Carlson Community Services

The Three Brothers Garden is off to a great growing season! Our first Tuesday night harvest in the garden, yielded over 15 lbs of vegetables for the Irving Park Community Food Pantry. Freshly picked radishes, kale, lettuces, celery, arugula, mint and chives were delivered to the Irving Park Community Food Pantry this morning.

Along with harvesting the early Spring crops, garden volunteers also did some much needed weeding and finished planting the remaining garden beds with beans, cucumbers and peppers! Tuesday night harvests will continue through the early fall. If you are interested learning more about the Three Brothers Garden or would like to volunteer in the garden, please email [email protected] or sign up for our eNewsletter at https://carlsoncommunityservices.org/ to receive news about our garden events, as well as all Carlson happenings!

We're still laughing! Thanks to everyone who came out on Friday night to see the Bad Momz of Comedy and raise funds for Carlson Community Services' Magic After School Place program, the Three Brothers Garden and free neighborhood concert series. We had a packed house!

Special thanks to our sponsors - Clarity Partners, The Cabin at Old Irving, Tim & Erin Bouman and Irving Park Lutheran ChurchI. Thanks also to our partners who generously donated raffle prizes - Carlson Board Member Marcy Sherrill, Leona's Restaurants, and Dan Anderson.

We are grateful to our dedicated volunteers who worked tirelessly to make the night a success and to the Bad Momz who kept us laughing all night long!

Just one day until the Bad Momz take the stage! There are still some general admission tickets left, though they're going fast! Join us for a night of laughs to support Carlson Community Services' programs. Doors open at 6:30 pm Friday, May 31st at the Irving Park Lutheran Church Gym, 4057 N. Harding Ave. Get your ticket today at https://CCSBadMomzofComedy2024.eventbrite.com

Carlson Community Services is welcoming the Bad Momz of Comedy this Friday, May 31! Doors open at 6:30pm with comics taking the stage starting at 7:30 pm. There are still tickets available for this fundraiser, which will help to support Carlson's mission of providing programs that enrich lives through education, culture and service in the Irving Park neighborhood. Get your tickets today! https://CCSBadMomzofComedy2024.eventbrite.com

Students at the Magic After-School Place are enjoying the May sunshine working in the garden beds at the Three Brothers Community Garden! Thanks to program director Rebecca Haneberg for involving students in our garden, which provides fresh produce to our neighborhood partner, the Irving Park Community Food Pantry throughout the summer and early fall. Registration for after school care during the 2024-25 school year at the Magic After-School Place will will begin the week of June 3. Questions? Please email [email protected] or visit our website: https://carlsoncommunityservices.org/programs/

Have you heard? Five of the funniest female comics in Chicago will unite on May 31st to benefit Carlson Community Services! Join us for a night of laughs and help support the mission of Carlson. For more details and to purchase tickets, visit

Bad Momz of Comedy Carlson Community Services is thrilled to welcome Bad Momz of Comedy on May 31st at 6:30 p.m.

Spring crops in Carlson Community Services' Three Brothers Garden are sprouting! Seeds planted in late April have started to grow and we will continue to plant vegetables and herbs in all garden beds during the month of May. All produce grown in the garden is donated to the Irving Park Community Food Pantry for distribution to clients. We are always looking for volunteers to help with garden harvests on Tuesday evenings throughout the growing season, and with weeding and maintenance throughout the summer. This is a great summertime activity for all ages and a wonderful opportunity to learn about vegetable gardening in an urban setting. Contact Sara Yoest at [email protected] if you would like to be notified of garden workdays or events.

Sunday at 2 pm! Carlson Community Services' final concert of our 30th season, featuring the Matthew Beck trio performing Clarinet Trios of Brahms and Beethoven. Join us for a wonderful afternoon of music! It's free!

