Wrigleyville Magazine January 2011

8/8/2019 Wrigleyville Magazine January 2011

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•Ronnie ‘This Old Cub’ Santo

•Slugger’s Knocks It Out of the Park •Step Into Your Childhood

•Wrigleyville Real Estate Update

•Help and Hope

•

The Rink at Wrigley Returns

Inside Magazine:

J an u ar y2 0 1 1



Contents:

Ronnie ‘This Old Cub’ Santo - Page 3

Slugger’s Knocks It Out of the Park - Page 9

Step Into Your Childhood - Page 12

Wrigleyville Real Estate Update - Page 14

Help and Hope - Page 16

im O’Riley is the editor-in-chie o Wrigleyville Magazine and also keeps ans posted on athings Cubs year-round on his Facebook page, Between the Vines (http://acebook.com/betweenthevines). His Facebook page or Wrigleyville Magazine is http://acebook.com/wrigleyvillemagazine. Follow him on witter at http://twitter.com/WrigleyMagazine and http://twitter.com/CubsStories. You can also email him at [email protected].

The Rink at Wrigley Returns - Page 19



Ronnie ‘This Old Cub’ Santo

The Cubs legend

When Ronald Edward Santo reached the major leagues, not many

knew o his secret. In ear o being orced to retire, Santo did not wantpeople to question his playing abilities; he wanted his playing talent tomake the headlines instead.

In 1959, the Chicago Cubs signed Santo as an amateur free agent. After his de-but in 1960, it was only a matter of time before he was breaking double play, as-sist and putout records as the team’s starting third baseman. He had also led theleague in triples and base on balls throughout various seasons. By the end of his ca-reer, Santo had received ve consecutive Gold Glove Awards and was chosen as a Na-tional League All-Star nine times.

With all his success, it was hard to guess that he had been suffering from a chronic disease since the agof 18, but Santo kept it to himself. Since the technology in the 1960s and 1970s was not advanced enougto monitor blood sugar levels, Santo measured it depending on his moods; at the time, a simple snacwould sufce if he felt his blood sugar was low. While some of his teammates thought he had a sweet toot

occasionally stealing his candy bars, Santo sometimes struggled to make it the plate, almost about to pass out. After 11 years playing for the Ch

cago Cubs, Santo publicly announced in 1971 that he was dianosed with type 1 diabetes. The Cubs’ starting third bas

man, the captain, a celebrity and a hero, was sufferinfrom a lifelong disease.

Before Santo retired in 1974, he played onseason for the cross-town rivals, the Chicag

White Sox. But he was a true Cubbie andidn’t have the heart to play anywhe

else. After 14 years in Major LeaguBaseball, 13 of them with the Chicag

Cubs, Santo retired at the age of 3

From the boothIn 1990, he decided to shahis insights and enthusiasm fbaseball through broadcasting WGN Radio 720, not only asformer player but also as formCub nonetheless. Santo counot leave behind his team anhis fans – all of whom he cosidered his extended family.

Santo was the quintessentbaseball player who was also

Photo credit: JDRF-Illinois



broadcaster. He kept his love of the game alive as the color com-mentator for an entertainmentduo with play-by-play announcer Pat Hughes. A unique broadcast-er, fan and competitor, who talkedmore than just baseball, by also

telling jokes and sharing stories of his playing days. As a true “hom-er”, Santo acted just like any fanwatching the game. Whether itwas good or bad, listeners knew –“oh geez” and “oh no” – becausehe carried his emotions on hissleeve. Always himself, bringingthe kid back into baseball.

Te ght to nd a cureSanto could talk baseball buthe did not share the struggleshe faced with his illness behindthe microphone. Diabetes led tomany complications and conse-quences such as the loss of bothlegs and bladder cancer. How-ever, he managed his diabeteswithout complaining but alwaysacknowledged and encouragedothers going through the samebattle, giving hope and courage.His goal was to help nd a cure.In 1979, Ron Santo paired withthe Juvenile Diabetes ResearchFoundation (JDRF) for the rstRon Santo Walk to Cure Diabe-tes as the honorary chairman.More than 32 years later, it hasbecome the largest JDRF walk inthe country that attracts close to

30,000 participants and has gen-erated about $60 million in over-all revenue. Thanks to the moneyand awareness Santo has pio-neered, JDRF has improved thetechnology for diabetes.

