Archive for January, 2010
Posted by Laura Nelson on January 18, 2010
Happy New Year, and best wishes for a Healthy and Prosperous 2010! The start of a new decade gives us a fresh perspective in evaluating our current situation and is a good time to lay plans for the future. Enjoy the moment–celebrate family relationships–live healthier–keep financial resolutions.
We’ve included Winter Activities in this issue. It’s a great time for kids to learn a new skill, pursue their dream, improve study habits or tune up for testing with some tutoring. See pages 12-18 for some great ideas.
Home Improvement projects continue to be a good investment. They’re not as grandiose as in years past–and many contractors are offering discounts to win your business. Pages 4-11 give home improvement highlights.
Congratulations to our readers winning tickets to entertainment venues this month. They include Michelle Hedl, Warrenville; Todd Hilson, Carol Stream, Patrick McCabe, Winfield; Tom Jordan, Wheaton; PJ Ryan and Ed Wollrab, Glen Ellyn.
This month we’ve got some outstanding programs to share with lucky readers. They include performances at the MAC Arts Center at College of DuPage (Turandot, Aspen Santa Fe Ballet, and Buffalo Theatre presentations among others), plus Funny Girl at Drury Lane Oakbrook Terrace. To enter, call us by Friday, January 15 at (630) 682-5958 and leave your name, phone number and hometown. You may also enter by emailing the same information to contest@nelsonstoday.com.
Our February issue will include more summer camp suggestions, along with helpful Valentine’s Gift Ideas and Home Show Highlights.
Thanks for reading! Remember, think globally, shop locally!
Sherry Nelson, Publisher
Posted by Laura Nelson on January 18, 2010
Glen Ellyn’s dazzling new Ackerman Sports Center is the fifth suburban location for the White Sox Training Academy. Academy founder Tim Rappe has partnered with the White Sox since 1994 to bring top tier instruction to baseball and softball players throughout Chicagoland.
Mark Sheehan, left, Glen Ellyn Academy Director, with Shannon Roney, Head Fastpitch Softball Instructor and Tim Rappe, Academy founder
“We’re excited about bringing high level instruction to the new sports center in Glen Ellyn. Clearly, the White Sox organization is committed to youth baseball,” says Rappe. The Chicago White Sox is the only major league team to support an academy in the USA. The five academy outlets, combined with summer camp programs, serve about 10,000 athletes a year.
“Our goal is to help kids become the best baseball or softball player that they can be,” says Rappe. “Our emphasis on professional instruction and consistency is unmatched.” Camps, classes and lessons are designed for boys and girls age five and up. They sometimes work side-by-side with professional athletes who are also practicing or rehabbing at academy sites. Initially, baseball and fastpitch softball instruction will be the focus at the new site. Bulls basketball instruction may be added later.
“White Sox Academies give young athletes the same equipment, training and opportunities to improve that the professionals have in these facilities,” says Rappe. “The equipment and training expertise is all here.”
The Ackerman site is not as large as the Sox main facility in Lisle. Rappe feels that the intimacy of the smaller space, however, does have advantages. The space is fully turfed. It’s the quality instruction and consistency, says Rappe, that expands the interest in baseball and softball, building the sports. Rappe is a lifelong baseball afficionado–his credo is “We love this game and the kids who play it.”
Mark Sheehan, a Minnesota native, is the new Academy Director. Sheehan has an extensive background in in training young athletes and is a member of the prestigious National Pitching Association. Shannon Roney will serve as Head Fastpitch Softball Instructor. Roney, a Glenbard South and collegiate star pitcher, helped her 2004 high school team achieve a 33-3 record with a 0.23 ERA while batting .465.
Dan Kroger, Facilities Manager with the Glen Ellyn Park District, welcomes the White Sox affiliation. “We were planning to include batting cages in the new center, but we’re really excited about the professional atmosphere the White Sox are generating. As soon as the word got out, we started getting calls about it.”
Besides the baseball/softball instruction, the new facility showcases the latest in fitness center equipment. There are also two climbing towers and an indoor turf field. Memberships to the fitness center are available now–with the grand opening set for Saturday, January 23.
