Ahead of Major League Baseball’s opening day this week, Utica’s Fireside White Sox Club is celebrating its 20-year anniversary coming off a record-setting year in fundraising.

The club began in 2007, when Ron Chalus and Robert “Bo” Windy, along with five friends, went to a ball game together.

“We went to the game and just had a great time together,” Windy said. “After that, we figured, ‘Why don’t we just keep getting together?’

“After a few nights meeting up for some drinks and watching games, I asked, ‘What do you guys think of forming a club?’ They said, ‘Yeah, we can do that.’ From there, everybody was on board and enthusiastic about it.”

From those early days of seven members, the club has steadily expanded.

Today, it includes about 25 members from across the Illinois Valley, with participants traveling from communities including Utica, La Salle, Peru, Ottawa, Marseilles and Oglesby.

Even with the growth, the club has remained close-knit, relying on friendships and word of mouth rather than any sort of direct recruitment.

“We’re not out advertising,” Chalus said. “It’s just guys who know guys who are White Sox fans and it’s worked out well that way.”

For Chalus specifically, supporting the Sox isn’t limited to just watching the games.

For nearly two decades, Chalus has turned his Utica-area farm into a tribute to his favorite team, setting up signs, flags and decorations that have become a familiar sight to locals passing by.

“It’s been out there for about 18 years,” he said. “I don’t even remember exactly when I started putting it up, but it just kind of grew over time.”

What began with a few flags has expanded into a larger display, one that he updates and maintains each season as part of his own opening day tradition.

Other than being for White Sox fans, the club does have some specific rules for members to abide by. For example, members are required to pay a $10 fine to the club if they go to Wrigley Field for a Cubs game.

When asked if the rule had ever been enforced, members laughed and nodded toward club president Randy Tuftie.

“Oh, yeah,” Tuftie said with a laugh. “My wife’s a Cubs fan, so I took her to Wrigley and I had to pay up when I got back.”

Although the club’s name and origin are rooted in a passion for White Sox baseball, its mission has taken on a more important meaning.

Since 2010, the club has organized annual raffles and fundraisers, raising a total of nearly $83,000 for local charities and organizations.

Early on, club members agreed that any money raised primarily would benefit children. Over the years, the club has supported other organizations such as Lighted Way and Friendship Village, along with initiatives like Toys for Kids and the Ronald McDonald House.

More recently, members launched a “Save a Life” effort in 2021, contributing thousands toward emergency and life-saving local services.

In 2014, the club started donating toys for local children during Christmas with a club motto being “no child should go without a toy at Christmas.”

“The most rewarding part of it all is to really see where the money goes and who it impacts,” Tuftie said. “When we see the people we’re helping, especially kids, it means a lot to all of us.”

As the club comes off a record-breaking fundraising year in 2025, Windy said the club making it this far wasn’t necessarily expected at first.

“We didn’t think it would last this long when we first started,” he said. “But we’ve had good leadership and guys who stayed committed and that’s what’s kept it going.”

Before their meeting Tuesday night to distribute raffle tickets for 2026, all present group members agreed that strong leadership, a shared love of baseball and a genuine commitment to giving back are the pillars that got this club through two decades.

“It’s crazy that it started with some guys just getting together to watch the Sox game,” Chalus said. “Now, it’s a lot more than that.”