Leaders Among Us 2013 by The Southern Illinoisan

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Contact Us Publisher: Bob Williams 618-351-5038 Editor: Gary Metro 618-351-5033 Writer: Les Oâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;Dell Copy Editor: Cara Recine 618-351-5075

Copy Editor: Mary Thomas Layton 618-351-5071 Advertising: Tim Stuart 618-351-5015 Circulation: Kim Fowler 618-351-5035

The Southern Business Journal Monthly is a publication of The Southern Illinoisan. Contact us via mail at 710 N. Illinois Ave., Carbondale, IL, 62901, or at P.O. Box 2108, Carbondale, IL, 62903. Also reach us on the Web at www.sbj.biz and via email at SBJ@ thesouthern.com. Copyright 2013 by The Southern Illinoisan. All rights reserved. Information about how to subscribe may be obtained by calling 618-529-5454, or by visiting www.sbj.biz.

Congratulations, Chris Boyd As Director of Member Services for Southern Illinois Electric Cooperative, we are proud of your commiment to community.

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May 2013

Meet the Leaders Among Us Class of 2013 Each year, The Southern Illinoisan is honored to recognize outstanding community leaders from across our Williams region. There are 10 honorees in the class of 2013. Each uniquely serves his or her community and enriches the lives of Metro their friends and neighbors. It is an honor to present the Class of 2013 in this special, annual publication. The men and women profiled in the following pages share a common trait — service. Each is

working in his or her own way to make Southern Illinois a better place to live, work and get an education. These are people who labor outside the confines of their employment to improve our region, though most also are working in more-than-fulltime capacities. Some are essential for volunteer efforts offered through churches, civic groups or schools. Some are wellknown and recognized as a leader who will serve Southern Illinois through several generations. Others work away from the spotlight to bring people and progress to the region. As was the case with nine previous years of honored leaders — more than 100 in total — you are likely to be impressed by the diversity of this year’s

honorees. They live in communities dotted across Southern Illinois, some quite distant from others. But they all understand our region is the greater community to which we all belong — One Region, One Vision. These leaders are simply the best. In addition to being honored in this magazine, the “Leaders” were honored May 9 at the Community Leaders’ Breakfast at John A Logan College in Carterville. The breakfast was part of a series sponsored by The Southern Illinoisan and the Southern Business Journal. – Bob Williams is publisher and Gary Metro is editor of Southern Business Journal and The Southern Illinoisan. They can be reached at 618-529-5454 or at sbj@thesouthern.com.

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Chris

Boyd

Did You Know? Chris Boyd has participated in many mule races at the local county fair, always placing third. ‘And there were always more than three people in each race,’ he claims.

Southern BUSINESS JOURNAL

or Chris Boyd, life is about cooperation. He believes in working together and being part of a team. He also believes in Southern Illinois — and has for a long time.

“I remember when I graduated from high school, all of my friends wanted to run off and take the world by storm,” he recalls. “Not me. After college, I just wanted to be home. I decided that everything I needed in life was here.”

Boyd has never forgotten that feeling. Today, as director of member services for Southern Illinois Electrical Cooperative based in Dongola, Boyd works as part of a memberowned company and, while his roles and tasks are varied, all of his duties revolve around May 2013

Paul Newton

service to members, neighbors and the region. “I’m the person our cooperative members call when they need something; I get a lot of inquiries,” he says. He’s also the go-to person for legislative initiatives, media requests, safety demonstrations and work with community groups. His willingness to help and serve has landed him spots on committees and working MAY 2013

groups of all types and sizes. Boyd has been active in a number of civic causes including Union County Chamber of Commerce, Union County Economic Development Corporation, the local hospital’s board of directors. He also was named by the governor as a member of Delta Leadership Institute. In each group he serves, Boyd tries to take the same

sort of approach. “I’m pretty active in a lot of different organizations, but that doesn’t mean I’m always the first person to speak,” he points out. “I’m always there, but I like to form my opinions before saying anything. I don’t say a lot, but when I do, I try to make sure I have put a lot of thought into it first.” He continues to put a lot of thought into the needs of his fellow Southern Illinoisans. When the cooperative saw a need for quality water, he was instrumental in establishing SouthWater Inc., a regional water supply system. Today, he serves as executive vice president of the company. “We have been able to build a state-of-the-art facility in Tamms and put in more than 200 miles of water main serving Dongola, Mounds and other communities, as well as 900 rural customers,” he says. “We went from electricity to water, and with both we keep trying to serve the needs of our counties and help out in any way we can.” Whenever possible, Boyd seeks out ways to help out children, especially when it involves getting kids involved in sports. He volunteers with Muddy Kids Foundation, a group that works to introduce youngsters to wildlife education and provide an opportunity for youngsters to participate in a duck hunt. “It’s an opportunity to introduce kids to the sport, especially those who otherwise would not have gotten to do it,” Boyd says. He also is a frequent coach for youth baseball and football and has recently taken on a coaching role in a churchbased youth basketball

