DuPage County government is partnering with a number of local organizations to showcase America’s official 250th anniversary as a nation this summer.
Local municipalities, the DuPage Convention and Visitors Bureau, Choose DuPage and the DuPage County Historical Museum will participate in the collaborative effort, which County Board Chair Deborah Conroy formally announced at a meeting Tuesday, Feb. 24.
The overarching goal, Conroy said, is a “celebration of the people, places, and stories that make DuPage County a vibrant part of the American experience.”
Snapshots of DuPage contest launching in March
The countdown to the summer milestone will begin next month, Conroy indicated in her board report.
“We will kick things off in early March with Snapshots of DuPage: Honoring 250 Years of America, a countywide photo contest,” she said. Entries in the adult and youth categories will be accepted from March 2 to Nov. 2.
A portion of the submitted photos will be showcased in a number of ways, including social media campaigns, various communications through the county and convention and visitors bureau, and in exhibits.
Contest information and entry forms are available on the Discover DuPage website.
“We know a picture is worth a thousand words,” Conroy said in a follow-up statement after her board report. “We are confident creative DuPage residents will submit photos that reflect life in DuPage in 2026.”
Gearing up for a time capsule project in June
Conroy also announced the county is partnering with the DuPage Mayors and Managers Conference with an open invitation to local municipalities to contribute to a time capsule project that is occurring in June.
“Our mayors and village presidents will join us as we add our items and bury the capsule on our Wheaton campus for our descendants to open in the future,” Conroy said in her board report.
In a statement, David Pileski, conference president, said the partnership is a way to help showcase the significance of the upcoming milestone.
“Collaboration like this strengthens our region, and we’re looking forward to working together to create a fun and meaningful time capsule that captures this moment in history for future generations,” said Pileski, who is mayor of Roselle.
Museum exhibit and oral history project also planned
The DuPage County Historical Museum also is taking part in the joint planning with an upcoming exhibit, Defining US: The 250th Anniversary of the United States. It launches in July.
The exhibit will feature displays of various wars, elections, protests, and cultural changes in the past two-and-a-half centuries, as well as the local impact these monumental events and shifts had on DuPage County.
The museum’s exhibit on America’s 250th anniversary coincides with another upcoming event that launches in August — displays honoring the 100th anniversary of Route 66 and other major firsts in the county.
Conroy in her board report also shined a spotlight on an oral history program, Voices of DuPage, the museum is launching. It is intended to feature unique experiences that help shape life within the county.
Choose DuPage is taking part in the oral history effort, providing interviews with local business leaders and their respective companies’ origin stories, and the benefits of having roots within the county.
Conroy praised the collaborative efforts underway in her board report, stating, “Thank you to our partners, as we bring our communities together for this nation’s celebration.”
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