Hinsdale Magazine May 2021 by Hinsdale Magazine Group

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HONORING MOMS Dawn McKenna talks about work and family life and Hinsdale Magazine features more area mothers

PLUS

Jim Fannin’s Mom: World’s Greatest Coach Mickey Straub’s 50 States in 50 Days revisited

Brookfield Zoo’s Dinosaurs Everywhere

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LETTER from THE PUBLISHER

A TRIBUTE TO ALL MOMS Since May is mom’s month, we thought we would go all out and recognize mom's big time. They certainly deserve the attention, given the challenges of the last 12 months. HM visited with all sorts of local moms ahead of this issue, from a very successful realtor to a smallplane pilot who flies around the world, to women who run various businesses. Our cover story kicks it off with Larry Atseff’s interview with enterprising realtor Dawn McKenna. You will discover a mom who stays at home to help her daughter start a budding business, to women who have been on the front-line of the pandemic in a hospital emergency room. These moms not only know how to raise families, but they also know how to make their mark outside their home in many admirable ways. All told, we have stories from more than a dozen remarkable moms. For good measure, we put an exclamation point on the fact that moms are great teachers of kids. To summarize the section, Jim Fannin, America’s "zone coach," declares that moms are the world’s best coaches.

SERVING HINSDALE, BURR RIDGE, CLARENDON HILLS & OAK BROOK

HINSDALE’S FIRST MAGAZINE May 2021 $5 US

HONORING MOMS Hinsdale’s Dawn McKenna talks about work and family life + Hinsdale Magazine features more area mothers

PLUS

Jim Fannin’s World’s Greatest Coach

Mickey Straub’s 50 States in 50 Days revisited

Brookfield Zoo’s Dinosaurs Everywhere

In our business community, we believe very strongly in the concept of capitalism, which has been a driving force in this country since it was founded. We believe in business, especially small businesses, which, in total, account for more of the nation’s GDP and employment than all the large corporations in America put together. We also know that capitalism has its flaws, and we know that there are companies that are trying to be more engaged with the community, and strive for more than profits. To that end, we launched our first “Step Up in 2021” inperson and online seminar on April 23 to engage local business owners and Jim Fannin to discuss a concept called “Conscious Capitalism." You will be able to watch the seminar online at www.HinsdaleMag.com. Read how business owners talk about how they believe that capitalism, especially capitalism that helps the community can be very positive. We joined forces with a true conscious capitalist, Roy Spencer of Perma-Seal 10

HinsdaleMag.com | HINSDALE MAGAZINE

in Burr Ridge, and Fannin so you could see how it all works. Also, we featured Downers Grove resident, Sue Nealey, a female pilot who flew a small plane around the world in about 24 days. Her story inspired us to go back into our history vault and bring back a story of former Burr Ridge mayor Mickey Straub, who went on a 50-day trek and visited the capitols of every state in the union. The story of how he did it is most interesting. Now that spring is here and things are opening up, may we suggest a couple of nearby road-trips? Head west to Morton Arboretum where the blooms and trees are in full color. Then, head east to Brookfield Zoo. Now that they’re open again, you won’t want to miss all their activities, especially the collection of life-size and animatronic dinosaurs all over the park. Remember to visit www.HinsdaleMag. com, where you can look at our magazine online, from the most recent issue, all the way back to 2013. In addition to a review of the print editions, we have now added a calendar of events and interviews with some of our of the people we feature in the magazine. As always, thank you for reading Hinsdale Magazine, and send us your comments at news@hinsdalemag.com.

Scott Jonlich Founder & Publisher sjonlich@hinsdalemag.com

Is leaving a well-planned legacy important to you? Is leaving a well-planned legacy important to you? We can help. Wepeople can help. Many delay establishing a thoughtful estate investment plan, thinking it doesn’t apply to them. Estate Is leaving well-planned important towithyou? investment planning isa about taking control of how yourlegacy assets are managed and distributed along deciding Manywill people delay establishing a thoughtful estate plan, thinking it doesn’t apply to them. Estate who handle these tasks when you are unable to investment do so. investment planning is about taking control of how your assets are managed and distributed along with deciding We can help. whoBarrett will handle these tasks Fargo when you are unable to doyou so. through the estate investment planning process through The Group of Wells Advisors can guide open understanding the basics, sharing values and We’ll assistEstate you in Manycommunication, people delay establishing a thoughtful estate investment plan,organizing thinking itdocuments. doesn’t apply to them. The Barrett Group of leaving Wells Fargo Advisors can youyour through the estate investment planning process through clearly defining what legacy means toguide you your and family. investment planning is aboutataking control of how assets are managed and distributed along with deciding open communication, understanding the basics, sharing values and organizing documents. We’ll assist you in who will handle these tasks when you are unable to do so. clearly defining what leaving a legacy means to you and your family.

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Wells Fargo Advisors is not a legal or tax advisor. You should consult with your attorney, accountant and/or estate planner before taking any action. Wells Fargo Advisors is a trade name used by Wells Fargo Clearing Services LLC, Member SIPC, a registered broker-dealer and non-bank affiliate of Wells Fargo & Company. ©2021 Wells Fargo Clearing Services, LLC. All rights reserved. CAR-0221-00536

CONTENTS 10 PUBLISHER’S LETTER 16 COVER STORY

Tribute to Moms Dawn McKenna 18 Sue Nealy 22 Lisa Kolavenna 24 Tillie Bruss 25 Barb Thayer 26 Nancy Allodi 27 Bridget O’Meara 28 Rachel Barnish 29 Front-Line Physicians 30 Kristi Smith 33 Humble Beginnings 34

38 JIM FANNIN

Mom: Worlds Greatest Coach

42 BUSINESS

Conscious Capitalism Works

44 ENCORE

50 Capitols in 50 Days

50 ENCORE

MK Construction

54 ENCORE

Diveheart: Christ of the Deep

58 OUTDOORS

Morton Arboretum’s Calendar of events

61 LOCAL HAPPENINGS

Brookfield Zoo: Dinosaurs Everywhere

ON THE COVER: Dawn McKenna, Founder of Dawn McKenna Group

FOR THE LATEST NEWS, HAPPENINGS AND PHOTOS, VISIT WWW.HINSDALEMAG.COM 12

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3 Grant Square, #201 Hinsdale, IL 60521 630-655-3400 www.HinsdaleMag.com Serving Hinsdale, Burr Ridge, Clarendon Hills and Oak Brook. No person, organization or publication can copy or re-produce the content in this magazine or any part of this publication without a written consent from the publisher. The publisher, authors, contributors and designers reserve their rights with regards to copyright of their work. Hinsdale Magazine, Inc. assumes no liability or responsibility for any inaccurate, delayed or incomplete information. The information contained about each individual, event or organization has been provided by such individual, event organizers or organization. The opinion expressed in each article is the opinion of its author and does not necessarily reflect the opinion of Hinsdale Magazine, Inc. Comments are welcome, but they should be on-topic and well-expressed. Copyright ©2021 Hinsdale Magazine, Inc. All rights reserved.

Hinsdale Magazine | Tribute to Moms

HinsdaleMag.com | HINSDALE MAGAZINE

Tribute to Moms

We have made this May issue of Hinsdale Magazine a tribute to Mom. After all, she brought you into this world. Above all, she loves you and created surroundings which are warm, secure and nurturing.

Every Mom, of course, has been coping with the pandemic and how it has affected their lives and their family’s lives. That alone deserves a tribute.

There are those who feel their primary calling is to manage their home and the growth of their children…awesome responsibilities. Then there are those, who not only meet that challenge, but go beyond their family to contribute their talents and energy. Some run a business, work in a business, take on duties as a principal or teacher, work in research of some kind, or work in

health care. Some work or volunteer for a non-profit. Today, there are Moms in every field. Then there are those who take a totally different path. In our collection of stories, we have a Mom who took time out to fly small planes all over the world. In any event, Moms are important to all of us for a whole lot of reasons. Enjoy the stories. And...thank you, Moms!

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Hinsdale Magazine | Tribute to Moms

DAWN MCKENNA OF THE DAWN MCKENNA GROUP 18

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IS IT LUCK? Or Something Else? The Secret of the Dawn McKenna Group BY LARRY ATSEFF

prah Winfrey is fond of saying, “I believe luck is preparation meeting opportunity. If you haven’t been prepared when the opportunity comes along, you wouldn’t have been lucky.” That sums up her phenomenal success.

There’s a local parallel. Meet Dawn McKenna, founder of the Dawn McKenna Group, of Burr Ridge, which is destined this year to again claim the title as the number one residential real estate team in Illinois.

instead of carpeting…she was ahead of her time. Anyway, she liked to go to real estate open houses and took me a long, looking for ideas. Before we went out, she always made sure we were nicely dressed because we had to ‘look the part’. She also took me to department stores to look at the latest in furniture and design.” Dawn recalls, “All of this stuck with me later on as I worked from home as a freelance interior designer raising three boys and a daughter.”

admitted it wasn’t easy keeping all those numbers in her head, but she learned how to handle it. In her senior year at the University of Illinois, Champaign, when her roommates who were business majors were getting ready to go to a job fair, she said she was going to join you. They said, “You’re a liberal-arts major, you don’t have a chance.” She showed up, resume in hand, and stopped at every major corporation booth at the fair. On that resume was that Board of Trade experience.

“All of this stuck with me later on as I worked from home as a freelance interior designer raising three boys and a daughter.”

We recently sat down with Dawn in an on-line interview to learn how a mom of four has balanced managing a household and growing a group of 25 people into a real estate powerhouse, from Florida to the North Shore, to downtown Chicago to the western suburbs in less than 8 years.

According to Dawn, when she was growing up, her father, a teacher, and her mother, a homemaker repeatedly told her that hard work, and outworking the others will be the keys to success. Also, they told her, with her personality and energy, and smarts, she will succeed. “By the time I was 8, I believed I could do anything. My mom also taught me about preparation. She had a flair for design; our little Cape Cod had factory windows and hardwood floors

- DAWN MCKENNA, Founder Dawn McKenna Group

At Mother McAuley Catholic High School, she got good grades and got into the routine of working hard. One day, she visited the floor of the Chicago Board of Trade, watching the fast pace in the “wheat pit”. She loved the excitement and said to herself ‘I would like to try this.’ While there were no women on the trading floor, she asked around and said she wanted to learn. Told again that there are no women, she persisted until they gave her a chance. The job as a broker’s assistant helped pay her way through college. She

She came out with an offer from Northern Trust to work in their high net worth trust department. Preparation! Her trading floor experience had helped. It paid off, and she spent three years at Northern Trust.

