Northwest Herald / NWHerald.com • Sunday, February 24, 2019
| EVERYDAY HEROES
2
WELCOME TO EVERYDAY HEROES 2019
Come inside and meet some extraordinary people and read about the good they do for those around them Steve Finzel.................................3 Anne Haseman...........................4 Debra “Deb” Heath....................5 Jack Henderson..........................6 Sandy Heuer................................7 Mary Holzkopf............................8 Wayne Kirkpatrick...................10 Karen Lalor................................12 Mike Lehman............................13 Louise McKeever......................14 Randy Moan..............................15 Karen Munter............................16 Scott Neumann.........................17 Caden Ringer.............................18 Sue Rose....................................19 Nancy Schietzelt......................20 Gina Smak.................................24 Arienne Weisenberger............25 Sam Wijeyakumar...................26
STEVE FINZEL
3
EVERYDAY HEROES | Northwest Herald / NWHerald.com
By LINDSAY WEBER
Shaw Media correspondent
• Sunday, February 24, 2019
Sixty-three-year-old Steve Finzel does not consider himself a superhero, or even a regular hero for that matter, but that doesn’t mean you won’t catch him in his Hulk costume for a good cause. The president and CEO of Golden Eagle Community Bank will don the costume for events such as the Family Health Partnership’s Care 4 Breast Cancer 5k Run/Walk where he cheered runners and walkers on to the finish line. “The Hulk” was also auctioned off at the Adult & Child Therapy Service’s Tee to Tea Women’s Golf Outing. In costume or not, Finzel has an affinity for supporting local human service agencies. “Many years ago, I was introduced to Family Alliance through a previous executive director,” Finzel said. “My father was diagnosed with severe advanced Alzheimer’s; we went to Family Alliance for a program to help with his engagement. I took a liking to the human service agencies, and I was invited to be on the board for Family Alliance years ago, and it just captured me.” Finzel is involved with Woodstock Rotary Club’s Christmas Clearing House, is a board chairman for Independence Health and Therapy Services, formerly Family Alliance, as well as a United Way board member, campaign chairman and past treasurer. Independence Health and Therapy Executive Director John Buckley credits Finzel as part of the foundation that makes a community. “He’s passionate. He’s smart. He’s patient. He’s observant. He engages. He’s creative,” Buckley said. “For United Way, he’s dressed up as the Hulk and brought that energy to our events. He’s a good guy. That’s what makes community. Without folks like Steve and these everyday heroes, you don’t have community. You have residents or employees, but people like him make the place where you live a community.” Finzel lives in Woodstock with his wife of 35 years, Annamaria, and said he is incredibly shocked and humbled by the award. “My involvement in the community is really just to participate in assisting all the hundreds of other volunteers in our community in an effort to help those in need,” Finzel said. “A lot of people should be recognized for this. There are a lot of people that do a lot of great things in the county.”
Matt Apgar – mapgar@shawmedia.com
Northwest Herald / NWHerald.com • Sunday, February 24, 2019
| EVERYDAY HEROES
4
ANNE HASEMAN By JAMI KUNZER
Shaw Media correspondent To Anne Haseman, it’s always “a beautiful day.” The 57-year-old Crystal Lake woman regularly can be heard exclaiming the expression to fellow runners and everyone else she encounters throughout the day. She’s the kind of person that makes the expression come true. “Although there are days we question that judgment, her infectious, positive attitude wins out,” said Scott Johnson, a member of the Hillstriders Running Club along with Haseman. Members often run at Main Beach in Crystal Lake and take part in various races and events throughout McHenry County. Through the club and numerous other efforts, Haseman has gone out of her way to help others. She’s hosted a shoe drive fundraiser to benefit The Break teen center and Crystal Lake Food Pantry. She’s collected donations for Family Alliance, veterans organizations, Turning Point, Sparrow’s Nest and more nonprofit groups. The list goes on and on. In Johnson’s words, “She’s always willing to go out, willing to do about anything… the stuff the rest of us think is a good idea, but very seldom do.” To Haseman, the motivation is simple. “I came from a tough childhood, and I just always feel like if there’s something I can do to make someone else’s day a little better I will try,” she said. “Sometimes, it’s just saying, ‘Hello,’ to someone who may not see anyone all day.” Since 1984, Haseman has worked as a physical therapist for children ages 3 and younger. She often provides early intervention services for Child & Family Connections in McHenry County, working with children with disabilities. Raised in a single-parent home, she started baby-sitting at a young age and always loved children. She now works with both the children and their parents to help ensure the children maximize their potential. She’s usually the one behind any Hillstriders’ fundraising effort, such as the collection of socks and small bottles of toiletries to assemble personal bags for those in need. As part of the club’s annual Christmas party Haseman organizes, she includes a hat and glove drive. That later led to a sweatshirt drive for Family Alliance. “I try to spread the love a little bit,” she said.
Matt Apgar – mapgar@shawmedia.com
DEBRA ‘DEB’ HEATH
5
EVERYDAY HEROES | Northwest Herald / NWHerald.com
By CHRIS MORDI
Shaw Media correspondent
• Sunday, February 24, 2019
Think about a typical Friday. For many people, it means the end of the week and time to wind down. For others, it is a day of relief, a day when many local families know they will have food to eat for the coming week. Debra “Deb” Heath has spent the past seven years ensuring that local families in need have a place to go when they need food. Every Friday at the Nunda Township Hall, Heath coordinates the arrival of two trucks filled with food donated from local grocery stores. She and her 15 volunteers turn the township hall into a grocery store of sorts. They unpack the trucks, set up tables and arrange food for fast and easy shopping for the nearly 100 families they serve each week. “They unload the food truck boom, boom, boom. People walk through there almost like a grocery store. They get to go through once until everyone is served and if there is food left, they go back around again,” said Lee Jennings, Nunda Township supervisor, who opened the doors of the township hall after Heath had started searching for a larger space to serve more people. “Part of the job of the township supervisor is to help people in need,” Jennings said. “Deb puts no criteria on who she’s helping.” Jennings said nothing goes to waste. He said Heath takes what is remaining to the Valley of the Kings Sanctuary and Retreat – a lion, tiger and wolf rescue located in Sharon, Wisconsin. Conni Skroch of Fox River Grove has been volunteering with Heath for two years. She initially came to the program to get food for a friend of hers. “When I first got there, I saw Deb greeting people by the first name. After the third time, I asked if could volunteer,” she said. Skroch said she thinks Heath keeps doing this because it is just who she is. “She is warm and always smiling and helpful,” she said. “If people need more food, Deb will give them other information on where to get free dinners and other things.” How does Heath stay inspired after setting up, cleaning and driving to the animal rescue? “I have a T-shirt that says, ‘Some people see the glass half full, and some see it as half empty. They miss the point. It is refillable,’” Heath said. “Someone is saying thank God it is Friday because their fridge is empty. It is refillable. My truck is refillable. That is a gift from God.”
