Winter fun events in Gurnee, Vernon Hills canceled

The organizers of two winter celebrations have canceled Saturday events because of the dangerous weather forecast.

Gurnee Park District officials canceled Frosty Fest, the annual event at Bittersweet Golf Course, and Vernon Hills Park District officials nixed Winter Fest, which was set to run at Century Park Pavilion.

The National Weather Service forecasts a winter storm to enter the area Friday night into Saturday night, which will bring a potentially dangerous mix of rain, snow, ice and wind.

"We hope for fluffy beautiful snow for the event and sometimes it's there, but living in the Midwest, sometimes it's not," said Deanna Angelini Johann, public relations and sponsorship specialist for the Gurnee Park District, referring to the nasty mix of weather in the forecast.

In a message on the Vernon Hills Park District Facebook page, officials cited the "dangerous ice and wind" in the forecast.

Gurnee Park District staff made the decision to cancel in collaboration with the village of Gurnee, Johann said. Johann said the park district will not reschedule the event because it isn't feasible to get the volunteers, vendors and sponsors to commit to two dates.

This is not the first time Frosty Fest has been called for severe weather. In 2015, bitterly cold weather led organizers to postpone the event to February. But the weather didn't improve and the makeup day also was canceled.