Once her second child was born, she left the Northern Trust to raise a family and stay at home, freelancing as an interior designer. She wasn’t making money, but she found that combining an eye for design with a natural, honest way of getting people to trust her is also the best way to sell. So, in addition to smarts and energy, she found that her genuine interest in helping people comes through. Dawn calls it “authenticity”. (To see it for yourself,

Continued on next page HINSDALE MAGAZINE | HinsdaleMag.com

Hinsdale Magazine | Tribute to Moms Continued from previous page watch her 40-minute Zoom interview at https://youtu.be/cJOzWEVEzfI One day she told her husband, “I found a couch I want, but it is $20,000.” His reply: “We can’t afford that.” Since she was also starting to take an interest in real estate, she said, if “I sell a onemillion-dollar house, at 2.5%, I will make the $25,000.” So she studied hard and got that real estate license. And, along comes the next opportunity. It wasn’t long before one of the ladies she was doing interior design for was getting ready to sell her home, and she said to Dawn, “I want you to sell it. I trust you.” The rest is history. She walked into Coldwell Banker with her 4 kids in tow and said she wanted to sell a house so she can buy a couch. Dawn was off and running in real estate with the sale of her friend’s $4.8 million home. She became Coldwell Banker’s Rookie of the year in 2003. As she has gained more experience and more success, she has come away with three constant goals. “First and foremost, has been my family and I am most proud of that. My boyfriend in high school has become my husband for 30 years. I have a girl and 3 wild boys, but they’re great. In real estate, the money’s great, but my

marriage and my family are intact and nothing is more important to us. They say you’re only as happy as your least happy kid, and it’s true. People respect all of that.” “Second, the overall objective of the Dawn McKenna Group is to help people, from nest to nest; from renting starter apartments, to their first home, to the next home to meet their needs, to a vacation home, to a home where they can enjoy their retirement”. She has a team that goes around to colleges offering expertise in first rentals because they are later going to be looking for that first home, and so on. Today, her team manages over 500 rentals at different price levels. Along the way, she has also learned how valuable honesty can be. She says, “I have talked people out of deals and homes because I just didn’t feel it was right for them. I consider myself a ‘match maker’, and I want to bring the right family together with the right home.” “I treat you like you are coming to my home. I want you to feel welcome, take your shoes off, enjoy good food and drink and music and enjoy our time together.” “My third goal is to recognize my limits and to surround myself with people who can do things better than I

can do them, and focus on what I do best. My husband saw that potential and helped me with this goal, and it has helped me scale up the business.”

It all has worked like a charm. At Coldwell Banker, for example, Dawn found two brokers who were very experienced in handling the very important routines that go with buying and selling homes but were not as interested in selling, which is Dawn’s strength. Anne Wiemeler and Lillian Nawas have been with Dawn for almost 20 years, and there have been years when just the three of them were doing $150 to $175 million a year. Other instances where opportunity has met preparation: Vacationing in Naples, FL, Dawn early on saw the trend of outmigration from Illinois, which led to her opening a Dawn McKenna Group office in Naples, Florida. Enough clients asked about the North Shore, so she opened Dawn McKenna Group offices in Winnetka and Lake Forest. It all has blossomed. Now, some people want to move out of the city, some people want to move into the city, others are flocking to the warmth of southwest Florida, while people wanting the North Shore have now learned of Dawn and her team and their expertise in dealing with highend real estate. To manage it all, she has carefully added people, who care, as she does, and in 2016 she formed the Dawn McKenna Group. It works so well that Dawn is justly proud of the fact the group is on track to do $800 million this year.

So is it luck? Not really. Just like her Mom and Dad said, outwork the others, use your smarts, your natural honesty, and authenticity to win people over. Then, as her husband said, scale it up with others who complement what you do, and who have a similar caring attitude. And that’s how preparation has successfully met opportunity for Dawn McKenna and her team. ■

William, Andrew, Fiona, Dawn, Jack and Steve McKenna 20

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Hinsdale Magazine | Tribute to Moms

TAKING FLIGHT

Mom flies small planes all over the world–Twice! BY LARRY ATSEFF PHOTOGRAPHY BY KEITH FRENCH 22

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his is the story of Sue Nealey, a mom who considered raising her two children, (and now helping with grandkids) as her primary focus, but she went beyond. Way beyond. She became a pilot of small planes, and made not one, but two, extremely challenging trips across the world with another lady of like mind in the 90’s.

What drove her? Sue, now, 71, grew up the daughter of a father who worked as a sheet metal worker. She admits to a very strong curiosity, so she watched as he showed her how to perform handyman tasks around the house. It came naturally to her to learn both the “how and why” of working with tools. Her mom, a positive thinker, instilled a confidence that if she put her mind to it, she could do it. Curiosity and “I can do anything” are pretty strong motivators.

started taking lessons every chance she got and found she was a natural and just loved flying. When she went out on dates, her first requirement became, “We have to go fly.” She got her pilot’s license in 1970. (To put this in perspective, since the start of flying there have been about 7% of the population worldwide has a pilot’s license. Of that number, about 3% are women pilots)

at least, she always smiled when I strapped her in.” All the while, she was getting more flying hours in, taking flying vacations to Florida. Along the way, in 1989 she met Faith Hillman, a pilot for Continental Airlines, and Faith told her about a rally/ race that called for small plane to pilots and follow the airmail route from London to Australia in 1990. (Go to hinsdalemag. com to read the article of the trip that Sue wrote. Included during the trip was a big assist from then King Hussein of Jordan. There, you will also be able to read how she and Faith set several world records when they flew as the ‘Winged Desire Air Race ‘ team over 22 days Around the World.”

“I got a chance to take a ride in a small Bonanza airplane. There was a control between me and the pilot, and once we were in the air, he said, take the wheel. ‘You got it’.”

When she was 16 or so, she recalls, “I got a chance to take a ride in a small Bonanza airplane. There was a control between me and the pilot, and once we were in the air, he said, take the wheel. ‘You got it’. I couldn’t believe the thrill of actually steering a plane through the air. It was such a ‘high’”. She was hooked and

- SUE NEALEY

Eventually, she married and became part of the Nealey Air Show where she also learned how to fly planes doing aerobatics with loops and rolls. She has flown many makes and models of aerobatic airplanes. She smiles as she admits, “I have gotten my son into flying, a licensed pilot now and next my daughter is ready to learn to fly. Early on she was not happy flying but

As she puts, “Those two exploits helps build one’s character. Keep in mind in 1990 we were flying vintage small planes, without the electronic guidance systems of today, we flew just like the old pioneer pilots did.” With her grown children close-by in her home/airplane hanger at Downers Grove called Brookeridge Aero Park, she is happy to baby-sit and qualify as a pilot to continue to fly the planes sitting in the hanger. She is also writing a book about her pilot experiences and dreams of it being a movie. ■

Tim Nealey, His son Brayden, Aylin MacDonald, in the front seat of airplane Summer MacDonald, and back seat Sue Nealey HINSDALE MAGAZINE | HinsdaleMag.com

Hinsdale Magazine | Tribute to Moms

Madhu, Jaina (12), Lisa, Jahnavi (8) front, Jeevan (15)

Lisa Kolavennu Wellness House BY LARRY ATSEFF

“G

rowing up, I was lucky to witness the joy that comes with helping others. Having parents who worked in education and volunteered as Little League coaches and Sunday School teachers for my sisters and me, I didn’t have to look far to find role models in the community,” said Lisa Kolavennu, MA, LCPC, Executive Director, Wellness House. Lisa studied psychology in undergraduate and graduate school,

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knowing she wanted to support people at the intersection of emotional and physical health. Just before becoming a mother, she learned her father had been diagnosed with stage IV cancer. It didn’t take long to decide that a career in psychosocial oncology fulfilled both her personal and professional passion. Today, Lisa is the mother of three children, Jeevan (15), Jaina (12) and Jahnavi (8). “For me, the very best times are the times spent with my family, be it on cheering on the sidelines, enjoying a performance on stage, or fiercely

competing at home during family game nights.” Balancing the family’s busy activity schedules with her own career at Wellness House is challenging, yet worth it. She describes her work at Wellness House as the most rewarding career she could imagine and is proud of the example she can set for her own children. “It’s important to me that my children see women in leadership roles in our community. Having the opportunity to also make a difference in the lives of those impacted by cancer is a perfect fit for me.” ■

Tillie Bruss

Mom, Gardener, Owner Of Landscape Company BY LARRY ATSEFF

here has never been a better first name for a female owner of a landscape company than Tillie.

Tillie was born into a family of landscapers. Her grandfather, Carl Bruss and father Bill Bruss have been in the business since Carl started his nursery and landscaping company in 1952. Apparently, Bill hoped by naming his daughter Tillie, perhaps she would follow suit. She did: “As a teen, I worked through school at The Planter’s Palette, in Winfield. This cultivated my love for perennials, perennial gardens and gardening in general. From there I graduated from the University of Illinois with a degree in Ornamental Horticulture and Landscape Design. She joined the family business in 1999, the only woman on staff. “I got plenty of practical experience, learned how to create beautiful landscape and garden designs and I developed a knack for listening. Instead of taking the easy way and recommending ‘just tear it all out’, and imposing a design, I decided I would take another approach and listen carefully to a client’s ideas, and use the knowledge and ideas from myself and my team to come back with a more thoughtful design.”

garden they will really enjoy, whether it is a flower garden, a vegetable garden, a rock garden, or a display of plantings.” After 17 several years in the family business, she decided to start on her own in 2017 with Tillie Bruss Landscapes. Slowly and surely, mostly through referrals, her business grew. Then, about three years ago, Jane Dilworth, who knew Tillie and recognized her talent and ways of treating clients, approached her about taking over Jane Dilworth & Associates, as Jane had decided to retire. Tillie points out that the transition has been seamless. “We approach projects the same way, and all of her very experienced team, from design to installation, were willing to stay on. We have an experienced design staff with Sue Krone, a registered Landscape Architect and Alison Eaton, a landscape designer. Our landscape crew has a been working together as a team for

close to 20 years with Jane Dilworth, which is unheard of in the industry.” While her focus is primarily residential landscaping, Tillie donates her talent and time improving surroundings around athletic fields and other non-profit locations which can use some outside beautification. Looking ahead, one of her four children, George, will be working on a crew this summer, and he’s thinking of Landscape Design as a college major. Summing up, you might say, Tillie likes to dig down because she knows that is the best way to come up with ideas that her customers really like. As she says, “I believe the best landscaper is one who is a gardener at heart and loves to play in the dirt.” ■

“It is pretty rewarding when I show people my recommendations and ask, ‘Is this what you had in mind?’” She laughs and says, “The response invariably is ‘This is so much more than I imagined’”. With Tillie, so much more can also mean beautiful gardens. She adds, “A lot of people are into gardening, and I especially like to help them with a

A picture of a proud Tillie Bruss and her husband and four children taken a couple of years ago...sometimes it is hard to get all the teens together. HINSDALE MAGAZINE | HinsdaleMag.com

Hinsdale Magazine | Tribute to Moms

Son Ben, husband Steve, daughter Sydney, Barb Thayer and son Ryan

Barb Thayer Candor Health Education BY LARRY ATSEFF

alancing a family and a career isn’t easy. I had a 13-year career in retail but made the difficult decision

my family needed. One thing led to another and I took a consulting role with Robert Crown Center for Health Education (RCC).

to stay home with my children after my third child was born. I loved being home with my children and getting involved in my community. I volunteered at my church, my children’s school, and other local organizations.

I was offered a permanent part-time position as a Special Event Coordinator at RCC. While this was never my career goal, the opportunity allowed me to do something I enjoyed, while working close to home with a wonderful organization in my own community.

