Events

Heart of Illinois Events

Heart of Illinois Mensa members have enjoyed food and entertainment in a variety of ways ranging from a small gathering for lunch at a local restaurant to a larger gathering at the local particle accelerator. On this page you will find a sample of some of those events. Any new ideas are always welcome, just contact us!

Food

Each year, members of Heart of Illinois Mensa meet for lunch or dinner at a variety of restaurants in the Peoria, Bloomington, and Champaign areas. Here is a brief list of some of the restaurants we have visited:
Leonardo's LaGondola Spaghetti House, Peoria
Destihl Restaurant and Brew Works, Bloomington
Caffe Italia Ristorante, Bloomington
Biaggi's Italian Restaurant, Bloomington
Games Night

Games Night

Meet at a group members house for an evening of games! The group decides what to play. Game choices may vary from a collection of Mensa Select winners, chess, scrabble, card games, or bring your own to share. Go out on a limb and learn a new game! Location, food, and drink can be planned in advance.
Kelleher's Irish Pub

Trivia Night

We had a great turnout for Trivia night at Kelleher’s Irish pub / restaurant in Peoria. We had beverages and dinner while trying to answer questions as best we could. Let us know if you'd like to go again!
Conklin's Barn II

Conklin's Barn III Dinner Theater

Great food and live entertainment in Goodfield, IL! Check out the Conklin's Barn III Dinner Theater website here for upcoming shows. If you would like suggest a trip here in the future, contact us!
CornBelters

CornBelters

Enjoy a baseball game with smart friends! We try to attend every year, and so far the weather has been agreable each time! Click here for more information about the CornBelters team. The CornBelter tickets are purchased in advance. We prefer the Scout Seats right behind Home Plate. Heart of Illinois Mensa will cover a majority of the ticket, which includes all you can eat ball park food and drinks (including beer), plus one rotating entree. For those of you with kids, there is a playground behind left field. The seats will be $11 each (as of 2015) for Heart of Illinois Mensa members and $31 (as of 2015) each for non-HoIM members. Check the calendar for upcoming games! Contact Van for purchasing tickets or any other questions you may have. You are encouraged to get your checks in promptly once you've decided to join us!
Fermilab

Fermilab

In the spring of 2014, we toured the Fermilab National Laboratory in Batavia, IL. It was a beautiful day to be surrounded by both the natural settings and the interesting sciences behind the machinery at Fermilab. Check out their website here. Due to the distance from our local group to Fermilab, the Heart of Illinois Mensa treasury helped to fund the travel expenses for attending members and their guests. Maybe we can set up another trip! Contact us here!