Last Chance to Participate in Community Flea Market

The Mokena Community Park District is holding a summer flea market July 15, beginning at 8 a.m. There will be fresh produce, crafts, clothing, tools and more for sale, throughout the day.

Do you have a pile of things taking up too much space in your place, but you just can't bear to throw them out? Well, you're in luck! The Mokena Community Park District is holding an outdoor flea market on July 15, beginning at 8 a.m. The flea market will have, “fresh produce, new and used crafts, clothing, tools,” and more, according to the Park District's website. For those wishing to be vendors at the flea market, a preregistration fee of $20 is required, while vendors can also register the day of the event for $25. Registration is already underway, and check in time for vendors is 6:45 a.m. the day of the event. Any vendor arriving after 8 a.m. will be charged a $10 late fee. Each vendor will be provided with a 15-by-15-foot area to …

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Don't Forget: Last Day to Preregister for the Summertime Stride 5K

Time is dwindling for runners to preregister for the Mokena Community Park District's Summertime Stride 5K, set for Saturday, June 9. Preregistration ends June 7.

Concerts in the Park Series Ready to Take the Stage

The Mokena Community Park District's Concerts in the Park series kicks off June 10 at Main Park, with The Walk-ins taking the stage at 7 p.m. The series is free to attend and will continue throughout the summer.

The music is in the air, or at least it will be this summer, as the Mokena Community Park District's Concerts in the Park series kicks off June 10 at Main Park. The first of the summer-long series of concerts will feature The Walk-ins, “a harmony driven cover/original band from Chicago’s south suburbs,” according to the band's website. The Walk-ins will hit the stage at 7 p.m. for their set, which will see the band perform music from the '50s through present day hits. Concessions will be available for purchase during the show and attendees are encouraged to bring lawn chairs or blankets on which to enjoy the free show. The concert series, which is sponsored by Kelly Nissan, will continue on with Arts Alive! Jazz Band on Sunday, July 8. For…

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Last Chance to Preregister for the Summertime Stride 5K

Time is dwindling for runners to preregister for the Mokena Community Park District's Summertime Stride 5K, set for Saturday, June 9. Preregistration ends June 7.

Lace up your running shoes, hitch up those track shorts and pin on your race number—the Summertime Stride 5K is almost here. The race, which takes place Saturday, June 9, will feature prizes for each of the top three finishers in different age categories and genders, as well as for male and female overall winners. The race will be begin and end at Main Park, with the course covering mostly over asphalt or sidewalks after it leaves the park grounds. The last chance to preregister for the race and receive a discounted fee is Thursday, June 7. Registration by that date will cost $20 and can be completed through the park district's new website, or the Mokena Community Park District Administration Center. Registration is also available the day …

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Park District's Website Overhauled

The Mokena Community Park District's website received a total revamp this week, with a brand new layout, links to every event and online registration now available.

The Mokena Community Park District's website looks a little bit different following a total facelift this week. The website, which now features photos, a full events calendar and more went live late this week. Gone is the old, mainly white page with a simple links bar in the middle, and in its place sits a highly interactive site full of information about all activities, classes, parks and more. On the homepage sits a scrolling photo box with pictures from around Mokena parks and facilities, next to an interactive upcoming events box which has fully click-able links to specific events pages. Along the top of the site sits the main navigation bar, which will allow residents to peruse several areas of the park district, including the ability…

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Fairy Tale Evening Expected at Cinderella Ball

The Mokena Community Park District will host its annual Cinderella Ball on Saturday, April 21, at the park district's administration building.

Mokena is set to get its yearly visit from royalty this weekend, when Cinderella stops by the Mokena Community Park District for its annual Cinderella Ball. The father-daughter dance will take place this Saturday, April 21 from 6:30 to 8 p.m. in the Walnut Room at the park district building. The dance will feature refreshments and fun for the daddy-daughter couples in attendance. As of Monday, April 17, 25 couples have signed up for the event, but there is still time to register. “It's pretty much a smaller, more intimate setting for dads and their daughters,” said Erin Cortilet, Special Events Coordinator for the park district. Aside from dancing, the event will also feature gifts for both the fathers and daughters in attendance, along …

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Burros Don't Have a Field After All

Burros parents contacted by Patch on Thursday said the youth football organization told them different things about whether a replacement field was for practice, for games or for both.

If you signed up your children for Mokena Burros football, flag or cheer believing the group had space to play games this season, you were wrong. A vacant lot intended for a Meijer that never materialized is a field only for practice, not for play, the Burros board president said this week. On Tuesday, five days after the Burros second and final registration for the 2012 season, board President Joe Lentz and several parents spoke at the Mokena Community Park District board meeting. The groups have been at loggerheads for months, with the park district refusing to rent Main Park football fields to the Burros without a change in leadership. During the speech, which Lentz e-mailed to Patch after the meeting, Lentz spoke of the Meijer lot as "…

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I Love Mokena!

I Love Mokena: Park District a Community Anchor

This week's I Love Mokena looks at the Mokena Community Park District and just a few of the great facilities it operates.

Welcome back. One thing that anchors a great community is a successful recreational organization. In Mokena we are fortunate to have a tremendous park district. The Mokena Community Park District provides recreational facilities and activities for our beautiful village and the surrounding area. It is a separate taxing district and operates independently from other government organizations in Mokena. The district consists of 21 facilities including the spectacular Oaks Recreation and Fitness Center on LaPorte Road. The Oaks Center is home to a state of the art fitness center, basketball courts, indoor track, exercise and conference rooms, kitchen and other multi-purpose and party rooms. It is one of the southwest suburbs recreational jewels…

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After Crash, Park Classes Run From Oaks

After a driver crashed into the Mokena Community Park District Administration Center in Main Park on Tuesday, classes have moved to The Oaks.

Workers are back at the Mokena Community Park District Administration Center the day after a car crashed into the front of the building, but classes, registrations and permits will be run from The Oaks Recreation and Fitness Center for the time being. At about 3:30 p.m. Tuesday, a driver pulling out of a space behind the park district offices reportedly lost control of her vehicle, crashing into the building. No one was injured. See photos of the damage to the park district offices. Park district Executive Director Jim Romanek was not immediately available Wednesday afternoon, but a staffer who answered the phone at the park district headquarters said they were working out of the building. Program registrations and picnic permits will be …

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Paul Dailing

4:47 pm on Thursday, March 8, 2012

Jeez, Mike. You really enjoy making my day harder, don't you? Readers: Mokena Mike likes messing with people. He doesn't actually think this was an angry Burros coach any more than he thinks that L-Way should fill the water fountains with Red Bull, that D210 Supt. Lawrence Wyllie has hidden "a priceless artifact that men have died while searching for" somewhere on district property or that any of…   more ›

Car Hits Park District Headquarters; Building Damage Unknown

Village inspectors are seeing if the Mokena Community Park District Administration Center is inhabitable after a car hit the building Tuesday afternoon. No one was hurt.

No one was injured after a car hit the Mokena Community Park District Administration Center, but village inspectors were checking Tuesday evening to see if the building is inhabitable. "It was like a bomb went off," said district employee Mary Beth Windberg, who was inside the building at the time. "The building shook." About seven staffers and 15 senior citizens were in the building at the time, district Executive Director Jim Romanek said. The seniors were there for an afternoon "Prime Timers" program. No one was hurt. Police on the scene said they were called to the scene at 3:33 p.m. on reports of a car hitting the building. No further information was readily available Tuesday evening. Romanek said the driver appeared shaken but …

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