This year will mark the 115th edition of Lake Forest Day, sponsored by the American Legion Post #264.  Lake Forest American Legion Post 264 salutes "Our Community Service Organizations". The Lake Forest Day Carnival and Parade is the largest annual celebration in the City of Lake Forest and is attended by thousands of residents and visitors from surrounding communities.  We welcome your participation.  Why not contact a neighbor and enter a block or neighborhood float; or enter yourself and/or your family in costume?  Enter a commercial float representing your business, church, school, or enter on behalf of your neighborhood or civic organization. There is no charge to join!

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It is with a heavy heart that I report American Legion Post 264 lost a most valuable member Vinnie Dolan in 2020. Vinnie had been our Parade Chairman for 23 consecutive years. His attitude and desire to be of service to Community was paramount. The joy that Vinnie brought to many lives in our community year in and year out will not be forgotten. The Commanders Trophy will now be called the Vinnie Dolan Trophy.

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Awards will be given in the following categories: Children, Church/Schools, Civic/Fraternal, Commercial, Youth, Neighborhood/Individual along with Most Original, and the prized "Vinnie Dolan Trophy". We will post the winners after 3:00 PM the day of the parade on this web site.

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Your cooperation makes this a special community event. Remember the spirit of the event and enjoy yourself!

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The Carnival and Raffle is the most important Fundraising Event for American Legion Post 264.  100% of our fundraising efforts are used in Lake County to assist  our veterans, support our youth and promote patriotism. Please visit our <Carnival> and <Raffle> pages to see how you can help. Thank You for your support!

 

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Thank you for your cooperation.

 

Edward Geraghty

Lake Forest Day Parade Chairman

Mark Condic

Webmaster & Lake Forest Day Parade Coordinator 

 

 

Please read the PARADE RULES and Frequently Asked Questions:



Please you must read the Parade Rules carefully before submitting an Application to the Parade.

Bands must submit a Parade Application and send us a completed and signed W9.

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1. All participants should decorate their float, car, etc. in the theme of the parade or in a patriotic theme.

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2. Make sure your car or truck has a Full Tank of Gas and is in Good Mechanical Condition.

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3. Participants in the parade must keep moving so there will be no gaps. There is no stopping allowed unless the entry directly ahead of you has done so. If a gap occurs in front of you please move forward to close the gap.

 

4. Do not throw anything such as candy, favors or any other article from your float, car, etc. due to the danger that a child may run into the street and be injured.  If you wish to pass things out, have someone walk along the parade route on each side of the float or group to hand out the articles.  Anyone violating this policy will be pulled out of the parade.

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5. Alcoholic beverages are strictly prohibited.

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6. Only APPLICATIONS received by Friday July 21st will be accepted and eligible for awards and receive a Parade_Order_Number. Entries after that date will be positioned at the end of the Parade if available. Check your email.  Parade staging information, (Parade_Order_Number),  will be available on Monday July 31st after 3:00 P.M. and sent via email and on this website using this tab <Map and Parade Order>.

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7. You MUST include your TV announcer narrative with your application. Otherwise the TV announcer will skip your entry.

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8. You MUST print your own Parade_Order_Number and attach it to the inside of your passenger side window BEFORE arriving at the parade staging area.  If you have people dropping off participants or supplies, please forward them the Parade Order Email and links to print your parade number and have them print your Parade_Order_Number and DISPLAY on the outside passenger side window, under the windshield wipers.  This will help the volunteers direct everyone to the right place without stopping them and asking them were they are going. More information can be found using this tab <Map and Parade Order>, or http://www.lakeforestday.com/parade-map. Thank you for your cooperation.

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9. After entering the staging area with your Parade_Order_Number on the inside passenger window, please stop at your group of ten, that is the highest number of your group of ten.  Example your number is 92, stop at 99. In the nineties (90-99) stop at 99; in the eighties (80-89) stop at 89; in the seventies (70-79), stop at 79; in the sixties (60-69), stop at 69;  in the fifties (50-59) stop at 59; in the forties (40-49) stop at 49; in the thirties (30-39) stop at 39; in the twenties (20-29) stop at 29; in the teens (10-19) stop at 19; and 1-9, please stop at 9.  One of the parade volunteers will walk with you to your spot. This helps us deal with any issues of float length, music or someone in the wrong spot.

