BREWER ILLEGAL TAX BREAK FOLLOWING MONEY INTO HER POCKET

Bernice Brewer

SAUK VILLAGE OFFICIAL ILLEGAL TAX BREAK

by Joachim Mahomes

Here we go again Sauk Village!  As Sauk Village residents struggle with a pandemic and staggering property taxes, another politically connected official is caught with an illegal tax break.  Remember back in September, 2012 when a certain ex-mayor fraudulently claimed a homeowner’s property tax exemption for his homes here in Sauk Village and his other home in Chicago? He was suspended from his job at the time with the Cook County Assessor and ultimately resigned as Mayor.   At that time the now ex-mayor returned the $4,100 in property taxes he owed.  Now we find another Village official ran for mayor herself in 2013 now wants you to vote her back in as a Trustee.  Could this person suffer the same fate or at least the resident of Sauk Village can turn her away at the polls in April?  How can residents "trust" her?

 

Controversial Trustee Bernice Brewer, seems to habitually take on several bad traits of former disgraced elected officials.  Brewer lied about her sworn support of a fellow candidate after they were successfully elected and sworn in in 2019.  This Trustee joined their alliance with the deposed ex-mayor’s “friends” and are now known collectively called the Fanatical Five Trustees.  Our investigative efforts have sadly hit the jackpot once again, and we will see if the supporters of this Trustee who railed on the disgraced ex-Mayor are going to rail on Brewer this time for the same exact thing.  The shame is now on Brewer for violating the law and her fate is up to the people of Sauk Village.   

 

In 2015, Bernice Brewer, then referring to herself as Bernice Brewer-Houston, was facing apparent “financial” hardship and allowed her mortgage to become $55,361.76 delinquent on her home at 910 Laura Lane in Sauk Village according to public records.  The lender generously modified the terms of the agreement to a modest 40 year mortgage totaling $129,177.44!  This elected official then apparently leased out or rented her property and relocated to a double-wide trailer at 187 Blue Jay in Weatherstone’s Mobile Home Park according to a March 27, 2017 Sauk Talk article and according to nomination papers filed with the Village Clerk.  However further investigation revealed that the trailer home sold on June 16, 2015 for $28,500 MLS ID: #08599986.  Public records also show that Brewer has been claiming her homeowner’s exemption on their non-owner occupied property for the past 4 years while owning and living at another location resulting in reduced property taxes in the amount of $6,100 and about $1500 owed to Sauk Village directly based on calculations.  Sound familiar yet?  

 

Sauk Village’s Attorney Burt Odelson was quoted in a recent news article about another crooked politician “You see that from time to time with politicians,” Odelson said. “They vote out of one, and they have a fake home, and they get caught taking a homestead exemption, which is a crime.”  Brewer is registered to vote at her address on Blue Jay and not a property she rents out in Sauk Village.  

 

The Cook County Assessor Fritz Kaegi’s office has a whistleblowing online program.  “When someone gets an undeserved break on taxes, you pay more than fair share.  If you know that a property is improperly receiving an exemption, tell us”. Their website is:  http://whistleblowing.cookcountyassessor.com/

 

How ironic it is that Bernice Brewer repeatedly proclaims at every board meeting, “a Trustee’s job is to follow the money”.  Well that was not a hard job for her, as we can see her watching the money fall right into her own pockets for the past 4 years four years now, the entire time they have been in elected office.  A violation of the Public Trust worthy of demands for her resignation as many did against the ex-Mayor from 2010 to 2012.    

 

This is the same elected official who advocated that a forensic audit be performed on the Village finances in hopes of embarrassing the current Mayor of Sauk Village the results of which showed no wrong doing but cost the taxpayers tens of thousands of dollars; the very same elected official that continuously requests legal advice from the taxpayer paid law firm that made the quote above; the same elected official who has formally announced their bid to re-run for office and is now circulating her political pack of lies.  Many long-time residents do not support this person’s bid for re-election.  “If they are always falsely accusing another elected official of fraud while cheating the residents out of our money, why would anyone vote for them?”

RODRICK GRANT - PERSON OF THE YEAR 2020

Trustee Rodrick Grant

Sauk Village, like the entire global community, has been impacted by the COVID-19 Pandemic.  We must look hard at those who really made a difference within the community.  Nobody stood more steadfast in wanting to help move Sauk Village in a new direction than Village Trustee Rodrick Grant.  For that reason, he is selected as the Person of the Year for 2020.

