Wheeling Twp. supervisor ‘pays it forward’ for Mike Sidor in Arlington Hts. race

Twenty-three years ago I was preparing to run for a trustee position on the village board in Arlington Heights. I am a lifelong resident in this great village and a founding member of the Central Business District.

In my position as chairman of the Central Business District I had attended many village board meetings. TIF Districts, facade rebate programs, comprehensive plans and downtown redevelopment were the talk of the town, and I had a passion for politics in Arlington Heights!

Republican politics was in my blood as my father was always taking part in the caucus form of slating candidates for office, and encouraging me and my friends from St. James to carry literature in our neighborhood. I had vivid memories of my first campaign carrying literature door to door with my dad for a presidential candidate with Au-H2O on the outside cover.

In a family of Republicans it was suggested that I go and visit the Republican Committeeman to see if I could get some help from the Township Republican Organization. My request for help was denied because I had never “worked in or for the organization”.

This experience with our Republican committeeman only strengthened my resolve. In the months that followed I attended village board meetings, researched every issue that came in front of the board, and talked with my patients to find out what they felt the issues were in our City of Good Neighbors.

The next thing that happened to me was something that would forever change my life. Two “Wayside boys,” Patrick and Kevin Botterman, wanted to meet with me because they had seen in the Daily Herald that I had announced my intention to run for office. We met in the basement of my house on Hawthorne Avenue to talk about campaign issues.

The Bottermans and Schroeders were not strangers. I knew Pat and Kevin’s brother, Tim, from St. Viator High School, my brother Mark knew Mary Jo and Mark Botterman. My sister Monica and Katie Botterman were friends from Sacred Heart, and worked for Mike Silverman at Heights Cleaners.

The issue of Republican and Democrat really didn’t enter into our discussion on that cold November evening. Pat and Kevin just wanted to know, “How can we help you?”

My answer was “Whatever you are willing to do!” Pat was the most “brilliant political strategist,” and Kevin was a gifted writer. I did not know the extent of their talents in 1988, but over the next 15 years I would be involved in four different elections: Arlington Heights village trustee,; Arlington Heights village president; Wheeling Township supervisor and Wheeling Township Republican committeeman.

In all four of those elections Pat Botterman was at my side. He managed my campaigns and taught me how to walk a precinct, how to present myself at the door, how to answer questions at forums, and he grilled me with questions that would prepare me for my interviews with the editorial staff at the Daily Herald.

In all four of my campaigns that I received help from Pat, there was one that I learned more than any other ... the one I lost in 1993 for village president in Arlington Heights.

In the winter of 1992 there was a lot going on in my life. My wife, Cindy, and I had two small children, I was running our dental practice, I had just been appointed (by the remaining members of the board) to fill out the term of our departing village president, William Maki (elected to a Circuit Court Judge position), the Brown’s Chicken massacre occurred on Jan. 8, 1993, and I was running for village president.

I tell you this not because I am looking for sympathy, I just want you to know how much help and guidance I was receiving from Pat Botterman. Late night phone calls that ran into the early morning were commonplace. The usual whispering, gossip and campaign shenanigans occurred on a regular basis.

So what does all of this have to do with a nonpartisan municipal election in Arlington Heights in 2011?

Over the last several months I have had the pleasure of meeting and talking to a highly qualified candidate for village trustee, Mike Sidor. I have spent hours with Mike discussing his views on the issues facing our village. His breadth of knowledge on the issues stems directly from regular attendance at Arlington Heights board meetings.

Mike’s unparalleled commitment is further evidenced by his attendance at various commission and board meetings and even the most recent police and fire pension meetings.

He is genuine, conscientious, sincere and the hardest-working candidate I have seen in my 25 years of political activism. He is an entrepreneur who thinks outside the box. Mike Sidor would be a welcome addition to this board and I wholeheartedly endorse his candidacy.

Pat Botterman was a Democrat who had little to gain in his Democratic circles by helping a Republican like me. Now I believe it is time for me to pay it forward to help a man like Mike Sidor.

Dr. Michael B. Schroeder

Wheeling Township supervisor