The rain moved out and the clouds cleared on Saturday for the first Spring work day in the Three Brothers Garden! Thank you to our dedicated group of volunteers who got the garden ready for planting. We trimmed overgrown trees and bushes, picked up trash, weeded, made repairs, turned over the soil and added compost. We even planted one bed with some early spring vegetables! If you are interested in volunteering in the garden this season, contact [email protected]. All vegetables grown in the garden are donated to the Irving Park Community Food Pantry.

Join us tomorrow, 4/27 for the first work day of the season at Three Brothers Garden! We'll be working from 9:30 a.m. to 11:30. Come anytime! The garden is located at 4107 N. Pulaski, next to garden at Irving Park Lutheran Church.

We'll be weeding, cutting back shrubs and trees, spreading compost and more! Got a teen who needs service hours? Bring them!

All vegetables grown in the garden are donated to the Irving Park Community Food Pantry.

Hope to see you in the garden!

The final concert of the Irving Park Fine Arts Concert Series' 30th Season is Sunday, May 5th. Join us for a delightful afternoon, featuring the clarinet trios of Brahms and Beethoven, performed by the Matthew Beck Trio. The concert will be held at 2 pm at Irving Park Lutheran Church, 4100 N. Harding and is free! For details, visit https://carlsoncommunityservices.org/event/matthew-beck/

It's opening day at Three Brothers Garden! Join us Saturday, April 27th from 9:30 am to 11:30 for our first work day of the season. The work will include weeding, cutting back shrubs and perennials, turning over the soil in the raised beds, picking up trash and possibly doing some planting. Bring garden gloves and a rigid rake or shovel if you have one. No prior experience necessary -- great for kids!

Plus, you can meet Carlson's new executive director, Sara Yoest. Sara is an avid gardener who is eager to meet you and get her hands dirty in the garden!

Three Brothers Garden is an organic community garden located at 4107 N. Pulaski, adjacent to Irving Park Lutheran Church's parking lot. The garden was established by Carlson Community Services in 2009 in partnership with the church. All vegetables grown in the garden are donated to the Irving Park Community Food Pantry. Join us on the 27th!

Hello!

It is an exciting time of year at Carlson Community Services. The Magic After School Place students have been celebrating spring by planting seeds for the Three Brothers Garden, they were able to enjoy the beautiful weather on April 8 while observing the solar eclipse and both students and staff continue to focus on school work and strong academic end to the school year.

The 30th season of the Irving Park Fine Arts Committee concert series will come to a close with the May 5 performance of the Matthew Beck Trio and planning has started for the next season to bring beautiful and engaging arts programming to the neighborhood.

The Three Brothers Garden Committee met in early April and are planning for the upcoming growing season to provide fresh produce for our neighbors and clients at the Irving Park Community Food Pantry.

And finally, save the date! Carlson Community Services is thrilled to welcome Chicago sensations, Bad Momz of Comedy for a show on May 31. Ticket info and more details to come on this event to benefit Carlson programs.

It is a privilege to step into the role of Executive Director at Carlson Community Services. I hit the ground running at the end of March and have enjoyed meeting many of you who help to make Carlson an integral part of our community. My husband and I are raising our three children in the Irving Park neighborhood, and I have long been an advocate for local causes. I have seen first-hand the positive impact that Carlson makes and look forward to carrying the mission of Carlson forward. I am very grateful to Liz Mills, Bruce Anderson, Pastor Erin Bouman and the entire Carlson Board of Directors for their guidance in this new role.

Regards,
Sara Yoest
Executive Director
Carlson Community Services

Welcome Sara Yoest! Sara started today as Carlson Community Services' new Executive Director! She's looking forward to meeting our great volunteers and supporters. Read Board Chair Bruce Anderson's announcement below!

Celebrating Pi Day at the Magic After-School Place! Plus, starting tomato seeds for Three Brothers Community Garden. Thanks to program director Rebecca Haneberg for leading fun enrichments every week!

Thanks to the Pulaski Elston Business Association for including Carlson Community Services in its latest community brochure. Check us out on page 22, along with other community resources, restaurants and shops!

