In The News
Westchester Community Image Council wins a Governor's Home Town Award
The Westchester Community Image Council took home a first-place award in the annual Governor's Home Town Award recognition ceremony in Springfield November 27.
"We really feel that this is an award for the entire village because of the many individual volunteers and groups who have worked with us on our various projects throughout the community," WCIC Vice President Mo Meadows Ernst said.
Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts, Indian Guides, Lions Club members, Westchester Gardens members, the village administration, the Cook County Forest Preserve District's Preserve Keeper Corps staff, and the Brookfield Zoo are among the groups that worked in conjunction with the WCIC last year to improve the village's appearance.
The WCIC's award is for the Clean Up/Beautification category among villages with populations of 10,001 to 17,000 residents. Awards were for projects in the year 2006.
During 2006, the WCIC's first year of existence, volunteers transformed the unattractive median at Mannheim and Balmoral with a garden of colorful flowers and grasses. In addition, the WCIC improved the landscaping of the post office entryway and the Westchester Public Library. Over the course of the year, the WCIC also organized litter patrols.
Finally, the WCIC embarked on a long-term effort to enhance the forest preserve trailheads at Mannheim and Cermak and at 31st Street east of Sunnyside Avenue through the Cook County Forest Preserve District's Preserve Keeper Corps Program.
The Governor's Home Town Awards recognize volunteerism throughout the state. Projects are evaluated based on several categories, such as Clean Up/Beautification, Senior Citizen Involvement, Parks and Recreation, and Veterans' Involvement. Winners can be chosen in each category in one of eight population groups. The awards are administered through the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity.
The WCIC submitted its application for the award in early summer, and judges toured the village project sites in July. Forty projects were honored in this year's Governor's Home Town Awards program, from volunteer efforts to build a neighborhood playground to a literacy program.
