Huntley Jaycees Revitalized, Making A Difference

At its second annual Evan’s Art for Autism fundraiser held earlier this month, the Huntley Jaycees raised $7,500 for Autism Speaks Chicago.

Last May, in conjunction with the Huntley Chamber of Commerce, the Jaycees collected $15,000 for Mike Alejandro, the owner of Route 47 Taxi Transportation who was severely injured by a passing car while changing a flat tire on the Northwest Tollway.

Both fundraisers rank among the group’s largest ever, but what’s equally impressive is that as recently as four years ago the Huntley Jaycees were on the brink of disbanding due to dwindling membership numbers.

 Nick Hanson, who joined the Huntley Jaycees two years ago and was elected President of the Huntley Jaycees last January, credits former President JR Westberg with the group’s turnaround. Hanson says Westberg helped push the group’s current memberships numbers to 35 active members and 12 senior members.

The Huntley Jaycees’ turnaround has also helped its parent group, the Illinois Jaycees who, with 75 local chapters with 2,500 members, have the largest membership base in the country. Established 80 years ago, the Illinois Jaycees will host the US Jaycee National Convention this June.

Still, nowhere has the group’s revitalization made more of an impact than in Huntley where the tough economic environment of the past two years has created a host of hardship cases. During the past 15 months, the Jaycees have sponsored or participated in more than two dozen fundraisers and community events.

“We try to keep it local because a lot of the money that we raise is from residents within the village,” Hanson said of the Huntley Jaycees decision-making process. “It’s never spoken, but we’re reaching out to our friends and family and neighbors, and when they donate and they contribute, I think they expect the money is going to help local families and organizations.”

Hanson said the secret to the group’s recent fundraising success lies with its members.

“We have a lot of members who are really driven to lend a helping hand within the community, whether it’s a family in need financially or someone who has experienced a personal tragedy such as cancer,” he said. “So the Jaycees that we have, and have had prior to myself, who helped build the club up to where it’s at, are people with a lot of big hearts and a lot of caring.”

Hanson, who is running for village trustee in the April election and remains active with the Huntley Lions Club, the Huntley Historical Society, and the Huntley Chamber of Commerce, says while a soft economy has made donations tough to come by at times, his group hasn’t lost faith.

“I think deep down, as sad as the world, at some point we have to have a little bit of hope,” he said. “And with a lot of the fundraisers that we do, we try to grasp onto that hope….I think that people really want to support the hope that things are going to get better.”

Among the upcoming events the Huntley Jaycees are sponsoring or participating in are two meat raffles, a fishing tournament, and a movie night at Stingray Bay pool. Individual events are planned as well with all events to be increasingly promoted via social networks.

“We have two new members who are younger and will be taking on more of the social media aspect of it because they’re more inclined to be on Facebook all day,” Hanson said. “You know, you have to find the right role for everybody.”