Do you know FAN? FAN stands for Family Action Network, and Gorton is a partner with this amazing organization. Family Action Network (FAN) is a 501(c)(3) organization that curates a high-quality speaker series. All FAN programs are free and open to the public. FAN’s programs are offered in person and on Zoom each season, starting in September and ending in May. The programs are on a range of topics and include parenting, self-care, enrichment, education, public policy, equity and environmental issues and more. Often the speaker is on tour across the US with a newly published book. This year already, FAN has welcomed:

Andrew Rea, better know as Babish, culinary YouTube personality
Lynn Lyons, LICSW, a licensed independent clinical social worker and psychotherapist
Rich Paul, CEO of Klutch Sports Group
Michelle Icard, Parenting Expert
Myisha Cherry, Ph.D., associate professor of philosophy at the University of California, Riverside
Ross Gay, New York Times bestselling author and poet
Bettina L. Love, Ph.D., William F. Russell Professor at Teachers College, Columbia University and bestselling author
Jennifer Breheny Wallace, award-winning journalist and author
Anupam Bapu Jena, MD, Ph.D., economist and physician

Gorton is glad to bring access to these programs to the Lake Forest and Lake Bluff communities due to their rich and varied content. Community surveying of program interest has indicated an interest in this kind of programming, and a partnership with FAN starting in 2022 was an immediate way to bring impact in this area of interest. Gorton hosted its first in-person FAN event on Tuesday October 11th when award winning journalist Heidi Stevens interviewed parenting expert Michelle Icard in the John & Nancy Hughes Theater. Gorton looks forward to a long relationship with FAN and encourages our community to take advantage of this wealth of quality programming.