Wow, what a great turnout at Silicon Prairie Social 2 last night! This second event was arguably better than the first. We’re glad everyone braved the cold and made it out to have a great time socializing and building business relationships within the suburban Chicago tech community.

Photos
Here’s a selection of the photos we took at the event last night. We’ll post more next week. If you took your own photos last night, please upload them to Flickr and use the tag ‘siliconprairiesocial2‘ to create a shared gallery.

Prize Winners:
Congratulations to our lucky guests who took home one of several prizes given away last night. Andy Thomas from Optimus Solutions took home the XBOX 360 with Halo 3 from Microsoft, Tom Rupp and Bill Winsininski at Imprint-E won an OKI multi-function printer courtesy of ChicagoMicro, Robert Sansome of Optimized Telecom Solutions won Optimus Solutions’ iPod Touch, and Lambert Smith of Stone Cliff Productions won the iPod Nano from Piocon. Finally, the winner of XNet’s 1hr Swedish Massage at Mario Tricoci of Naperville goes to Amanda D. Cook at Simply Aesthetic Design.

Keep in Touch:
Use the Facebook Group and LinkedIn Group to keep in touch with fellow Silicon Prairie Social attendees.

Thanks:
First, from all of us at XNet, we’d like to thank those of you who braved the cold and came out to mingle and network with your peers in the tech industry. You made the event a whole lot of fun. We’re glad to be able to host such an event for the suburban tech community.

We want to especially thank our sponsors: Premier Sponsor ChicagoMicro, along with Microsoft, M5 Networks, Kirix, HostedLABS, Optimus Solutions, Piocon, Bradley Wiltjer Marketing Group, and M. Hedayat + Associates, P.C. Also, thanks to the ITA and Business Network Chicago for promoting the event via their calendars.

Send Your Feedback:
Please take a moment to fill out this brief survey and give feedback on the event last night. We sincerely appreciate your input.

Stay Tuned:
Finally, to receive updates on future events, take a moment to subscribe to this blog via RSS or via email by following the links below the sponsor logos to the right.

Until next time,

Arthur Zards
Tim Courtney
XNet
Co-Hosts, Silicon Prairie Social

We’re writing you to communicate some last-minute details in anticipation for tonight’s event. We have a record response for Silicon Prairie Social 2 — we’re excited and can’t wait!

Due to space limitations, we want to relay some specific points beforehand:

• THE EVENT IS FULL. Because of this, all guests must have their printed RSVP and a business card, or they may be denied entry.
• Due to capacity of the venue, plan to arrive towards the beginning of the event. If you arrive late and we experience high turnout, we may need to throttle entry, even for RSVP’ed guests.
• If you have RSVP’ed and are planning to bring a friend, have them RSVP by 3:30 today. RSVPs close at that time.
• Note that we are not accepting walk-ins or offering a waiting list for this event.
• Mullen’s has plenty of parking. If, however, their lot is full, you are welcome to park next door at the Wyndham hotel at no charge.

Need the info again?
Read the original announcement here, and our Monday update with additional details here. Stay warm, and see you tonight!

Arthur Zards
Tim Courtney
XNet
Co-Hosts, Silicon Prairie Social

We’re really looking forward to seeing everyone this Thursday night for the second Silicon Prairie Social. What is Silicon Prairie Social? Read the original announcement here, and make sure you and your friends RSVP here (it’s a must to get in–we’re expecting a full event!).

Come out and enjoy yourselves on this winter evening and get to know fellow professionals in the regional tech industry. Can’t wait to see you there!

Reminder: The event is almost full.
If you haven’t RSVP’ed yet, do so now. RSVP (with business card) will be required for admission.

Free Food and Drinks
We’ve opened a tab for you punctual types and ordered a bit more food this time as well. Once the tab is gone, we’ll break out the Rolling Rock again!

Taking the train?
Mullen’s is just a 6 minute drive from the Lisle Metra station on the BNSF/Aurora line. Here are some quick links to the Outbound Metra schedule and inbound Metra schedule.

Need a ride? Have extra room? Carpool!
Feel free to use the comments below or the Facebook or LinkedIn Groups to link up with potential carpool partners.

Parking
Mullen’s has plenty of parking. If, however, their lot is full, you are welcome to park next door at the Wyndham hotel at no charge.

Special Thanks
Again we’d like to offer a special thanks to our sponsors who make this event possible: Premier Sponsor ChicagoMicro, along with Microsoft, M5 Networks, HostedLABS, Kirix, Optimus Solutions, Piocon, Bradley Wiltjer Marketing Group, and M. Hedayat + Associates, P.C.

The Evangelism team at Microsoft – Larry, Dave, Brian and Chris — are coming through yet again by giving away an XBOX 360 with a copy of Halo 3 at Silicon Prairie Social 2. We’ll be handing out your raffle ticket at the check-in table, which you can take to the Microsoft table to enter. While you’re there, be sure to check out Microsoft Expression and Silverlight, and get in a round or two of Guitar Hero in the XBOX room.

