Everyone loves a parade: Orland Days a hit this year

Everyone loves a parade, including the kids who stand by the curb as the parade floats, fire and police vehicles and politicians and small businesses walk past tossing some neat candies to the excited kids.
This year's Orland Days Parade was excellent and had more people seated along the route, although it still could use more support from the community. And Orland Days, hosted and organized by volunteers from the Lions Club of Orland Park, was very well done, with some better food booths and a nice music tent nearby.

The Metra Station parking lot worked great for this year's event (held there last year too) and was far better than the spread at the old Homemaker's parking lot where Orland Days hit a low point. The food was terrible back then, but not this year. It was very good.

The corn on the cob from the Scouts was top notch and so were the sandwiches and the drinks. My favorite was the M8K Ur Own slush. Although the tickets were steep -- a sign of the still spiralling down economy, the rides were good. The best was the Inverter. Wow! Scary. And there were several others this year that included flips, spins and fast diving seating that were frightening to watch let alone actually ride.

The kids loved all the rides, of course. And the carnival atmosphere was appealing. But, still. As much as I enjoyed Orland Days, I wish we could have more. The rock band Janus was very good and there were many others. But the variety was narrow.

The parade, though had a great contingent from the Orland Fire Protection District headed by the nice-enough Pat Maher, who is planning to run for Cook County Commissioner. And that was Topic A1 at the Orland Days festival when I went there. Several firemen came up to me to say hello and said they appreciated having a columnist hold the politicians' feet to the fire regarding who gets promoted, who gets passed over, who is driving around in a taxpayer funded battalion chief's SUV and who has to schlep and do all the work.

It's my humble opinion Maher is going to lose to incumbent 17th District Cook County Commissioner Liz Gorman who has been breaking headlines left and right leading the fight on behalf of the taxpayers against unresponsive and beleaguered Cook County Board President Todd Stroger. Stroger shoved a 1 percent sales tax hike down the throats of the taxpayers without once trying to reduce his own wasteful spending. And that will cost Stroger his job.

And it won't be soon enough as Stroger is a very vindictive and mean person surrounded by a bunch of vindictive and mean consultants and taxpayer-paid lapdogs who sing his praises to keep their high priced and wasteful jobs. (Of course, that doesn't include the competent Parliamentarian and Oak Lawn attorney Burton S. Odelson who does a good job. Too bad Stroger doesn't always listen to good advice.)

But Gorman was out there shaking hands and giving candy personally to all of the kids and she walked both sides to make sure no little tyke was without the booty. People were cheering her on and thanking her for leading the fight against the Stroger sales tax.

Maher's troubles begin with his father and the too obvious ties not just to Chicago's 19th Ward but to the power hungry Machine that wants to push Orland under its thumb.

It ain't gonna work. But, Maher will learn that he will be a better candidate in some future race and without the nudge from his father or the political consultants who are swarming around him like a coveted front-row seat ticket to a Rolling Stones' concert.

-- Ray Hanania
http://www.radiochicagoland.com/

Which is better, Orland Park or Naperville? Does it matter?

A few years back when I wrote that Naperville had one of the best summer festivals in the county -- the annual Naperville RibFest which this year runs July 2 - 5 --and that Orland Park's "Orland Days" was fast falling to the wayside I was pilloried.

Afterall, I live in Orland Park, not Naperville. So why was I being "disloyal?"

Well, I love Orland Park. I think the Orland Days festival has been declining over the years and I think the Naperville RibFest is one of the best, trailed close-behind in second place by the Frankfort Festival that is held every year around Labor Day weekend.

"Orland Days" will be held after Memorial Day Weekend. I criticized it last year and everyone said I was disloyal. Why is it an issue of loyalty to say that as a citizen of Orland Park, I want something better? I know the Orland Days volunteers do it for free. It's not easy. They carry the load. But the food stinks. Really. The past few years the food has been terrible, like they just threw the food together so they could say they had food. The parade is okay but that could be better, too. And the rides are a glorified carny-fest.

The Taste of Orland Park is a different story altogether, though. It is run and funded by the village. I understand. The village has more money than the Lions Club which sponsors Orland Days. But the food at Taste of Orland is tremendous; although the entertainment is always the same -- a lot of Irish singing and a few rock bands, but nothing that reflects the true diversity of the village.

Naperville has Huey Lewis & the News, and Blue Osyter Cult. Hmmm. And we have in Orland Park? (Clout?)

So why do I long for Naperville's RibFest?

Because Orland Park is GREAT and we deserve THE BEST. We deserve the best, not whatever we can manage. We deserve greatness, not whatever we can scrape together with volunteers who get over-sensitive to criticism and take everything personally.

Yes, you do a good job. And the king is wearing new clothes, too. If that's what you want to hear, fine. But I want to hear more. I want people in Orland Park when asked what they hope to see Orland Park become, answer with this answer: "We want Orland Park to be better than it is." I don't want to keep hearing Orland Park residents respond to the question by saying, "We want to be like Naperville."

If I wanted to live in Naperville, I'd move there. I like Orland Park, and have lived in orland Park longer than most of my neighbors.

Orland Park recently asked village residents what they would like tos ee to make Orland Park a better community. How about thicker skins from our elected officials and community cheerleaders and boasters? How about village employees who stop playing their petty politics and start doing their jobs?

The Orland Park-Naperville rivalry is a rivalry because some in orland Park want more and they are not getting it.

I hope we do.

-- Ray Hanania
http://www.radiochicagoland.com/

Orland Lions get their dander up over criticism of Orland Days Parade

I went to the Orland Days Parade this past week, but decided not to go to the Orland Days festival. The fact is the past three years of Orland Days have been a real disappointment. They just haven't been the same as they were in past years where the quality of the events seemed to far better. That doesn't mean the volunteers who work hard each year with no pay do not deserve credit for their efforts. But it does mean that something has been wrong and recognizing that wrong should be as important as patting yourself on the back.

So, I wrote about my feelings about Orland Days and the parade for the TribLocal, which has a popular segment called "Citizen Journalism." I expressed my admiration for the efforts of the Lions volunteers -- they are all volunteers, but also expressing my feelings that the quality just hasn't been the same.

Dave Neubauer, President of the Orland Park Lions Club which hosts and organizes the event, wasn't too happy about the criticism. They always love the praise but some just hate to be held to the standard of accountability.

But Neubauer made some good points. The volunteers worked hard to make the festival as good as it was. Maybe I will bring my family back to it next year -- we've attended everyone except this year, intentionally because last year's just wasn't that great at all. That's my opinion, but, it must be one shared by many Orland Park residents because I just didn't see that many at the Parade.

Now, the fact is I made some legitimate criticism that Neubauer either doesn't want to hear or he just doesn't agree with:

1 -- turnout at the parade was low. Why?

2 -- the past few years of Orland Days have been terrible, among the worst of any prior year.

3 -- It could have been a lot better.

4 -- With the economy tanking, it just didn't seem like a place where I wanted to spend my money.

I will say that Neubauer may be too sensitive to criticism, but he is a volunteer trying to do good. My suggestions to him include: doing a better job of public relations. Bring some volunteers in to help you do a better PR Campaign. Second, if this year was better than past years, you can't say it was the best and not acknowledge the poor performances of the past. Say that the past years haven't beebn the best but that the Lions are trying to do better. I think in fairness to Neubauer I should say he deserves applause and credit for doing what he can. At least he has his eyes on the priority, making it better and achieving the goals of the Lions organizations, which is one of the nation's best community service groups.

One of the things that everyone should keep in mind is is that good leaders are not people who pat themselves on the back. Good leaders are individuals like him who demonstrate that they are "accountable" to the publics they claim to serve by accepting both praise and criticism. Criticism is not destructive but rather a necessity to help make public good even better.

Dave Neubauer and the Lions Club deserve a lot of praise for what they have done for Orland Days ... I know they will make it better next year.

Ray Hanania
http://www.themediaoasis.com/