The Illinois Railway Museum, 7000 Olson Road, will host Day Out with Thomas: The Ready, Set, Go Tour 2016 on Aug. 20 and 21.

Fox Lake 

 Village to hold first Land & Lake Days event 

The village will hold its 1st Annual Fox Lake Land & Lake Days from 4-9 p.m. Aug. 19, 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Aug. 20 and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Aug. 21 at Lakefront Park, 71 Nippersink Boulevard. Highlights of the event include an All Ages Community Talent Show at 6 p.m. Aug. 19, and Movie By The Lake, featuring a screening of “Jaws” at dusk Aug. 19 — and the 19th Annual Cardboard Boat Race, with registration and on-site boat building beginning at 8 a.m. Aug. 21, followed by the boat race at noon. The registration fee is $30, and includes a boat building kit. Trophies will be awarded for First Place, Second Place, Best of Show and Fastest Sinking in each of four categories: ages 10 and under, ages 11-15, ages 16 and up, and business entries. Land & Lake Days also includes the Boat & Car Show (each day), and the Body Art Tattoo and Piercing Festival on Aug. 20 and 21 — as well as food and drink vendors, live music, archery, kids activities and more. Admission is free. For more information, call (847) 587-2151 or visit www.foxlake.org.

Island Lake 

Lions Club Corn Fest offers free vision and hearing screenings 

The village announced that the Island Lake Lions Club Annual Corn Fest will be held from noon to 6 p.m. Aug. 21 at Water Tower Park, 429 W. State Road (Route 176). The longstanding annual gathering includes free corn (3,500 ears while it lasts), the Lioness Club food tent, a beer tent, kids games, three live musical acts, raffles, a hole-in-one golf game, and free vision and hearing screening buses, sponsored by the Lions Club. Admission is free. For more information, call (847) 526-8764 or visit www.villageofislandlake.com.

McHenry County 

 McHenry County College to host Student Leadership Conference 

McHenry County College, 8900 U.S. Highway 14, Crystal Lake, will host a Student Leadership Conference for all new and returning students from 9 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Aug. 19 at the Luecht Conference Center (Building B). The event will feature keynote speaker Andres Lara, aka “The Cuban Guy,” who will discuss his rise from being homeless at age 16 to becoming a millionaire at 26. The conference also includes several workshops and communication sessions, lunch, a keynote follow-up and a Leader Panel wrap-up. Admission is free. To access an online registration form, visit www.mchenry.edu. For more information, contact Student Life at (815) 455-8550 or via email at stulife@mchenry.edu.

 Dept. of Health offers well water testing for reduced fee 

The McHenry County Department of Health (MCDH) will continue to offer reduced-fee water testing through Aug. 31 for individual well water users. County residents can have their well water sampled for coliform bacteria and nitrate for a fee of $18. Testing wells regularly is considered by MCDH to be the only way to determine whether well water is safe to drink because many contaminants are colorless and odorless. High levels of nitrate in drinking water can cause illness in young children and pregnant women. In order to conduct testing, sterile sample containers are required, and are available at a number of locations throughout the county. Samples can be dropped for testing between 9 a.m. and noon on Tuesdays at the same locations. Samples also can be dropped off from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Wednesday and from 8 a.m. to noon on Thursdays at MCDH, 2200 N. Seminary Ave., Woodstock. To view a list of all locations, visit www.mcdh.info. For more information, call the Division of Environmental Health at (815) 334-4585.

Union 

 Thomas the Tank Engine focus of Railway Museum event 

The Illinois Railway Museum, 7000 Olson Road, will host Day Out with Thomas: The Ready, Set, Go Tour 2016 on Aug. 20 and 21. The event includes a 20-minute train ride with Thomas the Tank Engine, a meet-and-greet with Sir Topham Hat, clowns, magic shows, temporary tattoos, live music and a garden model railroad display, as well as “Thomas & Friends” storytelling, video viewing, coloring and more. Tickets are $21 each, and include unlimited train rides and access to all museum exhibits. An additional $10 fee is required for a 20-minute train ride with Percy. Food, snacks and beverages will be available at several locations on the museum grounds. Parking is free. The parking lot will open at 7:30 a.m. each day, and gates open at 9 a.m.. To purchase tickets, and for more information, call 866-468-3399 or visit www.irm.org.

Woodstock 

Fundraiser at local nursery to benefit pair of groups 

Rich’s Foxwillow Pines Nursery, 11618 McConnell Road, will host its Hosta Sale and Bolivian Arts & Crafts Fundraiser from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Aug. 27. Proceeds from the sale of hostas will benefit Heifer International, a non-profit, humanitarian organization dedicated to caring for the earth and ending world hunger and poverty. Sales of colorful artifacts crafted by Bolivians will benefit Mano a Mano International, an organization focused on building hospitals, schools, roads and irrigation projects in rural Bolivia. The event includes Hosta Leaf Identification (10 a.m. to noon), a program featuring presenter Tom Micheletti, former president of the American Hosta Society and Midwest Regional Hosta Society, and first president of the Northern Illinois Hosta Society — and Hosta Enthusiasts (11:30 a.m.), a program featuring Northern Illinois Hosta Society membership Secretary Mike Kraus. In addition, coffee and bakery goods will be served in the morning, and pizza, pop and water will be served at noon. For more information, call (815) 338-7442 or visit www.richsfoxwillowpines.com.

Lake in the Hills 

 Open house event to celebrate new Children’s Victory Garden 

The village announced that the Lake in the Hills Parks & Recreation Department will host a Garden Open House from noon to 3 p.m. Aug. 28 at the Algonquin/Lake in the Hills Interfaith Food Pantry, 1113 Pyott Road. The event is being held to celebrate the completion of the Children’s Victory Garden, located on the grounds of the food pantry. The garden, created through the generosity of individual and corporate contributions, includes a teepee, a grow tunnel, a “pizza garden” and more. For more information, call (847) 960-7460 or visit www.lith.org