DANK Fox Valley's 40th Anniversary Gala
Written by: Christine C. Hunter
Not even the sweet smell of springtime or the glistening
stars in the sky above could compete with the gaiety that
filled the luxurious room at the Fox Valley Country Club as
DANK Fox Valley celebrated their milestone 40th Anniversary
on Saturday, May 19th, 2007. Over 100 guests came from near
and far to join in the festivities, with our own former board
members Rolf and Ginger Doerfle, coming all the way from Alabama
to join in the celebration! Among the other notable attendees
were Helga Zettl, Secretary of the Schwaben Verein-Chicago
and her husband Frank; Greg Hoeft, President of DANK-Chapter
Lake County and his wife Ursula; Harald Pitz, President of
DANK-Chapter Chicago West and his wife Annelies; Dagmar Freiberger,
President of DANK-Chapter Chicago North and her husband Erich;
Katarina Hartung, Miss DANK-South and her parents Mr. &
Mrs. Walter Hartung; Cobi Stein, DANK Region 1 President and
her husband Werner; Christa Garcia, former DANK National President,
representing DANK-Chapter Northern Suburbs and her escort,
Ken; Ernst Ott , DANK National President , and his wife Alexandra
Pradella-Ott, co-chair of the DANK Schools Committee and also
our own Rita Nemeth who is affectionately known as our "DANK
Mutter".
The evening began with Scott Merrow, DANK-Fox Valley Wachmeister,
singing both the German and American National Anthems in his
rich baritone voice and without musical accompaniment! Pastor
Weidler of Immanual Lutheran Church in Batavia gave the invocation.
Master Chefs Robert and Keith Wehrle presented us with a gourmet
meal consisting of Chicken Kiev and Roast Pork loin with all
the trimmings. Entertainment was provided by Chicagoland's
favorite German band, the Phenix, who wore tuxedos rather
than Lederhosen to mark this auspicious occasion!
The evening progressed with Rita Nemeth, founding member,
presenting all of us with a brief history of our Chapter's
beginnings way back in March of 1967 when a group of intrepid
individuals started this chapter with the intent of furthering
the German culture, customs and traditions to future generations
of German ancestry.
DANK-Fox Valley President Willi Gohs and National President
Ernst Ott presented Maria Thompson, Terri Merrow and Christine
Hunter with pins for their commitment and contributions to
our club. In addition, Willi Gohs and Cobi Stein, accompanied
by Maria Thompson, presented milestone anniversary pins to
the following individuals: Franz Lais-10 years; Scott and
Terri Merrow, Rolf and Ginger Doerfle-15 years; Bud Abbot-35
years ; Rita Golter, Rita Nemeth and Mr. and Mrs. Henry Schneider-40
years (congratulations also to Mr. and Mrs. Schneider who
also recently celebrated their 55th wedding anniversary!)
The evening was not only a resounding success, but also quite
the elegant affair and fun was had by all who attended. We
are looking forward to seeing all of you again when we celebrate
our next milestone anniversary.