Matt Apgar – mapgar@shawmedia.com
Northwest Herald / NWHerald.com • Sunday, February 24, 2019
| EVERYDAY HEROES
6
JACK HENDERSON By DREW ZIMMERMAN
dzimmerman@shawmedia.com When Laurie Selpien first started managing Lake in the Hills Victory Garden in 2012, she said she would have to work five to six days a week just to keep everything maintained. But thanks to the creative solutions offered by Jack Henderson, an Algonquin resident who has volunteered at the garden since 2013, Selpien said volunteers now work two, four-hour days a week while still producing the same amount of quality fruits and vegetables in a smaller space. “He’s done so many things that it’s hard to explain,” Selpien said. “If there’s a problem, he’ll come up with a fix that makes the job so much easier.” Henderson, who has been a hobbyist gardener for about 50 years, said after he retired from AT&T after 37 years, he was looking for a way to give back to the community, and he came across Selpien and the Victory Garden. Based on his experience, Henderson offered a number of creative ideas, such as implementing vermacomposting, which uses worms and other micro-organisms to produce quality fertilizer. But some of the other innovations have saved the Victory Garden a lot of time, money and labor. When Victory Garden volunteers were forced to water beds by hand because commercial drip hoses could not handle the high mineral content of the site’s low-pressure well water system, Selpien said Henderson was instrumental in developing a drip irrigation system. “Now, you can just turn a nozzle and it does a bunch of garden beds so it saves us a bunch of time and labor,” Henderson said. Because a lot of volunteers are retired or have disabilities, Henderson redesigned four of the garden’s 12-inch-high raised beds to make them 24 inches high. These beds are now tall enough for disabled people to work at the garden. “Now, we have more volunteers than we ever had because it made the work so much easier,” Selpien said. Although Henderson was reluctant to take credit for the successes of the Victory Garden since he began volunteering, Selpien said he has left a huge impact. Those interested in volunteering at Victory Garden can email Selpien at lselpien@att.net.
Matt Apgar – mapgar@shawmedia.com
SANDY HEUER
7
EVERYDAY HEROES | Northwest Herald / NWHerald.com
By KATIE SMITH
ksmith@shawmedia.com
• Sunday, February 24, 2019
Sandy Heuer is not a crazy cat lady – far from it. “A crazy cat lady is a generalization or stigma of an older woman who feeds numerous cats or hoards them, while acting crazy: running around in a bathrobe with slippers and rollers in her hair, collecting more and more cats in the middle of the night while doing absolutely nothing to help the feral or stray cat problems with solutions,” she said. There were no rollers in Heuer’s hair when she visited a vacant barn in McHenry in freezing temperatures to check on the 20 cats that she has helped trap, spay or neuter, and release. Instead she wore a bright pink snow hat donning the letters ASAP – short for Animal Services and Assistance Program Inc. It’s the organization to which Heuer dedicates about 40 hours a week in addition to having a separate, full-time job. Heuer is the vice president of ASAP’s board of directors where she helps the community catch stray cats, and pays to have them spayed or neutered. The animals that are adoptable, often kittens, are brought to the ASAP shelter, while the others are returned to live out their lives in the “wild.” Under her own roof, Heuer lives with nine indoor cats: Kazoo, Mudders, Mama, Callie, Miss Kitty, Captain Jack, Olivia, Clementine and Marmalade. Heuer’s first solo rescue happened when she spotted a litter of kittens in the landscaped commons in front of the Hobby Lobby in Crystal Lake, fellow volunteer Cindy Gaffney said. Heuer caught two mother cats and seven kittens. “One colony had 18 cats, the second one had 12 cats and the last had 62 cats and the last cat was trapped in October,” she said. “Sandy worked for more than five months to ensure that all cats were sterilized and friendly ones were pulled for adoption.” When Heuer most recently visited the barn colony that formerly housed 62 feral cats, they were happy and purring, brushing up against the wood barn fixtures, despite the freezing temperatures. A majority of the cats were adopted out through ASAP, but the ones that remain at the barn are free to stay on the land they’ve always known as home. “It’s amazing what one person can do,” she said. “Can you imagine how many other animals could be helped if more people got involved in helping those who cannot speak?”
Matt Apgar – mapgar@shawmedia.com
Northwest Herald / NWHerald.com • Sunday, February 24, 2019
| EVERYDAY HEROES
8
MARY HOLZKOPF By DREW ZIMMERMAN
dzimmerman@shawmedia.com Faced with homelessness after her husband left her, Linda LeCroy was not sure what the next move would be for her and her 11-year-old son. In need of assistance, she called 34-year-old Mary Holzkopf, a mother of five in Huntley. LeCroy said Holzkopf set up a crowdfunding effort for her that helped to manage unpaid bills, settle debts with her landlord and cover moving expenses. “She’s always there for every and anyone,” LeCroy said. “I’ve never met anyone like her.” Two years ago, Holzkopf started Blessed Little Kitchen – her own bakery business that sells roughly 70 kinds of cookies and other baked goods of her own recipe – out of her home in Huntley. She said the business has a huge following in Huntley, but some customers have driven three hours for her cookies. Last April, she moved to a commercial kitchen at 1510 Industrial Drive in Lake in the Hills and is preparing to sign a lease for a bakery in Huntley in March. Through Blessed Little Kitchen, Holzkopf does a monthly Christ Cookie sale, where half of the total sales of one product for that month will go toward a person in need. One of the latest sales has benefited a family with a child who has severe autism and was in danger of being relocated to a public school without specialized services. “My business gave me a platform where my community knows me and the community feels safe telling me that they need help,” Holzkopf said. Ideally, Holzkopf said she would like to see 50 percent of her total business going back to the community in some capacity. But Christ Cookies is not the only way Holzkopf attempts to give back to those in need. In one instance, she saw to the assistance of a family with two children that had a five-day eviction notice on their home. Holzkopf has also volunteered as a den leader with the Cub Scouts. Holzkopf’s philosophy is that people are put in this Earth to help others and by showing God’s love to others through these acts of kindness, they can carry out such altruism.
