MIKE SANDROLINI PHOTO
April 15 is just around the corner, and while filing income taxes is often a process that we’d prefer not having to go through every year—often putting it off until the last minute—there is someone in our area who makes tax season fun and a little easier to endure. Whether you do most of your driving in Lombard or Villa Park, you’ve undoubtedly seen him standing outside the Liberty Tax Service office—one located in the 300 block of S. Main in Lombard; the other located in the 100 block of E. St. Charles Road in Villa Park—dressed in a Statue of Liberty costume, waving at passers-by and often utilizing a prop (on this particular day, he was strumming a mandolin). Perhaps you’ve either honked or waved at him as you’ve driven by…or at the very least, he’s put a smile on your face. Well, the fellow who daily dons that Statue of Liberty costume is Villa Park resident Steve Parks. Parks says he’s been playing the role of the Statue of Liberty for Liberty Tax Service each tax season since 2010. He’s been out at either location in all kinds of weather, including those rough weeks in February when snow and sub-zero temperatures were the norm. He splits his time between the two Liberty locations six days (40 hours) per week over a six-week period. This year, Parks assumed the role of the Statue of Liberty on Jan. 18 and will continue until April 15, which lands on a Thursday. Usually, he said, people who drive by honk. “They like to see the Statue of Liberty washing windows and shoveling snow (outside the office),” he said with a smile.
