people and news

Alvin J. Keller, Fiscal Management Advisor. State of Illinois, Department of Local Government Affairs, has been appointed state Chairman of the Municipal Finance Officers Association of the United States and Canada for a term expiring August 31, 1977.

Mr. Keller is well known by the directors and trustees of the Park Districts in Illinois, having appeared as a speaker at several State Conventions and Regional Meetings, as well as having rendered fiscal advice to many individual Park Districts at their request for assistance.

In his role as State Chairman, he will serve as liaison officer between the National Association and the State Chapter of M.F.O.A. He will be active in promoting career development of fiscal officers and in upgrading standards of fiscal accountability of local governments in Illinois.

Mr. Keller is a former Finance Director for the City of Bloomington, Illinois where he won several national awards for his innovative approach to his office.

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Jack Fritsche is the newest full time staff member of the Salt Creek Rural Park District, Palatine, Illinois. Jack is a recent graduate of Southern Illinois University and received his B.S. Degree in Recreation. Jack takes over the two fold job of Recreation and Maintenance Supervisor from William Kieck who resigned. Prior work experiences includes summer employment with the Mount Prospect Park District and the last two summers with the Salt Creek Park District. Mr. Fritsche is a member of the Illinois Park & Recreation Society, National Park and Recreation Association, Midwest Park Executives, Suburban Park and Recreation Association.

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State Sen. Frank D. Savickas was elected secretary of the Chicago Park District. He succeeds Michael McDermott, who retired August 1. Savickas has been a member of the Illinois General Assembly for eight years. Among the legislation he has sponsored has been special funding for handicapped children. Patrick O'Malley, President of the Board, said Savickas fits the requirements of a young, aggressive family man with knowledge of the legislative process. Savickas owns the Frank Savickas Insurance Agency, 6717 S. Pulaski Rd., and is Democratic committeeman of the 15th Ward.

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Thomas T. Tayler is the new Assistant Director of the Mt. Prospect Park District, Mount Prospect, Illinois.

The new assistant director previously was Director of the Recreation Coordination Services System for the Indianapolis Department of Parks and Recreation. Tayler's experience also includes two years as an activity therapist at the Indiana University Developmental Training Center, where he worked with special populations while completing a Masters of Science degree in Recreation and Park Administration at Indiana University in 1973. His undergraduate B.S. Degree in Sociology and Anthropology was completed at Colorado State University, where he was on an athletic scholarship for football. Tayler spent three years with the Peace Corps in the Fiji Islands as a volunteer, and on staff, training volunteer youth workers.

Illinois Parks and Recreation 25 January/February, 1975