When my kids were in school full time, I created a small business as a Professional Organizer. This allowed me the flexibility 26

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In 2013 a full-time position as Director of Operations was offered to me. The

timing was just right. My kids were old enough to help around the house and be home without me for short periods. In 2017, I became Executive Director of RCC and in August of 2020 we rebranded to Candor Health Education. I’m passionate about the mission of our organization and have an incredible team of co-workers. This job is a perfect fit for me! I’m happy to say that I have three very well-adjusted successful kids and look forward to the days of balancing my career at Candor and being a Grandmother!! ■

The Allodi Family; left to right Griffin, Jordan, Kevin, Nancy, Colin and A.J.

Nancy Allodi Buyer. Leader. Visionary BY JEN FOYE

ancy Allodi, owner of local women’s boutique Vintage Charm, wears many hats as a small business owner. But her role as mother to four boys has been the perfect complement to her flourishing business. Nancy was a stay-at-home mom to her four sons until the youngest was ten. She enjoyed every aspect of it and was convinced she was meant to be the mother of boys, although she would have also been thrilled to have a daughter. Sitting on bleachers, car pools and mending each injury (physical and emotional) were roles she cherished. And let’s face it, boys love their moms!

Along came Vintage Charm years later, which evolved from an antiques booth at Jackson Square Mall. Managing the connection between motherhood and business became an everyday task for Nancy. The store hours were initially 10 AM- 3 PM so Nancy could pick up two of her boys from elementary school. Prior to opening Vintage Charm, Nancy, then 45 years old, never worked in the retail industry and thought it would be fun for a while. Little did Nancy know that this store would fulfill her life in so many ways beyond what she could possibly imagine.

local business essence will always remain a top priority for Nancy. “Strong ties are kept within each community we are a part of, through philanthropic efforts, strong engagement with our customers, as well as partnerships with local artists.” says Nancy. She is proud to have Vintage Charm locations in the most amazing communities that cherish family, friends and community. Her boys are her biggest supporters now, just as she was their biggest fan growing up. “Everything has come full circle and I couldn’t feel more blessed.” says Nancy. ■

Vintage Charm has gown into a popular lifestyle brand and opened its fifth store location in 2018, but maintaining its HINSDALE MAGAZINE | HinsdaleMag.com

Hinsdale Magazine | Tribute to Moms

Liam, Finn, Seamus and then Bridget O'Meara and Brian

Bridget O’Meara On Managing A Home, Going Beyond, And Giving Back

here is no doubt that the way moms raise their children, run their household, and, in lots of cases, do even more outside of the home reflects how moms themselves have been raised. That certainly is the case with Bridget O’Meara, who lives with her husband Brian and three boys in Clarendon Hills. Bridget fondly recalls how her mom and dad created a warm, caring and organized home. “I always knew I was loved and protected within the walls of my childhood home. I was held accountable to high standards, but I knew my family always had my back”. Before the pandemic, Bridget spent 12 years as a contractor, supporting The Boeing Company’s corporate communications team. She worked on a wide array of domestic and international Human Resources projects, putting her master’s degree in integrated marketing communications from Northwestern to

HinsdaleMag.com | HINSDALE MAGAZINE

BY LARRY ATSEFF

valuable use. Now, Bridget has joined with two other women to develop a corporate social impact company. She remarks, “Our vision is to change the world through good deeds by helping companies create altruistic and inclusive cultures where employees’ passions drive workforce giving. We plan to beta test a few clients this year and officially launch in 2022. I’m super excited about this endeavor and its possibilities!”

Giving Back Is Personal Over and above all of this, giving back is very personal for Bridget and her husband Brian. After their second son was born with a serious heart condition, they established The Mend a Heart Foundation in 2006 to help enrich and extend the lives of children born with heart disease. The foundation supports congenital heart defect research, cardiac screenings in high schools, and residential camps for heart children and their families. Since the

O’Meara’s founded Mend a Heart, they have raised more than $1 million, in large part due to the generosity of people living in our community and neighboring areas. Bridget is especially proud of the fundraising work the Mend a Heart Junior Board, comprised of 24 high schoolers from various schools in the area, has done through a candy sale, shop ’n shares, and on-campus events this past year. They also gave back by creating care bags for frontline workers at Lurie Children’s Hospital and organizing a hat and mitten drive for needy heart families in the Chicagoland area. She says, “We’ve been fortunate to live in a community that’s been so good to us and supported Mend a Heart. At times it can get overwhelming trying to manage the foundation between work and family, but the foundation has enriched our family and connected us with so many impressive and generous physicians, researchers, donors and other heart families.” ■

Rachel Barnish How a mom became a leader BY LARRY ATSEFF

called Tami Abraham to talk with her about how she as a mother, and husband Terry just completed 20 successful years as owners of I Design Salon and Blow Dry Bar. She was quick to suggest that the mother that should be recognized who is really instrumental in the salon these days is Rachel Barnish. When you enter the doors of I Design, you are greeted by the friendly smile of Rachel and her front desk team. As a mother of 2, she is juggling motherhood as well as overseeing a 20 year small business. Rachel said, “I have been involved with the salon off and on for about half the time it has been in business, starting when I was a customer in 2010.” “It has been an evolution. I grew up as the youngest of 3, daughter to the oldest Koshgarian daughter, Terry, part of the family that runs a rug local cleaning business. Early on, I learned that when you take good care of customers, your business will grow.” “After I went to Iowa State in fashion merchandising for two years I soon figured out that wasn’t quite what I wanted to do as my career. Like many wise moms, my mom said, ‘You like the beauty industry, follow your passion’ That led to going to an aesthetics school in Oak Brook to get a license in skin care. At about the same time, in 2011, Terry Abraham heard about my interest

Tami Abraham, Rachel Barnish and Terry Abraham

in working at I Design and hired me as a receptionist part-time while also working at Nordstrom in the cosmetics department. Then something really clicked. Nordstrom is all about an exceptional customer experience and it was there that I learned how to listen to customers, what they were looking for, and addressing needs of clients. It was really rewarding when customers appreciated how I helped. After 3 years at Nordstrom, Terry and Tami asked if I would like to work full time at the salon and they would mentor me as the new Salon Director. I know they were impressed how I had learned to assist customers and work with others, plus the fact I was partial to a family-owned business vs. a large company.” Rachel puts it this way, “Terry told me he would challenge me to start making the tough decisions and he would always back me up. I needed to start treating the business as if it was my own. I couldn’t have asked for more as my mentors.” During her time at I Design, Rachel got married in 2017 and had her first baby a year later, and a second two years later, learning how to juggle the kids, daycare, and taking on more and more responsibilities at the salon. She had to be organized, structured and multi-task many responsibilities. Flash forward to 2020. After 20 years in business, the salon was scheduled for a full renovation. They started planning, working with designers

and contractors, and of course, also involving Rachel. She was put in charge to lead the project and work directly with the general contractor. Then COVID-19 hit in March. Of course, the salon had to close, but this was as good time as any, because that gave the Abrahams an empty location to renovate. They finished the renovation with its modern, new clean look the day before, on May 29, 2020 when I Design was allowed to reopen. The renovation was very timely, given all the emphasis on sanitation and clean store surroundings. “All the while”, Rachel points out, “I took on the responsibility to stay in touch with customers, installing curb side pick-up and deliver products directly to homes. I worked with the staff to make sure customers got their favorite stylist by organizing the database for the business from home, and coming in occasionally. I got to know our customers a lot better than I ever would have, and they got to know me. Same for the employees…we now have over 20. I learned to become more efficient at home, as my husband Cameron, a teacher, was also at home more. “I really grew. I love my career at the salon. They are my work family. As Terry always says, “If you love your job, you’ll never work a day in your life.” It’s really true.” And now, to top it off, she is expecting a third child in May. Rachel Barnish, a mom on the move. ■ HINSDALE MAGAZINE | HinsdaleMag.com

Hinsdale Magazine | Tribute to Moms

Front-line Physicians and Moms BY MIKE ELLIS PHOTOGRAPHY BY CAROLINA MENAPACE

Dr. Karis Tekwani of Clarendon Hills and Dr. Kate Paquette of Hinsdale 30

HinsdaleMag.com | HINSDALE MAGAZINE

n the spring of 2020, millions of faces across the nation were riveted to television screens following the progress of the Coronavirus pandemic.

From school closures and event cancellations, to daily tallies and hospitalization reports, Americans earnestly sought for whatever information they could glean regarding the global contagion that paralyzed society. But what has it been like actually treating the Coronavirus in the emergency room since the onset of the pandemic last year? HM visited with two local moms and emergency room physicians last month to discuss what has been the greatest challenge of their professional careers.

patients with the virus was that they were “hypoxic” and had a “very typical chest X-ray pattern.”

would stay home with their heart attack. They would stay home, because they were terrified of coming to the hospital.”

“Even before we had a name for it, we knew that there was this ‘thing’ going around,” she said.

Patients often arrived by ambulance, and physicians would travel from room to room visiting them, draped from head to toe in personal protective equipment.

Tekwani said the first Coronavirus patients they attended to were elderly individuals with gastrointestinal symptoms. “It was late February or early March when all of us in the ER started

“When caring for critically-ill Coronavirus patients, we attempted to minimize staff exposure, sometimes limiting to only one physician, one nurse and one respiratory therapist in the treatment room, especially during intubation,” Tekwani said.

“I didn’t want to get too close to my kids. I didn’t want to kiss them goodnight or sing to them. You just didn’t know if you were going be the one to get it, or how transmissible it was.”

Tekwani said initially, the Illinois Department of Public Health had to authorize testing any patient for Coronavirus, and applied “very strict testing criteria.”

“You might have been seeing people that were Dr. Karis Tekwani of likely COVID positive, but Clarendon Hills and Dr. you just couldn’t test them,” - DR. KARIS TEKWANI , Advocate Christ Medical Center Kate Paquette of Hinsdale are she said. “The increase in colleagues at Advocate Christ testing capability is really lifeMedical Center, a level-one trauma knowing that this was hitting and changing, and changed our practice center in southwest suburban Oak getting bad, even though we didn't have quite a bit.” the capability to test people quite yet,” Lawn. Paquette said the first wave of the she said. Both trained and completed their virus was particularly challenging to Paquette said she and her colleagues combat, “because we didn't know what residency in emergency medicine at grasped that the situation was rapidly we were up against.” Advocate Christ, and remained on worsening by early March. staff, because they enjoyed their work “I think at that time what made it environment. “I pulled my kids out of school the harder was that we were still learning Typically, in the emergency room, week before they shut down the schools, as well,” she said. “The system was still Tekwani said they see patients with just seeing what was going on at the learning, and we were trying to figure a host of “pain-related” complaints, hospital,” she said. out what the best way to treat people with common symptoms ranging from chest pain and shortness of breath, to headaches and fever. She said they have treated a variety of viruses, but not one as “unique” as the novel Coronavirus. In February 2020, Paquette said patients began arriving exhibiting flulike symptoms that were curiously testing negative for influenza. “As a community, we couldn't figure out why these people who we thought had the flu were testing negative for the flu,” she said. At that stage, the hospital lacked the ability to test for the Coronavirus, but Paquette said what distinguished

Once the shelter in place order was instituted in mid-March, Tekwani described the external atmosphere as “barren.” “Driving on the streets felt like you were in a Chicago blizzard, where there's no cars on the road, and you are the only one,” she said. With the Coronavirus spreading rampantly, many individuals forestalled care for other medical issues. In general, Tekwani said fewer patients were coming to the hospital, but all of those arriving were “critically ill” with Coronavirus symptoms. “People weren’t coming with general complaints,” she said. “They would stay home with their appendicitis; they

[was] without getting ourselves sick.” Both Tekwani and Paquette wore N95 masks their entire shift, plus a plastic gown, double gloves and a face shield when visiting patients. “It was uncomfortable, but in some ways, it reinforced my comfort with the disease, because I never got COVID,” Paquette said. When she arrived home, Tekwani said she was “showering from head to toe.” “I didn’t want to get too close to my kids,” she said. “I didn't want to kiss them goodnight or sing to them. You just didn't know if you were going be the one to get it, or how transmissible it was.”

