Student of the Month Morgan Cook explains how she follows a path of service to others while preparing for college and a career. Cook already has her CNA nursing license from taking dual courses through a program at Kishwaukee College. She cares for patients at a nursing home in Elgin. Her leadership skills have led her to local, state, and national level service and recognition for Key Clubs, the youth program from Kiwanis. She is recognized for her scholastic achievements as a member of the National Honor Society and the school math club. Her other school extra-curricular activities include choir (her early interest in singing came from listening to Taylor Swift), tennis, and track. Hoping for milder winters when going off to college, Cook says she’s looking at four different schools in Tennessee. She plans to pursue studies leading to a career as a secondary math teacher. Cook says she will be donating her Rotary gift of $100 to Safe Passage.
Grants and Community Initiatives Director for the DeKalb County Community Foundation, Jolene Willis, spoke about community partnerships and student scholarship opportunities during this week’s Rotary meeting. Willis, a former Rotarian while working in Monmouth before moving to this area, explained how the Foundation seeks to make an impact in community development and youth educational achievement.
The DeKalb County Community Foundation wants to help generous donors leave an impact with their giving according to Grants and Community Initiatives Director Jolene Willis who was this week’s guest speaker. The Foundations was formed in 1993 and has grown to manage more than $75 million in assets. Willis joined the organization in 2022. Prior to moving to DeKalb County, Willis and her family were living in the Monmouth area where she was a Rotarian and a Paul Harris Fellow. Willis now lives in Waterman and her husband who is Superintendent of the Indian Creek School District. They have two children, one in high school and the other at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. Willis highlighted two examples of how the Foundation is collaborating with others to promote rural economic development and education.
For a second year, the Foundation received a $50,000 grant from Compeer Financial, a farm credit cooperative, to help rural communities grow stronger and thrive. The Community Foundation has partnered with the DeKalb County economic Development Corporation to create a Rural Vitality Committee to guide projects for communities with populations of less than 10,000. Willis said the Committee’s initial focus is on the towns of Hinckley, Waterman, Shabbona and Lee. Details may be found using this website link: https://dekalbccf.org/2025/08/05/joining-forces-for-rural-impact-50000-grant-sparks-local-fund-and-initiative/
Willis said a generous donation from retired Sycamore elementary school teacher Yvonne Johnson led to the creation of the DeKalb County Excellence in Education Award Fund. Each year the Fund supports recognition of school educators and staff in a partnership with the DeKalb County Regional Office of Education. Award recipients receive a $1,000 honorarium and are recognized at a special awards reception. Categories are for elementary, middle school, and high school teachers, schools support staff, and administration. The deadline to submit candidates for the award is October 31. Follow this link for details: https://dekalbccf.org/give/philanthropy-at-work/excellence-in-education/
Willis also reminded Rotarians that over $436,000 in scholarship dollars become available for students in the county each year with applications open February 1. Full details on all of the grant and donation opportunities through the Foundation are available on their website which is www.dekalbccf.org.
September 29, 1901 – Nuclear physicist Enrico Fermi is born in Rome. He created the world’s first nuclear reactor and is called “the father of the nuclear age.”
September 30, 1924 – Writer Truman Capote (known for “Breakfast at Tiffany’s” and “In Cold Blood”) is born in New Orleans.
October 2, 1869 – Indian political and spiritual leader Mohandas (Mahatma) Gandhi is born in Porbandar, India.
October 4, 1822 – 19th U. S. President Rutherford B. Hayes is born in Delaware, Ohio. He is known for the phrase, “He serves his party best who serves his country best.”
September 30, 1955 – Actor James Dean was killed in a car crash in California at age 24. Although he made just three major movies, he remains one of the film industry’s most influential actors.
October 1, 1908 – Henry Ford introduces his Model T to the public and sells it for the mass market at a price of $825. More 15-million would be sold before production ended in 1927 by which time the price had dropped to $260.
October 1, 1975 – In “The Thrilla in Manila”, Muhammad Ali stops Joe Frazier in 14 rounds in the Philippines to retain his WBC/WBA heavyweight title.
October 4, 1957 – The Space Age begins as the Russians launch the first satellite into orbit. Sputnik I weighed just 184 pounds and transmitted a beeping signal for 21 days.
