Fly a kite, celebrate new park, in Sugar Grove Saturday

Dreams will take flight Saturday, Oct. 3, in Sugar Grove, with the inaugural "Let's Go Fly a Kite" festival and dedication of a park.

Organizers said they were inspired by other towns that have kite festivals, as well as by the movie "Mary Poppins."

"The whole idea is at the end of the movie, the family goes off and flies a kite. They spend time together as a family," said co-organizer Renee Dee.

The fun will take place from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. at Harter Community Park, 1601 Esker Drive, near Kaneland Harter Middle School.

The ribbon-cutting for the park is at 10:30 a.m.

At the kite festival, people can watch demonstrations by the Chicago Kite professional kite-flying team. A local business will also give away 350 kites to children, which participants can fly on their own.

And from 4 to 6 p.m. there will be tethered hot-air balloon rides, for $10 per rider. People with physical disabilities will be able to ride for free on a wheelchair-accessible balloon.

Several vendors from the Sugar Grove Farmers Market intend to set up shop, and concessionaires will sell coffee, doughnuts, pizzas cooked in a wood-burning oven and grilled cheese sandwiches.

At 1 p.m., organizers will shower candy on children from a helicopter.

There will also be free face painting; parachute play; a bouncy-house area (cost is $10 per hour, or $20 for an all-day pass); roller-skating; and a demonstration of inline skating.

Chess and Baggo tournaments are planned as well.

"This is the first year for the event, and we hope it is something the whole community can rally around," Dee said. "There will be a wide range of activities, for a wide range of interests. It also promotes our great Sugar Grove Park District and gets local families and businesses involved."

The park district spent about $800,000 to develop the 14.8-acre park, which is on land owned by the Kaneland school district near the school's football field. It has a gazebo, three baseball fields, courts that can be used for tennis and inline hockey, Baggo courts, wetlands, a natural area and a playground.

For details, call (630) 466-7436.