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10. How important is the length of our float? In order to have enough room for your float, it is important that we have an accurate measurement of how long your float is.  A description of your float also helps us gauge its length.

 

11. PLEASE NOTE: We have one hour to stack close to 100 or more floats. If you follow this simple procedure of displaying your Parade_Order_Number either on the inside or outside of your passenger side window before you enter Western Avenue, and stopping at the correct Cone Number, it will allow us to safely order you in the parade.

 

Thank you for your cooperation.

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FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS:

 

Q: How much is the entry fee?
A: There is no entry fee.

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Q: I can't submit my Application. What is wrong?

First, you must fill out every field, they are all required, including a backup email address.

Second, you must read the rules and check a box that you will follow all of these rules.

Third, some browsers do not allow third party apps (the 123FormBuilder application form) to be run from your browser. Check the security settings to change that option. 

Fourth, try a different browser.

Fifth, try a different computer.

Sixth, people have had sucess using their smart phone to submit their application.

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Q: What if I am dropping off a parade participant?

A: First, please print out the Parade_Order_Number for your float, and put it on the outside passenger window (under your windshield wiper should work).  This denotes that you as dropping off a passenger.

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Q: If I am dropping off a parade participant where should I park my car so that I could pick them up at the end of the parade?

A: First, please print out the Parade_Order_Number for your float, and put it on the outside passenger window (under your windshield wiper should work).  This denotes that you as dropping off a passenger. Please park your car at West Park on Green Bay Road and Woodlands Road after your drop off your parade participant.

 

Q: Where will my group line up?
A: We try and place young children and our older participants towards the front of the parade. You will receive an email on or before the Monday before the parade with your Parade_Order_Number. You can also check this tab <Map and Parade Order> or go to this website: http://www.lakeforestday.com/parade-map soon after Wednesday July 26th after 3pm.

 

Q: Can I have music on my float?

A: Yes, we encourage participants to have music.  Please indicate that you will have music on the parade application by selecting YES in the box next to music.  It is important to do this, to make sure two floats with music are not next to each other.

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Q: Did you receive my application?

A: If you received an email saying we received your application, then we received your application. Before you call or email us, please click on this link <Processed> Tab, and check to see if your application is there. The instructions will tell you how to expand the Group or Company Name and scroll through all of the received applications.  The table is in reverse order of entry, that is the last application is on top.  You might have to scroll thru a few pages to get to the date of your application.  We encourage you to scroll thru the entire list before contacting us.  Thank you. 

 

Assembly Area:

 

All vehicles that are in the parade must enter Western Ave at Westleigh Rd from the South and proceed North to your assigned area. The parade will form at 8:45 A.M.  SEE MAP. Please arrive at the staging are before 9:45 A.M. Any entry arriving after 9:45 A.M. will be positioned at the rear of the parade.

 

There will be an official wearing a traffic vest located in your assigned area. Traffic on this section of Western Avenue will be halted for approximately three hours to permit safe parade assembly and execution.

Special notice to all parade entrants/participants: During previous years some parade entrants and/or float vehicles have arrived prior to the designated assembly time - some over two hours before start of the parade. Due to the narrow confines of Western Avenue in the assembly area between Vine Ave and Ryan Place, we cannot accommodate or position any early arrivals. Two-way traffic through the assembly area cannot be halted until 8:30 A.M.   All early parade arrivals will be sent away from the assembly area and told to return via Westleigh Road as specified above. Please ensure that your parade personnel/drivers do not arrive before 8:30 A.M.  We need 100% cooperation in this vital area - it is a matter of public safety. 

 

Parade Route:

 

The parade will begin at 10 am at the intersection of Vine Ave/Western Avenue and proceed north on Western Ave to Westminster, (crossing Illinois Road and Deerpath), then turn left (west) on Westminster past Bank Lane, Forest Ave and Oakwood Ave to Summit Ave; then turn right (north) on Summit Ave to the end of the parade on the side of West Park near the Summit Ave/Summit Place intersection.

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If you have any questions or if we can be of assistance, please call Post 264 at                          , and leave a message. Someone will call you back as soon as they can. You can also use the form below to send an email message to the website . In the Subject Line please put "2023 Lake Forest Day Parade".