It’s going to be a full house, so RSVP if you haven’t already (it’s required) at http://siliconprairiesocial2.eventbrite.com. Here are the event details one more time:

Silicon Prairie Social
Thursday, January 24
6:30pm-10:00pm (bar open until 1:00am)

Mullen’s Bar and Grill
3080 Warrenville Rd.
Lisle, IL 60532
(Get directions via Google Maps)

Also, we’d like to give a quick round of thanks to some of the organizations and bloggers who have helped us get the word out about SPS2:

• Sponsor Angela Binkowski of Microsoft and blog Ravings of a Developer TS
• Sponsor Ben Bradley of Bradley Wiltjer Marketing Group
• Sponsor Mazyar Hedayat of M. Hedayat + Associates
• Illinois Technology Association
• Business Network Chicago
• Technology Executives Club
• TECH cocktail
• Event news blog The Silicon Prairie
• TechSocial
• The Hot Iron

Mike Mecklenburg of ChicagoMicro here. We’re a full service IT hardware, software, and services company, and a proud supporter of Chicago’s technology and entrepreneurial scene.

Chicago has a thriving tech market, and we hope that through events like the Silicon Prairie Social it will continue to grow. As the premier sponsor of Silicon Prairie Social and a longtime supporter of TechCocktail, we believe in the Chicago technology community. And in the spirit of our community helping each other, we want to extend an invitation to all who attend SPS: We hope that you will give ChicagoMicro a chance to help your business grow and prosper. Please stop by our table at the event and say hello. We would like to learn about your business and your technology goals.

In addition, we would like to personally introduce you to our partners that will be joining us; VMWare, Fujitsu, Rackable, and Okidata. They are just as excited as we are about the suburban tech community, and are looking forward to meeting everyone at the event. And I’m sure that they will be bringing some giveaways—so bring a few extra business cards!

Finally we would like to thank Tim and Art from XNet for all the work they have put forth for making this such a successful event! We are looking forward to meeting everyone there!

Sincerely,

Mike Mecklenburg
Sales Manager
ChicagoMicro
mike@chicagomicro.com

We’re excited to announce the second Silicon Prairie Social, a technology networking event in the western Chicago suburbs. The event will be held Thursday, January 24 at Mullen’s Bar & Grill in Lisle. After our successful first event in September, we’re excited to do it again. This is a great opportunity to connect in a fun, informal setting with like-minded people in technology!

This time around we have more drinks, more food, and some great sponsors! IT vendor ChicagoMicro joins us as the event’s Premier Sponsor, along with sponsors Microsoft, M5 Networks, HostedLabs, Kirix, Optimus Solutions, Piocon, Bradley Wiltjer Marketing Group, and M. Hedayat + Associates. Be sure to pay our sponsors a visit as they’re the ones who make this all possible.

Why should I come?

• Free admission (RSVP required)
• Free drinks and hors d’oeuvres!
• Mingle, network, and learn with other successful tech oriented professionals like yourself.

Who Can Attend?
Silicon Prairie Social is specifically for upwardly mobile tech professionals, tech executives, tech entrepreneurs, technology service providers, Internet professionals, Web 2.0 and startup companies, and the mobile industry.

What’s different from last time?
Our goal is to make Silicon Prairie Social a place where quality business relationships can be fostered, resulting in mutually-beneficial business relationships between attendees. In keeping with this goal, and due to feedback we received from the first event, we will be focusing the audience by limiting access: No professional recruiters, staffing agencies or active job seekers will be permitted.

Who’s behind this?
Silicon Prairie Social is founded and hosted by Lisle-based XNet. XNet has shown its commitment to growing the suburban tech community by contributing both money and effort to continue to make this a success. The driving force behind Silicon Prairie Social is XNet’s Tim Courtney and Arthur Zards.

When and Where?

Silicon Prairie Social 2
Thursday, January 24
6:30pm-10:00pm (bar open until 1:00am)

Mullen’s Bar and Grill
3080 Warrenville Rd.
Lisle, IL 60532
(Get directions via Google Maps)

At I-88 and Naperville Rd., Silicon Prairie Social is centrally located and easy to get to from all along the llinois Technology and Research Corridor on I-88, the Golden Corridor on I-90, downtown Chicago and the western suburbs.

Want to attend? RSVP here.
The event is free to attend, and RSVP is required. Word is spreading of the first event, so RSVP early as space is limited. Registration closes at noon on the day of the event, or once the RSVP list reaches its limit. No professional recruiters, staffing agencies or active job seekers are permitted.

We look forward to seeing you in January!

