COVER STORY
Thanks to IL Park District Association!
Most of you probably don’t know it, but I worked for Addison Park District when I was a teenager, as a lifeguard at the district pool.
I have to tell you – just about everything I ever needed to know as a state legislator, I learned as a lifeguard.
One of the most important lessons I learned is that you need to show up when people are counting on you. If the lifeguard isn’t there, they can’t open the pool.
In Springfield, you have to show up physically. But you also have to show up in a more fundamental way – standing up for the people you represent and the things that are most important to them, that make their lives better. For my constituents, that means making sure our parks and programs get the support they need from the State of Illinois.
Honestly, it’s a joy to work with our park districts. Every day, they make our District a better place by making sure that our beautiful parks and our great recreation programs are available and accessible to everyone.
So I’m very proud to have been honored as an Illinois Association of Park Districts’Legislator of the Year! The award was announced at a luncheon last Friday, where I got to spend time with a number of wonderful park district leaders, including Lombard Parks’ recently retired Executive Director, Paul Friedrich, Lisle’s Director of Parks & Recreation, Dan Garvy, and Wheaton Parks’ Executive Director, Mike Benard (as shown in the photo above.)
Many thanks to our great park districts and their wonderful staffs!