program called Upward Basketball. He finds that through working in youth sports, he is able to pass along the same principles he tries to live by. “Sports teach teamwork,” he says. “It’s about good sportsmanship and being a good teammate. The Upward program specifically helps us as leaders talk with the kids about if you knock someone down, you help them back up.” Through youth sports, Boyd has been able to affect a large number of adolescents in a positive way. “You coach one year, and then you have another draft and then the next. It’s always new kids,” he says. But he recalls with pride a chance encounter with a former player. Upon recognizing his former coach, the player told Boyd, “You’ll always be my coach.” Regardless of if his work is through sports, by helping provide quality electricity and water or by strengthening the region through economic development and involvement, Boyd has just one goal, and it stems from his realization years ago about wanting to be at home. He wants to make Southern Illinois a place of opportunity. “I want to see Southern Illinois prosper, so maybe 15 years from now, when my son makes a decision about where he will go to school or work, he can stay here if he wants,” he says. “I was fortunate enough to come back and go to work. I’ve always wanted to give back so that maybe somewhere down the road, other kids would have the opportunity to stay here because of something I created or did.”

Southern BUSINESS JOURNAL

sarah

LavenderBrashear "T

ugging on her apron strings” is more than a cliché for Sarah Lavender-Brashear. As a young girl, Lavender-Brashear shadowed her grandmother and learned a few things. She was taught all about baking and taking care of customers. She learned about service, about relationships and how to care. Day after day, Lavender-Brashear learned from her grandmother, Elsie Wheeler of Elsie’s Café, an iconic restaurant in Murphysboro. It should be no wonder then that she would follow in her grandmother’s footsteps, eventually starting her own food business, One Hot Cookie, also based in Murphysboro. Lavender-Brashear’s specialty bakery and catering company still has ties to Elsie. Many of the cooking techniques have been passed down. Even the location harkens back to Elsie. The bakery is located in what was Lavender-Brashear’s grandparents' home. Coconut cream pie always makes her think of her grandma and how Elsie used those pies in serving others. “Grandma was known for the pies,” Lavender-

Brashear recalls, “but she never sold a day-old pie. She always took them to the police department, the fire department or the hospital, and they were always so elated. It was just something she did; she gave back.” It’s something that Lavender-Brashear does, too. She gives back, both as a part of her company and personally. “Everything we do at One Hot Cookie is different,” she says. “We like to pretty things up and make everything look like a present. We want to make people feel like, ‘Wow, somebody really thinks about me,’ every time they get one of our products. From including a little something extra to wrapping a box of treats with a big ribbon, it’s all about making a difference” Lavender-Brashear says thinking of others is something she tries to do.

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“It was always instilled in me that helping those in need and volunteering was just something you do,” she says. She gives back in numerous ways. She says her company has donated thousands of dollars in cookies and baked goods to a variety of charitable causes ranging from the Poshard Foundation to school fundraisers. She has been instrumental in the development and activities of the Murphysboro

Youth and Recreation Center, worked with the Murphysboro Hometown Christmas celebration, volunteered with The Women’s Center in Carbondale, the American Legion and other veterans' groups. One of her most cherished areas of service, however, harkens back to her days as a student of fashion merchandising and design. More than once, she has spearheaded drives to gather and donate women’s dress clothes for charities. Before May 2013

Paul Newton

moving to Southern Illinois, the project benefitted college students in St. Louis. More recently, she’s made the donations to The Women’s Center in Carbondale. “It is single moms looking for work,” she says. “I know one of the things they need is being able to dress for success.” Lavender-Brashear estimates she and her MAY 2013

friends have donated more than $5,000 worth of professional clothing, handbags and shoes. “We just wanted to give back in some way,” she says. “I know that if you look good, you feel good. Even though you might not feel the best inside, if you look better, you get a boost of self-confidence and know that you can go out and get a job and have enough clothes

to keep the job.” She says it’s something her grandma would have done. “Helping others is not that difficult to do and not enough people do it. Why not help others? There is so much we take for granted and there are so many who have helped me along the way. It’s made a big difference in my life.” Just like a bow on a box of cookies.

Did You Know? The owner of One Hot Cookie isn’t particularly fond of cookies. ‘I’d rather have a steak, potato and pasta over sweets,’ she says.

Southern BUSINESS JOURNAL

Sarah

Did You Know?

Doerner M

rs. Trampe had no idea what she was doing. Not that the kind woman who served as guidance counselor at Pope County High School nearly six decades ago was not good at advising and assisting students. By all accounts, she was very adept and had students’ best interest in mind. Mrs. Trampe, however, had no inkling of how much a single comment would motivate a high school valedictorian named Sarah. Young Sarah — who would later marry Carroll Doerner to become Sarah Doerner — went to Mrs.Trampe with her college and career plans, plans that included studying to be a teacher at nearby SIU while working part time to pay her way through school. “She told me I couldn’t do both,” Doerner, now of Du Quoin, recalls. “I told her ‘Yes, I can.’ Then she told me to rethink what I wanted to do.” The student took her counselor’s advice as a challenge and vowed to prove her wrong. With all due respect, Mrs. Trampe could not have been more wrong. “I won a PTA scholarship and worked part time at a clerical position,” Doerner says, “and I graduated in three years.” Her success in college should be no surprise. She was raised with an emphasis on hard work and education. Neither her father, a railroad section hand, nor her mother graduated from grade school, but the pair instilled in Doerner an exceptional work ethic and an appreciation of education. “Mom never made me do housework, instead she told

