Will County forest preserve district selling cicada T-shirts
The Forest Preserve District of Will County is celebrating “the summer of the cicada” with a commemorative T-shirt.
Available on www.outsiderthreads.com, the shirt features an illustration of the bug with the words, “Be Loud, Be Proud.”
Shirts are $20 and are available in adult and children’s sizes. Proceeds benefit the Nature Foundation of Will County, which funds conservation, restoration and nature education efforts for the forest preserve district. Coupons are available for customers who spend $50 through April 28.
This year, broods of 17-year and 13-year cicadas are going to emerge simultaneously, which hasn’t happened since 1803 and won’t happen again until 2245, district officials said in a news release. While the brood overlap will mostly occur in central and southern Illinois, it is still likely to be noisy locally, officials said.
Other shirts with nature-themed designs, such as skunks, otters and hummingbirds, are available as well.
Some nature merchandise also will be sold at the Fun and Food Truck event planned for 5 to 8 p.m. Friday, June 14, at Whalon Lake in Naperville.
Interfaith leader to give North Central commencement address
Eboo Patel, a nationally renowned author, speaker, educator and interfaith leader, will deliver North Central College’s commencement address on Sunday, May 5.
The processional begins at 12:40 p.m. followed by the ceremony at 1 p.m.
Patel is the founder and president of Interfaith America, a national nonprofit based in Chicago. He served as a member of President Barack Obama’s Inaugural Faith Council and was named “one of America’s best leaders” by U.S. News & World Report.
Patel, who grew up in Glen Ellyn, will be awarded an honorary degree from North Central College in recognition of his exemplary service to the community, a news release said.
He earned an undergraduate degree in sociology from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and a doctorate degree in the sociology of religion from Oxford University.
Park district’s summer program guide available online Wednesday
The Naperville Park District’s summer program guide can be found online starting Wednesday at www.napervilleparks.org.
Residents can check out special events, camps, trips, fall soccer and other programs for all ages and interests, district officials said. The program guide also includes information on such events as Concerts in Your Park, the Fourth of July fireworks show and Knoch Knolls Nature Center’s 10-year anniversary celebration.
New programs for kids, such as AI ThinkLab: Robots and RoboPetz Mini Camp, are being offered as is Birdhouse Painting with Becky for adults and seniors.
Program registration begins at 8:30 a.m. Monday, April 29, for residents and Thursday, May 2, for nonresidents.
Fall soccer registration begins at noon Tuesday, May 7, for girls and noon Wednesday, May 8, for boys.
Summer camp registration is ongoing.
Centennial Beach summer season memberships are being sold at a discounted rate until May 27.
