Zengeler helps to collect dresses so girls can enjoy prom
Tom Zengeler, president of Zengeler Cleaners, has been working for 15 years with the Glass Slipper Project, which provides donated gowns to young girls who cannot otherwise afford to go to high school prom.
After all, he has two daughters and knows the rite of passage is important to teenagers. But for those who don't have the money, it can be a lost dream. His daughters often have helped him to deliver the donated gowns and accessories to a central location where they are distributed.
"One girl told me she only wears sweatpants and never had a dress before," said Zengeler, 54, of Wauconda. "These girls are just too poor to even own a dress."
Zengeler Cleaners are located in Deerfield, Hubbard Woods, Northfield, Winnetka, Long Grove, Northbrook and two in Libertyville. During the first year with the Glass Slipper Project, the stores collected about 200 gowns.
Since then, the cleaners became more involved with area high schools and local businesses. Together, they are expecting to collect about 4,000 gowns this year. They start at the beginning of the school year and then deliver the dresses in April.
The delivery location this year is Price Elementary School, 4351 S. Drexel in Chicago, which turns into a boutique for a weekend in April. Classrooms become showrooms for different size dresses. Girls from schools throughout the area can try on the gowns and select shoes, purses and accessories, he said.
"I wanted my daughters to see how other girls in other communities are living in different ways," Zengeler said.
Adding equipment
Rick Corso, general manager of Adams Auto Body and Service Center in McHenry, said the shop recently acquired a Chief brand welder capable of replicating factory welds. Also new on the shop floor is a Pro Spot dent puller that better enables body technicians to work with today's thinner, higher-grade metals. The business invested about $30,000 so it could do collision repairs faster and more efficiently.
Honored for sales
Eric Heinkel was named 2016 Salesperson of the Year by Merrick Pet Care, a provider of natural pet food. He was recognized at the company's national sales meeting for his top sales performance as part of Merrick's Central region. Heinkel joined Merrick in December 2015 and is the territory sales manager for Illinois, Eastern Wisconsin and Eastern Iowa where he focuses on sales of Merrick's all-natural pet food and treats with independent pet supply and pet specialty stores. He lives in Oswego with his wife, Meghan, and their 2-year-old chocolate lab, Marvin.
FastTracks
• Kelly Anderson of Cary was made a partner at Lavelle Law, a Palatine-based law firm. She joined the firm in 2011 and concentrates on commercial and residential real estate.
• Dick Krause, owner and CEO, and Dave Davis, president of A-TEC Ambulance Co. Inc., said they're looking to hire more than 30 positions in the next 60 days. Crystal Lake-based A-TEC currently has 145 employees.
• Michael Elliott and Joanne Elliott of Des Plaines-based Elliott & Associates Attorneys PC were recently selected by the Illinois legal community as Leading Lawyers, a designation of the top 5 percent of Illinois lawyers in private practice. It is hosted by Leading Lawyers magazine.
• Justin Sewell is the new assistant property manager at Des Plaines-based The Missner Group, which provides real estate development and construction services.
• Ken Wegner, president of Jel Sert Co. in West Chicago, has been appointed president of the American Childhood Cancer Organization's board.
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• There's more to business than just the bottom line. We want to tell you about the people who make business work. Send news about people in business to akukec@dailyherald.com. Follow Anna Marie Kukec on LinkedIn and Facebook and as AMKukec on Twitter.