Santo was genuinely interested inhelping people – whether it wasa simple phone call or person-al appearance, he would make

the time. He was positive face for

people with type 1 diabetes because he would look for opportunitieto not only share his hope for a future cure but also to help give hopto those he could relate.

“People will continue to associate Ron and his life with JDRF and spcically, the Illinois walks,” said Patrick Reedy, executive director the Illinois Chapter of JDRF. “We will nd the most appropriate wa

to continue to remember Ron through the walks and to include him everything we do going forward.”

Both Cubs fans and JDRF supporters can agree that it will not be thsame without Santo, but his legacy throughout professional baseband work with JDRF will live on. Two supporters in particular, John an



Gloria Brda, were diagnosed with type 2 dia-betes one year a part. The married couple isthankful to have each other for encourage-ment, helping each other stay on schedulewith exercising and eating habits. KnowingSanto’s story throughout the years, the twoCubs fans believe that he will never be for-

gotten as a Cub, a broadcaster and apositive inuence in diabetes.

“He could have had his legsamputated and stayed inhis chair but instead, hetook his handicap anddidn’t dwell on it. Hewas very involved,”said Gloria Brda.“His name and di-

abetes will alwaysgo hand in hand.”

Te legendlives onTo pay their re-spects to Santo,hundreds of peo-ple – whether fam-ily, friend or fan –attended the wake

and funeral preces-sion on December 9 and 10. There werelines stretching aroundthe block at Chicago’sHoly Name Cathedral for thewake and fans at every corner surrounding Wrigley Field singing“Take Me Out to the Ballgame” for thefuneral precession. Major League Base-ball Commissioner Bud Selig, Cubs Own-

er Tom Ricketts, and Santo’s partner in thebroadcast booth, Pat Hughes, were some of the speakers at the funeral sharing heartfeltstories of Santo.

To keep Santo’s hope alive, many have madedonations to JDRF in honor of Santo. After he passed away on December 2, donationscame ooding in JDRF’s Chicago ofce.



“We appreciate the support that has come in or Ron’s memory,”said Reedy. “It’s important that as much as we appreciate all thesupport that has come in, we know that Ron would really likehis legacy to live on in terms o on going support until we nda cure.”

From all the baseballs he elded as an all-star to all the ones he signed

as a legend, he will forever be remembered for his baseball career, hisbroadcast enthusiasm and his support to help nd a cure for type 1diabetes.

“I know getting inducted into the Hall of Fame had to be something,but that ag is going to be hanging there after everybody is gone,” saidRon Santo the day his number was retired in 2003. “This is my Hall of Fame.”

Juvenile DiabetesResearch Foundation

For those interested in helpinJDRF has a ‘$10 for #10’ dontion located on their website. AlsJDRF has special events plannefor next year, at which people whave an opportunity to continue show their support for Santo.

For more information or if yowould like to make a donation JDRF in memory of Ron Santplease do so online by going http://www.jdrllinois.org/.

You may also mail your donatioto: JDRF Illinois, 11 S. LaSaStreet, Suite 1800 Chicago, 60603-1344

Also, to honor Santo, leavthoughts and comments on thJDRF Illinois Facebook page.



10 acts about #10

1. Ronald Edward Santo was born February 25, 1940 in Seattle, Washington.

2. To begin his MLB career, Santo was rst signed as a free agent by the Chicago Cubs in 1959 and mad

his debut on June 26, 1960.

3. In 1966, Santo was the rst player in major league history to

wear a batting helmet with protective earaps, in order to protect

an injury from a pitch by the New York Mets’ Jack Fisher.

4. Known for performing the ‘heel click’ after a comeback home

game against the Montreal Expos June 22, 1969.