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me to do my homework first. I grew up not learning many housekeeping skills or how to be a good cook,” Doerner explains. “She knew the value of education, because she wanted it but never was able to get it.” Doerner says she recalls that her father allocated a weekly allowance of $5 for her mother, with instructions to spend it however she wished. While Doerner was in college, often much of that $5 was sent to Carbondale. “That was a motivating thing,” Doerner says. “I was so determined to finish school, to do what my mom would have loved to have done.” Finish she did, and soon she was a first-year teacher at Metropolis High School, where she found herself across the desk from her own students, including some older than her. “That was strange,” she says of teaching students who had come home from military service to complete their high school educations. Soon, Doerner was to return home, too. “Always in the back of my mind, I wanted to teach at Pope County. The next year, there was an opening for a math teacher. I had minimal hours in math, but they just couldn’t find math teachers,” she says. “I sure hope all of

the kids I taught succeeded, because I wasn’t a good math teacher.” Once administrators found a math teacher, Doerner found a new role: English teacher and school librarian, exactly the course of study she pursued in college. It was during her tenure at PCHS that while attending a teachers' conference she met a Carroll Doerner, a teacher and coach from the Bureau County community of La Moille. After a couple of years of courting by correspondence, the pair married. Education positions for both followed, first at Pope County High School and then upstate in Mendota. “I am a Southern Illinois person and wanted to come back,” Doerner recalls. “He found an opening at Du Quoin High School and got a job there. A year later, I got a position at Marissa High School.” Three years later, she would join her husband at Du Quoin, where during a 21-year span she would serve as elementary school librarian, English and social studies teacher at the junior high school and journalism teacher at the high school. She also found herself serving as sponsor for the Future Teachers of America, the yearbook, school newspaper, pep club and cheerleaders. “I was one of the younger teachers, so I got pushed into that,” she says. “Maybe it was because the older teachers knew how to say no or perhaps it all goes back to my guidance counselor. Regardless, I told myself that I could do it; I could do all of it.” Doerner tells the stories of many of her students, especially those who she

Writers and editors beware: A long-time high school journalism teacher, Doerner is still grading papers. ‘I often catch myself reading the newspaper, looking for punctuation errors and misspellings,’ she cautions.

worked closely with on the school newspaper. “There are so many of them that I am so proud of, it almost brings me to tears to think of them and their successes,” she adds. Despite retiring in the mid1990s and losing her husband to a heart attack, Doerner has maintained her involvement with young people and her adopted hometown of Du Quoin, as well as her alma mater, SIU. She has spent countless hours as a volunteer with the American Association of University Women, served as a board member and trustee at the Du Quoin Public Library for nearly 15 years, worked on the city’s tourism committee and is president of the Marshall Browning Hospital Auxiliary. “We have some 80 or 90 volunteers who help at the gift shop and the information desk and about 12 National Honor Society students from Du Quoin High School who come and volunteer,” she explains. “It’s a way to keep in contact with the young people.” Doerner treasures this time with young people. “I try to be young at heart,” she says. “I think that’s why I volunteer. It keeps me around a lot of students. Most of the groups I work with have student involvement.” And whenever she gets the chance, Doerner tries to encourage students with the same message she says she would share with a younger version of herself: "I’d tell young Sarah that if you have a dream or something you want to do, go for it. Don’t let somebody tell you about the obstacles in your way and that you won’t make it.” Are you listening, Mrs. Trampe? May 2013

Aaron Eisenhauer MAY 2013

Southern BUSINESS JOURNAL

Richard

Grigsby R

ichard Grigsby of Mounds has earned the respect of the other guys who come to the gym.

It’s not because that at age 74 he’s a regular at the Community Health Services gym, working out three times a week. Neither is it because he’s able to exercise harder than men a third his age, doing 40 sit-ups in a session, 40 repetitions of leg curls and walking a mile at a pace that makes others need to catch their breath just from watching him. No, Grigsby doesn’t

garner respect because of what he does inside the gym. His respect comes from what he does outside. For decades, Grigsby has been a supporter and champion for people of all backgrounds, colors and ages throughout Southern Illinois. “I guess I am a sort of an advocate or a go-between,” Grigsby humbly says. “I know that everybody doesn’t have

Did You Know? As a teenager, Richard Grigsby was a prominent jazz musician, playing trumpet and piano for dances practically every weekend evening. the same capabilities, and for those who I think need some assistance, I’m willing to do it. It’s just part of my nature. I’ve always been a helpful person; that’s just me.” His efforts on behalf of the community go back further than some of those other guys at the gym have been alive. He was instrumental in securing the initial funding for what has become the Community

Health and Emergency Services clinic. He’s met and talked with many legislators and statewide health officials, always voicing concerns for deep Southern Illinois. He was the driving force behind a grant for ambulance service and has worked to improve access to health care for residents. As president of the Alexander-Pulaski branch of

