LITH's Rockin Rotary Ribest Offers 4 Best Days Of Summer, Food, Music

LAKE IN THE HILLS, IL — An event that the Lake In the Hills Rotary Club calls the best four days of summer is set to begin on Thursday as the Rockin Rotary Ribfest returns with a full menu of live music and award-winning barbecue.

The event, which was first held in 2006, has since raised more than $500,000 that is donated back to the Lake In The Hills community, surrounding areas, and to the Rotary Club’s international efforts.

The year’s Ribfest will begin on Thursday and run through the weekend at Sunset Park. The four-day festival also features a full carnival, a host of live music events, and a business expo.

The culinary main event — ribs – will be served up by six vendors including Pigfoot BBQ & Ribs out of Mentor, Ohio, Texas Outlaw BBQ from Elizabethtown, Ken., Cowboy BBQ and Rib Company, Ft. Worth. Tex., After Hours BBQ out of Orville, Ohio, Armadillo's BBQ out of Atlanta, and MoJo's Rib Shack out of New Franklin, Ohio.

The music lineup is headlined by Tommy DeCarlo of the rock band Boston, who will perform at 9 p.m. on Saturday. The musical acts kick off on Thursday night with a pair of shows including Everett Dean and the Lonesome Hearts, who take the stage at 6:45 p.m. before The Boy Band Night takes over at 9 p.m.

Simply Elton (6:45 p.m.) and Kashmir (9 p.m.) are both slated to perform on Friday night before five musical acts take to the stage on Saturday. A full schedule of events is featured on the Rockin Rotary Ribfest website.

Admission to the festival is $5 but is free for children ages 12 and under who are accompanied by an adult. Active-duty military members will be also admitted for free, organizers said.