PebaBrochure_FINAL This interactive flipbook is created with FlippingBook, a service for streaming PDFs online. No download, no waiting. Open and start reading right away!

Travel to the British Isles at a free concert featuring the people, places and composers of Great Britain! The Irving Park Fine Arts Committee is pleased to present Jolly Old England Sunday, February 4th at 2 pm at Irving Park Lutheran Church, 4100 N. Harding. Soprano Alicia Berneche and tenor Erich Buchholz will perform works by Robert Schumann, Erich Wolfgang Korngold, Libby Larsen and Paul Abraham, accompanied by pianist Talar Khosdeghian. The concert is free, though donations are welcome. Join us Sunday for a trip to Jolly Old England! For more information, visit https://carlsoncommunityservices.org/event/alicia-berneche/

Weather got you feeling down? Join us for Jolly Old England!, a free concert featuring soprano Alicia Berneche and tenor Erich Buchholz accompanied by pianist Talar Khosdeghian, Sunday February 4th. The concert is at Irving Park Lutheran Church, 4100 N. Harding Ave. at 2 pm. The program will feature works by English composers and works celebrating English themes. A jolly good time for all!

Alicia Berneche is a renowned American lyric coloratura soprano who has sung leading roles in opera houses throughout the United States and around the globe. She appeared on the stages of the Lyric Opera of Chicago as Daisy Buchanan in The Great Gatsby, and as Helen Niles in the new edition of Mourning Becomes Elektra. She also appeared at The Goodman Theatre, The Barbican in London, and the Brooklyn Academy of Music in New York in the world premiere of Philip Glass’ and Mary Zimmerman’s Galileo Galilei. In addition to performing, Alicia teaches voice at Glenbrook North High School and privately. Fine Arts audiences will remember her February 2020 performance in Broadway’s Best.

Tenor Erich Buchholz can be heard in the role of Fridolin on the Naxos label recording of “The Rose of Stambul” by Leo Fall. As a member of the New York quartet Hudson Shad, he has performed in The Seven Deadly Sins by Kurt Weill in Louisville, Detroit, Hamburg, Berlin, Frankfurt, Dusseldorf and Potsdam, with Ute Lemper and Storm Large. He sang Jacey Squires, tenor of the barbershop quartet in The Music Man at Cincinnati Pops. With Hudson Shad he has toured 17 of the United States and Japan. In his next role he'll portray a mosquito in Janacek’s Cunning Little V***n in April 2024 in San Francisco, Berkeley and Mountain View, California.

Pianist Talar Khosdeghian is a collaborative artist in the Chicago area. She serves as principal accompanist and General Manager for Chicago Chamber Choir, accompanist for William Ferris Chorale, Operations and Music Director for CHAI Collaborative Ensemble, and accompanist for Windy City Performing Arts. Ms. Khosdeghian has performed as both a soloist and chamber musician in festivals around the world, including the Interharmony International Music Festival in Hinterzarten, Germany, the Amalfi Coast Music Festival, and the Schleswig-Holstein Music Festival in Lübeck, Germany. Most recently, she performed on Fourth Presbyterian’s Noonday Concert Series.

The Irving Park Fine Arts Concert Series, now in its 30th season, was founded in 1994 by Roger Bingaman, Director of Music at Irving Park Lutheran Church. The intent of the series is to bring high quality, professional music to the northwest side of Chicago, free of charge.

The third concert in the Carlson Community Services Fine Arts concert series will feature noted soprano Alicia Berneche. Alicia's program is entitled Jolly Old England! and will feature music by and about Brits. Joining Alicia are tenor Erich Buchholz and pianist Talar Khosdeghian. The concert is Sunday, February 4th at 2 pm at Irving Park Lutheran Church, 4100 N. Harding Ave. The concert is free. Donations are welcome! Please join us for a delightful afternoon!