This is the fourth in a series of stories about Illinois REALTORS® Who Made a Difference in 2018.

Dixon’s Vicky Turner and Peoria’s Sheryl Grider Whitehurst helped guide the Illinois REALTORS® Bicentennial Task Force again in 2018 while Chicago’s Jim Kinney served on the Illinois Bicentennial Commission for a second year.

Kinney’s interest in history and the state bicentennial dates back to his days as the 2015 Illinois REALTORS® president, and his enthusiasm contributed to the association developing its bicentennial task force that year. In 2017, Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner appointed him to the Illinois Bicentennial Commission and the vice president of luxury home sales for Baird & Warner’s Gold Coast Office served as the association’s liaison to the state’s bicentennial commission and for the development of the Bicentennial Plaza in downtown Springfield. He influenced some of the REALTOR® events that celebrated the state’s 200th birthday, too.

Turner served as chair and Grider Whitehurst as vice chair of the Illinois REALTORS® Bicentennial Task Force since 2015. They encouraged local Illinois REALTOR® associations to develop local — and often historical — projects to celebrate the state’s bicentennial during 2018. The task force also helped develop marketing tools for REALTORS® to use during 2018 and suggested an essay writing contest for high school students that awarded $12,000 in academic scholarships to 23 students across the state.

Turner represents Crawford Realty LLC in Dixon, while Grider Whitehurst represents RE/MAX Traders Unlimited in Peoria.

For more information on REALTOR® involvement in the state bicentennial, check the special section of the Illinois REALTORS® website.

Previous stories in the Illinois REALTORS® Who Made a Difference in 2018 series include: