Supporters of Foundation 153,
It’s June 2020 and as I look back on the past year, it seems like we have experienced 2 years (or more!) of change. As the fiscal year of 2019/2020 kicked off in July, Foundation 153 was in the midst of planning our 10th Annual Fund Run; we were excited about our new vision – STEM - that was announced earlier in 2019 and eager to work directly with the schools to fulfill their needs. That summer the Foundation was able to provide scholarships to several James Hart students for the Summer STEM Camp and identified a need at Willow School to enhance the STEM program with new materials - $10,000 was earmarked for this initiative. The school year started, and we held the Fund Run in late September. As many of you remember, there were several concerns about the weather – can you believe that in 9 years, weather was never an issue? We dodged the rain drops and had an excellent event – Thank you again to all that came out to support us. We also introduced an online only Auction of Experiences, which focused on items that were all school centric (principal for a day, pledge leader, lunches with teachers and administrators, etc.). Foundation 153 also recognized our former Executive Director, Shelley Peck, who stepped out of the role in March 2019. Shelley held the Executive Director position for over a decade and was the one cohesive thread the foundation had as we moved through board members and board leadership. Although Shelley is officially off the foundation, she graciously answers my calls and texts – and I hope she continues to do so 😊. With your support we raised over $18,000 to help the upcoming 2019/2020 needs for District 153. In late 2019, the Foundation opened grant applications to all District 153 teachers. There were no restrictions on what could be submitted as we wanted to hear what the teachers needed. We had over a dozen submissions and the Foundation was able to fund over $16,000 in requests. Requests of reading materials for classrooms, professional development for teachers and even a 3D printer were granted. As we moved into the new year the foundation focused on our Leap for Homewood Schools Winter Gala which was held on Leap Day at Idlewild Country Club. The event, chaired by Vice President Melissa Jacobson, was a more formal event with dinner, dancing, games of chance and a traditional silent auction of items from our generous community businesses. We did have a 50/50 split the pot, won by Melissa Donoso of Homewood, who generously gave back half of her $1,600 winnings - Thank You again Melissa!!! In total, the Gala brought in over $27,000 to help fund the next round of needs for District 153. As we were winding down from the Gala, Covid-19 hit and since then we have all been living in a much different world. Foundation 153 was very fortunate that our Gala was not impacted, and we were able to present the event we had planned. We are now all adjusting, mentally and physically, to how we conduct our daily lives. Many of us including our relatives, friends and neighbors have experienced changes to our income and health. These changes have also impacted our most vulnerable, the youth. The administration and staff at District 153 very swiftly moved to an e-learning platform, forcing parents and students to take on responsibilities unlike any of those we have experienced before. During this transition there was a need identified for students at James Hart – laptops. The District recognized that in order to move to a one-to-one student to device model, 225 more laptops would need to be purchased. Foundation 153 worked with one of our newest partners, CN Railroad, and secured $18,000 to help fund the purchase. In addition, the board for Foundation 153 met and agreed to fund an additional $22,000 for this project. Between the two organizations we were able to fund over half of the laptop costs – and we would not have been able to do that without the support from you!
Speaking from our household, we have had good days and bad days during this pandemic, but it has been wonderful to have the teachers and administrators engaged and available should questions arise. I could not be prouder of how we, as a community, have rallied together with acts of kindness, compassion and understanding for each other. It is why my wife and I chose to move here eight years ago – and I could not imagine riding this out anywhere else.
The above paragraph is where I had originally ended my letter in late May. I was making final tweaks here and there and making sure I captured the last 12 months of activity for Foundation 153. Then, on May 25, we witnessed the murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis. That rocked this nation and our community to its core and has sparked real conversations about who we are and who we want to be. It has been uncomfortable, to say the least, and that is good – nothing changes unless people are forced to react and reevaluate who they are and who they want to be. I know that I have take this time to educate myself on what I have unintentionally not seen or been taught through my past school learnings. It has made me more aware of how my actions, or rather inactions, are a place where I can make a change. I need to be a vocal advocate for antiracism and not just rely on not being racist as a solution. It is up to us as a community to be proactive if we want to truly make a change. I am encouraged by the youth and am not ashamed to say I’m following their lead on this. The marches and rallies organized by our high schoolers here in Homewood over the last several weeks have been passionate and well attended – if you have not had the chance to attend, I encourage you to do so as you can still be distanced and make sure your voice is heard.
So, what does all of this mean for Foundation 153 moving forward? We, like our community, are resilient. Foundation 153 is here to support District 153 teachers, administrators and most importantly the students. The Fund Run is being planned by our Treasurer, Nick Fonner, and Secretary, Sabrina Lindee. Nick and Sabrina have the task of not only planning the usual 5k should our world get back to pre-March 2020 conditions, but also contingent plans should we still need social distancing or other restrictions. Likewise, we are also looking at how we can present another more formal event in early 2021. Our mission has not changed, and we are ready to take on whatever is thrown at us – with your help and support.
On behalf of the board for Foundation 153, I thank each one of you for your continued support. We are only as successful as our collective whole. Please be safe and be kind to one another – we are all in this together.
Stay educated, healthy and well.
