NCI ARTworks announced the eight 2025 Illinois Valley Mad Hatter Ball honorees.
Student honorees representing La Salle, Bureau and Putnam counties will perform and present their work from 6 to 10 p.m. Friday, Jan. 17, at the eighth annual Mad Hatter Ball. Doors open at 5:30 p.m. at the event center in the west wing of the Westclox building in Peru.
This year’s honorees are Jasmine Arce, La Salle-Peru High School, visual arts; Molly Ewen, Ottawa High School, voice; Gretchen Hauger, Ottawa High School, visual arts; James Hoehn, La Salle-Peru High School, voice/theater; Maddie Kerestes, Ottawa High School, dance; Kaylee Lauck, Hall High School, visual arts; Ella Lewis, Mendota High School, music performance; and Anna Sandberg, Putnam County High School, music performance.
“The Mad Hatter Ball is the regional equivalent of a state championship of the arts, where top-notch local talent is honored, great food is eaten, and prizes and music and fun fill up the evening,” said Julia Messina, executive director of NCI ARTworks. “This event showcases top local student performers in all of the arts: visual, music, performing, literary, etc. The event is open to the public, and all are welcome. By attending the event, you support the arts and the creative community in the Illinois Valley.”
Dinner music will be provided by Ladd Sound Productions as Mario Data will DJ; and the Mad Hatter will emcee the event, where the Queen of the Arts will be crowned for the eighth year in a row. Tickets cost $45 and are available online at nciartworks.com or by contacting 815-866-5167 or outreach@nciartworks.com.
Anna Sandberg
Sandberg is a senior at Putnam County High School and is the daughter of Brandy and Ryan Sandberg. Sandberg has played the marimba for four years; her teacher is Natalie Hulstrom. She is involved in band, theater and Scholastic Bowl and participates in community theater in the summer. This year, she is participating in an internship at her district’s primary school, getting early work experience. She loves being a part of band because of the sense of community created in her class and the joy of playing music. She believes the arts are essential to uniting people and creating safe places to learn and grow.
Kaylee Lauck
She is the daughter of Natalie and Doug Lauck. She is a senior at Hall High School, and she has taken part in photography class and portfolio with Allie Lemrise as her teacher. She participates in dance, basketball and Hallunteers at Hall High School. “My love for art generally happened at a party that one of my friends had at a pottery store,” she said. “We didn’t get to actually make it, but we did get to paint it and make it our own. My love for photography happened when I was very young. My grandma was the first person that I knew that had an actual camera. She would always bring it around with her while we were camping and doing other things as a family.”
Maddie Kerestes
Kerestes is a senior at Ottawa High School and is the daughter of Chad and Lisa Kerestes. Kerestes has been dancing for 10 years, and her teachers include Alaina Weatherford, Leah Kuhn, Rachel Martin and Heather Sheppard. She participates in Pirate Poms, Rotary Interact, Speech Team, Fine Arts Club, The Pirate Press and Students in Politics at Ottawa High School and works for Sen. Sue Rezin, works at Casa Mia and teaches dance outside of school. She loves to perform for audiences and inspire emotion through movement. She is proud to represent dance not only as an art form but also a sport that brings success to the athletic department at her school. After high school, she plans to dance on a college dance team and major in political science.
James Hoehn
Hoehn is a senior at L-P High School, where he has participated in mixed choir his sophomore year and concert choir his junior and senior years. He is a Boy Scout, set to obtain Eagle Scout rank in early 2025. He has been selected to be at ILMEA District (2023-2024) and All-State 2024. He has performed in two productions at L-P (“The Addams Family” and “Les Misérables”) and two Stage 212 productions: “The Wizard of Oz” as the Tin Man and in the featured ensemble of “Anastasia.” He plans to attend a four-year music education program to become a high school choir director.
Ella Lewis
Lewis is a junior at Mendota High School and is the daughter of Julie Lewis. Lewis has played music for seven years under the guidance of Marilyn Younger, Nicki Wujek and Steve Olsen. At Mendota High, she serves as section leader and woodwind coach in the band, is a member of the Interact Club, and plays as the No. 1 singles player on the tennis team. Additionally, she is a Lions Club Banquet attendee, first chair alto sax in the MHS Jazz Band, a student council member and participates in show choir, Madrigals, MHS Fine Arts productions, and 4m summer productions at MHS. Lewis has attended Concert ILMEA and participated in ILMEA’s second and first jazz bands. She also is a member of the Illinois Valley Community College Jazz Band and was a runner-up for the 2024 IVSO Young Concerto Competition. During the summer, she attends music camps such as ISYM and Blue Lakes and has had the honor of participating in Wesleyan Honors Jazz Band Day and her Conference Music Festival. Lewis loves how the arts allow her to meet new people and experience different cultures. She enjoys music because it provides a creative outlet and allows her to express herself in ways words can’t.
Jasmine E. Arce
Arce is a senior at La Salle-Peru High School, and is the child of Sujaid Ruiz and Brooklyn Alfonso. Arce has created art and been involved in the arts for four years of high school, their art teacher for these four years being Julie Jenkins. They participate in weight-lifting, FBLA, LEAD and Harbor Homeroom at L-P and also is a unified partner for the Special Olympics. Besides these clubs and activities, Arce spends a lot of time creating art of different media. “Art is a creative outlet for many people,” they said. “It allows one to express things they could never say out loud, and that is special.” For that reason, it is why Arse has such a strong connection to the arts and feel it’s very important for people to have the pieces they create represent them and showcase them better than anything else ever could.
Gretchen Hauger
Hauger is a senior at Ottawa High School and is the daughter of David Hauger. Gretchen has been doing art for more than seven years, and her current art teacher is Paula Carroll. She participates in art club and student council. She likes to paint and do art because she enjoys putting down the paint on canvas and watching it come to life. She thinks the arts are important because they encourage people to think outside the box and see the world from other people’s perspectives. She fell in love with doing art as a kid and hasn’t looked back since. She wishes to pursue tattooing as her future career.
Molly Ewen
Ewen is a senior at Ottawa High School and is the daughter of Daniel and Crystie Ewen. Ewen has sung for 11 years, and her voice teacher is Jenilyn Roether. She participates in choir, drama, DoChange and other high school activities at Ottawa. She also does Peer Jury, goes to church and is sometimes the school mascot. She plans to receive a Bachelor of Fine Arts in musical theater and wants to work on stage for the rest of her life. She believes the arts are an important lesson to teach emotional maturity and critical thinking skills to developing brains of all ages.