Tag: event

Announcing the Annual “Last” CoCoFEST! 31

Posted on | by Grant Bloedow

It’s now official, CoCoFEST! has a new home for 2023. After weeks of searching online, and dozens of phone calls, and even a 500-mile trip to Chicago, we found a great hotel to host CoCoFEST! next year.

It was not easy finding a new location. With inflation the prices have increased sustainability. It was harder to find a place within our budget and the square footage we needed. Some the locations had a great price, but were too small, and others were a lot more expensive and too large. The new location is right in the middle for both the price and square footage. 

I believe everyone will be very happy with the new location. It is located with more restaurants, shops, and gas stations within walking distance. There is even a Portillo’s just a mile down the road. This hotel is on the same road as the Fairfield Inn Heron Point location, just to the west 5 miles. We can still touch the heron for old times’ sake. 

We will be having CoCoFEST! 2023 at the Holiday Inn & Suites Chicago-Carol Stream (Wheaton) on April 22nd, and 23rd, 2023. We have three rooms to choose from at a discounted price. 

The discounted room block is available to be booked now. You can call the hotel at 630-665-3000 and provide the group code: GCT. Special rates are available if reserved before March 30, 2023

You can also book online at www.holidayinn.com/chi-carol

UPCOMING FOR THE SHOW!

We still need to come up with a theme for next year’s CoCoFEST! I would like to hear your ideas.  Please send them to cocofest@glensideccc.com.

If you would like to give a presentation at CoCoFEST! 31, I want to hear from you as well. We will be opening the table registrations in October, so please stay tuned for more updates. 

Please contact me at cocofest@glensideccc.com with any questions or concerns.

– Grant Leighty

 

Holiday Inn - Carol Stream (Wheaton)
150 South Gary Avenue
Carol Stream, IL 60188

King Bed Deluxe Room with Refrigerator and Microwave
$119 a night +tax

Two Queen Beds Deluxe Room with Refrigerator and Microwave
$119 a night +tax

Two Room King Bed Suite with Pull Out Sofa Bed with Wet Bar
$134 a night +tax

These discounted rates must be reserved before March 30, 2020 and are good for  Thursday – Sunday night, April 20 – 23, 2023

Hotel Amenities & Service

  • 24-hour fitness center
  • On-Site Business Center, open 24-hours
  • Daily Housekeeping (upon request)
  • Free Coffee in the lobby
  • Baggage hold
  • Convenience Store
  • Swimming Pool & Hot Tub
  • Full-Service Restaurant (Burger Theory) open for Breakfast and Dinner. 

We will have a breakfast buffet for Saturday and Sunday mornings.

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CoCoFEST! 2022 Update, Time is Running Out

Posted on | by Grant Leighty

I hope everyone is having a great start to Spring this year. It’s nice to enjoy longer days and warmer weather. This also means that CoCoFEST! is getting closer. 2022 marks our 30th anniversary for the Annual “Last” Chicago CoCoFEST! If you have not made your travel plans or booked your vendor/exhibitor table, time is running out.

FREE ADMISSION

This is the first year that admission to CoCoFEST! will be FREE to attend. We’re hopeful this will both encourage more local folks to visit our event and potentially join Glenside. As always, if you would like to become a member of the Glenside Color Computer Club, we will be collecting membership dues at the Fest. Vendors and Exhibitors, note that your fees include a 2022 club membership. If you have any questions, or you would like to pay for the membership before CoCoFEST!, please contact Glenside Treasurer Eric Canales for assistance.

HOTEL

CoCoFEST! Will be held at the same location as last year. This is a larger venue from year’s past and it will provide us plenty of room to grow. If you have not booked your room yet, please do so as soon as possible. The cutoff date for the special rate of $99 a night plus tax will end at midnight (CDT) on April 29th. Please remember to use the group code “COF” when making your reservation.

COVID-19 Update

I have received a few emails about the vaccine and masks mandates in order to attend the event. I am happy to announce that there are NO masks or vaccine mandates at the hotel or to attend CoCoFEST!. Cook county lifted the health orders back on February 28th. If anything changes, I will post an update on the Glenside website and I will send an email to all registered vendors and attendees. I do NOT see this changing in the near future.

Dinners

There is still time to register for dinner on Saturday night. The dinner will be catered by the hotel and it will be served as a buffet. There will be plenty of food for everyone to enjoy, but you MUST pre-register to ensure we have an accurate head count.  The dinner is only $20 a person, and dinner for kids 12 or younger is free. I must provide the head count to the hotel on May 6th, so we will end preregistration for the dinner on May 5th.

The Preliminary Menu

  • Two options from the following list:
    • Meatloaf
    • Chicken
    • Pork Loin
    • London Broil
    • Broiled Tilapia
  • One side from the following list:
    • Garlic Mashed Potatoes
    • Wild Rice
  • Seasonal Vegetables
  • Dinner Rolls
  • Dessert
  • Freshly brewed Coffee and Tea

Like last year, I will be sending an email to everyone who has preregistered for the dinner to provide feedback for which items that we want to be served. We need to choose two items for the main entrees. Also, if you need to request vegetarian/vegan meals, please contact Grant Leighty.

Speakers

This year we had no problems finding people who wanted to give a presentation. I actually had to turn people down and offer them a spot in next year’s CoCoFEST!  This is a great problem to have, and I will be looking for ways to accommodate more speakers at future Fests. This year we will have seven speakers that will provide new products, new games, technical presentations, and podcasts. There will be something for everyone to enjoy.  Please check out the speakers bio and information.

2022 Speakers

  • CoCoCrew Podcast
  • D. Bruce Moore (New Game Announcement)
  • John Linville (De Re CoCo)
  • John Strong (New Product Announcements)
  • Ken Waters and L. Curtis Boyle (BASIC09 and GFX2 enhancements in NitrOS-9/EOU)
  • Kevin Phillipson (Turbo9 Project)
  • Paul Thayer (Developing Retro Games in the Modern Era)

Vendors/Exhibitors

Our new venue offers space for 62 sales or exhibit tables, and 34 vendors/exhibitors have reserved all but NINE (9) tables currently. If you’re considering showing off a project or offer items for sale, do not delay in visiting TandyList for your table(s) today. The first table is $20, and each additional table is $15.

Auction

We will have an auction again this year. Since we just had a CoCoFEST! just a few months ago, we are looking for donations. Please look around your house and see if you have any items that you may want to donate to the auction. If you are not able to attend this year’s CoCoFEST!, but you have items that you want to donate, please contact Grant Leighty. We are willing to pay for reasonable shipping fees.

We look forward to seeing everyone at this year’s 30th Anniversary of the “Last” Chicago CoCoFEST! We would still like to have everyone preregister at TandyList so we can keep the lines short at the registration tables. If you have any questions about CoCoFEST!, please contact Grant Leighty, CoCoFEST! Coordinator.  

 

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