Here are your nominees for the 2023-2024 Butler & Young PTOs.  Voting will begin on Thursday, May 18 and run through end of day Friday, May 19.  Elected board members will be announced on Monday, May 22. 

Running for President - 1 Nominee

Linda Winterfeldt

• Hello, my name is Linda Winterfeldt, my husband Ryan and I are the parents of two amazing children. My daughter Hailey is going into fifth grade and my son Jacob is going into kindergarten. I have been involved with the PTO for the last 5 years and for the last two years I have been the Vice President for the Butler PTO. Some of the projects I have worked on are Pastries with Peeps, Daddy Daughter Dance, teacher appreciation week. I truly enjoy seeing the children and their families having fun at all the events I am involved with. The Homer 33C Staff and Families are the most welcoming group of people I have ever had the opportunity to work with. I am very excited for the opportunity to serve on the Butler/Young PTO Executive Board as President!

Running for Butler Vice President - 1 Nominee

Katie Krol

• My name is Katie Krol and I have been the Financial Secretary for the Butler PTO since 2020. My husband, Ryan, and I have lived in Lockport since 2010. We are the proud parents of 3 boys. I am a licensed Speech-Language Pathologist and currently stay at home with our one year old son. I have enjoyed serving on the PTO board and being able to volunteer for classroom parties, field trips, treat days, and book fairs. I am running for the Vice President Position for Butler School because I have loved being involved with the PTO the last three years, and I want to create positive experiences for teachers, parents, and event volunteers.

Running for Young Vice President - 1 Nominee

Joanna Gonella

• Hi, my name is Joanna Gonnella. My husband, Matt and I have lived in Lockport for 8 year with our two daughters; Olivia is 9 and will be starting 4th grade at Butler and Ashley who is almost 6 will be starting 1st grade at Young. I have been on PTO since 2019. I was the kindergarten liaison at Schilling 2019-2020, secretary at Young 2020-2021, and currently this is my second year being Co-President at Young school. I have been in charge of many events such as Book Fair, Movie Night, Teacher & staff appreciation week, Turkey Trot, Treat Days, Monthly raffles, and the holiday shop. I have also assisted with field days & trunk or treat. I’m looking forward to another great school year!

Running for Butler Treasurer - 1 Nominee

Michelle Kaisner

• Hi! My name is Michelle Kaisner. My husband and I have been married for 12 years. A lot has happened in 12 years including 4 children and a move to our home in Lockport. Our oldest, Brooklyn, is 11 and is in 5th grade at Hadley, Levi is 9 (3rd grade), Addison is 7 (1st Grade) and Rylee is 5 (Kindergarten). We have lived in Lockport for 10 years and have really felt at home here. We love Butler School and I recognize we’ll be in this building for several years! I enjoy helping where I can at school and being involved in my kids' school days. I enjoy the treasurer duties as it brings me back to my financial institution days where I worked prior to marriage.

Running for Young Treasurer - 1 Nominee

Alyssa Charlton

• Hello my name is Alyssa Charlton.  My husband Ben and I have three children.  Makenzie will be going into fifth grade at Hadley next year.  My son Gavin will be a second grader at Butler and Evelyn will be a first grader at Young.  This will be my first opportunity to volunteer on the PTO and I look forward to seeing the kids and their families involved and having fun at events.  I am excited about the opportunity to serve as Treasurer on the Butler/Young Board.  

Running for Butler Secretary - 1 Nominee

Teresa Czerwien

• Hello, my name is Teresa Czerwien, I have 4 children, Sophia 6th Grade, Matthew 5th Grade, Ben and Sara are in 2nd Grade. My husband, Chris and I have lived in Lockport for 13 years. Before deciding to be a full time stay at home Mom, I worked for Ace Corporate for 12 years. I enjoy volunteering at Butler School. Currently I am in my 5th year in the position of secretary for Butler PTO. I have enjoyed getting to know the Butler staff and kids throughout the years.

