I found out about this parade while leaving the neighborhood Dollar Tree off of a banner hanging on…read morethe fence along Kedzie Ave. I never had much knowledge about Juneteenth until one of my colleagues at my internship site spoke of it which led me to doing more research on it. Juneteenth is an American holiday that commemorates the announcement on June 19, 1865 of the abolition of slavery in the state of Texas and more generally the emancipation of enslaved African Americans throughout the former Confederate States of America. Being that this parade was held by St. Joseph Missionary Baptist Church, a church in East Garfield Park neighborhood I was not expecting it to be as big as some of the other parades around Chicago, but I anticipated coming out to support it because I live in the area, plus it has potential to grow larger as the years go on. I loved that they had this parade, but if it were not for the Pan-American or Juneteenth flags being flown on vehicles, I would not have known what the parade stood for because it was just that, followed by a picnic after which I was unable to attend due to work. A few people tossed hats and bags out of their vehicles that had nothing to do with Juneteenth which left me puzzled on why they were given in the first place. I also loved that there were youth involved with this parade which come to find out they were students from John Marshall High School, and Providence St Mel High School which both are schools located in East Garfield Park. And, both just came off of championship wins with John Marshall High School winning the Illinois 2A State Girls Basketball Championship; Providence St Mel winning the Illinois 1A State Basketball Championship, and an athlete from Providence St Mel's winning the 400-meter State Championship. As the time goes on, it would be heartwarming to see this parade held by St. Joseph Missionary Baptist Church grow and get more assistance with promoting which honors African American ancestry, achievements, struggles and Black veterans. Thomas G

I'm so glad we decided to head out to this parade! I love parades, but often they are a real pain…read moreto get to and observe. Parking was actually pretty easy, and of course Metra would also have been an option--and a great one, actually, because the parade route runs very close to the Park Ridge Metra Stop. The parade had more participants than I would have expected for a small town. It lasted 45-60 minutes. I didn't realize that a town this size had so many Girl Scout troops but today I learned. The elected officials marched with sashes on (omg how small town 1940s), and the marching bands of two high schools in town joined forces to form a larger group. The historical society, armed forces branches, civic groups, and more turned out to make a great time. And this parade is one where they can toss out goodies, which I love but isn't as common in my hometown any longer. There was a little girl next to me yelling "Candy!" at the paraders to make sure she got her share. Candy was the most common item, of course, but there was also stickers, balls, cups, and other items. I may have to suggest to the the garden club that they should give out small packets of seeds next year! Although my kiddo was not set loose, she seemed to enjoy it. Next year she can fight the other kids for candy but she seemed to enjoy her time as a spectator. I'll look forward to other such events.

For a long time, I always dreamed that one day I would live in a town where the 4th of July parade…read moremarches past my house. Well, it hasn't happened yet, but there is a parade about 2 miles away from home on Memorial Day with the same small-town feel I have hoped for. Running along Cumberland Ave. starting at Devon and ending in the park near Touhy, the parade is an annual event that brings out the people for a feel-good patriotic event with a local feel. In the parade, you have the two local high school marching bands - Maine East and Maine South - as bookends. Local VFW and veterans groups are represented too. There's the parade of municipal vehicles: fire trucks, ambulance, police cars, and even a giant snow plow. Classic car afficionados bring out their vintage vehicles on the parade route. Local churches and charitable organizations, scouts, school kids, and even the ladies from the public library, all appear in the parade. You might even see a familiar face from your own block marching past you. While the mayor and local politicians participate too, it is not the political love-fest you see in Chicago's Irish parade or other ethnic parades held downtown. The street is small, the crowd is local and so are the people marching. The folks living along Cumberland have friends come over and hold picnics on their lawns or sit on their porches, adorned in red-white-and blue bunting. The marchers toss candy at the kids, who scramble and compete to pick it up off the street. It runs a little over an hour. After it is over, you leave feeling good about the place you live and it reminds you of an Norman Rockwell-esque, idyllic time when everyone in town knew each other by name and neighborhoods were full of neighborly people.

What a fun 5k, this year at Busse Woods near the grove at Golf Road near the frontage road entrance…read moreto 53. No beer on the course this year, but a fun beer tasting and option to purchase additional beer drinking coins. The race shirts are always a great tech shirt with fun, festive logo and I love that it is also a dog friendly race. It is an untimed race, but mostly flat course and Toasty Cheese food truck afterwards is a treat. I appreciate the fun race which allows for supporting a few charities. The beer and seltzers offered post-race were fabulous. This is a fun event to do with a group of friends or family. Last time I did this it was so cold the beers were slushies! Now if we could just have warmer weather for this race...

