PEORIA, Ill. – The day after Thanksgiving in downtown Peoria will be an opportunity to connect with those in the area.
The first Greater Peoria Homecoming event will be a night where people visiting families for the holidays can see what is new in the Peoria area.
Director of Workforce Solutions for the Greater Peoria Economic Development Council, Brent Baker said they want to re-engage with those who are from the area, but moved away.
“If they’ve moved away in the last couple years, maybe five or six years, what they’re missing,” Baker said. “What we can really showcase to them what our region is doing, what we are doing investing here in our future, and how they can be a part of that.”
The event will take place Friday, Nov. 29 at Peoria Made, 315 Main St., from 4:30-6:30 p.m. Local startups and community organizations will be present to show the benefits of living in the Peoria area.
J.D. Dalfonso, President of Enjoy Peoria said it’ll be an opportunity to share stories face to face.
“Some people may have been moved away 10 years at this point and have come back and see that their high school classmate or a college classmate has done incredible things at a much lower cost of living or much more resources that first thought of,” Dalfonso said. “I think the important thing here is to be able to have that one on one engagement.”
The event will host local food establishment with samples to showcase the growing cultural scene in Peoria.
That Friday night also serves as the 27th annual tree lighting event, Yule Like Peoria, at the Peoria Courthouse Plaza.
“It’s going to be a matter of connecting people inside, and then move across the street to another great Peoria event,” Dalfonso said.
