I grew up in Highland Park, IL, right down the street from Highwood where most of my Italian relatives live. Highwood is filled with amazing restaurants, bars, shops and people. It’s rich with small businesses that have deep community roots, many have been there for generations. There’s also a ton of events that the city and local chamber host that bring even more charm to the town. This last visit home was to celebrate Pumpkin Fest, one of the events where Highwood is at its best: live music, street food, carnival rides, plenty to eat and for a lot of folks, even more to drink!
Despite all the festive energy, Highwood remains a quintessential small town. Most people know each other, and more often than not, we’re related! It’s impossible to walk around without stopping every couple minutes to say hello to someone. And most of the time it’s a cugine (cousin). My friends are always asking, “Are you related to everyone?” And I respond, “Pretty much!”
What does Highwood have to do with Hallmark? Stick with me: One of my favorite things to do is watch Hallmark on Sunday mornings, especially September through January. I am a sucker for the fall and holiday shows! My husband is very sweet to watch them with me, the deal being that football is on for the afternoon. What says fall more than Hallmark and Football? (Secretly I think he enjoys it more than I do.)
Living in Maryland now, I look at Highwood as our Hallmark town -- that welcoming, picturesque location where everyone is happy and every day is filled with good times and great people. In Hallmark movies, everyone is so well dressed, there’s always plenty of coffee, cider and cocoa, and there’s always a festival or some type of town gathering. That’s the backdrop for all the predictable drama, and you know everything is going to work out with the couple that are bound to come together for that closing kiss.
Hallmark is pure feel-good, even fantasy, and you can’t help but ask yourself, “Can life be like that? Would we want it to be?” I know I try to create and savor my own Hallmark moments, and Highwood during Pumpkin Fest is about as close to that experience as you can get. In addition to all the great food, drink, and fun, there are 10,000 carved pumpkins lining the streets. Everyone is out having a great time and life really couldn’t be better.
Now this is where my story goes south. The last time we were home was 4th of July, another event filled with family, tradition and nostalgia. Although this year, little did we know that something else would be in store and make Highland Park a well-known city for tragic reasons.
We were excited to be home with our families for the holiday and eager to get back to the HP parade as it’s been canceled due to Covid the past couple years. My family always goes to downtown Highland Park for the parade. (Highwood and Highland Park are sister towns.). My husband, parents, sister, brother-in-law, nephew and niece all attended together. We were tucked into our usual spots, said some hellos to family and friends and watched as the firetrucks led the charge and the parade began.
We were about two blocks away from where the shooter opened fire. We did not hear the gunshots as the fire trucks rolled by. We saw the HPHS marching band run past us on the sidewalk, thinking they lost their place in the parade line. One of the students screamed “gunshots!” We were all in a state of confusion. This of course could not be real. It wasn’t until I turned and noticed a policeman running towards us going east down Central Ave. He started waving at people to run towards the park. That’s when the adrenaline kicked in. I grabbed my nephew and my sister had my niece in her stroller and knew all my family was accounted for.
We quickly headed towards the park past the post office trying to get back to our cars. My nephew was asking why we were moving so fast and if there was a bad guy and pointed out a truck in the park we could hide in. Crazy a 3 1/2 year old has to think about that. I tried to remain as calm as possible to not scare him and just wanted my family to get to safety, which we did. I’m so grateful we made it home in one piece, as I know some were not so lucky. 7 people lost their lives and about 30 people were injured. This may sound strange, but I’m glad I was here with my family and not hearing about the event on the news back in Maryland.
I’ve been part of the HP/Highwood community my entire life, as have my parents. This community is filled with love, passion, strength, family and friends. It’s a gem we hold dear to our hearts! I am deeply saddened and angry that this could happen here and that it continues to happen all over. I think we turn to the fantasy of Hallmark to escape the true horrors of the world. Especially after feeling like my Hallmark town was threatened. I’m sure this thought has gone through so many other people’s minds as tragedy has struck close to their homes. We know how much good there is, but after so much sadness and darkness could it ever feel that way again?
After grieving and mourning, fundraising and supporting, Highland Park and Highwood became even more Hallmark with the amount of love and empathy shown and given. The community rose up to and would not allow such devastation to weaken their spirits, but only make us stronger -- and you could feel that energy three months later at Pumpkin Fest. We were back together, celebrating life! Hugs were a little tighter, smiles a little brighter and laughs a little louder, even as we honored the memories of those whose lives were lost.
Deep down, I think we want to create that Hallmark story, and really try to live it in many ways. We seek a simple, romantic life even though we know that is not always realistic. And really, it’s not about the setting or the festivals or even worrying about finding a perfect romance. It’s really about preserving our own sense of what’s important, knowing what we appreciate, and remembering what we are grateful for. That’s how we experience real moments of joy in life, and that’s how we create our own stories. There are going to be tragic moments and unhappy circumstances, but if we stay focused on the blessings we have and the people who are important to us, our story is going to end with a smile -- maybe even a kiss!