their mom or daughter, we’re happy to offer suggestions,” said Vicki Flahaven, who has been at Cocoon for eighteen years.

“They also like the complementary gift wrapping,” added Amy Kelly.

After 18 years, McGowan says the best part of her job is when visitors to her shop leave with a smile and a special something. “Their gift is wrapped and they’re really excited about what they chose,” she said.

Cocoon • 212 South 3rd Street • Geneva, IL 60134 630-232-8340 • www.cocoononline.com From left to right: Amy Kelly, Sherie McGowan, and Vicki Flahaven.

Financial Representative, Country Financial Donna Tonovitz, financial representative with Country Financial in Geneva, helps build your financial house from the ground up. “We’re a one-stop shop, not only for auto, home and life insurance but also for financial planning ,” she said.

Tonovitz helps clients manage their biggest risks in life, whether that’s protecting what’s most important to them, or planning for goals such as retirement, or their children’s education. “Lots of people have 401(k)s and when they leave their job, wonder what can I do with it. I can help them roll it over.

COUNTRY offers more than just Insurance.

Through relationships with various financial products companies, Country Financial offers an array of quality investment products including IRAs and annuities.

The process begins with a personalized assessment of the client’s protection needs, and future plans. “From there, we determine the best vehicles and asset allocation, based on their needs and risk tolerance,” she said.

Donna’s Mission Statement: To provide all customers with world-class customer service. Follow the Golden Rule. Listen to all of my customer’s needs and expectations and strive to meet or exceed those expectations. To conduct my business and myself in an ethical and professional manner at all times.

Tonovitz began her career with Country Financial 27 years ago, as a receptionist. “I have a lot of respect for my assistant, because I’ve done her job, and it’s not an easy one,” she said, adding that she still takes a very hands-on approach to her business. “When someone calls, we try to get back to them within two hours. I love working with clients one on one, and helping people,” she said.

Country Financial • 22 Crissey Ave, Geneva, IL 60134 (630) 208-1092

Kane County Women: Who’s Who

Business Profile

Owner/Operator

Hairdresser

Landscape Designer

Megan Klein

Marina Figarelli

Meagan Provencher

People love one-stop shopping for themselves…why shouldn’t they enjoy the same convenience when shopping for their horses, asks Megan Klein, owner and operator of Klein’s Tack and Feed in St. Charles.

Klein’s two-year old business carries food, health care items, gear and attire for horses, and riders. “We carry three lines of feed, forage and also chicken, goat and deer feed, because our customers want to feed all the animals,” Klein said.

The store also carries horse first aid items, and barn essentials such as muck buckets and pitchforks.

The tack shop features leather gear including saddles, bridles and girths. For riders, there’s apparel for both daily wear and shoes, plus a selection of consignment items.

Klein’s newsletter lists upcoming workshops, coupons and the featured Barn of the Month.

Hairdresser Marina Figarelli joined Illusions Hair and Nails in St. Charles a year ago, and couldn’t be happier. “Everyone here is so sweet.

They’re like my sisters and I’m very excited to work here,” she said.

With twenty years in the beauty industry, Figarelli offers expert service in a number of areas, including haircuts, styling, HairDreams Quikkies Extensions and eyebrow waxing, but one of her favorite things to do is color. She loves helping clients achieve a fabulous new look, from classic highlights to dimensional color. “For dimensional color, you use many different shades to create vibrancy.”

She especially likes the new Redken Chromatics colors. “There’s no smell, no ammonia and it leaves hair very shiny with fantastic color.”

1980 W Main St .

St Charles, IL 60174 (630) 444-0100 www.kleinstackandfeed.com

Meagan Provencher, Landscape Designer with Wasco Nursery & Garden Center, enjoys helping novice gardeners feel like pros. “There’s a perception that you need to know a lot about plants to have a nice yard, but if I do my part, it makes the client’s life easier and they can enjoy their yard,” she said.

She has been designer for almost twenty years and specializes in residential landscaping. The first step is to consider all facets of a client’s yard—sun patterns, views, characteristics for each season, their gardening experience and more. “I translate all this info into a unique workable design that will bring them years of enjoyment,” she said.

She also creates detailed drawings that show the client how their yard will look once it is completed. “I love working with plants. I also like educating clients and getting them to love their gardens. Because every design is different, my job is always fun,” she said.

Illusions Hair and Nail Salon 1 W. Illinois St. Saint Charles, IL 60174 illusionshairsalon.org (630) 513-1845

Wasco Nursery 41W781 Route 64 St. Charles, IL 60175 ww.wasconursery.com (630) 584-4424

Business Profile

Barista

Kane County Women: Who’s Who Director of Sales

“Long Term Care Planning Specialist”

Kasie Pheanis

Carol Murin

For Kasie Pheanis, Director of Sales at Mill Creek Golf Club Geneva, work is a party.

Pheanis books all the weddings, showers, parties and golf outings, held at the club, and works with hosts to choose the perfect menu, coordinate decorations, linens and more. She also serves as the point person to assist outside contractors such as florists, and entertainers. “I coordinate all the moving parts,” she said.

Mill Creek Golf Club has an onsite chef, and only hosts one event at a time. The ballroom accommodates up to 220 and is surrounded by windows on three sides. The terrace room and patio are perfect for cocktails, or photos. A professional staff, lovely surroundings and nearby accommodations make Mill Creek Golf Club a beautiful choice.

Carol Murin, LTCP, CLTC, CSA, has been helping clients prepare for their long term care needs for twenty years.