The Ackerman Sports and Fitness Center is at 800 St. Charles Rd. in Glen Ellyn. For additional information, check www.BullsSoxAcademy.com or call (630) 324-8242.
Posted by Laura Nelson on January 18, 2010
Kids First (since 2002) developed its 28 sports lesson plans to include Safety & Skills through Fundamentals. Coaches are hired, trained and certified to run programs and camps all year round. Programs are run both through local park districts, and directly through select schools, in after school sessions. Additional offerings include: coaches’ clinics, sport referee services, and private sports lessons through a certified Kids First personal trainer. To Register contact: staff@kidsfirstsports.net.
Kids First believes youth sports training is a process of consistent teaching practices based on fun, safety, skills, and confidence that works on the field and in the classroom.
Kids First programs and camps are designed for sports development. Each program devotes time to body positioning, safety practices, skills, drills, games, and a championship game in the last session. Further, body balance and coordination through first step directional movements are also taught through a variety of martial arts techniques, geared specifically for youth sports.
Further information is available at (630) 257-5438. For a full list of camps and sports offered, visit www.kidsfirstsports.net.
Posted by Laura Nelson on January 18, 2010
Can’t wait for summer gymnastics camp? Register today for the new winter gymnastics session that begins January 25th at Premier Gymnastics Academy in Carol Stream, Downers Grove, Oswego and Woodridge.
Your child will learn gymnastics skills in a fun, safe state-of-the-art gymnastics club. Boys and girls from 18 months to high school age will train on the latest equipment with the help from experienced coaches.
Convenient times are available for both gymnastics and tumbling sessions. Premier Gymnastics also offers competitive boys and girls teams that travel locally and compete in various gymnastics meets.
In late spring Premier Gymnastics will start taking registration for their flexible weekly Summer Fun Gymnastics Camps. Rain or shine, the camp is an excellent choice for summer activities.
All Premier Gymnastics Academy facilities are designed for maximum safety and experienced coaches run each class. Training apparatus includes – foam pits, 60’ trampoline, Olympic size spring floor, bars, beams, ropes, pommel horse, vault and other gymnastics apparatus.
For more information, call Premier Gymnastics at (630) 653-0800 or visit www.premiergymnastics academy.com.
Posted by Laura Nelson on January 18, 2010
Children can play by themselves, or with others, in 13 separate play spaces at the new Kids Town Play & Party in Wheaton. Designed especially for children six years and younger, colorful decor and accessories stimulates kids to pretend. Children can be a vet, fireman, princess, entertainer, construction engineer, or play quietly in the reading room.
There’s a climbing area that includes crawling and sliding equipment too. A party room is available for private events which can be held during, or after, open hours.
Kids Town Play & Party is open for public play Monday through Saturday at 1141 E. Butterfield Rd. (near Fox Bowl), Wheaton. (630) 260-8545. For details, visit www.kidstownplayandplarty.com.
Posted by Laura Nelson on January 18, 2010
Tim Rappe knew in 1993 that he was tired of selling radio advertising, power lunching and travel that kept him away from home. When he compiled a list of things that were important to him, kids and baseball were at the top. Rappe used his sales skills on Jerry Reinsdorf, owner of the Chicago White Sox and Bulls, to promote the training academy concept.
Tim Rappe, President, White Sox Training Academy
1994 brought the debut of White Sox summer camps throughout Chicagoland, with Chicago Bulls programs added in 1999. The summer camps were a tremendous success, and Rappe recognized the need for winter programs for aspiring athletes. Reinsdorf loved the idea of a permanent training academy, and put money behind the three story, 57,000 square foot complex in Lisle that has become a baseball, softball, basketball mecca, which opened in 2001.
Satellite facilities in LaGrange, Schererville, IN, Tinley Park and the new Ackerman Sports Complex in Glen Ellyn have been added since. About 10,000 kids each year participate in White Sox-sponsored academy programs.
The White Sox Training Academy is at 6200 River Bend Drive, Lisle. (630) 324-8221or BullsSoxAcademy.com.
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