5. Played in 2,102 games at third base for the Cubs from 1960-73.

6. Became the rst player in 1974 to invoke the ten-and-ve rule

(also known as the “Santo rule” or the “Santo clause”) allowing

players a say in their trade if they have at least 10 years MLB

experience and ve years with the same team.

7. The Ron Santo Walk to Cure Diabetes just recently celebrated

its 32nd year this past October 3, generates about $5 million

in annual revenue and is held in six Illinois locations: Chicago,

Busse Woods near Schaumburg, Libertyville, Lisle, Palos Hills

and Peoria.

8. In 2002, Santo was named the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation’s “Person-of-the-Year.”

9. On Sept. 28, 2003, Santo’s jersey, No. 10, was retired by the Chicago Cubs, which made him the thi

player alongside teammates Ernie Banks (No. 14) and Billy Williams (No. 26).

10. In order to honor Santo’s contribution to the Chicago Cubs, the team will wear No. 10 patches on their un

form sleeves in 2011 season.

Nicole Bersani is the public relations director and an associate editor at Wrigleyville MagazinShe can be reached via email at [email protected]



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Slugger’s Knocks It Out of the Park

For the past twenty-ve years, Slugger’s World-ClassSports Bar and Grill (http://sluggersbar.com), locatedat 3540 North Clark Street in Wrigleyville, has notonly given ans a place to go and watch their a- vorite teams, but they’ve also provided themwith a place to play as well. Sure, they haveover thirty V’s (including six 12’ big screens), so you never miss a momento the action. But how many placeshave this many V’s plus indoorbatting cages, a piano bar, a gameroom, great ood, dancing, and agreat place to meet your riendsand make new ones? Well, inWrigleyville, you can be surethat only Slugger’s has it all.I you’re looking or a placeto take the kids beore a ballgame, then this is denitely the place or you!

But wait, the game you go thereto watch doesn’t have to have abaseball, it can include insteada puck, pigskin, or basketballas Slugger’s not only covers theCubs like no one else, they alsoserve as your home for Black-hawks, Bears, Bulls, and collegesporting events as well. In additionto their four batting cages (which fea-ture three baseball pitching machines:slow, medium, and fast pitch and onefast-pitch softball) there are video games,pinball machines, an air hockey table, andeven a few carnival games where kids canearn tickets to cash in for prizes. Sound like your kids would get bored here?Well, that’s exactly why, according to Slugger’s generalmanager, Ari Strauss, Slugger’s has so much to offer. “Be-fore we were here, there was an auto shop in this building. Thereweren’t a lot of places around that were accommodating to families somy father decided to make Slugger’s more of a family-friendly place.”

So every spring, just like the professionals in the Grapefruit and Cac-tus leagues do, the sons and daughters (along with their fathers andmothers, of course) return to Slugger’s to get an early start on brush-

ing up on their swings before baseball and softball season begins



again for them. While mom and dad relax downstairs with a cold on(or two), the kids are busy upstairs getting a leg up on their competion as their next season approaches. Don’t worry, adults are welcomin the batting cages too!

If music is more your thing, then Thursdays on the main oor, and Fdays, Saturdays, and after every Cubs home game on the secon

level, you have to check out the outrageous and always entertaininDueling Pianos. Since 2005, Dueling Pianos has been providing thperfect blend of music, comedy, dancing, and drinking to make forgreat way to enjoy a night out with friends and family. It’s been callethe hottest, most interactive musical show in Wrigleyville but don’t taour word for it, come out and see for yourself! Do you have whattakes to get on the Slugger’s pole? You’ll see what they mean by thonce you get there! One thing is for sure though, you’ll have a gretime!

If all of the excitement of Slugger’s is making you a little hungry, well,then you’re in luck because they have you covered there too! Choosefrom their menu of delicious appetizers, fresh salads, made-from-scratch pizza, giant half-pound burgers, or other tantalizing sandwichcreations. You’ll never go hungry at Sluggers! If you’re in the mood todo a little drinking, then you’ll be happy to know that Slugger’s won’t letyou go thirsty either! With daily drink specials, a large selection of beer (both domestic and imported), a variety of microbrews and “malterna-tives”, and every liquor imaginable, you can be sure to nd what you’relooking for to “wet your whistle” at Slugger’s.