Matt Apgar – mapgar@shawmedia.com
9
EVERYDAY HEROES | Northwest Herald / NWHerald.com
Ask For Adams... 11550 Kreutzer Road, Huntley 847.961.5409
COLLISION SERVICE
www.adamscollisionservice.com www.facebook.com/adamscollision
www.adamsautobody.com www.facebook.com/adamsautobodyandservicecenter
Now Prov iding Full Mech anical Service
8559 Pyott Road, Lake in the Hills 815.356.0192 1520 N. Division Street, Harvard 815.943.7390 www.adamscollision.com www.facebook.com/adamscollisioncenter
Whether you choose Adams Collision Service, Adams Auto Body and Sevice Center or Adams Collision Center, you can expect to be treated like family. With Adams, the main goal is quality repairs and complete customer satisfaction every time, backed by a written lifetime warranty. It’s the name you trusted yesterday, and know you can trust today and tomorrow.
SM-CL1631155
• Sunday, February 24, 2019
1811 W. Route 120, McHenry 815.385.4640
Northwest Herald / NWHerald.com • Sunday, February 24, 2019
| EVERYDAY HEROES
10
WAYNE KIRKPATRICK By DANIEL GAITAN
dgaitan@shawmedia.com Retired U.S. Army Col. Wayne T. Kirkpatrick embodies what it means to be an American patriot. Kirkpatrick, vice president of the Indian Grove subdivision in unincorporated Algonquin, is a reliable helping hand to those in need. “If I’ve got time or expertise that I can offer to make our community better, then I feel there’s a personal obligation to do so,” Kirkpatrick said. “When you serve two-and-a-half decades of your adult life protecting the freedoms we have, that doesn’t stop. You go back to your communities as a retiree and you feel this moral obligation to continue to be involved in developing our quality of life.” Kirkpatrick also serves as board chairman of the local Rolling Thunder chapter, a group committed to prisoners of war and those missing in action. Kirkpatrick served in the U.S. Army from 1965 to 1990. “Rolling Thunder is a nationwide group to keep the POW/MIA issue strong and in front of the American people,” Kirkpatrick said. “We bring all the remains back that we can. We want every serviceman accounted for. We do that through education, parades, demonstrations and ceremonies.” Kirkpatrick said America has a duty to the men and women who served. “There are 88,000 Americans still unaccounted for,” he said. “Each one of them have a family member. ... You never leave a serviceman behind. In my tenure on active duty, that was gospel. You never, ever left anyone behind.” Neighbor William Brodick said Kirkpatrick epitomizes the American spirit. “He does great things,” Brodick said. “He is always first to help somebody. ... He’s just a good neighbor. He’ll help anybody anytime or anyplace. He’s usually one of the first to volunteer.” Brodick also highlighted Kirkpatrick’s efforts repairing discarded bicycles last Christmas season so veterans in need could give their children a quality gift. “He’s always doing something to help veterans,” Brodick said. When questioned about the bicycles, Kirkpatrick replied: “A kid’s bicycle does not belong in the trash at Christmastime.”
Matt Apgar – mapgar@shawmedia.com
11
EVERYDAY HEROES | Northwest Herald / NWHerald.com
ACCUMATION INC. ccumation, Inc. has specialized in the manufacturing of precision Swiss Screw Machine Products for 46 42 years. We manufacture precision parts for various types of industry, and have earned a reputation for quality and accuracy. Accumation, Inc. has beenn a member of the Crystal Lake business Communityy for many years, and is known for being a great place to work.
• Sunday, February 24, 2019
815-455-6250 6211 Factory Rd. • Crystal Lake, IL
Woodstock
Crystal Lake
Cary
“Focused on You” COME EXPERIENCE OUR VISION OF TRUE COMMUNITY BANKING
One of the most important resources any company has is its employees, those people who concentrate their efforts and abilities and strive to make their company successful. We are very fortunate to have many such employees at Aptar Cary and McHenry. A great many employees are nominated throughout the year to be recognized for this special award and we are proud to have such dedicated talent and loyal employees on the Aptar team. This year, we are honoring three employees, one from each of our facilities, as Employee(s) of the Year!
Aptar Cary North Matt DeLeonardo
These employees, selected by their peers, are the Aptar recipients of this award for the extraordinary qualities they possess and have demonstrated over the year! Our congratulations to the EOY Winners for the year 2018!
Established in 2007
Golden Eagle Community Bank
Our congratulations to the winners for the year 2018!