 

Rodrick Grant, a single 27 year old African-American with a Bachelors in Business from Western Illinois University and a Masters in Business Administration from Roosevelt University was elected Village Trustee in 2017.  Since the retirement of former and the late Trustee Cecial Tates in 2019, Rodrick Grant has taken on the position of the Village’s Senior most Trustee, even though he is only 31 years old. 

 

Rodrick Grant came into office with Mayor Derrick Burgess and is an ardent supporter of his vision to put Sauk Village on a long-awaited and needed Pathway to Progress.  From 2017 to 2019 the Village began to make significant strides toward this goal as Rodrick Grant was appointed as Chairman of the Village’s Budget and Finance Committee.  The Village’s finances for the first time in years were on the road to a full recovery.   With the sale of the 32.9 acres of village owned land that no one even knew the Village owned and the construction of a $13 million development on the northwest corner of Sauk Trail and the Calumet Expressway, the Village was able to profit $1.3 million and was able to pay off the majority of its long standing debt, enabling the Village’s finances to be in the black for the first time in over a decade!

 

Even though the 2019 Trustee election negatively shifted the political power and any subsequent positive gains for the Village, Rodrick Grant has continued to portray professionalism and remain focused on what was best for the Village and all of its residents.  Trustee Rodrick carefully examined all departmental expenditures against budgeted expenses to ensure the Village was operating within its means, a process that had not been done in the past 10 years.  Being a first time homeowner himself and educated in finances, Trustee Grant has a vested interest in watching how everyone’s property taxes are being spent.

 

 

Trustee Rodrick Grant has consistently displayed his ability to reject politics for the benefit of all Village residents, regardless of whether he agreed with the majority of newly elected Board members or not. When the majority Board of Trustees wanted to fire the very Village Administrator they spent significant tax dollars to hire, he voted NO to their inappropriate and unprofessional process even though he had previously warned his fellow Trustees that their pick was not qualified for the Village’s needs. When the Trustees voted for a “do over” to rehire another Village Administrator, Trustee Grant explained to the Trustees AGAIN why their new selection was equally unqualified for the Village’s needs.  He voted NO against their recommendation.  When it came to passing an unbalanced and irresponsible 2019 and 2020 budgets, Rodrick Grant voted NO AGAIN!   He truly has been an advocate for the residents in the face of havoc his fellow Trustees have wreaked against the majority of village residents.  Trustee Grant and Mayor Derrick Burgess solidly stand against the practices that have stalemated Sauk Village for decades.  The opposition Trustees know it; their staunch supporters know it and as equally embarrassing, the surrounding Southland communities know it. 

 

If Village residents think this is not as simple as Black or White and which residents should control residents’ hard-earned tax dollars, then they are in strict denial!   

Mayor Burgess & Trustee Grant

It is because of Trustee Rodrick Grant’s ability to maintain his professionalism and determination to be a good steward for all the residents of Sauk Village that we award him the Person of the Year 2020 for Sauk Village!  We look forward to the success of Rodrick Grant as he seeks re-election to the Village Board of Trustees he certainly has earned a vote of confidence from the residents.  He is running as an Independent candidate but has teamed up with Larry Sapp and Arnold Coleman both honorable and professional men in their own right.  They truly support moving the Village forward along with Mayor Derrick Burgess.  We wish them all well.   

 

Rodrick Grant you are a Class Act!    

 

 

 

Past Honorees:

 

2019- Mayor Derrick Burgess’ Entire Administration 2017-2019

2017- Mayor Derrick Burgess

2016- Former Mayor David Hanks

2015- Reverend Melody Seaton, Senior Pastor Grace UCC

2014- Dr. Donna Leak, Superintendent of School District 168

2013- Derrick Burgess, Village Trustee

2012- Alan Stoffregen, Fire Chief

2011- Robert Chavez, Sr., Village Trustee 

DEBBIE WILLIAMS CREATES HOSTILITY- Hurting Sauk Village

Debbie Williams Creates Hostility: Passive Aggressive, Always the Victim

Debbie Williams

Just who is this Trustee Debra “Debbie” Williams that has Sauk Village residents angry and raging mad?   Just who is this power hungry, glory seeking nemesis of Sauk Village?  Her mouth says she just wants “peace” for Sauk Village and that everyone should sing Kumbaya. But her historical actions in Sauk Village clearly indicate all to the contrary.  The acronym she touts is “P.E.A.C.E.” but what we hear from a good number of people is that she "Practices Evil And Chaos Everyday". They tell us that this controversial and political Hot Mess is going about town slandering the Mayor’s name, giving her opinion about his ability to run the Village and telling people why she should be Mayor. 

