Schools

Community Service Award Honors Two Eighth-Grade Boys

Best friends Will Tischler and Liam Fogarty's efforts for the community paid off when the two were honored at the Eisenhower Junior High School commencement ceremony.

Because a 14-year-old’s schedule usually consists of schoolwork and extracurricular activities, spare time is hard to come by. Will Tischler and Liam Fogarty, however, are more than happy to stay busy in their spare time by volunteering and doing community service.

Best friends since kindergarten, Tischler and Fogarty recently won the Warren “Chip” Johnson Community Service Award. The award, only in its second year, honors eighth-grade students who volunteer for local organizations and commit time to their community.

The boys’ parents nominated them after watching them work all year round, including volunteering for the Goombay Bash, an event that raises money for cancer research. The Goombay Bash, an annual fundraiser at Navy Pier, has raised more than $3.5 million in the past 10 years for the Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center of Northwestern University and was the favorite community service activity for the boys.

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“It’s a lot of fun,” Tischler said. “Everyone’s just really nice.” 

The two even shoveled snow at 3 a.m. to clear driveways in Darien during a blizzard, putting in hours late into the night to make sure their families’ elderly friends could step outside in the morning.

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Tischler and Fogarty did not learn about their nomination until they were announced as the winners during their graduation from  in June.

“At first, I was sort of surprised,” Fogarty said about hearing his name called. “I was proud of myself.”

The boys have also helped work garage sales benefitting wounded soldiers and veterans, and set up tables at Toscana’s Grill in La Grange when the restaurant first opened. The two began volunteering to meet confirmation requirements but continued even after meeting the hours, they said.

With all this work, the duo is constantly busy, but according to Tischler, they don’t mind spending summers and weekends helping those in the community.

“It just makes you feel good inside,” he said. “We enjoy it. … We knew a lot of people needed help and we were just trying to help out.”

As for their parents, nominating the boys was an easy decision after seeing how much they’ve done, said Liam's mother, Peggy Fogarty.

“They have gone above and beyond,” she said. “I think they love the idea that when you do something good, you feel good about it inside. The more they do good things, the more they want to do it.”

Plus, Tischler and Fogarty are good friends, so getting the work done together is fun. Danny Tischler, Will’s father and a board member for the Goombay Bash, is involved in the community as well and said that the boys’ contribution to the community should set an example for other children, encouraging more teens to get out and volunteer. 

“The award was a complete surprise … and they gave it to both of them, so we were thrilled,” he said. “If everyone did service in the community, it would be such a great place.”


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