Award-winning Life Size Candy Land returns Feb. 26
The Villa Park Recreation Department announces that its Life Size Candy Land event received top honors as the Outstanding Special Event of 2010 from the Illinois Parks & Recreation Association and the Illinois Association of Park Districts.
The award was given in recognition of outstanding achievement in program development and implementation. Life Size Candy Land was a family event creatively designed and implemented by Program Supervisor Mikie Rudyk. She worked closely with Dave Elliott, Parks Lead Specialist, to design and create the colorful life size characters and game board that brought the classic family board game to life.
The event was held in February 2010, and received such an overwhelming response from participants that a second day was added to accommodate those on a wait list. Players of all ages went through the game in groups of four, acting as the Gingerbread boys and girls. Before they made their way onto the colorful, winding game board, partiipants took part in Candy Land themed activities throughout the building such as making candy and decorating cupcakes.
The success of this event is heavily attributed to the volunteers as well as the support from various community members and businesses.
Program Supervisor Mikie Rudyk said, "I take great pride in receiving this special award for the Parks and Recreation Department. A lot of time, talent and hard work went into making Life Size Candy Land the wonderful event it was and will continue to be. This event was chosen for the award over many others statewide so I'm even more thrilled at the recognition Villa Park has received. I never knew when this idea was formed my first week working at the Recreation Department that it would ultimately receive such an honor."
Dave Elliott spent endless hours working on the event and said, "When Mikie first approached me about working with her on this project, I knew I was on board but also knew this project would be unlike anything I've worked on before for the department. I enjoyed creating the game board and characters and was very happy the event looked as authentic as it does. I'm glad the event received this award because it reflects all the hard work that went into it."
Life Size Candy Land will be an annual Recreation Department event that will be a beloved tradition in Villa Park. This year's event will be held from 1 to 8 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 26 at the Iowa Community Center. Time slots are still available but are filling up quickly so be sure to register to secure your time. Call (630) 834-8970 to check availability.