Hughes had been the director of the Pleasant Dale Park District for the past 5 1/2 years and was a recognized leader in his community, guiding the district through a period of growth and transition and playing a key role in the acquisition and development of the Flagg Creek Golf Course.

An active advocate for the field of parks and recreation, Hughes was a member of the South Suburban Park and Recreation Association, the National Recreation and Parks Association and the Illinois Park and Recreation Association (IPRA). For IPRA, he served as the director of the Administration and Finance Section and was a member of several committees and task forces. He also served as president of the Gateway Special Recreation Association board.

In Memoriam—Russell Foval
Russell Joseph Foval, 89, died Tuesday, March 12, 1996, at St. Francis Hospital in Mountain View, Missouri. Foval spent his entire working career in the field of recreation, ranging from playground director in Alton (IL) to superintendent of recreation in Alton, Reading (PA), and Decatur (IL), totaling more than 45 years of public service in the field of recreation.

Some of his many achievements include past president of the Illinois Park and Recreation Society or IPRS (now the Illinois Park and Recreation Association), honorary lifetime membership in IPRS, winner of the IPRS Fellow Award and recipient of the C.K. Brightbill Professional Award.

Foval loved sports and participated in many. Baseball was a favorite and he tried out for the Cardinals minor league as a young man. He was an avid fisherman and also enjoyed golfing.

He enjoyed working with people, especially young people, and made a difference in many of their lives.

The National Sporting Goods Association's Sports Foundation recently announced the finalists for the 1996 National Gold Medal and Special Recreation Awards. These awards are presented annually in seven classes to communities throughout the United States recognizing excellence in park and recreation administration and outstanding service to the challenged, in cooperation with the National Sporting Goods Association and the National Recreation and Park Association (NRPA). The Grand Award Winner in each class will be announced and honored at the NRPA Congress held in Kansas City, Missouri, in October.

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Carole Christensen, accounting supervisor for the Naperville Park District, received an award of Financial Reporting Achievement from GFOA. This individual award recognizes the person who is primarily responsible for preparing the award-wining CAFR. The GFOA is a nonprofit professional association serving 12,625 government finance professionals with offices in Chicago and Washington, D.C.

Kerber, Eck & Braeckel Ranked Among Nation's Top 40 Audit Firms
Kerber, Eck & Braeckel LLP, a regional accounting and management consulting firm headquartered in Springfield (IL), is ranked among America's top 40 audit firms, according to Bowman's Accounting Report, a major trade journal published in Atlanta. The firm is the only Illinois firm outside of Chicago on Bowman's list, published in the January 1996 edition and is based upon Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) audits and assets audited. Founded in 1931, Kerber, Eck & Braeckel serves both business and individual clients in its six offices located throughout the Midwest.

Lake County Golf Course Cited for Environmental Excellence
The Lake County Forest Preserves' Countryside Golf Course near Mundelein has achieved designation as a "Certified Audubon Cooperative Sanctuary" by the Audubon Cooperative Sanctuary System, a program of the Audubon Society of New York State and endorsed by the United States Golf Association. Countryside Golf Course is only the third public golf course in Illinois and the 14th public golf course in the nation to receive the honor. To reach certification, a golf course must demonstrate it is maintaining a high degree of environmental quality in a number of areas, including environmental planning, wildlife and habitat management, public involvement, integrated pest management, water conservation, and water quality management. Some of the Cooperative Sanctuary System projects at Countryside include placing nesting boxes for bluebirds and swallows in open spaces, conserving water, and maintaining food and cover for wildlife.

Bell Retires After Distinguished Career
Ned F. Bell, administrator of the Downers Grove Park District since July 1973, recently announced his retirement effective May 31, 1996. Bell is noted for steering the district throughout its most active period of expansion—increasing from 17 park sites with 230 acres of land and a staff of 6 full-time employees to 555 acres on 46 sites and 39 full-time staff members.

"Parks and recreation are people" is the humanistic approach and philosophy Ned Bell embraced during his 22 years of leadership at Downers Grove. Among his legacy of accomplishments are expanding the district's senior center programming, initiating the preschool program and increasing recreation programs to an annual roster of approximately 2, 350 organized recreation programs.

Bell's leadership brought national recognition to the community when in 1983 the district won the National Gold Medal Award for excellence in park and recreation management, presented by the National Sporting Goods Association and the National Recreation and Park Association.

A native of Brazil, Indiana, Bell graduated from Indiana State University (1970) with a bachelor of science degree in parks and recreation management and he holds a master of arts degree from the Garrett Evangelical Theological Seminary, Evanston, Illinois (1973). He came to the Downers Grove Park District from the Naperville Park District where he had worked his way through the ranks from recreation supervisor to assistant director.

Send your People & Places in the News information to:
Editor, Illinois Parks & Recreation
Illinois Association of Park Districts
211 E. Monroe St., Springfield, IL 62701
217-523-4273 (fax)

62 * Illinois Parks & Recreation * May/June 1996

Mark Badasch, executive director of the Collinsville AreaRecreation District, recently received the 1996 OutstandingAlumni Award from the Department of Recreation and SportManagement of Indiana State University (ISU). Badasch is a1973 graduate of ISU and has been involved with the formation of its Alumni/Practitioners Advisory Council. Prior to joining Collinsville in 1994, Badasch served as director of parksand recreation for the Roxana (IL) Community Park Districtand Recreation Department, director of the dark County ParkDistrict (Marshall, IL), camping program supervisor for Neighborhood House Association in Peoria (IL) and assistant superintendent of recreation for the Pekin Park District (Pekin, IL).

Alston Earns National Accreditation
Carl Alston, director of communications for the Naperville ParkDistrict since September of 1994,recently achieved accredited statusfrom the Public Relations Societyof America (PRSA), the world'slargest individual member professional society devoted to the practice of public relations. The "accredited in public relations" (APR)designation is awarded to professionals with five years work experience in the field of public relations and who have passed extensive oral and written examinations. Accreditation indicates serious commitment to the practice of public relations, broadknowledge, experience, management skill and professionaljudgment in the field.

The Deerfield Park District has hired Marc Long as the newrecreation supervisor and Coho Swim Club head coach. Longwas an All-American and Big Ten champion swimmer at theUniversity of Iowa where he received a bachelor's degree inRecreation Administration. For the past several years, he hasworked in the private sector and has a strong desire to return tocoaching.

Warren W. Ross recently joinedthe Skokie Park District as its aquatics supervisor. Ross holds a bachelor of arts degree in TherapeuticRecreation from the University ofNorthern Iowa. Previously he wasthe head of aquatics adult/specialevent programs at the Lisle ParkDistrict. Ross has programmed andsupervised more than 1, 500 swimming enthusiasts, has certifiedcountless residents in first aid andCPR, and has an extensive background in facility management.

Brian Huckstadt was named director of parks and planning for theArlington Heights Park District.Formerly superintendent of parksfor the Rolling Meadows Park District, Huckstadt is a graduate ofSouthern Illinois University. He'salso held park superintendent positions at the Streamwood and Prospect Heights park districts.Huckstadt is a Certified LeisureProfessional through the IllinoisPark and Recreation Association(IPRA) and is the director ofIPRA's Park and Natural Resource Brian Huckstadt Management Section. He is a member of the National Park andRecreation Association and is past president of the MidwestInstitute of Park Executives (MIPE). He was named Park Professional of 1992 by IPRA and MIPE.

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