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Fox Valley Patriotic Organization
Board of Directors
AUSTIN DEMPSEY
Board President
CEO of Batavia Enterprises, Inc., Austin graduated from Butler with a BS in Marketing and an MBA in Management and Finance from Loyola University – Chicago. Austin is a licensed Illinois Real Estate Broker. He sits on the Board of Directors for Batavia Enterprises, Inc., Marmion Military Academy Alumni Association, Fox Valley Entrepreneurship Center, Fox Valley Patriotic Organization, Community Foundation of the Fox River Valley and Aurora University. Austin will provide project management and oversight of all business initiatives of the project.
DR. LINDA SCHIELKE
Recording Secretary
Dr. Linda A. Schielke has been a recognized educator and educational leader in Illinois for over three decades. She received her Bachelor’s degree from the University of Illinois, her Master’s degree from Northern Illinois University, and her doctorate in education from Loyola University of Chicago. She began her career as a teacher at the elementary level, and advanced to higher levels of leadership in several educational systems (principal, assistant superintendent, statewide director of outreach for the Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy) and in state and national educational leadership organizations. Dr. Schielke now provides support for several not-for-profit organizations and committees, focused on patriotism and the preservation of local and statewide history.
MARTY CALLAHAN
Board Member
Martin Callahan is our Board Vexillologist. He is a member of the North American Vexillological Association (nava.org) and helped document the historical content contained in the Flag Day Monument. He was the Chairman of the Batavia Chamber of Commerce's Community Flag Committee leading to that flag's creation in 2023. Martin is 2nd Vice President of the Fox Valley Chapter of the National Society of the Sons of the American Revolution. He collects historical American memorabilia and especially US Flags. Martin Callahan served two terms as an Alderman on the Batavia City Council representing Ward 2 from 2013-2021. He was formerly a police officer and detective in New Mexico prior to moving to Illinois and currently works in the Insurance industry investigating insurance fraud. He has resided in Batavia since 2008 with his wife Mary Anne and three children; Caitlin, Alex and Nick.
ALLEN J. LYNCH
Honorary Board Member
Allen is a former United States Army soldier and a recipient of the United States military's highest decoration, the Medal of Honor, for his actions in the Vietnam War. Allen will oversee “The Ring of Honor” exhibit of the monument which will honor the 204 hailed from Illinois for Congressional Medal of Honor.
DAN HECKLE
Board Vice President
Dan is an active volunteer with engagement in organizations such as Boy Scouts of America, Rotary Club, the Loyal Order of Moose and Rosary High School. He serves as the Vice President of the Fox Valley Patriotic Organization. Dan has 25 years of diverse experience from nonprofit and business, serving in roles such as community outreach and development, product management and sales leadership. Dan is a graduate of Marmion Academy in Aurora, IL, North Central College in Naperville, IL and completed the Northwestern University Master of Product Development Executive program. Dan currently resides in Batavia with his wife Dorothy and their 2 children, Jacob and Alexandra.
CATHY MCNALLY
Board Member and Event Manager
Cathy has a successful career in marketing and management. She was the Director of Development & Special Events at Batavia MainStreet for 4 years, and managed sponsorship relationships, bringing Downtown Batavia to life with over 70 events a year, attracting close to 100,000 people annually. She is now the Manager of In Towne Storage, a BEI company. Cathy will serve as the Marketing Manager for the project.
ROBERT TIGHE
CPA, MST, CVA Board Treasurer
Bob is a founding shareholder and is the Managing Principal of Tighe, Kress & Orr, and oversees all service areas of the firm, with primary focus in taxation, business valuation, litigations services and the construction, manufacturing and distribution divisions. Bob is a Certified Valuation Analyst with the National Association of Certified Valuators and Analysts. Bob is very involved in the community and uses his expertise in not-for-profit accounting and auditing to provide volunteer services to a local youth organization where he serves as the Treasurer. Bob will provide fiscal oversight and manage the project budget.
JOANNE SPITZ
Board Corresponding Secretary
Joanne received a BS in Advertising and a MBA from the University of Illinois. She worked for Hammacher Schlemmer, Barber-Colman, and Honeywell in product development and marketing. As a community volunteer, she received several awards for her work with PTOs, Batavia Foundation for Educational Excellence, Batavia Bicycle Commission, TriCity Family Services, Batavia Public Schools, and CHIP IN Batavia, a nonprofit she started 7 years ago to help low income/homeless students. Joanne will help with event planning, projects and assist with other grants.
ROY SCHULTZ
Board Member
After serving in the U.S. Army from 1993 until being honorably discharged in 1996, Roy earned a BS degree in Finance at NIU. He worked at LaSalle Bank for over eight years where he moved to First Vice President and Division Manager. In 2008, Roy purchased a small ownership interest in American Chartered Bank, a privately-owned boutique commercial bank in Schaumburg and worked as an advisor to privately owned companies. He held various positions up to Group President, when the Bank was sold to MB Financial in 2016. Roy is currently a Senior VP and Division Manager with Cornerstone National Bank & Trust Co. in Schaumburg. His focus is providing commercial banking services to privately owned companies and commercial real estate investors. He serves on the board or directors of the NIU Executive Club. Roy works on the project’s marketing, social media, and fundraising.
AARON WAUTERS
Fund Raising Board Member
Raised in Pella, IA, Aaron graduated from the University of Dubuque and has spent over 15 years with Merrill Lynch working in St Charles and Naperville offices. He is also a partner with Jason Fair to run a Private Wealth Management team of 7 focused on Individuals and Business in the Chicagoland area. Aaron will manage fundraising for the continued activities of the program.
DON GONZALEZ
Fund Raising Board Member
Don Gonzalez is a Multi-Media Manager at McDonald’s Global Headquarters. Prior to that he was a Technical Director for McDonald’s live Meetings & Events in Creative Services for over 15 years. Don is a partner to Filament Creative, a full-service design studio. Don's artistic, techy approach and expertise of web design, video, drone video and photography will be a valuable asset to helping promote the Flag Day Monument.
Our Mission
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