Counting Down to Our 11th Anniversary: Get Ready for Exciting Updates!

The Evanston Lighthouse Rotary Club is excited to announce the 11th annual Taste of Evanston, September 21 from 3 p.m. – 6 p.m. on the lakeside lawn of the historic Charles Gates Dawes House.

A wonderful opportunity for both food lovers and civic-minded sponsors, Taste of Evanston offers delicious appetizers, entrees, desserts and drinks from our city’s most popular restaurants, breweries, and wine shops. It raises much-needed funds for two respected local non-profits: Connections for the Homeless and Reba Place Development Corporation. Proceeds from Taste also support the ongoing philanthropic projects of the Lighthouse club.

Whether you’re a longtime attendee, a newcomer, or a company that wants to engage an influential cohort of local decision-makers, get ready for an unforgettable adventure filled with delicious bites, lively entertainment, and great community vibes!

And . . . don’t overlook the Evanston Lighthouse Rotary Club’s other summer extravaganza, Main Street Fair – Evanston Celebrates Art & Music! Debuting June 28, Main Street Fair builds on the legacy of the beloved Custer Street Fair, and will bring together thousands of visitors from across Chicagoland for a daylong celebration of local artists, live music, food, drinks, and family fun!

2025 Principal Beneficiaries

Event proceeds will benefit two local nonprofits whose mission aligns with affordable housing. Funds raised will help Connections for the Homeless, a non profit organization that helps individuals and families that are homeless or threatened with homelessness to achieve stable housing and Reba Place Development Corporation - developing safe, decent, and affordable housing that demonstrates how the diverse racial and cultural groups in Evanston can thrive together. Reba Place also sponsors and supports a range of affordable housing options-including modestly priced rental units, housing coops, and affordable condominiums.

2024 SPONSORS

2024 Restaurants, Wine Shops and Breweries

dan coyne

kathy tate-bradish

Susan Prout

Yves Lassere

kelly fidei

mark werwath

Myra Janus

SBC Global

Townes Bierman Casas

Regina McGraw

Karen Appleby

Carol Mullins

David Harrison

Janet Hoffman

Katie Malone

Chris & Joy Joyce

Charles Gates Dawes House

The 1895 Dawes House rests on a two-acre lakefront site. Designed in the French chateaux style, the three-and-a- half story mansion has twenty-five rooms, six bedrooms, six bathrooms and twelve fireplaces. Once home to the 30th Vice President of the United States, the Dawes House is a national Historic Landmark and home to the Evanston History Center.  Tours of the house will be available during the event. Click the following for directions here.

Recipes from Participating Restaurants

The Evanston Lighthouse Rotary Club meets Tuesdays from 7:15 to 8:30 am at the Rotary International building, 1560 Sherman Avenue, Evanston, Illinois 60201, for breakfast and a speaker. Membership is open to service oriented residents and workers of the area.  Guests are welcome to attend the meetings.  To learn more about the club, its schedule of breakfast programs, and its charitable and service programs, visit www.evlrc.org.

The Evanston Lighthouse Rotary Club serves the needs of our local community and our brothers and sisters around the world.  Here’s what we are currently doing:

Community Service Projects

• Repairing homes of low income elderly, disabled and families with children

• Providing professional dental care for those in need

• Supporting healthy breakfast programs for elementary school students

• Funding job training programs

• Supporting mental health care for our neighbors in need

• Funding addiction treatment for young adults

• Helping to provide legal services and advocacy for disconnected youth

• Delivering meals for the homebound in Evanston

International Service Projects

• Supporting ongoing work to eradicate Polio worldwide

• Partnering on a long-term project to build sustainable access to clean water and sanitation for every household in Haiti

• Supporting victims of war in Ukraine with medical supplies, generators and emergency shelter

• Funding safe sex education in rural communities in Kenya

• Sponsoring in-country surgeon training and advanced cleft repair surgery at no cost to families in need in Brazil, Mexico and the Philippines

• Funding the rescue and rehabilitation of trafficked children in Ghana

• Collaborating with a women’s collective in Uganda to purchase farm equipment and provide hospital equipment to improve economic and health outcomes for the women and children.

• Providing emergency assistance and support for Ukrainian refugees in Lithuania, Syrian refugees in Türkiye, as well as refugees and asylum-seekers at the Mexican border from El Salvador, Honduras and Guatemala

• Supporting construction at a school for indigenous students in Guatemala

Please join us!