A new festival celebrating the Fourth of July and honoring military veterans and active service members makes its debut Friday.
The three-day Naperville Salute, sponsored by the local Naperville Responds For Veterans, kicks off at 4 p.m. Friday on Rotary Hill and culminates Sunday night with a fireworks show at Frontier Park.
“The idea here is to have a successful event so we can do something nice for the community and do something for veterans. It certainly is an appropriate concept for the Independence Day weekend,” said Dan Jurjovec, president of the Naperville Responds for Veterans.
Naperville Salute was to premiere last year but everything other than the fireworks display was canceled by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The new fest fills the void left by the departure of Ribfest, which will make its first appearance in Romeoville after more than 30 years in Naperville.
Jurjovec said organizers don’t want to make comparisons between the two events, describing Naperville Salute as a more scaled-down, casual and local in its scope.
While Ribfest could attract as many as 75,000 people in one day, the new event is expected to draw closer to 5,000, he said.
Because Naperville Salute is a celebration of military members and veterans, both will be admitted free of charge. Money raised will support the Naperville Responds group, which repairs, builds and donates homes for vets in need.
Tip jars will raise money for the construction of the Gold Star family memorial at Naperville’s Veterans Park.
“We want to see as many veterans and active military service members as possible. We’re looking forward to a very patriotic event ahead of this weekend,” Jurjovec said.
Live entertainment will be provided Friday and Saturday, including the Rob Post Band, The Starboards, Catfight, Convoy, Eric Chesser, Mike & Joe and the Chorus of DuPage. There will be a special performance by the Chorus of DuPage, a Naperville-based all-male barbershop chorus that includes some military vets.
Food and beverages will be sold, and special presentations to veterans are planned.
Hours are 4 to 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday. Tickets are $15 for anyone 13 or older and free for anyone younger with a paying adult. VIP tickets are also available.
The Sunday fireworks show is free and starts at dusk at Frontier Park, 3380 Cedar Glade Drive. Food and beverage will be sold and the fireworks choreographed to music on radio station 95.9 The River. It can also be seen live on NCTV17.
Also free is the Family Fun Zone, which will be open from 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Saturday. It will include the Midwest Fun Factory, doing face painting, balloon animals and patriotic tattoos; the Crosstown Exotics reptile exhibit; Safety Town; GoGo Squeeze; Naperville Public Library; Makery Studios; Americana Craft Area; the “Within Thin Lines” veterans podcast; and an appearance by WWII novelist Kathy Nosek.
Entry will be on a first-come, first-served basis.
Jurjovec said they’re ready to finally unveil their new event.
“While it feels like it’s two years in the making, it’s more like two months in the making,” he said, since plans evolved as COVID-19 restrictions eased and were eventually lifted.
Unvaccinated people will be encouraged to wear masks, he said.
raguerrero@tribpub.com
