LINCOLN PARK — Saturday is International Tom Hanks Day. Really. No joke. And no it's not an April Fools' prank, either.
In fact, it's kind of coming full circle, as for the first time since its inception 13 years ago it's falling on April Fools' Day.
"It started with just a couple buddies, and we had nothing better to do," said Kevin Turk, who first organized it "on a couch" in 2004 with fellow Hanks fans who were students at Western Michigan University in Kalamazoo. They kept it up as an annual lark, and he carried it with him when he came to Chicago a few years later, settling in Uptown.
"It quickly spiraled into its own thing, and one day Tom heard about it and he reached out," Turk said.
That was 10 years ago, when Hanks started sending them signed movie posters and Wilson volleyballs to turn it into a fundraiser.
"That was the nicest thing anyone could do for a bunch of goofy kids," Turk said.
It also got serious, and Saturday's event, from noon-5 p.m. at Lincoln Hall, 2424 N. Lincoln Ave., is a serious fundraiser for Hanks' top charity, Lifeline Energy, a South African organization providing technology and eco-friendly programs to underdeveloped nations.
In Chicago, the event has been held the event for a few years at Lincoln Hall, and it's truly international with similar events in Los Angeles, London, Cleveland, Toronto and Cape Town, South Africa.
This year, Turk said, Hanks has sent in typewriters, posters and DVDs, and they also plan a few other delightful tweaks in the usual festivities.
The donation is $10 at the door, and attendees get raffle tickets to win the prizes. Hanks' films will also be playing, along with music and games.
The chief executive officer of Lifeline Energy will be in Chicago with plans to attend, Turk said, "and we're going to force her to go onstage and talk a little bit."
That should prove once and for all that International Tom Hanks Day is not an April Fools' prank — not this year or any year going forward.
