Welcome to the 2021 Queen of Arts Election. Vote for your favorite candidate here by making a donation to NCI ARTworks. These donations support our programs throughout the year. The new queen will be announced at the 5th Annual Mad Hatter Ball on November 19th and will be crowned by the Mad Hatter! 

We hope you will be there to share the evening with us. We will be honoring seven outstanding arts students from high schools throughout our region and, amidst all of the other fun of the evening, you will see them perform and show their artwork. Tickets are $35 and there are a limited number. 

Dani Brzozowski

Dani Brzozowski is a community leader and business owner whose whole heart resides in the Illinois Valley.

Dani is the Chair of the LaSalle County Democrats, a proud L-P alumna, a graduate of Purdue University, a tireless mama, a runner, a yogi, a casual witch, a lover of tacos and houseplants, a Scorpio, and a whiskey drinker.

By day, Dani coaches kids' soccer, plans countless community events, and dismantles the notion that people in politics have to be self-serving and corrupt.

By night, Dani builds community at her delightful pub called Sanctuary at 125 Hennepin Street in downtown LaSalle--a safe space for everyone to drink Busch Lights and listen to emo music. A fan of good jokes with very bad delivery, Dani takes this whole thing very seriously. Vote for me--I'm Dani B!

Tricia Kelly

Tricia is the Tour Director at the Hegeler Carus Mansion in La Salle, Illinois, where she brings history to life through stories.
She's also a professional storyteller, who often writes her own tales. Tricia believes that storytelling is an art where words weave images. http://blarneytales.com/mystory.htm
Vote for this bonny Irish storyteller! Tricia is the real deal when it comes to crafting visual images from funny or scary or heartwarming stories.


Grace McCormick

Grace McCormick is a junior at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, studying Organizational and Community Leadership. She is a published author of three poetry books, now available at Prairie Fox Bookstore in Ottawa: "Tales of a Newly Healed Heart," "Hanged Heart," and "This Is A Love Story." Grace and her brothers Creed and Revel McCormick published the collaborative work entitled, "The Adventures of Garlic Bread and Spaghetti Noodle: Helping A Friend," which is also available for purchase at Prairie Fox Books in Ottawa.
Grace is the proud older sister to four awesome brothers: Creed, Reason, Ever, and Revel, and the daughter of two wonderful parents, Holly and John McCormick. 
Grace McCormick was honored by NCI ARTworks as an outstanding music student when she was a Jr. High student at Peru Parkside School. Since that time she has grown as an artist, writer, and a performer. Active in community service, she plans a career in nonprofit management and hopes to eventually run an agency aiding the homeless or victims of domestic violence. 
As a PADS homeless shelter volunteer she helped raise over $2,000 for the agency while in high school. As a student at IVCC, she was a Student Ambassador, member of the admission’s recruiting team, and a counseling center receptionist/student worker. 
​Cast your votes for Grace. One dollar equals one vote. The minimum online donation is $3. Supporting Grace is supporting the arts in LaSalle, Bureau, and Putnam counties!

Katie Dumke Troccoli

Cast your vote for Katie! 
​Managing broker for Washington Square realty since 1996, Katie is not only a long-term member of the Ottawa, Illinois Chamber of Commerce, she is also a community activist who works tirelessly for veterans', social justice, and environmental causes. 
Katie is the founder and CEO of  Stone Soup Entertainment, Inc., and Summer House Entertainment, Inc., which manages the operations of first-run films and live acts. Katie is also the CEO of Here and Again, Inc., which is dedicated to opening doors with education to new opportunities in radio, film, photography, music, theatre production, magic, entrepreneurship, finance, dance, fitness, health, and the fine arts. We create new economic and employment opportunities through education. Check out her radio station, WRWO, 94.5FM (wrwo.org) and vote for Katie!