 

Really, Sauk Village?  What monster have you unleashed on the good people of this village?  Have you given up on yourselves?  Your dismal voter turnout of only 382 votes, a mere 4.6% of the electorate in 2019, surely confirms this.  Even so, a win, no matter how sorry, was good enough in Debbie’s book.  Well, hopefully we can give you some food for thought before you repeat this fatal mistake yet a third time and endanger the survival of our Village.

(This is the third in a series of expose articles that we will publish so stay tuned as the drama and TRUTH unfolds). 

 

Debbie Williams coming off a stinging defeat in 2017 lost her $17,000 per year job as Village Clerk, an income she had come to rely on.  But Debbie Williams, like a feral cat with 9 lives  living on Shirley Avenue dodging loose pitbulls,  ever the resourceful and self-preservationist, landed a politically connected job as deputy clerk.  Her stock really began to rise as did her bank account as she was now earning $52,000 per year, the most she has ever made in life.  Even so, she managed not to keep her job long claiming, “I have resigned under duress due to the hostile work environment”.  It seems everywhere Debbie Williams lands becomes a “hostile work environment”.  The truth is Debbie Williams is no stranger to “hostile work environments”, in fact many Sauk Village former employees in previous administrations of Lewis Towers and David Hanks claimed that Debbie Williams herself made Village Hall a “hostile work environment”.  In fact many employees in Village Hall are under that same "hostility" that she and her coalition bring today.  One former employee even noted that Debbie Williams brought with her and her friends a "hostile work environment" to Village Hall after the 2019 election.  Some former employees have even filed suits and complaints citing this very fact and made claims that Debbie Williams used racial slurs against them. 

 

Come clean Debbie!  Truth is Debbie Williams did not “resign” from her position as Calumet City’s Deputy Clerk; she, in fact, was probably given an ultimatum to resign or be fired on June 21, 2018. Reading between the lines, it appears one could deduce she got into a heated discussion with her boss which precipitated her actions.  In the professional arena, an immediate resignation without a courteous two week prior notification, usually indicates a firing was imminent or in fact already occurred.   Forever, the spin master, Debbie’s resignation letter even stated, “I have enjoyed my time in Calumet City…”  Well, if that were true, then the work environment could not have been “hostile” unless you were the creator of the hostility.  But readers we want you to draw your own conclusion on that,  these are the facts.   

 

So poor Debbie, always and forever the victim, found herself not only voted out as Village Clerk in Sauk Village in 2017, had now been tossed out of the highest paying job she ever landed.   Debbie Williams wanted revenge and she wanted revenge against Sauk Village and those who delivered that defeat.  So Debbie Williams scours the “ole” guard residents to find others who had an axe to grind with their perceived “enemy” to run for Trustees in 2019.  

 

Sherry Jasinski

She found a willing accomplice in Sherry Jasinski who was let go by the Village Board of Trustees at that time after they made a financial decision to consolidate her position in 2018.  Jasinski had 13 months to show she could do her job under Mayor Derrick Burgess and the Trustees at that time (Jaskinski began working for Sauk Village on April 15, 1998 and was given the position as Director in 2006 while her step-father sat on the Village Board of Trustees at that time).  Jasinski, who was the department head for Community Development (which included Code Enforcement and the Building Department) was the primary individual responsible for the decline in the Village’s housing standards from 2008 to 2018.  (If you take a look around town and see homes boarded up, burned out, vacant and abandoned, you can ask “what did Sherry Jasinski do to help the Village when she was in charge of Code Enforcement and the Building Department for a decade of decline? Not a single grant was written in her tenure as department head, and she is rumored to have colluded with slumlords to keep the standards and values low- more on this later)

 

