🇸🇪 Välkommen: Swedish Days set to kick off

According to the original announcement in 1949, Geneva’s first Swedish Days celebration featured an “atmosphere as Swedish as the merchants of Geneva can make it.”

The event — which featured a Swedish costume contest, Swedish folk dancing, a smorgasbord Scandinavian dinner and live entertainment — was the evolution of an existing yearly celebration:

The modern Swedish Days extravaganza — which kicks off Wednesday — runs for five days and attracts crowds from all over the area.

Here’s what you should know:

• When & where: Wednesday, June 19 through Sunday, June 23 in downtown Geneva (plus locations around town).

• Festival happenings: Food vendors; music performances at both the craft beer tent and central stage; Geneva’s Got Talent show; Geneva History Museum exhibitions and trolley tours; Swedish Days Lopp 5K race; Viking Ship tours at Good Templar Park.

• For the kids: Activities include a carnival, dodgeball tourney, 3-on-3 basketball tourney, library events, a truck-and-ladder display, face painting, mini golf and more. Get details and dates/times here.

• Traffic: Street closures and parking restrictions will be in place during the event. Get those details here.

• Parade: The annual Swedish Days parade will occur on Sunday 6/23 at 1PM (Anderson Blvd south to State, east on State to Third, south on Third to Metra station).

• More info: An overview article by the Daily Herald, a pancake breakfast, activities at St. Mark’s Church.

This certainly isn’t an all-encompassing list of what’ll be happening over the next week — consult the full Swedish Days event brochure for more details.

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📰 News to use

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🔒 “Can of worms” opened: After raising a Pride flag, Batavia is considering adopting an official “flag policy” following a resident request for the city to fly a Sacred Heart of Jesus flag. Here’s the related City Council memo.

☑️ Forging ahead: The Kane County Board voted last week to approve the Climate Action Implementation Plan amid objections from several members who questioned some of the plan’s recommendations.

☑️ Project extension: Closed since March, the Route 31 underpass in Geneva will remain shut down until at least August 5.

☑️ Responsible usage: Geneva would like residents to sign up for “peak power” alerts in a collective effort to reduce power consumption in the sweltering summer days ahead.

🔒 District departure: The Geneva School District’s Facility Operations Director — who was accused of harassment by former employees in 2021 — has resigned from the role.

☑️ Solar Switch: Kane County is touting a no-cost initiative that assists homeowners and small businesses with affordably installing rooftop solar systems through a group buying program.

🏘️ In the community

☑️ Park beautification: The STC Arts Council invites local artists and creatives to contribute to a community project to install 100 painted banners in Mt. St. Mary Park.

☑️ Support + inclusion: PFLAG Geneva/Tri-Cities is a new nonprofit organization working to create a safe space for LGBTQ families, educate the public and counter misinformation. Here’s the group’s background story.

🔒 Football stud: Geneva’s star wide receiver Talyn Taylor (a top-100 overall recruit) has committed to play for the Georgia Bulldogs.

☑️ Flag Day perspectives: In the latest episode of Area Code: Batavia, community members discuss Batavia’s Flag Day Monument and what it represents for them.

🔒 Future star: A 13-year-old St. Charles resident has already performed in TV series, taken on voiceover roles and graced the stage in eight professional theatre productions — but his dreams are even bigger.

☑️ Home ownership: How much money does one need to earn to afford a home in the Chicago suburbs? This analysis looks at home affordability by county.

🎸 Live music

This week is once again packed with performances, even more so with Swedish Days (in addition to the weekly outdoor concert series in Batavia and St. Charles).

Performers begin at 1PM on Wednesday and Thursday at the Swedish Days Craft Beer Tent — pretty convenient if you’re off for Juneteenth on Wednesday.

🏬 Local biz

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☑️️ Bee Coco Candles: Officially open as of Saturday, Geneva’s newest business (located on State Street) offers sustainable, toxin-free candles and scented products.

🔒 Sweet tooth: Dave Heun of The Daily Herald sheds light on his favorite bakeries and donut shops in the Tri-Cities area.

🔒 Rural heritage: The owners of Rustic Road Farm in Elburn are leveraging a creative loan program from the Conservation Fund to buy a nearby property and preserve it as farmland forever.

🗞️ Un-classifieds

☑️ Local home sales: Residential property sales for the week ending June 10 included nine in Batavia, 13 in Geneva and nine in St. Charles — including this $1.1M estate on Grand View Ct. in St. Charles.

☑️ Local obituaries: During the past week, Tri-Cities funeral homes posted obituary information for several individuals in the area.

☑️ Civic happenings: All three City Councils have meetings tonight. View the agendas — Batavia | Geneva | St. Charles

🗓️ Events + things to do

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☑️ Jim Gill Sing-a-thon | Tues 6/18, 10:30AM | Batavia Library | Fun for the whole family with banjo music, singing, dancing and musical games.

🎟️ Sailing Away Paint & Sip | Tues 6/18, 6-8M | Up North Wine Tasting, Geneva | A guided workshop with a local artist — and with wine!

☑️ Pig Gig Farm Dinner | Thurs 6/20, 6-9PM | Heritage Prairie Farm, Elburn | Join the farm crew and brewery partner Black & Gray Brewing for a night of beers and delicious food.

☑️ Summer Breeze Ballroom Bash | Thurs 6/20, 11:30-1:30PM | Baker Community Center, STC | Folks aged 50+ will enjoy an afternoon of delicious food and dance-themed entertainment.

🎟️ Pickle Paradise | Fri 6/21, 5:30-7:30PM | Pottawatomie Park, STC | A family-friendly party with pickle product tastings, pickleball, a pickle-themed race and more.

🌖 Weather snapshot

🌤️ Today: High 96F | Low 74F | Record-breaking

🌤️ Tuesday: High 92F | Low 74F | Sizzling

🌤️ Wednesday: High 91F | Low 71F | Hot, some clouds

🌤️ Thursday: High 92F | Low 67F | Same ol’ stuff

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