“I help clients understand the available products, and work with them to design appropriate, affordable plans. Structuring coverage that addresses clients’ concerns without over insuring is the goal,” said Murin, president of Solutions for Long Term Care, Inc. in Batavia.

“LTC planning usually makes sense when clients enter their mid-to-late forties or fifties. Younger clients priorities may be a large mortgage and/or saving for college.

However, it’s important to understand that the need for long term care can happen at any age,” Murin said.

Everyone’s needs are different, but planning is essential. “Living a long life is a certainty, planning for it is a necessity.”

Judy Jendro Judy & Jerry Jendro are the owners of Coffee Drop Shop which opened in July of 1980 in St. Charles. In 2009 we moved our St. Charles location to historic downtown Geneva. We are now located at Third Street & Franklin in the Berry House Shops.

We love our new location and so do our old customers. Happily we have added new Geneva customers and look forward to making many more friends. You will usually find Judy in the store daily from 9AM to 7 PM or later. I say when the lights are on, the door is open and the coffee is always fresh. Jerry is the man behind the scenes, always at the warehouse roasting the coffee, sampling the new varieties to be ordered and keeping an eye on the green coffee market as it is the 2nd most traded commodity on the market and changes daily. As you have surmised Coffee Drop is different from the other coffee shops in that we roast and flavor our own coffees.

We buy fair trade and organic green beans from over 10 countries and our flavorings are natural oils free of sugar, calories, and cholesterol. We stock over 50 varieties of coffees, unflavored, flavored, regular and decaf. You won’t find better pricing.

Coffee Drop also stocks the most tea, loose and bags with unusual accessories found in the Fox Valley. You will find over 100 varieties of black, flavored, green, rooibos, white, herbal and decaf teas in small quantities for you to try and then come back and buy larger quantities for better pricing. I love to blend my own teas and Jerry creates his own coffee concoctions. Need a teapot, we have over 75 teapots in the store at any given time.

Coffee Drop is here for your special coffee and tea needs. Stop in and say hi and help yourself to a free cup of coffee. We ship USPS daily so if you can’t make it to the shop just call or email and we will take care of your order. Our mail order forms are on our website and we try to keep it updated and add new as it arrives.

The Coffee Drop Shop 227 S. Third St. Geneva, IL 6013414 630-845-3255 www.coffeedropshop.com

Mill Creek Golf Club 39W525 Herrington Dr. Geneva, IL 60134 millcreekgolfcourse.com (630) 208-7272

0S885 Spring Green Way Batavia, IL 60510 630.482.3150 cmurin@dls.net

www.genworth.com/carolmurin

family / success lives next door

Salute To Single Moms

W

iping runny noses.

Morning traffic.

Tying shoes.

Conference calls.

Packing lunch boxes. Meeting with clients.

Helping with homework.

While parenting can be difficult, single moms who are juggling both home and work demands on a daily basis can find it downright exhausting.

“Being a single mom is really hard to do. At times I look back and wonder how I made it through,” says Geneva resident Heather Buelow, who was a single mom for several years before getting remarried. “I was exhausted.”

How did she make it? Lots and lots of support.

“You need a support system,” Buelow says.

“It’s not something you can do on your own.

I had the support of family and friends. There are a couple of people that, if they weren’t there, it would have been that much harder.

And I had my faith to fall back on. I think people who are part of a church community often have a lot of support there, which is nice.”

And because divorce is such a major life change, “It’s not something you walk into lightly,” says Susan Hanson, a current single mother of two and St. Charles resident. “It’s

scary to think about how you’re going to juggle everything — caring for your children, returning to work and taking care of the home.”

Thinking about the money

For those adjusting to single parenting, Hanson says to reach out for encouragement.

“There is a lot of support out there to get you through the rough days, [including] friends, family members and various outside agencies such as a religious community or support group for newly divorced or single moms,” she says. “For me, the best thing you can do is try to find the best childcare for your children and the best job for yourself.

You really do need to become independent because the cavalry is not coming.”

Besides the struggles on the homefront, some single moms also have to face the realities of re-entering the job market after being out of it for several years raising families.

Michelle Clark says in her experience supervising the TriCity Family Services Single Moms Group — and working with single moms in other programs through TCFS — she has seen single mothers struggle with finding sufficient employment and affordable childcare.

“When childcare help from family and friends is not an option, it can be particularly

difficult to find a way to interview for jobs or further career-related education because of not having money to pay for childcare prior to employment,” she says.

While Buelow got some help financially from her ex-husband, after the divorce, she had to quickly find work to make ends meet.

“I started working as a cocktail waitress to make extra money,” she says. “But at times, I would be sitting waiting for [my ex-husband] to pick our son up, and he wouldn’t show up.

So, then I’d have to scramble to find a baby sitter.”

For single mothers currently struggling financially, Buelow urges them to take advantage of the support that may be available.

“Take the help if it’s offered,” she says.

“Don’t be too proud. There are some who don’t want to put their kids on the free lunch program at school because there’s a stigma, but these programs are there for a time when people need help. There’s the Link card.

You can get assistance for medical bills and education assistance in certain areas of study.”

Thinking about the children

It’s not just adults who struggle when there’s a divorce. What can single moms do to make the transition of divorce easier on the kids?

“Don’t badmouth,” Buelow says. “I tried

not to tell my son too much about his dad and what happened between us. It’s hard because you do get mad. But you’ve got to wait for them to come to you and still obviously filter what you tell them. You can’t be talking to your friends on the phone and badmouthing [your ex]. You want [your kids] to grow up and have a healthy relationship later.”

