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mokenamessenger.com news
the Mokena Messenger | August 2, 2018 | 3
Scales and tails take over Mokena Library
Rochelle McAuliffe
Freelance Reporter
“A man walks into a pet
store with an amphibian on
his shoulder. The pet store
owner looks at him and
says, ‘That’s kind of small
for an amphibian.’ The man
replies: ‘It’s my newt.’”
Jokes like this and more
kept the crowd laughing
as things got creepy and
crawly at the Mokena Community
Public Library District
the afternoon of Friday,
July 29. Those in the library
didn’t mind the slithering
guests though, because the
creatures, some over 15 feet
long, were the main attraction.
Dave DiNaso’s Traveling
World of Reptiles took over
the conference room inside
the library for a packed audience,
and the attendees
– both children and parents
alike – were eager to see
what beasts rose from the
boxes, some of which were
rattling around, waiting to
emerge.
The hourlong show combined
the elements of comedy
and education, making
sure it was entertaining to
watch, but that it also taught
a higher level of understanding
and respect for some of
the most misunderstood animals
in the ecosystem.
“I don’t teach people to
like them. I teach people
to respect them. There’s a
huge difference,” DiNaso
said. “You don’t have to like
snakes, you don’t have to
like spiders. But understand
why they’re important, why
you shouldn’t get rid of
them if they’re not bothering
you.”
After attending Illinois
State University and majoring
in communications,
DiNaso combined his lifelong
love for reptiles and
Raegan Brogan, a 7-year-old from Frankfort, lets a salmon bird-eating tarantula named
Webster crawl on her shirt.
amphibians with the public
speaking element of his degree
to start his business,
saying working with these
animals is something he was
“born to do.” Since its foundation
in April 1993, DiNaso
said he’s performed over
16,000 shows to date across
the Chicagoland and Northwest
Indiana region.
“As a kid, I just looked for
snakes, turtles, whatever I
could find that’s creepy and
crawly. I had three brothers
and we had a cottage in
Michigan. If we saw a snake,
they would all run away, but
I was always fascinated. My
brothers’ disinterest in the
animals was what told me
that this was what I was supposed
to do.”
His team for the day consisted
of Zany, the African
black throat monitor lizard;
Sumo, the pixie frog; Julius
Squeezer, a reticulated python;
Boulder, the sulcata
tortoise; a salmon bird eating
tarantula named Webster;
as well as Suffo Kate
the anaconda. Children were
able to get an actual handson
experience by touching,
and for some lucky ones,
holding the various animals.
Elizabeth Keane, a
2-year-old from Chicago
who attended the event with
her grandparents in Mokena,
even reached out to
touch the reticulated python.
While she wasn’t sure about
the scaly texture of the
snake, she shouted, “snake!”
with excitement after.
Ten-year old Isabelle
Dunn of Mokena has been
coming to the traveling reptile
show at the library for
the past three years, using
the show as one of the only
things to get a fix of her favorite
animal.
“I think I love this so
much because one of my favorite
animals are snakes,”
Dunn said.
For Dunn, even though
she’s only 10, she knows that
animals are a part of her future,
although it may be big
cats rather than big snakes.
“I don’t know if I want to
work with reptiles in particular,
but I think I’ll definitely
work with animals
because I love cats, even big
cats,” Dunn said. “I want to
be a zookeeper.”
As the show concluded,
DiNaso left the audience
with a couple of nuggets
of advice. And, no, they
weren’t made from catfish,
even though DiNaso must
buy nearly 20 pounds of it a
week for the animals.
“I took my childhood
fantasy and turned it into
a career. You are never too
young to think about what
you might want to be when
you grow up,” DiNaso advised
the children, with the
encouragement to check out
a few books from the library
as they left.
“And to the parents: Never
encourage your children
based on your passions,
and do not discourage them
based on your fears.”
Lillie Gunther, a 10-year-old from Mokena, holds two young
snakes on her head during Dave DiNaso’s Traveling World
of Reptiles at Mokena Community Public Library District
on Friday, July 27. The rainbow boa constrictor found a
comfortable spot in her hair; and the other, an eastern
hognose snake, settled in on her face. Photos by Rochelle
McAuliffe/22nd Century Media
Broker - Management Team
“10”