The Scene

Local Scene: More Easter adventures set before the holiday in the Illinois Valley

The Easter Bunny signals when to begin the Easter egg hunt Saturday, April 8, 2023, at the Jordan block in Ottawa during an event sponsored and hosted by Floret, Mayor Dan Aussem and the Illinois Valley Contractors Association.

Here are five things to do this weekend:

1. Easter egg hunts: If you missed the first round of egg hunts, there’s more opportunities Saturday to collect prizes and visit with the Easter bunny. Egg hunts are scheduled 10 a.m. at the park in Buda, at Hopkins Park in Granville and at the Community Building in Neponset; 10:30 a.m. at Soldiers and Sailors Park in Princeton; 11 a.m. at Tiskilwa East Park and Carey Memorial Park in Utica; 1 p.m. at the Bureau County Fairgrounds in Princeton, Wyanet Memorial Park and at United Methodist Church, 2259 U.S. 52, Serena; 2 p.m. at New Hope Church, 30 N. Sixth St., Princeton; and Ottawa will host Hurray for Spring Egg Hunt and Scavenger Hunt 1 to 3 p.m. at the Jordan block. There will be free treats and crafts along with the hunt. The traditional egg hunt begins at 1:45 p.m. for ages 1 to 4 and 2:30 p.m. for ages 5 to 8. The scavenger hunt begins at 1 and it is for ages 9 and older. Check-in is at 610 Court St.

2. STEAM Irish Quartet: The Princeton Theater Group/Festival 56 will present the STEAM Irish Quartet at 7:30 p.m. Saturday in a performance at the Grace Theater, 316 S. Main St. Tickets cost $25 and are available online at festival56.com, by contacting the box office at boxoffice@festival56.com or by leaving a message at 815-879-5656. They also will be available at the door.

3. Adult Easter Egg Hunt: Egg hunts aren’t for kids only. The tasting room at August Hill Winery, 106 Mill St., Utica, will host for an adult Easter egg hunt. Find an egg and take it to an AHW associate to claim a prize. Each egg will have something special, the business said. One egg per customer. Participants must be 21 or older. For more information, go to https://augusthillwinery.com/event/adult-egg-hunt/.

4. Steve Mobley Benefit: Help a Marine veteran and Peru store manager, Mobley, of Princeton, who is fighting cancer. He was born in the Ottawa/Serena area. His family and friends are hosting a benefit event 4 to 9 p.m. Saturday at Senica’s Oak Ridge in La Salle. Cost is $25. Several items donated by the community will be raffled or auctioned at the event. Go to “Steve Mobley Benefit” on Facebook for more information.

5. Jon Rian in concert: The singer-songwriter will perform 7 p.m. Saturday at the Barrel Society, 930 N. Main St., Princeton. The singer’s 2023 “Midwest Boy” album charted as the No. 2 alternative country LP for seven weeks. Rian will be joined by his AM drinker bandmate BC Carter on guitar. Go to https://www.facebook.com/barrelsociety/ for more information.

Would you like your event highlighted in this weekly feature? The first step is submitting your events to the Illinois Valley’s community calendar at shawlocal.com/illinois-valley/local-events.

Colorful Easter eggs are put into a container as Utica volunteers and personnel help dye them for the departments annual Easter Egg Hunt on Friday, April 7, 2023 at the Utica Fire Station. The hunt takes place Saturday morning at 11a.m. in Carey Memorial Park in Utica. The Utica Fire Department has hard boiling the eggs for their hunts since the 1970's.
Shaw Local News Network

Shaw Local News Network

Shaw Local News Network provides local news throughout northern Illinois