Continued on next page HINSDALE MAGAZINE | HinsdaleMag.com

Continued from previous page Paquette and Tekwani estimated that the first wave of the virus peaked in April, with the period spanning March, April and May being what both physicians regarded as the worst of the pandemic. Tekwani said in their service region, the virus was spreading through nursing homes, and no one was vaccinated. “Those were by far the sickest people we’ve seen,” she said. Tekwani said she initially avoided the grocery store, because if she contracted the virus, there were a limited number of doctors who could step into her role on staff. “I think both of our social lives have definitely changed quite a bit,” she said, “and [we] had to give up activities that we enjoy doing for the benefit of society.” Paquette said the onslaught of protests and riots that occurred in late May and June added to an already unusual climate. “I went into work, and then called my husband and said, ‘I don’t know if I’m coming home; I might just stay at the hospital, because it's too dangerous to be outside,” she said. The imposition of fully remote learning from mid-March through the end of the 2019-20 school-year threw another hurdle at working parents. Paquette, mom to one child at Hinsdale Middle School and two children at The Lane Elementary School, had to cut her hours in half, because her childcare provider was also a healthcare worker, and she and her husband did not want to expose her to their children during that period. With her kids being enrolled in full remote learning since the beginning of the 2020-21 school-year, Paquette has been working only the 4 p.m. to 2 a.m. shift to supervise her children during remote schooling hours.

ophthalmologist, have been fortunate to have a nanny that has continued with their family, describing her as “amazing” and “life-saving” in assisting with her children’s virtual learning. “I think the district did a really nice job of making it to where the kids could do [their work] fairly independently, without needing a lot of hand-holding,” said Tekwani, whose two kids attend Walker Elementary School. “There’s a different level of parental involvement, but my kids have managed to become pretty independent and take on the responsibility [and] grow up a lot, I think, in the last year.” Tekwani said she and her husband opted to enroll their kids in the District 181 hybrid program last fall, but acknowledged that there was a lot of “uncertainty” in reaching their decision. Both Tekwani and Paquette have been impressed with the district’s success in implementing hybrid and now full inperson learning during the pandemic. “I think just based on numbers, what they’re doing is working,” Paquette said. Paquette said what was most “bizarre” was “juxtaposing what we were seeing at work with this death and this illness and this stress, and then seeing the real world outside the ER, where life was going on.” Tekwani said she heard accounts of the virus dwelling on eyelashes, so she would be extra careful to wash them off in the shower.

Throughout the pandemic, Tekwani said they have been encountering more mental health cases, including suicidal, homicidal, anxious, bipolar and depressed individuals. “Those things were exacerbated,” she said.

definitely

Like individuals in need of physical care, Tekwani said she believes those in need of mental health assistance were generally wary of going to the hospital at first, but “the further we’ve gone along, our mental health volume has skyrocketed.” “It’s just nonstop depression-anxiety admissions,” she said. “It’s gotten really bad.” Tekwani opined that the ongoing mental health crisis has been serious, but not to the same extent as the Coronavirus itself, adding that mental health complaints will likely “persist” for some time. Now in what is termed the third wave of the pandemic, Paquette said more young patients are being hospitalized at Advocate Christ than during the first two waves. The vaccine has reduced the prevalence and virulence of the infection, but Tekwani said she and her colleagues continue to be hesitant about the future, possessing limited knowledge regarding the new Coronavirus variants.

Since various iterations of Coronavirus vaccine were rolled out last fall, millions of Americans have been inoculated, which recently led to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) relaxing its outdoor mask recommendations.

Paquette said she has concerns about the fall, when she might possibly require a “booster” shot to reinforce viral immunity.

Tekwani said it’s been “pretty rare” for physicians at Advocate Christ to observe vaccinated individuals come to the emergency room with Coronavirus.

Tekwani exhorted individuals who have not yet been vaccinated to schedule an appointment.

She said she selected the full remote option, “because at that point, we still didn’t know if kids could be ‘superspreaders,’ and I didn’t want my kids to spread COVID through the schools.”

She said she has personally seen a “handful” of such patients thus far, most of which have had underlying conditions, and whose bodies perhaps failed to “mount as much of an immune response to the vaccine.”

Tekwani said she and her husband, an

Paquette said she has treated a couple

HinsdaleMag.com | HINSDALE MAGAZINE

of patients who had received their first vaccine doses, but did not yet have the full immunity of their second dose.

She said the past year has been “hard,” both personally and professionally.

Paquette said it is not uncommon for people to experience fever and muscle aches from the vaccine, but these symptoms typically dissipate rapidly. “The more people [that] get vaccinated, the brighter the future for us,” Tekwani said. “I’m looking forward to that day.” ■

Hinsdale Magazine | Tribute to Moms

Kristi Smith, center, with daughters Averie and Alex

Kristi Smith

Women’s Clothing Store Entrepreneur BY KRISTI SMITH

never received the calling to be a “stay at home mom”. My mother worked full time as I was growing up and she was a terrific mother. She was not only a loving and supportive mom, but she taught me an incredible work ethic. Fortunately, she is still all of these things to me, and I am positive I inherited her same genes. Work was not a choice for my family and continues to be a necessity. I am fortunate that I love what I do. When you enjoy your work, it all falls into place even being a good mom. Mom guilt is real, but my kids know that I love them. I have always made time for them. After getting home from work, dinner together is always a must. When they were younger, I was there to kiss their boo boo’s, sing silly songs with them, and

read them bedtime stories. As they got older, helping them with homework was an every day occurrence. Extra curricular activities was harder to attend, but it didn’t stop me. You work it out with carpooling, attending soccer games before work, and possibly showing up late to a game after work. Owning Sweet William is not only something that I treasure and love doing, it has proven to my girls that you can still be both a successful working mother, and a loving and supportive mom. Surviving this pandemic has probably been one of my biggest challenges and accomplishments I have ever faced. After such a challenging time, Sweet William is still here and my daughters are both excelling in school and in their lives. I am blessed to have such a strong support system through my Sweet

William family and customers. Having this has also proved to my daughters that when you work hard for the people you love, you will most always succeed. My daughters are both young adults now at 17 and 21, and have made me extremely proud. Alex is a junior studying biology, health and sciences at SMU and Averie will be attending Savannah College of Art and Design in the fall majoring in fashion merchandising. They now support me with words of encouragement and expressing how proud they are for me to be their mom. Wow! There is no other feeling as good as that in an entire lifetime. I must add that they both love Sweet William as much as I do! ■

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Hinsdale Magazine | Tribute to Moms

ANNEMARIE RUIZ AND HER DAUGHTER LILIANA

Humble Beginnings 34

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ooking at the Ruiz family’s charming Dutch Colonial home in Downers Grove, you would never guess that their garage was filled with 75 50-pound bags of citric acid or that their basement is the creation lab and warehouse for handmade skincare products carried at over 150 boutiques and spas across the nation. However, as any delivery person or guest to the Ruiz home can attest, once the front door opens, your nose knows. “Everyone says our house smells amazing,” Annemarie Ruiz, Humble Organics and Humble Botanics founder, said. “We don’t light any candles in our house – our house already smells like something all the time.” Ruiz explained that her business was born out of both necessity and desire. From the time her daughter (and now business partner) – Liliana – was a baby, she had eczema. “A hippie at heart, I went to look for products that were more natural for her, but I was disheartened at what I found on the shelf,” Ruiz said. So, Ruiz started researching and experimenting, and she ultimately formulated a topical treatment that alleviated Liliana’s eczema. She also gifted some to friends and family, and they gave it rave reviews. Ruiz found that the topical blend she developed worked not just for eczema but for any skin type. She thought, “Wouldn’t it be great to start a business with this?” Ruiz was working as a full-time food photographer and director of food photography for an advertising agency while also caring for her three young

children at the time, though. Besides Liliana, her firstborn who is now 10 years old, Ruiz also has two sons: Luca and Nolan. Ruiz absolutely loved being a food photographer and mentor within the food photography industry, and she cherished many of her colleagues, but “the demand of that career was really impeding on [her] home life,” she said. In 2018, Ruiz left her photography position, took the concept that was “a twinkle in [her] eye years before,” and officially launched Humble Organics. Its sister line, Humble Botanics, was added later. Not only did her newly minted business allow her to “make a product that was good for people and good for the environment,” Ruiz said, but it also provided a platform through which to give back to the community. Liliana explained that they donate five percent of all of their profits to LYDIA Home, a non-profit organization that functions as a safe haven for children. Ruiz also benefits from being able to work from home and arrange her workdays around her children’s schedules. The business, which is mother-daughter run, also lends to Ruiz and Liliana spending much meaningful and productive time together. “Liliana has always been my helper. This is something we could do together...and it teaches her a lot about the business side of things,” Ruiz said. Liliana - who primarily helps with production of bath bombs, body butters, lip balms, and a 3-in-1 pouched gift set, along with fulfilling orders – said she has been working with her mom “since the beginning”

and loves it. Besides getting to spend quality time with her mom, one of Liliana’s favorite aspects of the business is “making boxes and creating packaging – it’s kind of like art.” While Ruiz and Liliana are most involved in the business, it is a full family effort. Ruiz’s husband, Jeremy, helped generate the brand’s name. When brainstorming adjectives to go before “Organics,” he said “Humble,” and Ruiz thought it was perfect. “That’s us…from humble beginnings. We aren’t coming into this business with millions of dollars… we just work hard as a family and put every ounce of everything into it,” Ruiz said. Jeremy designs the packaging for all of the products, and he was the one who proposed the idea of making bath bombs, now Humble Botanics’ bestselling product. The Ruiz’s’ sons help with various tasks like taking the stickers off the labels and fulfilling orders. The boys and Liliana also get frequent visits from “the lotion fairy,” as Ruiz jokingly refers to herself. She often lathers Liliana up with body butter or puts lip balm on the boys while they are sleeping. Though the Ruiz family truly enjoys running the business, it requires significant time and effort. Ruiz works 60-80 hours per week. At the beginning, in addition to hand-making the products, she would walk into various shops in order to get them on shelves. Ruiz is grateful to some of the earliest local vendors to carry Humble Organics and Continued on next page

How Annemarie Ruiz and her daughter built a business out of their Downers Grove home BY VALERIE HARDY PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY OF HUMBLE ORGANICS HINSDALE MAGAZINE | HinsdaleMag.com

Continued from the previous page Humble Botanics products, including Adorn 512 (Downers Grove), Vintage Charm (Clarendon Hills, Hinsdale, La Grange), and The Collective (Lisle). The business’s big break, however, came when Social Sparkling Wine – another woman-owned, Chicagobased company - asked to include the Humble brand’s bath bombs within its rose-inspired box sets. These sets are carried at select Meijer and Whole Foods locations. Ruiz learned how to scale up when the Social Sparkling Wine opportunity arose. She brought on help from additional family members, friends, and teens from the neighborhood to produce over 12,000 bath bombs in five and a half weeks. Now her focus is on “getting in these [big box] retailers with [just her own] brand – instead of within another brand’s box set.” For 2021, Ruiz has already taken a giant step toward achieving this goal. Humble products will begin being carried at numerous Whole Foods stores in the Midwest region later this year.

