Every drop counts in Algonquin
Instead of preaching the values of water conservation to children, Algonquin officials are encouraging the youth to show them what they know about it - on a poster.
The village's "Every Drop Counts" water conservation poster contest is open to kids in kindergarten through fifth grades and officials lessons learned trickle down to the adults in their lives.
"We want to make sure that the message of water conservation is reaching everybody and a lot of times if you can instill the values into the children then they take that message home to their parents," said senior village planner Katie Parkhurst, who is helping run the contest that's now in its sixth year.
Posters are due no later than 5 p.m. Friday, June 12 - officials as of Monday had zero entries.
Every participant gets a certificate, but the winners will share their 15 minutes of fame with Village President John Schmitt who will pose for pictures with them during an awards ceremony at village hall held in their honor.
At that time the winners, selected from every grade level, also will receive prizes - in the past, they have included gift certificates for ice cream at Oberweis or free bowling sessions at Brunswick Zone, Parkhurst said.
Moreover, village officials may use the winning posters for future water conservation education efforts.
For more information, visit the village's Web site at www.algonquin.org or call Parkhurst at (847) 658-4184.
Getting crafty in Pingree Grove: This weekend, Pingree Grove is holding its second-annual arts and crafts fair.
Rain or shine, the free festival will be held from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday at Pingree Park, at the corner of Route 20 and Reinking Road.
There will be more than 70 vendors and, most importantly, tons of food, including kettle corn, fudge, hot dogs and brats and baked goods from nearby St. Peter's Lutheran Church.
For kids, there will be lots of fun things to do, including games, story hour and, for an extra fee, face painting.
For more information, call Cathie Vavra, the village's events coordinator, at (224) 659-4747.
Bond call blooper: As part of an occasional feature, I'll mention some of the more interesting things happened in bond call, but didn't warrant a full story.
During bond call proceedings at the Elgin Branch Court last Monday, Kane County Judge Karen Simpson, sitting in for a vacationing Judge John Noverini, asked a man named Anthony DiLorenzo why he didn't show up for court on two separate dates.
Police had picked up DiLorenzo on a pair of warrants for missing court on a DUI charge and on an unrelated disorderly conduct allegation.
But DiLorenzo said he consulted a higher power when it came to deciding whether he should go to court.
"God told me not to," he said.
"Who told you not to?," Simpson asked.
"God," DiLorenzo replied.
In the end, Simpson set DiLorenzo's bond at 10 percent of $10,000 and gave him a Tuesday court date at the Kane County Judicial Center in St. Charles.
Hopefully, he made it to court this time.
Lenore T. Adkins covers Algonquin, Lake in the Hills, Pingree Grove, McHenry County College and Elgin Bond Court. To reach her, call (847) 608-2725 or send an e-mail to ladkins@dailyherald.com