WHEATON, Ill. – How would you like to have plants in your yard that don’t need watering or pesticides, require less maintenance and provide habitats for wildlife? On May 1, the Environmental Improvement Commission and the Wheaton Park District will host the annual Native Illinois Plant Sale from 8:30 a.m. to noon at the Public Works Building, 821 W. Liberty Drive.

At the sale, you will find trees, shrubs, grasses and flowers native to northern Illinois. Free wood chips will be available (bring your own container), and rain barrels will be for sale. Because native plants are adapted to the climate and soils of our area, they are resistant to drought and insects, and they require less maintenance.

If you have pictures of plants that you purchased at previous Native Illinois Plant Sales, please email them to Steve Hinchee at shinchee@wheatonparks.org. The person who submits the best photos will receive $10 off their purchase at the sale and will have his or her photo on display at the sale.

Learn more about the plants that will be available by visiting the Wheaton Park District’s website.

WHEATON, Ill. – The list of things that you can drop off at the annual Recycling Extravaganza continues to grow. In addition to electronics such as televisions and computers, the Environmental Improvement Commission announced that nearly anything with a cord that does not contain hazardous materials will be accepted for recycling at its April 17 event. Just drive to the commuter parking lot at Liberty Drive and Carlton Avenue between 9 a.m. and 1 p.m. to drop off a number of items for recycling or reuse.

Examples include but are not limited to:

• Small kitchen appliances such as blenders, mixers, toasters, coffee makers, microwaves and food processors
• Hair dryers, curling irons
• Alarm clocks
• Computers and related electronic equipment (such as a mouse, power cord, modem, monitor, etc.)
• Televisions, DVD players, VCRs
• Radios, CD and tape players
• Video game systems and other electronic games
• Printers, fax machines, scanners

As in past years, the event will also accept these items for recycling or reuse:

• Books
• Scrap metal, which also will include stoves, washers and dryers
• Eye glasses
• Keys
• Hearing aids
• Worn American flags
• Cell phones
• Bicycles in working order

In addition to residential electronics, businesses may also bring their equipment to be recycled.

Items that will not be accepted include refrigerators, freezers, air conditioners and other items that contain coolants or other hazardous materials.

This event’s success is dependent on volunteers. To help, people of high school age or older can call 630-690-1237 or 630-653-8877.

WHEATON, Ill. – Although Wheaton’s battery recycling program has ended due to budget cuts, the Environmental Improvement Commission encourages residents to continue using proper disposal methods to discard household batteries. Naperville Fire Station No. 4 serves as DuPage County’s Regional Household Hazardous Waste Facility. Residents can bring household batteries to the fire station between 9 a.m. and 2 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays (excluding holidays). It is important that the batteries are separated by type (regular, alkaline, lithium, NiCad, etc.).

Naperville Fire Station No. 4 is located at 1971 Brookdale Road, one-half mile south of I-88 off of Route 59. To reach the fire station, turn left (east) on Brookdale Road from Route 59, and you will see the fire station’s tower.

The Environmental Improvement Commission encourages you to consider collecting your batteries and those of your neighbors over a period of time to make your trips as efficient as possible.

Written by: Jeffery James of Spire2 Communications, Inc. www.spire2.com, Membership Development Chairman

Is your membership in the Wheaton Chamber worth the membership fee? During a recession the question comes up. In January when most were gripped in recession fear, the membership development committee hosted the first Membership Matters meeting. These are free events where Chamber members are invited based on a particular membership demographic. A group of about 20 attended the first meeting focused on restaurants and retailers. We had a round table discussion asking how the Chamber can help them and making sure they were aware of resources that already exist.

We listened intently to concerns and ideas. One that popped out was how can the Chamber connect with Wheaton College. The membership committee took on this challenge and worked on reaching the right people so that we could promote Chamber businesses.

Through networking we made a connection with the student development office. We discovered that the student survival guide for freshman was being eliminated because of budget constraints. We jumped right in and offered to offset their printing costs if we could provide advertisers to them — a win-win situation. The committee developed a program that will reach not just freshman, but every student on campus and more!

Would this have happened if no one gathered early one morning in January as fellow Wheaton Chamber members looking for ideas to beat the recession? Nope. When we work together we can do things that we couldn’t do on our own. This is the power of Chamber membership. Want to make it work for you? Get involved, provide ideas and help others. Need some extra help getting involved? Join a committee.