THE PRODUCT LINE OF HUMBLE ORGANICS CONTINUES TO EVOLVE.

A number of new products are also coming soon, including a Humble Botanics kids’ bath bomb line, “which is going to be a game-changer,” Ruiz said. “We’re also working on new body butter scents and a cinnamon-scented lip balm.” Ruiz already recently reached one of her other major goals: getting the Humble Organics brand USDA certified. Ruiz also secured Leaping Bunny certification for her products, all of which are cruelty-free. For more information, visit humble-organics.com. ■

BATH BOMBS ARE A TOP-SELLING ITEM FOR THE HUMBLE ORGANICS. 36

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TURN FRUSTRATION INTO CONFIDENCE R or emot In e Ses -Offic sio e ns

Sarina M. Renaldi & Associates, Inc. LEARNING SPECIALIST SERVICES

Individualized Assessment and Specialized Intervention for Children and Adolescents with Learning Disabilities Dyslexia • Reading Comprehension • Written Language Math • ADHD/Executive Functioning • Nonverbal LD Autism Spectrum • Gifted-Enrichment Educational Consultation • Test Prep Remote or In-Office Sessions Sarina M. Renaldi, M.A., M.S.T. | 11 N GRANT ST, HINSDALE 630.323.4480 | SRENALDI@AOL.COM HINSDALE MAGAZINE | HinsdaleMag.com

Hinsdale Magazine | Tribute to Moms

Mom: World’s

Greatest Coach

BY JIM FANNIN 38

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rom the moment you took your first breath she was there...smiling ever so bright. Her voice soothed you. Her touch guided and comforted you. Mom was the first person you saw when you opened your eyes and the last person when you fell asleep. She coached you day after day to be the genuine, authentic, best person you could be. A mother’s impact on a child’s life is immeasurable. All your thoughts were formed from the mirror image of her care and concern. Mom molded your manners and hygienic routines, even screaming with delight when you finally made it to the big potty. She coached your ability to communicate. She taught you the alphabet, selected your kid’s shows, and oversaw basic learning. Most of all, your mother filled your mind with possibilities. Your dreams were fueled by her unconditional belief in you.

Mom let you fail many times, only to pick you up after the lesson was learned. These moments were your greatest gifts. Through your failings and her guidance, you learned the dynamics of risk and reward that you probably still use today. Mom taught you about family and tradition and you value these family rituals because of her. She made the holidays and birthdays special and they radiate in your memory like they were yesterday. Mom has been behind the scenes in the reality movie of your life. She was the executive producer and director. She helped you write and re-write the script. With every chapter of your life that ended she was always there at

Before you went to college Mom worked the phones and the Internet to help you find the best school. She traveled across the country with you researching every campus. As you went to college, Mom helped organize your dorm room or living quarters on campus. She sent you care packages of food, supplies and of course, love. Even after college, Mom and Dad let you live at home until you landed a job and could survive on your own. Mom governed this “live-in situation” until you finally made your own life pathway. Money? Even though you might not have deserved it, Mom always reached into her purse to flip you an extra $10, $20 or $50. Simultaneously, Mom had another life. Most of us never considered this. Your “Super Mom” was also a “significant other” spouse, mother to your siblings, daughter to your grandparents, sister to her siblings, leader in her own business or executive in a corporate world of stress and unpredictability, great friend, civic leader, charitable advocate, PTA president, homemaker, chef, cleaning crew, private chauffeur, COVID-19 medical advisor, clothing consultant, drill sergeant, swim coach, soccer coach, tennis coach, and of course, compassionate and helpful neighbor.

“Your Mom helped you focus your energies on the tasks at hand and made you aware when you were off-track.”

Mom (although many Dads have this role) placed you on a pathway of ultimate self-discipline. She yelled, pleaded, begged, demanded, punished, rewarded, hugged, and kissed positive ways of living a simple, balanced and abundant life into the fabric of your mind. Your decisionmaking ability today was born and reared by Mom.

Approximately at the age of five, Mom (while managing all of her other life arenas) helped you navigate the social interactions and drama of being in school for the first time. She organized your schedule of food, playtime, school programs, and other extracurricular sports, art, music and other activities. Your Mom helped you focus your energies on the tasks at hand and made you aware when you were off-track. She planted seeds of belief, expectancy, and knowing that have grown into the confident person you are today.

- JIM FANNIN

the beginning of the next one. And through each page until now, your Mom has never asked for credit. She always let you be the star. Her sacrifices mostly went unnoticed and not once did she complain or demand attention. As a teenager, you probably placed your Mother on a roller coaster of emotions, as she watched you grow. Even though you tested her in every way, her intuition never wavered in its relentless pursuit of your overall wellbeing. This is nothing short of amazing.

Now we know why the biggest and toughest athletes always say, “Hi Mom” to the camera when they appear on national television. Moms of Hinsdale and surrounding communities…you are the world’s greatest coaches. We love you, revere you, and thank you! ■

Mom was at every major event in your life. She cheered for you when you were failing, and she beamed with pride when you were a success. She has been the one constant in a world of variables. Your mother’s consistency was remarkable.

HINSDALE MAGAZINE | HinsdaleMag.com

HM MEDICALPROFILES SPECIAL ADVER TISING FEATURE

James Nitti, MD Obstetrics-Gynecology

Locations 133 E. Brush Hill Rd., Suite 205, Elmhurst 932 Lake St., Suite 300, Oak Park Phone 331.221.1700 Web EEHealth.org

JAMES S. NITTI, MD, a board-certified obstetrician and gynecologist, sees patients at Elmhurst Memorial Medical Group’s offices in Elmhurst and Oak Park. Dr. Nitti is accepting patients at 133 E. Brush Hill Rd. Suite 205 in Elmhurst and 932 Lake St., Suite 300 in Oak Park. To schedule an appointment, visit EEHealth.org/ find-a-doctor or call (331) 221-1700. To schedule an appointment with Dr. Nitti, visit EEHeealth.org/Schedule or call (331) 221-1700. “Providing thorough obstetric and gynecology care with dedication and communication is my primary philosophy,” says Dr. Nitti. “I am driven to provide the most up to date, well communicated and comprehensive care to all of my patients. Every woman who gets their care from me will have a thorough and educated experience.”

About

Dr. Nitti earned his medical degree from Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science in Chicago. He completed his internship and residency at Rush University Medical Center. Dr. Nitti’s clinical interests include female urology/incontinence, da Vinci robotics, laparoscopy, menstrual problems, minimally invasive surgery, hysterectomy, obstetrics/gynecology, oral contraceptive/birth control and women’s health. Elmhurst Memorial Medical Group (EMMG) is a physician practice of Edward-Elmhurst Health with 16 board certified physicians who provide primary care for infants through seniors. EMMG has offices in Elmhurst, Hinsdale and Oak Park. For more information, visit EEHealth.org/EMMG.

HM MEDICALPROFILES SPECIAL ADVER TISING FEATURE

Sana Syed, DO Neurology

Locations 8 Salt Creek Ln., Suite 301, Hinsdale 1200 S. York St., Suite 3280, Elmhurst Phone 331.221.9095 Web EEHealth.org

SANA SYED, DO, a board-certified neurologist, sees patients at Elmhurst Neurosciences Institute offices in Hinsdale and Elmhurst. Dr. Syed is accepting new patients at the Institute’s offices in the Edward-Elmhurst Health Center, 8 Salt Creek Ln. in Hinsdale and at 1200 S. York Rd., Suite 3280 in Elmhurst. To schedule an appointment with Dr. Syed, visit EEHeealth.org/Schedule or call (331) 221-9095. “My patient care philosophy is for patients to participate in their own neurological care with emphases on patient knowledge and autonomy,” says Dr. Syed.

About

Dr. Syed earned her degree in Osteopathic Medicine from the New York Institute of Technology and completed her internship and residency at the Cleveland Clinic Foundation. Dr. Syed is a member of the American Academy of Neurology. Dr. Syed’s clinical interests include Alzheimer’s, carpal tunnel syndrome, concussion, epilepsy, headaches, mild traumatic brain injuries, paresthesia/neuropathy, Parkinson’s disease, seizure disorders, stroke and syncope.

Elmhurst Neurosciences Institute experts provide world-class care for diseases, disorders and injuries of the brain, spinal cord and nervous system. The Institute’s neurologists, neurosurgeons, neurointerventionalists and physiatrists use a team approach to address the many different aspects of each patient’s health and well-being. For more information, visit EEHealth.org/Services/Neuro. The $20 million, three-floor, 33,000-square-foot Edward-Elmhurst Health Center in Hinsdale, which opened in 2016, provides numerous other services, including Immediate Care, primary care physicians and specialists, Linden Oaks Behavioral Health, imaging (digital x-rays, mammograms, ultrasound, DEXA bone density scan), physical therapy and lab. Edward-Elmhurst Immediate Care is a convenient option for nonlife-threatening illnesses and injuries such as cuts, broken bones, high fevers, minor burns, earaches, colds, flu, sinus infections and urinary tract infections, among others. Our Immediate Care provides a calm, quiet atmosphere where expert care meets exceptional convenience. We treat all ages, including infants and young children. No appointment is necessary. For more information, visit EEHealth.org/Hinsdale or call (331) 221-2500.

Hinsdale Magazine | Business

Conscious Capitalism Works Ginger Wheeler, Larry Atseff, Bob Smith, Roy Spencer, Jim Fannin, Mickey Straub, Scott Jonlich, Tom Martyn, Ed Letourneau, Jr., Tom Barcelona, Ed Letourneau, Sr. and Griffen Wilson BY LARRY ATSEFF PHOTOGRAPHY BY MARCELLO RODARTE

n April 23, Hinsdale Magazine presented a seminar on Conscious Capitalism, featuring Roy Spencer, President and Founder of Perma-Seal, and Jim Fannin, America’s ZoneCoach©. Publisher Scott Jonlich moderated the event, held at Perma-Seal headquarters. Here are the key takeaways from the seminar. Roy Spencer, opened the seminar by first defining what Conscious Capitalism really is.

It is based on four goals: 1. Higher Purpose. Businesses should exist for a noble purpose beyond simply making money.

2. Follow a Stakeholder Model. Instead of rewarding just shareholders, truly care about your employees, your vendors, your customers and your environment/ 42

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surroundings/community, as well as shareholders…for everyone’s mutual benefit

3. Companies Need Conscious Leadership, with a focus on “we”, not “me”…leading from the top.

4. Create a Conscious Culture where employees are engaged. He said, unfortunately we have an “epidemic of apathy”. He quoted a Gallup Poll that showed about 30% of the employees in average companies are engaged, 50% are not engaged…it is just a job, and 20% are disengaged and are often working against their company. He then gave everyone a short history lesson on how civilization and economies have evolved. For almost all of recorded time, the goal for mankind has been simple survival. About 98% of the people over the millenia, have barely lived at a subsistence level.

