ELMHURST CHAMBER ELECTS NEW DIRECTORS
ELMHURST, Ill., November 16, 2006 – Seven members of the Elmhurst Chamber of Commerce & Industry elected by their peers in October were sworn in to serve their three-year terms at the Chamber’s Board of Directors meeting at Community Bank of Elmhurst (330 West Butterfield Road) on Tuesday (November 14).
“Our Chamber is blessed to have so many qualified individuals willing to serve on the Board of Directors,” said Chamber President John Quigley. “While we’re sad to say goodbye to five Directors who made a dramatic impact, those faces both new and familiar will assure that our Chamber remains innovative, progressive and responsive.”
The 24-member Board is comprised of 21 elected Directors serving three-year terms and three Ex-Officio Directors. Directors are limited to serving two consecutive elected terms, not counting years as an appointee or duties as a Past Chairperson.
Newly elected Directors are (in alphabetical order):
Ken Bartels, Vice President for College Advancement at Elmhurst College (190 Prospect Avenue) and a second-term Director;
Paul DeMichele, Owner of DeMichele Builders (17W275 Rodeck Lane, Bensenville), a commercial and residential contracting firm that he founded in 1990;
Jason Janes, Investment Representative with Edward Jones Investments (115 West Vallette Street) in the York & Vallette Business District, and a second-term Director;
Kevin O’Keeffe, Owner of Fontano’s Sub (113 West First Street) in Elmhurst City Centre;
Jillian Milinkovich, Account Executive with OEC Business Interiors (900 North Church Road) in Elmhurst’s north side Industrial Park;
Charles Mueller of Equity Realty Partners (105 South York Street, Suite 218),
a commercial real estate consulting company in Elmhurst City Centre; and
Frank Vitelli, Senior Vice President of Lending at Harris N.A. (10 South Villa Avenue, Villa Park), formerly Villa Park Trust & Savings Bank.
Following is a brief biography for each of the Directors:
Ken Bartels
Ken Bartels, who has served Elmhurst College since 1981, is in his second tenure as a Chamber Director (1992-94) and has served on the Elmfest Steering Committee for two decades. He is a reserve member of the Chamber Ambassadors and Presidential Service Award recipient (1997).
Bartels also was a two-term member on the Board of Directors of the Elmhurst Economic Development Corporation (EEDC), including service as Vice Chairman (1999-2000) and then Chairman (2000-01). He is well known to cable television viewers as the “voice” of Elmhurst College athletics and Elmhurst’s Memorial Day Parade.
His 32-year career in college advancement at three institutions of higher education includes the past 25 years at Elmhurst College, where fundraising has consistently improved to now record levels under Bartels’ leadership. It was through his mentorship that Chamber President and CEO John Quigley first became active in the Chamber 15 years ago while working for Bartels at the College.
A sought-after speaker in his professional field and as a Master of Ceremonies, Bartels is a participant at the Harvard University Institute of Educational Management and Indiana University Executive Leadership Institute.
Bartels is a member of both the Board of Directors of Community Bank of Elmhurst and Associates Board of the Elmhurst Symphony Orchestra, a Trustee for the ESO Endowment Trust and a member of the Rotary Club of Elmhurst. A 26-year resident of Elmhurst, he is a graduate and alumni award recipient of Carthage College.
Paul DeMichele
Paul DeMichele, a Chamber member since 1997, is a former two-term Chamber Director (1998-04) and three-year Executive Committee member. Paul has served as Second Vice Chairperson and Chair of the Membership Committee (2004), and was two-term Treasurer (2002 and 2003) and Chair of the Ways and Means Committee.
DeMichele was active in the Chamber’s Drug Free Workplace Program and still works on the Red Ribbon Drug Prevention Campaign. He served as consultant on the Chamber’s 2000 office relocation and in 2003 he oversaw contract negotiations on the Fifth Third Bank ATM installation, earning him the Chairman’s Award.
A Director for the Life Education Center since 2002, DeMichele also is a former member of the Elmhurst Public Schools District 205 Board of Education (1985-89),
Past President of the PTAs at York Community High, Churchville Middle School and Conrad Fischer Elementary School, and also served on the Addison Township Board of Trustees for eight years.
