La Salle Business Association

05/28/2026

Check out our newest member The Blue Oak Company Bridal & Event Rentals!

The Blue Oak Company Bridal & Event Rentals ​Stylish Rentals, Seamless Events.
Plan More, Spend Less.

​Whether you are planning the wedding of your dreams, a milestone celebration, or an intimate gathering, we are here to bring your vision to life with ease and elegance.

​✨ Our Services Include:
• ​Decor Rentals (Stunning pieces to elevate any venue)
• ​Day of Coordination (So you can relax and enjoy your special day)
• ​Design Studio (Custom concepts tailored to your style)
• ​Proposal Packages (Perfectly curated moments for your "Yes!" day)

​📅 Ready to start planning? Message us to book today!

​📞 Phone: 669-258-3625 (NOW-BLUE-OAK)
​📧 Email: [email protected]
​🌐 Webpage: theblueoakcompany.com

05/28/2026

It’s officially our 7th birthday!!🥳🧁🩷 The last 7 years have been more than I could have ever dreamed and I am SO grateful for everyone who has supported us along the way!! I’ve gained sooo many amazing customers who have turned into friends, employees who have turned into best friends, learned so much along the way, and built this little business from the ground up 🥹 Thank you a million for the last 7 years and cheers to sooooo many more!!💕Love, Kelsey 🫶🏻

05/11/2026

Our final award for the night at Last Thursday's Annual Awards dinner was the 2025 Businessperson of the Year Award, Presented to Cameron Graper, Pastor of Ax Church!

Cameron was born and raised in the Illinois Valley before moving away from the area for a brief period. He felt called to return to and begin his mission of founding and operating Ax Church in 2010. The church started small with just Cameron’s family and 15 close friends, but it has since grown to now hosting over 600 people for weekend services.

With that kind of growth, the church has had to move around a bit over the years in order to accommodate its quickly growing membership. An advantage to LaSalle is that with each building the church left, it wound up in much better condition than they had found it. The story is no different for their current location at 944 First Street. The purchase and renovation of this property is a real benefit to our downtown.

The investment in our community by Cameron and Ax Church goes well beyond the boundaries of their building. As Pastor, Cameron’s drive to see the church bless the Illinois Valley more completely has fueled his constant outward focus and his use of the resources of the church in support of initiatives that move others forward spiritually and financially. He believes Ax Church is meant to reach those in our area who have been forgotten, he believes every person is valuable, and he believes in investing time and energy into the betterment of our neighbors and thereby better our neighborhoods, out towns, and our communities.

Through the resources of Ax Church, Cameron has started and supported community events and outward classes like Financial Peace University, the Alpha Course, and arguably the most impactful of the Church’s events, the annual Summer initiative known as Hope Week. Hope Week is a full seven days of service by members of Ax Church in the Illinois Valley. Over the last 10 years it has given away over $225,000 in projects with over 16,000 community service hours performed. Without a doubt, whenever volunteers are needed, Cameron and the Ax Church are quick to mobilize a small army and get things done.

Outside of his duties as Pastor, Cameron is a devoted husband to his wife Aimee. His favorite title that he holds is Dad to his 4 children. He still works as an engine machinist part time for his family business, loves rock climbing, and his favorite tv character of all time is Ron Swanson from Parks and Recreation. He hopes to spend the rest of his life making Jesus more famous in the Illinois Valley and seeing this region become even more blessed.

Congratulations to our very deserving 2025 Businessperson of the year recipient, Cameron Graper!

05/11/2026

Last Thursday Night, the La Salle Business Association held its annual awards banquet, which recognizes local businesses and businesspeople who have made a positive impact on the La Salle business community. The first award of the evening, the Business of the Year Award, was presented to Marien Mae Bridal Boutique & Events!

Marien Mae Bridal Boutique & Events was founded by Amanda Andreoni in February of 2011. Originally located in the Westclox building in Peru, a fire in that building forced a temporary relocation of the business to First Street in LaSalle. Amanda later partnered with another downtown business owner, Gary Hammers to redevelop 749 First Street into the beautiful space it is today.

The business operated very successfully under Amanda’s leadership for several years, and in 2017, Amanda sold the business to Holly Hoover who had managed the boutique under Amanda’s tutelage for the 5 years prior. Holly has maintained the business’ reputation of providing impeccable service and high-quality outfitting for brides and bridal parties in the Illinois Valley and beyond. This is truly a destination store for brides-to-be who trust Holly and her team with one of the most important days of their lives, and they always deliver.

Marien Mae now occupies two storefronts on First Street. The bridal boutique offers wedding dresses, mother-of-the-wedding dresses, bridesmaid dresses, tuxedos, suits and accessories. The second location, known as Marien Mae Events and located at 713 First Street, functions as their prom store from January through May. It then transforms into a beautiful event venue hosting intimate showers, birthday parties, and a bridal suite where brides can get ready on their wedding day.

Over the last decade plus, Marien Mae has received many awards including the Illinois Valley's Best Bridal Store, a Top Illinois Valley Workplace, and is 9X winner of The Knot’s "Best of Weddings" Hall of Fame as of 2025. The business continues to thrive because of the great leadership of Holly Hoover, the superb quality of the products they sell, but most importantly, the impeccable personal service and care provided by the Marien Mae team.