Clark says co-parenting when there is a strained relationship with the father offers many challenges.

“When fathers are not exhibiting strong parenting skills, single mothers often face concerns over their children’s physical safety and/or emotional well-being in regards to their children’s relationship with their biological father,” she says.

The legal process of securing child support, custody and visitation each present its own challenges.

In the TriCity Family Services Single Moms Group, Clark says the mothers often express concern about how to handle such issues as inconsistencies in visitation schedules, explanations for absence of the father, and how to help their children through emotional transition periods before and after visits.

“When there is no presence of a father in children’s lives, single mothers tend to question how they may find positive male role models for their children,” Clark says.

Thinking about yourself Single moms can boost their self-esteem by writing affirmations to themselves and placing them in areas they frequent.

“Looking in the mirror and saying positive statements about yourself can improve your self-image through the repetition of focusing on the positive,” Clark says. “For example, you could say, ‘I am capable and confident,’ even if you don’t completely believe it at first.”

She also says single moms who take time to take care for themselves can see benefits for them and their children.

“Building up your own emotional resources can re-energize you for parenting,” she says.

“Taking a few minutes after children are asleep or before they wake up in the morning to do something relaxing can help relieve stress.

Being purposeful about looking for and noting positive moments that arise can help foster … gratitude that combats negativity.”

Clark also suggests single moms find adult friends or members of a support group who can serve as sounding boards as they face challenging emotions and situations.

“This can help you stay positive and avoid the pitfall of discussing adult concerns with children,” she says. “Journaling can be useful for managing stress.”

And, Clark says, remember that children can be surprisingly resilient and may offer some comfort when crises occur.

“Divorce support groups for children can help normalize the experience of divorce for children, helping them to feel less isolated,” she says. “Network with other mothers to learn about local resources on any subject in which you are struggling. School social workers can often be helpful in offering lists of referral options for various programs.”

3TriCity Family Services’ Gail Mastio, left, facilitator of the Single Moms Support Group, talks with single mom’s Sue, left, of Batavia, and Sandy of St. Charles during a support group meeting at the United Methodist Church of Geneva. Photo by Jeff Krage

Help for single mothers • TriCity Family Services, 1120 Randall Court, in Geneva, offers many programs and services for single moms and their children. Bridges is a TCFS workshop for children ages 7 to 11 to help them cope with challenges that can occur when parents divorce.

Counseling for adults, couples, children and families also is available at TriCity Family Services. Many health insurance plans and children’s Medicaid may be billed by TCFS. Fees may be assessed on a sliding fee scale, and additional fee reductions may apply for those with financial needs. Community colleges may offer career planning assistance. For more

information, visit www.tricityfamilyservices.org.

• Embrace A Family in St. Charles is a helping hands, day-to-day organization that brings together tri-cities single mothers to assist them in various ways, through clothing swaps, special events and much more. The organization’s goal is provide single moms with tangible assistance by matching the talents of local volunteers with the needs of the single mothers. For more information, visit www. embraceafamily.com.

• DivorceCare is an organization that offers groups to help participants face the challenges of separation and divorce and move toward rebuilding their lives. For more information about DivorceCare or to find a local group, visit www.divorcecare.org. kc

Helping Members

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Financial Success

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Your deposits are insured up to $250,000 per account. By member choice, this institution is not federally insured.

58 Kane County Magazine • May 2013

*APR=Annual Percentage Rate. The actual rate you receive will be based upon your credit and other qualifications. Rates and terms are subject to change. Rate includes KCT’s ecoAuto and ecoLoan discounts. To qualify for the ecoAuto Discount members must finance a hybrid, fully electric, or other vehicle that gets more than 40 mpg to receive a 0.50% ecoAuto discount. KCT ecoLoan Discount excludes Credit Cards, Home Equity Loans & Lines of Credit, and Campu$ Ca$h Loans. KCT ecoLoans allow members to apply for and close their loans online with online applications and digital signatures. Addition of eStatements at the time of loan closing may qualify you for a KCT ecoLoan Discount of 0.25% APR. Payment Example: For every $1,000 borrowed at 1.49% APR for 24 months, your payment would be $42.32.

KaneCountyMagazine.com

family

the

Real Mothers OF KANE COUNTY

S

ince I have had children, I have really been trying to make a conscious effort to have the utmost respect for every mom I encounter.

I recently came across a mom in the bathroom at my church trying to change her 2-year-old daughter’s diaper on the changing table.

She was struggling a great deal because her daughter was terrified that she was going to fall off the changing table located about 4 feet off the ground. I got my son situated at the sink to wash his hands and walked over to offer my assistance. I took the little girl’s hat, which had a panda bear on it, and turned it into a puppet to entertain her. Both she and her mom kind of looked at me like I was nuts, but it managed to calm the little girl down long enough for her mother to wipe her daughter and get a fresh diaper on her.

I told the woman I remembered struggling with both my kids at that age when they became more aware and their fear of heights and falling kicked in. She thanked me, and I told her that us moms gotta stick together.

It seemed like a no-brainer to me, especially since I was at church where, the last time I checked, one major lesson is that we should be there for others and be kind to one another.

Unfortunately, I think we as women have fallen into the unnecessary role of playing “Super Mom” and are afraid to admit when we need help.

Of course, that also means we fall prey to a junior high mentality where our own lack of self-esteem means we are constantly comparing ourselves to other moms and ultimately passing judgment.

