Tickets and Sponsorships

Local Legends 2025

We are thrilled to celebrate Joanna Rolek as our 2025 Local Legend—our sixteenth honoree!

When Joanna Rolek arrived in Lake Bluff, she brought with her a trained voice and a performer’s heart. What followed was not a career on stage, but something just as powerful: a life spent building the stage for others to shine. For 28 years as Executive Director of the Lake Forest–Lake Bluff Chamber of Commerce, Joanna has been a tireless champion for local businesses and a connector of people—linking residents, shopkeepers, artists, restauranteurs, and marketgoers. Her work is a testament to the quiet power of showing up, again and again, with vision, joy, and an open hand.

Please join us on Sunday, September 14th at 4:00 pm as we honor Joanna’s remarkable dedication to our community. In an intimate conversation led by her friend and colleague David Sweet, Joanna will share little-known stories, behind-the-scenes anecdotes, and insights beyond the standard biography.

An exclusive Patron Sponsor Cocktail Party will be held at Le Colonial on Thursday, September 11th at 5:30 pm. Full details will be sent to all sponsors as the event approaches.

Joanna now joins the esteemed ranks of Jim Lovell, Adrian Smith, John Bryan, Richard Marx, Bill Kurtis & Donna LaPietra, Mark & Franklin McMahon, Ellen Stirling, Ryne Sandberg, Marian Phelps Pawlick, Jack Schuler, Dr. Eugene Hotchkiss III, the Honorable Susan Garrett, Ed Wehmer, Don Pierson, and Dr. Hugh Falls.

Now it’s our turn to show up for her!

TICKETS AND SPONSORSHIPS HERE!

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Help us continue expanding our award-winning exhibitions and programming - while preserving our vast archives. The History Center is the only organization dedicated to collecting both Lake Forest and Lake Bluff history and saving it for future generations. Your support helps make all of our work possible!