With the holiday season in full swing, what's better than a good, old-fashioned tree lighting ceremony? Downers Grove kicked off its holiday festivities Nov. 23 with the start of its second annual Gingerbread Festival, hosted by the Downers Grove Downtown Management Corporation. Santa Claus and Downers Grove Mayor Martin Tully hit the switch on the village's tree that afternoon, marking the official start of a weekend packed with holiday activities—including a storybook reading at the library, breakfast with Santa, a middle school play and complimentary carriage rides. In case you missed the …

A lip-dub video created by the Downers Grove North High School Fine Arts Department has been chosen as a finalist in ABC 7 Chicago's "Show Us Your Spirit!" contest. ABC has been collecting spirit-filled viral videos from high schools across the suburbs all week for the contest. Voting for the best video is open until 6 p.m. Sunday on ABC's website. Earlier this fall, DGN Fine Arts Chair Brayer Teague enlisted the help of dozens of students and faculty members to create a lip-dub video to "It's Always a Good Time" by Owl City and Carly Rae Jepsen. The video was designed to showcase the …

It was a "Thriller night" in Downers Grove on Saturday as a local dance company started a flash mob in front of the Main Street Metra station. The Flash Mob Dancers Group from DLD Dance Center, 912 Curtiss St., capped a busy day of Halloween activities in downtown Downers Grove with a performance of the Michael Jackson classic "Thriller." The group has started flash mobs throughout the Chicago area, and was recently profiled by the Chicago Tribune. The Flash Mob Dancers Group can be contacted through the DLD Dance Center website at dlddancecenter.com. Editor's Note: The video above was posted…

Downers Grove Patch is kicking off a new feature that will recognize the smart and talented kids in the village. Each week, we'll honor the best of the best with our new "Whiz Kids" feature. The column will highlight Downers Grove students, athletes, volunteers and more—all of whom are 18 and younger. Know a Whiz Kid? Submit your nomination in our comment box below or e-mail the information to amanda@patch.com. Be sure to include all of the following information: Nominator's Name Nominator's E-Mail Whiz Kid's Name Whiz Kid's Age Whiz Kid's School Whiz Kid's Accomplishment Whiz Kid's Key to …