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Crowd Gathers for 3rd Annual DeKalb Wheel-A-Thon |
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By Deb Rogers Development Associate Excitement, expectation, anticipation. These were just a few of the emotions that were rolling around the gathering crowd on the morning of Saturday, September 20th for the 3rd Annual DeKalb County Wheel-A-Thon. Around 7:30 a.m. at RAMP's DeKalb County office, Melissa Yerk, DeKalb Services Manager and four of her friends were the first to arrive with two trucks loaded with everything you'd ever need to hold a Wheel-A-Thon. They began unloading over 40 wheelchairs, two 20 x 30 tents, drills, signs, tables, coolers, food, banners, copiers and more. The pace picked up as over 30 volunteers began to arrive. Holes were drilled and the tents went up. By 10 a.m. on this gloriously sunny day, we had set up a registration area, organized wheelchairs, hung banners, posted signs along the 2 mile route and were ready to roll. By 11 a.m., over 75 participants had arrived, registered, decorated their wheelchairs, taken their group photo, greeted old friends and made some new ones. A large group of NIU students, whose youthful energy was both up-lifting and contagious, added to the excitement. Co-Chairman Sal Bonanno and Representative Dave Wirsing kicked off the event with eloquent and enthusiastic words about RAMP and its service to the DeKalb County community. We thank them both for their support and friendship. We also want to thank our other co-chairman, Senator Bradley Burzynski, who, although unable to attend the event, was a major contributor. This year's DeKalb County Wheel-A-Thon was made possible by a dedicated group of staff members, committee members and supporters working together to make it the best ever. RAMP raised a record $16,000! We are proud and grateful to be a part of this amazing community. It is in this spirit that we wish to thank all those who gave of their time, money and emotional support. Wheel-A-Thon Committee: Brian Adams, B95/WDKB - Norm Baxa, Dependicare Home Health, Inc. - Irene Belmonte, RAMP - Sal Bonanno, DeKalb Associates - Ron Cerutti, American National Bank - Amber Davis, RAMP - John Garman - Linda Hilgenbrinck, NIU Adaptive Physical Education - Phinette Maszka, NIU Affirmative Action Diversity Resources - Robert McGhee, RAMP - Jenifer Montag, NIU - Center for Access-Ability Resources - Kris Povlsen, Ben Gordon Center - Deb Rogers, RAMP - Joanne Rouse, RAMP - Diane Tyrrell, NIU Affirmative Action Diversity Resources - Sharon Wyland, NIU - Dept. of Teaching & Learning - Melissa Yerk, RAMP Special thanks to the City of DeKalb, the DeKalb and NIU Police departments and Mike Adams of the NIU Greek Student Association. Participation grows! We are very grateful for the efforts of all of our participants. Over 75 people participated in this year's event bringing in a total of $8,564. However, we wish to thank and congratulate our participants who obtained the most sponsors. Running away with first place was Joshua Marquardt with $755. Coming in second was Melissa Yerk with $483 followed by Irene Belmonte with $370, Jennifer Carpenter with $353, Emily Lampkins with $260, and Barbara Kuehnert with $244. Team Challenge The Team Challenge promotes friendly competition between teams of approximately five people organized from businesses, organizations or a group of friends. This year's winner was the Teach House team, who raised $834. Teach House was followed by the Nerd Herd with $410 and the DeKalb Area Toastmasters with $355. We also presented a team spirit award to the NIU Forensics team for their enthusiastic and creative participation. The following are all of the teams that participated: 3 