Edward Gudas: Candidate Profile

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Note: Answers provided have not been edited for grammar, misspellings or typos. In some instances, candidate claims that could not be immediately verified have been omitted. Jump to:BioQA Bio City: Des PlainesWebsite: Candidate did not respond.Office sought: Mount Prospect Park Board Age: Candidate did not respond.Family: Laurie-WIfe Kalina-Daughter Lainie-DaughterOccupation: Candidate did not respond.Education: BS-Southern Illinois University MS-Aurora UniveristyCivic involvement: Knights of Columbus Men's Club St. Zachary Izaak Walton League of America Des Plaines Chamber of CommerceElected offices held: Current Finance Committee St. Zachary Church Operation Snowball Board Secretary Past Brighton Condo Board President Garden at Elawa Farm Steward Board Downers Grove PD Customer Experience Team IPRA Environmental Education Chair City of Lake Forest Risk Management Board Alternate Executive Safety Committee BoardQuestions Answers What programs aren't paying for themselves? Would you keep, eliminate or change them? How and why?Aquatics programs rarly pay for themselves, whether it is in an indoor or outdoor pools. Any given day there is going to be time when the pool is underutilized. Having quality instruction and a safe place for young and old to learn a life long skill that can someday save theirs or someone else's life is priceless. Swimming is a wonderful workout and is very gentile on your joints.Is there any additional open space the park district needs to acquire? Please describe.I think that the Mt. Prospect Park District has a good balance of facilities and open space.Are there any unmet recreational needs? If yes, what are they and how would you propose paying for them? Or, should they wait until the economy improves?I'm sure there are some unmet recreational needs. Surveys, comment cards and needs assessments help to identify any unmet recreational and facility needs.Would you support sharing/pooling resources (i.e. printing, vehicles) with other local governments (school districts, village, etc.)? If so, what areas would you consider combining or merging to save money or improve efficiency?I support sharing resources with other government agencies to benefit local tax payers. Many school district, city and county agencies utilize purchasing power to buy administrative supplies, chemicals, machines, etc. They also share services like maintenance, grounds keeping, marketing, etc. We all have the same goal to provide the highest quality services and facilities at a reasonable cost to the tax payers.If you are a newcomer, what prompted you to run for the park board? If you're an incumbent, list your accomplishments or key initiatives in which you played a leadership role.After spending time with my wife and two young daughters in swim lessons, the studio, friendship conservatory, movies at the park, fitness classes, open gym, 5k runs, visiting many playgrounds throughout town and golfing at the Mt. Prospect Golf Course I thought it would be great to give a different perspective to improve the quality of programs and facilities. For 16 years I worked in the parks and recreation field. I also hold a bachelors degree in recreation programming and masters degree in recreation administration.What other issues, if any, are important to you as a candidate for this office?Candidate did not respond.Please name one current leader who most inspires you.Sir Richard Branson inspires me through his entrepreneurial insight and humanitarian efforts.What's the biggest lesson you learned at home growing up?Respect your elders.If life gave you one do-over, what would you spend it on?I would have spent more time getting to know my grandparents.What was your favorite subject in school and how did it help you in later life?Business Psychology. It taught me that I'm in charge of my feelings and only I can change the outcome.If you could give your children only one piece of advice, what would it be?Wear sunscreen.