O’Fallon golf tournament funds scholarships, community projects in Greg Yank’s name

In continuing its efforts to honor one of its most esteemed members, the O’Fallon Rotary Club is hosting the second annual Greg Yank Memorial Golf Tournament and Golf Ball Drop Contest Sept. 8 at Tamarack Golf Course in Shiloh.

Proceeds will benefit the Greg Yank Servant Leadership Foundation as well as the club’s community projects: Rock Springs Rotary Park pavilions, fire pit and playground, scholarships to students, O’Fallon Station benches, O’Fallon Community Park all-abilities playground, and a new storage facility and refrigeration unit for the O’Fallon Food Pantry, among others.

Yank died on Jan. 5, 2021, from complications related to COVID-19. He was 74.

“My father gave us the best things in life: his time, his care, and his unconditional love. He showed all of us how to make the world a better place through Rotary, community involvement, mentorship, and servant leadership. He will be forever missed but certainly never forgotten,” Julia Yank said.

Chairman Chad Schwarz said Yank exemplified the Rotary motto of “Service above Self.” They want the golf tournament to recognize his leadership role in the community and his service all over the world.

“He was definitely a force in the Rotary,” Schwarz said, noting his “high integrity, kindness, and generosity.”

While growing up in O’Fallon, Schwarz recalls Yank as a neighbor. “He sparked my interest in getting involved. He was very charismatic, and unshakeable in his support of Rotary.”

The international service organization, which brings together business and professional leaders to provide humanitarian services and advance goodwill and peace around the world, has three local clubs in O’Fallon. Yank belonged to the Noon club, which is the host. The main sponsor is Jim Taylor Inc.

Yank devoted years of service, not only locally but internationally. He was also an avid golfer and used that to promote Rotary. He achieved success in leadership roles, including serving as Rotary district governor and a member of the Rotary International board of directors.

His motto was: “Giving back is the rent we pay for getting to live here.”

Doug Distler, a Rotarian for 30 years and former golf tournament chairman, said Yank touched many lives.

“He was an excellent facilitator, and he worked on a lot of community projects. He was just a great guy. He was a good communicator. He was always willing to step forward and help,” he said.

The entry fee of $100 includes: greens fees, food and beverages, skins, mulligans, cart, winners in multiple flights and games on the course. Cash prizes will be awarded to the winners.

The golf tournament is an 18-hole four-person scramble, with a shotgun start at noon. Team sign-in begins at 11 a.m.

The Golf Ball Drop Contest follows the tourney. Popular is a golf ball drop contest after the tournament ends, with 500 numbered golf balls dropped over designated targets on the practice range. That grand prize is $25,000 to whoever has a ticket that matches a pre-selected number and goes into a hole on the driving range.

The O’Fallon Fire Department will assist, and the balls will be dropped from the top of the hook and ladder truck. Online tickets must be purchased by Sept. 1.

For more information or registration, visit: https://gregoryyankmemorialgolf23.eventbrite.com.

Greg Yank Remembered

More than 40 years ago, Yank discovered that the Rotary Club International fulfilled his desire to live a life that mattered. He joined a local club when he moved to Kirkwood, Missouri, in 1978.

He was elected to a two-year term as a director in 2017, one of three in the U.S. He represented 63,000 Rotarians in 13 states.

He previously served as president of the O’Fallon Rotary Club and was a district governor twice, overseeing 48 clubs and 1,600 members in Southern Illinois.

Yank was the O’Fallon club’s Rotarian of the Year in 1991-1992 and 1992-1993.In 2014, he received the Service Above Self Award, which is a prestigious award for Rotarians who demonstrate their commitments to helping others by volunteering their time and talents.

“Greg believed that Rotary enabled him to live a life that mattered because he knew that lives in our communities and the world could be changed because of what Rotarians do,” stated his foundation scholarship application.

He served on the Metro East Park & Recreation District Board and was a board member of the O’Fallon-Shiloh Chamber of Commerce. From the beginning, Greg facilitated the quarterly meetings of BEST (Building Educational Success Together), bringing together the four school districts in the O’Fallon area.

Greg had a bachelor’s degree in philosophy from St. Mary of the Lake Seminary in Mundelein, Illinois, an MBA from Xavier University in Cincinnati, Ohio; a “Specialist in Aging” Certificate from the University of Michigan/Wayne State; and was a graduate of Stanford University’s Executive Program.

Greg spent 25 years in health care executive management and leadership, serving twice as a hospital CEO, and as President and CEO of a Catholic Health System. For 11 years, Greg owned The Alternative Board, a business coaching/peer advisory board franchise.

He then continued to be a business coach on a part-time basis, mentoring and working with business owners. He was the principal in GY Consulting & Facilitation Services and specialized in business coaching, strategic planning, facilitation, strategic governance and board development.

Servant Leadership Scholarships

His wife, Catherine, and his daughter, Julia Yank, established the foundation after he died. Greg Yank Scholarships are awarded annually to students who show “servant leadership” potential, and the first ones were given out last year. Lanis Lenker is the scholarship chair.

Students who live in or attend school in the Rotary District 6510 may apply, and that includes high school seniors going to college or trade schools in fall, current college undergraduates and graduate students, and current post-grad students. There is a list of criteria to meet.

District 6510 includes the area south of Interstate 70 to the Ohio-Mississippi Rivers: Anna-Jonesboro, Belleville, Benton, Cairo, Carbondale, Carterville, Centralia, Chester, Columbia, East St. Louis, Eldorado, Fairfield, Fairview Heights, Flora, Freeburg, Golconda, Harrisburg, Herrin, Lawrenceville, Lebanon, Marion, Mascoutah, McLeansboro, Metropolis, Mt. Carmel, Mt. Vernon, Murphysboro, O’Fallon, Olney, Red Bud, Salem, Steeleville, Swansea, Waterloo, and West Frankfurt.

Anyone wishing to donate is asked to mail a check to Lanis Lenker at 10221 E. Boyd Rd, Mt. Vernon, IL 62864. For more information, contact lannyrotary@charter.net or gregoryfyankscholarship@gmail.com.