If the instruction was to “go fly a kite,” then dozens of families turned out Saturday to a local park in Morton Grove to literally do just that, with organizers extolling how kids and their parents immerse in the village’s event.
The Morton Grove Park District hosted the Family Kite Fly Saturday at Harrer Park. Oct. 12
“All the families that come out seem to enjoy this event,” said Sue Braubach, Park District superintendent of recreation. “You see a great sense of joy and accomplishment when a child or their parent finally gets a kite flying up in the sky.”
The Tu family, of Niles, center, were among the participates of the Family Kite Fly event Oct. 12, 2024 at Harrer Park in Morton Grove. (Karie Angell Luc/for Pioneer Press)
The Morton Grove Park District held its Family Kite Fly event on Oct. 12, 2024 at Harrer Park in Morton Grove. (Karie Angell Luc/for Pioneer Press)
Edmond Dragut, a kite hobbyist with the Chicago Kite Company, brought large kites to the event, and had a long one flying in the sky shortly after the event began, as families started to arrive.
Dragut was happy with the wind speeds Saturday, which he said were actually better to sustain smaller kites instead of the huge ones.
He called flying kites “something that I like to do, it’s another way to fish. Because when you go fishing, you wait for the fish to bite. When you go kiting, you wait for the wind to blow.”
He lamented families increasingly staying indoors more, opting for electronic devices that being outside doing this like … flying a kite.
But Long and Linh Tu, of Niles, took to the outdoors Saturday and brought a kite to fly as a family with their 4-year-old daughter Lina.
“I like this event a lot,” said Linh Tu, adding that Saturday was her daughter’s first time flying a kite.
“She’s excited,” Linh Long said.
Matthew and Jean Ashenfelder, of Morton Grove, flew a kite with their daughter, Miki, 5.
“This is our third year in a row that we’ve come out,” Matthew Ashenfelder said. “We put a premium on getting outside.”
Ali Syed and Saima Siddiqui, of Buffalo Grove, attended with several families they knew.
Ali Syed carried her daughter Kat, 2, while running to launch a kite.
“It’s a perfect day for kite flying,” Syed said.“They (children) stay in way too much, especially with things like social media and then video games and things like that; it just occupies a lot of their time. There’s no substitute for fresh air and greenery. … Human beings need this kind of fresh air and open space.”
The unseasonably balmy air temperatures are a bonus, the parents said.
“We definitely want to take advantage while the weather is good,” Siddiqui said.
Karie Angell Luc is a freelancer.