Full Text of SR0181 103rd General Assembly
SR0181 103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
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| 1 | | SENATE RESOLUTION
| 2 | | WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois Senate wish to | 3 | | congratulate Ryan Risinger on the occasion of his retirement | 4 | | from the Buffalo Grove Park District on May 26, 2023; and
| 5 | | WHEREAS, Ryan Risinger was first employed by the Buffalo | 6 | | Grove Park District as an intern in May of 1992 after earning | 7 | | his bachelor's degree in parks and recreation from Illinois | 8 | | State University; he was hired full-time as recreation | 9 | | supervisor in November of that same year; he was then promoted | 10 | | to division manager in 1996, superintendent of recreation in | 11 | | 2001, director of recreation and facilities in 2010, and | 12 | | deputy director in 2013; he was named executive director on | 13 | | November 29, 2014; and
| 14 | | WHEREAS, Ryan Risinger continued his education while | 15 | | working full-time for the Buffalo Grove Park District; he | 16 | | attended Indiana University's Executive Development Program, | 17 | | North Carolina State's School of Sports Management at Oglebay, | 18 | | and Disney Institute's Keys to Success and Customer Loyalty | 19 | | Programs; he is a certified Park and Recreation Executive and | 20 | | earned his master's degree in public administration from | 21 | | Villanova in 2015; and | 22 | | WHEREAS, Ryan Risinger became active in the Illinois Parks |
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| 1 | | and Recreation Association (IPRA) through the recreation | 2 | | section and eventually the administration and finance section; | 3 | | he served on the Mentoring Committee and was recognized by the | 4 | | IPRA for his efforts and contributions as Mentoring Committee | 5 | | Chairman in 2003 and 2004; he has spoken on various | 6 | | educational topics, including The Ups & Downs of Skate Parks | 7 | | and It Takes a Village: Controlling the Crisis, which focused | 8 | | on the importance of community crisis training with local law | 9 | | enforcement; he also co-authored a partnership article titled | 10 | | A Wireless Solution that was featured in the Illinois Park and | 11 | | Recreation magazine; and | 12 | | WHEREAS, Ryan Risinger's advocacy efforts for parks and | 13 | | recreation on a national level led the Buffalo Grove Park | 14 | | District to be named National Recreation and Park | 15 | | Association's Park Champion of the Year in 2015; and | 16 | | WHEREAS, Ryan Risinger, as executive director, was | 17 | | actively involved in the Illinois Association of Park | 18 | | Districts (IAPD) and IPRA's Distinguished Accreditation | 19 | | program committee; he served as co-chair in 2017 and chair in | 20 | | 2018; he remained on the committee in 2019 and 2020 and was | 21 | | co-chair in 2022; the Buffalo Grove Park District was | 22 | | accredited five times over his 30-year career; and | 23 | | WHEREAS, Ryan Risinger was an advocate for professional |
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| 1 | | development and ensured that his district's staff had the | 2 | | opportunity to attend state conferences as well as | 3 | | national/regional professional development programs; he has | 4 | | been a respected and dedicated leader who promoted a positive | 5 | | work culture where people not only wanted to work but wanted to | 6 | | stay throughout their career; and | 7 | | WHEREAS, Ryan Risinger fostered positive relationships | 8 | | with governmental agencies, including the Village of Buffalo | 9 | | Grove, school districts, the Indian Trails Public Library | 10 | | District, sports affiliate groups, and sponsors; he was an | 11 | | active member of the Rotary Club of Buffalo Grove, where he | 12 | | served as president in 2017-18; he served on the Northwest | 13 | | Special Recreation Association Board of Directors from 2015 to | 14 | | 2022, including as chairman in 2020; he was a member of the | 15 | | Special Leisure Services Foundation Board of Trustees in 2021 | 16 | | and 2022 and was a long-standing liaison to the Buffalo Grove | 17 | | Chamber of Commerce; and | 18 | | WHEREAS, Ryan Risinger oversaw the renovation of the | 19 | | Buffalo Grove Park District's Community Arts Center; partially | 20 | | funded with a PARC grant, the 41,000 SF LEED-certified | 21 | | facility was developed with the arts in mind; it has a | 22 | | state-of-the-art, 360 tiered-seat theater with an ADA | 23 | | accessible sound booth, concessions, box office, multipurpose | 24 | | areas, and an art gallery; the center offers over a 100 |
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| 1 | | different classes with more than 852 performers yearly, as | 2 | | well performing arts camps that serve more than 400 campers; | 3 | | it operates as a rental hub year-round for local groups | 4 | | including churches, synagogues, arangetrams, quinceaneras, | 5 | | community outreach groups, non-profits, and other local | 6 | | government agencies; the district was honored to receive the | 7 | | distinction of Outstanding Facility Award: Division II for | 8 | | this facility by the Illinois Parks and Recreation Association | 9 | | in January of 2020; and
| 10 | | WHEREAS, Ryan Risinger's leadership enabled the district | 11 | | to complete many park developments, including the renovation | 12 | | of the district's park gem, Willow Stream Park, which received | 13 | | upgraded pathways, additional trails, a new playground, pool | 14 | | upgrades and slide, permeable paving, and a pavilion; that | 15 | | project was followed by a large renovation of Reiner Park | 16 | | (formerly Green Lake Park) with the addition of a cricket | 17 | | pitch, outdoor exercise equipment, a fishing pier, and a | 18 | | butterfly garden; he also oversaw the development of the | 19 | | Educational Gardens and Classroom at Mike Rylko Community | 20 | | Park, which encourages the community to be curious about the | 21 | | natural world with a focus on food sustainability and native | 22 | | plants; and
| 23 | | WHEREAS, Ryan Risinger also oversaw the Alcott Center | 24 | | pre-school wing renovation, the construction of the Golf Dome, |
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| 1 | | and the proposed Prairie Grove and Parkchester Park | 2 | | renovations, as well as the Spray 'N Play expansion and | 3 | | Amphitheater construction at Mike Rylko Community Park; and
| 4 | | WHEREAS, Ryan Risinger's legacy of service will leave a | 5 | | lasting impact on the State of Illinois parks and recreation | 6 | | field and on the community of Buffalo Grove; therefore, be it
| 7 | | RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE ONE HUNDRED THIRD GENERAL | 8 | | ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we congratulate Ryan | 9 | | Risinger on his retirement from the Buffalo Grove Park | 10 | | District, and we wish him well in all his future endeavors; and | 11 | | be it further
| 12 | | RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be | 13 | | presented to Ryan Risinger as a symbol of our respect and | 14 | | esteem.
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