A warm hello to all of the residents of our Village:
There are so many great things to say about our Village that I’d like to take this opportunity to share some highlights with you. First, I would like to express my appreciation to Zaida Torres, our Village Treasurer and Director of Finance for her outstanding efforts in compiling the Village’s comprehensive annual financial report (CAFR). A Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting has been awarded to the Village’s Finance Department by the Government Finance Officers Association of the United States and Canada (GFOA).
The Certificate of Achievement is the highest form of recognition in the area of governmental accounting and financial reporting and its attainment represents a significant accomplishment by a government and its management. It was established to encourage and assist state and local governments to go beyond the minimum requirements of generally accepted accounting principles to prepare comprehensive annual financial reports that support the spirit of transparency and then to recognize individual governments that succeed in achieving that goal. On behalf of the Board and our residents, I would like to thank Zaida and her staff for their commitment to excellence.
The Village congratulates Fire Chief David Dato for being named Chief of the Year by the Illinois Fire Chiefs Association. Chief Dato was recognized for his exceptional leadership of the Wauconda Fire Protection District, where he has served for 32 years – 18 of which has been as Fire Chief. We were honored to attend the award ceremony at the association’s annual symposium in Peoria this May and would like to thank Chief Dato for his dedication to the Wauconda community and his participation in high-level county, state and federal organizations.
On another note, I would like to thank the Wauconda Area Chamber of Commerce for joining the Village in recognizing Arbor Day. On April 30th, celebrations were held at Robert Crown School, Wauconda Grade School and Transfiguration School. Each event recognized the fifth grade Arbor Day Poster Contest participants and culminated with the planting of a tree by recognized contest winners. The trees were generously donated by the Chamber for all three locations. We are proud to announce that Wauconda Grade School Winner Emeli Barradas placed sixth in the state of Illinois contest for her poster depicting the role trees play in energy conservation.
I would like to express my sincerest appreciation to several community groups who have donated their time and resources on special projects for our Village. As mentioned in the spring newsletter, because of the very challenging economic times, special projects are only possible because of the tremendous outpouring of volunteerism and giving by our residents!
Special thanks go out to:
Main Street Attraction
A local group of women, passionate about their hometown, joined forces to spruce up Main Street. Just as their title states, Main Street Attraction’s efforts focus on beautifying Main Street with seasonal decor without putting strain on the local businesses or the Village and its Public Works Department. The first fundraiser held to finance their vision was extremely successful. Organized and sold out in less than two months, “Wine for Main”, brought the community together and funded the flower arrangements that fill the baskets hanging from the street poles along Main Street. Not only was the event run by the volunteers, they also planted the flowers and raised enough money to maintain them for the season and allow for funds to be available for fall and winter decor. Local businesses and organizations did donate items like tents, tables, linens, fencing and desserts to help with the event!
The Wauconda Rotary Club
I am sure many of you have noticed a new Wauconda Police Department speed trailer positioned on many of our Village streets recently. The purchase of the trailer was made possible in part by a very generous donation by the Wauconda Rotary Club! This piece of equipment will help promote safety awareness on our Village streets. Thank you, Rotarians.
Fireworks Fund
One last very special thanks to all those who have contributed to the 2010 Fireworks Fund… because of your very generous donations, the much anticipated and spectacular Fireworks event will go on!
As you can see, we have a number of people in Wauconda that are being recognized for their great work and I’m sure we have many more that we haven’t heard about. Good things are happening in this Village on a daily basis and, on behalf of the Board and our staff, I’d like to express how proud we are to serve this wonderful community.
Have a safe and enjoyable spring and summer. And remember, together, we can make a difference!
Sincerely,
Mark F. Knigge, Mayor