Running for Young Secretary - 1 Nominee

Ashley Warren

• Hi, my name is Ashley Warren and I’m interested in running for secretary of the Young PTO. I am currently the secretary of the Parent Association at my children’s private school. We are returning to district next year and I would like to get involved. I have had 2 previous students attend Young and my youngest will be coming next year. Before Covid, I had planned to join the PTO as the treat day coordinator but was never able to with virtual learning. I am a full time mom to three boys, part-time special education coordinator in Lockport and the treasurer of my HOA. I have a multitude of experience in all things schools, love Google Docs, Canva (easy graphic design software), Smore newsletters, and helping out in general!

Running for Butler Treat Day Coordinator - 1 Nominee

Allison Rybka

• Hello, my name is Allison Rybka and I’m excited to be your Hospitality Coordinator. I’m a mom of two, Olivia who is 9 and Emmalyne who is 6. I work part time at Silver Cross Hospital as an OB Tech. Not only do I love my job, I love volunteering at the school. This is my second year on the board and I couldn’t be happier working with the best PTO!

Running for Young Treat Day Coordinator - 1 Nominee

Jaime Hirdler

• Hi my name is Jaime Hirdler.  I have been on Young's PTO for the last 7 years. I started as the Treasurer and for the last 2 years have also served as the Co-President. I've run many events including Donuts with Grownups, She & Me Event, and Trunk or Treat.

Running for Butler Fundraising Coordinator - 2 Nominees

Christine Rogers

• My name is Christine Rogers and I just moved to the area in April and want to get more involved with my children's schools. I will have a daughter in Pre-K at Young and my son is currently at second at Butler and going into third next year. My day job is being an event planner for a non-profit association. I work in the world of event planning and fundraising and feel I could help lend my knowledge to the role. Being creative, finding fund ways to make money for a good cause, helping our children and making an example are all valuable to our community!

Kate Oetinger

• Hi, my name is Kate Oetinger and next year I’ll have a kindergartener at Young and a 3rd grader at Butler. Before I had kids I worked for a production company planning and executing events on a national scale, that knowledge and experience would be useful in helping the Butler PTO achieve our goals. Staying home with my kids allows me the opportunity to devote my time to volunteering as well as other passion projects. I’d love to be considered for a fundraising coordinator role. I would bring enthusiasm, organizational skills, and leadership experience to the role, working collaboratively with other parents, teachers, and administrators to fundraise, plan events, and advocate for the school's needs.

Running for Young Fundraising Coordinator - 1 Nominee

Samantha Woods

• My name is Samantha Woods and my family, and I are moving to Homer Glen in July just in time for the new 2023-2024 school year! We have been looking forward to this day since we bought our lot in January 2022. We have an incoming 1^st grader at William E. Young and 5^th grader at Hadley Middle School. We chose Homer Glen as our new home based on the community and incredible curriculum at Homer Community Consolidated School District 33C.

  Over the last two years I have served as the Teacher Hospitality Chair and Nomination Committee Chair on the Darien School District #61 Board. As the Teacher Hospitality Chair, I was responsible for organizing Back-to-School breakfast, Parent/Teacher Conference Dinner, Administrative Professional’s Day, and Staff Appreciation Week. In addition, I have led and volunteered with several committees including STEM Night, Curriculum Night, Incoming Kindergarten Families Welcome Team, Book Fairs and more!

  I have provided thoughtful inputs to every monthly Board meeting, volunteered countless hours at both schools, co-developed the Teacher Hospitality committees, adhered to the Darien #61 PTA budgets, helped decide where PTA fundraising funds are spent and closely worked with the principals and staff members at Mark DeLay and Lace Elementary.
   
  On a personal note, I am known as the Chaos Coordinator amongst family and friends as I thoroughly enjoy organizing group vacations and hangouts, birthday parties, special events, surprises etc. In addition to working full-time as a Medical Device Sales Rep, I have been project managing our new build the last two years with my husband (contractor). I have the ability to multi-task and organize multiple projects and do so with enthusiasm and positivity! 

  I would like to run for the Fundraising Coordinator Chair for William E. Young as I strongly believe my prior experiences will allow me to be a strong addition to the PTO and foster positive relationships in my new community. I understand parental involvement is critical for a successful school year and vow to be fully committed to ensuring the students and staff at William E. Young have a great year!