Food Donations and More in the Darien Patch Holiday Guide

Black Friday deals, what to expect for holiday traffic and lots more.

Add the Punchline to Our Talking Turkey Cartoon

If you've got wit, add your caption to Patch's weekly comic challenge and win a personalized print.

Are you blessed with insight and good humor? Or just bored today? Share your wit with your neighbors by entering Patch's comic caption challenge. Just add your dialogue for today's comic in the comment section of this post. Our only requirement is that you keep it clean! At week's end, we'll pick the winning punchline based on how many of us here at Patch giggle and smile at your contribution. The user who produces the winning punchline will get a personalized proof of the comic, with the winning words and a credit line, from cartoonist Chuck Ingwersen and Patch. Congratulations to LW Sagan, who provided the winning punchline to last week's Thirsty Horse cartoon: I don't think going dancing later is such a good idea. I really do have 2 …

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Downers Grove North Band To Perform at Walt Disney World on Thanksgiving

The marching band will be one of only five high school bands in the country performing during the Thanksgiving parade Thursday.

The Downers Grove North band has plenty to be thankful for this Thanksgiving, including a trip to Walt Disney World in Orlando, FL. The Trojan marching band will be one of only five high schools bands in the country performing in the Walt Disney World Thanksgiving Parade of Bands on Thursday, according to District 99 officials.  More than 150 students will march in the parade through Disney's Hollywood Studios, where they will perform a concert alongside guest artists "The Boston Brass." Parade coordinators contacted North High and invited the band to participate, district officials said. “We’re fortunate and proud of the fact that we’ve developed an international reputation for giving outstanding performances for major holiday events, and…

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Fun Facts and Trivia for Thanksgiving

Canadian Turkeys, carving the lobster and a turkey the size of a dog.

No need to worry about conversation topics around the Thanksgiving dinner table. Let your guests fill up on these Thanksgiving fun facts.

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HCS Family Services Distributes Thanksgiving Meals

The Hinsdale organization's food shelf collected meal donations and handed them out Nov. 20.

HCS Family Services wrapped up its Thanksgiving meal collection last weekend and volunteers distributed the meals Sunday at Memorial Hall in Hinsdale. The food drive was done in partnership with Kramer Foods. Donors visited the grocer and filled shopping bags with all the Thanksgiving meal regulars—potatoes, corn, stuffing—and then purchased a ticket good for one turkey and one pie. HCS Family Services has served the villages of Burr Ridge, Clarendon Hills, Darien, Hinsdale, Oak Brook, Westmont and Willowbrook since 1937. All the pictures above were taken by and submitted to Patch by HCS. 

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UPDATE: Food Shelf Extends Thanksgiving Meal Drive

The deadline was moved from Monday to Saturday so that HCS can reach its 400-meal goal.

The HCS Family Services Thanksgiving food drive has yet to reach its goal and has extended its donation period to Saturday, Nov. 19, according to HCS food pantry coordinator Julie Suarez.  HCS is partnering with Kramer Foods in its effort to collect 400 holiday meals for needy families. Kramer shoppers are encouraged to fill a grocery bag with, and donate to HCS, one set of all the Thanksgiving regulars—stuffing mix, potatoes, corn, beans, cranberry sauce, chicken broth, gravy, and coffee—and then purchase a $20 "Turkey Ticket" good for one turkey and one pumpkin pie. Suarez said Monday HCS has collected two-thirds of its goal. "We need another push," she said.  HCS will accept bags from shoppers who fill it at a grocery store other than …

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Hinsdale Food Shelf Looking for Thanksgiving Meal Donations

HCS Family Services is partnering with a local grocer to gather 400 meals for needy families.

With about a week left in its Thanksgiving food drive, HCS Family Services has yet to reach its goal and is still looking for donations from the community, according to HCS food pantry coordinator Julie Suarez.  HCS is partnering with Kramer Foods in its effort to collect 400 holiday meals for needy families in a food drive scheduled to end Nov. 14. Kramer shoppers are encouraged to fill a grocery bag with, and donate to HCS, one set of all the Thanksgiving regulars—stuffing mix, potatoes, corn, beans, cranberry sauce, chicken broth, gravy, and coffee—and then purchase a $20 "Turkey Ticket" good for one turkey and one pumpkin pie. Suarez said Tuesday that HCS will accept bags from shoppers who filled it at a different grocery store. …

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New in Town

Home for the Holidays

Part of being new in town means traveling back home from new places.

Here in Darien, a lot of families welcome others home for the holidays – kids from college, relatives from out of town, or, as my boyfriend's family here will be doing this Christmas, family members who are stationed elsewhere with the armed forces. I even read here on Patch about a parent anxious for her daughter to return home for Thanksgiving. While I'm still working on making my own home here and cannot wait to welcome my family into it, for now, home for me is still a small town in central Indiana. So, Wednesday after work, I headed as always to Union Station, only this time I had a date with Amtrak and a 4-plus hour commute on the Hoosier State route. Given all of the controversy that has erupted recently about the TSA screening …

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Homeward Bound for Thanksgiving

A college daughter brings home more joy than she knows for the Thanksgiving holiday.

My sophomore daughter is home, having traveled 400 miles from college last weekend for Thanksgiving break. With her, she’s bringing the part of my heart that she has carried for 19 years. My high school age daughter has carried another part for 16 years. I am happy to say my heart will feel especially complete with both of my girls under our roof.   My week has been one of frenzied yet enjoyable preparations as I bought the ingredients for Meg’s favorite meals. All college kids know, whether or not Mom is a cook, everything tastes better at home -- even peanut butter and jelly, I’m told.  I aimed to have household chores complete before Meg’s arrival, so that I’m available to dash out to a movie or combat the cold with a cup of hot …

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Bleached Turkeys, Trapped Turkeys and a Dog Stuck in a Turkey, Oh My!

Turkey trauma all in a day’s work at the Butterball Turkey Talk-Line.

Can I thaw my turkey in my electric blanket? I've trapped my turkey in the oven by accidentally turning on the self-cleaning cycle, what do I do? Can I use a chain saw to carve my turkey? My Chihuahua is stuck in the turkey carcass, help! Hard to believe, but these represent just a handful of actual questions posed to the staff of the Butterball Turkey Talk-Line since it first started helping callers with their turkey traumas 30 years ago. The Butterball Turkey Talk-Line is tucked away in an undisclosed office building on Diehl Road in Naperville. For nearly two months — from Nov. 1 until Christmas Day — the office is home to more than 50 professionally trained turkey experts, typically college-educated home economists and nutritionists, …

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