When you think of “autumn,” what first comes to mind? The smoke of a warm fire, with marshmallows toasting above, the laugh of children playing and families conversing or the feeling of watching live music, with a bag of kettle corn in one hand and hot apple cider in the other? If that is exactly how autumn feels to you, the Fall Harvest Festival, hosted at Eggleston Park perfectly encapsulated it.
The Fall Harvest Festival in Eggleston Park on the 28th was a fun, family-friendly fall and agricultural themed event, with many different and interesting attributes. Amanda D’Agostino, a special events coordinator for the parks department here in Evanston, helped plan the festival, for which the planning started back in the summer since there were many local businesses the department wanted to be a part of the event.
The theme for the festival was agriculture, and many different local partners who are interested in local agriculture, such as the Windy City Garden Center, Evanston Grows and the Mitchell Museum. D’Agostino stated that it took a lot of work to get all of the organizations on board with the festival, but despite challenges, they all came together in the end.
“All day we have entertainment, and this whole event is free,” D’Agostino said. Provided entertainment included a scarecrow building contest and fresh-pressed apple cider that you could make yourself, sponsored by the Edible Evanston group.
Two different Bluegrass groups along with the Northwestern Mariachi Band and a children’s entertainer from the old town’s school of folk made for some high-quality music while people went about the festivities.
The Harvest Festival has been around for several years now in Evanston, and it has grown into an impactful tradition. This is only the second year that the City of Evanston has partnered with Edible Evanston and Eggleston Farm to make this happen, and it turned out to be a huge success. The Festival is a great place to celebrate fall with friends and family, and it promises to only get better for next year.