The staff at Slugger’s is second to none. The management strongly be-

lieves that their staff is what not only sets them apart from others in thearea, but that their courtesy and attention to detail is what keeps their customers coming back again and again. Don’t be surprised if you hap-pen to walk in and see a familiar face behind the bar either. In the past,Slugger’s has had people with the last names Dawson, Maddux, Sut-cliffe, Gossage, Meyers, Davis and, of course, Slugger’s regular MinnieMinoso slide behind the counter and serve up drinks to their patrons.Could you imagine Greg Maddux handing you your next beer?

If you’re looking for the perfect place to host your own private eventwithout breaking the bank, then look no further than Slugger’s. They

can easily accommodate parties from 15-500 people to make your nextofce, bachelor or bachelorette, holiday, birthday, social club, or corpo-rate party a huge success. Just call (773) 251-0579 for details or checkout their web site for more information.

Slugger’s…it’s not just a homerun, they knock it out of the park!

-im O’Riley is the editor-in-chie o Wrigleyville Magazine. Youcan contact him via email at [email protected]



Step Into Your ChildhoodCozy Noodles & Rice is not your typical Tai restaurant – it is a mixture o playul decor, authentTai cuisine and exceptional quality service.

Located just a block south of Addison at 3456 N. Shefeld Ave., CozyNoodles & Rice (http://cozychicago.com) is a unique Thai restaurantthat brings customers a blast from the past with nostalgic toys fromtheir childhood ornamenting the walls. About 25 shelves line the eatingarea that hold more than 1,000 Americana artifacts from the vintagePepsi-Cola signs to the old-fashioned toy cars.

“It’s more than just ood, it’s un,” said owner, ee Maun.

Maun loved toys growing up just as much as the next kid. However,instead of having them collect dust or saved away in storage, he has

them on display for all Wrigleyville locals and travelers to enjoy.

“When I rst came to Chicago [in 1996], all the Thai restaurants werethe same. But here, it’s like my dream come true – I got the thing that Iwant,” said Maun. “The best of all, the people love it. It’s good to makethe people happy with not only the food.”

The ‘thing’ that Muan wanted was a blend of delicious food and mem-orable history.

The food, a combination of geuine Thai style and ingredientis no more than $7.55 per etrée. From crab rangoon appeters, won ton soup, seaweed saad, fried rice, pad Thai noodlegreen curry and Thai iced tea wash it all down, any costumcan nd a Thai favorite and a wreasonable price.

Maun learned the recipes for thmenu from his mother in Bankok, Thailand and learned threstaurant business from workinwith his brother at Cozy Noodle& Rice in Evanston before opeing his own restaurant.

The location, within view of Wriley Field’s right eld foul pole, waan empty lot for a few years b

fore Maun thought it would ba perfect place to turn into hdream restaurant in 2003.



Maun blended his family’s ideas and his own vision of décor.Keeping the traditional Thai cuisine, the colorful toys and signsis a different background than his brother’s restaurant. He andhis wife, Liew (Julie) Maun, also constructed every pebble-topped table and wooden shelf to match the playful style.

The Pad Thai noodle entrée is the most popular dish amongthe locals; however, with BYOB and promotions on the web-site and brochures (e.g. show a Cubs ticket, and get free en-trée) Cubs fans from all over come to eat at Cozy before or after the game.

“I love when this old lady comes here once a year during the [baseball] season beore a game and says ‘it’s like adream’,” said Maun. She has come at least 5 years in a row now.”

Customers constantly rave about the service of the restaurant,and some locals, such as Scott Riding, have a nickname be-cause of their constant visits.

“They call me ‘spicy fried rice guy’ because that is what I al -ways order,” said Riding, who is in the restaurant businesshimself. “When I walk in, there is always someone I think of recommending to come here.”

Maun’s employees are known for their service, but Maun also

recognizes them for their cleaning abilities. They help tremen-dously with cleaning the toys before the restaurant even opensit doors. Between every robot’s buttons and each tin car’s in-terior, every nook of the each toy is dusted clean. Since theyare individually glued to the shelves, many of them have to becleaned with miniature dusters.

