Noon Years Eve EC 2014-12-31 290
Local News

Homewood festivals on hold but staff work to adapt celebrations

 

Homewood’s festivals have long been a point of pride for the village, serving as part of the glue that binds the community together and as a way to support downtown businesses. In recent years, the biggest events have attracted thousands of people for music, food, crafts and entertainment. 

The crowd is packed tight as the balloons drop during the 2014 Noon Year’s Eve celebration. That’s too close for comfort during a pandemic, so the event has been canceled for this year. (Chronicle file photo)

The COVID-19 pandemic brought the festivals to an abrupt end, but village officials are still pursuing the mission the events fulfill.

The Chocolate Festival in February was the last of the annual events to be held before the spread of the virus that causes COVID-19 reached the area. The Artisan Street Fair, the Fourth of July Parade, Rail Fest, Hobo Night and Fall Fest were subsequently canceled.

The winter events that have been called off include Holiday Lights, Miracle on Martin, Noon Year’s Eve, the winter Farmers Market and Chocolate Fest 2021.

Homewood Mayor Richard Hofeld, a long-time advocate for the festivals, said until a vaccine has been developed and administered, the trend likely will continue. 

“I don’t see us holding another event until a vaccine becomes available to everyone,” he said. “We’re not going to do anything to endanger people.”

Big events that draw thousands of people are not the only way to bring the community together and support local businesses. Homewood Events Manager Allisa Opyd is working on several winter events and activities that will be smaller and designed to follow pandemic safety guidelines.

The process of adapting events began this summer. After the big Fourth of July events were canceled, Opyd collaborated with representatives of Flossmoor, the Homewood-Flossmoor Park District and Homewood-Flossmoor High School to create a drive-in movie. The “Quarantine Cinema” showing of “School of Rock” was open to 100 vehicles. 

The Farmers Market’s summer season was in some doubt early on, but after developing a plan to implement a range of safety procedures, the market was able to open on June 13. The last market of the season was held on Saturday.

Now, fall and winter events are in the planning stages. 

“We still want to bring people together,” Opyd said, but noted that events will be designed to limit gathering, to encourage physical distancing, and visitors will be asked to observe other safety measures, like wearing face coverings.

“We are pivoting,” she said. “The community has embraced it.”

The village will help support and promote the Homewood Business Association’s Witches Night Out event, a shopping and costume contest from 5 to 9 p.m. on Oct. 22.

Haunted Homewood won’t actually bring people together literally, but the new contest was developed as a way for community members to have fun decorating their homes for Halloween and have a friendly contest.

Nov. 28 is Small Business Saturday, an annual promotion to support small local businesses. The Cancer Support Center’s annual tree sale will take place on Martin Square. Opyd said the times and specific procedure for tree sales are still being worked out.

The “I Spy” window activity is being developed. The game of searching for specific items in store windows downtown was started in conjunction with Miracle on Martin, a nostalgic family event that involved making s’mores around a fire as carolers sang seasonal songs. 

She said there would also be small events on Dec. 5 and Dec. 12. One of those events could include carriage rides.

The village is also working with the park district to find a way to do a virtual Noon Year’s Eve celebration. Details on that event will be posted later this fall.

Finally, another holiday tradition will remain. Hofeld said the snowflake game would continue. Each year, Homewood Public Works installs one lighted snowflake decoration that has a pattern different from all the others. In the past, he gave out coupons provided by Twisted Q or Krispy Kreme to anyone who spotted the unique snowflake.

Normally, people stopped by village hall on Saturday mornings to report their findings to the mayor and receive a coupon.

“I’m still working on the mechanics of how people will tell me,” Hofeld said. “Maybe email.”

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