Thank You to Sponsors of Sheriff's Golf Outing at Bliss Creek
Sheriff Pat Perez would like to thank the sponsors and participants of the Sheriff's Golf Outing at Bliss Creek Golf Course Located at Golfview and Hankes Roads in Sugar Grove, Monday June 21, 2010.
Hole Sponsors
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Dinner Sponsors
Beverage Cart Sponsors
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See the full event gallery.
Sheriff Perez Thanks Fox Valley United Way Supporters
Having served as Fox Valley United Way Fundraising Co-Chair for the 2008/2009 and 2009/2010 fundraising campaigns, Sheriff Pat Perez thanks the supporters of Fox Valley United Way. The folllowing is an excerpt from their document thanking supporters. See the full document.
"As sheriffs for Kane and Kendall counties, we see firsthand how your donations support the work of 56 health and human service agencies in our communities. It’s your generosity that is bringing lasting change to individuals and families in our area. We’ve been proud to be part of this year’s United Way campaign and salute all those who have donated time and resources to make this a better year for many.
Together we can continue to make a difference."
- Campaign Co-Chairs, Kane County Sheriff Pat Perez and Kendall County Sheriff Dick Randall
Recent event to raise money for children's cancer research
Thanks to all who supported my fundraising efforts for St. Baldrick's Foundation last Sunday. My final tally was $815.00. It was a great time for a most worthy cause. View photos on our flickr page. Learn more about the cause at the St. Baldrick's Foundation site.
Crime and education
Cops, child advocates urge state to restore preschool funds
March 9, 2010 |
(Marianne Mather/Beacon Staff Photographer)
(Marianne Mather/Beacon Staff Photographer)
Restoring cuts to preschool programs today could help curb crime in the future, Kane County and Aurora law enforcement officers and legislators emphasize.
Kane County Sheriff Pat Perez, Aurora Police Cmdr. Joseph Groom and state Rep. Linda Chapa LaVia all read to Carolyn Panozzo's preschooolers at Oak Park Elementary School in Aurora on Monday.
And despite entertaining the 20 smiling 3- and 4-year-olds with tales of "Officer Buckle and Gloria," their message was serious — keeping preschools open for at-risk kids could mean keeping them out of jail down the line.
Citing evidence that preschool prevents future violent crime and saves money, law enforcement leaders called on the General Assembly and Gov. Pat Quinn to restore funding for preschool programs in the upcoming state budget. In the last fiscal year, the state cut 10 percent of the preschool program funding.
Quinn will announce the state's fiscal year 2011 budget on Wednesday.
According to an analysis released Monday by the child advocacy group Voices for Illinois Children, Quinn's proposed budget would see the Early Childhood Block Grant, which funds preschool programs operated by local school districts and qualified community agencies, cut by as much as 45 percent.
"Our members know that investing in early education is key to preventing costly crime," said Tim Carpenter, state director of Fight Crime: Invest in Kids Illinois, which has 300 partner members. "It is our top priority to restore that cut."
Studies show importance
A study of a preschool program in Michigan tracked at-risk children who attended the program and those who did not attend. At age 27, adult non-participants were five times more likely to have been arrested for drug felonies and twice as likely to have been arrested for violent crimes, the study found.
At the publicly funded Child-Parent Centers in Chicago, a study found that kids left out of preschool programs are 70 percent more likely to be arrested by age 18 than those who did participate.
"There is a growing consensus here of what really works in fighting crime," said Perez, an alumnus of Oak Park Elementary in the East Aurora district. "I'd rather see them in preschool now than in the judicial system later."
During the past eight years, Kane County added more than 1,600 3- and 4-year-olds in preschool programs, bringing the county total to 3,000 children.
Stimulus money used up
In East Aurora's Early Childhood Program, there are 1,090 3- and 4-year-olds enrolled, funded by $2.8 million from an Early Childhood Block Grant and a Preschool For All Grant.
The School District used federal stimulus funds to keep four preschool teachers and four assistants at work this school year, said Christine Aird, assistant superintendent of elementary programs. Without those funds, the positions would have been cut.
"A lot of districts were able to patch together things this year to lessen the impact," Carpenter said. "We're going to see a lot more impact if the 10 percent isn't restored."
Chapa LaVia said that schools won't be able to count on stimulus money to fill in budget holes any longer.
"I don't see any more stimulus money coming for this," Chapa LaVia said. "I will be fighting for education period, and I see it as a valuable tool."
Although education is a top priority in Springfield, Chapa LaVia warned that the budget will force lawmakers to make tough decisions.
"Everyone in Springfield is going to be fighting for something," she said. "These are drastic times, and it may cost us the education of the kids."
According to Carpenter, Aurora already can't meet the demand for an additional 5,600 families of at-risk kids who cannot afford preschool.
West center may close
Wednesday's budget announcement will also determine the fate of the West Aurora School District's preschool program, the Todd Early Childhood Center. If the state pulls funding altogether for state-funded preschool, West must close the center, cutting all preschool programs except for the legally obligated (and federally funded) special education preschool, district spokesman Mike Chapin said.
The district said 320 West Aurora preschoolers would lose service.
The center was set to close last year until last-minute political wrangling promised money for it two weeks before classes were set to start.
Wednesday's news can only be bad — if Quinn cuts early childhood education, Todd is gone; if he keeps it, the district is "in limbo" waiting to see if the legislature finds funding for it, Chapin said.
"We would love certainty, one way or the other, I guess," Chapin said.
Carpenter said that until Wednesday, he can't predict what may happen to state-funded preschools.
"I've long stopped trying to predict the future. It could be even worse," he said. "This is the least amount of recovery we've ever asked for — getting the 10 percent back is our best case scenario."