Summer fling over weekend in Grayslake
One of Grayslake's summer staples returns this weekend, but with a couple of different twists.
Grayslake Area Chamber of Commerce and Industry will host Summer Days in the village's downtown. The event will be concentrated around Center Street and Seymour Avenue, west of Route 83.
Action will kick off at 5 p.m. Friday with the opening of food vendors, a beer booth and carnival rides, along with a business fair.
Medleys in Motion disc jockeys will begin entertaining at 5:30 p.m., with the Rough House Blues Band following 30 minutes later. Henneberry will hit the stage at 8 p.m., with Betty Soul wrapping up at 10:30 p.m.
Bingo games, which returned to Summer Days last year, will go from 7 to 10 p.m. Friday. The Grayslake Heritage Center and Museum in the village's downtown will be open for tours from 5 to 7 p.m. Friday.
Summer Days opens at 11 a.m. Saturday. One of the early highlights will be at 1 p.m. with the Summer Days talent show that's been encouraging a wide range of acts to try out, from comedians to soloists to magicians.
After Medleys in Motion disc jockeys resume entertaining at 3 p.m., the winner of the 2010 Kiss the Pig contest will be announced on the main stage at 5 p.m. Votes have been cast for Grayslake Mayor Rhett Taylor, Grayslake police Cmdr. Matt McCutcheon, local business owner Joyce Campbell, Grayslake Central High School Principal Sydney Klocke and Laura Mitchell of Mitch's Chicago Style Grill.
Whoever is announced as the winner in the Grayslake Kiwanis Club contest must kiss a real, live pig in front of the Summer Days crowd. The winner will be determined by who attracted the most money in Kiwanis cans with the contestants' pictures on them. The cans have been at nine businesses in Grayslake and at village hall.
In a new twist, the Summer Days parade won't be on Sunday afternoon. Instead, the parade will begin at 7 p.m. Saturday at Grayslake Central High, working south down Lake Street and then east on Center Street to the festival grounds. This year's theme is "Grayslake's Got Talent."
Roughly 80 units were in last year's parade, including bagpipers and marching bands.
Saturday's music schedule has Two Thumbs Up on stage at 5 p.m., followed by Hip Pock!t at 8 p.m. and 7th Heaven at 10:30 p.m.
Bingo will run from 1 to 10 p.m. Saturday. A celebrity bingo game is set for 9:15 p.m.
At noon Sunday, there will be a bicycle and pet parade in downtown Grayslake. The parade will begin on Slusser Street and move east on Park Avenue to Seymour Avenue. It'll end on Seymour.