Gary Bell

The final piece to this political puzzle rounding out their non-diverse, all-white slate, Gary Bell, another “scorned” cast off from the Sauk Village Fire Department who allegedly sustained an injury while serving on the department and was being blocked by the former and late Fire Chief from re-joining the Department.  Bell quit his full-time job as a janitor and apparently became “disabled” due to that alleged injury.  After getting his little settlement monies from his injury, Bell took his money bought him a new car and left Sauk Village; only to return a couple years later.  Bell found himself outside looking in pinning for the days of yesteryear.  So the “scorned” slate of candidates was now complete and ready to take their vengeance against "those people" in Sauk Village and to shut down the progress Mayor Burgess had begun to make in Sauk Village.  (More on Gary Bell, his "disability" and racist rants a little later)

 

 

Both Jasinski and Bell had a small handful of "friends" who supported their misguided way of thinking who bought into their scam and con of "making Sauk Village great again" and bringing the Village back to the “good ole boys” days.  Of course Debbie Williams ever the opportunist latched her wagon on to anything and anyone she could, including the very "friends" that could not stand the sight of her just two years earlier.   They needed to work to get black votes to and could not do that with an all-white slate, so she found another willing accomplice they could use and exploit for their own benefit in failed perennial candidate and ex-Trustee Lynda Allen Washington-House. 

 

Lynda Washington-House

Debbie Williams used Washington-House to give the trio of candidates an African American face they could latch onto and put her picture up on their billboard to give them an appearance of a ‘diverse slate’.  Lynda Washington may as well have put on the billboard “Pick THREE just not me” as her entire election effort worked to help them win their election as she came in dead last, again.  No telling Washington-House would want to put her picture up on a billboard with a racist man like Gary Bell who called Sauk Village a “Golden Ghetto” and demeaned black residents for walking at Village Hall. He also uses other colorful racial slurs to define African-Americans when he is around “his own kind”.  Never-the-less, Washington-House tied herself to them.      

 

Stay tuned to our 4th in a series as we continue the history lesson about Debbie Williams and how she is hurting Sauk Village.  

 

VILLAGE TREASURER REVEALS TRUTH AT 'TALK TO THE TREASURER'

Village Treasurer Anthony Finch

TRUSTEES ARE CAUSE OF BUDGET DELAY; ONGOING FBI INVESTIGATION; 67 BROKEN FIRE HYDRANTS; $225,000 LEGAL TAB

Fourth of July fireworks may have been cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic but fireworks were flying at Village Hall Thursday evening during the first Talk with the Treasurer.  Village Treasurer Anthony Finch fired off salvos during his opening comments for about 35 minutes in response to nonsensical political criticism leveled against him and Village staff, who happen to be black, by five of the six Trustees.  Finch completely rebuked the personal attacks as nonsense and leveled criticism right where it belonged, with the Village Board of Trustees.  “That is why the Board is mad at me because I’m challenging them for being hypocritical. Prove me wrong and tell me where I lied, but show me” Finch said.

 

 

“One thing that we have major concerns about over the last few months is the budget.  This is a touchy issue.  The budget is not done.  The budget was started back in April. I originally had the schedule to complete the budget by the end of July.  This is the first Village where I have worked where we have not gotten the budget passed and approved by the end of July.  Personally, it’s embarrassing because it should be unacceptable by anybody” Finch said.

 

 

“One of the challenges that is holding up the budget is that our Trustees wanted to wait and do job description reviews.  So that to me has nothing to do with the expenses of the budget, but that is the reason why the budget is not done” Finch said.  Trustees have had well over a year to review individual job descriptions but are now holding the Village’s budget hostage and putting the Village in jeopardy and at risk.

 

 

Residents who attended Thursday’s event, which Finch said he will host monthly, called this “the most transparent the village has been ever”. 

 

 

Resident Larry Sapp vocally spoke up “When these new Trustees took over (gaining a majority over Mayor Derrick Burgess) in 2019 they had an axe to grind,” he said.  Debbie Williams, the former Village Clerk lost her bid for re-election in 2017 joined forces with Sherry Jasinski, who was terminated by Mayor Burgess in 2018 and Gary Bell who was terminated from the Village’s Emergency Management Agency all had personal and political axes to grind.  The trio joined forces with their friends who were on the Board Linda Todd and Bernice Brewer.  The only Trustee who continues to support the efforts of Mayor Burgess to move the Village forward is Trustee Rodrick Grant. Williams sat silently in the front row during the meeting taking copious notes during the event. 