Aptar Cary South Judi Royse
SM-CL1631167
975 COUNTRY CLUB RD • WOODSTOCK, IL 60098 7910 US HIGHWAY 14 • CRYSTAL LAKE, IL 60012 650 NORTHWEST HIGHWAY • CARY, IL 60013
815-321-5000
www.bankgoldeneagle.com
1160 N. Silver Lake Rd. • Cary, Illinois 60013
SM-CL1631771
Aptar McHenry Phil Baxley
Northwest Herald / NWHerald.com • Sunday, February 24, 2019
| EVERYDAY HEROES
12
KAREN LALOR By JOE STEVENSON
joestevenson@shawmedia.com Family members spoke to Karen Lalor in early November, just after her husband, Phil, died after a long fight with cancer. They urged Lalor not to push herself too hard with the Fall Fling Fundraiser for the Hebron Public Library, a project on which she had worked for a yearand-a-half. Phil died on Nov. 4, the fundraiser was on Nov. 17. Those close to Lalor knew how she would respond. “It gave me something to focus on. I couldn’t sit around and do nothing,” Lalor said. “I needed something to occupy my time. It was cathartic to have something to do.” Karen said Phil had told her to go ahead with the project, which brought in close to $20,000 for the library. For her generosity and drive toward helping the community, Lalor has been selected as a Northwest Herald Everyday Hero. “She’s just a very giving person,” said Patty Ackerman, Lalor’s sister-in-law and one of the people who nominated her for the honor. “She’s that type of person, she likes to help people.” Lalor, who owns Stateline Insurance Agency in Hebron, says she was born into a community-oriented, giving family. Her parents, Gene and Joanne Simes, were constantly involved with Hebron activities. “When you’re born into a family that firmly believes that, you are not only supposed to, you are required, to give back to the community,” Lalor said. If there is a fundraiser around Hebron, Lalor is likely involved. “The biggest thing is the people of the community trust her,” said John Lalor, A-H athletic director and football coach, and Karen’s brother-in-law. “They know when she gets involved it’s for the right reasons and the money goes to the right spots.” Karen enlists her daughters, Shanda Gulvas and Nicolette DeCicco, with her projects, as well as several friends. “I’m fortunate because I have a lot of friends and neighbors and relatives who pitch in and help,” she said. “I couldn’t do these things without them. They deserve more credit than I do because they’re all still speaking to me … last I checked.”
Matt Apgar – mapgar@shawmedia.com
MIKE LEHMAN
13
EVERYDAY HEROES | Northwest Herald / NWHerald.com
By LINDSAY WEBER
Shaw Media correspondent
• Sunday, February 24, 2019
By day, 49-year-old McHenry resident Mike Lehman is owner of McHenry Printing. Before, after and in-between, he is a husband, father to 5½-year-old triplets and member of the McHenry Sunrise Rotary Club. When the club first formed 10 years ago, its main focus was helping children within the community. Soon after its formation, Lehman helped launch the Sunrise Secret Santa program. The program uses surplus toys from Toys for Tots and distributes them to underprivileged children within the county. With a crew of 500 to 600 volunteers to collect, sort, wrap and deliver over a weeklong period, it is quite the undertaking, and Lehman is the maestro of it all. “Our club helps the community and it tugged at my heartstrings that there are families within the community that could not provide for their kids,” Lehman said. “We had all these toys and it made sense to bring this initiative to our club. I have great support from the other club members, but working from home, I have the flexibility to take this on where others can’t.” In 2018, the Sunrise Secret Santa program provided toys to 1,868 children through roughly 697 deliveries. Collection generally begins following the McHenry Toys for Tots Parade in November. Lehman is a Northwest Herald Everyday Hero recipient, nominated by fellow rotary member Vicki Nielsen. Johnsburg resident and Founding President of Sunrise Rotary Club Jeff Batt said this is a well-deserved award for Lehman. “He’s done an awful lot of work for Sunrise Secret Santa and Mike has single-handedly grown the program from what it was, to what it is today,” Batt said. “We’ve been there to help him, but it’s been his doing, and he should be very proud of that. Our club wouldn’t be what it is without Mike. He’s the driving force. We’re a small club, and it’s an amazing undertaking.” Lehman said he was very honored to receive this recognition. “A hero is someone that gives back without thinking of themselves,” Lehman said. “I found a place with this club where I fit in and we all give back together. Our club motto is ‘service above self’ and I firmly believe that.”
Matt Apgar – mapgar@shawmedia.com
Northwest Herald / NWHerald.com • Sunday, February 24, 2019
| EVERYDAY HEROES
14
LOUISE McKEEVER By DANIEL GAITAN
dgaitan@shawmedia.com Nearly each morning for the last 15 years, Louise McKeever has walked around southern Crystal Lake picking up trash. McKeever, 83, is affectionately known as “Garbage Lady” by school children, cyclists and area residents. Rain or shine, she can be spotted wearing her yellow reflective vest while walking along Golf Course Road and picking up garbage. “She goes on a 2½- to 3-mile walking every morning picking up garbage in her neighborhood,” her son Scott McKeever said. “It goes back to when she was a little girl in Iowa in a small little town.” Because there were no cars back then, she would walk to her father’s business. “Her and her dad would pick up litter on the way there and on the way home,” Scott McKeever said. “She got that ingrained in herself, and when she moved here to Crystal Lake, she would walk to her grandchildren’s’ bus stop and pick up litter on the way to the bus stop and the way home from the bus stop.” Eventually, she expanded her route and “has been doing that ever since,” Scott McKeever said. “It’s awesome. Everybody on the south side of Crystal Lake knows her. People honk, all the runners know her, all the bus drivers know her, the kids at Indian Prairie write her thank you notes on Earth Day.” Scott McKeever said his mother has stumbled across keys, syringes and shoes. She drops off aluminum cans at Lake in the Hills President Russ Ruzanski’s home so he can get cash for them. She donates that cash to a local food pantry. “I don’t like litter,” Louise McKeever said, adding that she enjoys getting out of the house each morning for fresh air and conversations with locals during her walk.
