Six free, family-fun events encompassing a variety of tastes are on tap all day into the night Saturday, June 9 in Illinois’ second largest City.

The day begins at 7:30 a.m. with the weekly downtown Aurora’s Farmers Market in its new location at Wilder Promenade, 350 N. River St.
The market, which will be held every Saturday through Oct. 27 and running until noon each day, is celebrating its 100th anniversary. Farm-fresh produce, a variety of flowers, gourmet wines and cheeses, knife sharpening services and much more will be sold at the market.
The June 9 market marks the debut of students from Northern Illinois University’s School of Family and Nutrition Sciences, who will be staging cooking demonstrations illustrating the simplicity of healthy eating.
The demonstrations will feature fruits and vegetables from produce being sold by market vendors that the students will then prepare into healthy recipes.
Once again this year, Illinois electronic benefits transfer (EBT) link cards will be accepted for purchases. More information about the Farmers Market, including two additional markets opening in July on the City’s Far East and West sides, is at www.aurora-il.org.
At 9 a.m., the Louche Puce Market, an outdoor European-style vintage and collectible fair, returns to downtown Aurora on the Water Street Mall located between Galena Boulevard and Downer Place.
Patrons can re-purpose an eclectic mix of antiques, retro-furniture, vintage fashion and more until 4 p.m. The market will be held the second Saturday of each month through September. For more information, contact Jeannie Norris at norrisjeanne@gmail.com.
The Aurora Green Fest will be held from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. June 9 at the Fox Valley Park District’s Prisco Center, 150 W. Illinois Ave.
The event, which will highlight the latest environmental ideas and technology, will feature more than 50 eco-friendly exhibits and speakers featuring environmental services, money-saving tips and hands-on children’s activities.
New this year is the first-of-its kind solar powered concert with the enviro-conscious Giving Tree Band and a green car show. The event is sponsored by the Aurora Green Lights. For more information on the festival and the organization, visit www.auroragreenfest.com.
The day also marks the first day of both the Aurora Paddlesports Festival and Art in the Park at Phillips Park, 1000 Ray Moses Drive.
The Paddlesports festival is a two-day canoeing and kayaking festival that will take place from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. June 9 and 10 on Mastodon Lake inside Phillips Park.
Finally, June 9 marks the 2012 premiere of Movies in the Park, also held at Phillips Park, which features Hollywood hit movies on an outdoor big screen on select Saturday nights in June and July. At around 9 p.m., the movie “Real Steel” will be shown preceded by pre-movie activities starting at 8 p.m. Patrons should bring their own lawn chairs, blankets and bug spray.