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May 2013

Paul Newton

the NAACP, he earned accolades from leaders across the state for efforts and programs he started, including a regular newsletter. “There aren’t many other branches in Illinois with a newsletter,” he says. “I use it to keep the members informed, so I don’t get any complaints. People read their newsletter, and it helps things run smoothly.” In that newsletter, Grigsby shares information about available programs and services, as well as a regular list of job openings in the area. Often, these listings have been the first step in helping local residents land jobs. He also organized career and job fairs and helped to establish scholarship funds for local students. In fact, he has served as the MAY 2013

local NAACP president for a decade; his longevity has helped him serve others and contributed to a doubling of membership. “Everybody knows me,” he says. They know him across Illinois, too. He’s served as a statewide vice president for the NAACP as well, a role that called on him to serve as a liaison to all of Southern Illinois. Grigsby has worked with the housing authority in Cairo, directed the local regional planning and development commission and served on health care boards. His reach also goes beyond the region. After Hurricane Katrina, he spearheaded efforts to take supplies to some of the

neediest victims. “The National NAACP sent out a letter about the hardest hit areas, and I chose Biloxi, Miss. I talked to the local NAACP president, and the water was up to the ceiling in his office. I put out the word that we were gathering stuff — clothes, stoves, everything. People from as far away as Anna donated, and then a couple of our members took it all down there.” He also made three or four trips to Caruthersville, Mo., after the tornado there, helping out whomever he could find that needed help. He’s done the same locally, serving as a mentor for dozens of youth and often is on-call for people who simply need some help. “The problem right now in trying to make a difference is

that we don’t have any money to do anything,” he says. “You have to have money for programs.” Still he serves. He advocates for people with local law enforcement, county offices and others. He does it all without expecting anything in return. “You just can’t look for a thank you or appreciation,” he says. “You can’t be in it for that. If I can get on the telephone and help somebody, I’ll do it.” All his efforts and outreach, not to mention his regular trips to the gym, keep Grigsby busy, yet he continually downplays all that he does. “I just communicate with people,” he claims. “I don’t do much.” The young men at the gym would probably disagree. Southern BUSINESS JOURNAL

f Southern Illinois had a soundtrack, the music would most likely be performed by the Marching Salukis of SIU Carbondale. After all, the collegiate band, dressed in tuxedoes and homburg hats, has represented the university and the region around the world. And, as the Marching Salukis perform that soundtrack for Southern Illinois, it is a certainty that Mike Hanes would be directing the band.

For more than 30 years, Hanes has been synonymous with the Marching Salukis. Undoubtedly, some of the accolades for the success and reputation of the SIU musicians belongs to Hanes, but credit must be given to a long-forgotten and unnamed young man — who was supposed to be a graduate assistant in music at SIU — whose duties were to work with the marching band. When this student backed out and chose not to accept the assistantship, it left thenSIU director of bands Donald Canedy in a bit of a quandary. But he knew who to call: a first-year music teacher in the small town of Sandoval, some 67 miles north of Carbondale. That teacher was Mike Hanes. Hanes accepted the assistantship and began what would become a lifetime relationship with the SIU marching band. Raised in Salem, the son of a high school band teacher, Hanes originally thought he wanted to go into the fledgling field of broadcasting, and he began studying radio and television at Millikin University in Decatur. A few courses into his studies, he had an epiphany. “I realized, ‘Wait a minute, you know you like to do this music thing. Why don’t you just change majors?’ So in my

Southern BUSINESS JOURNAL

Mike

Hanes

Did You Know? Mike Hanes spent several summers while in high school as a fry cook. He served up 15-cent hamburgers at Reban’s restaurant in Salem. second year, I became a music major and finished my music education degree.” After landing the job in Sandoval, his plan was to get a few years’ experience, go back to school to earn a master’s degree and return to teaching. Then the phone call came from a long-time friend of his father. “Donald Canedy called in the spring of my first year, saying he had a last-minute graduate assistantship,” Hanes remembers. “He asked if I wanted to come down and get a master’s degree and work with the SIU bands. I said, ‘What the heck?’ and came to Carbondale.” He began assisting with the marching band and directed the campus’ Air Force ROTC band. He also met and fell in love with a young woman cast in the university’s performance of “My Fair Lady.” He and Mary Jo have now been married nearly 50 years. As Hanes was completing his master’s degree, Canedy took a position at Indiana State. “Suddenly, SIU was looking

for a marching band and percussion teacher,” Hanes says. “I was absolutely in the right place at the right time.” In the fall of 1965, he became director of the SIU marching band, a position he held until 1996. “I didn’t want to retire, but I was seeing that marching band is a young man’s job,” he says. “After 30 years, I stopped doing that, but I had become more and more involved in musical theater.” By the time he retired from SIU in 2005 as director of bands at the university, Hanes figures he had directed some songs — including “The Star Spangled Banner” and “Go Southern Go” — thousands of times. The word retired should be in quotation marks, because even after 2005 Hanes remains involved in the university and community. He’s active in performing arts venues and programs. He directs the band at summer playhouse theater events and every homecoming takes the platform to direct Marching Saluki alumni in a halftime performance.

