From Center Stage to Civic Heart: Honoring 2025 Local Legend Joanna Rolek

Name: From Center Stage to Civic Heart: Honoring 2025 Local Legend Joanna Rolek
Start: 2025-09-14T16:00:00-05:00
Location: 509 E. Deerpath, Lake Forest, IL, United States, Illinois 60045

Schedule

Sun, 14 Sep, 2025 at 04:00 pm

UTC-05:00

Location

509 E. Deerpath, Lake Forest, IL, United States, Illinois 60045 | Lake Forest, IL

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!