OAKtoberfest was in full swing for its second year Saturday, Oct. 4, at Flossmoor Park as people enjoyed being outdoors.
Festivities from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. for the first half of the Oaktoberfest program consisted of celebrating and spreading information about Flossmoor’s local nature and trees, along with booths from various businesses and organizations having interactive activities for children and residents.
Organizations in attendance with booths included the Flossmoor Green Commission, University of Illinois Extension, the Flossmoor Public Art Commission, the police and fire departments, Urban Canopy, Thorn Creek Audubon, You Matter 2, local business Gather & Moss and more.
Kids got their faces painted, went rock climbing, stopped by food trucks, and enjoyed themselves in the bouncy house provided by the Flossmoor Fire Department.
Village Arborist Dave Becker took guests on a tree walk through the local neighborhoods and educating people on oak trees and how beneficial they are to the environment.
“We talked about tree diversity in the village, the different types of trees that are being planted in the village, the maintenance of trees in the village and the importance of oaks as a keystone in the village,” Becker said, noting oaks are habitat for insects and birds.
“Also, the oaks provide a lot of benefits for us humans,” Becker said. “They provide shade, they reduce pollution and reduce flooding by absorbing some of the rainfall and slowing the rainfall.”
child at OAKtoberfest in Flossmoor on Oct. 4. (Jamilah Lewis/H-F
Chronicle)
The Public Art Commission had a silent auction and helped sell Flossmoor merchandise, with some of the proceeds going towards public art.
The Green Commission held a native plant sale run by Commission Chair Tristan Shaw with some of the proceeds going to You Matter 2.
University of Illinois Extension’s booth gave residents the chance to interact with a Blue Death Feigning Beetle and American Millipedes, while giving out information on local and invasive insects.
The Gather & Moss booth, run by local Kris McManus, offered children a chance to have potted plants of their own to take care of.
Thorn Creek Audubon’s booth had a game for residents to match bird pictures with the bird type, their eggs, babies, and a fun fact about the bird.
The Urban Canopy’s booth’s message was about spreading awareness of the benefits of composting and how to do it locally.
