#TBT To The Time That Governor Jim Thompson Fundraised For Me

Posted by on
Today's "Throwback Thursday" post is the latest in the series here on the blog featuring some photos that I recovered from Flickr and transferred to Google Photos recently.  You can see the details here, including a photo of Da Mare and myself at the Joan!

These photos in this post are from October of 2005 and are from a fundraiser that was for my campaign for re-election to the Frankfort Village Board held at Die Bier Stube in Frankfort.  As you can see, the 'guest of honor' that night was former Illinois Governor Jim Thompson.  Yeah...pretty cool, right?

How this came about is an interesting story about my time in politics - both at the local level as a Village Trustee, and in State politics as the driver and digital hack for Tom Cross, the then House Minority Leader in Illinois.

Over the course of a few years and during dinners, time at the GOP convention, and assorted other what-have-yous, I was able to get to know The Governor and his right-hand-man along with my boss and his right-hand-man.  And what started as a kind of back-handed joke about the Guv coming to fundraise for *me* turned into reality.  The schedules aligned, I got lucky, and I couldn't have been more honored to have The Guv spend his evening in Frankfort on my behalf.  It was great.  He was coming off the 9/11 commission and he brought a bunch of copies of the Commission report that he autographed and we auctioned/raffle'd off.  And the Governor was patient enough to take a photo with EVERYBODY in the room that night.  What a treat!

I raised a bunch of money that night and had a great time with friends and family in the community.  It was a celebration of sorts and I'm thankful for the chance to relive that opportunity.

I know I said 'Thank you' top the Guv many a time, but I guess it deserves another one here on the blog as I look back:  Thanks for taking the time to help me move along with your support.


Comments

Post a Comment

Be nice to each other here.

Popular posts from this blog

Lou Malnati's Salad Dressing Recipe as Published in the 60's

Posted by on
Image
Earlier this winter, I wrote about the old Lou Malnati's menu and mentioned that as I was waiting around for my pie to finish up, I spied an old Chicago Tribune article posted on the wall that included the original Lou Malnati's Italian Salad Dressing Recipe.  The Tribune reporter called it "prized".  We were set to host a little pizza party over the weekend, so I figured I'd give it a shot.  Here's the article as seen through my mobile phone's camera. I'm not a wine drinker, so the fact that the recipe called for Burgundy wine didn't strike me as odd.  I went shopping at Angelo Caputos in Addison - a really incredible shopping experience - and when I got to the wine section I found Burgundy wine was carried ONLY in those HUGE jugs.  And they were dirt cheap.  The only issue is that needed just 4 ounces.  We ended up with a whole-lotta-wine that Nat won't drink. I've taken the recipe and modified it a bit by eliminating the percentage
Read more

Martha Stewart: If You Want To Be Happy....Plant A Garden - Garden Advice - November 2024

Posted by on
Image
Martha Stewart hit me right between the eyes this morning with this quote about happiness.  She says that you can be happy for a year - if you get married.  And you can be happy for a decade - if you get a dog.  But...if you wanna be happy for the rest of your life - plant a garden.  See below. I'm adding this to the handful of pieces of garden advice/garden musings/garden quotes that I've collected here on my blog - including: It is better to plant a fifty-cent tree in a five dollar hole than a five dollar tree in a fifty-cent hole , Conifers should come first , never buy just one of anything , Audrey Hepburn's line/quote - "To plant a garden is to believe in tomorrow" and... the best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The second best? Today .  Martha's take on happiness fits right in there with these. I first came across this on TikTok in a promo for her Netflix documentary, but....on  Instagram  is where I found this (nicely laid-out four-panel) Marth
Read more

Tom Thayer's Italian Beef Recipe

Posted by on
Image
TOM’S TAILGATER ITALIAN BEEF COURTESY OF Steve Dahl  and  DAHL.COM Ingredients: One 3 ½ to 4 pound boneless beef chuck pot roast One package of Zesty Italian Salad Dressing and Recipe Mix One 16 oz. jar of hot giardiniera One 16 oz. jar of mild giardiniera One dozen baguettes (French rolls) Directions: In a four-quart Crock-Pot, pour in one bottle of giardiniera. Place the roast on top of the layer of giardiniera. Sprinkle the salad dressing mixture on top of the roast. Add the second bottle of giardiniera to the top of the roast. Cover Crock-Pot and cook on high for 6 to 8 hours. When fork tender, shred the roast in the Crock-Pot and allow it to combine with the other ingredients. Slice the baguettes in half and pile on the beef and giardiniera mixture. ------------------------------------ For the babe's baptism party, we hosted a collection of family and friends back at our house after the church proceedings. We ordered some of the food from Maggiano's in
Read more