 

 

Finch told the crowd that the Village, under Mayor Burgess has amassed a surplus in the Water Fund of $1.2 million and had ended the routine of taking money and using it for unrelated water fund payroll. We ended the raids on the water fund for non-water fund related uses that prior administrations routinely would do. Prior to 2019, we amassed $800,000 from the sale of the property to Gas N Wash which is invested in a Certificate of Deposit and [we also] obtained a $500,000 line of credit avoiding the need to take out Tax Anticipation Warrants which cost the Village about $40,000 each time. The finances of the Village have gotten far better under Mayor Burgess and the team he brought in, which begged the question, why do a forensic audit now? Why wasn’t this done to investigate where the money went when money was embezzled, mismanaged, misspent and absconded by a rogue criminally indicted and now convicted felon Ex-Village Treasurer James Griegel who was appointed and convicted under the Hanks Administration? 

 

 

Residents were shocked to discover that there is an ongoing FBI Investigation stemming from 2014-2015 during the previous administration according to Finch, however, he did not disclose what was being targeted.  He did indicate that at least two [current] Trustees know all about it. 

 

 

With the Village’s water fund being so healthy residents, were dumbfounded as to the reason why there are still 67 nonfunctioning fire hydrants throughout the Village.  Mayor Burgess and Finch wanted this to be outsourced to get them all repaired, however, they have had consistent push back from the Public Works Department and their Union that they would file a grievance if the Village proceeded without them, according to Finch.  Finch also said the same thing about the condition of the roads and dead trees; that this could not be outsourced because of union grievances. “These (fire hydrants) have been broken and unrepaired for years and PWD have given numerous excuses as to why repairs can't be made even though there is money in the budget to repair or replace” Finch said.  The Village Trustees and their hired Village Administrator refuse to get the work done and are enabling the Public Works employees' incompetence over the resident’s needs, according to resident Arnold Coleman. Other residents in attendance also questioned what Trustee Bernice Brewer, who chairs the Public Services Committee since 2017 has done to get the work done.  “What has she done in the three years she sat on the Village Board?  Nothing, she has done nothing to fix a single fire hydrant.  Yet she complains about everything” a long-time resident said. Trustee Bernice Brewer, to date, has yet to conduct a single committee meeting to address the needs of residents, and the deplorable public services conditions throughout the Village.    

 

 

“The problem that I hear and see is that it’s not the Mayor or you (Anthony Finch), it’s the Trustees.  We need to get people in there that care about Sauk Village.  We live here, this is our home a lot of us are retirees and we came here because we like what we saw, but they are not taking care of the business” a resident said passionately.

 

 

Residents also spoke about the racial divide for employees who work for the Village, as it appears black employees are targeted with harassment and being treated differently than white employees by the Village Trustees.  Finch questioned why Union employees are getting a 2.5% pay raises and non-union staff get nothing.  Most union employees are white while non-union employees at Village Hall are black. Tonya McCoy had her pay cut by the Trustees by some $20,000;  the only employee in the Village to have her pay cut with no justification, according to Finch.  Many suspect that it was done because McCoy, who is black, was appointed by Mayor Burgess and the decrease in salary was a personal and political retaliation.  McCoy has since left Sauk Village and now works for the Village of Matteson earning nearly twice as much as she earned in Sauk Village.

 

 

Finch said he has been proud of the accomplishments that he and his staff have been able to accomplish.  He clearly puts the blame upon the Trustees for not allowing the audit to be completed on time because due to a Trustee routinely calling the auditors and making false and unfounded allegations. Finch called the actions of the Trustee “inappropriate” and costly to the Village.  The most recent audit is now delayed until after what Finch calls the “unnecessary” forensic audit is completed. “The Audit Firm is not going to lose their CPA license, just because (a certain Trustee) doesn’t think they’re looking into financial matters they want them to look at” Finch said attributing this to the ongoing delays. 

 

 

Resident and community activist Larry Sapp did not mince his words when he spoke out.  “I commend you for dealing with these idiots.  Racism has no place here. These people are hell bent on putting things back the way they were and I’m hell bent on not letting them.  We need to come together, this is turning into a black and white issue and I’m not going to sugar coat it saying that it’s anything other than that because I see the behavior of some of these Trustees.  That’s insidious to me” he said.

 

 

Lynda Washington one-term former Trustee, who aligned herself with former mayor David Hanks and his trustees, who subsequently and unsuccessfully ran for mayor against Burgess in 2017, applauded Mr. Finch and his financial staff for their transparency. “This is the most transparency that I have seen in years…” she said.

