Battle of the Bands part of Founders’ Day finale

From the food to the carnival rides to the face painting, 10-year-old Veronica Walker of Pingree Grove tried it all Sunday, the closing day of the annual Algonquin Founders’ Day Festival.

“I have done everything,” said Veronica, as she sat under a tent enjoying a bowl of caramel apples.

Veronica, her 12-year-old brother, TJ, and their mother, Christina Walker, even had time to check out a few of the bands competing in the regional finals of the Illinois Battle of the Bands.

This was the second year Founders’ Day hosted the regional contest, said Kent Miller, vice president of the Founders’ Day board of directors. The top two bands, Desolation Road and October Road, will compete at the state finals at next month’s Illinois State Fair in Springfield.

“There were so many good bands all in one regional,” said Jared Hoey, 17, of Stillman Valley, drummer for Desolation Road. “If we were spread out, I would be seeing a lot of these bands at the state competition.”

Jared and his bandmates took the top honors at this year’s contest, narrowly gaining more points than the band October Road, whose members are 13 and 14 years old.

“It is kind of crazy because we were performing against bands that were a lot older than us,” said Jeileen Belen, 15, of Gurnee.

Although only two bands advanced to the next round, Mike Shlifka, a judge of the contest, said the competition was tough.

“There were a few bands that had the same points in different categories,” Shlifka said. “There were some really good bands.”