“I still get a big kick out of it,” he says, adding he is proud of the band’s unofficial role as ambassador for the university and region. “Our uniforms didn’t say Southern or SIU anywhere, but everybody knew those uniforms and that style,” he says. Hanes says he still enjoys watching the Marching Salukis. “If it looks like they’re having fun, just like when I had the band, I feel great,” he says. “When I see them jumping up and down and doing silly stuff — within reason — I feel happiest, and, oh, that big march and swing sound. It gives me a lot of pride.” While he says he doesn’t think about his legacy, that doesn’t mean there isn’t one. He has touched the lives of hundreds, if not thousands, of student musicians and given the university community opportunities to smile with pride. In fact, some of the on-hold music that plays when individuals call SIU offices includes recordings of the band under Hanes’ direction. “That’s fun when I call the campus,” he says with a grin. “The music has always been good to me.” And Mike Hanes has always been good to the music. May 2013

Paul Newton MAY 2013

Southern BUSINESS JOURNAL

Diane

Hood 14

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iane Hood of Carbondale loves the iconic film “It’s a Wonderful Life.” The holiday film tells the story of George Bailey, who spent his entire life giving and serving the people of his community. Hood says she has seen the film hundreds of times. While she owns the 1947 Frank Capra classic on DVD, she’s never even opened the package, preferring the surprise of catching it when it is broadcast on television. She never tires of the movie or the joy it brings. May 2013

Did You Know?

Aaron Eisenhauer

Diane Hood inherited her father’s record collection, including hundreds of LPs and 45s featuring Count Basie, Duke Ellington and Nat King Cole. It’s a collection she treasures.

Those who know Hood best would say she’s a lot like the movie. She never tires, brings joy to those around her, and, like the film’s main character, she has spent her life giving to those around her. Most people know her as manager of the Furniture King, a long-time Carbondale retailer, but Hood says she works there “in her spare time, and I’m partially serious here.” The rest of her time is devoted to a variety of civic causes including Carbondale Community High MAY 2013

School Foundation, The Women’s Center and Carbondale Boys and Girls Club. Most often she finds herself handling event planning or fundraising for these groups. “I enjoy fundraising,” she says. “Maybe it’s because I’ve been in sales for so long. I’m just drawn to dealing with the public, and I guess I’m in sales every single day for those organizations and causes.” Growing up in Chicago, Hood says she learned to be charitable from her parents. “They always looked that way to me,” she recalls. “They were always helping a neighbor, a friend, and I think just being around them when they were doing these things made me want to do them, too.” In high school, she was active in service organizations including National Honor Society, student council and service league, but it was after she became married to NFL defensive back Estus Hood that she really got into the community service game. “I started a lot of my fundraising when I lived in Green Bay. One of the very first days I was there, I got a call from one of the other Packers’ wives who said, ‘Hey, we’re doing this telethon tonight. Would you come help us?’ and that’s when it started,” she says. “I really just stepped in.” After his playing days, the Hood family moved to Southern Illinois and the charitable work continued.

“I was in Rotary and in the parent-teacher organization and on the board of the Williamson County Advocacy Center for a number of years, plus other things,” she adds. Since then, many individuals and groups have called, asking Hood to help with a variety of projects and causes. She almost always has said yes. “I see the needs, and people ask me,” she explains. “I just really don’t feel like I want to say no. I see the need, and somebody’s got to do it.” She says she does it all just for the joy of doing it. “I get satisfaction in hoping that I made a difference. I don’t do these things because I want an award or recognition. In fact, I get a little embarrassed when people thank me. I don’t want to give the impression that I expect anything other than that you will, in turn, do something for somebody else,” she says. All of that “doing something” has translated into thousands of hours of volunteer service to dozens of organizations across Southern Illinois. Yet, to Hood, all of it comes second to her role as a wife and a mother to three now-grown children. “My legacy hopefully will be that I was a good mom,” she says. “That’s most important, always.” She says despite all that she does, she always made time for her children, even accompanying them to high school classes to keep an

occasionally disruptive son in check. “He didn’t know I was coming, but I went right into school, right into the classroom and sat down right next to him. I stayed the whole class period. When class was over, I told him if he didn’t want me coming every day and sitting next to him, he better straighten up. The teacher said he never had another problem.” Hood says that is the kind of person she is. “I’m a take-action person,” she says. “I like to get things done, and I hope that I have been a good influence on my children. They saw their mom involved, and they are involved. The fact that they as adults are still involved in things is one of the things that I am most proud of.” Often “take-action” means taking charge. “I’d rather be a leader than a follower,” Hood says, “but I’m not doing anything that anybody else couldn’t do. I just feel that I am truly blessed and want to help bless somebody else. I see the opportunities for everyone to make a difference. I genuinely care about people and if I can do something to help, I will.” And what about the natural comparison to her movie hero, George Bailey? “George did a whole lot more than I do,” she says. Yet, Hood admits there are similarities with Jimmy Stewart’s character. “I do have a wonderful life,” she says, smiling. Southern BUSINESS JOURNAL

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n e e r g / u d e . www.jalc Winner of the 2011

G’ S A First community college in Illinois to participate in the Illinois Home Performance Equipment Loan Program

http://www.energyequipmentloan.org/index.php The Sustainability Center at JALC was established to help promote sustainable practices in campus departments, to educate students about sustainability issues, to encourage faculty to integrate sustainability into curriculum, and serve as a source of “green” information for the community at large. The college is a member of the Illinois Green Economy Network (IGEN), a partnership of community colleges that includes all 48 community colleges in Illinois. Classes, Degrees, and Certiﬁcates: John A. Logan offers classes in green building technology, certificates in Energy Management Systems and HVAC Green Technologies and an associate degree in Industrial Maintenance and Alternative Energy through the JALC Department of Applied Technology. For more information call the Applied Technology department at: (618) 985-2828 extension 8312. Solar Installation Training at John A. Logan: The college offers Solar Electric Design and Installation classes through the Department of Continuing Education. For more information call Barry Hancock, Associate Dean for Community Education: (618) 985-2828 extension 8248.