Two Wheaton churches, First Presbyterian Church and Gary United Methodist Church, have teamed up to offer weekly support groups for people whose careers are in transition or affected by the economy as well offering as a new spouse support group.

Between Successes, a weekly support group, meets Monday evenings from 7:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at Gary UMC, 244 North Main Street in Wheaton.  Participants meet for the first 15-20 minutes as a group to discuss news and share ideas and resources then break into small groups to discuss their challenges and insights.  The group is open to anyone in the community who is contemplating a career transition or who has been affected by a job loss.  

The spouse support groups will be offered monthly on the third Tuesday of the month, beginning June 16 at 7:00 p.m. at Gary UMC.

For more information:

Gary UMC – www.garychurch.org / 630-668-3100
First Presbyterian Church – www.firstpreswheaton.org / 630-668-5147

Cook and Dupage county residents: Join us for Lincoln Community Days at the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Museum in July and receive 1/2 off adult admission for you and anyone in your county for the entire month!  Just show your driver’s license at the ticket counter to receive your discount.

For more information, please visit www.presidentlincoln.org.

Breakfast at the Center for History this 4th of July will be a new experience.  Visitors are welcome to enjoy Dunkin’ Donuts, coffee rather than the Stars & Stripes Belgium waffle topped with fruit which has been a tradition since 1990. Donuts and coffee will be served from 8:00 to 10:00 a.m. after which they can relax on the lawn and watch the 4th of July parade travel down Main Street. 

The Center is located at 606 North Main Street, corner of Main and Lincoln.  Tickets, $3 each, will be sold the day of the event and will benefit the Center’s mission to inspire an appreciation of and preserve the heritage of Wheaton and its connection to national and world history.  Reservations are not necessary – just drop by and enjoy the 4th of July.

The Center for History’s main museum is located at 315 W. Front Street, 2nd Floor in Wheaton. 

While this site is not open on the 4th of July visitors are encouraged to visit at another time to experience the Center’s exhibits:  Fairways, Greens & Clubs; Disaster, Courage & Silence – The S.S. Eastland; and Answering the Call – America’s Military.  Museum hours are Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Saturday 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. and Thursday and Friday noon to 5:00 p.m.  Often staff is busy presenting programs offsite which further reduce the open hours. The Center for History is a 501(c)(3) not for profit museum and education center supported by fees and donations. 

For information on exhibits and programs call 630-871-6601 or email info@wheatonhistory.com

Center for History – A Facility of the Wheaton Historic Preservation Council

CITY OF WHEATON

TIME CAPSULE OPENING CEREMONY

10 A.M. SATURDAY, JUNE 27, 2009

MEMORIAL PARK (HALE & KARLSKOGA), WHEATON, IL

9:30  Music: Wheaton Municipal Band Members

• Bass:   Michelle Akin
• Vocalists:   Tyler Sonkin & Deb Zelman
• Drummer:   Chris Komos
• Pianist:  Gail Sonkin
• Woodwind Quintet:   Barb Saks—Flute, Gail Sonkin–Oboe, Jen Gesinski–French Horn, Deb Zelman–Clarinet, Jennifer Youngdatil-Griffen–Bassoon

10:10  Present Colors: Boy Scouts
10:10  Welcome: Mayor Michael Gresk
10:15  Time Capsule Presentation: Center for History
10:30  Public Viewing of Time Capsule Contents
11:00  Closing Ceremony
 
EIGHT VOLUNTEERS ARE NEEDED FOR THIS EVENT. PLEASE RESPOND TO STEVE HANIKA AT shanika@fastteks.com IF YOU WANT TO VOLUNTEER.

Thank you for joining us in commemorating Wheaton’s history

- Mayor Michael Gresk

The Wheaton Chamber of Commerce needs your input to create and enhance community oriented programs. Please fill out our community survey and help us meet our goals. The survey will be available on www.wheatonchamber.com until June 25th, 2009. Get your friends and family involved. Invite them to fill out the surevey, too!

On April 18th, the Sesquicentennial Commission has its sights on setting a new Guinness World Record for most kites in the air at the same time and location. Join the fun and help Wheaton. Get all the details by visiting the city of Wheaton’s web site.