I have often found myself comparing myself to other moms and beating myself

up for losing my cool, feeling overwhelmed or, quite honestly, not being able to juggle it all. I am hard on myself because I don’t live my own well-organized “Pinterest board” complete with healthy meals, a welldecorated home and themed birthday parties that include my own handmade party favors and home-baked confections to match. I don’t scrapbook or hodgepodge or crochet or even put up decorations for any holiday except Christmas — and maybe some ghosts on the windows for Halloween. Most of the time I’m lucky to have everyone showered, dressed and fed without forgetting to take someone to dance or checking the backpack for homework or library books.

Heck, I realized three-quarters of the way into the school year that the reason we were late to the bus stop every morning was because I read the form incorrectly at the beginning of the year and we had been going to the wrong bus stop.

We have to remember that millions of women give birth and struggle with the same

“

I think we as women have fallen into the unnecessary role of playing “Super

Mom” and are afraid to

admit when we need help.

exact things. None of us is perfect. My mom taught me a very important lesson in my life that I return to when I am feeling sorry for myself or judging others: no matter what, there is always someone better off — and worse off — than you.

So, if a mom is telling you her kid(s) are perfect, she is lying. If you are “that mom” saying your kid(s) are perfect, knock if off.

Be real, be honest and be supportive of your mommy counterparts.

The bottom line is, our job as mothers is tough. We all have days where we want to sell our kids to the gypsies. We are constantly coordinating things while taking our children’s and husband’s interest into account.

Some of us work outside the home — some of us don’t — but in almost every case, we are all just trying to keep it together and get through each day. Rarely do we get to take the time to simply do something for ourselves unless we devise a detailed flowchart first.

This is what makes mothers so special.

We live in a society littered with “reality” shows such as “Real Housewives of … [whatever city],” where all these women tear each other down. The true “reality” is that we should be supporting each other. kc

Write This Down with Michelle Stien

• Michelle Stien is a stay-at-home mom of two children, ages 3 and 5. Her mother always told her to “write this down,” so she is sharing her experiences with Kane County moms to help them deal with the craziness of being “Mom.”

family

When The Empty Nest Fills Up Again What to do if your college grad moves home

I By Gatehouse News Service

I

College graduates are moving home at a much faster rate than ever before, and it’s no wonder, with the rising costs of living and tough job market.

So, what happens when your new grad decides he or she wants to move back in with you?

Here’s a quick guide.

Set boundaries

Establish goals

The first thing you need to do is decide and agree on boundaries.

Even though your kid is coming back into your home as an adult, you may want to set a curfew, assign chores and ask for rent.

Whatever the situation, it’s important to talk about these things up front so everyone fully understands what is and isn’t acceptable in the household.

You may even want to put these things in writing for clarification down the road.

I am a big proponent of setting SMART goals — they must be Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant and Time-sensitive.

Moving home is supposed to be a temporary solution so your college graduate can get on his or her feet without amassing any more debt. It’s important to set clear goals and work toward them.

Decide on a game plan, such as three to five job applications a week or six months of free rent, and make sure you stick to them.

60 Kane County Magazine • May 2013

Money No matter how awkward, you must talk about money. Decide on a monthly rent, if any. Are they going to chip in for groceries or utilities? What about a savings plan?

A friend of mine had an agreement with her parents that all of her wages would go toward paying off student loans while she lived at home rent-free.

Job search Some college grads are underemployed with the same retail job they had in college, but some move home while standing in the unemployment line.

Both of these scenarios are fine, but the ultimate goal is for your kid to get a real, grownup job in their chosen field. A good job search is really a full-time job, so make sure the necessary time and energy is put into it.

There are a ton of resources for job seekers.

KaneCountyMagazine.com

Jobs may change.

Retirement dreams don’t have to.

If you’ve left a job and have a 401(k) or other retirement accounts, don’t forget about them. Rolling over assets you have with former employers or other institutions to an Ameriprise IRA can be important in making your retirement dreams a reality.

Understanding and managing your retirement income strategies can help you put a confident retirement within reach.

To start a conversation, call me at (630) 762.6556.

Steve Smith Financial Advisor Associate Vice President 3 N. Second Street, Suite 200 St. Charles, IL 60174 (630) 762.6556 Toll Free: 1 (800) 942.5959 Steven.L.Smith@ampf.com

MORE WITHIN REACHSM Ameriprise Financial cannot guarantee future financial results. Brokerage, investment and financial advisory services are made available through Ameriprise Financial Services, Inc. Member FINRA and SIPC. Some products and services may not be available in all jurisdictions or to all clients. © 2010 Ameriprise Financial, Inc. All rights reserved.

Be supportive There is a fine line between being a supportive parent and letting your kid get away with postponing adulthood.

This is probably a tough time for both of you, but it should be harder on them than it is on you. Especially in the beginning, let your college grad know that you support them and are there to help them transition into being a self-sustaining adult.

End date Know that someday — hopefully sooner rather than later — your kid will be moving out of your home for good, so now is the best time to get in quality time together before your lives start getting busier.

You don’t have to decide on an end date in the beginning, but it’s a good idea to set a time frame — three months, six months, one year. kc — BillCutterz.com

KaneCountyMagazine.com

CASA Kane County saw the largest number of children served since our inception in 1988. We need your help today. Please consider being a CASA/GAL volunteer, the eyes and ears to the judge who advocates for the best interests of our most vulnerable youth coming into abuse/neglect and probate courts.

Please contact Deb McQuaid, Director of Advocate Education to learn more at 630-444-3110 or debm@casakanecounty.org.

Court Appointed Special Advocates/Guardians ad Litem (CASA/GAL) for children who are in court due to abuse and neglect.