Matt Apgar – mapgar@shawmedia.com
RANDY MOAN
15
EVERYDAY HEROES | Northwest Herald / NWHerald.com
By JAMI KUNZER
Shaw Media correspondent
• Sunday, February 24, 2019
Randy Moan might not see himself as much different from everyone else, but in his daughter’s eyes he’s a hero. Those who know him and the many he’s helped through the years see him that way, too. “He’s my best friend ever. I’ve always seen him work so hard for other people and never want anything back,” Chelsea Cotton said of her 52-year-old father, who recently moved from Crystal Lake to Port Barrington. “He thinks he just does stuff, and it’s nothing. It’s normal. I try to tell him not everyone does this.” A U.S. Marine veteran, who spent six years on active duty, Moan always has been the type of person to reach out to those in need. Moan, who also has an 8-year-old son, Vincent, is on disability through the military. “He goes through such hard times himself,” said 28-year-old Cotton of Plainfield. “Even on his hardest days, he’ll still put others in front of himself.” A member of the Marine Corps League, Moan also was a member and president of the once-active Crystal Lake Jaycees for years. As part of that, he’d organize a Share a Christmas program, helping more then 100 families in need annually with gifts for children and food baskets. After the Crystal Lake Jaycees no longer were active, he helped organize another program, reaching out to at least 15 families in need during the holidays. Last year, he adopted a family, a single mom and four children. Through donations, he was able to give the children at least 15 gifts. “I like the concept of giving back to the community, and I think it should be instilled in everybody,” Moan said of his motivation to help others. “I think our world would be a better place if everyone just did a little bit.” After Hurricane Katrina in 2005, he allowed a family to stay for free in a rental home he once owned in Crystal Lake. He’s the type of person who likes to be a “behind-the-scenes kind of guy,” he said, not really elaborating on all of the things he’s done through the years. But he said he’s proud his daughter sees him in this light and recognizes the value of helping others. “I’m sure people do quite a bit more than me,” he said. Still, when Cotton saw the call for Everyday Heroes, she said she just had to nominate him. “I could go on for days with all of the events my father has planned or helped out with around the community,” she said. “He is what I consider a silent hero. … He will forever be my hero, as well as many others throughout McHenry County.”
Matt Apgar – mapgar@shawmedia.com
Northwest Herald / NWHerald.com • Sunday, February 24, 2019
| EVERYDAY HEROES
16
KAREN MUNTER By DANIEL GAITAN
dgaitan@shawmedia.com Karen Munter has spent the past 13 years working to make sure no one in Crystal Lake goes hungry. Hunter, of Crystal Lake, serves as vice president of the Crystal Lake Food Pantry, 42 East St. “It’s an opportunity to give back to the community and impact the community,” Hunter said. “I feel like there’s times in all of our lives when we may need to benefit from the services our community offers. In order to provide the best services for our community, especially those in need, I wanted to be a part of that transformation. I want to support our neighbors in need.” Although Munter has a busy schedule as resource project coordinator at the Cancer Institute at Amita Health Alexian Brothers Healthcare, she wouldn’t give up her community engagement efforts. “I love being part of a community of people who care about others,” she said. “It’s a passion. I look forward to it.” When asked about how it feels to be honored for her efforts, Hunter replied: “I’m humbled.” “In my opinion, Karen represents a true Everyday Hero,” pantry President William Eich said. Eich said the distinction is “probably long overdue” because she volunteers up to 30 hours each week at the pantry. “She’s hardworking, caring, dedicated, extremely smart and able to work with anybody,” he said. “Her heart’s much, much bigger than it appears.” Eich said Munter has trained hundreds of volunteers, but is not afraid of loading bins with food, composting expired items and planning future donations. He said the pantry provides essentials to about 10 percent of the Crystal Lake population. “It’s a significant amount,” he said. “We’re even able to distribute food to other pantries in the county. We don’t just work here. We do work all over the county. That’s something she started and had to establish ways to do that, how to work with other pantries.” Eich said the pantry distributes more than 1.5 million pounds of food annually.
Matt Apgar – mapgar@shawmedia.com
SCOTT NEUMANN
17
EVERYDAY HEROES | Northwest Herald / NWHerald.com
By ED KOMENDA
ekomenda@shawmedia.com
• Sunday, February 24, 2019
Scott Neumann started on the air guitar. As an 8-year-old boy, the McHenry native would stand in front of the record player, pretending to noodle up and down an imaginary fretboard while listening to his older sister’s Beatles albums. His parents soon noticed their son’s interest in the guitar and bought him one. Now Neumann is 61 and retired from a 31-year career with the United States Postal Service. In 2009, he founded Free Guitars For Future Stars, a nonprofit that provided guitars and guitar lessons to children ages 10 to 17 from lower-income McHenry County families. The organization works with an average of 75 to 100 students annually. The program runs from October through June, and everything is free, including the Oscar Schmidt guitars students play and the standard music lessons they take. Founding the program allowed Neumann to fill his free time during retirement with two things he loves to do: play guitar and work with kids. Time and time again, Neumann has watched the same story unfold: Shy kid walks into the program and leaves a person confident enough to even play an instrument as a professional. One of his students, he learned this year, now makes his money as a working guitarist in Nashville. “We’ve had some that I know have gone pretty far with it,” Neumann said. “Some of them come back, and a lot of them don’t.” Neumann doesn’t have a favorite band nor does he have a favorite record. He listens to anything and everything, drawing from a large number of influences. “My dad would have liked me to be the next Chet Atkins,” Neumann said about the Tennessee country star. “I bounce around so much with music. I’ve been in a wedding band, I’ve been in a jazz band, I’ve been in a rock band, I’ve been in a country band.” To Neumann, it’s rewarding to share guitar and music knowledge he’s picked up over the years with kids that remind him of a younger version of himself. “The program isn’t really about the guitar,” Neumann said. “It’s about building self-confidence.”
Matt Apgar – mapgar@shawmedia.com
Northwest Herald / NWHerald.com • Sunday, February 24, 2019
| EVERYDAY HEROES
18
CADEN RINGER By BRITTANY KEEPERMAN
bkeeperman@shawmedia.com There is always something you can do to help someone in need. That’s the message that 14-yearold McHenry teenager Caden Ringer wants to share with his community. Ringer founded the Home Run Helpers program three years ago. The organization hosts fundraisers, buys toys for children in need and distributes them for Christmas. Home Run Helpers aims to help kids 12 and older, because many similar programs such as Toys for Tots have age cutoff requirements. Ringer started the program after one of his best friends couldn’t afford a $6 school field trip. Ringer paid his friend’s way but was struck by the realization that not everyone in his world had the same resources. “It made me realize that there are people close to me that can’t afford things, and there are probably a lot of other kids like that, too,” Ringer said. Home Run Helpers aims to give eight or nine presents to each gift recipient. Participants typically find out about the program through school social workers. The group in 2018 also collaborated with nonprofit Kids in Need of McHenry County and will continue the partnership in the future, Ringer said. Ringer said the most challenging part of the work was putting together the logistics with so many different people involved. “It’s a lot of stress,” he said. What keeps him going? “I know it makes kids happy.” About 130 kids benefited from the program in 2018, up from the 60 that participated in Home Run Helpers first year, said Christina Kreush, Ringer’s mother. Kreush said the family has had to sacrifice some of its own Christmas traditions. Home Run Helpers has eaten up time previously spent looking at Christmas lights, and their own Christmas tree often doesn’t go up until Christmas Eve. But the learning experience is worth it, and Kreush is proud that her son has a spirit of giving and puts in the effort to do something for others. “I think deep down a lot of people have a heart and want to give,” she said. “It’s pretty special that he was able to recognize someone his own age in need. Then instead of ignoring that feeling, he was called to do something.”