But then, in 1776 two key things happened. First, leaders in the thirteen colonies in what is now the United States, declared independence from England, to get out from under tyranny and seek freedom. The second thing was the publication of a book called “The Wealth of Nations”, by Adam Smith. It is an economic handbook, still followed today, where Smith argued that when you give everyone freedom to produce and exchange goods as they please (free trade) and open up markets to domestic and foreign competition, people’s natural self-interest will promote greater prosperity rather than with stringent regulation. These two events became the catalyst for the Industrial Revolution so that, world-wide, poverty today is down to 16% instead of up at 98%, life expectancy has doubled, and 84% of the world’s population is literate. That

is progress by any standard. But things aren’t perfect with capitalism. In the last 20 years, or so, companies have started to evolve beyond simply making money. International groups like Conscious Capitalism have formed, and a book called “Firms of Endearment” has shown that Conscious Capitalism is good for a company’s bottom line.

world class athletes to be champions in virtually all sports, all over the world. Fortune 500 companies have followed Jim’s advice in helping leaders and employees to become better, more productive persons.

be successful. And, he says, “Take time out to ‘Think about what you think about’”. He pointed out that the pandemic has had an adverse effect on our collective psyche. It is estimated that 74% of the US population has symptoms of chronic depression. That’s what happens when you think too much and spend too much time alone, and not engaged with others.

He related that a study he commissioned among youngsters unveiled this finding: most of your Firms of Endearment have learning takes place in your early years outperformed S&P 500 by 14 times, and the reason for that is that you are and Good to Great Companies by 6 focused. You have no past to worry He said, “Follow this simple formula about, you don’t think about the future, times, over 15 years that has worked for decades, you are in Then, Roy said this, “Unfortunately, the “here based on this acronym Firms of Endearment have outperformed capitalism today has a poor image. and now.” S.C.O.R.E.” the S&P 500 by 14 times and Good to Movies like “Wall Street” Great Companies by 6 times, over 15 “S stands for Selfyears have portrayed business Discipline, C stands for Cumulative Performance 15 years 10 years 5 years 3 years as ruthless and out for Concentration, O stands US Firms of Endearment 1681% 410% 151% 83% nothing but profit. People for Optimism, R stands for have been taught that Int'l Firms of Endearment 1181% 512% 154% 47% Relaxation, and E stands capitalism is bad, and that Good to Great Companies 263% 176% 158% 222% for Enjoyment. When socialism is better. Most you are disciplined and S&P 500 118% 107% 61% 57% people in this country concentrate, you can look Source: Firms of Endearment, by Raj Sisodia, Jag Sheth and David B. Wolfe haven’t seen socialism forward with optimism, personally, unless they And when you focus, you are like a you can relax, and then you can enjoy.” have come from a socialist country. sponge, you learn. “When you get into this discipline, it That’s why so many people want to In coaching world class athletes, he enables you to more successfully focus come here. So, a big part of making the asked why they succeed and they said, on a physical activity, think through case for capitalism is pointing out how I have learned how to focus when I a challenge or opportunity and/or it can work even better as Conscious have to perform…throw a pitch, hit become a better person in dealing with Capitalism.” a baseball, hit a tennis or a golf ball, I yourself as well as others. You give of Roy used this example. A caterpillar get myself in the zone. I prepare and yourself willingly, not because you want eats to stay alive, but ultimately it evolves shut everything out. The combination something back, but because being a into a beautiful butterfly. That is how of the research study and this feedback positive person becomes a natural thing the use of Conscious Capitalism can led Jim to understand how important to do.” help capitalism evolve into something it is to be in the “zone”. He learned Bottom line: whether you are at work, even better. that your mind and body work together or at home, or in between, you actually Roy says his own company is proof to “trigger” certain body chemistries become a better employee, and a better that Conscious Capitalism works, and like cortisol, glycogen, endorphins, overall person, more engaged, and more concluded by inviting the members of serotonin, dopamine and adrenalin that positive. the audience to talk with him further prepare you to perform at a high level. Scott Jonlich concluded the seminar about Conscious Capitalism. He recognized that you can train by saying it will be the first of more to The meeting was then turned over to your mind and body to perform at high come and he invited entrepreneurs to Jim Fannin, and he talked about how levels, not only in sports, but in everyday contact him to get involved with more you, as an individual, can literally train activity. “Step Up In 2021” events. yourself to be a very positive, successful Importantly, you can make yourself a Please note: A youtube video of this person, what this can do for you more positive, aware, engaging person, personally, and, what it can do for the whether it is with fellow employees, your seminar will be available shortly to see company you work for, fully embracing significant other, or your children, or again, or for the first time, or to share with others. ■ ideas like “Conscious Capitalism”. relatives and friends…even strangers. As Jim said, “When I met Roy a short Learn to be like a kid again. Don’t while ago, we immediately bonded. Both think about the past and stop worrying of us believe in Conscious Capitalism about things you can’t control in the and have been practicing it years before future. Stop being so judgmental. Be in the term had even been invented.” the “now”. Think in the moment. When Jim is well known for coaching

you do think ahead, visualize how it can HINSDALE MAGAZINE | HinsdaleMag.com

Hinsdale Magazine | Encore

50 Capitols in 50 Days! In the Spring of 2013, Mickey Straub was elected mayor of Burr Ridge. But what he did the previous fall was a even more impressive accomplishment.

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BY MIKE ELLIS

e all set goals for what we would like to accomplish in life. Some are fleeting and quickly abandoned; others pass by so rapidly we barely stop to acknowledge their fulfillment. Then there are those ambitious things we plan to do that always seem far from happening—and in many cases, we never actually undertake them. In the fall of 2012, Mickey Straub of Burr Ridge, now mayor of the same town, set out to become the first man to recite the Gettysburg Address at all 50 U.S. capitols— on a road-trip that would last 50 days. Straub said he was seeking to answer the question of whether God and Abraham Lincoln are still present in America.—Oftentimes he found his questions were answered in unexpected places.

Before the Journey The youngest of six, Mickey Straub grew up in Pennsylvania, the state in which President Lincoln recited the Gettysburg Address. “I’ve always been a die-hard patriot,” Straub said. “I’ve always felt a great attachment to Abraham Lincoln, because of the Gettysburg

Address.” After college, Straub worked in the Department of Defense in Washington, D.C., and later in Los Angeles. He said it was while working for the federal government that his patriotism probably “flourished.” “When I lived in Washington, D.C., I used to love to go down to the capitol building and sit down on the Lincoln steps and visit the Lincoln Memorial,” Straub said. He then switched gears, entered the insurance industry, and was transferred to Chicago 30 years ago in 1983. About a decade later, Straub started his own company, Sales Activity Management (SAM), which helps businesses achieve their goals through an empowering concept he calls “activity management.” Little did he know that he would use the same goaloriented approach he exhorts major insurance companies to employ on his circuit around the nation years later. Over the past few years, Straub said his interest in Lincoln grew, as he received a number of photos and books from a library in his home state, Pennsylvania. He now owns an extensive collection of Lincoln books and memorabilia, on display both at his SAM office

and at his mayoral office at village hall. But Straub said his initial idea of visiting all 50 state capitols did not involve reciting the Gettysburg Address or Lincoln at all. “When I thought about this trip, doing the 50 capitols, my original thought was to take my daughter on the trip, and go to visit every capitol over an extended period of time,” he said. “Three years before I left, I had this idea that would coincide with my goalsetting philosophy to set big goals in short deadlines. So, I thought of 50 capitols in 50 days, and I bought that Web site.” At this juncture, Straub had developed a concept, but had yet to develop anything specific to “do” at the capitol buildings themselves. About 18 months later, Straub visited the Illinois capitol in Springfield. Inside, he approached two men seated at the tour desk, and asked, “I know this is kind of a strange question, but can you tell me if God is still in the capitol?” Continued on next page HINSDALE MAGAZINE | HinsdaleMag.com

Hinsdale Magazine | Encore Continued from the previous page “I also wanted to find out if America still believed in freedom,” Straub said. “Lincoln really personified his strong belief in freedom, towards the Union, and his belief in God. During his presidency, he quoted Scripture more than any president probably before or since. “I thought, ‘If I go in the spirit of Lincoln, I wouldn’t offend anybody, and I’d help unify people, because everybody loves Lincoln’—at least, so I thought.” His objectives becoming clearer, Straub prepared to embark on what you might call a personal fact-finding mission that would take him across America in 50 days. “I was kind of on a treasure hunt,” he said. “I wanted to take pictures of anything that referenced God, liberty or Lincoln. “It was all really for love of country. I wanted to it for the veterans, because in the Gettysburg Address, Abraham Lincoln reminded us that, ‘These dead shall not die in vain.’ So, if we as a country lost our love of liberty and freedom, the dead would have died in vain.”

Northeastern trials Straub left Burr Ridge and arrived in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania—a fitting startingpoint for his national tour—on Sunday, Sept. 2, 2012. Spending the next two nights in Gettysburg, he departed from the home of David Wills—the site at which Lincoln completed the Gettysburg Address a century and a half ago— on the morning of Tuesday, Sept. 4. His vehicle of choice was an apropos 1997 Lincoln Town Car, which he had purchased out of Madison, Ala., especially for this purpose. “I didn’t want to make it silly,” Straub said. “I thought about doing pushups at every capitol, but that wasn’t very significant. 46

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“The Gettysburg Address I think contains within it the secret to our country’s future. It helped unify our country 150 years ago. I wanted to subtly promote our founding principles through Abraham Lincoln and the Gettysburg Address.”

surrounded by friends and family, to being alone.”

Determined to make his journey as a “common man” by driving most of the trip instead of flying, the modern-day de Tocqueville excitedly left a host of family and friends in Gettysburg for Harrisburg, the site of the first capitol on his tour. Straub said he only planned between one-third and one-half of the ambitious, 14,000-plus mile trip in advance, acknowledging that he vastly underestimated the difficulty of his undertaking.

“I wanted to quit on the second day of the trip,” Straub said. “I was 30 miles out of the way in a rainstorm, and my windshield wipers stopped working.

“When I left for Pennsylvania, I thought it was all smooth sailing and would be easy,” he said. “This trip was the toughest thing I’ve ever done in my life. “I had practiced what happened inside the capitols, but I never practiced what happened between capitols,—and that was a big flaw.” What made the initial portion of the trip especially difficult is that no capitols in the Northeast are open on weekends, and Straub departed from Gettysburg the Tuesday after Labor Day. Therefore, he had to visit ten capitols in just four days—that is, three capitols on two days, and two on the other two. It takes about five hours to drive from Harrisburg, the capital of Pennsylvania, to Albany, the capital of New York, so Straub said he had to hurry just to make it to the second capitol on his journey before it closed. “I got to New York, and it was 4 p.m.; and the personnel stops working at 4 p.m., so the place was kind of empty,” he said. “I went from all kinds of people,

At 7 p.m. that evening, Straub left for Vermont in a driving rainstorm. He missed a turn at Lake George, and beset by the circumstances, was beginning to second-guess his trip.

