The Acacia Park Church Game Night at Norridge Acacia Park Lutheran Church (4307 N. Oriole Ave.) is on a roll.
An idea launched last May by Karen Lanners of Harwood Heights, with the help of fellow church members, Acacia Park Church Game Night is a memory-maker, a conversation starter and money-generator to help the homeless, say fans of the free-of-charge event.
On Jan. 3, with slushy snowy conditions and post New Year’s temperatures in the thirties, 44 people attended, with no one was obligated to donate to compensate for the free hot dogs, cookies, chips, water, sweets and other amenities they could enjoy.
A large table of board games matched the eye candy colors of real candy that people also brought as movie night-sized treats. Of the games, one could choose Jenga, Shrek Junior 2 Monopoly, Twister, Battleship, Dora the Explorer Candy Land, Yahtzee, Pictionary, Sorry!, Connect 4 or you could bring your own game, which is what Lily Gibbs, 5, a preschooler from River Grove did.
Lily brought a Monopoly Junior game which she received as a Christmas gift.
“It’s cool,” Lily said, of game night.
Lily was accompanied by her mother Sheila Gibbs of River Grove and Lily’s grandparents, Tim and Liz Evans of Norridge.
“I am here on a date night with my daughter,” Sheila Gibbs said. “She’s excited, she’s (Lily) up past her bedtime.”
“I’m having fun,” Liz Evans said, who was asked an important childhood question.
“Candy Land?” Evans replied, of that Hasbro board game. “I haven’t played that in years…”
Acacia Park Church Game Night is about second chances too, if you wanted to try your winning hand at a favorite card game.
“It was between that and Sorry!” said Linda Engler of Norridge, who chose to play a rummy-based game.
“The power of one game is community,” said Rev. Christopher Honig, pastor of Acacia Park Lutheran Church, which was established in 1928 and chartered the following year.
“One of the emphases that we have here at Acacia Park is community and not just the congregational community but we’re reaching out to the larger community, Norridge, Harwood Heights and beyond,” said Honig, who became pastor here in January 2014.
Folks could choose to place monetary donations in a wicker basket, raising $170 to help purchase items for bagged meals to distribute to the homeless served by The Night Ministry of Chicago (4711 N. Ravenswood Ave.).
The Night Ministry is an organization that provides housing, health care and human connectivity to community members experiencing poverty or homelessness.
“It’s motivated me to try to do this (game night) once a month or twice a month, depending on the funds we can raise,” Lanners said.
“The power of one board game is feeding someone that’s living on the street in subzero temperatures” Lanners said.
Besides monetary donations, businesses also willing to help with material (in-kind) needs such as bread, lunch meat, snacks, paper products or other goods to accompany the church’s distributions to the homeless, are encouraged to contact Norridge Acacia Park Lutheran Church, 4307 N. Oriole Ave., Norridge, Illinois, 60706. Call 708-453-3662.
Also visit www.acaciaparkchurch.com and http://www.thenightministry.