Donations sought for Sugar Grove corn boil and fireworks

Once again, Sugar Grove is facing the possibility of a corn boil festival without the fireworks.

The Sugar Grove Corn Boil is scheduled for July 25 to 27 at Volunteer Park, and Village Trustee Robert Bohler said he wanted to put out "an S.O.S." regarding needed donations.

"We're halfway there, but we're $6,000 short and we need it in the next couple of weeks," Bohler said. He is president of the Sugar Grove Lions Club, which is sponsoring the corn boil fireworks for the seventh straight year.

The fireworks are always on the Saturday of the three-day event. This year the skies will light up at dusk on July 26, it is hoped.

"People have been cutting back on spending and on what they gave in the past," Bohler said. "We were short last year, too, but donations started to come in once we got the word out and people realized the need."

Bohler said the Lions Club also collected about $1,200 immediately after last year's fireworks to make up the deficit the club was facing.

Bohler said he hopes the fireworks will go on as planned, but he said he will cancel the show if the Lions Club is facing a deficit of $4,000 or more. The fireworks are no longer a fundraiser for the club, which schedules other events to keep up with charitable donations.

General sponsorships for the corn boil are also down. About 32 sponsors for the 2008 corn boil are listed on the Web site, and none is a developer.

Before the dramatic downturn in the housing market, Sugar Grove could rely on generous sponsorships from builders, but that well has run dry with companies like Neumann Homes and Kimball Hill filing for bankruptcy.

Donations for the fireworks can be dropped off in cans labeled with the Lions Club logo that have been placed at local businesses.

Donations can also be sent to Robert Bohler, care of the Sugar Grove Lions Club, 1966 Fays Lane, Sugar Grove, IL 60554, or call him at (630) 466-1855.

For information on sponsorships, visit www.sugargrovecornboil.org.