As explained well in advance, this is not a race for people trying to set a PR (Personal Record)…read more Well, unless you're trying to do your slowest 5K ever. In fact, it tied for my slowest 5K that didn't include an obstacle course since huffing and puffing my way through the Vernon Hills Run From the Cops 5K in 2009 when I first started running. And by running, I mean slowly jiggling in a forward moving motion for 45 minutes. I was very appreciative that they offered a number of options for packet pick-up throughout the week. Unfortunately, a typo made it so I couldn't get my race stuffs when I originally wanted to. They had listed Church Street as a location for Wednesday and provided the correct address. Finch's Beer Co. was listed as the place for Thursday and they put Church Street's address and later corrected it, but it was too late by the time I realized it so it didn't do me any good. Thus, I had to wait until Friday to go out of my way up to RAM in Schaumburg. Still, this was a hell of a lot more convenient than same day packet pick-up since I arrived about 15 minutes before the run was scheduled to start. I got my 21+ wristband quickly and waited. The Beer Run was supposed to start at 11:00am but I don't think they really got going until 6 minutes later and I got to the Start Line when it was already about 10 minutes into timing. I finished 45 minutes later after a leisurely jog and walk with beer stops at the Start and then every 1K after that. You collected your finisher's medal at the Finish Line and were able to turn in a beer ticket off of your bib for a beer of your choice from a number of breweries who sponsored the event and had samples at the different 1K stops. They sold additional beer tickets at the after-party and you had the option to purchase 5 tickets for $20 at the packet pick-ups scheduled throughout the week. I had bought mine in advance and wound up not using them all since I didn't want to overdo it and wasn't crazy about all the beer. Though you won't get the discount at the event, it might be worth it to wait and see which beers you like before deciding how many beer tickets to buy. This event was a lot of fun. People were really into dressing the part and we created a sea of green along the streets of Arlington Heights. If they return, I may do it again. I'm a bit more into the chip timed races, but this was good for setting the pace for the season to see how out of shape I am again. Also, beer.

I completed the Chinatown 5K for the past two years ('17 & '16), and I'm a fan! The race begins in…read moreChinatown Square and runs through Wentworth and back. It's small enough that I don't feel like I'm going to get trampled, but there are always folks in the front that blitz through the course in 15-16 minutes. O_o It's neat to see that the kids have a separate race and activities with lots of prizes for participants. The same goes for the adults who finish. Lots of freebies like fruit, water, gatorade, and sponsors, but there are raffles for those that put their number into the raffle drawing. All in all, the registration fee is low (early bird!), you get a free t-shirt, and it's usually great weather since it's early July and first thing in the morning.

2015 was only their 2nd year and I hear this was better organized than the inaugural race. At the…read morevery least, the weather was much better. 2014 experienced flash flood conditions. This year it was hot and humid, but the race starts early enough that it's bearable. PROS - Fewer than 1,000 participants means a course that's not crowded - Fewer participants betters your chances of winning raffle prizes - Early enough start time that it doesn't get unbearably hot - Lots of parking in the area - Cool tech shirt (liked the 2014 design better, though) - Chinatown! Most races seem to happen at Montrose Harbor - Straight street for a straightforward course CONS - Unpredictable weather that time of year - No signs posted about where you can or can't park for the race* * Parked only to be told at registration that we'd have to move the car even though the race didn't take place on that part of the street and there were no "no parking" signs - Announcements took for-ev-er - Straight street can be somewhat monotonous and the u-turn is weird

Well now I can say I've been to Taste of Park Ridge, so I'm glad about that. There were at least a…read moredozen food booths, which I don't think is bad for a small town like this. Even Joseph's Finest Meats was there with some sausages, Italian beef, and some yummy ribbon fries. We wandered around for about an hour and a half because it was really hot. It's nice that they have some tables with umbrellas, but I wonder if like one of those little water misting things would be nice... because it was so incredibly hot this year. In addition to the food booths, there's entertainment throughout the day at the stage. We were here during one of the more kid-oriented performances and my babe had fun bopping around. However, I don't think it's a festival I'll be returning to very frequently. There's nothing wrong with it; it's just expensive. This year (2026) tickets are $10 for 8 tickets, and a bit more if you used a card--I think it was $21.75, as you had to buy a minimum of $20 worth of tickets (the extra was the card fee). A single scoop of ice cream cost 7 tickets, but it was my kiddo's birthday so of course she was going to get ice cream... but we're talking something like $9 for a scoop of ice cream. That feels excessive. The location is fantastic, though. Part of the reason we stopped by is because we came from the library directly across the street. The Metra station is right here; you couldn't be closer to the train unless you were in the station, so that's a great option for transportation. Parking is available, but if you want to drink or have an easy time with parking, it's best to use the train.

