Avon Township Supervisor Visits Grayslake Rotary Club

Posted by Mike Kukulski 
on Apr 22, 2012
 
At the April 16th meeting of the Grayslake Rotary Club, Mike Kukulski hosted Avon Township Supervisor Sam Yingling as our guest and featured speaker.  Sam gave a detailed overview of the Township's functions, its efforts to reduce costs and spending, and the many programs it offers to assist township residents in need, including: 
  • General Assistance
  • Emergency Assistance
  • Food Pantry (For Avon Township residents that need assistance with food)
  • Prescription Discount Cards
  • Circuit Breaker Forms
  • Salvation Army/Sharing the Warmth Program
  • Referrals to Other Agencies for Assistance
  • Handicap Placard (Form must be signed by a doctor and brought to the Township Office)
  • RTA, Metra, Pace Senior Passes
  • 911 Anytime Anywhere Cell Phone Program
  • Voter Registration
  • Absentee Voting
  • Early Voting
  • Notary Service
  • Farmers Market Coupons
  • Mosquito Abatement Larvae Control
  • Drop-off Point for Eyeglasses and Hearing Aids for Lions Club
Avon Township cut taxes by over 13% this year by using its record surplus from last year.  Since the Township is entirely debt free, the Avon Township Board has choosen to pass these savings directly to the taxpayers.  Since 2009, Avon Township has cut taxes by over 20%. 

Avon Township operates a bus service for the residence of Avon Township.  This is a curb-to-curb service that will take passengers within 20 miles of the township building.  The bus operates Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. until 2 p.m.  The fare is $1.00 each way and appointments are scheduled on a first come first served basis.  If you require the bus to take you to a doctor's visit or other medical/dental need, you may call up to two weeks in advance of the appointment to schedule your ride.  All other needs (library, shopping, visits etc) can be scheduled up to a week in advance.  There is no need to register for this service.  To schedule an appointment, call the township at (847) 546-1446

The Avon Township Food Pantry was founded in 1990 for the residents of Avon Township applying for General Assistance and/or Emergency Assistance. Today, the Avon Township Food Pantry is a non-profit organization working to meet the needs of our community.

In 2010, the Avon Township Food Pantry provided emergency sustenance to over 29,000 township residents;  it serves an average of 650 per month which equates to 2500 people. Without the generosity of area residents, churches, and service organizations the pantry would not be able to service the number of people in need.  

95% of the pantry's food is purchased from the Northern Illinois Food Bank.  No tax monies are used to buy food; the pantry depends solely on donations.  A $1.00 donation can buy on average 8 pounds of food.   For what you spend on a single box of cereal at the grocery store, the pantry's buying power through the Northern Illinois Food Bank allows it purchase a case of cereal.


The Avon Township Food Pantry is one of our club's focus charity for this Rotary year, along with our scholarship program and PolioPlus.  Our recent successful wine tasting fundraiser enabled our club to make a $1000 donation to Supervisor Yingling after his presentation at Monday's meeting.  We see this donation as just a first installment, and look forward to supporting this deserving cause further this year.  For more information about Avon Township or the Food Pantry, please see the township's website.