Taste of Lombard doubles as St. Baldrick’s fundraiser

The Taste of Lombard on Saturday afternoon was part barbershop, part dance recital, part carnival and, of course, part food sampling hot spot.

Dave Dybowski of Lombard and his family experienced almost all of those aspects of the yearly festival sponsored by the Lombard Jaycees.

Dybowski said he decided on the spur of the moment to have his head shaved for the St. Baldrick’s Foundation, which raises money for children’s cancer research.

“My daughters convinced me to do it,” Dybowski said about his impromptu haircut.

He was one of at least 10 people — including two Lombard police officers patrolling the event — to make a donation and go bald at the Taste. Hairdressers from KidSnips in Oak Brook set up in the family entertainment tent to shave heads for charity.

By about 2 p.m., St. Baldrick’s already had collected more than $5,000, said Jen Matiasovsky, a Lombard Jaycees member who ran the event’s family entertainment tent.

That total beats the amount raised for the foundation at the Taste of Lombard in the past three years, she said. And she expected more people to donate and have their heads shaved before the day was over.

“We’re having an amazing turnout despite the heat and that’s what we love,” Matiasovsky said. “Lombardians are tough.”

After Dyburski’s head shaving, he and daughter Peyton, 7, watched daughter Zoe, 8, perform with her Trinity Irish Dancers troupe.

The sounds of Irish jigs and stomping feet filled the air for about a half-hour as visitors stopped for a late lunch or snack at Lombard eateries including Giagnorio’s Pizza, No Way Jose Taqueria and Ayala’s Restaurant. Others ran toward carnival rides or games seeking prizes.

The Dyburski family already visited the carnival at the festival on Thursday and mainly attended Saturday to see Zoe’s dance show.

Set up in Lombard’s largest open space, Madison Meadow Park, the Taste of Lombard also includes a main stage for bands, like Saturday night’s headliner Lucky Boys Confusion, a pop-punk band with DuPage County roots.

The taste continues from noon to 11 p.m. today and Monday and includes a fireworks show about 9:30 p.m. Monday.