Before the food is served, don’t forget to wash your hands,however, because the bathrooms are worth seeing. More than1,000 of Pez dispensers plaster the women’s bathroom andmore than 50 Andy Warhol’s Marilyn Monroe paintings drape

the men’s bathroom.

HoursSunday-Tursday: 11 a.m. – 10 p.m.Friday-Saturday: 11 a.m. – 10:30 p.m.Open for lunch, dinner, carry out and catering

Nicole Bersani is the public relations director and an asso-ciate editor at Wrigleyville Magazine. She can be reached via email at [email protected]



the Chicago MLS. Of these, only four are detached single-fami-

ly homes. The rest are condos, duplexes or other attached prop-erties. For the most part, attached properties in Wrigleyville offerone- or two-bedroom oor plans. However, there are 15 three-bed-room units on the market right now. Average list price for attachedproperties with two or fewer bedrooms is $334,730. Larger con-dos are available for between $274,500 and$799,000, which will get you a beautifulduplex penthouse with high-end n-ishes. Average market time for at-tached properties in Wrigleyvilleis around 200 days.

If a detached house is whatyou’re looking for, the av-erage price hovers around$1.518 million in the Wrig-leyville neighborhood.Right now, you can get athree-bedroom abode for $475,000, but most single-family dwellings listed inthis area have ve or more

bedrooms with an averageprice of $1,866,000.

Much of Wrigleyville’s appeal is itsclose proximity to fun nightlife, goodrestaurants, public transportation and thescenic lakefront—not to mention it is home to Chi-cago’s own North Side Major League baseball team. The Red Line“L” is the neighborhood’s main artery of transit. The station is con-veniently located at the southeast corner of Wrigley Field on AddisonStreet. Buses also run along all major roads, making it easy to getfrom Wrigleyville to other parts of the city. Dining options are foundin practically all directions from the ballpark, with a big concentrationof bars and grills just south of the stadium on Clark Street and Shef-eld Avenue. The same area is peppered with theaters, art studiosand other entertainment venues that attract people to the communityfrom around Chicago, no matter what the time of year.

All sales statistics were pulled from the MLS of Northern Illinois on 12/1/10

Wrigleyville Real EstateUpdate

It may be of-season or the

Chicago Cubs, but the real es-tate market in Wrigleyville isstill primed or heavy hitters.Serious buyers can get someseriously good deals in thispocket-size North Side neigh-borhood right now. Tere aredozens o great properties upor sale or under $500K, in-cluding a single-amily 2-sto-

ry Victorian home on WiltonAvenue. O course, you canalso drop $2.5 million on a de-tached traditional greystone i that better suits your style. Asor attached properties, the in- ventory ranges rom one-bed-room condos starting at $160Kto three-bedroom duplexeswith price tags in the $600s.

Here is a recent account of whathappened in the Wrigleyvillehousing market during Novem-ber…

Only two attached residen-tial properties closed during themonth of November in Wrigley-ville. The units had an averagesales price of $495,000. The av-

erage market time for the prop-erties was 388 days, after whichthe homes sold for 93% of the listprice.

As of December 1st, there were60 active listings in Wrigleyville,according to reports pulled from



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Help and HopeSince 1970, Lakeview Pantry (http://lakeviewpantry.org) habeen providing some o lie’s most basic essentials to people ineed. Although their main objective throughout many o thes

years has been to provide ood to the hungry, they also colect and distribute clothing and non-ood items to thoswho need their assistance too. Tink o them, i yo

will, as the “angels o Wrigleyville” because, quitrankly, that’s what they are. Not only do the

take in donations and then redistribute them tless ortunate members o the community, bu

they truly do live by their motto: “Help otoday, hope or tomorrow” on a daily basi

