Where To Celebrate New Year's Eve 2022 In Wilmette

WILMETTE, IL — As 2022 comes to a close, it's time to reflect on the last 12 months and look forward to what next year has in store.

In the Wilmette area, there are plenty of ways to choose to ring in the new year this weekend, including children's events, concerts, champagne toasts and more. Whatever your preference, there's sure to be something for everyone to enjoy as we say goodbye to 2022 and welcome in 2023.

New Year's Eve Eve Concert
Wilmette Public Library, 1242 Wilmette Ave., Wilmette
Friday, doors open 6:40 p.m., show 7 to 8 p.m., Trumpeter Bobby Lewis, guitarist Andy Brown and bassist Stewart Miller perform in the auditorium

Convito Cafe New Year's Menu
Convito Cafe and Market, 515 Sheridan Rd #5, Wilmette
Seating from 4:30 to 9 p.m., reservations are suggested, New Year's Eve specials are available to-go.

Aboyer New Year's Eve Feast
Aboyer, 64 Green Bay Road, Winnetka
Reservations available from 5:30 to 11 p.m., the New Year's Eve menu features an amuse-bouch, first course, intermezzo, main course and dessert.

Noon Year's Eve
Skokie Public Library, 5215 Oakton St., Skokie
Music dancing, a countdown and family friendly festivities begin at 11 a.m. in the south courtyard.

Sketchbook New Year's Eve Bash
Sketchbook Brewing Company, 4901 W. Main St., Skokie
From 9 p.m. to 1 a.m., 21 and over, tickets $10 in advance, $15 at door

Low Key New Year's Eve
Ignite Gaming Lounge, 8125 Skokie Blvd., Skokie
From 8 p.m. until 2 a.m., tickets start at $25

New Year's Eve Bash
Kohl Children's Museum, 2100 Patriot Blvd., Glenview
From 8:30 to 11 a.m. and 1 to 3:30 p.m. Dec. 31, tickets are $23 for members, $35 for non-members

Square Dance Into The New Year
The Grove, 1421 Milwaukee Ave., Glenview.
From noon to 2 p.m., tickets are $5 in advance, $7 at the door

First Night Evanston
First United Methodist Church, 516 Church St., Evanston
Starting at 7 p.m. Masks and vaccination required. $30 in advance, $35 at door, $15 with student identification. More information and tickets.

Rockin' in the Noon Year
Double Clutch Brewery, 2121 Ashland Ave., Evanston
Doors open at 10:30 a.m., show starts at 11 a.m. with Mary Macaroni and the Impastas, a family fun celebration and countdown to noon.

Palmhouse Presents: New Year's Eve 2023
Palmhouse, 619 Howard St., Evanston
From 9 p.m. until 1:30 a.m. $90 admission, 21 and over only. More information and tickets.

Motown and Classic R&B with Gerald McClendon, The Soulkeeper
Evanston Space, 1245 Chicago Ave., Evanston
Doors 8 p.m., show 9 p.m Tickets $20-30

In the United States, one of the most popular New Year’s Eve traditions is, of course, the dropping of the giant ball in New York City’s Times Square. Various cities have adopted their own iterations of the event — the Peach Drop in Atlanta, the Chick Drop in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania and the giant Potato Drop in Boise, Idaho.

The end of one year and beginning of another is often celebrated with the singing of “Auld Lang Syne,” a Scottish folk song whose title roughly translates to “days gone by,” according to Encyclopedia Britannica and History.com.

The history of New Year’s resolutions dates back 8,000 years to ancient Babylonians, who would make promises to return borrowed objects and pay outstanding debts at the beginning of the new year, in mid-March when they planted their crops.

According to legend, if they kept their word, pagan gods would grant them favor in the coming year. If they broke the promise, they would fall out of God’s favor, according to a history of New Year’s resolutions compiled by North Hampton Community College New Center in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania.

Many secular New Year’s resolutions focus on imagining new, improved versions of ourselves. The failure rate of New Year’s resolutions is about 80 percent, according to U.S. News & World Report. There are myriad reasons, but a big one is they’re made out of remorse for gaining weight, for example, and aren’t accompanied by a shift in attitude and a plan to meet the stress and discomfort of changing a habit or condition.