About 80 artistic projects and community events will share $1.2 million in city funding this year, more than two dozen of which are either new to Naperville or receiving city money for the first time.
Among the recipients of grants chosen by the Special Events and Community Arts Commission this year is the Distinguished Gentleman’s Ride, which will receive $5,600, a Sister Cities monarch butterfly garden in Knoch Knolls Park, $1,500; and an abstract mural to be painted on a downtown restaurant, $4,500.
SECA is tasked with evaluating applicants and making a recommendation on how funds collected through the city’s 1% tax food and beverage sales should be distributed. The Naperville City Council makes the final approval.
While many longtime events such as the St. Patrick’s Day Parade and Naperville Jaycees Last Fling traditionally receive grant money, one of the program’s goals is to encourage new artistic and cultural endeavors.
“I think we very much like to introduce new events so that makes it a little tricky if we’re trying to both fund things that people would like to see returning year after year and fund things that are new,” SECA Commission Chair Judy Brodhead said.
Seventeen projects were submitted as “new initiatives” this year, 15 of which were awarded grants. The category includes events and projects that are new to Naperville or new to receiving SECA funding.
One event that falls into the latter category is the Distinguished Gentleman’s Ride, an annual motorcycle ride through Naperville to raise money for men’s health. It’s part of of Movember, a national organization dedicated to raising money for and awareness of men’s mental health, prostate cancer and testicular cancer.
The Gentleman’s Ride, a fundraising motorcycle ride held in about 100 countries, invites participants to dress in suits while riding classic and vintage motorcycles. Last year, Naperville was one of five cities in Illinois where the ride was held.
It has grown significantly since it debuted seven years ago, co-organizer Sven Davies said. This year they want to close off Water Street and fill it with about 100 bikes and 200 onlookers for the May 17 ride, he said.
“Last year we ended down on the Naperville Township lot … and we had so many bikes that we completely filled it,” Davies said.
Another project receiving SECA funding is a Sister Cities’ monarch butterfly garden, which is be planted this spring in Knoch Knolls Park.
Proposed by the Naperville Sister Cities Foundation and the Sister Cities Commission, monarch butterflies symbolize Naperville’s connection to its sister cities: Nitra in Slovakia and Cancún and Pátzcuaro in Mexico.
Monarch butterflies not only have one of the longest migrations of any insect but one route they travel is from Naperville south to Pátzcuaro, highlighting Naperville’s connection to that city in particular, Commission Chair Arun Vijay Mani said.
On the artistic side, Aurora-based graffiti artist Raul Rodea will paint an abstract window mural on the back side of the Quiubo restaurant on Water Street. Called “Energy,” the mural aims to brighten the lives of commuters and residents and should be finished by May 15, Rodea said.
“I always look forward to whatever art is being created. … When art is being created on site, part of the fun of it is watching it go up,” Brodhead said.
Other projects receiving funding as new initiatives this year include:
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A fix-it fair receiving $4,600 and a sports equipment swap receiving $800, both proposed by Accelerate Climate Solutions;
Light Anemones proposed by ArtForum: Naperville partnership for the Public Arts, $65,000;
A multicultural gallery by disability-focused nonprofit Muhsen, $3,600;
Naperville Seniors’ Naperville Golden Age Summi, $4,600, and the Senior of the Year Program, $3,500;
Theater for Charity’s Fall 2026 Musical Production, $13,600;
A musical ensemble by Anugraha, $5,400;
Naperville AI Art and Community Festival by Ascending Pathways Inc., $9,500;
Holiday Music Performers 2026 receiving $4,000 and Park After Dark receiving $74,000, two projects by Downtown Naperville Alliance;
Naperville Preservation Celebration by Naperville Preservation Inc., $7,900.
The two “new initiatives” that did not receive funding were a project supporting mental health by the Indian Nurses’ Association and a project supporting senior dogs by the nonprofit Lizzy’s Fund. Both were deemed social service initiatives, which do not fall under the SECA grant criteria, Brodhead said.
Other organizations that applied for but did not receive funding were Illinois Conservatory for the Arts, which sought money for theater lighting, American Multi Ethnic Commission’s Global Community Awards Gala and Indian Community Outreach’s India Day Parade and Celebration.
While the India Day events are well-established in Naperville, commissioners cited confusion over Indian Community Outreach’s funding request of $335,000 for operations, a significant jump from last year’s operations request of $77,116. Following last year’s cancellation, commissioners were also concerned the event might not be held.
Krishna Bansal, founder of Indian Community Outreach, said the increased funding request was to cover the cost of the city’s security requirements, which were implemented last year and led to the event being canceled.
As for some of Naperville’s other legacy events, the Naperville St. Patrick’s Day Parade received $26,500, Jaycees Last Fling and Parade received $196,337 and Howlin’ at the Moon received $6,200. The 2026 Holiday Parade of Lights was to receive $22,300 but the event was canceled due to logistical challenges and the high cost of funding the event relevant to its return.