Photos: Greater Chicago Jewish Festival

The biannual Greater Chicago Jewish Festival kicked off on Sunday evening. Thousands attended the event. Check out our online gallery featuring various artists, attendees and Jewish folk art.

The Greater Chicago Jewish Festival descended on Morton Grove's St. Paul Woods for its biannual celebration Sunday afternoon. The event is the largest Jewish festival in the Chicago area and one of the longest running in the country, having started in 1980.   A variety of people played a role in returning the event this year, including Skokie trustee Michael Lorge, the Jewish Production Organization for Cultural Events and Theater and many others. Read more: Check out our interview with BNL’s Steven Page Every two years, the festival is produced with a handful of goals in mind: to educate the Jewish community about its multi-faceted culture, to reach out to the general community to show the breadth and depth of the Jewish community, to …

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Great Reads: Picks from our Glenview Book Guru

Liz Weinstein, manager of Glenview's only independent bookstore, shares her recommendations for adult, teen and children's reads.

Liz Weinstein, manager of The Book Market at Hangar One, has a few suggestions for your reading pleasure. Check out this week's picks! Children's Pick:"Stop Snoring, Bernard!" by Zachariah O'Hora Summary: Bernard loves curling up to go to sleep. But there is one little problem. Bernard snores…LOUDLY! So loudly that he keeps all of the otters awake during naptime. So loudly that Grumpy Giles tells Bernard to move his snoring somewhere else! Liz Says: "A great tale about Bernard the snoring otter.  See how the other zoo animals cope and at what lengths Bernard will go to in order to try and resolve his annoying habit. O'Hora's illustrations are so sweet that they make me wish I had a pet otter, even if it did snore." Teen/Young Adult Pick: "…

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PHOTO GALLERY: Cook County Ag Day at Glenview's Wagner Farm

Third graders learn about tractors, crops and livestock.

For two days, historic Wagner Farm, in collaboration with the Cook County Farm Bureau, played host to nearly 700 area third grade students for Agriculture Day late last month. National Ag Day is actually March 15th, which falls during National Ag Week, March 13th-19th. Due to cold March weather, Wagner Farm and the Farm Bureau decided to postpone Ag Day until April. Students found soggy, muddy ground when they arrived but it didn't dampen their excitement to see the enromous farming equiptment, sheep, pigs, cows and chickens.  For the Farm Bureau, Ag Day is an opportunity to teach students about different areas of agriculture and some of Illinois' biggest commodities.  This was the second time Wagner Farm and the Cook County Farm Bureau …

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Christopher Brinckerhoff

12:03 am on Wednesday, May 18, 2011

Great shots!   more ›

Last Chance! Kohl Children's Museum Hatches Rare Chicks

The annual "Eggs to Chicks" exhibit--which ends this Sunday--gives visitors a closeup view of newborn chickens.

Every day, about two new chicks are hatching at Glenview’s Kohl Children’s Museum. During the annual Eggs to Chick exhibit (March 15-May 16), nearly 120 are born and spend their first eight days of life at Kohl, recently named one of the country's 10 best children's museums by Parents Magazine. Less than a decade ago Java chickens were an endangered species. Most farmers had come to prefer raising Babcock chickens, who produce the yellow chicks commonly associated with spring. Scientists began to worry that a lack of genetic diversity could cause the poultry industry to be devastated by a bird virus, and began efforts to bring back the Javas. “It’s a breed that was popular in the 1800s because they’re very hearty and can stay outside in …

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Lauren O'Keefe

12:41 pm on Wednesday, May 11, 2011

I took the kids to see the chicks. They liked them, but it was so crowded in there they didn't get to look for more than a minute. They also have chicks in the children's zoo at Brookfield, and they are easier to get a peek at.   more ›

Patch Picks

Patch Picks: Best Birthdays for Kids

Planning a birthday party for kids? We've done our due diligence to find some of the best, most interesting parties in town.

