Brunch to Benefit Mitchell Museum

The board of directors of Evanston’s Mitchell Museum of the American Indian will hold a benefit brunch for the independent, nonprofit institution on Sunday, May 18, 2008, from noon to 3 p.m., at the Doubletree Hotel, 9599 Skokie Blvd., Skokie, Ill. Tickets are $100 per person.

The event’s theme is “Celebrate Our Interwoven Cultures,” symbolized on the cover of the printed invitation by a watercolor painting of the “Three Sisters” of Native American food staples — corn, beans, and squash.

According to Frances Hagemann, president of the Mitchell Museum board, these foodstuffs were traditionally planted closely together, with each crop helping the others survive and prosper.

“Just as these plants need the beneficial companionship of each other, so do the people of the world,” says Hagemann, who is of Ojibwe and Métis descent.

Corn, beans, and squash will be among the ingredients used in the brunch dishes, she says.

Guest speaker Karl Gates, a prominent appraiser of antiques and collectibles, will share his insights into the appraisal process. Gates will reprise his “Antiques Roadshow”-type presentation from the museum’s fall 2007 benefit by again offering free, informal appraisals of items brought in by the first 75 guests who make paid reservations for the event. Objects needn't be Native American.

For information and reservations, phone the Mitchell Museum at (847) 475-1030.

Located at 3001 Central Street, Evanston, the Mitchell Museum is the only museum in the Chicago area focusing solely on the Native peoples of North America. It has a collection of approximately 10,000 objects, with galleries devoted to permanent and special exhibitions. The museum offers a year-round schedule of lectures, demonstrations, performances, workshops, off-site tours, and family activities related to past and present Native cultures. Thousands of school children from throughout the metropolitan region visit the museum each year on group outings. The institution was established in 1977 through a gift from John and Betty Seabury Mitchell.