Matt Apgar – mapgar@shawmedia.com
SUE ROSE
19
EVERYDAY HEROES | Northwest Herald / NWHerald.com
By BRITTANY KEEPERMAN
bkeeperman@shawmedia.com
• Sunday, February 24, 2019
Housing McHenry County’s homeless population has become the most challenging – and rewarding – part of Sue Rose’s career. Rose has served as the McHenry County Housing Authority’s community service director for 23 years. She has always been interested in serving those in need, but became interested in the people who are without homes when she began her career in the social services field at Royal Terrace Nursing and Rehab facility in the ’80s. “It became apparent that there were people in nursing homes that didn’t actually need nursing care,” Rose said. “They just didn’t have a place to live.” Rose briefly directed a shared housing program and investigated elder abuse with another agency before taking the job with the McHenry County Housing Authority. Rose enjoys working directly with clients in the community. She played a major role in establishing Woodstock’s Old Firehouse Assistance Center in 2016, and the center has placed about 80 chronically homeless individuals into permanent housing since, she said. “It’s a challenging but rewarding group of people to work with,” Rose said. “Every new situation requires new skills and a new thought process and a new way of looking at things.” Rose likes to garden, go antiquing, make jewelry, volunteer with her church and draw or paint in her spare time. She worked as a professional artist and illustrator for years before returning to school, earning her degree and entering the social services field. Her work as an illustrator involved creating art and lettering for various newspapers. She also worked as the art director J.C. Shultz Enterprises, or “The Flagsource” designing flags. Rose recently spent many nights and weekend hours working at the 24-7 emergency warming center opened by McHenry Township as frigid temperatures and wind chills down to minus 55 swept the area. “Sue is really very nice. She’s the best of the best,” said Marc Halvorsen, who has been homeless for more than two years in McHenry County. “She reminds me of my mom. She would bend over backward to help someone.”
Matt Apgar – mapgar@shawmedia.com
Northwest Herald / NWHerald.com • Sunday, February 24, 2019
| EVERYDAY HEROES
20
NANCY SCHIETZELT By JAMI KUNZER
Shaw Media correspondent Nancy Schietzelt lives out her love for the environment by volunteering “here, there and everywhere.” When the 69-year-old Crystal Lake woman retired as a science teacher from Cary Junior High School in 2006, she turned her full attention to the Environmental Defenders of McHenry County. In her many roles with the organization, including president from 2010 through 2018, she’s spread her passion to everyone she’s met, said Cynthia Kanner, Environmental Defenders executive director. “Her energy and her commitment are incredible,” she said. “It’s really unmatched.” Through various committees and now as vice president of the organization, Schietzelt has engaged and inspired countless volunteers, Kanner said. She volunteers regularly at the Defenders’ two used book stores and sits on the county’s Green Drinks organizing committee. Schietzelt’s love for the environment started long ago growing up on a farm. She spent her days in wooded pastures, working in the garden and learning the names of all the birds and flowers. As a teacher, she often attended workshops on environmental education, eventually becoming a planner of those workshops, along with camping experiences for students. A volunteer at the Volo Bog for 25 years, she decided upon retirement to become as actively involved helping the environment as she could. “I’m just very concerned about what we leave behind us for future generations,” she said. “I know that sounds cliché, but it is the absolute truth, especially at this time. It’s so important we all do everything we can to help protect our natural resources and our parks and open spaces. These are things that make our lives richer.” Among the Defenders’ numerous accomplishments, she said the group has helped influence the county to hire a water resource specialist and create policies related to wind energy. Without the organization, there would be no curbside recycling, she said. Members now are advocating for sensible salting of sidewalks and driveways during the winter to prevent runoff into groundwater. All of the endeavors are group efforts, Schietzelt emphasized. She said she was honored by the Everyday Hero title, but felt she didn’t deserve it. “None of us are heroes,” she said. “We’re just doing what we feel passionately about doing and what we hope others will do.”
Matt Apgar – mapgar@shawmedia.com
21
Business Heritage 2019 1951
1971
1976Service Northern Illinois’ Full John Deere Dealer.
EVERYDAY HEROES | Northwest Herald / NWHerald.com
McHenry County’s rich heritage of local businesses contribute to our great communities everyday!
Now with 4 locations to serve you. Northern Illinois’ Full Servi HAMPSHIRE
14N937 Highway 20 847-683-4400
John Deere Dealer.
HARVARDNow with 4 locations to serve
Celebrating 43North years! 1810 Division
HAMPSHIRE
1080 E. Park Ave. 847-367-4100
1964 SEPT. 14 & 15
445 Park Ave., Cary, IL 60013 CaryGroveChamber.com 847.639.2800
LOCATION LOCATION LOCATION
Visit us online at: www.BuckBrosInc.com
JA salutes all of the Everyday Heroes in our community
NorthernNorthern Illinois’ FullIllinois’ Service John Deere Dealer.
Full Service John Deere Dealer.
Now with 4 locations to serve you.
HAMPSHIRE • HARVARD • LIBERTYVILLE HARVARD WAUCONDA 14N937 Highway 20 1810 North Division HAMPSHIRE
Visit us online at:815-943-4461 www.BuckBrosInc.com
847-683-4400
LIBERTYVILLE 1080 E. Park Ave. 847-367-4100
WAUCONDA
1978
29626 N. US Hwy. 12 847-487-4900
Visit us online at: www.BuckBrosInc.com
CLOCKS
New and Antique Sales and Repair
We Make House Calls!
