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the new lenox patriot | November 7, 2019 | 5
Sold-out painting party
benefits LWSRA programs
Kyle LaHucik
Freelance Reporter
2
Wine, painting and a
good time made for the
perfect mixture for a soldout
crowd Oct. 27 at Gina’s
Teardrop Cafe in New
Lenox. Friends, families
and athletes gathered to
paint inspirational quotes
on wooden boards as a fundraiser
for the Lincolnway
Special Recreation Association.
“I’d do anything to be
with these people,” Nicki
Sweezer, a basketball player
on the LWSRA wheelchair
team, said while
looking through the 30 or
so available quotes to use
for her board. She landed
on “it’s all just a bunch of
hocus pocus.”
“I’m all about Halloween,”
Sweezer said. She
dressed as a sugar skull for
Halloween season, which is
her favorite holiday.
Proceeds from the event
will go toward a scholarship
program, the association’s
sports teams
or an adult day program,
LWSRA Executive Director
Keith Wallace said.
“We love getting organizations
that do fundraising
on our behalf,” Wallace
said, noting that it lifts a
weight off the shoulders
of LWSRA staff. “It brings
people together.”
Terrie Murphy, a codirector
of the New Lenox
Relay For Life, did a
similar fundraiser for the
American Cancer Society
recently and wanted to do a
similar event in support of
the LWSRA. She teamed
up with Gina’s Teardrop
Cafe owner Gina Buck,
whose son has participated
Colleen Musselman (middle) and her teammate Nicki
Sweezer (bottom left) get their boards ready for an
afternoon of painting. The two athletes play for the
LWSRA wheelchair basketball team, whose first
tournament is Nov. 9. Kyle LaHucik/22nd Century Media
in LWSRA programs for
nearly 25 years.
“Keith is a great guy,”
Buck said.
She said her son, who is
27, has enjoyed his experiences
with the LWSRA,
whether that’s going on
trips or engaging in the Titans
adult day program.
Buck’s mother, Mary
Lungaro, and friends Darlene
Purler and Pat Goes
painted together.
“She’s got a good heart,”
Goes, who works at Gina’s
Cafe, said of Buck. She
painted the phrase “Scatter
kindness” on her home decor
board.
Colleen Musselman,
who’s played basketball for
10 years — the two most
recent for the LWSRA
team — decided to paint
the phrase “If the shoe fits,”
because it reminds her of
Toy Story. Musselman decided
to attend the event
because “it’s fun to do with
my teammates,” she said.
Participants created everyday
designs to accent
their homes with phrases
like “Beautifully broken,”
“Simply blessed,” “It is
well with my soul” and holiday-themed
ones, as well.
Melinda Green, owner
of the 6-year-old wood
sign painting workshop,
taught participants how to
make their boards: Chalk
the back of the paper with
the quote, tape it onto the
board, trace the outline and
then apply brushstrokes of
any of the many dozens of
acrylic paint options.
Lauren Tidball and Jamie
Meyer hadn’t known about
the LWSRA before coming
to the event but were invited
by their aunt and were
excited to paint, they said.
Green said she was especially
interested in leading
the workshop for the LWS-
RA because she worked for
Lincoln-Way Area Special
Education District 843 for
10 years.
“This is the grass roots of
what I did,” Green said.
The groups were coming
together for a good cause
for a unique experience,
she added.
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