Dance around a maypole at 113th Swedish Day June 18
The Swedish Day Midsummer Festival returns for its 113th year on Sunday, June 18, at Good Templar Park in Geneva. "Svenskarnas Dag" is the Midwest's oldest Midsummer festival, dating back to 1911.
This family event has something for everyone. It will be 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the park, 528 Eastside Drive.
Enjoy Scandinavian food, including Swedish pancakes, meatball dinner, herring dinner, cardamom coffee cake, and tarts, as well as sloppy joes.
Join in the popular Maypole Celebration and Dance. There also will be music by the Swedish American Children's Choir and others, and an Arts & Crafts/Vendors Fair.
Other highlights include a Viking encampment and warriors demonstration, kids' games and activities, an Icelandic pony, and more.
Entrance is $7 per person at the gate, with free attendance for children 12 and under, active military, or those dressed in traditional Scandinavian costume.
Take a tour of the tiny Swedish stugas (cottages), many built during the late 1920s and 1930s, and learn more about its history.
Tours of the replica Viking ship built for the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago are offered throughout the day for an extra fee. Docent-led tours by the Friends of the Viking Ship begin at 10 a.m. and continue approximately every 15 minutes, with the last one at 3:45 p.m. Volunteer docents will tell you all about the ship's construction, journey, and significance. Tours are $7, $4 for age 13 to 17, or free for 12 or younger; credit cards or cash at the door. No advance tickets required.
This ethnic festival, organized by the Swedish Day Committee of International Organization of Good Templars, has entertained the Fox Valley area for generations.
For more information, visit goodtemplarpark.org or facebook.com/goodtemplarpark/.