Dear Master Gardeners,

We need your help!

Fiesta del Sol will be happening on July 31-August 3, and U of I Extension will have a booth. Fiesta http://www.fiestadelsol.org/ is the largest Latino festival of the Midwest. The main organizer is the Pilsen Neighbors organization. In four days, more than a million and a half people attend! No alcoholic beverages or tobacco products are sold at Fiesta. Organizers and the City of Chicago attend well to the safety of all participants.

University of Illinois Extension has long been a part of Fiesta. We first attended in 1996 and have enjoyed a continuous presence yearly since 1998. This is a fun-filled event which caters to families.

Here are some of our Extension activities we need your assistance with:

Assembling our booth on July 31^st

Face painting (every day)

Distributing plants and plant care instructions (Sat and Sun)

Staffing our butterfly display (live monarchs) and children's butterfly craft activity (Fri)

Distributing Extension literature

Answering questions about Extension

Picture taking

Maintaining water supply for face painting station

Dismantling our booth on Aug 3^rd

We hope you will join us! Come learn and practice your Spanish, taste new foods at the various booths, immerse yourself in Latino culture and interact with children and parents.

Gonzalo Escobar, Extension Educator is the Team Leader and Extension staff is helping. Extension staff will be on site at all times.

If you want to volunteer, please call the Countryside Extension Center office at 708-352-0109 and ask for Pat Rudolph. She will explain the time schedule available and get you signed up. Thank you very much!