Jacob Henry Mansion treated 11 Joliet Job Corps students to a deluxe free luncheon and tour of its grand facility on December 7. The students were rewarded for working hard at a May 22 GREEN 2010 event that was partially coordinated by STARS Coordinator Jan Larsen.
     “I had promised the 36 students involved that there would be some reward because the day was hot and students worked hard for more than eight hours. When I asked (mansion owner) Ken Pritz this fall if my students could tour his complex as a treat, he said he would throw in a free luncheon, too. I was overwhelmed.”
     This occurred after Mr. Pritz had taken Larsen and Oratory Finalist Milton Calvin on a tour of the former Central Presbyterian Church and Victorian Ballroom after Milton spoke to a meeting of the Joliet Kiwanis Club there.
   “We really enjoyed the tour,” Larsen said. “The construction is amazing. This is the most beautiful building in all of Joliet. It was built in 1875 with the finest Italian cabinetmakers doing all the magnificent woodwork.”
     Students enjoyed seeing how Joliet’s wealthiest people lived at the turn of the century. Jocelyn Jones videotaped parts of the tour to show her grandmother. “Thanks to Ken Pritz, his daughter Sue Pritz Bornhofen
and staff at the Victorian Mansion, it was truly an event to remember,” said Larsen.