Star Wars Day Will Return To Joliet June 4: Library

JOLIET, IL — The Force is back with Joliet — it's Return of the Star Wars Day. After saying it was canceling Star Wars Day forever on Friday, the Joliet Public Library reversed course, announcing that the event will return on June 4, 2022, to downtown Joliet, the first time the event will take place in three years.

“We read your messages and your comments,” the library said on Facebook Tuesday. “We love your enthusiasm for this event … and we realize it can’t come to an end.”

On Friday, the library announced that it would no longer hold the astronomically popular event, which regularly drew in about 10,000 visitors, due to staffing shortages, construction at the library and changing partnerships. The library said in a news release that it would replace Star Wars Day with an alternative event.

"We had 10 amazing years," Joliet Public Library Executive Megan Millen wrote last week. "We have discussed it with our community partners that Star Wars Day has reached its peak, and it is time to sunset the event. We have taken it to the highest level it can go, and now it is time to try something new."

The event was canceled in the summer of 2021 due to extensive renovations, and canceled during the summer of 2020 due to the pandemic.

Following a swift and vociferous public outcry, Millen told the Joliet City Council Monday night that the event would return in some form in 2022.

Millen told the Council that “the library stands ready to partner with other organizations to revisit an event for 2022.”

The library is already asking for volunteers to help organize and staff the large event.

Joliet Mayor Bob O’Dekirk said Monday he believes “there will be a way forward with this,” and the city is in talks with the library. Councilmember Jan Quillman said she was “beside herself” when she heard that the event was canceled and questioned why the library did not consult with the city before making the announcement.

Related: No More Star Wars Day For Joliet Public Library