Community Calendar

Travel back in time with this art project. Participants will paint a dramatic sunset sky in fiery reds, oranges, and yellows, then layer black silhouettes of a dinosaur, tree, and birds on top to create a striking prehistoric scene to take home and display. This free program is open to the public and recommended for ages 10 and up. All materials will be provided.

Drop in to learn how you can contribute to science and document wildlife in our prairie! Open to all ages, participants may monitor our monarch population, check the snake boards, learn to identify plants, and get inspired by the majestic midwest prairie ecosystem.

RSVP online to receive a reminder email and updates on what’s blooming in our prairie.

What was life like before, during, and after the American Revolution? Join us for an interactive program that begins with a screening reel from The American Revolution, a documentary by Ken Burns, Sarah Botstein, and David Schmidt, offering a compelling overview of the nation’s founding and its global impact.

Then step into history as a virtual volunteer transcriber for the Library of Congress through the By the People program. Work directly with real historical documents from colonial America through the early Republic and help bring to light the everyday experiences and voices of those who lived through this transformative era. Your contributions will make these materials more accessible to researchers and the public, joining a nationwide effort that has already surpassed one million transcribed pages.

This program is free and open to the public. Recommended for youth ages 13 and up and adults. Participants should bring a laptop or tablet with a charging cord. The program will run approximately 1 hour and 15 minutes.

Come One, Come All!
Books on First once again is sponsoring "Find Waldo Local" in Dixon, all the month of July. Based on the children's Where's Waldo books in which we seek and find Waldo and friends in various locations around town and the world within the pages, children from anywhere can seek and find Waldo in 25 locations around Dixon, IL, including the Parks District building, the Next Picture Show art gallery, Discover Dixon Main Street Chamber of Commerce HQ and other fun places including of course, Books on First.
We have lots of prizes for those participating, those seeing Waldo in at least 10 spots and those becoming eligible for entry into drawings for Where's Waldo books as well as contributed prizes from There's Fun Inside and more. Get involved in a Dixon-wide search for Waldo and experience the Local Small Businesses all around town. The hunt ends in a "Bye, Waldo" party on Saturday, 1 August!

There is no road quite like Route 66, and no state that embodies its spirit quite like Oklahoma. Home to more surviving miles of the Mother Road than any other state, Oklahoma is where the legend of America's most iconic highway truly comes alive.

Join us for this centennial celebration of Route 66, tracing the history, landmarks, and stories that made the road a symbol of freedom, adventure, and the open American spirit. From the glowing neon signs of Tulsa to the beloved Blue Whale, the storied Lucille's Service Station, and the legendary Cal's Café in Erick, this documentary uncovers the people and places that shaped a highway, and a nation's imagination. This free program is open to the public. It is approximately 27 minutes, not rated and made possible by PBS.

Come One, Come All!
Books on First once again is sponsoring "Find Waldo Local" in Dixon, all the month of July. Based on the children's Where's Waldo books in which we seek and find Waldo and friends in various locations around town and the world within the pages, children from anywhere can seek and find Waldo in 25 locations around Dixon, IL, including the Parks District building, the Next Picture Show art gallery, Discover Dixon Main Street Chamber of Commerce HQ and other fun places including of course, Books on First.
We have lots of prizes for those participating, those seeing Waldo in at least 10 spots and those becoming eligible for entry into drawings for Where's Waldo books as well as contributed prizes from There's Fun Inside and more. Get involved in a Dixon-wide search for Waldo and experience the Local Small Businesses all around town. The hunt ends in a "Bye, Waldo" party on Saturday, 1 August!

Celebrate the anniversary of the 1969 Moon Landing with a morning of stories, art, and science the whole family will love. The program begins with a reading of Max Goes to the Moon by Jeffrey Bennett, a delightful story that blends imagination with real scientific facts about space exploration and our nearest neighbor in the sky. Afterward, families will create their own Moon Masterpiece to take home, then take part in an engaging NASA-inspired science activity that demonstrates how lunar craters are formed.

Fun, hands-on, and endlessly fascinating, this program is designed to spark curiosity, encourage creativity, and celebrate one of humanity's greatest adventures. This free program is open to the public and designed for families with children ages 6 and up. All materials will be provided.

Have you ever wished you could travel back in time and uncover the history of the very ground beneath your feet? That's exactly what WTTW host Geoffrey Baer does in Chicago Time Machine, peeling back layers of fascinating stories from all over Chicagoland, going back as far as 14,000 years. From a notorious vice district south of the Loop, where crooked ward bosses went by names like Bathhouse John and Hinky Dink, to Wicker Park at the end of the Ice Age when prehistoric giant beavers roamed freely, this is Chicago history like you have never quite seen it. Along the way, Baer uncovers a World War II aircraft engine plant that now houses a mall and makes Tootsie Rolls, a decommissioned limestone quarry retrofitted as a neighborhood fishing pond, and a quiet River North alley where four notorious executions took place in 1887. Every corner of this city has a story, and most of them are stranger than fiction.

This free program is open to the public. It is approximately 1 hour and 22 minutes, not rated and made possible through PBS.

Celebrate the anniversary of the 1969 Moon Landing with an afternoon of stories, art, and science the whole family will love. The program begins with a reading of Max Goes to the Moon by Jeffrey Bennett, a delightful story that blends imagination with real scientific facts about space exploration and our nearest neighbor in the sky. Afterward, families will create their own Moon Masterpiece to take home, then take part in an engaging NASA-inspired science activity that demonstrates how lunar craters are formed.

Fun, hands-on, and endlessly fascinating, this program is designed to spark curiosity, encourage creativity, and celebrate one of humanity's greatest adventures. This free program is open to the public and designed for families with children ages 6 and up. All materials will be provided.

Join a summer tradition that brings us together in a shared vibration and opens us to a meditation on our place in the natural surroundings. Nature makes her own music: thunder, howling winds, bird songs, branches rattling, water gurgling, and so much more. All are welcome to join in the vibration. Drumming is optional- BYO drum or experiment with a provided instrument or stop by simply to enjoy the fire, listen to the music, and make a s’more. This is a free, family-friendly event and there is no registration. Drumming is led by David Stocker, with occasional guest leaders.

2026 Schedule

May 28th- All-ages Chair Yoga led by Amelia of Inner Prana Yoga at 6:00pm, followed by fire and guided drumming.
June 18th – Guided drumming and flow art demonstration by Zach and Jenny of Light Weavers beginning at 6:30pm. The performance will offer reverence to the longest day creating a visual celebration of the summer solstice. Sponsored by Joe Dencker Agency – Country Financial
July 16th – Social dance lesson at 6:00 pm, followed by fire and guided drumming. Sponsored by Mid States Concrete
August 13th – The Great Turtle Creek Duck Race at 6:00 pm, followed by fire and guided drumming. Sponsored by Bank First.
September 10th – Healing Sound Bath led by Kristin of Nalu Sound at 6:00pm, followed by fire and guided drumming. Sponsored by Cornerstone Credit Union