Families enjoy summer's Last Fling

Eric Weakly squatted down to tie a stringed balloon to his 4-year-old son Trevor's wrist.

The pair was on the crowded corner of Main Street and Jackson Avenue in downtown Naperville Monday morning, waiting for the Labor Day parade to begin.

"It's a fun parade at the end of the summer, right before school starts," said Eric, as Trevor, clutching a stuffed penguin to his chest, peered out from behind blue plastic sunglasses.

There was another reason the two had reserved a section of curb with two fleece blankets. They wanted to see Trevor's 12-year-old brother, Gareth, and the boys' mother, Shelley, parade by.

"My wife works for the Naperville Public Library," Weakly said. "They have the synchronized book cart brigade."

Sure enough, an hour or so later, the book cart-pushing library workers marched past them, pausing briefly for a synchronized dance of sorts. The carts were decorated with green garlands, not books, in honor of the parade's "Restore Our Green Earth" theme.

Dozens of other sights and sounds characterized the 43rd annual Naperville Labor Day parade, including police officers on motorcycles, firefighters, community groups and politicians greeting spectators.

Winners of the three-day festival's competitive special events, including the pie-eating contest and the soccer shootout, rolled down the parade route on a hay wagon. The Naperville Municipal Band played a medley of patriotic songs; area high school bands performed. Naperville Mayor George Pradel zipped by on a golf cart, followed by dozens of big wheel drivers, pedalling feverishly to keep up.

The "green" theme was driven home when Partners for Clean Choice slowly drove by in two hybrid vehicles, followed by a group from the West Street Green Space Preservation Coalition.

"They're currently focused on saving the garden plots," announcer Joanne Baumgartner said.

Sandy Rap of Naperville watched from her family's perch on the north side of Jefferson Avenue, in front of Lou Malnati's. She yelled encouragement to the Waubonsie Valley High School marching band as her two young boys stockpiled goodies thrown from floats and parading cars.

The boys collected taffy, gumballs, jaw breakers and headbands. Then a bread truck threw packages of French rolls to parade-watchers.

Rap caught one. "Whole-wheat!" she said. "Last year, I missed out on the bread."