Riverside News: Cheney Mansion setting for nonprofit’s casino night fundraiser
By None
Riverside News
Suburban Life Publications
Wed Jan 28, 2009, 08:42 AM CST
Riverside, IL -
The Riverside Chapter of Infant Welfare Society of Chicago is sponsoring a casino night to be held from 7 to 11 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 7, at the Elizabeth F. Cheney Mansion in Oak Park.
According to Gail Seeger, president of the Riverside branch and a Riverside resident, guests will be offered a fun evening of gambling at the Shake, Rattle and Roll event, an evening of virtual gambling where one can indulge without the danger of losing the family home. As an added bonus, the party will be held at one of the Chicago area’s architectural gems.
This historic mansion received notoriety after Frank Lloyd Wright whisked the “lady of the house,” Martha “Mamah” Borthwick Cheney, away from her husband, Edwin Cheney, and off to Europe. Upon their return, Wright built Taliesin near Spring Green, Wis., where Martha and her children lived until Aug. 15, 1914, while Wright was in Chicago completing the design for Midway Gardens. On that day, a servant set fire to Taliesin and murdered Martha, her children — 12-year-old John and 9-year-old Martha — and four others as they sought to escape the burning building. Edwin Cheney divorced Martha, but Wright’s wife, Kitty, waited until 1922 to grant him a divorce.
Johnny Gigilo, a Frank Sinatra impersonator, will entice gamblers with his version of “Luck Be a Lady Tonight.” But the floor show isn’t the only form of entertainment at Shake, Rattle and Roll: There will be casino-style gambling. Guests will be able to explore all three floors of the mansion, including the two-acre Jens Jensen landscaped gardens, which unfortunately are under snow at this time.
Linda Peterson, manager of the Cheney Mansion, said the building is available for special occasions including weddings and is open to the public Wednesday afternoons throughout the year. The 12,000-square-foot home, considered historical property, was built in 1907 and has six bedrooms and seven baths. It was bequeathed to the city of Oak Park by family descendant and philanthropist Elizabeth F. Cheney.
According to Seeger, the Infant Welfare Society serves more than 1,400 mothers and children a month. Assistance includes wardrobes and layettes and the services of Dr. Indru Punwani, head of Pediatric Dentistry at the University of Illinois at Chicago’s College of Dentistry. Punwani is on the staff of Infant Welfare Society Dentistry, serving needy families at the society’s Community Health Center in West Logan Square. The society was chartered in 1911 and service to the indigent began around the turn of the century.
An allocation by the state as part of No Child Left Behind legislation will be a welcome financial addition to the services the society can provide, Seeger said. It is the duty of chapter members to raise funds to support the needy mothers and children.
“Mothers of newborns walk out of IWS on Fullerton with the infant’s first set of clothes or layette including diapers,” Seeger said. “Other needy family members are also able to find clothing through the IWS.”
Casino night attendees will double their pleasure with gaming against the backdrop of a beautiful, historic home. Cocktail attire is requested. The $80 per person donation includes an open bar, plenty of food, gambling and a peep into the past. Ample parking will be available.
For information and tickets, call Beth Gazzolo at (708) 447-8407, Gretchen Reyes at (708) 447-1260 or Cynthia Vitek, (708) 442-0145. For information, e-mail this website doesn’t workriversideiws@live.com.
Will Dunne opens new play
“How I Became an Interesting Person” by internationally acclaimed Riverside playwright Will Dunne is being produced in Chicago at Chicago Dramatists, 1105 W. Chicago Ave., Chicago. The show runs at 8 p.m. Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays and 3 p.m. Sundays through Saturday, Feb. 22. Tickets range from $15 to $30.
“How I Became an Interesting Person” received the 1998 Charles MacArthur Fellowship Award given by the Eugene O’Neill Theater Center for outstanding comedy that exemplifies the comic, irreverent spirit of Charles MacArthur. In this play, an odd, boring man in search of a new life gets more than he bargained for when his eccentric landlady begins to find him interesting.
Dunne teaches playwriting courses in Chicago, San Francisco and Los Angeles. He also has written a book, “The Dramatic Writer’s Companion: Tools to Develop Characters, Cause Scenes and Build Stories,” (University of Chicago Press, 2009).
For information about the show or theater, visit www.chicagodramatists.org.
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