Created: Thursday, July 24, 2008 12:00 a.m. CST FONT SIZE:   Mayor Van Buer dies at 74By ELENA GRIMM - egrimm@daily-chronicle.com
DeKalb Mayor Frank Van Buer died Wednesday morning following a short battle with pancreatic cancer. As word of his death spread throughout the community, friends and constituents remembered a man dedicated to his family and the city. Van Buer, 74, has served as mayor since May 2005. He was diagnosed with the fast-spreading cancer in April and had been receiving chemotherapy treatment. He died at his home Wednesday morning, leaving behind a wife, three children and seven grandchildren. Despite his illness, Van Buer's daughter, Michelle Lenkaitis, said her father challenged others to continue to grow. “He told me one time that if you try something new, the worst off you're going to be is back off where you started,” Lenkaitis said. Van Buer was a man who brought his life experiences - which included a lot of world traveling - to any discussion. A retired Northern Illinois University economics professor, he also spent much of his life on development and finance issues in more than a dozen foreign countries, taking his family with him. Van Buer was a member of the DeKalb County Board from 2002 until elected as mayor in 2005. “I thought he would make the best mayor ever - and I think he did,” his wife, Mary Beth, said Wednesday night. Serving the public Friends remembered the community leader Wednesday as easygoing, genuine and as a man who tried to serve the public by doing what he felt was right. Many of the dozens of people interviewed Wednesday said they believe Van Buer's main legacy would be the ongoing revitalization of downtown DeKalb. “He really felt the city was on the upswing,” Assistant City Manager Rudy Espiritu said. Van Buer was a visionary, people who knew him said, but he was also cautious and carried out his ideas subtlety. “Some people resort to loud types of public speaking, very partisan types of comments,” said state Rep. Robert Pritchard, R-Hinckley. “Frank wasn't like that. He was always very focused, very professional.” Van Buer was elected mayor in April 2005 after defeating incumbent Greg Sparrow by 1,153 votes. He told the Daily Chronicle two weeks before the election that he hadn't planned to run for mayor but that a nonpartisan group of residents had approached him and asked him to consider it. DeKalb County Administrator Ray Bockman said Van Buer, a Democrat, was “widely respected by both sides of the aisle” when Van Buer served on the county board - a trait many people said he continued as mayor. “Being able to work with seven different people whose opinions range all over the board is an accomplishment in and of itself,” 7th Ward Alderman Brent Keller said. Sycamore Mayor Ken Mundy has known Van Buer since the time they both worked at NIU and said they often worked together on transportation and economic development projects between the two cities. “He, to me, was a very learned man and I respected his background, and like all of us, he tried to serve the public the best he could,” Mundy said. ‘Rich life' Friends say Van Buer had an ability to reach out to all different people in the community. Keller said the mayor was the first to reach out to him as a newly elected alderman and they'd often talk about NIU over lunch. “He had a lot of faith in this community,” Russ Farnum DeKalb community development director, said. The Rev. Ken Anderson remembers Van Buer, a member of St. Mary Catholic Church in DeKalb, as being a family man. He recalled the night Van Buer was sworn in as mayor before the first city council meeting held with his family in attendance. “At the ceremony, it was ‘Mayor Van Buer,' but it was also ‘Dad' and ‘Grandpa,'” Anderson said. “His family was really the sparkle of his life.” With his family nearby, Van Buer was given last rites Tuesday by Anderson. Even in his last hours, his daughter said Van Buer was playing “high-five” with his grandson. Herb Rubin, who has served on citizen advisory committees under Van Buer's term, said that Van Buer was sharp and alert when they spoke last week, and that they discussed city issues. “He had a not-quite-full-enough life, but he had a very rich life,” Rubin said. When 4th Ward Alderman Donna Gorski spoke Tuesday evening with Van Buer, she said that he spoke of pushing city issues forward, and he told her to “do your best to carry it out.” Funeral arrangements were unknown as of Wednesday night. Flags at city-owned buildings are being flown at half-staff, and city workers have draped a black bunting - traditionally used to honor fallen firefighters - over the Fourth Street entrance of the DeKalb City Hall. A moment of silence will be held at the next city council meeting in memory of Van Buer, which as of Wednesday was still scheduled for Monday evening. Mayor Frank Van Buer March 2, 1934-July 23, 2008 •Birthplace: Savanna, IL •Family: Married to Mary Beth (Giesler) Van Buer since Dec. 29, 1953; three children; seven grandchildren. •Military service: U.S. Air Force in the 1950s. •Education: Bachelor of Science in Social Science in 1960 from Northern Illinois University; master's degree in Economics in 1964 from NIU; Ph.D. in Economics from the University of Illinois in 1968. •Professional career: Tenured in 1970 as a faculty member for the Department of Economics at NIU, where he remained as a member through 1995. During his time at NIU, he served as director of the Office of Budget and Planning, assistant provost, director of International Training and Consultation, special assistant to the president and coordinator of the Office for Economic Education. •Political career: Elected to the DeKalb County Board for the 7th District in 2002 and re-elected in 2004; elected mayor of DeKalb in April 2005 and was sworn in May 9, 2005, for a term that expires in 2009. Sources: Daily Chronicle archives, Anderson Funeral Home, Frank Van Buer for DeKalb Web site. |
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