Quarter of Michelassi's salary going to charity

Rookie DuPage County Board member Tony Michelassi is asking constituents to help him fulfill a campaign promise.

The 23-year-old Democrat from Aurora is looking to donate about a quarter of his board salary to local charities.

"I thought it would be better to gather that information from people in my district who know those charities," he said. "It still is the taxpayers' money and they ought to have a say in where it goes."

Michelassi will distribute about $815 a month to charities in District 5. He has accrued about $4,000 since taking office in December.

"It will be good to have a backlog of funds because I expect to receive a high volume of letters the first two months," he said.

During the campaign, fellow Democrat Dirk Enger suggested board members' salaries should be around $36,000 instead of the more than $50,000 they currently receive. He vowed to donate the excess to charity if elected.

Michelassi said that sounded like a good idea to him, too. But since he had no history with many of the local charities, he doesn't believe he is the best one to decide where that money should go.

"Maybe for the first couple of months it will be a little extra work sorting through the letters that come in, but there are only so many charities in District 5," Michelassi said.

Enger, who was elected to the board from District 6, said he already has donated about $2,300 to a variety of charities, including the Autism Society of America, the Midwest Shelter for Homeless Veterans and the Salvation Army.

"I wish others would follow," Enger said.

But there's another difference between Enger and Michelassi's charity - the board seat is Michelassi's only job.

Instead of a net income of $38,435 a year, Michelassi will only take in $28,646. He gave up a part-time job at the camera counter of a grocery store when he was elected so he could focus on his government post. He recently moved out of his parent's house into an apartment in Aurora he shares with three pet rats.

"They're takers, not givers," he said of his roommates. "I'm doing all right. I have enough to get by and I'm making more now than if I'd have gone full-time at the store."

District 4 Republican board member JR McBride said what Michelassi was doing was admirable, but not much different from many of his colleagues on the board.

"I think the majority of board members that are already involved in charities will continue to give and the deadbeats on the board who don't will continue to collect their paycheck and that's it," McBride said. "If he's looking for suggestions he could donate to the organizations I'm involved with, but I think Meals on Wheels and his local food bank are all great avenues to start."

In fact, Michelassi already has pledged about $80 a month to the county's charitable foundation, which comes directly out of his paycheck every two weeks.