Event proceeds to benefit restoration project

Bourbonnais, IL – Although COVID-19 forced many 2020 events to be canceled or postponed, the Village of Bourbonnais was able to safely execute a Chocolate Tour (before the pandemic hit), a socially-distant Chicago Bears Summer Training Camp banner sale (during late summer while COVID cases were drastically down), and most recently, an online auction with the remaining Chicago Bears Training Camp memorabilia. All of the event proceeds will benefit the Bourbonnais Historical Society’s 1837 Log Schoolhouse Restoration Project – Kankakee River Valley’s first log schoolhouse in Bourbonnais. A combined $12,338 will be donated to the fundraising efforts to professionally reconstruct the schoolhouse. With the village’s contribution, an estimated $73,800 of the $120,000 goal has been reached.

“The village is proud to assist in providing Bourbonnais with the benefits of an additional historic museum,” explained Mayor Paul Schore. “Although it’s been a trying year, the community has been extremely positive and supportive of the proposed new village improvement projects, including this one. I think we can all agree education is important now more than ever.”

The sold-out Chocolate Tour, cohosted with the Bourbonnais Township Park District, took place on February 2, 2020. The village’s portion of the shared event proceeds totaled $5,907. The Chicago Bears Summer Training Camp banner sale held on August 7^th sold-out of 154 banners in 22 minutes and raised $4,901. Due to current public health and safety concerns, the village hosted an online auction November 13^th through November 22^nd for the remaining Chicago Bears Summer Training Camp street signage. Proceeds for eight available signs totaled $1,530.

To donate to the restoration project for the one-room school house, a check may be issued to:

BGHS
Memo: Log Schoolhouse
Bourbonnais Grove Historical Society
P.O. Box 311
Bourbonnais, IL 60914