Volunteers at Naper Settlement have been shrieking in terror and howling with laughter since September.
They finally had the chance to put their practice to use at All Hallow’s Eve, a Halloween celebration held over the weekend at the historic Naperville site.
Scenes of Frankenstein’s laboratory, Lizzie Borden’s home and a mummy’s tomb would not have had seemed nearly as hair-raising without the help of 100 costumed volunteers who played the roles of frightening characters.
All Hallow’s Eve “is a scary event loosely based on 19th Century literature,” said Pat Larson, volunteer coordinator.
The costumed volunteers started working last month with the education staff to decide which characters they wanted to portray, get their costumes together and learn their lines, said Larson.
Tom Wojcik, 13, of Naperville played the role of a tortured prisoner. He has attended the All Hallows Eve many times, but this was the first time he volunteered.
“It was fun. I am big into history,” he said. “It was surprising to see that the people who really scared me [on previous visits]are really nice.”
His father, Tom, portrayed Frankenstein.
The event held Friday and Saturday nights attracted 3,000 people. About 230 non-costumed volunteers were on hand to see that the event ran smoothly.
The settlement’s mission is to instill an appreciation of the past through the portrayal of 19th Century community life. The event was a fundraiser for the Naperville Heritage Society, which runs the settlement.
Volunteers are needed to work at Christmas Memories, which explores the traditions of the 19th Century. It will be held Dec. 14, 15 and 16.
Visit www.napersettlement .museum.
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VOLUNTEERS
*The St. Charles Police Department is recruiting residents to become McGruff House volunteers who can make emergency phone calls for children in trouble and watch out for children as they go to and from school. A McGruff House is a safe house for children to go to when they find themselves in emergencies or in frightening situations such as being bullied, followed or hurt. The house is marked with a sign with McGruff the Crimefighting Dog dressed in a trench coat. Volunteers must be 18 or older and pass a law enforcement background check. Minor traffic violations will not disqualify volunteers. Applications are available at the Police Department or can be downloaded at http://www.stcharlesil.gov/forms/index.html. They can be dropped off or mailed to the St. Charles Police Department in care of Officer Jeffrey Finley, 2 State Ave., St. Charles, IL 60174. For more information, call 630-443-3730 or e-mail: jfinley@stcharlesil.gov.
*The Literacy Connection will hold a free orientation session from 7 to 8:30 p.m. Nov. 1 in the Bartlett Public Library’s North Room, 800 S. Bartlett Rd. Training workshops from 6 to 8:45 p.m. will follow on on Monday and Nov. 7, 12, 14, 26 and 28. Once trained, tutors are matched with a student to meet for an hour or two a week, at a time and place of their choice. Volunteers are needed to tutor in reading and English as a second language. No special education is required. Call 847-742-6565 or visit www.elginliteracy.org.
FUNDRAISERS
*Tickets are on sale for the Elmhurst Historical Museum’s 50th Anniversary Gala to be held Saturday in the Westin Hotel Lombard at Yorktown Center. The evening starts at 6 p.m. and includes hors d’oeuvres, cash bar, a dinner, a live auction with gift packages and dancing to music by the Elmhurst College Jazz Band. The annual Alben F. Bates Jr. award for outstanding service will be given to one of the museum’s long-standing volunteers. Tickets are $125. Call 630-833-1457.
*The Oak Park Council on International Affairs will hold its 44th annual Peace Corps Partnership fundraising dinner on Nov. 7. Dinner begins at 6:30 p.m. in the KCC Student Center at Concordia University, 100 W. Division St., River Forest. Kelli McGee, who served in Moldova as a Peace Corps volunteer, will describe her kindergarten improvement project funded by the council, which has sponsored 36 Peace Corps partnerships this year. Total projects number more than 414. Tickets are $25. E-mail mrohter@yahoo.com or call 708-524-9152.
*Assistance League of Chicagoland West will hold its major fundraiser, Books & Brunch, starting at 10 a.m. Nov. 6 at The Carlisle, 435 E. Butterfield Rd. Lombard. Tickets are $75 and can be reserved by calling 630-321-2529. Featured speakers will be Gale Gand, cookbook author and pastry chef; Mike Leonard, correspondent for NBC News; and Jack Fredrickson, a Hinsdale resident and fiction author. The event will include a boutique, a raffle and silent auction. The league provides winter hats and coats to elementary-school children, provides kitchen equipment for families leaving shelters and backpacks to Headstart sites. Brunch tickets are $75. Call 630-321-2529 or visit chicagolandwest.assistanceleague.org.
*Harvest of Hope, a brunch, will be held from 11:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. Nov. 18 in Pipers Hall, 1295 Butterfield Rd., Aurora. It will benefit Suicide Prevention Services of Northern Illinois. The event celebrates the 25th anniversary of the founding of the support group Survivors of Suicide. The event will include a memorial tribute to Karen Bohr Sepaniak, who was president of the prevention services’ board of directors when she died of cancer in July.
The event will also include a silent auction and raffles. The agency has more than 38 volunteers who answer a hot line and is part of two national hot lines: 1-800-SUICIDE and 1-800-273-TALK. Tickets for the brunch are $60 for adults; and $25 for ages 10 and under. Call 630-482-9696 or visit www.spsfv.org.
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amannion@tribune.com
