Taste of Roselle wraps up with a flourish of activities

The cadettes of Girl Scout Troop 51259 at St. Walter Catholic Church had their hands full over the weekend at the Taste of Roselle.

The eighth graders set up booths, sold bracelets and cookies, and helped organizers break down and cleanup the festival grounds. Every now and then, they sneaked out to check out some of the activities, which included pooch-smooching booths, an array of food vendors, bags tournaments and a slightly suspect psychic.

"Don't go to him," 13-year-old Ashley Marroquin. "He told my brother he'd be a Lakers player. Only reason he said that is because my brother was wearing a Lakers jersey."

One of the wetter volunteers at the final day of Roselle's summer fest was 18-year-old Devin McManus. The Lake Park High School grad stood shivering as 8-year-old Jimmy Ellis knocked down a kid in a dunk tank as part of the Roselle Police Department's fundraiser benefiting Special Olympics Illinois.

"I was going to take a shower today until my dad called and told me to come over here," McManus joked.

By far the luckiest dog at Sunday's Taste of Roselle was Lainy, a 2-year-old Shih Tzu smooching a line of dog lovers at a booth manned by the New Beginnings Shih Tzu Rescue, which finds homes for the rescued animals.

The organization spent more than $1,500 to save Lainy after the dog was hit by a car, said Judy Prena, one of the volunteers.

"Just look at her," Prena said. "It was well worth the money."

Members of the Christian Tabernacle Church Choir spent the afternoon belting out gospel tunes under the beer tent as onlookers stopped for a listen.

Max Yousif and several members of National Karate spent the afternoon breaking plastic boards in attempt to wow a fresh new batch of recruits to their gym.

"Overall, I'd say it's been a fun weekend," Yousif said.