Musketeers - DeKalb Area Toastmasters - Emer - Friends - Grainger Construction - Huskies - Klingbeil's - Krpan Construction - Nerd Herd - NIU Student Education Assn - Old School - Peterson Klan - Refuge - S.I.S.T.E.R.S. - SCEC - Sigma Lambda Simga - Sycamore Lions - Sycamore Rotary Club - Teach House - Team Kunath - Team Oglesby - The Leskos - The Scalawags - UPS Support of Business Sponsors Grows The funds raised from our business sponsors this year grew significantly. This year's total was $7,710, compared to $5,100 last year. This does not include the thousands of dollars worth of donated products and services. We thank the many businesses that contributed. As beneficiaries of these businesses' generosity and caring for their community, RAMP asks you to patronize them as often as possible! Media Sponsors B95/WDKB - Daily Chronicle - The Midweek Platinum Wheel ($1,000) The Bridges of Rivermist and Park 88 Gold Wheel ($500) Adolph Miller Real Estate - Dependicare Home Health, Inc. - Kishwaukee Community Hospital - National Bank & Trust Silver Wheel ($300) Algus Packaging - Brian Grainger Construction, Inc - Competitive Edge - Curran Construction - Dahlko, LLC - Heartland Orthopedic Services -Northern Rehabilitation & Sports Medicine Associates - Rotary Club of Sycamore - Sycamore Lions Club - Testing Service Corporation - WalMart Bronze Wheel ($100) American National Bank - Anderson Funeral Home - Bethlehem Lutheran Church - Bob-Jo Cycle Company, Inc. - Central States Coca-Cola Bottling Company - Chuck's Auto Center - DeKalb Clinic Chartered - DeKalb County Home Care - Ecowater Systems & DeKalb Bottled Water Co. - ELITE Sound & Graphics - G's R Plumbing & Heating - Illinois Community Credit Union - Inboden's Meat Market - ITAC - Mason Properties University Heights Apartments - Mike Mooney Chevrolet-Oldsmobile-Cadillac - The Medicine Shoppe - Molly's Kitchen - Molly's Eatery & Drinkery - Ollie's Frozen Custard - Sycamore Family Sports Center, Inc. - Sycamore Speedway, Inc. - TransVac - Tyrrell Well & Pump and Water Conditioning Wheelchair Suppliers Dependicare Home Health - Hauser-Ross Eye Institute - Integrated Home Health - Kishwaukee Medical Associates - Midwest Sports Center - Mobility Connection - Neumanns Home Medical Equipment - Nihan & Martin, Inc. - Rockford Park District - Visiting Nurses Association In-Kind Contributors Action Muffler & Brake - Alan Brown Chevy-Olds - American National Bank - Amerihost Inn - Applebee's/Majewski family - Auto bath - Baskin Robins/31 flavors - Baymont Inn & Suites - Ben Franklin Your Hometown Store - Best Western Dekalb Inn Suites - Blain's Farm & Fleet - Brian Bemis AutoWorld - Caribou Coffee Co. Inc. - Chesapeake Bagel Bakery - City of DeKalb - Cooper's Diamond Jewelers - Cottage Quilts - Country Inn & Suites by Carlson - Countryside Wheels, INC. - County Liquors - Dairy Queen - Dari Ripple - Dog Days - Dollar Video - Elder Beerman - Ellison's Bakery - Fire Place Specialist - Franklin's Frames Shoppe - Glidden Florist - Gold & Silver Shop - Hair Cuttery At DeKalb Market Square - Hair Productions - Happy Wok - Holiday Inn Express - Italian Dreams Restaurant - Johnny's Charhouse - Jonamac Orchard - KFC Sycamore - L.A. Tan - The Little Fiddler - Lukulos Restaurant - Lynn's Carpet Cleaning/Genoa - Made Just for You Gifts - Mango's - McDonald's/DeKalb - MCR Framing - Microtel Inn & Suites - Panera Bread - Pizza Hut/DeKalb - Pizza Hut/Sycamore - Ralph's Car Wash - S.O.A.S/sports of all sorts - Super Wash/Genoa - Sycamore Family Sports Center - Sycamore True Value - Target - The Clock Shoppe - The Confectionary, Inc. - Tiffany's - Tobinson's Hardware/Genoa - Visual Perfection - Wild Thyme Back to Archive List |
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