Young authors help celebrate Round Lake Beach's 75th anniversary

Some kids imagined a place from the past. Others reflected on what they see around them today, and others imagined a place in the future.

A group of Round Lake Beach fourth- and fifth-graders recently participated in the village's Young Authors program as part of the village's yearlong 75th anniversary celebration.

The children, along with their parents, anniversary committee members and village trustees, gathered to read their work and celebrate at an ice cream party at Olando's in Round Lake Beach.

The participants were Brandon Medina, Wesley Daniels, Kaitlyn Benes, Kristen Monaco, Samantha Schlesser, Alejandra Cortes, Marshall Causey, Nayeli Arellano and Ashley Rodriguez.

Children were invited to submit short stories on one of three topics: What they thought it was like to live in Round Lake Beach 75 years ago; What it is like living there today or what do they think it will be like to live there 75 years from now.

"I love them all. Their creativity and thinking and how they were able to put it together in words was awesome," said Village Clerk Margie Cleveland, who led the young authors program.

Kristen Monaco, a fourth-grader at Thompson School, told a fictional story about meeting a friend 75 years ago in Round Lake Beach. Her mom, Michelle, said Kristen became inspired to write about past after researching the village history online.

"I'm really proud of her," Michelle Monaco said. "She seems to have a passion for writing. This is a step in the right direction for her. It builds the kid's confidence."

Kaitlyn Benes, also a fourth-grader at Thompson, created an acrostic poem sharing the people and places today within the village.

"I'm very happy how it turned out," she said. "At first I thought it would just be a one-page poem but it ended up being a lot more than that."

Daniels, a fourth-grader at Indian Hill Elementary School, decided to share how he thinks the future will look in Round Lake Beach. This would include cars that can fly, everyone would wear super clothing that fits comfortably, all toy packages would be easier to open and firefighters and police officers would not be used as much because there won't be as many criminals.

"Maybe in 75 years, I might have kids I can show it to and they will say 'Wow,'" he said.

While the public got its first chance to see the children's work at the party, Cleveland said she hopes to display the books at upcoming anniversary events including Beachfest in June and an October gala.