Elgin aims to merge cultural festivals
The majority of cultural groups in Elgin will forgo individual events this summer to join for a single International Festival in September called Elgin IFest for short.
Danise Habun, chairman of the city's Human Relations Committee, is heading up the festival planning and said subcommittees are hard at work securing entertainment, designing a parade, locating sponsors and coordinating volunteers.
Representatives of the Asian, Latino, black and Scottish communities are represented, with new groups welcome to join planning committees at any time.
“We're trying to make this really a true celebration of the community,” Habun said.
The idea for the event came from a need to cut costs at the city level. The city contributed to more than 100 individual events in 2011 — more than it ever had before at a time when the special events budget was half of what it had been three years before.
Instead of offering free services for festivals like Juneteenth or Fiesta Salsa, council members decided to scale back the budget, sponsor five festivals and charge groups hosting events outside of the chosen dates. Most groups have agreed to participate in the new event instead of paying the extra money for things like security, outdoor toilets and hand-washing stations.
Gertrude McClain, vice president of the African American Coalition of Kane County, said finances were a huge factor in participating in Elgin IFest.
“We really did not realize how much we relied on the city of Elgin for their support until that support was taken away,” McClain said.
Last year the coalition held its 10th annual Juneteenth festival, commemorating the date when the enslaved people of Texas were freed on June 19, 1865, finally realizing the end of bondage outlined in the Emancipation Proclamation two years before.
McClain said the group is canceling its Juneteenth celebration this year and instead will represent black culture during the international festival on a trial basis to see how it goes and, hopefully, reach more people. A Juneteenth celebration tied to the actual anniversary is planned for 2013, McClain said.
The Puerto Rican Heritage Organization organizes the longest-running cultural event in the city with BoriquaFest, normally held in August. Members have been brainstorming possibilities for 2012 for years, eying a better-than-ever celebration for a 20th anniversary that has been jeopardized by Elgin's change to event sponsorships.
The organization's president, Rosemarie Ramos, said sponsors that were going to support BoriquaFest are choosing to spend limited advertising dollars at the International Festival instead.
Ramos said their festival has always been the second week of August, a week dedicated to Puerto Rican culture in Elgin. Especially for the 20th anniversary, they don't want to share the spotlight.
“Our festival is dedicated to Puerto Ricans for people to get to know our culture and get to know us and everything we do and who we are,” Ramos said.
The organization is forging ahead with fundraising and planning for the celebration, still set for Aug. 11 in Festival Park.
Mayor David Kaptain said the variety of festival weekends has often meant low turnout to individual events. Whereas people across the region may not have traveled 20 miles for some of the smaller events, Kaptain hopes they will for Elgin IFest.
“With this type of event, you've got them all in one place,” Kaptain said. “You have food, you have entertainment and it may become a destination for people.”
The day is still in the planning phases, but Elgin IFest will include a parade highlighting cultures from throughout the world at 11 a.m. Sept. 1 in the downtown area. The festival itself will run from noon to 11 p.m. in Festival Park with music, food, roving entertainers and a kids zone with hands-on education activities designed to teach people about various cultures.
Find Elgin's International Festival on Facebook for details or to get involved.
Merge: Mayor hopes one major event will be a better draw