Apr. 12, 2007 | 04:40 PM EDT
Gina Gets a Star Homecoming
By Shia Kapos
Photo by: Jonathan Miano / Naperville SUN / AP
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Gina Glocksen may have gotten booted from last week's
Idol, but to the crowd that gathered to greet her in her hometown of Naperville, Ill., on Wednesday the top 10 finalist is still No. 1. "It's pretty awesome," Glocksen said of the audience that showed up to greet her at North Central College’s Pfeiffer Hall auditorium in Naperville, about 25 miles west of downtown Chicago. Nearly a thousand adoring young fans chanted "Gina, Gina, Gina" and waved hand-painted signs that read "I Love You!"
To top it all off, Glocksen was awarded the key to the city by the mayor of Naperville, who declared the day Gina Glocksen Day. "Before I auditioned for
Idol, I lived in Naperville for two years and no one knew my name," Glocksen said. "Now I have people coming here wanting to meet me and see me in person. I’m so honored to be here." And though her
Idol dream is over, the 22-year-old rocker, who will reunite with the remaining finalists to go on tour this summer, told her fans, "There's a light at the end of the tunnel. So don't stop."
