Joliet’s Project Acclaim to honor Ed and Gloria Dollinger, Mike Turk on Nov. 14.

Joliet’s Project Acclaim will induct Ed and Gloria Dollinger and Michael Turk into the organization’s 2022 Hall of Pride at its 35th Jade Anniversary Banquet.

The banquet will be held from 6 to 8 p.m. Nov. 14 at the Jacob Henry Mansion Estate, 15 South Richards Street in Joliet. Social Hour is at 6 p.m., and the program begins at 7 p.m.

Project Acclaim has honored almost 150 individuals and organizations for their service to the community since the Hall of Pride began in 1987. For a full list of honorees, visit projectacclaim.com/hall-of-pride

About Ed and Gloria Dollinger

Ed Dollinger, who opened the first office of Edward Jones Investments in 1986 in Joliet, is involved with the boards of the University of St. Francis in Joliet, the Diocese of Joliet finance council and the Will County Center for Economic Development, according to Project Acclaim.

He was a board member for the Community Foundation of Will County, St. Joseph Medical Center and Joliet Catholic Academy, according to Project Acclaim.

His wife, Gloria, is a registered dietitian and certified personal trainer through the National Academy of Sports Medicine. She is the nutrition supervisor for the Joliet Park District, according to Project Acclaim.

She was a commissioner for the Will County Board and the Forest Preserve District of Will County. She also was a board member for the MAPP Collaborative and the Workforce Investment Board, according to Project Acclaim.

Gloria Dollinger recently was the development director for the Community Foundation of Will County. She is a board member at the Joliet Area Historical Museum and chairs the museum’s collection’s committee, according to Project Acclaim. She also is a member of the Rotary Club of Joliet and Ascension St. Joseph – Joliet Auxiliary, according to Project Acclaim.

Ed Dollinger also is a member of the Rotary Club of Joliet, and he and Gloria are parishioners at St. Paul the Apostle Parish in Joliet, according to Project Acclaim. They are the parents of Matt, Casey and Nathan.

About Michael Turk

Michael Turk, who worked in auditing and accounting for almost 40 years, served the Joliet City Council for 34 years and the Joliet Park District board for six years before that. During Turk’s tenure, the city of Joliet incepted riverboat gambling and the subsequent sharing of that revenue with Joliet schools and the Rialto Square Theatre in Joliet, according to Project Acclaim.

Other events during Turk’s tenure include the elimination of vehicle stickers and the construction of the Joliet Public Library’s Black Road branch and DULY Field, which is home to the Joliet Slammers, according to Project Acclaim.

Turk is a board member of the Joliet Park Foundation, a member of the Old Timers Baseball Association of Will County, and an usher at the Cathedral of St. Raymond Church in Joliet, where he and his wife, Kathleen, are parishioners, according to Project Acclaim.

Rev. James Allen of Joliet started Project Pride (later renamed Project Acclaim) to “pull people out of the doldrums,” his wife, Nancy Allen, said in a 2016 Herald-News story.

“At the time there was high unemployment, and we had seven murders in the city over the summer,” Nancy Allen said in the 2016 story. “He was trying to get people to cooperate and be productive for their city.”

Rev. James Allen promoted positive thinking and Project Pride was one way for people to focus on Joliet’s positives instead of the negatives and top recognize people’s contributions to the community

“I think we need to be ‘thanks givers,’ and give thanks to whomever and whatever – as well as to the good Lord – for anything that happens,” Rev. James Allen said in a 2008 Herald-News story. “Even when there is loss of ability – or even in death and grieving – there is still something to be grateful for. I am not putting down the need to deal with those things and with the need to share our feelings, but we also need to give thanks, for the life that we have had and for the wonderful things people have given to us.”

In 2014, Project Acclaim created the Rev. James E. Allen Award for Service to the Community. Through the years, Allen had served on the board and in leadership roles at The Salvation Army, the Greater Joliet Area YMCA, Catholic Charities, the American Red Cross, the Senior Services Center of Will County, the Community Services Council and the former Joliet Ecumenical Clergy Association.

He also was a chaplain for Joliet Area Community Hospice (now Lightways Hospice and Serious Illness Care), the Center for Correctional Concerns at the Will County Adult Detention Facility and Silver Cross Hospital.

Jayne Bernhard, president of Project Acclaim, said the initial reasons why the organization was formed still hold true today. That’s why Bernhard said she is “thrilled” for Project Acclaim to honor Ed Dollinger, Gloria Dollinger and Mike Turk for “sustained community involvement and philanthropy over the last several decades.”

“We’re not in that same economic distress as we were back then,” Bernhard said. “But the contributions by these individuals and organizations are still relevant. There is still always progress and continued room to grow to make our area a better place to live, work and play. It’s a tagline for a lot of regions, but it’s true. These people and organizations have been out in the community working to make the greater Joliet area a better place.”

Tickets for Project Acclaim’s 35th Jade Anniversary Banquet are $35 and available at bit.ly/2022HallOfPride. The banquet includes heavy hors d’oeuvres and a cash bar. To buy tickets, mail a check payable to Project Acclaim and to the attention of Sylvia Acosta Chavez, P.O. Box 3799, Joliet, Illinois, 60434-3799.

Deadline to order tickets is Nov. 9.

For information about Project Acclaim, visit projectacclaim.com.