For more information about the

Sustainability Center at John A. Logan College, please call 618-985-2828 Ext. 8148. CARTERVILLE, ILLINOIS

MAY 2013

Other green workforce training: Upcoming classes offered through the JALC Center for Business and Industry includes Illinois Energy Conservation Code training and Building Performance Institute certification. For more information call the Center for Business andIndustry: (618) 985-2828 extension 8506.

John A. Logan College and the JALC Sustainability Center are pleased to be a sponsor of the Sustainable Living Expo. John A. Logan College does not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, disability, age, sexual orientation, or gender orientation.

Southern BUSINESS JOURNAL

ike many people in and around Harrisburg, Jerry King woke up at about 3:30 a.m. on Feb. 29, 2012, as what has now become known as the Leap Day Tornado was cutting a swath across Saline County. Also like many others around the community, he immediately went to check on someone else. In this case, it was his mother’s aunt. On the way, King walked past an already established police post. As soon as he discovered his wife’s aunt was unharmed, he began helping any way he could. He’s been helping the region recover from the tornado ever since, putting in thousands of hours of volunteer service. Like the recovery and relief effort itself, King found his role evolving throughout the process. First he worked with Operation Blessing, a worldwide, nondenominational organization that responds to national disasters. “They were an awesome group,” King recalls. “They had a system that was incredible, they knew how to organize work groups and volunteers, and had it all figured out, right down to color-coded bracelets that showed who did what. I worked with them until they felt like it was time to turn efforts over to the community.” King thought — wrongly — that his efforts were over. “Then I got a call from a local minister that they were going to establish a ministerial alliance to work with things. There were at least 75 local people at that meeting, all local.” At the second meeting of the newly formed group, King says

someone asked him if he would serve as a coordinator. “I said I would, and I’m still working on it,” King says. The result of his acceptance became a group known as STORM. “Each letter of STORM stands for a different job description,” King explains. The work areas included social work needs (the S), efforts to provide transitional housing (T), serving as a one-stop center for anyone needing assistance (O), housing rehabilitation (R) and those handling financial donations and money matters (M). “Each area had somebody who took that on and ramrodded those efforts,” King says. “I became a facilitator, troubleshooter and interference-runner who allowed them to get their jobs done. I dealt with all of the bureaucracy.” It was a daunting task, comparable to heavy lifting; but that, too, is no problem for King. He says despite always leading a very active lifestyle, he had never worked out seriously. “I hadn’t even ever lifted a weight, but when I hit 55, I wasn’t feeling as strong as I should have, and I wanted to get

Did You Know? Jerry King recently finished authoring a book on the history of the Harrisburg Country Club. The work shares the stories of the 1920s club leaders, whose names are on the chimney located near the first tee.

better,” he says. He started working out with local police officers and before long, they told him he should be competing in power-lifting events. After laughing their continual urging off for a while, he eventually began researching the sport of power lifting and then started competing. Just three years after taking up weight lifting for the first time, he won a national power lifting championship for his age class. “I just wanted to get stronger and more fit, then it just got in my blood,” he says, crediting his law enforcement lifting buddies. “Those guys were good motivators. They made me better. That was my focus.” Ever since the tornado, however, King’s focus has been on helping a devastated community. The semi-retired non-profit grant writer has put his own work on hold during this time. “STORM was full time all the way until October, and probably at least 20 hours a week since then. I handled this just like I would a business venture. I lost a year on some other things, but I did this for the right reason,” he says. King credits all of the members of the committee.

“Everybody is retired or semiretired, so these are people who brought a lot of experience and a lot of brain power to the game,” he points out. “I was probably the dumbest of them all — the weakest link. The key for me was surrounding myself with good people in each of those letters in STORM, facilitating them and then staying out of their way so they could do their jobs.” King says many of the committee members were just acquaintances before Feb. 29, 2012. “We knew each other, but we had never worked together before. We quickly all became great friends.” It is estimated that more than 6,000 volunteer days of help came from outside Saline County and countless days from local residents following the tornado. Much of those efforts were coordinated by King and his group. “It restores your faith in mankind,” he says. “I’ve never seen anything like this. I’ve met a lot of people, all brought together with a common love for their neighbor.” And brought together by a man who just wanted to help any way he could. Steve Jahnke

Southern BUSINESS JOURNAL

May 2013

Jerry

Paul Newton

King

nke MAY 2013

Southern BUSINESS JOURNAL

Jeff

Lingle J

eff Lingle isn’t one to crave attention. In fact, he usually tries to avoid it. “I don’t like the limelight,” says the 76-year-old Cobden resident. “I like to be behind the scenes, and usually that’s where I am.”