Kids’ birthdays used to be so simple. Back in the day, it was enough to head to a McDonald's with an indoor play land and let one of the cashiers lead the kids in a game of 'See Who Can Stack Styrofoam Containers the Highest.' If the adults were sick of that, it was off to Chuck E. Cheese’s, where kids would deep-sea dive to the bottom of the ball pit in search of lost game tokens while the adults gorged on Diet Coke and cheap pizza. It's hard to argue with the classics, but luckily we have a few more options today. Our area has a number of great places and ways to celebrate a kid’s birthday, so we put together this handy list for Patch readers. And if you end up wanting to grab some friends and hit the ball pit anyway, go right on ahead—…

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Patch Portrait

Patch Portrait: A Mother, A Survivor

This weeks Patch Portraits also features Morton Groves coffee superman and a 11-year-old social entrepreneur from Winnetka.

This week's Patch Portraits was produced and edited by Philip Downie, Sara Fay, Andrea Hart and Carrie Porter. Check back on Mondays for the next installment. Also showcased, Morton Grove's coffee superhero and a 11-year-old social entrepreneur from Winnetka. Having a baby is usually a life-changing event, but for Glenview resident Jennifer Reis, having her second child was slightly overshadowed by a diagnosis of Leukemia.   "I hadn't had a lot of experience [with cancer]," she said. "My family is fairly small and we didn't see a lot of cancer so it was shocking." Reis underwent chemotherapy and, with the support of friends and family, became committed to fight the disease. Her treatment ran into complications when she ignored a slight …

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Photo Gallery: Easter Egg Fun at Park Center

Local families hunt for eggs and enjoy a western-themed carnival Saturday, April 9.

An opportunity to run around and hunt for candy-filled eggs—Who could resist? More than 300 families and thousands of pastel-colored eggs were all part of the festivities at yesterday’s third annual Glenview Park District Easter Egg Hunt. Hosted at Park Center, hundreds of local little ones scooped up pastel-colored eggs by the dozens in baskets large and small. Post egg hunt, families enjoyed a western-themed festival complete with carnival games, face painting and crafts at the Park District’s indoor gym. Above, check out photos from the day’s festivities.

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Great Escape: Give Yourself A Lift That Will Surely Lift Your Spirits!

What you're wearing under your clothes can make a huge difference in your mood.

It’s all about the kids. But from time to time, can’t it be about mom? Each week, we’ll tell you about one great idea to give you a much deserved break, and make your life a little easier—maybe a whole lot easier. We all need a little escape… As moms, we work very hard to make sure our children have everything they need; hot meals on the table, clean clothes to wear, the discipline to have good hygiene (i.e. asking them ten times to go take a shower till they finally give in), help with homework, and hugs and kisses when they are hurting physically or emotionally. Those are just a few things we do. But who’s taking care of us?  The answer: We need to take care of ourselves! Great Escape is a weekly feature dedicated to sharing ideas …

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Parents Worried About Dividing Neighborhoods in District 34 Redistricting

Officials said one of the top concerns among parents at boundary meetings Jan. 26 and Jan. 27 is breaking up tight-knight communities.

Many parents of  Glenview Public School District 34 students understand that overcrowding in the schools due to an ever-increasing population will have to be addressed. But many of them think that carving up neighborhoods in a redistricting effort to provide some relief isn't the solution -- and they have questions about the social and emotional effects on the students. Parents were able to share those concerns with the 25-member boundary committee made up of teachers, parents and district administrators at a community input meeting Thursday, Jan. 27. Roughly 60 attendees also heard presentations from the district's consulting firm, RSP, Thursday -- in addition to about 75 people who attended a similar meeting Wednesday evening. Rob …

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Ring In 2011 ... Close To Home

Looking for fun on Dec. 31? Check out these awesome New Year's Eve celebrations just around the corner.

Celebrate the "Noon" Year 10 a.m. – 12 p.m.  2400 Chestnut Ave. (847) 724 - 5670 Come out to the Glenview Park Center on Friday morning to celebrate the New Year! This countdown is especially for children ages 3 – 9 and will include crafts, snacks, games, inflatable and a 1, 500 balloon drop! $4 per child. Family New Year's Eve Party 6 p.m. – 9 p.m.  1851 Landwehr Rd. (847) 724 - 2800 The Glenview Ice Center is hosting a family New Year's Eve party on Friday, featuring candle making by Ultimate Art. Come out and skate and enjoy this event as part of the Glenview Park District's Winter Carnival. Regular public skate will be open from 10 a.m. – 12 p.m. New Year's Eve at the Kohl Children's Museum 9 a.m. – 11:30 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. – 3 p.m.  …

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