100 S. Third Street, Suite 460, Geneva, IL 60134 P: 630-232-4484 • F: 630-232-4562 www.casakanecounty.org • I am for the Child

CASA Kane County is a nonprofit, volunteer organization that advocates for the best interests of abused and neglected children within the Juvenile Court system.

May 2013 • Kane County Magazine

61

fashion & beauty

Find What Suits You

I By LAUREN LYNCH I

W

hile it may be easy to catch a case of the Mondays at the office, a drab suit shouldn’t add fuel to the fire.

Instead, find something sharp to wear to turn a potentially dismal day at work into a great start to the week.

According to Elliot Staples, senior vice president of design for The Limited, 2013 is all about color and texture when it comes to women’s suits.

From his office in New York, he describes over the phone some of the newest women’s suit shades as “grassy green” and “soft tangerine” that keeps spirits soaring on even the rainiest day.

As for fabric, Staples says that The Limited’s new collections drape easily but contain enough weight where movement isn’t sacrificed.

As the mastermind behind the brand’s unique versatility, Staples discusses with his team the details surrounding a woman’s workweek and designs each look based on moods, workload and even a woman’s social life.

“We think about what her days are,” Staples says. “In the beginning of the week, she’s going to be sharper and look sharper.

On Tuesday, she’ll be on her feet more, so she’ll be wearing more separates … on Thursday, she’ll be dressed more day-tonight since she’ll be going out with friends after work, and Friday is more casual … .”

Whether Staples is designing a skirt or classic pantsuit — which he predicts will make a “big return” — he doesn’t commit all of his attention to one particular style each season.

“The Limited offers so many options,” Staples says. “It just depends on each woman’s environment [on how they choose their looks].”

Photos provided by The Limited

Get The ‘Broken Suit’ Look Like many creative thinkers, Staples doesn’t mind taking a few risky steps in order to develop a trendsetting result.

He says he likes what he calls the “broken suit” look, in which women can mix and match their collections by pairing different colored blazers with skirts or pants.

“It’s all about the idea of breaking up the wardrobe,” he says.

Staples anticipates plenty of longer, full-length pants in a sleek, skinny style this spring. As for tops, color blocking will make a comeback, pairing well under comfortable jackets for a sporty look.

Despite his desire to think outside the box, Staples does adhere to a few rules that he stresses should never be broken.

“Don’t over accessorize,” he warns, adding that he refers to the two-out-of-three rule: select two items to wear at a maximum, but never all three with an outfit.

“Don’t forget, a belt also becomes jewelry, too,” he says.

Staples’ own rule of thumb is that he never combines a statement necklace with statement earrings; it’s either one or the other.

His toned-down approach also carries over to color selections.

“Color is a big thing,” he says. “Be careful and try to neutralize.”

Facing page: Front tie herringbone sheath with cross-tie bodice paired with a laser cut oversized wristlet bag with zipper and slip pockets inside.

At right: Hooked slouchy-fit jacket with small metal closure paired with a polyester short sleeve layering shell and a 24-inch inseam Drew slant pocket soft crop pant.

Below: Polyester top with sheer paneling paired with a bias-pleated soft polyester crepe skirt.

COLOR is a big thing. Be CAREFUL and try to NEUTRALIZE. Elliot Staples, senior vice president of design for The Limited

At right: Slim peak lapel blazer with navy/white stripe lining paired with a polyester button-down cut-away neckline blouse with mixed print and Cassidy split waistband men’s trouser pant plus a large laser-cut oversized wristlet bag.

Above: Hooked slouchy-fit jacket with small metal closure paired with a polyester top with sheer paneling and 24-inch inseam Drew slant pocket soft crop pant.

Additional Considerations

Even footwear is being taken into consideration this season. Lower kitten heels are becoming more of a trend over platform styles, Staples says.

“You can build a whole outfit just around the shoes,” he says.

Purses are viewed as another important

Above: Hooked slouchy-fit jacket with small metal closure paired with a polyester short sleeve layering shell and 24-inch inseam Drew slant pocket soft crop pant.

accessory to add to a business look.

“The handbag is part of the big picture,” Staples says. “Once in a while, you should switch it out.”

In an evolving fashion world, what drives the success of the brand he works for is its timing, Staples says.

“The Limited interprets trends for our customer, and it’s crucial for us to deliver them when she’s ready for them.” kc

Home of the Sparkle Cone™

Now featuring “Moveable Feast Chocolate Chip Cookies” in our Cookie Sandwiches and more!

Don’t forget us for your Graduation Cakes!

Mother’s Day ice cream cakes and pies!

Ask for the “Mental Health Awareness Treasuring Teens Turtle Sundae” to benefit Tri City Family Services all of May! 1 W. Illinois St., St. Charles, IL • 630-762-9480 • www.kimmersicecream.com Follow us on Facebook and Twitter

64 Kane County Magazine • May 2013

KaneCountyMagazine.com

women of distinction

of WOMEN distinction

Inaugural Winner:

Carol Weber

In October, seven local women were named Kane County Magazine’s inaugural Women of Distinction for being representative role models as leaders in their fields and communities. Each month through May, we will feature one Woman of Distinction and share her story.

C

Carol Weber

City of residence: St. Charles Organization/company/corporation: Royal Family Kids Title: Director arol Weber was deeply moved when a representative of Royal Family Kids came to speak to her congregation at First Baptist Church of Geneva.

As she listened to stories about children facing abuse, abandonment and neglect, and then heard about a summer camp meant just for those children, something moved her.

“Sitting there, that’s when I thought, ‘That’s what I want to do,’” Weber says.

