New St. Charles Park pays tribute to Belgian residents

"Belgium Town" is alive and well in St. Charles.

And now those who don't know what that means can learn about it quickly at a new park in the heart of the Dean Street neighborhood that for decades carried the Belgium Town tag because it was home to so many families of Belgian descent.

The park district's Belgium Town Park, nestled at the end of North Ninth Street on land that overlooks Dean Street, honors the memory of the workers at the Moline Malleable Iron Co. plant and various other traditions the Belgian families brought to St. Charles as far back as the late 1890s.

The park has a pickle ball court, a playground, a picnic area, walking path, a small ravine and stream, an open area and a board providing the history of Belgium Town.

"The only thing missing is a pigeon coop," joked Jeff Orland, a lifelong St. Charles resident whose family lived on DeBruyne Street in the Belgium Town portion of the city decades ago.

Pigeon racing was a favorite pastime for the Belgians in town, a tradition, along with rolle bolle, that was kept alive at Ray's Evergreen Tavern right up to the 1990s.

As it is, those who still have roots to Belgium Town, and those who knew so many people from what was really the city's first "bustling" neighborhood, look upon the new park with pride.

It wasn't likely that people were going to forget about the city's strong Belgian heritage, but just in case, a nice neighborhood park is there to remind us.

A heart stopper:

In response to my recent comment about deep-fried Oreos and Twinkies turning up as food options at various festivals, a reader sent a note that made my heart stop beating just thinking about it. And not necessarily in a good way.

Her note: "The Texas State Fair has deep fried butter!"

A candy buyback:

Kids who can cover a lot of ground on Halloween generally end up with a lot of candy. Often, it is more than they really need or want.

McCall Family Dentistry in Geneva is pushing a "sugar-free smile" in encouraging children of all ages to bring their excess unopened candy to the dentist office and receive $1 per pound donated.

That candy will be sent to soldiers deployed overseas as part of Operation Gratitude.

McCall Family Dentistry says it has donated more than 250 pounds of candy to the cause and would like to surpass that this year.

Kids can drop off that candy between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. Saturday at the dentist office, 407 Williamsburg Avenue. Kids can decorate cards for service members and have their family name entered in a giveaway for prizes from McCall's.

That was crowded:

Figuring that Election Day could be fairly hectic at the voting booths next week, we chose to take part in the early voting offered at the Kane County Clerk's office.

And it was crowded on a Friday afternoon, about two weeks ago now.

This tells me a big turnout is on tap for Nov. 8 despite, or maybe because of, all of the consternation over the candidates at the top of the ballot this year.

Spirit of building:

Habitat for Humanity has done so much to provide homes to people who might otherwise have no chance of having their own home, it is hard to count the ways.

But there are some numbers. Kim McIver, development associate for Habitat for Humanity of Northern Fox Valley, sent a note saying the organization will complete its 100th home on Friday.

Ironically, the home, in the 400 block of Fremont St. in Elgin, is going to be located across the street from the first home the organization built years ago.

At the same time, the Fox Valley Habitat for Humanity has received more funding, to the tune of $150,000, from Thrivent Financial, allowing it to keep moving forward with its activities.

And, the good news keeps rolling for Aurora Habitat for Humanity, which is breaking ground for its 60th home in Aurora.

dheun@sbcglobal.net