Wauconda’s ‘Jammin’ on Main’ set for Sept. 1 downtown

Jammin’ on Main, Wauconda’s 13th annual street dance and food pantry fundraiser, is set for Saturday, Sept. 1, downtown on Main Street.

Presented by the Wauconda Area Chamber of Commerce and hosted by the village, the event runs from 6 to 11 p.m. The community heralds Labor Day weekend with outdoor fun including live music, raffle drawings, food, and more. An estimated crowd of 4,000 will attend the free event, which serves as a fundraiser for the Wauconda/Island Lake Food Pantry.

Popular local band, Kevin Purcell and The Nightburners, will perform throughout the evening, along with a local teen band that will provide music for the younger crowd in a designated teen area at Beach Park.

This event is geared for adults who enjoy the night life, but children of all ages are also welcome. The Titanic Adventure Slide, an Inflatable UFO, and a Moonwalk will be available for younger guests. There will be a $3 charge for each ride, and a $20 wristband will be available for unlimited rides.

Local vendors, including Bliss Wine & Gifts, Brothers BBQ, Bulldogs Grill, HSK Catering, Jimmy’s Bag O Donuts, JJ Twig’s Pizza & Pub, Main Street Outfitter, Middleton’s on Main, The Village Inn of Wauconda and Three Amiga’s will line Main Street providing food and drinks.

Numerous nonprofit organizations will also be present, including the Wauconda Lions Club, which will hold its drawing for a Hawaiian Dream Vacation. The winning raffle ticket will be pulled onstage by the newly crowned Wauconda-area queens at 9 p.m. Raffle tickets for the vacation will also be sold at the event.

A new addition to help generate donations to the food pantry will be a 10-foot tall Adirondack chair, dedicated to our U.S. troops and sponsored by Beyond the Garden, a home décor shop in downtown Wauconda.

Already being established as the largest Adirondack chair in Lake County, the chair’s dimensions will be sent to the “Guinness Book of World Records” in hopes it will make an appearance in the record book. The chair, which is on display in front of Beyond the Garden, will make its way to the Wauconda Activity Center to be raffled off. All proceeds will benefit the food pantry.

Chamber members, Jim Schwanz and Paul Washburn from Acres Group organized a monthlong food drive, with area businesses serving as collection points. Their donations will be picked up with an antique farm tractor provided by Acres Group on Friday, Aug. 31. A list of food drop locations can be found at www.waucondaareachamber.org.

All residents are encouraged to bring a bag of groceries or school supplies to the Wauconda Activity Center the night of the dance. Food pantry volunteers will also conduct a 50/50 cash raffle from 6 to 9 p.m., with the winner announced onstage at 9 p.m.

To be an event sponsor, or donate cash or nonperishable food items, contact the chamber office at (847) 526-5580.