Northwestern Medicine Field in Geneva was alive over the weekend with something other than Kane County Cougars’ baseball as the first-ever Festival of Arts and Crafts was held at the stadium on Saturday and Sunday.
The event was organized by Step by Step Promotions, and featured 140 booths including crafters from around the Midwest offering a wide array of goods and services.
Kim Grau, owner of Step by Step Promotions, said the group normally does “indoor shows but we saw an opportunity with all the beautiful space here to do an outdoor show and add some music.”
“Because this is being held at Northwestern Medicine Field I thought it was a great opportunity to benefit either a foundation or some way give back,” she said.
Proceeds from the event will benefit Living Well Cancer Resources, organizers said.
“They give resources to those who are going through treatments, whether that’s free hair wigs or art classes or counseling for families,” Grau said.
Grau said both she and her late mother Donna Hansen “have been cancer patients” and that her mother “used the Living Well resources as she was going through treatment and this is a way of honoring her as well.”
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Candy Domke-Hochberg, operations administrator for the Living Well group, said appearing at events like the Saturday craft fair “is a good way to spread awareness as many people don’t know we exist or what we do.”
“This is kind of a full-circle moment for some people. This not only gives awareness to who we are but also all of our services are donor-funded,” she said. “That’s how we’re able to provide all of the services.”
Regarding the show itself, Grau said the craft fair featured merchants offering “everything from doll clothes to fine art and jewelry, food and more.”
“There’s something special about items that are homemade. Everything here is handmade and produced in the U.S. and they are supporting small businesses and many talented people,” Grau added.
Nancy Allen of St. Charles and her husband Doug said they visited the craft fair on Saturday “because it was local and something fun to do.”
“I know this is the first time having this and it’s a great idea,” Nancy Allen said. “I don’t have anything definite to buy, just checking out what other people’s talents are.”
Corrine Clever of North Aurora said she goes “to quite a few craft fairs” and that she was looking “for Christmas, seasonal things, anything crafty that a person has made,” at the event on Saturday.
“I like that things are handmade. There are so many talented people and it’s interesting to see what people make and watching them make things. It’s fun,” she said.
Robyn Melnyczuk of Schaumburg also said she enjoys looking at homemade crafts and that, for her, “I like seeing what everyone is making on their own, not just the commercial stuff.”
“I usually come home with something. Usually, I’m not empty-handed,” she said at the craft fair Saturday. “I like Christmas decor and pet products and house items.”
She said holding the craft fair at Northwestern Medicine Field was a good choice.
“This works,” she said. “They should have done this before. I’d like to see it come back.”
David Sharos is a freelance reporter for The Beacon-News.