His resume includes experience with Sears Roebuck as a Programmer, Systems Analysis Project Manager, Accounting Manager, Auditor and Controller.
DeMichele holds degrees from Loyola University (MBA) and Roosevelt University (B.S.). He has resided in unincorporated Addison Township for 29 years.
Jason Janes
Jason Janes, a Chamber member since 2001, was first elected to the Chamber Board in 2003 and has served on the Membership Committee since 2002. He has served as Chair of the York & Vallette Business Association for the past two years.
In 2003, Janes was nominated for The Business Ledger’s 2003 Young Businesspeople Awards, and served as a Chairman of the Elmhurst Chapter of the American Cancer Society’s Relay for Life.
Janes is licensed by both federal (Series 7) and state (Series 63) agencies in the field of investments. He serves as a mentor of college students at Elmhurst College’s Center for Professional Excellence, and is a college classroom lecturer.
As a member of the Elmhurst Jaycees, Janes has served on the not-for-profit organization’s Board of Directors is currently the Vice President of Individual Development.
A resident of Elmhurst, Janes earned his bachelor’s degree from North Central College in Naperville, where he and his wife serve on the Alumni Board.
Kevin O’Keeffe
Kevin O’Keeffe, a Chamber member since 2005, became active in the Chamber during his 11 years as a member of the Elmhurst Jaycees and, more recently, as a restaurateur.
O’Keeffe also is a first-year member of the Board of Directors of Elmhurst City Centre, which manages the two Special Service Areas (SSA 6 and SSA 7) serving businesses, commercial property owners and residential property owners in the city’s Central Business District.
Prior to purchasing Fontano’s Subs, O’Keeffe held sales positions in different fields for 18 years and then taught at Elmhurst’s Immaculate Conception Grade School for two years.
As a Jaycee, O’Keeffe held the offices of Director, Treasurer and Vice President, and oversaw the Spectacular Midways Carnival fundraiser at Elmfest and many other events. He is a 15-year member of the Knights of Columbus and has served on Parent Teacher Associations for more than five years.
A six-year resident of Elmhurst, O’Keeffe is a graduate (B.A.) of the College of
St. Francis in Joliet.
Jillian Milinkovich
Jillian Milinkovich, a first-year member of the Chamber’s Membership Committee, first became active with the Chamber during her senior year at Elmhurst College as a JOBPATH Program student intern working on such major Chamber events as Elmfest, the Annual Meeting/Silent Auction and the Spring Luncheon.
After attending Oakton Community College for one year, Milinkovich received an academic scholarship from Elmhurst College, where she graduated Cum Laude in 2004. She is a 25-year resident of DesPlaines.
Charles Mueller
Charles Mueller, a first-year Chamber member, has 25 years of experience as a commercial real estate broker. He also is a former Alderman on the Elmhurst City Council (2000-05) who represented the 7th Ward and served on the Finance Committee for six years.
A lobbyist for the causes of not-for-profit organizations exclusively, Mueller is a member of the Medinah Shriners and Friends of the Elmhurst Public Library, and is a Past President of the Elmhurst Noon Lions Club.
A 14-year resident of Elmhurst, Mueller is a graduate (B.A.) of Northern Illinois University in DeKalb.
Frank Vitelli
Frank Vitelli has been active in the Chamber for the past decade and is a longtime member of the Villa Park Chamber of Commerce. He joined Villa Park Trust & Savings Bank in 1987 and has been employed in the banking profession since 1968.
Vitelli served on the Board of Directors and numerous committees of the Elmhurst Economic Development Corporation, the former 10-year public/private partnership that led to the establishment of the City of Elmhurst’s Department of Zoning, Planning and Economic Development.
A 25-year resident of Elmhurst, Vitelli holds degrees from Keller Graduate School (MBA) and DePaul University (B.S.).
Established in 1918, the Elmhurst Chamber of Commerce & Industry is a voluntary organization of business and professional men and women who have joined together to promote the civic and commercial progress of the community.
The Chamber also serves the needs of its members through services, programs and events that provide opportunities for networking and referral, business education, development and promotion, governmental representation and community involvement.
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