 

 

Mayor Derrick Burgess said following the meeting “we have been transparent about everything we do.  There are no secrets here.  The Village Treasurer is appointed and has a legal responsibility to do his job without regard to politics.  Unfortunately, this board has brought undue complications, pressure, division, chaos and confusion.  This meeting sure did clear up much of that.  Mr. Finch has my complete support and confidence,” he said.

DEBBIE WILLIAMS CHAOS, CONTROVERSY AND CRITICISM- Hurting Sauk Village

Just who is this Trustee Debra “Debbie” Williams that has Sauk Village residents angry and raging mad?   Just who is this power hungry, glory seeking nemesis of Sauk Village?  Her mouth says she just wants “peace” for Sauk Village and that everyone should sing Kumbaya, But her historical actions in Sauk Village clearly indicate all to the contrary.  The acronym she touts is “P.E.A.C.E.” but what we hear from a good number of people is that she "practices evil and chaos everyday". They tell us that this controversial and political hot mess is going about town slamming the Mayor’s name, giving her opinion about his ability to run the Village and telling people why she should be Mayor!

Really, Sauk Village?  What monster have you unleashed on the good people of this village?  Have you given up on yourselves?  Your dismal voter turnout of only 382 votes, a mere 4.6% of the electorate in 2019, surely confirms this.  Even so, a win, no matter how sorry, was good enough in Debbie’s book.  Well, hopefully we can give you some food for thought before you repeat yet a third time of this fatal mistake and the survival of our Village.  

(This is the second in a series of expose articles that we will publish so stay tuned as the drama unfolds).  

DEBBIE WILLIAMS BRINGS CHAOS, CONTROVERSY AND CRITICISM TO VILLAGE HALL?

When Debbie Williams was elected Village Clerk in 2009 she was boisterous, opinionated and a professional for creating a hostile environment for others.  So, why wouldn’t her return to Village Hall in 2019 following her election as Trustee be any different? 

Racial tensions and division always seem to surround Williams in the past just as it does today.  It was so bad that Williams was named in a complaint filed in 2012 with the Illinois Human Rights Commission by the former Village Administrator Henrietta Turner, an African-American. (Source NWITimes)  Turner accused Debbie Williams of using racial slurs including being called the “N-word” against her and making the statement “you people steal” according to the filed complaint and published reports.  Turner who is African-American found her position “eliminated” and out of a job in November, 2012. 

Racial tensions and division are not Debbie Williams’ only forte, everything she touches seems to turn into a scandal. Here are a few examples;  In July, 2013 Debbie Williams, her daughter, who was then a Trustee and one of their politically motivated friends took a “business” trip to Washington, D.C. to represent Sauk Village. A Freedom of Information Act request sought documents at that time seeking just who paid for this “personal trip”.  It took several years for the Illinois Attorney General to complete its investigation and finally issue a binding opinion ordering Williams to provide all documents as they were declared “public documents”.  Williams and the Village at that time then turned around and sued the Illinois Attorney General in an attempt to block production of those documents, costing the Village taxpayers tens of thousands of dollars in legal fees to cover up her scandal.

The documents showed that Debbie Williams received a check written out in her name, not payable to the Village, to pay for her “personal trip” to Washington. (This begs the questions did Debbie Williams violate 18 U.S.C.§1346 the honest services fraud which generally is a scheme to defraud including a scheme to deprive the taxpayers of the right to honest services).  Village Taxpayers then paid tens of thousands to defend Williams and block the production of those documents, clearly incriminated Williams.  Debbie Williams daughter sat on the Village Board at the time and supported these actions and was also a participant on the Trip.  It was also discovered that the friend and political benefactor who went with them to Washington DC also helped “pay for that trip”.  The same friend was soon after appointed to the Police and Fire Commission in what clearly appeared as a “quid pro quo” (this for that).

Later in 2017, former Trustee Francine Anderson filed an objection against Williams for running for re-election as Clerk claiming the money she received from the trip should be repaid to the residents or it should at the very least disqualify Williams from running for re-election for the Village Clerk office.  Williams was represented by a lawyer at the hearing, which generally would costs a candidate thousands of dollars, yet once again Williams did not file the appropriate legal paperwork with the Illinois Board of Elections to properly disclose exactly how she paid for thousands of dollars of legal work to keep her on the ballot or if this was in fact an “in kind” donation.  The Village likewise paid more money in legal fees to keep Williams on the ballot and convene an electoral circus which was clearly bias to keeping Williams on the Ballot.  They won the battle but Debbie Williams lost the confidence of the people of Sauk Village and she lost her re-election bid as every incumbent was swept out of office.         

