Celebrating Sheila: If we were talking about basketball, and I mentioned “MJ,” you wouldn’t ask me who I was talking about. When you get to be really famous, people know you by your initials. The same is true for local heroes. This week, the region had a chance to celebrate S-Q-B: Dr. Sheila Quirk-Bailey. Earlier this year, Dr. Q-B announced her retirement, and in the blink of an eye, it was 8 months later, and a gym full of elected officials, college presidents, business leaders, ICC staff, and students gathered to thank her and wish her well. I’ve been lucky enough to work with her since my first day on the job at GPEDC, both as a member of our Board and as a partner in the work of economic development. There is no more important partner in our line of work than the local community college – they are the cornerstone of a region’s workforce system. We are lucky in Greater Peoria to have one of the best institutions in Illinois Central College, but great things do not happen without greater leadership. We owe a debt of gratitude to Sheila for her tireless dedication, determination, creativity, and professionalism. She has definitely left ICC – and our region – in a better place than she found it. Thank you, Sheila, for everything you’ve done for GPEDC and this region.
Did You Know? I have a newfound appreciation for foil lids. That might seem like a weird thought, but last week Sally and I visited WinPak in Pekin. WinPak is a Canadian company (that is owned by a Finnish company) that makes packaging for a wide range of markets, including food, beverage, and healthcare. In Pekin, they make foil lids – the thing preventing you from dipping your spoon into your favorite Greek yogurt and keeping your K-cup from leaking coffee grounds on its way to the Keurig machine. We toured their relatively small plant (about 90,000 square feet with 180 employees) that produces a BIG number of lids. Every year, the Pekin plant produces 17 BILLION lids (fitting here to say “Billion with a B”). Every time you pull a lid off a sour cream container, there is a seven-in-ten chance that the lid was made right here in Greater Peoria. It’s pretty amazing to think of the range of things made in our region – from giant Komatsu mining trucks and Caterpillar bulldozers to that little circle of foil that makes a K-cup work.
Tazewell Big Table: We have one more Rural Big Table left this year. Stakeholders from Tazewell County and elsewhere in the region will gather on Wednesday, December 1,0, from 4 – 7 p.m. at Tremont High School (400 W. Pearl Street, Tremont). There is still time to register here. We are working to establish a date and location for a Logan County Rural Big Table in early 2026.
Senior Consulting Projects: Bradley University is accepting applications from established companies interested in participating in the Senior Consulting Project (SCP) Program for the Spring 2026 semester (January 21 – May 13). Teams of senior-level business students spend the semester working in a consulting capacity on business issues facing small businesses in central Illinois. The project culminates at the end of the semester, with an oral presentation and a written report for their client that includes recommendations and implementation suggestions. These consulting projects are provided at no cost to companies that meet the SBA definition of a small business (generally 500 employees or less). You can learn more and register here by January 9.
Peoria County Planning: Peoria County is looking for public input to use for their Comprehensive Land Use Plan. You can participate by completing a survey here.
Have a great weekend.
Chris