Food, beer, music and dancing on tap at free Northwest Celtic Fest
The Northwest Celtic Fest is a one-day celebration of all things Celtic. It takes place this year from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 5, at the Sears Centre Arena in Hoffman Estates. Admission is free.
The festival began in 2012. It grew out of the Tartan Day Commission, which was responsible for planning a small Tartan Day parade and a Celebration of Nations festival. From those modest beginnings, it has blossomed into one of the largest regional festivals in Illinois, with as many as 3,500 attendees.
"There's a long history of doing something Celtic in the village," Hoffman Estates Mayor Bill McLeod said. "It's a fun event, and it's inside. You don't have to worry about the weather."
By now the festival offers a wide range of activities. There's a craft beer tasting featuring 30 beers, a Celtic marketplace, Celtic food, Irish dancers, live music on two stages, inflatables, face painting, a balloon artist, a tattoo artist, Irish wolfhounds, birds of prey and trackless train rides.
"Families (can) have fun and relax without feeling like they spent an arm and a leg to do it," Hoffman Estates Director of Operations and Outreach Jennifer Djordjevic said. "The Celtic Fest offers free entry, parking and entertainment, so it's affordable for anyone to attend. There's no obligation to buy food and drinks, but they are available for those who want to."
In recent years, the festival has added another component: a food drive. Attendees are encouraged to bring nonperishable food items or toiletries to the event for distribution to local food pantries.
"Last year's collection was so successful, and the food pantries were beyond grateful," Djordjevic said.
It's all made possible by the festival's sponsors, which this year include Comcast, Garibaldi's, Meze Mediterraneo, Ricky Rockets and SRI Technologies, Inc. Djordjevic said sponsorship is often their biggest hurdle in expanding the event.
"We do have some very generous sponsors, so we're very fortunate in that regard," McLeod said.
But sponsorship is not their only challenge. They also work hard to book a variety of music acts and food vendors.
"In addition to support for the event, we are also challenged with keeping entertainment and activities fresh and exciting," Djordjevic said. "We have returning favorites, and we're always looking for new Celtic-themed vendors and entertainers to join us."
Among the bands at the event is Baal Tinne, an acoustic Irish band founded by flute player Noel Rice. The five-piece group features Rice on flute and tin whistle, Cathleen Rice on fiddle, Kevin Rice on bodhran and percussion, Matt Sundstrom on guitar and Richard Roche on piano.
The band includes members from County Offaly and County Wicklow in Ireland.
You don't have to be of Celtic extraction to enjoy the festival. Djordjevic and McLeod said the event is intended to celebrate the cultural contributions of Celtic countries to the broader American tapestry.
"Everybody's welcome," McLeod said. "You get to learn something about Celtic heritage. America is a quilt of people from different places, and we like to celebrate all of it."
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Northwest Celtic Fest
A celebration of all things Irish, Welsh and Scottish
When: 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 5
Where: Sears Centre Arena, 5333 Prairie Stone Parkway, Hoffman Estates
Highlights: Craft beer tasting, food, music, Irish dancing, Celtic marketplace, clan representation, meet-and-greet with Irish wolfhounds and birds of prey, kids' activities
Cost: Free parking and admission; www.searscentre.com