Bloomingdale Park District commissioner named chairman of Statewide Parks Association
Mike Vogl, a commissioner with the Bloomingdale Park District, was recently elected chairman of the Illinois Association of Park Districts' board of trustees.
Vogl was appointed as the association's sergeant-at-arms in 2016 and was elected to the association board the following year.
As chairman, he will lead the 19-member board in advising the association in its service, research, advocacy, public awareness, and educational programs. Its membership includes 360 park, recreation, and conservation agencies and nearly 100 affiliated business partners.
"Mike is a dynamic leader with more than two decades of selfless service to parks, recreation, and conservation," said Peter Murphy, IAPD president and chief executive officer. "He is an incredible champion for the benefits of parks and recreation, and his vast experience combined with his genuine enthusiasm for enhancing the quality of life for Illinois citizens are excellent traits that will advance IAPD's mission of keeping Illinois' park districts, forest preserves, conservation and recreation agencies ranked among the nation's best."
Vogl was elected to the Bloomingdale Park District board in 1998, serving six years as president. He currently serves on the IAPD Ambassadors, Constitutional Bylaws, Honors and Resolutions, Membership and Program Committees and the Friends of Illinois Parks Foundation. He is a master board member through IAPD's Board Member Development Program and is a member of the IAPD/Illinois Park and Recreation Association Joint Legislative Committee and Joint Coordinating Council. Vogl's national involvement includes regular attendance to the National Recreation and Park Association's Annual Conference.
He was a youth basketball coach for five years and a youth baseball/softball coach for ten years. He served on the board of the Bloomingdale Youth Baseball/Softball Association for four years, serving three years as president.
The Illinois Association of Park Districts was established in 1928 and is the oldest state association for parks, recreation, and conservation in America. The association serves more than 2,100 elected park, recreation and forest preserve district board members who govern more than 360 agencies employing 40,000 individuals.
The Illinois Association of Park Districts strives to improve Illinois' quality of life through park districts, forest preserves, conservation and recreation agencies by establishing grants and other new revenue streams for park land, facilities and services; educating the public about the positive effects parks and recreation have on communities; and meeting the problem of decreasing open space in Illinois.