That was eight years ago, and the 43-yearold of St. Charles has been involved ever since. What’s more, she now has been in charge of her church’s Royal Family Kids Camp for four years.

“Once you join it, you can’t really leave it,” Weber says. “The kids are so fabulous and so deserving, it becomes part of your life.”

As volunteer director, Weber contacts the case workers and families of 52 local children to fill her camp each year. She organizes 70 volunteers — most of who come from First Baptist Church of Geneva — and together, the group raises all of its own funds to provide a week of activities for the children at a camp in Wisconsin.

Crafts, plays, Bible studies, music performances and puppet shows are just a part of the week for the 7- to 11-year-olds, Weber says.

“Our goal is just to treat them royally,” she says. “They come up on charter coach bus, not a school bus ... and we want them to leave with wonderful memories to replace the hurtful ones.”

Many of the children return to camp each year until they age out of the system, Weber says.

50 Kane County Magazine • December 56 March 20132012

“We can’t wait to see them come back year after year,” she says. “Some of them may not talk very much because they don’t know if you’re somebody they can trust, and by the end of the week, they’re talking and laughing and smiling because you’ve built that trust.”

There are now 180 Royal Family Kids Camps nationwide, plus nine in foreign countries, Weber says.

And to continue to serve the children even

FEETS OF STRENGTH Carol Weber also helps oversee the Feets of Strength 5K Run/Walk for Child Abuse Awareness.

This year’s event will take place Saturday, May 11, and start with a Youth Mile Run at 8:30 a.m. followed by the run/walk at 9 a.m. and a Little Feets Dash at 10 a.m., all at Mooseheart Campus, located at the intersection of Route 31 and Mooseheart Road, just south of Batavia. Proceeds will benefit Royal Family Kids. To register, visit www.signmeup. com/87763, or to learn more about Royal Family Kids, visit www.geneva.rfkc.org.

after they age out of the camp, the national level of Royal Family Kids created two more programs, Shining Stars and The Summit.

Shining Stars provides middle schoolage kids with two weekend excursions, one in the fall and one in the spring, and The Summit allows high schoolers to participate in a four- or five-day outdoor adventure trip full of rock climbing, canoeing and camping.

In Kane County, some Royal Family Kids receive mentors who meet up with a child once a month in a one-to-one relationship to provide further support, guidance and friendship, Weber says.

For her leadership and compassion for others, Weber was chosen as the recipient of one of seven inaugural Kane County Magazine Women of Distinction Awards.

She was awarded with her fellow winners at a luncheon Oct. 15 at Aquaviva Winery in Maple Park, where nearly 100 people supported their fellow community leaders.

No one knows the extent of Weber’s commitment to Royal Family Kids better than her husband, Joseph, who takes off a week of work to stay home with the couple’s own three children when Weber goes to camp.

“There’s so much behind the scenes [work] to put everything together for the camp,” Joseph Weber says. “It’s just a lot that gets put into it that ... the couple of months [right before camp], it almost becomes a full-time job for her. She’s putting in several hours [a day], but she’s still a mom.”

Weber says she, and all of her volunteers, simply understand that they need to be there for these children.

“You spend a week with them, and you come back and you know them on a different level,” she says. “Just to see the difference it makes with these kids, you would hate for it not to happen ... . We all do it for the kids because they deserve it.” kc KaneCountyMagazine.com

social life “30 Men Vs. 30 Women Who Cook”

nd Nick Charles feeds her husba 5 Keri Soukup of St. ile their 6-month-old son, a “cowboy cupcake” wh “30 Men Vs. 30 Women g the Hunter, snoozes durin the Kane County Fairgrounds. at r ise dra fun ” ok Co o Wh r, Geneva Geneva History Cente by the fits ne be The event os ot Ph va.

Club of Gene Lions Club and Rotary lan No th Be ry Ma

4 Elgin Community College adjunct professor Betsy Sanchez refills a display of French macaroons during the “30 Men Vs. 30 Women Who Cook” fundraiser at the Kane County Fairgrounds.

out his 10, of Geneva, talks ab 5 Tommy Antonson, ocolate truffles he made. His “Peanut Gutterballs” ch favorites, bowling and his entry combined two of his table with some of his ed chocolates. He decorat d in league play. kc rne bowling awards he ea

5 Teresa Keenan, rig ht, “Walking Tacos” for pa and Lynda Johnson dish up rtic 30 Women Who Cook ipants in the “30 Men Vs. ” fundraiser.

Safe / Clean / Hygienic

Relax, Rejuvenate, Heal • Best Practices for Infection Control and Equipment Hygiene • 20 Years of Combined Experience and Expertise in Podiatry and Wound Care, ABWM Certified • Laser Fungal Nail and Wart Treatments • Laser and Esthetic Skin Treatments • Manicures and Pedicures • Carefully Selected Skin Care Products • Elegant and Unique Resale Items

4 South Sixth Street. Geneva, IL • 630.845.FEET (3338) • www.prairiepathfeet.com

2013 Friday, May 10 • The Q Center, St. Charles • Doors open at 10 a.m. beginning April 3 at 8 a.m.

KaneCountyMagazine.com

May 2013 • Kane County Magazine

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out & about

May Events In Kane County

ARTS

Through May 19 — “Forever Plaid,” 8 p.m.

Fridays and Saturdays and 2 p.m. Sundays at Fox Valley Repertory at Pheasant Run Resort, 4051 E. Main St., in St. Charles When the members of an eager doo-whopping boy band inconveniently die on their way to their first big gig, the heaven-sent boys hilariously return to earth to take the stage one last time and fulfill their big dreams. Tickets start at $32. For tickets or more information, call 630-584-6342 or visit www. foxvalleyrep.org.

