Byline: Kathryn Grondin Daily Herald Staff Writer
It must've been fate.
Longtime Lombard resident Wayne Hill was destined to be a public face for Yorktown Center.
You might recognize Hill, 41, as the cheerful man wearing the festive Santa hat and illuminated necklaces while working in the mall's information booth or running the children's train in center court Tuesdays at the Lombard mall.
'He's always dressed for the season,' said Lisa Alexander, mall marketing consultant. 'He's a bit of a character.'
What you might not realize is that his current position is not his first stint promoting the retail mall at Highland Avenue and Butterfield Road.
At 7 years old, he was pictured in a full front-page holiday ad for the mall with his then 8-year-old brother Glen and 2 1/2-year- old sister Nancy.
In the 1970 photo in front of a 60-foot Christmas tree with 15,000 lights, according to the caption, Wayne explains to his sister that holiday gifts can't be opened until Christmas.
The ad ran in an employee magazine for ComEd where their father, Howard, worked as a senior sales engineer at the time.
Hill, who has been working for the mall for six years, found the ad a few years ago and thought mall management would enjoy it.
All he remembers is going through multiple clothing changes for the photo shoot and the cowboy boots he's pictured wearing.
'I wanted those cowboy boots so badly,' Hill recalled. 'I got them that Christmas.'
Hill, who also works as an interpreter at Kline Creek Farm in Winfield, landed back at the mall by chance. He asked his pastor for opportunities to volunteer in the community. The minister happened to be friends with someone in mall management who'd expressed a need for a Santa Claus.
'I loved it,' Hill said.
Then he learned to take the photos of the children with Santa and subsequently switched to working behind the information desk and helping at the children's train.
'It's a fun atmosphere,' he said. 'I like meeting all the people. I enjoy the holiday season.'
Rollin in dough: So far good deeds have known no limit when it comes to Wheaton residents trying to help paralyzed veteran Sgt. Joel Gomez.
When the Wheaton City Council honored Gomez for his service at a recent meeting, State Rep. Randall Hultgren was there. After the presentation, Hultgren took time out to chat with Gomez.
Gomez wasted no time in displaying his upbeat sense of humor when he asked Hultgren to legislate him a lifetime supply of Dunkin' Donuts.
Wish granted. Hultgren couldn't make the request law, but a Dunkin' Donuts corporate official read about Gomez' request. Soon Wheaton City Councilman Tom Mouhelis was in possession of $500 worth of Dunkin' Donuts gift certificates, and the promise of more to come every year for the rest of Gomez' life.
'When I gave them to him he said, 'Does this mean I can get a franchise?'' Mouhelis said.
Various people in the city are trying to raise money for Gomez, find him ongoing employment and get him a handicapped-accessible home and vehicle.
A little help from friends: The Spring Brook Nature Center in Itasca is in the process of making new friends.
It is awaiting a response from the Internal Revenue Service for a final stamp of approval on forming a new not-for-profit organization - Friends of the Spring Brook Nature Center of Itasca.
If the government approves it, the organization will help raise supplemental funding for the nature center.
'We're confident that it will happen,' nature center Director Fred Maier said. 'It's just a question of whether they'll accept the application as presented.'
If anything, the government may require more information, he said. Maier hopes to receive an answer from the IRS by late December or early January.
One of the first projects the new not-for-profit will pursue is creating a membership program that will not be restricted to Itasca residents - though they will receive a discount.
Members would receive discounts for the center's programs, free admission to select activities and invitations to members-only events like special dinners.
Shop for a cause: You can shop for holiday gifts and help children with cancer at the same time.
Several area businesses have agreed to donate or rebate a portion of online orders made through the Raising Spirits Foundation Web site.
Raising Spirits is a Naperville-based not-for-profit that aims to help ailing youth and young adults by boosting their spirits and helping their families financially.
The businesses participating are Lobster Gram, Flying Noodle, The Popcorn Factory, Blue Nile, The Sharper Image, K-B Toys, Cooking.com, 1-800-Flowers.com, Sur La Table, A.K.A. Gourmet, Gardener's Supply Company, Gourmet Gifts, Gaiam, Northern Tool, Zones, Eddie Bauer and Isabella, OfficeMax, Petco, Target, Chef's, The Body Shop, Hotwire.com, Plow and Earth, Barnes & Noble, Goodguys.com, Coldwater Creek, Sports Authority, Ritz Camera, Chocolatesource.com, Brooks Brothers, Casual Corner and Petite Sophisticate, Amazon.com, Priceline.com, Hammacher Schlemmer and Circuit City.
Go to the foundation's Web site, www.raisingspirits.org, then go to the Corporate Sponsors page and then proceed to your online shopping destination.
- Daily Herald staff writers Kat Zeman and Jim Fuller contributed to this report.
