HO_081519

homerhorizon.com LIFE & ARTS
the homer horizon | August 15, 2019 | 17
Nature, neighbors celebrated
at Annunciation’s Prairie Fest
Laurie Fanelli
Freelance Reporter
Annunciation Byzantine
Catholic Church is a
beautiful parish inside and
out.
The Rev. Thomas J.
Loya and the congregation
invited friends and
neighbors to partake in all
the natural and spiritual
splendor of the church
— and its community —
with its annual Prairie
Fest, held on Aug. 9-11.
The Saturday schedule
featured entertainment
and activities for the
whole family including
music, magic, vendors
and more. Tours of the
natural prairie surrounding
the church and a board
painting class added to
the fun as did a slew of
brand new attractions
including a classic car
show.
“We always want to
keep things fresh,” Prairie
Fest committee member
Stephanie Lewickas explained.
“We want to be
a destination for neighborhood
families at the
end of the summer before
the kids are going back to
school. We added a few
new features this year.
We’ve got classic cars on
display so as the kids are
playing — and maybe the
women are shopping the
vendors — the guys have
something to check out.
We also thought it would
be really great to add pet
adoption into the mix because
we’re concerned
about all of God’s creatures,
so we’ve got Heather’s
Foster Dogs here and
NAWS, too.”
Heather’s Foster Dogs
Vice President Jeanne
Sweetwood explained she
was hoping to find committed
people to foster or
adopt one of the organization’s
lovable pooches
during Prairie Fest.
“We rescue dogs from
overcrowded high-kill
shelters wherever we need
to in order to save them,”
Sweetwood said. “We foster
them in our homes, get
them medically ready, get
them used to living in a
home again and then we
put them up for adoption.
I love the dogs. I love saving
them and watching
them move on. Then you
can turn around and save
another one.”
The Family Day children’s
area featured an
obstacle course, games,
crafts and more led by
volunteers.
“I love that it’s a small
more intimate setting for
kids and their families,”
Lewickas said. “You really
get a chance to interact
with people from the
neighborhood.”
Matthew Ripsch opened
up the entertainment stage
on Saturday afternoon
— which also featured
sets from JT James
Acoustic and Five Guys
Named Moe — following
a Friday night full of
rocking acoustic music.
As with past Prairie Fests,
Sunday was scheduled
as Polka Day with Tony
Blazonczyk’s New Phaze
starting things off directly
following the 10 a.m.
Divine Liturgy service.
Food vendors included
Tata’s Pierogi and Big
Joe’s Backyard BBQ,
and attendees could shop
at booths by Juice Plus+,
MPX Elite Fitness, Color
Street and more.
Loya was excited about
all the new additions to
Prairie Fest, but he still
counts sharing the wonder
of the church’s natural
landscape — and how it
transformed the neighborhood
— with attendees
during the prairie tours as
one of the event’s highlights.
“We transformed this
property by following
what God did with the
plants here in this part
of the world, planting
what God put in Illinois,
and it works,” Loya
said. “It works with the
whole ecology, the whole
environmental program
that God designed. It
cleared up the water
problem here, and
now the place is like a
community park or an
outdoor classroom where
kids can get away from
their video games and
so on, come and look at
butterflies, catch frogs,
pick flowers and learn
about nature. A lot of
people find a great deal
of peace here just walking
through the beauty
of it.”
Loya encourages people
to stop by the church
anytime, as it is open all
day any day for prayer
and visitation. Divine Liturgy
services are offered
on Sunday at 10 a.m. and
Thursday at 7 p.m., and
Saturday evening Vespers
are held at 5 p.m., with
additional services hosted
on holy days.
Annunciation Byzantine
Catholic Church is
located at 14610 S. Will
Cook Road.
Matthew Ripsch performs at Prairie Fest Saturday, Aug. 10, at Annunciation Byzantine
Catholic Church in Homer Glen. Photos by Laurie Fanelli/22nd Century Media
Margie Burcl (left) and Trudy Gruhlke look at a 1955 Ford F100 at the Prairie Fest
classic car show, a new addition to the event.