(800) Visit home listings at ShawSuburbanHomes.com
WAUCONDA LIBERTYVILLE WAUCO 108012 E. Park Ave. 29626 N. US 29626 N. US Hwy. 847-367-4100 847-487847-487-4900 1977 Visit us online at: www.BuckBrosI
adno=0336644
lations Congratu to the 2019 Heroes! y a D y r e v E
• www.nisra.org •
adno=0336644
815-459-0737 LIBERTYVILLE
892-8903
WWW.JAFRATE.COM
HARVA
1810 North 815-943-
• Sunday, February 24, 2019
815-943-4461 ...enriching the lives of people with disabilities 14N937 Highway 20 847-683-4400 through meaningful recreation experiences.
Gra
ndf
ath
Clo er • Grandfather Clocks Exp ck erts • Mantle Clocks • Rhythm Sound & Motion Clocks • Black Forest Imports • Cuckoo Clocks • Music Box Repair FAMILY & VETERAN OWNED BUSINESS
McHenry Clock Co. 1216 N. Green St., McHenry (815) 363-8963 www.theclockexperts.com Tuesday - Fri 9-5, Sat 9-4
Northwest Herald / NWHerald.com • Sunday, February 24, 2019
| EVERYDAY HEROES
22
Business Heritage 2019 1976
1994
1998
Amana = Lower Hea�ng Bills + Nicor Rebate!
IT’S COLD OUTSIDE! There’s never been a be� er �me to purchase your Amana 96% High-Efficiency furnace, and save even more with Nicor’s Energy Smart Rebate*! Call NOW for your FREE es�mate. Call for informa�on about the Amana® brand highefficiency Gas Furnace Life�me Unit Replacement Limited Warranty. *See www.nicorgasrebates.com /your-home/rebates-for-home for details on rebates.
CRYSTAL LAKE
We don’t use 815.477.4500 subcontractors our employees HEATING COOLING PLUMBING install all HUMIDIFIERS AIR CLEANERS equipment! IL Lic #055-012579
www.airmanservices.com
1996
2000
Specializing In: Tax Planning/Preparation Financial/Estate Planning Accounting/Auditing | Business Valuation & Litigation Support Accounting Software Consultation & Implementation
John Verchota, CPA, MST john@millerverchota.com
Jeff Seda, Staff Accountant jeff@millerverchota.com
Mary Miller, CPA/ABV, CVA mary@millerverchota.com
Jamie Seda, Enrolled Agent jamie@millerverchota.com
Congratulations to our Everyday Heroes! www.millerverchota.com 444 N. IL Route 31 Suite 104 Crystal Lake, IL 60012 p. 815.477.8000 f. 815.477.7170
• Sunday, February 24, 2019
Authorized QuickBooks Pro Advisors | Sage Business Works Peachtree Software
23
EVERYDAY HEROES | Northwest Herald / NWHerald.com
Business Heritage 2019
Northwest Herald / NWHerald.com • Sunday, February 24, 2019
| EVERYDAY HEROES
24
GINA SMAK By CHRIS MORDI
Shaw Media correspondent Her influence spans a generation and can be felt more than 1,000 miles away from Crystal Lake. What began as an assignment she raised her hand for 32 years ago has affected and influenced nearly 90 children a year. Gina Smak is the Crystal Lake Park District’s Extended Time program supervisor at Woodscreek Elementary School, a beforeand after-school program for children in kindergarten through fifth grade, that she runs with 11 other counselors. She starts her day at 6:15 a.m., receiving “her” children for the morning session. Every day in a cafeteria that is decorated with banners and drawings made by the children, she starts the day with a chant. “If you can dream it,” she says. “You can achieve it,” they all yell back. The kids, the families, the relationships she has made with her co-workers keep her motivated after all of these years, Smak said. “This makes a huge impact on my life,” Smak said. “Most of the counselors who work for me grew up in this program.” The impact she has on her “kids”? Aaron Litchfield, 35, formerly of Crystal Lake and now living in Richmond, Va., said he spent nearly 20 years in Smak’s program. “I was in the extended time program because my mom was working full time and my brother and I needed somewhere to go,” Litchfield said in a phone interview. After he graduated from the program, he became a volunteer with Smak during middle school. He worked for her when he was in high school and during summer breaks when he was in college. He said he stayed involved because of the way Smak runs things. “You feel like you are part of something with her,” Litchfield said. Litchfield credits Smak with igniting the spark that led him to becoming a teacher. He recently won the Teacher of the Year award at the Patrick Henry School of Science and Art. “She instilled what I take into the classroom,” he said. “She is accepting of all kids for who they are. She teaches on their level. Each kid has different needs, and I should have different expectations of each kid. Learning that and seeing that transitioned into my classroom.” There are hundreds of people Smak still keeps in touch with, Litchfield said. “It’s amazing to see that I’ve been a part of that. I am one of a thousand people who have had the same experience with her,” he said. As all of her kids get ready to leave the evening session at 6 p.m. Gina huddles them together. “If you can dream it,” she said. “You can achieve it,” they all yelled back.