According to their executive director, Ga

Garland, who has been with Lakeview Pantfor 24 years, the organization serves 2,80people every month between their two lcations, 3831 N. Broadway St., Chicago, 60613 and 1414 W. Oakdale Ave., ChicagIL 60657, which serve families in need froIrving Park to Fullerton and from the LakMichigan shoreline to Damon. “The state the economy has a two-fold effect”, Garlansays, “people with mental health and addi

tion issues, who struggle all the time and wh

used to come to us 3-4 times a year, now comto us 8-9 times a year and then we have a l

of individuals or families coming to us who havsimply fallen on hard times due to job loss. Rig

now, we’re serving approximately 20% more peopthan we were three years ago. 30-40% of the peop

we serve suffer from mental health or addiction issue10-15% are homeless, while others lack support from fam

ily or have ‘burned the bridges’ to them and simply have nplace else to turn. Most people who come in are happy just

be looked in the eye after often being shunned in their day-to-da

lives, which often makes them feel less than part of the community.

On an average day, the pantry serves 150 people in four hours. Othe Wednesday before Thanksgiving, they served 338. There are tyically 30-40 people lined up outside their doors when they arrive oMondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, the days of the week that thedistribute food to community members. To discourage lines from bcoming even longer, they hand out numbers which are then randomdrawn for service. First come does not necessarily mean rst serveNothing is pre-bagged so people have a bit more of a choice as



what they’ll receive: crunchy pea-nut butter instead of creamy, peasinstead of corn, etc. “This”, saysGarland, “helps take away someof the feeling that they’ve lost con-trol over every aspect of their life.”

To get help, one simply needs towalk in.

They undergo a short interviewwith an intake volunteer to de-termine family size and needs aswell as to determine whether anyfamily member has any specialdietary restrictions. In addition toa couple weeks worth of grocer-ies, people are allowed access

to their clothing room, householditem room, and refrigerated andfrozen items. They also are giv-en the opportunity to meet withthe pantry’s case manager, whomLakeview Pantry has had on their staff since 2005, and who assistspeople with getting jobs, obtainingmental health care, and receivingphysical health care assistancetoo, should they require it. This

is where Lakeview Pantry’s mot-to ‘Help for today, hope for tomor -row’ comes into play most. Theylike to look at what they do as of-fering a handup, not ahand-out.

You may be wondering where all of the food comes from. Well, a lot it comes from donations made to the pantry by the community. Eveday that they’re open, people can come by and drop off donated foo(Proteins are in highest demand: peanut butter, tuna, beans, etc. Setheir web site for drop-off hours.) In addition to the generous dontions they receive from the public, they also receive slightly damage

yet perfectly good, items from partners in the community like WhoFoods and Trader Joe’s. This is also where the bulk of their refrigeated and frozen items come from such as meat, bread, and producSpecial food products such as “easy-opening” Spam, corned beef, canned hams are also donated for the homeless.

Lakeview Pantry is about so much more than food though. Other dnated items can include clothes (appropriate to the season), houshold items, personal hygiene items (such as soaps, toothpaste, toilpaper, feminine hygiene products, brushes, shampoo, and deodoant), toys, baby formula, and diapers. Just about anything in good, u

able condition is both accepted and appreciated.



How You Can Help

There are a number of ways that people who want to get involved cando so. As you might expect, Lakeview Pantry receives most of their donations around the holidays but this is also the time when the de-

mand is highest. The demand though, unfortunately, is year-round.You can send a “one-time” check or, better yet, you can join the Pan-try Partners program and have whatever amount you’d like debitedfrom your bank account every month. Every dollar donated buys 10pounds of food from the Greater Chicago Food Depository. Of courseas a 501(3)(c) organization, all of your gifts are fully tax-de-ductible.

You can join their team of volunteers who notonly range from the homeless to the mostprominent members of society but who

also work seamlessly side-by-side witheach other. Former Cub Ryan Theriotworked the food line during his rstyear with the Cubs and also gave avery moving speech to members of the pantry’s board of directors. TheCubs’ players’ wives host a fooddrive where they accept cannedgoods for Lakeview Pantry everyyear prior to a Cubs game in Au-gust. For 10 canned goods or a

$20 donation to Lakeview Pantry,they will give you an autographedpicture of one of your favorite Cubplayers. Volunteers are always wel-come at both locations of the pantry.Please see their web site for details onhow you can get involved. The most impor-tant thing though is that you do get involvedin some way. Without your help, there is no hopebut with your help today, there is hope for tomorrow.