In fact, he says if he had known he was being considered for selection as one of the 2013 Leaders Among Us, he might have just “vetoed the whole thing.” He realizes, however, that sometimes people are required to step up in order to get things done. Lingle learned that lesson the hard way and at an early age. His father passed away when he was a child, leaving Lingle’s mother with five children under the age of 12. “My mother had a tough row to hoe, so we all pitched in early,” he recalls. “My first job was carrying in coal for older people at 25 or 50 cents a week. I carried their coal every night after school.” Since then, he’s never stopped working. As soon as he was big enough, Lingle worked in the orchards throughout Union County, picking up fruit that had fallen to the ground. Later, he became a fruit picker. “When my father passed, I was only 11, but even then I felt a responsibility or obligation to do what I could to help my family keep on going,” he says. “I guess that’s where my work ethic came from.” After a term of service in the U.S. Army, Lingle graduated with an economics degree from SIU Carbondale. He was a

Southern BUSINESS JOURNAL

Did You Know? Jeff Lingle’s first car was a 1935 Buick he bought for $75. ‘The crankshaft had a flat spot,’ he recalls. ‘I had to replace a bearing every 50 miles.’

teacher in the Alto Pass school district for a couple of years and then worked for more than 30 years as a regional manager for the Illinois Department of Employment Security, helping others find work. Although retired for almost two decades, Lingle continues to work. As chairman of the Alto Pass Cemetery trust fund committee, his efforts led to a doubling of the fund. “We’re trying to get enough money so we are selfsustainable and not have to charge the taxpayers anything,” he explains. “We’re almost there; we’re still working on it.” He’s also served on the board of directors for Union County Counseling Service and was instrumental in starting the Alto Pass veterans’ program, a project that has raised funds for a downtown monument listing the names of all servicemen and women from the community. Lingle also is the last president of Friends of the Cross, a group he says has accomplished its goal. “We’re going to close that out,” he explains. “We’ve completed our role as a fundraising arm for the refurbishing of the Bald Knob Cross. We gathered $525,000 in donations. We have completed our mission.”

Another checkmark on Lingle’s to-do list is the completion of water lines between Cobden and Alto Pass. “We worked on that for about 11 years,” he says. “We now have pretty good water, and I’m proud I was the lead on the board for all of the ins and outs of getting grants, coordinating and pulling people together.” He probably has lost count of all of the community-focused causes he has championed, mainly because he simply loves the people of Southern Illinois. “My community is family,” he says. “These are my brothers and sisters. If they do well, then I do well. I’m just trying to help them all get as many good things as I can.” Coordinating and getting things accomplished is what Lingle says he enjoys most and does best. “When I see something that needs to be done or someone tells me that something needs to be done, I feel an obligation to see them done. Most of the things that I have worked on have not been my idea, but still I have felt some obligation to work as part of a team to get them done,” he adds. “I usually prefer to work as part of a team,” he says. “I see

myself as a connector and a worker; that’s more my forté. I don’t truly see myself as a leader, although I guess I often end up in that position because I work and connect.” Lingle says with each project successfully completed comes both pride and a sense of relief. “I really enjoy these things. I guess it’s in my blood. I enjoy the accomplishments, especially if they are things that are beneficial to the people,” he explains. “What people probably don’t realize is that I occasionally have insecurities that the job is not going to get done. I try not to show that as I deal with it on the inside. I just keep plugging along.” He has been “plugging along” for Union County for most all of his 76 years, but he says it may be time to pass the torch — sort of. “I’m trying to pass a lot of this along to someone in the next generation. It’s time, but I will still be involved some way or another as long as I can.”

May 2013

Paul Newton

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David

Melby 22

Southern BUSINESS JOURNAL

avid Melby of Creal Springs has a big heart. It’s a heart full of a dedication to people and — since having trouble with his own heart in 2002 — a heart for helping people lead active, healthy lives.

May 2013

Did You Know?

Aaron Eisenhauer

While pursuing graduate degrees, David Melby spent his summers as a US Forest Service Smoke Jumper. ‘I parachuted into forest fires from Alaska to the Mexican border,’ he says.

Now retired, Melby joined what was then-known as Franklin-Williamson Human Services as a staff psychologist in 1974. Later, he was named division director for the mental health division, overseeing the expansions of programs, staffing and budgets.

MAY 2013

Promoted to CEO in 1996 for what is now called The H Group, he was responsible for an annual budget of about $4 million. At the time of his retirement 10 years later, the agency had grown to one with a budget four times as large and a staff of 300. Today, he continues to serve on the board of directors for the group, which recently merged with Southern Illinois Regional Social Services. “Early on, I was chair of a due diligence committee exploring the possibilities of a merger between SIRSS and our agency,” he says. “That merger did occur last year, and The H Group is a very viable and health human services agency in some very challenging times.” Melby has had his own set of challenging times, too. An avid runner in high school, he took up the sport again in his 30s, participating in numerous races and two marathons. Despite being in great physical condition and running every day, he had a heart attack in 2002. He underwent a quintuple bypass operation. “After that, I became even more conscious of my own health and mortality and really shifted my focus from

