6 minute read
Family, Community and Giving Back
by Jen Wingerter ’13
SAM ’76, MSW, AND MAUREEN, PHD, BANKS HAVE BEEN MARRIED 37 YEARS, AND TOGETHER THEY HAVE THREE CHILDREN AND THREE GRANDCHILDREN. THIS COMMITTED COUPLE HAS SPENT THEIR YEARS TOGETHER LIVING OUT THE FRANCISCAN VALUES.
Sam and Maureen grew up in large traditional families that served as the foundation of how they have lived in community with others and showed them how to weave faith throughout all they do.
Values, like being trustworthy, caring for others, and serving the community, Maureen learned and practiced within her family. She learned about service from her mother who volunteered at their church, school, and charities that helped others. “My mother showed us through her example, how to give back using our time and talents,” said Maureen. “With nine kids, there was not a lot of money around, but we learned to give what we could in service to those in need.” She also learned to speak up and to value her uniqueness. Maureen recalls when she and her twin brother were entering 2nd grade, her parents decided to put them in separate classes in school. “I remember that first day, feeling so alone. I didn't have my buddy there.
But I realized then that I had to get my strength from within,” said Maureen. “This and later going to an all-girls high school are experiences that led me to be comfortable with myself and helped me find my voice. You have to do this first to be there for others.”
Sam lost his dad at the age of 13. As a young teen, he watched aunts and uncles step in to support his mom and siblings. Their actions made an impression. Not only did Sam see these values modeled in his family, he saw them in his neighbors as well. Where Sam grew up, neighbors supported one another and helped each other succeed. These examples taught Sam how to be there for someone else. “When my dad died, I was the oldest of 5. I felt that I needed to help my mom and siblings,” said Sam. “It fostered responsibility and leadership in me and the desire to help others.”
Sam found that same kind of support on the campus of Quincy University as a young freshman, away from home for the first time. “I felt like I was embraced by the Franciscans, the administration, the folks who were there, I felt like I had come to an extended family in a lot of ways,” said Sam. “If I ever needed help, or I needed something, there was always someone I could turn to, somebody I could ask and get a response.”
While he was at QU, he came to a deeper understanding of the importance of environments that allow relationship-building to happen. “QU is a place where perspective-changing relationships can happen,” said Sam. “The campus is a melting pot of individuals where all kinds of relationships can happen.” One relationship resulted in a conversation about racism that has stayed with Sam his entire adult life. “We both walked away from that conversation recognizing how much our view of other people was shaped by the environment we came from and what we were taught or told by others. QU offers the kind of environment where I could connect with someone different from me, where eye opening conversations and new relationships can happen that allow us to see life differently than we saw it before.”
Maureen has always admired the lasting relationships Sam has from his time at QU. “There is a strong camaraderie and a friendship that has proven through the years,” said Maureen. “It is amazing to see.” She credits the example of the Franciscans. When she thinks of Quincy, she relates it to the Franciscan commitment to helping and connecting to others. She is impressed by the university’s commitment to teaching students how to serve. She and Sam both know how the act of serving others elicits change within.
MAUREEN BANKS, DIRECTOR OF SAFETY & COMPLIANCE AT THE UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS URBANA-CHAMPAIGN
Maureen oversees comprehensive environmental compliance and occupational safety programs, offers consultative remedies to meet regulatory and statutory compliance, and acts as chief liaison with federal, state, and local agencies.
Before starting at the University of Illinois, Maureen worked for DuPont, Southland Corporation, and owned her own safety consulting business.
Maureen earned her bachelor’s degree in biological science from Western Illinois. She earned a master’s degree in preventive medicine and environmental health from the University of Iowa, followed by a doctorate in human resource education from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
THE IMPACT OF A RELATIONSHIP.
During Sam's sophomore year, he volunteered as a Big Brother, Big Sister mentor. This experience changed his life. Just like his family had impacted his life, he saw the impact of his relationship made to his mentee. This experience changed his trajectory, and he switched his major from business to sociology.
“One of my life dreams, one of the things that came out of my volunteering and later my internship at Chaddock, was to be a difference-maker in these types of organizations,” said Sam. As a volunteer, he noticed a lot of black children participating in the programs but not a lot of people of color in the volunteer role. “My goal and desire became to lead an organization and be someone all kids can look up to but particularly those kids who are disenfranchised, to let them see someone who looks like them in a position of leadership. And that they would say, ‘If Sam can do that, maybe so could I.’” Sam has spent his entire career doing that very thing.
Sam and Maureen have spent their lives working to be a good neighbor where they work, in their communities, and to QU, out of gratitude for what others gave to them. They feel it is their responsibility to give back but, more importantly, their privilege and joy.
BELIEVE IN THE MISSION AND VISION.
“It has been an honor to be able to do service with organizations that I believe in their mission and vision,” said Maureen. “I think the heart of QU is borne-out in the Franciscan tradition. It is something that I believe in and having the opportunity to be a board member is very fulfilling.”
“It has been a special opportunity to be involved with QU as a student, as a supporter, and as a board of trustee member,” said Sam. “Having all those sides really is an awesome look at the university. Each perspective gives a new connection.”
SAM BANKS, CEO AT DON MOYER BOYS AND GIRLS CLUB
Sam has spent his entire career working with children and families and has received regional and national recognition for program development and administrative achievement. Before joining the Boys and Girls Club, he served as President and CEO of Glenwood School for Boys and Girls in the Chicago area and the Cunningham Children’s Home in Urbana, Illinois. Sam’s career began at Chaddock in Quincy as the program director after earning his master’s degree in social work administration from the University of Illinois Chicago.
As a retired NCAA Men's basketball official, Sam also served 20 years officiating in the Big Ten, Missouri Valley, and other conferences. He has worked both the NCAA and NIT postseason tournaments.