You can nd Lakeview Pantry’s Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/pages/Lakeview-Pantry/115898915771?ref=tsAnd you can follow them on Twitter at http://twitter.com/LakeviewPantry

Written by Wrigleyville Magazine’s Editor-in-Chie, im O’Riley



The Rink at Wrigley Returns

In recent years, Wrigley Field has welcomed more and more events to thegreatest sporting venue in the world, besides just the great American pas-

time. We all remember the Bears’ Gale Sayers taking it to the end zone many times in the 1960’s, Jimmy Bufet christening Wrigley as a concert venue in2005, the NHL’s Winter Classic eaturing our Blackhawks in 2009, and mostrecently the Wrigleyville Classic college ootball matchup between Illinoisand Northwestern in November o this year. Wrigley Field and the Wrigley- ville area have welcomed numerous events in the past, but ew which really give us the chance to participate. But are there any ‘cooler’ than Te Rink atWrigley, returning or its second straight year? For those hoping to skate totheir heart’s content during winter’s shivering temperatures, while trying to

keep warm with multiple cups o cofee or hot chocolate, I say there is noth-ing ‘hotter’ than skating at Wrigley.

The Rink at Wrigley has been brought back to give folks the enjoyment and thrillof skating outside the Friendly Connes. With the success of the rink last year,The Ricketts family and the Cubs, along with Alderman Tom Tunney, the ChicagoPark District, Westrec Marinas, the Central Lakeview Merchants Association, PatchLandscaping and the Lakeview Citizens’ Council have decided to bring it back for the chance to create a memory unlike any other this winter. “We are excited

to bring winter fun back to our community and to highlight our com-mitment to our neighbors and the City of Chicago,” said Cubschairman Tom Ricketts. Provided temperatures cooper -ate, and who really believes they won’t, the rink will beopen until February 28th.

I got the chance to interview a second year skat-er by the name of John Lincoln. “What encour-ages you to come out here when it’s freez-ing to skate?”, I asked him. “Just the thrillof breathing that Wrigley air”, Lincoln said,

“and enjoying the atmosphere. It’s never too early to get a taste of this amazingplace, baseball or not”

The Rink at Wrigley kicked off in Novem-ber this year with an opening ceremonywhich included Cubs chairman Tom Rick-etts, Alderman Tom Tunney, and Cubspitcher Tom Gorzelanny. Gorzelanny skat-



ed alongside others at the rink while also takingtime to sign autographs and pose for pictures.

Jack Wrightley ,12, told me that Tom Gorzelan-ny was “his favorite player” “and that “he never dreamed he would have met him” It was greatto see a young Cubs fan smile, knowing hewas skating with one of his heroes. Everyoneon that rink had a day to remember, thanks toGorzelanny.

At the end of the day, I was able to catch upwith rst timer Elizabeth Comray. I asked her how she had enjoyed her rst time skating atWrigley.”Unbelievable”, she said, “I haven’t hadso much fun on a winter day in a long time. Ihad an amazing time with my children. Theyloved it and I loved it. I will denitely be backbefore February 28th.”

Overall, The Rink at Wrigley is being enjoyedby all. The day I was in attendance, I did notsee one complaint about the cold weather. All Isaw were smiles, laughter, and fun all around.Who says you have to wait until baseball sea-son to enjoy a day in Wrigleyville?

The rink is open from now until February 28tThe hours are: Monday- Thursday 2pm-9pmFriday 2pm-11pm, Saturday 10am-11pmand Sunday 10am-8pm. Admission is $10 oweekends for adults, and $6 for children othe weekends. Skate rentals are $10 for aduand $5 for children. During the week, everthing is half-price.

-Steve Carney is a 16 year old lielong Cuan rom Chicago, IL



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Wrigleyville Magazine January 2011

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Transcript of Wrigleyville Magazine January 2011