Oak Park Newspaper

Free Readers Ensemble

Wm. B. Sullivan Realty & Co.
Estate Planning and General Law

RAVINIA
"A Great time in a
Wonderful Place" SJC

Adopt a Pet, Come for a Visit

CAGIS Archaeological
Consulting Services

November 2009

Village Player's President Paul McKenna is front center for the Chicago
Area FODfest 2009.
© Suburban Journals of Chicago Inc. photo

A Magical Night in
Oak Park
by Ed Vincent

"FODfest, Inc. is a 501 (c) 3 nonprofit organization whose mission is to promote and strengthen community through the universal language of music by producing publicly accessible live music events and multi-media projects." The event in Oak Park was a great culmination of some of the regions amateur and professional talent, it was a show you did not want to miss.
I am already looking ahead to next year's show.

2002, was the year that a young writer for the Wall Street Journal would attempt to interview one of the radical Islamists in Pakistan and would never return to this world. His brutal, savage death will forever frame the face of the Islam terrorist.
To combat this terrible image friends in spirit, heart, and folks who knew him came together in Oak Park for this tribute to
life and to remember Mr. Pearl for his love and work to get the
truth out concerning a story.

David Hodge (lower photo center with mandolin) played just about every stringed instrument known to man and woman, and with zest.
© Suburban Journals of Chicago Inc. photos

Friends from Indiana, Illinois, Chicago, Aurora, Brookfield,
and the surrounding region all came to Oak Park for night
of music and tribute to Daniel Pearl. It was quiet a gathering,
one where some three people on stage had actually worked with
Daniel Pearl.

Bryan Gruley, Chicago's Bureau Chief for the Wall Street Journal and
co-worker of Daniel Pearl.
© Suburban Journals of Chicago Inc. photos

Bryan Gruley, (Chicago's Bureau Chief for the Wall Street Journal and author) spoke of his first major assignment at the Wall Street Journal and how he was helped by Daniel Pearl. Bryan was
working on a story, his first major piece and Daniel had some
additional information to put into the story with Bryan. The
next day the in the Wall Street Journal Bryan Gruley's name was the only one credited with writing the story since this was his first article, and that selfless man was Daniel Pearl.

When the staff at the Wall Street Journal gathered and was told of the tragic loss of one of their most loved writers, there was not a dry eye in the room and after a few minutes people began to disperse. Bryan Gruley went to the elevator to step outside for a moment and found the young intern Jill Carroll in the corner of the elevator. She and Bryan hugged for a moment in
their grief at the loss of Daniel. When Jill Carroll finished her
work as an intern with the Wall Street Journal she went to work for the Christian Science Monitor in Iraq. Ms. Carroll was
kidnapped in Baghdad on January 7, 2006. Her life was threatened each day and demands were put on the United States to free many suspected female terrorists or they said they would murder Jill Carroll. On March 30, 2006 Jill Carroll was released by her captors and is now a firefighter in Virginia.

Singer-songwriter Michael Smith entertains the audience with some great
songs like "Dead Eqyptian Blues"
© Suburban Journals of Chicago Inc. photos

Michael Smith was a treat to hear sing some of his weird and
fun songs (available on iTunes) in the photo above he was making brass instrument sound with his lips.

SONiA Rutstein is traveling the entire show circuit to meet friends of Daniel Pearl.
© Suburban Journals of Chicago Inc. photos

SONiA Rutstein is a folk singer with lots of talent in her
playing and song writing. We are waiting to review her new cd....

Corky Siegel Takes Center Stage, Leaves the Stage, teases death and
completes his repertoire on his back.
© Suburban Journals of Chicago Inc. photos

Corky Siegel is a show and a half all by himself. We enjoyed all of his antics and musical mastery with tempo and harmonica.
Corky has been on the musical scene for years now and his vigor and sense for the drama of sound is still alive in well in each of songs. This icon of blues has many albums and songs on iTunes as well.

The Evenings entertainers arrange for a group photo.
© Suburban Journals of Chicago Inc. photo

It was a magical event with a tremendous amount of good will all in the name of man of goodwill, Daniel Pearl. We were told
that the tour would come back to Oak Park and we hope to see all of you there next year.

http://fodfest.org/about.html

http://www.danielpearl.org/about_us/index.html

FODfest (FRIENDS OF DANIEL PEARL) PLAY
IN HONOR OF LATE JOURNALIST AND MUSICIAN
AT VILLAGE PLAYERS PERFORMING ARTS CENTER
on Oct 28, 7PM

What: FODfest - Wall Street Journal reporter, Daniel Pearl became known internationally when he was abducted and brutally murdered on video in Pakistan
in 2002. In addition to being a journalist, Daniel Pearl was a talented musician who believed in the power of music to bring people together regardless of the differences between them. FODfest celebrates this ideal in a unique performance experience that is part concert, part song-swap, and part jam session. Musicians of all ages, backgrounds, and musical genres join together at FODfest concerts, often meeting for the first time on stage in celebration of Daniel Pearl’s life.

Clips of past performances
Some of Pearl’s friends, including Off the Beat-N-Track Studio owner Todd Mack, created FODfest, a touring celebration of music’s ability to build a connection in community between all of us. FODfest 09 will tour nationally for over 31 days in October including a run-out gig to the Taichung Jazz Festival in Taiwan. It is a featured event of the 8th Annual Daniel Pearl World Music Days organized by the Daniel Pearl Foundation, and to date has toured to 20 cities with more than 350 participating musicians from across the country and around the globe.

When: October 28, 7pm, free   go to www.village-players.org or call 708-524-1892 for more information

Where: Village Players Performing Arts Center, 1010 W. Madison Street Oak Park IL 60302

Who: performers include singer-songwriter Michael Smith, Bluesman Corky Siegel, SONiA, Anne O'Neil, David Hodge, JoAnne Spies, Kathy Reichert, Bryan Gruley, Paul McKenna, Jeff Teppema, Todd Mack and others

FODfest 2009 Tour Schedule as of 9-22-09:
10/1 Narrows Center for the Arts, Fall River, MA
10/2 location tba, Boston, MA
10/2 Frontier Cafe , Brunswick ME
10/3 Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center, Great Barrington, MA
10/4 City Winery, NY, NY
10/5 location tba, Washington, D.C.
10/6 Beit Tikvah, Baltimore MD
10/8* Shakori Hills Grassroots Festival, Pittsboro, NC *cost to enter Festival
10/9* Shakori Hills Grassroots Festival, Pittsboro, NC   *cost to enter Festival
10/10 Candler Park Fall Festival, Atlanta, GA Danny Pearl’s Birthday!
10/10 Lake Claire Community Land Trust, Atlanta, GA Danny Pearl’s Birthday Party!
10/13-22 Taichung Jazz Festival and more, TAIWAN
10/24 Blue Moon Coffeehouse - Illinois Wesleyan University, Bloomington, IL
10/25 Legion Arts, Cedar Rapids, IA
10/26 High Noon Saloon, Madison WI
10/27 Café Carpe, Fort Atkinson, WI
10/28 Village Players Performing Arts Center, Oak Park, IL
10/29 Kent Stage, Kent, OH
10/30 Java Junction Cafe, Brockport, NY
11/1   Infinity Music Hall & Bistro, Norfolk, CT