Your 2020 Oak Forest Fleadh Survival Guide

OAK FOREST, IL — One of Oak Forest's largest yearly celebrations is this Saturday. The Oak Forest Fleadh returns for its eleventh year on Saturday, March 7. An all-day celebration of Irish heritage, this year's event in the heart of Oak Forest again features a 5K race, open streets event, parade down Cicero Avenue and pub-to-pub bus ride.

"We're excited that the new race route was well received last year, and like that we are using the community center as race central to bring everyone to the center of it all and make it easy for them to stay and enjoy the parade," said Kim Malecky-Iles, executive director of the Oak Forest-Crestwood Area Chamber of Commerce. "We have focused on making this about fitness, family and fun. Making this something everyone can enjoy."

One of the new highlights this year will be the Chicago Bears drumline, which will make its Fleadh debut as part of the Kevin Szabo Jr. Plumbing float.

Here's what you'll need to know as you plan ahead for the big day.

Where To Park

Parking is near "race central" in an area along Waverly Avenue between 156th and 157th streets.

5K parking will be available in several areas within walking distance to the Oak Forest Community Center, 15501 S. Kilpatrick Ave.

The Waverly Metra parking lot at 157th & Waverly, the commercial building at 156th & Cicero (the former Ace Hardware) will also offer parking.

Parking will still be available in the lot south of 159th Street near Oak Avenue where participants and spectators had parked in previous years, but it will be a much longer walk from there to the center of action that's moved four blocks to the north.

Street Closures

Expect Cicero Avenue, from 159th Street to 151st Street, to be closed for the duration of the events from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Some neighborhood streets along the race route, like parts of Kilpatrick, 151st Street, Lamon and Lavergne, will be closed as early as 8 a.m. for the race. They will reopen at 10 a.m. and allow for parade parking at that time.

5K Race

The CNB Bank & Trust 5K race will take the same route as it did in 2019, starting and ending at 155th Street and Cicero Avenue and featuring the neighborhoods both to the west and east of Cicero.

The cost of the run is $30 if you register online before 5 p.m. on Friday. On-site registration will also be available before the race on race day, from 7-8 a.m., for $35. It starts at 8:30 a.m.

Malecky-Iles said the race already has more participants signed up this year than they had a year ago.

Sign up for the 5K race here

Packet Pick-Up

CNB Bank & Trust, 5459 W. 159th St. will have packet pick-up on Thursday, March 5 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Friday, March 6 from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. You can register for the race at the bank until 5 p.m. on Friday.

Open Streets Event

Ride, blade or skate on the parade route before it starts, from 10 a.m. - 11 a.m. Cicero will be open for this and closed to traffic during this time.

Parade Lineup

The parade will feature several dozen floats. The route runs south on Cicero from 157th to 151st and will begin at 11 a.m. Confirmed participants in this year's Fleadh parade are:

• Acorn Public Library District
• Bailey's Bar & Grill
• Beggars Pizza
• Bettenhausen Automotive
• Blarney Stone Pub
• Bremen Township Regular Democratic Organization
• Chicago Gaelic Park
• Cindy's Pub
• CN Railway
• Cub Scout Pack 341
• Cub Scout Pack 348
• Edward Jones
• Dan McHugh Engineering For Kids
• Faith United Methodist Church
• Flannery's Pub
• Food 4 Less
• George's Rib House
• Girl Scout Troop 60033
• Heather Mulligan Begley for Judge
• Homewood Disposal
• IL State Representative Robert A. Rita, 28th District
• John Amico's School of Hair Design
• Just Witchy's
• Kevin Szabo Jr. Plumbing & Chicago Bears Drumline
• King Heating, Cooling and Plumbing
• Lisa Thomas Salon
• Marcotte's Bar and Grill
• Nite Games Bar & Grill
• Oak Forest Barracudas
• Oak Forest Baseball Organization
• Oak Forest Executive Center
• Oak Forest High School Soccer Team
• Oak Forest Masonic Lodge #832
• Oak Forest Park District
• Prairie Material Real Estate with Candy LLC / Century 21 Affiliated
• SHP - We Build Beds For Kids In Need
• Slapshots Sports Bar and Grill
• Sport Clips of Crestwood
• SSSRA
• St. Damian
• Stockyard Kilty Pipe Band
• Susan Semanate Allstate Agency
• Szabo's Super Rooter Plumbing
• Tammy Wendt for Commissioner of the Cook County Board of Review
• Those Fitness Chicks
• Village of Midlothian
• Windy City Thunderbolts

There's no particular order to the parade.

Parade Grand Marshal

Acorn Public Library will serve as the Grand Marshal in honor of their 50th anniversary.

Activities

All indoor event-day activities will be held at the Oak Forest Community Center at 15501 S. Kilpatrick Ave.

Ride The Bus From Pub To Pub

A pub and restaurant open house is planned for the evening hours. Malecky-Iles said the individual bars are planning a bus route from spot to spot between 6-11 p.m.

A route will be in place. Cindy's Pub and Oak Forest Bowl are coordinating a ride the bus from pub to pub this year. The pub crawl will include Cindy's, Beggars, Oliver's, Oak Forest Bowl, Night Games, Cheers, Durbin's, Marcotte's and Slapshots.

Pub Specials

Several pubs in the area along Cicero Avenue in Oak Forest and Midlothian have entertainment and specials planned for the day. Check out what they all have planned here.

Hosts

The Fleadh (pronounced flah and Gaelic for festival) is hosted by both the city of Oak Forest and Oak Forest-Crestwood Area Chamber of Commerce.

Sponsors

Premier sponsors are the City of Oak Forest, Oak Forest-Crestwood Area Chamber, Oak Forest Bowl, Quality Printing & Design, Heather Mulligan Begley for Judge, Beggar’s Pizza and 100.3 SHE-FM. A full list of sponsors can be found here on the Chamber's website.

A Look Back

See photos here from Patch during the 2018 Oak Forest Fleadh parade.