Matt Apgar – mapgar@shawmedia.com
ARIENNE WEISENBERGER
25
EVERYDAY HEROES | Northwest Herald / NWHerald.com
By LINDSAY WEBER
Shaw Media correspondent
• Sunday, February 24, 2019
Ten years ago, Arienne Weisenberger had a set of fraternal twins three months early. They were admitted to the NICU and were kept in the hospital for eight weeks. With the addition of twins Madilyn and Jackson, Weisenberger’s family grew from four to six children. When she re-married five years ago, she also became stepmother to four children. Her brood grew to a grand total 10. Managing a family of 12 can be challenging, yet Weisenberger still found time to purchase and run The Breakers restaurant in Crystal Lake and give back to families with terminally ill children. “My wanting to get involved started with my twins,” said Weisenberger, 37, of Crystal Lake. “They were in the hospital for eight weeks and I was very lucky to have so many people helping us. I was very involved with Children’s Miracle Network through my previous job and we would do big campaigns for them for Lurie Children’s Hospital.” Weisenberger said she and her husband saw so many families struggling in their everyday lives, and they wanted to find a way to give back. Weisenberger started the The Fairy Godparent Project to have families within the area who have terminally ill children. Their mission is to help families struggling with the necessities of life while going through the biggest struggle they have faced. Arienne Weisenberger’s husband, Jason Weisenberger, said she is the most giving person you will ever meet, and even with 10 kids of her own, she still makes time for everyone else. In August, The Fairy God Parent Project put on an event for a 2-year-old Johnsburg resident Cade Winters. Funds from the event held at The Breakers restaurant helped to pay the family’s mortgage, meals, bills and lawn care while the family was in Madison for treatment in six-week stints. Weisenberger’s friend, Lakewood resident Denise Hopman, attended the event. “I always find it fascinating that with the number of children she has, and her career and everything she has going on, she always finds the time to do what others would love to be able to do, but can’t seem to find the time,” Hopman said. “She’s so passionate, and so giving, and so humble.” Weisenberger said she hopes to expand The Fairy Godparent Project further to help more children and families outside of McHenry County. “A hero can mean so many different things,” Weisenberger said. “My grandma was my hero. Not because she did one amazing thing, because she did 100 amazing things for me. She made me strong and gave me confidence. She gave me so many of those things that go unnoticed. It’s not the major things, it’s the little things.”
Matt Apgar – mapgar@shawmedia.com
Northwest Herald / NWHerald.com • Sunday, February 24, 2019
| EVERYDAY HEROES
26
SAM WIJEYAKUMAR
By KATIE SMITH
ksmith@shawmedia.com The Bible tells a story of Rahab – believed to have been a prostitute from Jericho who deceived her people in order to offer refuge to Israelite spies. Not unlike Rahab, Sam Wijeyakumar will do whatever it takes to protect the victims of human trafficking. “In our McHenry area, kids are being coerced on games like Fortnite and at school or parents think they’re off at band camp … but they’re actually being trafficked and brought right home,” she said. In 2018, Wijeyakumar’s organization, Rahab’s Daughters, performed 213 rescues of human trafficking victims. Wijeyakumar knows all too well that even seemingly well-off suburban teens are at risk. After being trafficked as a 16-year-old runaway, it took Wijeyakumar four years to completely sever herself from the lifestyle. When she came out on the other side, however, she and her husband spent years battling sex trafficking in Europe and the United States before founding Barrington Hills-
60,000
More than young children end up in emergency rooms every year because they got into medicines while their parent or caregiver was not looking.
based Rahab’s Daughters in 2015. The organization rescues victims of human trafficking and offers education, rehabilitation and shelter to help them transition back into mainstream life. “Every girl that we make an impact on brings me joy,” she said. “Every person … while they may not be ready to leave now, they may be one day and they know there’s a place that they can go. I wish they had something like that for me.” No matter how the abuse presents itself, Wijeyakumar knows what it is when she sees it, and she’s not afraid to put an end to it, fellow volunteer Paul Ingallinera said. “She’s a civilian who risks her life for other people, and she doesn’t need to,” he said. “She does it because that’s what her calling is.” Through Rahab’s Daughters, Wijeyakumar and other volunteers work with the FBI and local law enforcement to meet with human trafficking victims, remove them from abusive environments and help them plan for the future. “She’s sort of like the local Moses of sex trafficking,” Ingallinera said. “She leads people out and she helps them transition.”
Always put every medicine and vitamin up and away every time you use it. Also, program Yourself... your poison control center’s number in your •Ask Do you live in a home that you own in McHenry County? (age not important) • Have you put an addition on your home in the past 4 years? phone: 800.222.1222. • Are you over age 65 and living in a home that you own?
DO YOU QUALIFY?
• Are you a homeowner age 65+ with an income of less than $65,000? • Are you a disabled Veteran or are otherwise disabled and a homeowner?
To learn more, visit UpandAway.org Photo provided
If you are any of these people, then you may qualify for property tax relief!
When you pay your real estate tax bill, you want to know that you are paying a fair and equitable portion for public services that you receive. We try hard to make that happen by striving for a correct assessment of your property. We also want to make sure you take advantage of the property tax relief that may be available to you. Check your tax bill.
If you don’t think you are getting your exemptions, give us a call!
In partnership with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
McHENRY COUNTY ASSESSMENT’S OFFICE
815-334-4290
www.mchenrycountyil.gov SM-CL1631171
(Click Departments / Click Assessments)
OVER 30 YEARS EXPERIENCE Serving Northern Illinois Residential & Commercial
Hail & Sto Specia rm lists
• Professional Crews
• Dependable
• Efficient
• Complete Clean-Up
815.477.2589 • www.hoganexteriors.com • 820 McArdle Drive • Crystal Lake
• Sunday, February 24, 2019
Tear-Off ’s | Repairs | Cedar Shakes | Single Ply Systems Aluminum Soffit & Fascia | Gutters | Siding | Re-Roofs Architectural Shingles | Flat Roofs
27
EVERYDAY HEROES | Northwest Herald / NWHerald.com
Quality, Commitment & Customer Service is why Hogan Exteriors is on TOP!
Northwest Herald / NWHerald.com • Sunday, February 24, 2019
| EVERYDAY HEROES
28
be OUR GUEST “Moving Made Easy”
Lunch and Learn
Wednesday, February 27 or Thursday, March 7 10:30am-1pm
rsvp
be
Amy@thegarlands.com 847-304-1996
SOCIAL Marilyn, Sally and Phyllis became new fast friends after moving to The Garlands. They enjoy Happy Hours, dinners, local shopping and special events together and treasure one another’s fellowship, support and fun-loving spirits.
People come to The Garlands for all sorts of reasons – beautiful homes, convenient services, top-notch quality and peace of mind. But when they actually move in, they discover they can BE more, so much more!
be YOU
Be TOTALLY you at thegarlands.com
Be Ahead of the Game
1000 Garlands Lane, Barrington, IL 60010 (847) 304-1996
Get a jump on the Spring real estate market and learn how to sell your home within 30 days . . . plus, leave the packing, moving and unpacking to us!