The Arlington Heights Memorial Library celebrated the in-person return of FanCon on Saturday, July 16. Around 650 residents of all ages stopped by the library for the sixth annual comic book and pop culture event.
"We just got here about 20 minutes ago, but I think my sons are taking it all in," said Johanna Abend who attended FanCon with her husband, 12-year-old son Nathan and 9-year-old son Myles. "They're really enjoying it and they're kind of overwhelmed, because I don't think they were expecting it to be this big, but in a good way."
"It's fun and cool," added Nathan who had just finished participating in the Super Smash Bros. tournament hosted by Black Zero Cosplay.
Other highlights included a live-performance from Raks Geek, Jedi training sessions, drawing workshop, Pokémon scavenger hunt, fandom-related arts and crafts, Artists' Alley, which gave customers a chance to meet featured artists and exhibitors, and more.
"We love [FanCon], the kids have been waiting for this so for them this is heaven I guess," said Vijay Subramanyan who attended FanCon with his family of four. "They've been running between the events and they enjoyed the Jedi Training, the [Artemis Spaceship Bridge Simulator] and now they're playing video games. I think this is refreshing to see people coming together having fun, so the kids are enjoying it a lot."
To see more photos of this special event, you can visit the library's Facebook page.