2024 Walk
by
Presented
A magical holiday begins on Madison Street
Chamber’s Holiday Walk and Festival of Lights is Friday night
By TOM HOLMES Contributing Reporter
At a time when “reality” can feel a bit too much, Madison Street will be transfor med into a fantasy land complete with a visit from Santa and Mrs. Claus during the Forest Park Holiday Walk and Festival of Lights on Friday, Dec. 6, 6 to 9 p.m.
All of this magic is courtesy of the Forest Park Chamber of Commerce.
Start of f at Forest Park Bank, 7348 Madison St, to have your picture taken with Mr. and Mrs. Claus in the bank lobby between 6 and 8 p.m.
While inside the bank, children can enjoy the train as it runs around the Christ-
See HOLIDAY WALK on pa ge 13
mas tree. Bank volunteers will be serving cookies and hot chocolate and a team from the Forest Park Art Alliance will provide props for fun family photos
Walkers who head east will discover that Connie Brown has transformed the Brown Cow, 7347 Madison St., into a gingerbread house where kids can play in the parlor’s gingerbread house window.
“We will feature our homemade gingerbread house kits, gingerbread cookies, gingerbread lattes and our hand-crafted super-premium holiday flavors: Peppermint, Egg Nog, Gingerbread and Figgy Pudding, homemade hot cocoa (made with steamed ice cream) & famous COWzones (savory hand pies).
A block east of the ice cream parlor walkers can listen to live music at Robert’s Westside (located at the corner of Circle and Madison) where Donnie Biggins will be staging what he is calling a Holiday Honky Tonk Spectacular with live music
provided by Hoover & Harley and the Boys plus Daniel Rey & The Revenirs.
The Hoover and Harley website reports:
“We’re a Chicago-based hillbilly band playing originals, the classics and soon-to-be classics with a big hat tip to Hank, Waylon, Willie, Merle, Buck, Carl, and Cash.”
Doors will open at 6:30 p.m. and the music will begin at 7:30 p.m. A $5 discount on the cover charge will be given to everyone who brings an unwrapped toy being collected for Toys for Tots.
The Old Foal Horse Trailer will be serving hot cocoa and mulled wine, and children from the Montessori Language Academy will be caroling outside of Bobbies.
A block further east walkers can visit Mala Gandhi and Amanda Aggarwal at Elements Message, 7239 Madison St. and will be able to much on holiday cookies while crafting their own aromatic therapy bath salt tree ornament.
Charlie Grundas, the owner of We, the
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Direct fleet/equipment fueling
Temporary above ground, job-site tanks
Direct fueling of construction equipment on job
Emergency generator fueling
Collective Fitness, 7247 Madison St., said, “We will be A-plus, we’ve got activities for kids, including ornament-making, face-painting, and showing short holiday films to bring extra doses of cheer.”
Across the street at Fantastic Sams, owner Kevin McCrory will be offering free hot hocolate and adult be
Walking west from the bank, students from the Gasse School of Music will be playing live in the window
Again Sports, 7443 Madison St. Daniel Gasse, the director of the school, said, “We’ll play duos, trios, and music from the baroqu e, classical, and omantic periods, and holiday musi
