Foundation Day to benefit Hanover Park youth

The goal of the inaugural Foundation Day - aside from raising money for the Hanover Park Park District - is simple.

"I want to get kids thinking about what they can be doing aside from hanging around on street corners," Hanover Park Mayor Rod Craig said.

On Saturday, children and adults alike will find plenty to do from 9 a.m. to midnight at the Hanover Park Community Center, 1919 Walnut Ave. Among activities on tap are a resource and health fair (10 a.m.-2 p.m.), student art show (10 a.m.-3 p.m.), flea market, sumo-suit wrestling (10 a.m.-2 p.m.) and casino night (noon-midnight).

Proceeds will benefit the Hanover Park Park Foundation, which supplements the park district's operating fund and provides scholarships for kids to participate in programs.

The foundation was inactive for a time, but Craig and others resurrected it last spring following four homicides and a spike in gang-related crime. The village has also suffered high unemployment, with February figures showing 16.8 percent unemployment on the Cook County side of Hanover Park and 11.4 percent on the DuPage County side.

Foundation Day will feature nearly 30 organizations from Scouts to townships eager to explain their available programs and resources.

"We're very concerned about the violence that occurred last year in our town and know we have to find some alternatives for youth," Foundation Chairwoman and Park District Commissioner Mickey Macholl said.

At noon, students from Anne Fox Elementary School and other attendees will take part in a Kids at Hope rally, which is a Phoenix-based organization that believes all children are capable of success without exception.

"We're trying to provide kids with resources that can help them be successful in the areas of home and family, hobbies and recreation, school and career, and community and service," said Gail Mehlan, a bilingual teacher at Anne Fox.

And if none of those activities are appealing, consider paying a small fee to soak Craig in the dunk tank between 10 a.m. and noon.

"My family thinks I'm crazy but there's a great need in this community," Craig said. "I'm game for anything I can do to bring money to the foundation."