competition to trying to stay in shape for my own health,” he recalls. “I became more interested in things like diet and other health issues.” After his recovery, he was asked by Southern Illinois representatives of the American Heart Association to serve as chair of the local heart walk, a fundraiser for the organization. “It was really an exciting effort, and it was a moving experience walking with all of the other red caps — the other survivors,” he says. He served as chair of the walk several times and then chair for the Heart Ball Gala. He now is spearheading the My Heart, My Life Committee, a group that is leading the efforts to improve the cardiovascular health of Americans by 20 percent before 2020 and to reduce deaths from heart attacks and strokes. “These are the things that interest me,” he says. “I have invested my life in similar activities. I have a lifetime interest in helping people with various challenges.” His interests include battling the crisis of obesity, especially childhood obesity, he says. To that length, he serves on the advocacy

committee of the Illinois Heart Association and is working with it to influence legislation concerning vascular and cardiovascular health. He also is a member of the steering committee for the Southern Illinois Men’s Health Conference, a former Williamson County Housing Authority commissioner and has served his church in a variety of roles. He serves on the statewide board of directors of Lutheran Social Services of Illinois and is a board member for River to River Residential Corporation, a growing provider of assisted living facilities in the region. He often assists these groups and others with fundraising efforts. “It’s kind of an attractive thing to be part of something that’s growing, and I’ve enjoyed that for a long time,” he says. He says he enjoys all that he does. “I think I have been privileged in my life with so many benefits starting with a great family and wonderful role models as parents,” he says. “I guess it’s just a way of giving back that I do these things. Besides, I get pleasure out of all of them.”

Southern BUSINESS JOURNAL

Gail

Van Ormer B

e careful when you call Gail Van Ormer. Be very, very careful. Otherwise, you might find yourself “volunteering” for a part in the Hospice of Southern Illinois Red Carpet Gala. At the gala each year, area celebrities, politicians, community members and even those who write about leaders like Van Ormer are in danger of being “talked into” and “convinced” to share their talents as performers in a musical review and show that raises money for the charity.

Just talking with Van Ormer causes you to want to be involved. Her love of performing and for the Southern Illinois region is contagious. You cannot help but say yes. The gala and other causes she believes in are the perfect outlets for her talents. Not only does she recruit most of the performers, she also serves as the creator, director, choreographer and general expert of the gala, drawing from years of performing herself. “I’ve always been on stage,” she says. “As a child I loved to sing and perform, and it has become second nature. My friends always say I have no stage fright. I’ve been doing it for so long, I just go out and do what I do and hope people like it.” She’s been doing it since the third grade, when she was Alice Blue Gown in a performance of the Broadway musical “Irene.” “I wore a blue paper dress, and I can still remember the feeling when everyone in the audience applauded. I loved it and thought it was the most

Southern BUSINESS JOURNAL

wonderful thing.” Over the years, Van Ormer, who worked professionally in sales and public relations, organized community theater performances, shows and reviews across the nation — wherever she and husband Don found themselves. Once the Johnston City native returned to Southern Illinois, things fell into place for her current productions. “My daughter in-law, when she was dating my son, worked at hospice and said they were looking to do some sort of big event. My son told her she needed to talk to me,” she recalls. “We planned the first gala, and it was a success. The second one was even larger, and it was over the top. The response we’re getting from the community is heart-warming and unexpected.” So are the performances at the gala. From Southern Illinois mayors impersonating television personalities to dancing athletes and more, the event is full of surprises. “I direct the show and

Did You Know? Gail Van Ormer’s father dealt in salvage. She finds it delightful and amusing that she was always known simply as ‘the junkman’s daughter.’

especially work with those who have never been on stage before to make sure they know how to do it, and that’s part of the draw” she explains. “It’s just fun. These performers are people doing things that their family and friends never dreamed that they would do. It works here because everyone knows everyone.” She says it works, too, because of the charitable nature of the event. All of the money raised supports activities of Hospice of Southern Illinois. “When I found out that it all stays here in Southern Illinois, I knew this was for me,” she adds. “The dedication of the people at

Hospice is off the charts. They walk into situations that I don’t think I could. Their dedication, support and help is wonderful.” Van Ormer says planning for the next gala begins only a week or two after the closing of the latest one. “I work a little bit every week of the year,” she says. “In September, it starts getting intense, and we begin practices in October for a January show.” Even though she doesn’t track how much time goes into each gala, she says it doesn’t matter. “I don’t know how many hours it takes, but I don’t mind. I do this because I want to and have met a lot of really nice people.” Just don’t be too nice to her. Or you might end up in next year’s show.

May 2013

Aaron Eisenhauer

comfort.love.respect End of life care by people who care about Southern Illinois

“When I learned all the monies raised by Hospice of Southern Illinois were used locally, I knew I wanted to help. Hospice of Southern Illinois is a true southern Illinois charity.” Gail Van Ormer Red Carpet Gala Director/Choreographer Hospice of Southern Illinois Ambassador Hospice brings you and your family compassionate care when a cure isn’t possible. Hospice care will provide solutions beyond traditional medical care. Most importantly, hospice brings you and your family comfort, love and respect.

MAY 2013

618-997-3030 • 800-233-1708 www.hospice.org

Since 1981

Thank you for making Hospice of Southern Illinois the #1 Hospice Care Choice in Southern Illinois

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