A very large and rude police officer forced me and a large group of people to miss the 10:57 train…read moreon 07/11 at park ridge Metra. I tried to cross to the train and he shouted at me and asked for my id when I did not hear him. Me and a lot of others had fo spend 50+ dollars on Uber's instead of the train thanks to him. It was great until then. He was really rude but all vendors are nice.

Chicago Humanities Festival CAN certainly SELL your books. The 1,100 capacity at Heller Auditorium…read morein Francis W Parker School was almost filled to capacity. To me, TOPICS are no different than bookless TED or TEDX that you can easily see and hear online for free. Tickets are expensive for 1-hr with a chair and spotlight. For $25, I expect something scandalous or somebody is shaking something. FIRST & LAST!

I have been to a few shows on and off over the years but this year was really a fantastic program…read moreand I splurged on 5 talks, only ended up going to 4 due to time. The theme was Belief and there were a great number of scholars that had just written books on history, race religion, and politics, and it was an honor to meet them. I love that the book signings are easily accessible and allow you to feel briefly connected with the authors. I feel like I had some really mind altering exposures to new thoughts and ideas that will make me a better person and challenge me to be a better citizen and expand my reading. This is like church for a secular humanist, I wish we could have a service with a lecture per week! They record some lectures, I wish they would record all. I will probably be a member next time around ! Makes you kind of want to go back to college

I love this festival! This is one of few street festivals that I actually look forward to every…read moreyear. Unlike most festivals in Chicago, this one is giagantic! They have two stages that have bands and perfomers. In the park inside the fest there are also activities for either kids or performances to watch. Fiesta del Sol is also cigarette and alcohol free. Yes, sounds strange....festival but no booze?? You don't really need it here. This festival is very family friendly and has something for everyone. Now lets really get to what I like about this festival........THE FOOD!!! Unbelieveable tacos, sopes, elotes, and well pretty much any Mexican dish. The food is made fresh and won't put a huge dent in your wallet. Take that other festivals!!! I bought 7 tacos and a paleta all for 11 bucks... not too shabby!! When was the last time you went to a street festival where you didn't shell out at least 20 bucks?? Also there is no admission! Great food, cheap prices, great music, fun times....what is not to like???

Every year, since the early 70's it seemed we had djs showcasing popular urban music. This year,…read morethey didn't even have a House music venue. I don't know if they are justifying it by saying, it keeps the gangs out but the gangs no longer really follow House music trends. Plus, they still had gang fights. As I walked my bike through the festival it felt alienating. On tv they called it America's largest latino fest and that's a lie.

If you know me at all, you know that I love little neighborhood events and such - what Yelp calls…read more"Local Flavor". So the Lakeview East Tree Lighting is just perfect for me! You would think that a neighborhood tree lighting in the parking lot of a grocery store might be lame, but it is seriously NOT. They had several local businesses selling stuff, free mulled wine and hot chocolate, tea sampling, ice sculptors, Santa and (really awesome) carolers. This was a very festive, happy event. And while it was very well-attended, there was enough room to actually move around and not be packed in like with so many other events in this city. The Lakeview East Tree Lighting is now on my "do this every year" list!

This event is so fun!!!…read more We didn't know what to expect, but we were so happy to be a part of it! We arrived a bit before starting, but things were set up, and Santa got there just as we did! The Chamber of Commerce was giving out canvas bags filled with all kinds of offers and ads from local businesses, which was really cool, actually. They also gave out delicious gingerbread man and star-shaped sugar cookies from Bittersweet. They ran out about halfway through, and started giving out frosted sugar cookies from Treasure Island. There was free cider and hot chocolate, as well as hot roasted chestnuts! There were real life gingerbread men bouncing around, dancing and posing for pictures, super fun stuff. There was a guy doing ice sculpture the whole time - he did a gingerbread man on a gingerbread house, and then a Christmas tree. Very cool! The entire time, they showed the cartoon Grinch Who Stole Christmas special over and over using a projector on the wall of the next building - it was spectacular! Santa let me sit on his lap and take our picture - and he complimented my Christmas scarf! The first half of the event had carolers - really great group. We have seen that group at Lakeview events before, and they are just fantastic. The second half was a brass band, and they were also just fabulous. The tree lighting was brief but awesome, and the tree was beautiful. We had a truly wonderful time - it was so fun, and we were really happy to have been a part of the evening. We will definitely go again next year, and so should you!