Displaying a banner that employees of the Burlington Coat Factory store in Taylor will decorate for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Soci-ety’s Light the Night Walk Oct. 16 in Wyandotte are (from left) store manager Tim Preville, employee Marsha Shelman, society volunteer Barbara Holbeck and board member Karen Ranka, both of Grosse Ile. The store has already surpassed its fund-raising goal by collecting more than $7,000 in donations through the sale of paper balloons. Shelman has raised more than another other em-ployee: currently $1,356.
‘Light the Night’ walk scheduled for Friday
Carrying illuminated balloons, Downriver, Dearborn and other area residents will step off at 7 p.m. Friday in downtown Wyandotte for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society’s annual Light the Night Walk to help find a cure for blood cancers.
Registration will begin at Elm and Biddle at 6 p.m., when sandwiches and other refreshments will be served by Sisters Cuisine.
Walkers will carry red balloons honoring blood cancer survivors; white balloons in support of blood cancer patients; and gold in memory of those who have died of blood cancers.
Walk coordinator Carol Ann Owens said her Carey Ann the Clown Caravan will provide musical entertainment, face painting and balloon sculptures. Raffles will be held, and hair braiding will be available.
In addition, the society’s honored hero Aaron Blanzy of Grosse Ile, 10, will address the gathering. Aaron was diagnosed with T-cell acute lymphocytic leukemia last year and will continue maintenance chemo therapy while attending school and participating in sports.
A goal of $56,000 has been set for the walk, Owens said.
Adding to the festivities will be the observance of Wyandotte’s Third Friday activities, for which stores remain open during the evening, and the Wyandotte Museum’s Halloween open house.
Among the local business teams participating in the walk will be a group from the Burlington Coat Factory store in Taylor. Store manager Tim Preville said the employees already have surpassed their fund-raising goal by collecting over $7,000 through the sale of paper balloons, which are on display in the store, for $1 apiece or more.
To register in advance for the walk or for more information, call (734) 285-3492 or go to www.lightthenight.org/mi.
Actress is first in new series
Award-winning actress Marcia Wallace will kick off the 43rd season of the Downriver Town Hall Lecture series at 11 a.m. Thursday at Crystal Gardens, 16703 Fort St., in Southgate.
Wallace earned an Emmy Award as the voice of Bart’s teacher in The Simpsons TV series and was well known as Carol Kester on the Bob Newhart Show.
She also has appeared on celebrity game shows and hosted comedy clubs and her own diet show. In addition, she is the author of “Don’t Look Back, We’re Not Going That Way.”
Other speakers in the series include Candace DeLong, a former FBI agent and criminal personality profiler, Nov. 12, and Steve Hamilton, author of “A Cold Day in Paradise” (Michigan), Jan. 14.
More are NBC reporter Anne Thompson, Feb. 11, and Frank Sinatra-biographer Tom Santopietro and pianist/crooner Billy Stritch, March 11.
Season tickets for the series are $55. A limited number of single tickets ($20) will be available at the door. Luncheon tickets are $10.50. For more information, call (734) 783-9224.
Flavors of fall to be subject
“Flavors of Fall: A Michigan Feast” will be the subject of a cooking class featuring Michigan’s bountiful supply of produce at 5:30 p.m. Oct. 20 at the Ritz-Carlton.
Executive Chef James Woodward will teach the class. Afterward, participants will have dinner with complementary wines. The cost of the class is $120 (dinner only, $75). For reservations or more information, call Leslie Jacobs at (248) 646-4517 or e-mail [email protected], or Colin Berens at (313) 253-4357 or e-mail [email protected]).