Stories
Honoring Family Business Excellence: A Legacy of Leadership and Resilience
For over two decades, the Illinois Family Business of the Year Awards and the Heroes Campaign brought the stories of remarkable family-owned businesses to light. Each program celebrated values-driven leadership, community impact, and resilience, honoring the unique ways that family businesses strengthen both their industries and communities.
The Illinois Family Business of the Year Awards (1996-2019) recognized businesses that exemplified a strong commitment to family values, innovative practices, and contributions to their communities. Award winners were celebrated across various categories, from small family businesses to century-old enterprises, showcasing the diversity and strength of family-owned businesses across Illinois.
In 2021, during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Heroes Campaign launched to highlight family businesses that went above and beyond to support their employees, customers, and communities. This campaign continued in 2022, focusing on family businesses that championed environmental, social, and governance (ESG) practices to create lasting positive impacts.
Explore this archive to discover inspiring stories, illustrating the powerful legacy of family leadership, purpose-driven strategies, and community care.
Heroes Campaign 2022
Sloan
"Our ESG efforts have been a focus of the company since its inception."
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Heroes Campaign 2022
E.D. Etnyre and Company
"To be a good board chair of a family enterprise, you have to be a lifelong learner."
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Heroes Campaign 2022
Antunes
"We’re focused on providing the enjoyment of food and water for everyone. It’s the right thing to do."
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Heroes Campaign 2022
Nielsen-Massey Vanillas
"Corporate sustainability—and a responsibility to our surrounding communities—are part of our DNA."
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Heroes Campaign 2022
Ball Horticultural
"We have the responsibility to make sure we are doing the right thing for the environment."
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Heroes Campaign 2022
Spraying Systems
“As we saw success in our sustainability efforts, we asked ourselves, ‘How can we share these efforts—and results—with others?”
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Heroes Campaign 2022
Clemens Food Group
“All of our work focuses on passing the baton to future generations and seeing how we can leave the world better than we’ve found it."
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Heroes Campaign 2021
Magid
"There was no playbook for this. We were writing the rules as we went."
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Heroes Campaign 2021
Wall Family Enterprise
“We realized if we wanted to be part of the solution in libraries and schools, we had to bring the solutions."
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Heroes Campaign 2021
W.S. Darley
"This isn't the first pandemic our company has ever experienced."
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Heroes Campaign 2021
Carl Buddig & Company
"We didn't do this alone. It takes a village and we relied on our resources to give us information so we could make good decisions."
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Heroes Campaign 2021
Gold Eagle
"COVID forced us to come up with ‘what if’ scenarios that provided new insights on what we can do as a company and as a family."
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Heroes Campaign 2021
Medline
"We did what we could to keep supplying our customers who needed our products to save people's lives."
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Heroes Campaign 2021
Edlong
"We were all hands on deck, and had each other’s backs to ensure everyone stayed afloat and succeeded."
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Heroes Campaign 2021
Powers & Sons Construction
"Never in my lifetime has there been anything that has challenged us in this manner."
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Heroes Campaign 2021
Home Run Inn
“We’ve been a family business for the last 74 years, and Chicago is our community. Of course we’re going to do our part to help those in need.”
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Heroes Campaign 2021
Wahl Clipper Corp.
"Our values are what got us through. They're what allowed us to thrive in this environment because we have such committed people who really understand our business."
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Heroes Campaign 2021
Baldwin Richardson Foods
"As a family business, we wear our values on our sleeves. We don’t just talk about integrity, authenticity, and honesty—we live it."
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Illinois Family Business of the Year
Daprato Rigali Studios
Since 1860, Daprato Rigali Studios has been an industry leader in interior design, renovation, and restoration - specializing in church restoration.
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Illinois Family Business of the Year
Rabine Group
A leading provider of commercial, industrial, and retail asphalt and concrete parking lot pavement services across the country as well as roofing, snow removal and utility pipeline televising.
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Illinois Family Business of the Year
Magid Glove & Safety Co.
America’s leading manufacturer, importer, and distributor of work gloves and personal protective equipment, including first aid products and protective and disposable clothing.
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Illinois Family Business of the Year
Ozinga
A fourth-generation family-owned business providing concrete, materials, energy, and logistics solutions.
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Illinois Family Business of the Year
Michuda Construction
Founded in 1919, this full-service general contracting and construction management firm specializes in constructing, developing, and renovating facilities for healthcare, education, and commercial clients throughout the Midwest and nationwide.
WatchHonoring Family Business Excellence: A Legacy of Leadership and Resilience
For over two decades, the Illinois Family Business of the Year Awards and the Heroes Campaign brought the stories of remarkable family-owned businesses to light. Each program celebrated values-driven leadership, community impact, and resilience, honoring the unique ways that family businesses strengthen both their industries and communities.
The Illinois Family Business of the Year Awards (1996-2019) recognized businesses that exemplified a strong commitment to family values, innovative practices, and contributions to their communities. Award winners were celebrated across various categories, from small family businesses to century-old enterprises, showcasing the diversity and strength of family-owned businesses across Illinois.
In 2021, during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Heroes Campaign launched to highlight family businesses that went above and beyond to support their employees, customers, and communities. This campaign continued in 2022, focusing on family businesses that championed environmental, social, and governance (ESG) practices to create lasting positive impacts.
Explore this archive to discover inspiring stories, illustrating the powerful legacy of family leadership, purpose-driven strategies, and community care.