Crime & Safety

Palatine Street Fest: Fun For the Entire Family

Roving magicians, moon bounces, bean bag tosses and public safety awareness with a hint of fun are just a handful of activities for kids and their parents.

The heat and humidity didn’t deter considerable crowds from enjoying the first full day of the Downtown Palatine Street Fest.

“Street Fest is always a great event; I think we’re all so busy we sometimes aren’t aware of the activities in our own community,”
said Coleen Benzo, Palatine resident. “I think the event is especially good for new families with children so they can see what Palatine has to offer."

In Town Square, there were a number of kid, and family-friendly activities to be enjoyed. 

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The moon-bounce, which is always a favorite for the toddler through pre-teen crowd, kept handfuls of kids smiling and air-born as parents looked on. The traditional bean-bag toss took on a variety of forms throughout the more than 30 booths that filled the square.

Kids were able to toss colored beanbags into their matching slots (sponsored by the Sister Cities Association of Palatine), and knock down ‘Crazy Cat’ puppets with beanbags thanks to the Almost Home Foundation.

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Roving magician Pete Kovacevich fascinated kids and parents alike with his many tricks.

“I picked a playing card and it was a number 3; then it turned into a really big card with a number 3 and I did ask Magician Pete how he did that,” said Cara Mooney, 9-year-old Palatine resident who attended Street Fest with her parents, twin brother Patrick and younger sister Catie.

The Mooney family are new Palatine residents, and so far have enjoyed the experience.

“This is our first time here, and we’ve been very pleased with what we’ve seen; I am running in the Feet Fest race tomorrow, and looking forward to that,” said Maureen Mooney. “My youngest daughter asked me if I would be upset if I took second place; let’s just say I’d be ecstatic.”

Street Fest continues tonight with a number of bands performing and tomorrow begins with the race at 8:30 a.m. Palatine Patch also has compiled a . More information also is available at the Street Fest website.

Representatives from the Cub and Boy Scouts, , , and Renegades Youth
Hockey were also at the fest to make residents aware of the many programs available for children and their families.

The village of Palatine Public Works department displayed a miniature Bobcat and Steamroller for little ones to climb on while pretending
they were driving them.

Meanwhile, firefighters from the Palatine Fire Department showed household items melted in past house fires to stress fire safety awareness.

There was also a separate area for kids to choose a fire department-related design to be made into a button on the spot for them to take
home.

Palatine Police held a K-9 demonstration at the gazebo. ‘Canine
Elvis’ a German Shepherd who assists the department in locating narcotics exhibited his detection skills.

Three tubs, one containing illegal narcotics stood in front of the two policemen demonstrating, and Canine Elvis sprung into action and quickly found the suspicious container.

“Street Fest is a great event for families to enjoy time together and take advantage of the summer weather while we still have it,” said Shawn Jackson.


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