Community Calendar

Christ Community Outreach Center is proud to partner with Administer Justice to provide legal counsel to individuals in our community. This program takes place on the first Saturday of every month from 9 AM to 12 PM at our location: 316 N 6th St, DeKalb. To make an appointment, please call 855-818-4554 or visit AdministerJustice.org/GetHelp. Walk-ins are also welcome on a first-come, first-served basis.

Join the Coon Creek Casters and Boone County Conservation District for an Ice Fishing Clinic on Saturday, February 7th, from 9 am to 12 pm.

Children ages 5-15 with an adult can join this fun, FREE community event. Participants will enjoy the morning learning to ice fish! This program depends on ice thickness for safety. You will be contacted by email the week before to confirm the event. If the ice is too thin, we will contact you to cancel the program. Registration for this event is required. To register, visit https://www.bccdil.org/2026-ice-fishing-program/.

A free lunch will be provided by the Coon Creek Casters for the participants. Please contact BCCD if you have any questions at 815-547-7935 or dgrelecki@bccdil.org.

The free AARP Foundation Tax-Aide program will again be available at the DeKalb Public Library and is for people with low to moderate incomes. AARP Foundation Tax -Aide volunteers will be available by appointment most Saturdays from February 7 through April 11, from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

Be sure to bring a photo ID and all necessary tax documents, as well as last year’s return forms.

Please sign up for an appointment by contacting Frances at (815) 991-9418.

For more information, please contact the reference desk at (815) 756-9568 ext. 2150 or at reference@dkpl.org.

Chicago-based artist Michael x. Ryan gathers the quiet imprints we leave behind — from sidewalk stains and river paths to shower puddles and fallen tree limbs — and gives them form, weight, and voice. Through drawing, mapping, wood relief, and 3D printed objects, Ryan captures traces of human presence — the edge of a river, the imprint of a wet body, the marks on a street — and renders them as physical forms that evoke movement, memory, and place.

This exhibition brings together key installations spanning over four decades, from early works shaped by the Ox-Bow landscape to large-scale reliefs inspired by the streets of Chicago to one tree of interest on the family property in Woodstock, Illinois. By drawing attention to overlooked details, Ryan invites us to consider how our everyday movements shape the spaces we inhabit — and how those spaces, in turn, record and reflect our presence and passage through time.

Homecoming: In Color celebrates the reopening of Rockford Art Museum after a year-long renovation closure. This exhibition features a selection of popular pieces and hidden gems, showcasing the rich diversity of our revered collection. Come witness the power of art and community as we welcome you back to a vibrant space of creativity!

Warm your heart by crafting a unique up-cycled instrument! Last year we made frame drums. This year, artist-in-residence, Dave Stocker is back to lead Origins of Music workshop #2: The CANJO. Also known as a diddly-bow, the canjo is related to the Berimbow of Afro-Brazilian roots. We provide tools, materials and art supplies. Please bring a cleaned out can 14 oz-30 oz, a limited number will be available. Children under 10 need parent assistance to decorate and assemble.

Please register for the number of canjos that you or your group would like to make so we can prepare supplies. This is a come-and-go event from 10:00am-1:00pm. Canjo creation takes approximately one hour.

We invite you to choose the participation fee that is most accessible to you, either $15, $25 or $35 for your instrument. Your participation fee helps offset our cost of supplies and staff time.

The art of David Van Delinder is now on display in the Lowden Gallery from January 1 – February 28.

David’s career actually began in the music business. Blessed with talent in both art and music, he was a premier area guitarist at a young age, recording and performing with Chicago folk legends Bonnie Koloc, Steve Goodman, John Prine and others. His songs have been published and recorded by name artists.

When the road became unsuitable for a married man and father, he turned to his other muse, art. He worked his way up to senior art director for a well-known Chicago agency before deciding to go out on his own. He became a successful and respected freelance illustrator and graphic designer creating art and designs for billboards, magazines, packaging, and books.

David’s fine art is rooted in traditional technique and classical composition. His pen and ink drawings of abandoned barns and jazz musicians, impressionistic florals, landscapes, and classical oil portraits all display both virtuosity and inspiration.

Mr. Van Delinder also accepts commissioned portraits and other works in oil, pastel, charcoal and pen and ink. His pencil portraits of musicians and dancers are very popular and highly sought after.

He lives and works in Cherry Valley, IL.

A cornerstone of the TNPS calendar, this annual survey celebrates the depth of creativity found throughout the Rock River Valley. Each year, the exhibition highlights the work of regional artists across a wide range of 2D and 3D media, offering a snapshot of what’s happening right now in the local art community.

TNPS is open Wed.-Sat. or by appointment

Burl Ives was and is an iconic figure in the annals of American Folk Music and he got his start in the little Illinois town of Newton.

Ives went on to become one of the world's most well-known folk singers and actors, but never lost his hometown ‘folksie’ touch. He recorded more than 100 albums in his career and was called America's Great Ballad Singer by none other than Carl Sandburg. In the 1930's he was an “official hobo”, traveling the country in boxcars, but went on to become an internationally recognized star. A fixture of the nascent “folk scene” of the 40's, 50's & 60's in New York City, Ives became an Oscar winning actor in 1958's Big Country and many other films.

Award-Winning singer/songwriter Barry Cloyd portrays a friend of Ives, Gypsy Davey, who was a hobo and guitar-toting minstrel. Hear ‘Gypsy’ perform many of Burl Ives' most well-known folk songs.

This event is free and open to all. No registration is required. It is sponsored by Gretchen Moore in memory of Charles Moore.

This event is part of the America 250 initiative; celebrating our nation throughout the year.

For additional information, please contact Samantha at samanthah@dkpl.org or at (815) 756-9568 ext. 1701.

Mix a Hitchcock masterpiece with a juicy spy novel, add a dash of Monty Python and you have THE 39 STEPS, a fast-paced whodunit for anyone who loves the magic of theatre! This show is packed with nonstop laughs, over 150 zany characters, an onstage plane crash, handcuffs, missing fingers, and some good old-fashioned romance!

In The 39 Steps, a man with a boring life meets a woman with a thick accent who says she's a spy. When he takes her home, she is murdered. Soon, a mysterious organization called "The 39 Steps" is hot on the man's trail in a nationwide manhunt that climaxes in a death-defying finale! A riotous blend of virtuoso performances and wildly inventive stagecraft.