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Homewood and Flossmoor celebrate National Night Out

Crowds are expected to return to the Artisan Street Fair on June 3 and June 4 in downtown Homewood after scaled-back events the past two years. (Chronicle file photo)

If timing is everything, the Homewood Artisan Street Fair seems to have it all.

The 2021 event occurred just after the state lifted the most severe restrictions of the COVID-19 pandemic, and the community could finally gather again after a long year in lockdown.

This year the pandemic lingers but nearly all restrictions are gone after another difficult winter, and organizers have planned a return to the festival’s pre-pandemic glory.

“We’re coming back strong this year,” Homewood Event Manager Allisa Opyd said.

Youngsters dance to the music of MG Bailey in 2019. Bailey will be playing again this year. (Chronicle file photo)

The festival will be open from 4 to 9 p.m. on Friday, June 3, and 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturday, June 4. The rich array of craft and art vendors, entertainment, food and activities will stretch along Martin Avenue from just north of Kroner Lane to Hickory Road, then along Hickory east to Dixie Highway.

About 80 local and regional vendors are expected. Lisa Komoroski and Dodi Wians, who curate the artisan show, said there will be a mix of old favorites and new talent.

The music, too, will be performed by local and regional artists, including favorites MG Bailey and Timeless Evolution.

Liz Smith leads a yoga session at the 2019 Artisan Street Fair. (Chronicle file photo)

There will be activities for kids and adults, from yoga led by Liz Smith of Serendipity Yoga Studio at Independence Park to Zumba and line dancing sponsored by Anew, which will be promoting its Dance Away Domestic Violence event on June 11.

Kids will have several craft activities to choose from, including cardboard mosaics sponsored by The Art Corner, sand art with the Homewood Business Association and decorating mini wooden bicycles.

The event will conclude Saturday with a drawing for a bicycle donated by GoodSpeed Cycle in support of the Homewood Business Association’s first major fundraiser.

Tickets for the raffle will be sold until 5 p.m., and the drawing will be done at 6 p.m.

The HBA fundraiser is being done in conjunction with the summer public art project of decorated bike racks that will be on display downtown before the festival.

The only real hurdle organizers had to work around was the Hartford Building construction project at the corner of Ridge Road and Martin Avenue, where the food court was previously stationed.

Fall Fest 2021 had provided a chance to try out a modified layout, which will be implemented again for the Artisan Street Fair. Food vendors will be farther south on Martin, and dessert vendors will intermingle with other artists throughout the festival.

Parking should not be an issue, in spite of the construction project. A few spaces on Ridge Road are not available, but for the first time, visitors will be welcome to use the commuter parking lot along the Metra tracks on Harwood Avenue. The village took ownership of the commuter lots at the Homewood train station on Jan. 1. Event parking was one of the main reasons for that acquisition.

Opyd said the sometimes overlooked Kroner Lane parking lot also will be available, as will the lot just south of Independence Park where Savoia T’Go once stood.

Flossmoor Service League House Walk is back
The Artisan Street Fair is not the only event making a full recovery from the pandemic. After a two-year hiatus, the Flossmoor Service League’s annual house walk returns. Houses will be open from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on May 18.

Three homes will be on the tour this year, including a 1967 ranch home with views of Flossmoor Golf Course; a 1957 mid-century modern home designed by renowned architect Bertrand Goldberg; and a summer cottage pool house retreat built in 1941 and converted to a single family home in the late 1940s.

Tickets are $25 and are available at Gypsy Fix in Flossmoor, UpsaDaisy Boutique and Art 4 Soul in Homewood or at flossmoorserviceleague.org.

Proceeds are used by the organization to award grants to local charities. Last year, FSL supported 16 South Suburban charities with grants totaling more than $30,000.

Reporter Supporter Club returns
As you know, the Chronicle depends on reader revenue to help us more fully chronicle the life of our community. We’ve been grateful for the generous support we have received via your subscriptions for online stories over the years, and we convert that support into more local journalism.

However, we ran into a glitch that interrupted that relationship.

As I reported late last year, our software provider discontinued the product we were using to manage website subscriptions. Unfortunately, we had technical and service problems that prevented us from shifting seamlessly to a new vendor.

We finally sought out a new option, and we think this one is going to work well. In the process, we’ll be moving from the website software we’ve used since we started in 2014 to a different program, so there will be some changes to the look of hfchronicle.com. You can expect a similar basic layout, however.

Our goal, as always, is to make the process as easy and convenient as possible for readers. We are planning to launch the new system on or shortly after May 1. As always, we will be happy to help readers with any problems that arise.

Loss: Maureen Milord
Homewood lost a longtime advocate for our community and the arts when Maureen Milord died on April 20. She was 88.

Milord and her husband, Paul, were active in the Drama Group for five decades. The group’s theater in Chicago Heights is named for them.

According to her obituary, she was also active in the local League of Women Voters chapter and the Great Lakes Conservation Corp, served on the Homewood Board of Trustees, volunteered often at St. Joseph Parish and in political campaigns.

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