When Phoebe Ryerson hosted Winnetka’s first children’s fair in the backyard of her home in 1945, the event raised $500 to help support the village’s nursery school, which was founded during World War II to provide child care for local women aiding the war effort.
On Friday and Saturday, the 74th annual Winnetka Children’s Fair — a fundraiser for the Winnetka Community Nursery School — is expected to attract 4,000 visitors to the family-friendly event marking the unofficial start of summer.
The two-day fair will be held from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Friday and from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday at the Village Green, located between Elm and Oak streets, east of Green Bay Road, in Winnetka.
Welcoming residents and non-residents alike, admission to the fair is free, with tickets available for games, rides, concessions and a slate of activities, including inflatables, a climbing wall, mini-golf, and pony and camel rides, co-chairwoman Kristen Bilton said.
“We have older people in town who come by, and want to make a donation because they remember taking their kids to the fair years ago,” Bilton said. “Generations of families in Winnetka have looked forward to the fair...whenever we pass the Village Green during the year, my own kids always say, ‘that’s where the fair is!’”
For decades, the fair kicked-off on the Friday marking the last day of school — typically a half-day that launches the start of summer vacation for students in Winnetka School District 36, fair co-chairwoman Colleen Burns said.
But this year, due to snow days taken during the winter months, District 36 students will not be dismissed until 3 p.m. Friday, prompting fair organizers to extend the event until 7 p.m. that evening, Burns said.
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“Once school is dismissed, we’re hoping all of the kids can rush on over to the fair, and still have plenty of time to enjoy the unofficial kick-off to their summer vacation,” Burns added.
Proceeds from the fundraiser will support the Winnetka Community Nursery School at 800 Pine St., which this year enrolled about 100 children ages 2 to 5, Bilton said.
The school, which adheres to a philosophy of allowing children to learn through play, offers half-day and full-day programs during the school year, as well as a summer camp.
In addition to funding the remodeling of the school’s playground, proceeds from the fair will help support teacher enrichment programs, and pay for new classroom furniture and supplies, Bilton said.
For details about the fair, visit: www.winnetkacommunitynurseryschool.org/about-the-fair
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