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February Volunteer of the Month: Chriss Stark, Willow Bend School PTA
Chriss Stark’s nominator called her “the go-to person” at Willow Bend—“the person you can go to for anything and be sure that the job will get done.” Chriss doesn’t just get the job done, her nominator noted, “but she rallies the troops to arrange for whatever help might be needed.”
Chriss joined the Willow Bend PTA four years ago when her daughter Sarah started school. “I thought joining the PTA and being on the PTA board was just something I was supposed to do,” she recalled. She dived in quickly, taking on a variety of responsibilities including heading up the publicity committee and then publishing the PTA newsletter. This is her second year doing the newsletter, which now comes out twice a month. “I think it helps keep timely information going out to parents,” she said. School administrators call her newsletters “awesome.” She has also worked on planning the school’s annual family picnic.
Chriss says when her kids are in school, that’s where she wants to be. “I’m doing it for the kids,” she said—meaning her own as well as others. “They appreciate it.” Her nomination noted: “She has such pride in Willow Bend. It is not only her children’s school, it is her school. She makes it her job to be a part of the school community by helping out not just in her children’s classes, but wherever she might be needed. She speaks of her school with pride when any opportunity presents itself.” Chriss agrees. “The best thing about Willow Bend is the atmosphere of the school,” she said. “It’s an awesome environment for learning. I’m 100 percent behind this school!”
Chriss is originally from Arizona, where she attended college at Arizona State University and Northern Arizona State. She worked as a bakery broker, which is how she met her husband Scott, also a bakery broker. She moved to Illinois when they were married. Chriss and Scott are the parents of Sarah, a third grader, and twins Matt and Luke, now in first grade. Chriss says her interests center on her children and “doing family stuff.”
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