Songs, dogs kick off Family Fun Expo in St. Charles
It was a foreboding sign when Oswego Park District staff members wondered aloud, "When do people start getting here?" as they continued to string orange beads onto green pipe cleaners. It was 90 minutes into the opening day of the Chicago Family Fun Expo in St. Charles, but aside from the couple dozen vendors in attendance, there weren't many people to enjoy the park district's pumpkin bracelet crafts.
And only two kids showed up to participate in the Fox Valley Repertory Performing Arts Academy's 30-minute musical theater class. That resulted in a half-hour of two 5-year-old girls waving their arms and singing "Let It Go" from Disney's "Frozen" about six times for an audience of three people.
The highlight of the morning entertainment at the DuPage Expo Center was a presentation from the Oswego-based Very Important Pooches Service Dog Foundation. With five dogs in tow, including a male German Shepherd named Taz, volunteer trainers explained the value of service dogs. A trained dog can provide companionship to senior citizens, assistance to people in wheelchairs and a calming influence for children with autism. Because of what the dogs provide, federal law grants service dogs special access to restaurants, hotels, stores and sports facilities that other dogs, such as those kept as pets, don't have, the volunteers explained.
The nonprofit foundation trains and provides service and companion dogs to people with developmental or physical disabilities. The foundation works to provide the dogs free to military veterans. For more information, visit vipservicedogfoundation.com
For the visitors who did attend the expo Saturday morning, various vendors supplied information and free samples, including yogurt treats from Happy Family Organic Superfoods and chances to win a free swim lesson, get up close to live barn owls or get an airbrush tattoo.
The expo continues from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday at the DuPage Expo Center, 4050 E. Main St., St. Charles. Adult attendees who paid $7 to enter the expo on Saturday can reuse their wristbands for free entry on Sunday; kids and senior citizens enter free with a paying adult.
Events scheduled for the final day of the expo include a chance to meet the cast of TV's "The Good Time Kids," wiener dog races and a performance of Jim Nesci's Cold Blooded Creatures Alligator Show. For details and a full schedule, visit chicagofamilyfunexpo.com.