Thanks to everyone who came out on Wednesday for our Very Prairie Christmas Gathering! For those of you who missed it, Very Prairie Christmas was a more intimate, informal get-together. The smaller crowd provided a good opportunity to talk to everyone who attended. It’s great to see how many people are truly committed to making a suburban technical networking event a true success.

Apologies for the dark, grainy photos. These photos below link to Flickr photos tagged “veryprairiechristmas.” Upload your own if you were there!

Sponsors Needed: Silicon Prairie Social 2 in January

We’re planning on holding the next Silicon Prairie Social in late January, and looking forward to making an announcement very soon. We just need a few more sponsors to make it happen.

The first Silicon Prairie Social was a great success. Our wonderful sponsors are the ones who made it possible. If you’ve thought about sponsoring before, now is the perfect opportunity. Please email Tim today at tim {at} siliconprairiesocial [dot] com to discuss possibilities.

We’re excited about getting everybody together again!

Arthur Zards

We’ve ironed out the details for the Christmas gathering. UPDATE — December is a busy month for parties, so we had to re-schedule for Wednesday December 12. The location is (drumroll please) Quigley’s Irish Pub in Naperville.

So, come out to Quigley’s that night and hang out with fellow technology executives, professionals, and entrepreneurs who were at Silicon Prairie Social!

The Details:

• Wednesday, December 12 (6:00-9:00pm)
• Quigley’s Irish Pub, 43 E. Jefferson St., Naperville, IL 60540
• No frills — just come and hang out! Cash bar/food

Please RSVP at http://prairiechristmas.eventbrite.com and indicate whether you would Definitely Attend or Maybe Attend.

FAQ:

Q. Is this Christmas gathering the same thing as the Silicon Prairie Social event held in September?
A. Nope. The Very Prairie Christmas Gathering is an informal get-together of SPS attendees at a local watering hole. Basically, we’re just getting together to hang out. Expect to have a great time with fewer people (we estimate about 50) and a cash bar.

Q. Are you planning another big Silicon Prairie Social?
A. Absolutely. We’re finalizing plans for Silicon Prairie Social II in late January, and we can’t wait to get the details out to you. Stay tuned!

See you soon!

Arthur Zards
Tim Courtney

Co-Hosts, Silicon Prairie Social
XNet Information Systems

Hey everyone! We’re excited to share a couple new developments regarding future events:

Silicon Prairie Social II

We’re looking forward to hosting the next Silicon Prairie Social in late January and are currently working out the details. Stay tuned for announcements in the coming weeks! Now’s a good time to subscribe via email or RSS feed for updates if you haven’t done so already, and to tell a friend about the great time you had at the first event!

A Very Prairie Christmas Gathering

Based on some conversations we’ve been having with attendees, people would like to see a get-together before January’s slated Social. So, we’d like to invite you to come out for food and drinks on December 13th; a sort of informal Christmas gathering at an area restaurant/bar.

We’re in the process of picking the venue. To help us pick the best location (we’re looking at several easily accessible places in Naperville, Wheaton, and Yorktown/Lombard), please indicate whether you would Definitely Attend or Maybe Attend by RSVP’ing below. Once we have our initial response, we’ll follow up with an announcement/email announcing the location.

Our goal with this get-together is to give a chance for you to build on the relationships started in September by getting together in a more intimate setting and enjoying conversation with fellow technology executives, professionals, and entrepreneurs.

The Plan:

• Thursday, December 13 Wednesday, December 12 (6:00-9:00pm)
• Local restaurant/bar (TBD — Naperville/Wheaton/Yorktown area) Quigley’s Irish Pub, 43 E. Jefferson St., Naperville, IL 60540
• Not sponsored
• Intimate setting: a little more sit-down room
• Cash bar/food*

* Rumor has it a Secret Santa may appear and buy a couple rounds — shh, don’t tell anyone.

Please RSVP at http://prairiechristmas.eventbrite.com and indicate whether you would Definitely Attend or Maybe Attend.

We’re looking forward to seeing you again!

Sincerely,

Arthur Zards
Tim Courtney

Co-Hosts, Silicon Prairie Social
XNet Information Systems

We just received the photos friend and professional photographer Glenn Phenicie took at the event, and boy us SPS’ers are a classy looking bunch! We’ve uploaded the pics to Flickr and to the Facebook group. Have a look:

Our Flickr Photoset:

 

Plus these others…

• Photos tagged “siliconprairiesocial” on Flickr
• Event Photos on the Facebook Group

Join the New LinkedIn Group:
LinkedIn just re-released the groups feature, so we created a group as promised. So, join the group here and stay connected with fellow SPS’ers!

Read Others’ Comments:

• Mazy Hedayat posted a nice review and photos of SPS on his blog, Practice Management.
• Carolyn Shelby of cshel.com posted her Silicon Prairie Social Re-Cap.

Have a great weekend!