Mike Dickover
President, Foundation 153
Supporters of Foundation 153,
It’s June 2020 and as I look back on the past year, it seems like we have experienced 2 years (or more!) of change. As the fiscal year of 2019/2020 kicked off in July, Foundation 153 was in the midst of planning our 10th Annual Fund Run; we were excited about our new vision – STEM - that was announced earlier in 2019 and eager to work directly with the schools to fulfill their needs. That summer the Foundation was able to provide scholarships to several James Hart students for the Summer STEM Camp and identified a need at Willow School to enhance the STEM program with new materials - $10,000 was earmarked for this initiative. The school year started, and we held the Fund Run in late September. As many of you remember, there were several concerns about the weather – can you believe that in 9 years, weather was never an issue? We dodged the rain drops and had an excellent event – Thank you again to all that came out to support us. We also introduced an online only Auction of Experiences, which focused on items that were all school centric (principal for a day, pledge leader, lunches with teachers and administrators, etc.). Foundation 153 also recognized our former Executive Director, Shelley Peck, who stepped out of the role in March 2019. Shelley held the Executive Director position for over a decade and was the one cohesive thread the foundation had as we moved through board members and board leadership. Although Shelley is officially off the foundation, she graciously answers my calls and texts – and I hope she continues to do so 😊. With your support we raised over $18,000 to help the upcoming 2019/2020 needs for District 153. In late 2019, the Foundation opened grant applications to all District 153 teachers. There were no restrictions on what could be submitted as we wanted to hear what the teachers needed. We had over a dozen submissions and the Foundation was able to fund over $16,000 in requests. Requests of reading materials for classrooms, professional development for teachers and even a 3D printer were granted. As we moved into the new year the foundation focused on our Leap for Homewood Schools Winter Gala which was held on Leap Day at Idlewild Country Club. The event, chaired by Vice President Melissa Jacobson, was a more formal event with dinner, dancing, games of chance and a traditional silent auction of items from our generous community businesses. We did have a 50/50 split the pot, won by Melissa Donoso of Homewood, who generously gave back half of her $1,600 winnings - Thank You again Melissa!!! In total, the Gala brought in over $27,000 to help fund the next round of needs for District 153. As we were winding down from the Gala, Covid-19 hit and since then we have all been living in a much different world. Foundation 153 was very fortunate that our Gala was not impacted, and we were able to present the event we had planned. We are now all adjusting, mentally and physically, to how we conduct our daily lives. Many of us including our relatives, friends and neighbors have experienced changes to our income and health. These changes have also impacted our most vulnerable, the youth. The administration and staff at District 153 very swiftly moved to an e-learning platform, forcing parents and students to take on responsibilities unlike any of those we have experienced before. During this transition there was a need identified for students at James Hart – laptops. The District recognized that in order to move to a one-to-one student to device model, 225 more laptops would need to be purchased. Foundation 153 worked with one of our newest partners, CN Railroad, and secured $18,000 to help fund the purchase. In addition, the board for Foundation 153 met and agreed to fund an additional $22,000 for this project. Between the two organizations we were able to fund over half of the laptop costs – and we would not have been able to do that without the support from you!
Speaking from our household, we have had good days and bad days during this pandemic, but it has been wonderful to have the teachers and administrators engaged and available should questions arise. I could not be prouder of how we, as a community, have rallied together with acts of kindness, compassion and understanding for each other. It is why my wife and I chose to move here eight years ago – and I could not imagine riding this out anywhere else.
The above paragraph is where I had originally ended my letter in late May. I was making final tweaks here and there and making sure I captured the last 12 months of activity for Foundation 153. Then, on May 25, we witnessed the murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis. That rocked this nation and our community to its core and has sparked real conversations about who we are and who we want to be. It has been uncomfortable, to say the least, and that is good – nothing changes unless people are forced to react and reevaluate who they are and who they want to be. I know that I have take this time to educate myself on what I have unintentionally not seen or been taught through my past school learnings. It has made me more aware of how my actions, or rather inactions, are a place where I can make a change. I need to be a vocal advocate for antiracism and not just rely on not being racist as a solution. It is up to us as a community to be proactive if we want to truly make a change. I am encouraged by the youth and am not ashamed to say I’m following their lead on this. The marches and rallies organized by our high schoolers here in Homewood over the last several weeks have been passionate and well attended – if you have not had the chance to attend, I encourage you to do so as you can still be distanced and make sure your voice is heard.
So, what does all of this mean for Foundation 153 moving forward? We, like our community, are resilient. Foundation 153 is here to support District 153 teachers, administrators and most importantly the students. The Fund Run is being planned by our Treasurer, Nick Fonner, and Secretary, Sabrina Lindee. Nick and Sabrina have the task of not only planning the usual 5k should our world get back to pre-March 2020 conditions, but also contingent plans should we still need social distancing or other restrictions. Likewise, we are also looking at how we can present another more formal event in early 2021. Our mission has not changed, and we are ready to take on whatever is thrown at us – with your help and support.
On behalf of the board for Foundation 153, I thank each one of you for your continued support. We are only as successful as our collective whole. Please be safe and be kind to one another – we are all in this together.
Stay educated, healthy and well.
Mike Dickover
President, Foundation 153
Thank you to our 2019/2020 Sponsors!
McDermott Law Group, LLC
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Illinois State Senator Napoleon Harris
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Rep. William Q. Davis, Assistant Majority Leader 30th District of Illinois
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Additional Sponsors:
Aurelios Pizza
Chempetitive Group
Copper Still
Great Lakes Credit Union
Homewood Disposal Service
Intense Conditioning Homewood
Kickert School Bus
Krimson Technology Group
Krystal Dairy
Peters and Associates
Village of Homewood
Wight & Company
Aurelios Pizza
Chempetitive Group
Copper Still
Great Lakes Credit Union
Homewood Disposal Service
Intense Conditioning Homewood
Kickert School Bus
Krimson Technology Group
Krystal Dairy
Peters and Associates
Village of Homewood
Wight & Company