Congratulations to our 2025 Business of the Year Recipient, Marien Mae Bridal Boutique and Events!

05/09/2026

What a day. Truly one for the books. 🌸

This was the last photo we snapped tonight, & my heart is so full.🫶🏼

A huge thank you to the La Salle Business Association for putting together downtown LaSalle’s first ever Flower Crawl & shopping event. For year one, it was an absolute hit, & I already know this is only the beginning of something really special for our community.

Seeing so many people out supporting small businesses, celebrating Mother’s Day weekend, & filling downtown with so much love was incredible. My 7th Mother’s Day in downtown LaSalle was definitely one I’ll never forget.

Thank you to every single person who shopped, stopped by, supported, and showed love today. It truly means more than I can put into words.

From the bottom of my heart… thank you. 🤍

We’ll be back open tomorrow, Mother’s Day Sunday, from 9 AM to Noon with a beautiful selection of plants, candles, fresh gifts, & plenty of last minute goodies for the moms in your life.

05/09/2026

05/08/2026

Mom's special day is almost here, and what better way to celebrate than shopping downtown La Salle!

Join us tomorrow, May 9th for "The Day She Deserves" Mother's Day Flower Crawl and Shopping Event downtown La Salle. While registration for the flower crawl is now closed, we still have a wonderful free shopping event for those looking to spend some time shopping downtown!

To participate, pick up a bingo card at one of the many stores and restaurants downtown, and if you complete a line, you will be entered into a raffle to win one of two (2) $25 Locally La Salle Gift Cards! Each completed line is worth one entry, and if you complete the whole card, you'll receive 10 entries in the raffle!

Bingo cards can be turned in at the red drop box in the Pocket Park at 540 First Street!

Come spend the day downtown La Salle, and shop small for Mother's Day!

04/29/2026

What better way to celebrate mothers day than fresh flowers and shopping downtown LaSalle!

The La Salle Business Association is excited to introduce our 2026 "The Day She Deserves" Flower Crawl and Shopping Event, taking Place on Saturday May 9th, just in time for Mother's Day! Spend the Afternoon shopping downtown La Salle, Building a Bouquet of Flowers with Mom along the way!

Registration for the event is $20 Per Person, and each paid registrant will be building a bouquet with a $50 market value.

How the Event Works:
🚶🏻‍♀️From 2:00 to 3:00PM, registrants will participate in a "Flower Crawl" on first street where they will visit each registered business to shop and pick up a specific type of flower.

🌸After visiting each registered business, participants will have collected all of the flowers necessary to build a beautiful Mother's Day Bouquet, all while spending the afternoon shopping in various businesses on First Street!

💐The event will finish with a Bouquet workshop from 3:15-3:45 PM, at Petals By Peyton, where Peyton will assist in finalizing your bouquet with all of the flowers you have collected.

To register for the event click the link to our website below. You may register yourself and additional registrants as "guests".

https://lasallebusiness.org/event-6673922

Registrations are due by Thursday, May 7th, at 5:00PM. You must pre-register for this event.

Check in for the event will be at 1:45PM on Saturday, May 9th at the Pocket Park located at 540 First Street, with the flower Crawl beginning at 2:00PM. This event is rain or shine!

04/24/2026

Attention First Street Businesses!

Mother's Day is fast Approaching, and The La Salle Business Association is excited to announce a Downtown LaSalle Mother's Day Flower Crawl shopping event happening Saturday, May 9th, from 2:00-3:00PM, to encourage shoppers to support local businesses just in time for Mother's Day!

Sign your business up today for the Flower Crawl at the link below!

https://forms.gle/H9vnpsKUYkFevoS37

How the event works:

🌸 Registered Businesses will be a part of a bouquet building "Flower Crawl" where patrons will build a bouquet of flowers as they visit each registered business. Each registered business will be provided with a specific type of flower to host in their store.

🚶🏻‍♀️From 2:00-3:00PM, Patrons will visit each registered business to collect their flower and hopefully make a purchase or explore your business.

💐 At the end of the hour long Flower Crawl, patrons will take all of the flowers they have collected and build a Mother's Day Bouquet at a workshop hosted by Petals By Peyton at 3:00PM!

The event brings guaranteed patrons into your business, so we highly suggest offering additional promotions, discounts, or benefits to encourage them to make a purchase while participating in the Flower Crawl!

The Event is free to participate in for businesses, but the flower crawl is limited to First Street Businesses Only since it is a walking event!

Patrons will be provided a separate registration page to purchase tickets for the event that cover the cost of the flowers.

Please have your registrations in no later than Wednesday, May 6th in order to participate!

04/22/2026

We are incredibly honored to announce the La Salle Business Association's 2025 Business of the Year Award Recipient, Marien Mae Bridal Boutique & Events, and our 2025 Business Person of the Year Recipient, Cameron Graper, Pastor of Ax Church!

Marien Mae Bridal and Cameron will be honored on Thursday, May 7th at Uptown Grill at the LBA's Annual Awards Banquet beginning at 5:30PM!

Come help us honor these amazing staples of the La Salle Business Community at the Awards Banquet by registering on our website at the link below! Tickets are $45 and include dinner and musical entertainment!

https://lasallebusiness.org/sys/website/system-pages/?pageId=18008

Seating is limited, so please register early!