May 3 — Rockabilly Rocks the Arcada, 8 p.m. at The Arcada, 105 E. Main St., in St. Charles This show will feature The Everly Hillbillies featuring Edan Donald Everly, the Cadillac Casanovas and The Old Town Underdogs. Tickets start at $29. For tickets or more information, call 630-962-7000 or visit www. oshows.com.

May 4 — Frankie Avalon Special Tribute to Annette Funicello, 8 p.m. at The Arcada, 105 E. Main St., in St. Charles A special tribute will be paid to Annette Funicello, Mouseketeer, movie star and American sweetheart,

Check us out!

ELGIN YOUTH SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA 2013-14 Season Auditions

■

May 30 - June 2, 2013

www.EYSO.org

Here comes the fun!

Year after year, smiles return to faces at Swedish Days, Geneva’s Midsommar Festival.

And all your favorite events return too, including great June 18 - 23, 2013 live music, carnival rides, the parade, Sweden Väst plus children’s games & events.

Also back by popular demand is Radio Disney, our Geneva’s Got Talent contest and Ziplining Down Third!

Visit www.genevachamber.com for a complete event schedule.

Fun, fun, fun, here it comes!

A picture postcard .™ 1-866-443-6382

www.visitgenevaillinois.com

68 Kane County Magazine • May 2013

who recently passed away. A portion of ticket sales will benefit the Annette Funicello Research Foundation for Neurological Disorders. For tickets or more information, call 630-962-7000 or visit www.oshows. com.

May 10 through June 2 — “Black Tie,” 8 p.m.

Fridays and Saturdays and 3 p.m. Sundays at the Steel Beam Theatre, 111 W. Main St., in St. Charles The father of the father of the groom haunts his son’s choice of protocol in this comic commentary on the time-honored ways of the past. Funny, touching and perfect for the wedding season! Tickets are $25.

For tickets or more information, call 630-587-8521 or visit www.steelbeamtheatre.com.

May 11 — American Pop with the Buckinghams and the Grassroots, 8 p.m. at The Arcada, 105 E. Main St., in St. Charles Two of America’s favorite hit-makers will meet in one huge show! Tickets start at $39. For tickets or more information, call 630-962-7000 or visit www. oshows.com.

May 11 — Lee Greenwood, 8 p.m. at the Norris Cultural Arts Center, 1040 Dunham Road, in St. Charles Celebrate Mother’s Day weekend with this legendary country musician. Tickets start at $55. For tickets or more information, call 630-584-7200 or visit norrisculturalarts.com.

May 16 — Femme Fest 2013, 8 p.m. at The Arcada, 105 E. Main St., in St. Charles This high-energy female rock-fest will feature LA’s hottest punk-princess bands, including classic covers to smokin’ hot performances of new music. General admission is $10. For tickets or more information, call 630-962-7000 or visit www.oshows.com.

May 17 — Queensryche 25th Anniversary, 8 p.m. at The Arcada, 105 E. Main St., in St. Charles Vocalist and founding member Geoff Tate is taking the newly-announced line-up of Kelly Gray, Randy Gane, Robert Sarzo, Rudy Sarzo and Simon Wright on the road to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the band’s epic 1988 release, Operation: Mindcrime.

Tickets start at $59. For tickets or more information, call 630-962-7000 or visit www.oshows.com.

May 24 — “Side Effects May Include,” 8 p.m. at the Fox Valley Repertory at Pheasant Run Resort, 4051 E. Main St., in St. Charles Stand-up comedian Phil is living a reasonably happily married life. His only complaint? Wife Maggie’s waning sex drive. It provides ample fodder for his stand-up act — until she is diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease and their life takes an unexpected turn, some of it for the better. Based on a funny, touching, true story, former Seinfeld writer Marc Jaffe shares his own experience and finds that sometimes it’s not the disease that changes us, but the side effects. Tickets are $32. For tickets or more information, call 630-584-6342 or visit www. foxvalleyrep.org.

May 24 — Gretchen Wilson, 8 p.m. at The Arcada, 105 E. Main St., in St. Charles Country and southern rock multi award-winning “Redneck Woman” Gretchen Wilson saw a meteoric rise from obscurity to phenomenon by singing about her own life experiences that resonate deep with country fans everywhere. Tickets start at $39. For KaneCountyMagazine.com

tickets or more information, call 630-962-7000 or visit www.oshows.com.

May 25 — A Diamond, The Killer and The King, 8 p.m. at The Arcada, 105 E. Main St., in St. Charles Neil Diamond, Jerry Lee Lewis (portrayed by Lance Lapinski, who played Jerry Lee Lewis in “Million Dollar Quartet”) and Elvis (Shawn Klush) come together for a “Million Dollar” night of some of the best loved music of our time. The night will feature The Fabulous Ambassadors, the No. 1 Elvis backup band in the country. Tickets start at $29. For tickets or more information, call 630-962-7000 or visit www.oshows. com.

EVENTS

May 3 — Homes for Endangered and Lost Pets Annual Dinner and Auction, 6:30 p.m. at Mill Creek Golf Club, 39W525 Herrington Drive, in Geneva All proceeds will benefit the dogs and cats in H.E.L.P. foster care. Tickets include dinner. An open bar will be available from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m., and dinner will be served at 7:15 p.m. A cash bar will be available after 7:30. Tickets are $50 a person. Tickets must be purchased in advance. For tickets or more information, visit www.helpinganimals.org.