“I woke up the next morning and said, ‘What am I doing this for?’ I just risked my life last night—I almost killed myself—, I was tired, I was getting lonely, and I was already wondering why I was doing this.” Straub said he realized he would have to use his own goal-setting techniques in order to succeed on the journey. “Even though I preach profess being efficient organized, I had gotten into habits myself,” he said. “That very humbling.”

and and bad was

In Montpelier, Vermont, Straub was reinvigorated by a woman

named Michelle Bean from the Secretary of State’s office, as well as Rep. Warren Kitzmiller, D-Vt., who recited the Gettysburg Address with him at the capitol. “They pumped me up, and gave me the energy to keep going,” he said, reminiscing over the first of many “capitol angels” that assisted him along the way. From Vermont, Straub still had to traverse through Maine, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New Jersey and Delaware by the end of the day Friday. He said he initially intended to fly home for a wedding back in Burr Ridge that weekend, but decided to change his plans once he knew the demands his journey entailed.

Getting acclimated After the frenetic northeastern portion of his trip, the pace began to slow down a bit in Annapolis, Maryland, which Straub described as a “turning point.” “Maryland was definitely a turning point, because I knew I got through the first week, and I had ten capitols under my belt,” he said. “I knew about what it would take, but I still didn’t quite have it down-pat yet.” Reaching the Southern states, he said he was uncomfortable reciting the address here, as there was no trace of Lincoln to be found. “It was very uncomfortable reciting the Gettysburg Address

in Annapolis, Maryland, because I couldn’t find any reference to Lincoln in Maryland or Delaware,” Straub said. “I was thinking, ‘This is a southern state;—were they for Lincoln or against Lincoln?’” In Annapolis, Straub met a firstyear Naval Academy student in a white sailor’s uniform, who he said provided useful advice that helped him moving forward. “Here I was, a relatively successful businessman, a mature adult, and I was asking a freshman in college for advice,” Straub said. Entering the Deep South, he was joined by Chris Faron, a fellow parishioner at St. Isaac Jogues in Hinsdale, in North Carolina. Straub said he did not realize how helpful Faron would be until he arrived. His companion showed him how to organize photo albums of the trip on his iPad, post updates to social media, while making the long, 432-mile drive from Baton Rouge, Louisiana, to Austin, Texas. Proceeding from Texas to Oklahoma City, Straub concluded the first leg of his tour of America there, having visited 22 of 50 capitols. At this time, he briefly flew home to spend some time with his family. “I never wanted to go on the trip and lose contact with my family,” he said.

Resuming the journey After flying back to Oklahoma City, Straub returned to the road, following Interstate 40 into

Arkansas and Tennessee, before proceeding to Kentucky and West Virginia. While in Tennessee, he stopped at the famous Graceland in Memphis. The state capitol down the road in Nashville being closed for renovations, Straub was unable to go inside—one of two capitols he did not enter during his journey. Pivoting in Charleston, West Virginia, he turned westward from Ohio all the way to California, stopping to return home one night between his visits to the Michigan and Indiana capitols. When he reached Denver, Straub said he was exhausted. Since resuming his trip from Oklahoma City, he had visited 12 capitols in 12 states without a reprieve. To compound matters, he was also entering serious altitude for the first time on the trip. Once again, Straub said he was visited by “capitol angels” at a most exigent hour. “I woke up; I felt like I was paralyzed,” he said. “Before I left the bed, I prayed that God would give me the courage and strength to carry on. “I dragged myself out of bed, got myself [to the capitol] by 8 in the morning.” At the capitol, Straub met Marisela, a maintenance staff member who directed him to the Lincoln statue, as well as an Idaho pastor who supplied him with a remarkable blessing. Continued on next page

HINSDALE MAGAZINE | HinsdaleMag.com

Hinsdale Magazine | Encore Continued from the previous page “She said, ‘I want you to know that God will give you the courage and strength to carry on.’ Call it coincidence, call it serendipity, call it divine intervention—I’m not sure what to call it to this day—, but the very two things I prayed for that morning, she told me that I would be given.” Feeling reenergized after leaving Denver, Straub swung down to New Mexico and Arizona, before returning northward to Salt Lake City, where he met up with fellow Burr Ridge resident Dick Coan. “When Mickey decided to do the trip, I said to him, ‘I’ll be glad to help you however I can,’” Coan said. Coan assisted Straub by driving, which helped the latter get some much-needed rest. “I kind of questioned—why am I going to do this?” Coan said. “But it was an amazing trip. He’d walk around the capitol buildings, and he would talk to people. He was very well-received. Even when we drove around and stopped for gas, he would share [his story] at small gas stations in the middle of nowhere.” Coan remained with Straub until they arrived in Sacramento, California, passing through Boise, Idaho, and Carson City, Nevada, beforehand. At this time, Straub took to the skies again to reach Hawaii’s capital, Honolulu, in the middle of the Pacific. He had been giving out five-dollar bills, (which bear Lincoln’s likeness on the front,) throughout the trip to people who provided him with exceptional service or stuck out for their kindness. Coming across a homeless man in Honolulu, he extended the same offer; but the man surprisingly turned him down. “He refused it, and he said that there were other people who needed it more than he does,” Straub said. “I was shocked by that [encounter].” 48

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Flying back to the contiguous states after spending the night in Hawaii, Straub darted northward for the Pacific Northwest before heading back towards Springfield—the final destination on his month-and-a-half-long journey. The North Dakota state capitol in Bismarck proved to be the second he could not enter, as Straub discovered the building was not open on weekends during the fall. But he did learn a great deal about the state from the archives director, who also recited the Gettysburg Address with him. In Madison, Wisconsin, the penultimate stop, Straub was joined by members of Gov. Scott Walker’s staff; together, they all read the address on the capitol steps.

Summing it all up Concluding his national tour in Springfield, Straub had visited all 50 states in the Union (including Hawaii and Alaska), racked up over 14,000 miles in his 1997 Lincoln Town Car, and spent the night at 33 different hotels. The trip originally planned for 50 days actually took only 44.—And Straub even had time for two brief flights home. He exhausted about 650 gallons of gas, stopping 43 times, and spent a considerable amount of time at Starbucks, Subway and Shell. His records indicate 45 God, 27 Lincoln and 50 liberty “sightings”—the last of which can be attributed to the little-known fact that 48 state capitols have Liberty Bell replicas on site, which were placed courtesy of the U.S. Department of Treasury in 1950. He said Lincoln was generally beloved by those he encountered—with the exception of a man he met in Little Rock, Arkansas, who in the spirit of obstinacy called him a “carpetbagger.” Straub said on the whole, the trip helped him put things in perspective and get his priorities straight. “The one thing that changed me forever was something I realized

coming across between Wisconsin and Illinois—I realized that my priorities are very clear now,” he said. “My priorities now are God, family and country. Now I said that before, but honestly I didn’t necessarily practice it.” Ironically, while Straub sought to uncover some of America’s values and virtues at its physical state capitols, he gleaned a lot more from the people he met along the way—his “capitol angels” who left an indelible impression. “When I was done with the trip, I realized I had done something very special and impactful in my life,” he said. “It renewed my spirit in the American people in general. “What I was probably most surprised at was the remarkable kindness I was greeted with. Alexis de Tocqueville wrote a book, Democracy in America, where he talked about America is great, because America is good. I believe America is still good. “It didn’t matter if they were black, white, Asian; it didn’t matter if they were rich or poor, in tattoos, piercings,—they were all equally accommodating and helpful to me on this trip.” As one of his neighbors told him, “Mickey, you’re going to capitols looking for God, but you found God everywhere.” ■

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BUILDERS | MK CONSTRUCTION

PERSONALIZED PERFECTION in luxury home construction BY LARRY ATSEFF 50

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BUILDERS | MK CONSTRUCTION

well-designed, well-constructed luxury homes, remodels and additions, as well as baths and kitchens, all over the Chicagoland area. When you look at our Web site, you will see the quality of construction; you will see the quality of smart, modern design; you will see the quality of the materials we use. And you can read the Q. We know there has been testimonials of the work we a residential construction have done and how we have boom since about April of worked with our customers. this year. How has your firm - MARCIN KAWA, founder and owner, MK Construction & Builders They speak better than I do— been doing? and that’s why most of our A. Fortunately, we have work comes from referrals. been busy, but we know that there are running the job from beginning to Q. What trends do you see in new more customers that we can also take end. And most of all, I learned that I home construction? care of, especially in luxury residential had an eye for design, which can lead A. We build all over the area. construction. to more luxury home projects. Along Because we build in the city, where Q. What separates MK Construction the way, I got to know people in the space and lot-size are at a premium, we industry who wanted to do the best job from other residential builders? have gotten to be very good at making possible, like I did. And so, in 2004, I A. I spent several years as a efficient use of space. And while there decided to start MK Construction & contractor, learning the business from is demand for large luxury residences, Builders, with a focus on quality, highthe ground up, so to speak. I learned there are also trends away from end construction. first-hand the best practices that go "McMansions" and toward making Now here I am 16 years later, more efficient use of outdoor space into building a home that people really appreciate and which allow us to be thankfully, with a staff that has grown for more entertaining and family use. very price-competitive. I learned [that] with the business. I am still "handsthe better you listen to the customer, on," and together, we are building Continued on next page insdale Magazine recently reached out to Marcin Kawa, founder and owner of MK Construction & Builders, to learn how his company has been doing during the residential construction boom this year.

the better the job will go, because we are bringing their dreams to life. I also learned the importance of delivering a job on-time and on-budget, and

“Fortunately, we have been busy, but we know that there are more customers that we can also take care of, especially in luxury residential construction.”

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BU I L D E R S | M K C O N S T R U C T I O N

Naturally, this is good for us and our expertise in making the most of space inside and out. We even have spec homes, where people can actually see some of our homes for the quality of design, quality of construction and use of top-quality materials.” Q. How about the trends in remodeling and additions? A. After living in a home for a while and wanting to stay in the home, people know what they want, or they are thinking about upcoming changes. The pandemic has more people working from home, and having their children "go to school at home." So, instead of having an entrance with a living room/family room, people are thinking of a front room that can serve as a home office for the family. They want that flexibility of the space. We are quite good at helping people decide on whether it is better to remodel or add on. It depends on

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how they see their future needs over the next 10 to 20 years. Above all, they want well-designed plans that are functional, meet their tastes and [are] cost-effective. Q. What trends do you see in remodeling luxury bathrooms and kitchens? A. Customers are asking more about spas and tubs in bathrooms where people can relax, or designs with more walk-in showers and luxury appointments in finishing the bathroom areas. Kitchens are already a place for people gathering. Today, they want them to be even more a place where people can gather and for space that is more multi-purpose. So, not only is there an emphasis on kitchen islands with seating; there is also demand for more space where people can sit around a table, and the kitchen area can be more multi-purpose. And, of course, they want the finest in appliances.

Q. What are you doing to respond to the current limited ability to meet face-to-face? A. We have turned this problem into an advantage for our customers and ourselves. We work on the basis of virtual meetings to keep customers up to date. We regularly use 3-D home tours, so customers can see actual progress on a job as it progresses. Constant updates with this new technology have made us more efficient and more responsive, and our customers have told us they appreciate the technology. To learn more about MK Construction & Builders, go to mkconstructioninc.net, or dial 773-817-1861.

Pictures are from recent custom remodeling project in Chicago.

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DIVEHEART IN DEPTH

Gabe Spataro makes a visit to the statue of Christ that he arranged to be brought to the Keys a half century ago. The Christ statue is the most viewed underwater object in the world.

