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The Circumnavigators Club is an organization for people who have made a trip around the world. Learn more about the Club on the international website. The Chicago chapter sponsors 4 educational events a year plus a December Holiday party. To raise funds to support the Circumnavigators Foundation, we have a fundraiser each year. One of the main activities of the Foundation is to send carefully selected students (Scholars) on an around the world trip to pursue research. Our creed is: |
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See our 2021 events and photos in the archive. Also view all events and photos from 1986 to 2021.
The entire history of the Chicago Chapter can be found grouped by year in
the Photos and Events archive.
Below is a listing of our 2022 events. Please reserve these dates on your calendar. Updated information is posted on this page, as it becomes available.
Early in the year detailed information is available for near term events and partial information for events later in the year. Please mark your personal calendars to reserve the dates.
Our President, Jeneane Blom, pointed out that 2022 is the 50th anniversary of our Foundation Scholars grantee program. Some of our grantees from Northwestern University are featured in this 18 minute video. See and feel the enthusiasm by clicking here
Click on the thumbnails for the paper invitation.
Thursday, March 24th, 2022
"Italian Cooking"
at La Villa restaurant (website) in Chicago (map) starting at 6:00.
Cash bar -- 6:00
Dinner ---- 6:30
Program -- 7:30
Circumnavigators can sign up for this event using their credit card at eventbrite.com.
Tuesday, June 21st, 2022
"Dinner with the Giraffes"
at Brookfield Zoo (website) and (Google map) starting at 6:00
Time: 6:30pm to 8:30pm
Free Parking at the South Gate Parking Lot. See Map.
Once inside gate, look for the Brookfield Zoo tram.
It takes us directly to Habitat Africa.
Circumnavigators can sign up for this event using their credit card at eventbrite.com.
Thursday, September 15th, 2022
"A Gorilla Trek in Rwanda"
by Virginia Mullin
at Cliff Dwellers Club in Chicago
Cash bar -- 5:30 to 6:30
Dinner ---- 6:30 to 7:30
Program --- 7:30 to 8:30
Circumnavigators can sign up for this event using their credit card at eventbrite.com.
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Saturday, October 29, 2022
"Fundraiser for Scholars "
Time and Place - TBD
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Saturday, December date -TBD, 2021
"Holiday Party"
Time and Place - TBD
On March 24, 2022 we visited visited the La Villa Restaurant in Chicago.
Our speaker was Christina Petrancosta, second generation La Villa Owner (founded by her father Salvatore Canale in 1972). This restaurant is celebrating a half century in operation. We had a private room with a U shaped table so we felt right at home. A special treat was watching Christina prepare tiramisu in front of us as she explained her work. Yes, tiramisu from scratch tastes better. There is a special kind of pride in a family owned restaurant.
Three new members received their membership certificates presented by our VP of Membership, Jim Franch. They were Richard & Janice Aaron from Chicago and Ngosong Fonkem, orginally from Cameroon. He now lives in Milwaukee.
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Left: Janice Aaron at one end of the U shaped table. Right: We had 15 members in attendance. |
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Left: Richard & Janice Aaron are new members. Right: Ngosong Fonkem receives his certificate from Jim Franch. |
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Left: Christina Petrancosta explains the restaurant's history and . . . Right: the joy of serving customers. |
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Left: And she can talk and cook . . . Right: Finishing our Tiramisu to be served now. |
On June 21, 2022 we visited visited the giraffes at Brookfield Zoo.
This was a delightful, unique and memorable experience. The high-tech sign of welcome greeted us. Our group was transported by an electric tram from the South Parking lot to Habitat Africa. We had the place to ourselves. We had the feeling that we were the only people at the zoo and the giraffes were the only animals. While we had our meeting and dined, the giraffes glided by. Sometimes coming from one side and sometimes from the other.
This was serene experience as these graceful animals leisurely moved around their home. They were aware of us and curious. Yet it was a sharing and not a staring experience. We had the giraffes to ourselves. Thanks to Jeneane and Don Blom for suggesting this experience.
At the meeting, we had our questions answered by the head giraffe zoo keeper and Dan Dozier, a former Georgetown Foundaton scholar, talked about his study grant on sustainable tourism. We have an emerging tradition in the club of sharing brief stories related to the topic of that evening's event. Over half the members shared memorable stories from past safaris.
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Left: Welcome sign to greet us in South Parking lot. Right: Sitting in the dining area watching our hosts. |
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Left: Zoological Society rep our answered questions. Right: Dan Dozier reviewed his trip. |
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Left: Breeding Male Right: Mother and her children. |
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Left: An after dinner walk . . .serene Right: Adolescent eating grass. |