May 4 — Native Plant Sale, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Hawthorne Hill Nature Center, 28 Brookside Drive, in Elgin With an emphasis on attracting monarch butterflies and creating wildlife habitats with native perennials, Wild Ones will offer more than 30 species for sale at its native plant sale. For more information, call 847794-8962 or email news@nkwildones.org.

May 4 — Mom and Daughter Mother’s Day Celebration, Noon at the Sunset Community Center, 710 Western Ave., in Geneva Girls, ages 3 and older, and their mothers can create a special present together to celebrate Mother’s Day. Each participant will decorate a keepsake box to be filled with candy, paint an adorable picture frame, create a Mother’s Day card and enjoy a special treat! Cost is $20 a child for residents and $30 a child for nonresidents. For more information, call 630-232-4542 or visit www.genevaparks.com.

May 4 and 5 — Kane County Flea Market, Noon to 5 p.m. Saturday and 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday at the Kane County Fairgrounds, 525 S. Randall Road, in St. Charles Nearly 1,000 dealers will display and sell antiques, collectibles and more. Admission is $5 for adults; children 12 and younger are free. For more information, call 630-377-2252 or visit www. kanecountyfleamarket.com.

May 5 — Free Community Yoga Class, 1 p.m. at Shine, 5 N. River St., in Batavia Enjoy the many, tremendous benefits of yoga for free! You will be introduced to the concepts and beginning poses of yoga. No registration is required, just drop in. For more information, email you@justshine.com.

May 7 — Mother/Daughter Best Friends Jewelry Boutique, 6:30 p.m. at Sunset Community Center, 710 Western Ave., in Geneva Led by the staff of Glitzy Girls, each participant will design their very own “Best Friends” necklaces and bracelets to exchange. The class will feature a beautiful selection of fire-polished crystals, pattern glass beads, silver accents and unique charms. Cost for residents is $34 a couple and $29 each additional child. Cost for nonresidents is $51 a couple. For more information, call 630-232-4542 or visit www.

KaneCountyMagazine.com

genevaparks.com.

May 11 — Hope for Haitians 5K Walk/Run, 7 a.m. at the Kane County Government Center, 719 S. Batavia Ave., in Geneva Take part in this event for a great cause. The cost is $25 for adults 18 and older and free for kids.

For more information, send an email to rachelp@ foodforthepoor.org or call 815-847-0656.

May 18 — Dealing with Bullies Discussion, 9 a.m. at the Sunset Community Center, 710 Western Ave., in Geneva Teach your child how to handle bullies appropriately. Children ages 7 to 11 will gain confidence through video material, discussion and role play as they learn how to react to situations involving mean or disrespectful children. Cost is $14 a child for residents and $21 a child for nonresidents.

For more information, call 630-232-4542 or visit www. genevaparks.com.

May 24 — Butterfly Release Party, 3 p.m. at Peck Farm Park, 4038 Kaneville Road, in Geneva Celebrate 10 years of beautiful butterflies.

Release a live butterfly, create a butterfly craft and enjoy a yummy treat before earning stamps in a butterfly passport as you take on a self-guided hike. Registration is required. Cost is $17 a child for residents and $25 a child for nonresidents.

Participants younger than 16 must be accompanied by an adult. To register or for more information, visit www.genevaparks.com.

May 27 — Memorial Day Parade, 10 a.m. from Sixth Street to Riverside Avenue, in downtown St. Charles Bring the family out and have a blast at the annual parade! For more information, call 630-587-6444. kc

* Not a golfer, but want to attend?

No problem, register for evening activities only.

All proceeds benefit the St .Charles Kiwanis Foundation and the families and children of Lazarus House.

We make over 100 varieties of Smoked Meats and Sausages.

For All Your Gatherings this Month MOTHER’S DAY • GRADUATIONS • MEMORIAL DAY ✓ Treat Mom to Steak and Chicken Kabobs ✓ Celebrate the Graduation - Our Own, Italian Beef, Pork, Bar-B-Que, Potato Salad, Meat and Cheese Trays ✓ Memorial Day - National Grand Champion Bratwurst, Beef Wieners, Steaks, Burgers

Ream’s Elburn Market Fine Quality Meats & Sausages Fresh • Aged • Cured • Smoked 128 N. Main St. • Downtown Elburn West side of Rt. 47 • 630.365.6461

Hours: Mon-Fri: 9am-6pm • Sat: 9am-4pm • Sun: 11am-4pm Closed Memorial Day - Monday, May 27th

A GREAT OLD FASHIONED FULL SERVICE MEAT MARKET May 2013 • Kane County Magazine

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e

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artist showcase

DAVID HETTINGER, Aurora

f

• “He Loves Me”

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The piece is two sisters discussing boyfriends. It is done in oil and taken from real life. kc

To submit an entry to Artist Showcase, email artwork, title of piece, name and village of residence of artist, and a two- to three-sentence description of the piece to KaneCountyMagazine@shawmedia.com, subject head “Local Artist Submission.”

Indulge her passion.

Hand-Selected Diamonds Ask us about your diamond.

H E A R T S O N F I R E | S I M O N G | TA C O R I | B AU M E & M E R C I E R | H I DA L G O

Watch for details on our move to the corner of State and Third Streets.

M-F 9:30-5:30; TH 9:30-8; Sa 9:30-5; Su 12-5

214 West State Street | Geneva, Illinois | 630.232.2085 www.statestreetjewelers.com

FINANCING AVAILABLE Š2013