Kaneland Hall of Fame names 2017 inductees

Kaneland Unit District 302's Hall of Fame honors and recognizes alumni, staff members, organizations and supporters who have demonstrated excellence and commitment of service to District 302 communities and have each proven themselves to be an inspiration and role model to students. This year, the Hall of Fame Committee is proud induct five new members.

Please mark your calendars:

• Ms. Allyson Laackman (Class of 1975) and Ms. Ingrid Petersen Inboden (Class of 1970), in the category of Service, will be inducted on Monday, May 1, as part of Kaneland High School's Academic Achievement Awards/Hall of Fame event in the Kaneland High School Auditorium at 7 p.m. There will be a dessert reception prior to the induction at 6:15 p.m. in Café 302. Everyone is welcome to attend.

• Mr. Leon Gramley, in the category of Service, will be inducted on Thursday, May 18, as part of the high school's annual Senior Honors event in the High School Auditorium. A dessert reception will precede this event at 6:15 p.m. in the hallway adjacent to the Kaneland High School auditorium. All are welcome to attend.

• Dr. Korre Foster (Class of 1996), in the category of Personal Achievement, will be inducted into the Hall of Fame on Monday, May 22, as part of the annual Music Awards. Senior solos begin at 6 p.m. with music awards to follow. There will be a dessert reception prior to the induction at 5:30 p.m. in the Kaneland High School's Café 302. Everyone is welcome to attend.

• Mr. Doug Ecker, in the category of Commitment, will be inducted during the Senior Athletic Awards with a date in late May or early June. The details of a reception will follow when the date for Senior Athletic Awards event is set. All will be welcome to attend.

2017 Inductees:

• Allyson Laackman in the category of Service: Allyson attended Elburn Grade School, Kaneland Junior High and Kaneland High School. She was accepted into the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign Extended Early Admittance Program in the fall of 1974. She attended the University of Illinois as a freshman while gaining credits for her senior year at Kaneland where she returned in June of 1975 to graduate with her class. Allyson completed an undergraduate degree in finance at U of I, earned a degree in accountancy science in 1981 and passed the CPA exam. She has experience in the public and private sector. She served as VP/Finance and Administration/CFO at the Museum of Science and Industry from October 2013 through April 2015. She also served as Chief of Staff to first lady Michelle Obama from January 2012 through November 2012. In January 2009, she was Presidentially Appointed and Commissioned Chief Financial Officer, responsible for financial management of the Executive Office of the President (EOP), in accordance with the CFO Act. Her resume is quite lengthy; Ms. Laackman is a worthy inductee.

• Ingrid Petersen Inboden in the category of Service: Mrs. Inboden is a Kaneland graduate and has been a registered nurse in DeKalb County for over 35 years. She worked at Kishwaukee Community Hospital and Tri-County Health Clinic (free clinic through Kishwaukee Community College). She is co-owner and vice president of Inboden's Meats, Ltd. in DeKalb with her husband. She has helped to build an epicurean section with Inboden's Market, including bringing dietetic selections including gluten-free items to the area before it was trendy. She is a resource of nutritional information for her customers and is always willing to help. She has given back to the community through donations, volunteerism and educating.

• Leon Gramley, in the category of Service: Before his death in 2010, Mr. Gramley devoted his life to the community of Kaneville. He gave unselfishly of his time and talent. He was a mentor to the youth of the community and instrumental in acquiring a grant from the State for the purchase of a baseball field for Kaneville. He was the supervisor of Kaneville Township and was instrumental in getting the Village of Kaneville incorporated. He worked tirelessly on the ambulance squad, becoming an EMT. He was always there if someone needed a helping hand.

• Dr. Korre Foster in the category of Personal Achievement: Dr. Korre Foster graduated from Kaneland High School in 1996 with a love of music. After earning a long list of musical education degrees, Foster began his musical career in Paris, where he taught English voice lessons and conducted the choirs of Le Palais Royal and L'Academie de Musique alongside orchestral conductor Jean-Phillippe Sarcos. Today, Foster is the associate professor of music and director of choral activities at Austin Peay State University in Clarksville, Tennessee, where he leads the chamber singers, governor singers and university choir, in addition to teaching choral literature, choral methods, choral conducting and supervising graduate students. Dr. Foster has an amazing resume as he joins the Kaneland Hall of Fame.

• Doug Ecker in the category of Commitment: Doug Ecker has taught and coached at Kaneland High School since 1987. He retired from teaching sciences in 2011 but continues to serve as head coach for girls cross-country and girls track and field. Mr. Ecker has been selected as Coach of the Year in local newspapers multiple times. He has coached numerous individual and relays to All-State status in both sports. He coached Victoria Clinton to the 2012 individual state championship in cross-country, and he recently guided the 2016 girls' track team to a state title as well. His nine cross-country team qualifiers have all finished in the Top 10; the only Kaneland head coach to achieve such a feat. Ecker helped spearhead the Wall of Fame project that began in 2007 and continues to do much of the legwork for continuing this tradition of recognition at Kaneland High School. He is a welcome addition to the Hall of Fame.

To learn more, visit www.kaneland.org/hall-of-fame.