Christ of

THE DEEP

HALF A CENTURY AFTER ENSHRINING A FAMOUS ITALIAN STATUE OF CHRIST BENEATH THE WAVES, THE NOW-BLIND DIVER GABE SPATARO PROVES HIMSELF TO BE A SOURCE OF INSPIRATION

egend and blind Korean Conflict veteran Gabriel Spataro waited until 2013 to dive the Christ statue that he brought to the U.S. in the early 1960’s. This Diveheart in-depth story is a true journey of the Christ statue from Italy to Chicago and then Key Largo, Fla., where the statue now resides as the most viewed underwater object in the world. The statue Spataro brought to America back in the 1960s has generated more than a billion dollars in tourism revenue. A humble man and member of the Italian-American Hall of Fame, Spataro will never toot his own horn, but at 86 and blind, this army veteran, who is an amazing storyteller, volunteers regularly at Shriners Hospital for Children,

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where he makes balloon animals, and Hines Veterans Hospital. Learn how Diveheart founder Jim Elliott met Spataro, and how this national hero finally had the opportunity to dive and see the Christ statue underwater for the first time for himself. HOW DID YOU DISCOVER SCUBA-DIVING WHEN YOU RETURNED FROM THE KOREAN CONFLICT? I ran a family restaurant in Chicago, and one night, I was talking with guests, and they were talking about scuba-diving. I said, what is scuba diving? They said, come and see tomorrow with us up at Lake Geneva in Wisconsin. So I went up and tried it. Back then, you didn’t need a scuba certification; you

just needed to know someone with the equipment. They used to call it bootleg diving. I finally got certified with Diveheart through the blind center at Hines Veterans Hospital much later. WHEN DID YOU FIRST HEAR OF “IL CRISTO DEGLI ABISSI?” I was on a wine tour in Italy when I ran into the creator of the statue. He made three ninefoot bronze statues of Christ; two were put on dive sites in Italy, and the third he wanted to donate to America. But we had to figure out how to get the statue to the states. My father’s friend ran an Italian shipping company, and we got it to Chicago for free. We stored it in a national guard plane hangar until, during the Cuban Missile Crisis, we were able to get a military plane to bring it down

to the Keys. It sat in a warehouse for years, and I lost track of it. It wasn’t until 2013 that I had a chance to dive the statue with Diveheart. WHAT WAS IT LIKE TO BE IN THE STATUE’S PRESENCE AFTER FIVE DECADES? It was very moving—like seeing an old friend. It was funny how I was able to go down and dive on the statue after all that time. Jim Elliott was driving me home in 2013 after a Diveheart fundraiser that I went to. I told him that I was going to dive the Christ statue with a couple of my Korean War buddies. He said, “Well, you’ve probably [dived] the statue many times since the ‘60s.” I said, “No, I’ve never been diving on the Christ statue. This will be my first time.” He [asked whom] are you diving it with? I said, “My buddy Vinnie, who has one leg, and my buddy Louie, who is also blind.” Jim said, “What dive operation is

taking you miles out in the ocean to dive on the Christ statue?” I said, “We’re going out on Vinnie’s 12-foot fishing boat.” He looked at me and said, “Two blind guys and one amputee, all in your 80s, are going out miles onto the ocean in a 12-foot fishing boat to dive the Christ statue?—You’re all going to die,” he said, laughing. He then picked up the phone and called his friend D.J., who owned Rainbow Reef dive center in Key Largo. D.J. cleared eight paid spots on one of his 45-foot dive boats, and we went out with Rainbow Reef and Diveheart to dive the statue for the first time. It was amazing—very spiritual. I’m glad Jim intervened, because in retrospect, it might not have been such a good idea for the three of us old guys to go out alone in Vinnie’s boat to dive the statue. It all ended well, and the Miami Herald covered the event, and did a front-page story about it. It even changed history, because the

Miami Herald originally reported that the Christ statue came to America through New York— but it didn’t; it came in through Chicago at Navy Pier. The ring buoy that said New York was in the old photos of the statue when it arrived, because the Italian shipping company was based in New York; but it really came in through Navy Pier. Diveheart adaptive dive buddies kept me safe on the dive. I’ve been back several times now with Diveheart. They helped make a dream come true for this old, blind Korean War veteran. I can’t thank them enough.

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Hinsdale Magazine | Outdoors

The Morton Arboretum May calendar of events and programs

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n May, The Morton Arboretum will continue to offer in-person and online programming for all ages, adjusted for current state and local coronavirus (COVID-19) mitigation measures. Select events will take place in-person at the Arboretum with adjusted operations to ensure public safety. Some will be held in a virtual format.

person programming. Information is accurate as of the date of this release. Due to the current coronavirus public health situation, the Arboretum is encouraging the media to check the mortonarb. org website for updates prior to publication as times, dates and details may change.

All fees listed are for the general public, and include parking and admission to the Arboretum for in-

Participants must comply with current public health guidelines as required by the governor of

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In-Person Event Safety Procedures

Illinois, which include six feet of social distancing and the use of face masks when indoors and when social distancing is not possible outdoors. For more information on the Arboretum’s safety guidelines, please visit the Arboretum’s Know Before You Go visit information page.

SPRING HIGHLIGHTS The Arboretum Wellness Challenge - NEW

April 30 through May 31 Free Beginning this Arbor Day, April 30, the Arboretum Wellness Challenge will kick off with a FREE monthlong program in May to inspire people to establish healthy habits, and spend time in nature to gain the wellness benefits trees provide. Registrants will receive weekly wellness inspiration and be entered into prize drawings, including Arboretum classes and a one-year membership. For more information or to register, visit mortonarb.org/wellnesschallenge. Participants are asked to use #MortonArbChallenge to share how they’re incorporating nature-centered wellness into their lives.

Wine Tasting - NEW

Saturday, May 8 | 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. (Entry time must be selected when purchasing tickets) $49 Savor seasonal wines among beautiful spring blooms at the Arboretum’s Wine Tasting event on Mother’s Day weekend. A ticket includes 20, one-ounce wine samples from a selection of more than 80 wines. Tasting booths will be safely spread out along Meadow Lake, Frost Hill and Conifer Trail walking paths. To encourage social distancing, tickets are available every 15 minutes between 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. with last call at 3:45 p.m. The Arboretum grounds will remain open until sunset for those who would like to remain on-site. Ticket purchasers must be age 21 and older, and a valid I.D. is required. Party members younger than 21 years old are allowed in the event space.

Tails on the Trails

Sunday, May 16 | 7 a.m. to sunset (dogs allowed on-site) and 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. (Vendor Expo hours) Dogs are $5 each. Enjoy a “paw”fect day out with your pup, meandering through the Arboretum's 16 miles of hiking trails. Shop from local businesses and organizations during the pet expo, meet dogs available for adoption and inquire about volunteering with local pet shelters. Due to COVID-19, the May event will include only the Vendor Expo and will not include any dog demonstrations or dog-related activities.

Dog and human admission passes must be reserved in advance through the Arboretum's online ticketing site at mortonarb.org. (Dogs and pets are not allowed in cars or on the grounds of the Arboretum, except for on specially designated days such as ‘Tails on the Trails’ and ‘Dog Admission’ Days, or as service animals.)

Human+Nature (Opens this spring!)

Free with admission The Morton Arboretum’s next major exhibition, Human+Nature (pronounced: Human Nature) by internationally renowned sculpture artist Daniel Popper of South Africa, will highlight the deep connections between people and trees. Five large-scale, 20- to 26-foottall sculptures will be featured amid the Arboretum’s magnificent and mature tree collections. Human+Nature will be included with Arboretum admission. The exhibition opening date this spring will be announced in the coming weeks. Check the Arboretum’s website at mortonarb.org and social media channels for updates.

MAY PROGRAMMING

Timed-entry member passes or guest tickets are NOT required to enter the Arboretum for in-person class participation. Admission is included. All pricing listed is for the general public.

IN-PERSON Yoga

Monday, May 17 and 24 | 9:30 to 10:30 a.m. (No class May 31) Wednesdays, May 12, 19 and 26 | 6 to 7 p.m. $17 In-person yoga classes will take place outdoors on the patio of the Thornhill Education Center. Improve your health and well-being with yoga. Practice poses, breathing and meditation in the tranquil setting of The Morton Arboretum. Online sessions will also continue to be offered.

Tai Chi

Wednesdays, May 12 and 26 | 9:30 to 10:30 a.m. $17 Experience Tai Chi at The Morton Arboretum on the Thornhill Education Center patio. Move your body with the grace and confidence of the ancient Tai Chi masters HINSDALE MAGAZINE | HinsdaleMag.com

Hinsdale Magazine | Outdoors who learned the secret of balancing yin and yang – strength with beauty, power with peace, endurance with flow. TaijiFit™ is a form of Tai Chi suitable for beginners. There is no routine or choreography to memorize or “get right.” Your instructor will lead you into flow using the Qi Cueing method developed by International Master, David-Dorian Ross.

Nature Photography Workshop: The Minimalist Image

Three days | Wednesdays, May 12 and 19 | 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. (Online) Saturday, May 15 | 8 to 11 a.m. (In-Person) $80 Take a break from our visually saturated world, and explore the stark beauty of minimalist nature photography. The avant-garde style arose in the mid-20th century, when artists and photographers began stripping compositions down to the bare essentials, removing clutter that distracts viewers from the main subject. Begin your learning in a live online session, where you’ll learn key principles and see examples of minimalist nature photography. Then join your instructor on the grounds of the Arboretum for an outdoor field session.

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Finish up with another online session, where you’ll have the opportunity to share your learning, and leave with inspiration for continuing your photography practice. This class is aimed at the intermediate photographer.

Guided Hike of The Morton Arboretum’s Trails

Friday, May 21 | 8:30 to 10 a.m. $23 Hike the Arboretum’s lesser-known trails with a naturalist guide. Stretch your legs and get some fresh air while you learn about the history of the Arboretum and the plants and animals that call it home. Guided Hikes take place on select Thursdays or Fridays through June.

YOUTH AND FAMILY Woodland Family Hike

Wednesdays or Saturdays | May 12, 15, 19, 26 and 29 5 to 6 p.m. Wednesdays or 4 to 5 p.m. Saturdays $17 Discover the Indigenous and settler history of the land that would later become The Morton Arboretum, and how to share our friendship and support to Native Peoples who live in the Chicago region today.

Brookfield Zoo Dinosaurs everywhere!

he zoo’s popular Dinosaurs Everywhere! exhibit returns for a limited time through September 6, 2021. A few surprises will be featured on some of the 40 animatronic dinosaurs to make them even more lifelike. Located throughout the 216-acre park, zoogoers will be able to see their favorite dinosaurs, including the Argentinosaurus that measures 110 feet in length and stands three-stories tall on the zoo’s West Mall. Additionally, this year, there are 12 miniature brontosauruses named Benita along the dinosaur trail. Let the zoo know if you find one or all of them by sharing photos on social media—tag the zoo at #BrookfieldZoo. Guests can download the zoo’s map at CZS.

org/ZooMap to see where all the animatronic dinos are located. The exhibit was created by Don Lessum, advisor to the movie “Jurassic Park” and is on loan from Dino Don, Inc. and The Wildlife Conservation Society. Dinos Everywhere! is free with zoo admission.

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