Central Illinois Perspective - September 17, 2008

News

Nine Riverfront lofts at 401 Water, Waterfront Place and the Maxam Quarters will be open for tours on Sunday, October 5th from 2 to 5pm. Tickets are $25 in advance or $30 the day of the event. Proceeds will benefit the Peoria Riverfront Association. For ticket information, call (309) 671-5555.

Lexus of Peoria and Peoria Toyota-Scion kick off their Buy a Hybrid/Plant a Tree campaign on Thursday, September 18th at 10:30am at the top of Grandview Drive. For every hybrid vehicle sold, a tree will be planted in the Peoria Park District in honor of the purchaser. Join the team and go green!

The Caterpillar Employees Mixed Chorus will present The Music Man at Eastlight Theatre on October 2nd, 3rd and 4th at 7pm and October 4th and 5th at 2pm. Tickets are $6 and go on sale Monday at the Eastlight Theatre Box Office, 2200 E. Washington St., East Peoria. Caterpillar Inc. has sponsored the Employees Mixed Chorus, a musical outlet for all employees, retirees and dependents, for the past 67 years, making it the oldest employee activity of its kind in the world.

The Community Workshop and Training Center (CWTC) invites area businesses to enter teams of three into its annual CWTC Corporate Trivia Challenge on October 22nd. The Trivia Challenge follows a game-show format. To reserve a spot for your team, call 686-3300.

ArtsPartners invites you to its 2008 Annual Meeting tonight from 5 to 7pm at the Waterhouse, 619 SW Water Street. Guest speakers include Duffy Armstrong and Bert Gray. The 2008 ArtsPartner of the Year will also be announced. For more information, call 676-2787.

Kudos

Peoria jumped from #68 to #42 on the Milken Institute index of best cities in America. The Best-Performing Cities index measures U.S. metropolitan areas to find the most successful at job creation and retention, the quality of jobs being produced, and overall economic performance. For a complete listing of cities on the index, visit www.milkeninstitute.org.

Peoria also jumped 46 spots, up from #67 to #21, on Inc. Magazine’s 2008 Best Cities to do Business for Midsize Cities, and ranked #83 in Overall Cities, up 125 spots from #208 last year.

Family House celebrates a $2 Million Milestone in its capital campaign to build a new facility. The organization is just $750,000 away from its campaign goal. Celebrate with them at a press conference Thursday, September 18th at 9:30am at 1509 N. Knoxville.

Events

Wednesday, September 17 @ Barrack’s Cater Inn
The Public Relations Association of Central Illinois kicks off the 2008-2009 year with its first meeting from 11:45am to 1pm. A media panel comprised of local media professionals will discuss what it takes to publicize an event as well as the latest media changes and trends in central Illinois. Admission is $17/members and $22/non-members. For more information, visit pracentillinois.org or call (309) 692-7631.

Thursday, September 18 @ Barrack’s Cater Inn
The Peoria Area World Affairs Council presents “America’s Image Abroad: Do They Really Hate Us?” with Richard Wike, associate director of the Pew Global Attitudes Project. Reception begins at 5:30pm, dinner will be served at 6pm and the presentation will begin at 7pm. Register online at artstix.artspartners.net or visit pawac.org for more information.

Thursday, September 18 @ Peoria NEXT Innovation Center
Novus Networking presents “Selling Your Business” from 5:30 to 8pm. The featuring speakers, Bill Schmitgall and Earl Anderson, will discuss the sale of their businesses. Admission is $10. To register, visit www.novusnetworking.com.

Thursday, September 18 @ WTVP-47 Studios
Join the Peoria Ad Club for the kickoff of a new series of social events entitled “Ad Club Underground.” These casual events are a celebration of the back-end spirit of how the marketing and advertising world works. Admission is $5 for members and $10 for nonmembers. For more information, visit www.peoriaadclub.com.

Thursday, September 18 @ Peoria Civic Center
Join hundreds of business and community leaders at the Heartland Partnership’s Annual Meeting Breakfast at 7:30am. Ken Schmidt, former director of communications for Harley Davidson is the speaker. For more information, call (309) 495-5905 or email rcharles@h-p.org.

Friday, September 19 @ Neumiller Lecture Hall, Bradley University
Two Bradley graduates will offer insights into working on presidential campaigns during a free forum at 6:30pm. Ben Porritt ’02 currently serves as spokesperson with the McCain campaign, and John Kamis ’00 worked with the Obama campaign during the recent Democratic primaries. Free pizza, desserts and drinks at 6pm. Co-sponsored by the Department of Political Science and the Institute for Principled Leadership in Public Service as part of the PLS Current Issues Speaker Series.

Saturday, September 20th @ Peoria Civic Center
The OSF Saint Francis Foundation will host the Spirit of Hope Concert featuring Irish tenor John McDermott to benefit the Radiation Oncology Program at OSF. The concert will begin at 8pm at the Peoria Civic Center Theater. Visit spiritofhopeconcert.org for more information.