Dundee Township cancels parade

The Dundee Township Memorial Day Parade was rained out Sunday for the first time in its 70-year history, according to event organizers. Because weather has never posed a problem before, there is no alternative date.

The parade — which was set to begin at 2 p.m. and travel along Route 72 from the Immanuel Lutheran Church in East Dundee to Grafelman Park in West Dundee — was officially canceled at about 1 p.m. Sunday.

Bobbie Andresen is a member of Dundee VFW Post 2298 and the coordinator of the parade. She said planning started in January and between 400 and 500 people were expected to participate.

“It’s too bad,” Andresen said. “They’ve never canceled it.”

The VFW participates in a number of ceremonies on Memorial Day, which is why organizers have scheduled the parade for the Sunday preceding the holiday since the early 1940s.

Planning includes collaborating with the Illinois Department of Transportation, the villages of East Dundee and West Dundee as well as both police departments and Dundee Township. Extra officers are needed to shut down the roads. That’s why the parade can’t be immediately rescheduled, said Andresen.

But, there is the potential for an Independence Day parade instead.

As long as all the involved parties agree to the new date, Andresen said a rescheduled parade will also include a rescheduled flag ceremony at Grafelman Park, which was also canceled Sunday morning.

For more information about the parade, call Bobbie Andresen at (847) 224-8683.