Earth Month activities being held at Hawthorne Hill Nature Center A free Earth Month celebration will be held from 9:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, April 5, at the Hawthorne Hill Nature Center, 28 Brookside Drive, Elgin. The day will feature: Plant sale from 9:30 to 2 p.m.; Randall Oaks Zoo animal sho w from 11 a.m. to noon; Build-a-birdhouse table from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.; Kane Area Rehabilitation and Education for Wildlife presentation from 12:30 to 1:30 p.m. For more information, go to cityofelgin.org/nature, call 847-531-7055 or email monell_j@cityofelgin.org. Sleepy Hollow Service Club’s pine car derby set for April 5 Sleepy Hollow Service Club will be hosting an all-ages pine car derby from 5:30 to 10 p.m. Saturday, April 5, at VFW Post 2298, 117 S. First St., West Dundee. One division will be for traditional style cars weighing under 5 ounces and another for exhibition class cars weighing more than 5 ounces, according to the derby’s online registration form. Exhibition cars can have fans and electronics, but must be able to fit on the track. No pyrotechnics are allowed. The event is a fundraiser for the club’s annual Fourth of July fireworks show in Sleepy Hollow’s Sabatino Park. Registration is $20, and racers can enter up to five cars. For more information, email info@shsc-il.org. To register, click here. Scholarships named for Ron Raglin, an assistant superintendent with School District U-46 who died in 2019, will be presented at a dinner being held April 5 at The Ed Schock Centre of Elgin in Elgin. (Ron Raglin GameChangers) Ron Raglin GameChangers dinner to be at Elgin’s Schock Centre The Ron Raglin GameChangers Scholarship Dinner will be held from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. Saturday, April 5, in the Heritage Ballroom of The Ed Schock Centre of Elgin, 100 Symphony Way, Elgin. The event and scholarships are named for Raglin, who had a 35-year career in education and worked at school districts, including seven years as an assistant superintendent at School District U-46, according to his online obituary. He died in 2019 at age 58. Raglin’s family set up the scholarship program in his honor. It has awarded $27,000 in scholarships to 10 college-bound U-46 seniors, according to the program’s website. Tickets are $75 and can be purchased at www.raglinscholarship.com. Salvation Army, restaurant chain launch Operation Loving Hope The Salvation Army Elgin Corps, in partnership with Bear Family Restaurants, have launched Operation Loving Hope, a program to aid and comfort children making the transition out of unsafe home environments. The initiative will work with the Elgin Police Department, and will initially assist 24 children, a news release said. Every child who is placed in a transitional home with be greeted by a Salvation Army staff member and presented with a travel suitcase donated by Bear Family Restaurants. Each suitcase will hold a stuffed bear, a handmade blanket, McDonald’s gift certificates, pajamas, socks, toys and other personal essentials, the release said. “It’s about offering comfort and support to children going through some of the most challenging moments of their lives,” David Bear, president of Bear Family Restaurants, said in the release. “We hope that these suitcases, along with everything they contain, not only brighten their day but provide a sense of hope and comfort during such a difficult time.” To donate pajamas and socks to Operation Loving Hope, email Salvation Army Social Services Director Maria Padilla at maria.padulla@usc.salvationarmy.org. ...read more read less