2019 Brings more CHAOS & CONTROVERSAY

Fast forward to 2019 and Williams and her friends won their seats as Trustees to exact their vengence.  And once again, neither Williams nor any of her running mates ever declared their campaign spending with the Illinois State Board of Elections.  This sure lacks “transparency” which they claimed they have not been getting.  Where did their money come from?

Stay tuned to our third in a series as we continue the history lesson about Debbie Williams and how she is hurting Sauk Village.  

 

TRUSTEES FAIL TO PASS BUDGET BY DEADLINE... DUE TO POLITICAL PARALYSIS

SAUK VILLAGE | For the second year in a row, the Fanatical Five Trustees led by Trustee Debbie Williams have once again failed to approve a budget and appropriations ordinance by the state deadline date of July 31st due to their obsessed focus on demeaning Mayor Derrick Burgess and the Village Hall office workers; putting politics before the people’s needs.  

The Village’s fiscal year ended April 30th with 60 additional days to pass a budget under Illinois law.  Even though Trustee Debbie Williams along with 4 of her closest trustees enjoy a solid 5 to 1 majority, somehow they can’t seem to get a budget completed and passed.  The Village's Treasurer cannot legally make payroll or issue any checks for accounts payable, until the Village Board takes the necessary action to authorize him to do so. The Village Board will need to institute an emergency stop gap measure to circumvent the budgeting requirement.  It appears these Trustees did not learn from their mistake last year when the identical event occurred; the first time in Village history.  

Bernice Brewer

But week after week, self-appointed finance overseer Trustee Bernice Brewer consistently cries "our finances are in a shambles, we need a forensic audit, but the bills are paid and our water fund is healthy” asks “what have we done for the residents"?  Better than that, Bernice, people are now asking her: "What are you doing TO the residents"?  Beginning in 2017, Mayor Derrick Burgess assigned Trustee Brewer to chair the Village Board's Public Services Committee.  Since that time, however, Brewer has never held a single meeting.  In 2019 she joined alliances with Trustee Linda Todd and newly elected Trustees Debbie Williams, Sherry Jasinski and Gary Bell to support their opposition to Mayor Burgess.  

All that the Fanatical Five Trustees have managed to do for the past 15 months is to move the Village from making consistent and steady forward progress to the Village erasing all positive gains and reverting to pre-2017 past practices; a divided and argumentative board, employees not being held accountable and higher unexplained legal bills. Only Trustee Rodrick Grant has routinely and intellectually opposed the actions of the coalition of Trustees against Mayor Burgess; calling their actions politically motivated and not in the best interest of Village operations.  

Many residents have stated, that for the past 15 months, these Trustees have been fighting our Mayor (Burgess) on everything.  They have refused to work with him for the good of our Village and we residents of Sauk Village are paying dearly for the arrogance of these five”.  “Mayor Burgess has accomplished more in his first 100 days after becoming Mayor than these five trustees have done over the last 14 months”, a long-time resident pointed out.  "These Trustees are a damn joke and need to go" she said.

MAYOR BURGESS ENDS IMPASSE APPOINTS FINANCE DIRECTOR AS CHAOS CONTINUES

The Village has been without a Finance Director since February, 2019 when Judith Sutfin resigned to pursue another opportunity.  Village Treasurer Anthony Finch has filled in the gap since Sutfin’s departure.

Following the election in 2019, the position of Finance Director was posted on the Village’s website and other agencies websites.  There have been no takers of the Finance Director’s job, a non-political position, given the political upheaval that the Trustee (collectively referred to as the Fanatical Five) have brought to the Village Board meetings.  Trustees have continued to thwart, impede and restrict the authority of the Mayor and fight him on virtually everything racking up tens of thousands of dollars in legal bills to carry out the Trustees’ directives.  Village Board meetings have devolved into Trustees rambling on for hours challenging the mayor on the most mundane matters as the meetings regularly drag on for two to three hours.      

Bernice Brewer "What have we done for the residents"
Our Question:  What are you DOING TO the residents

Last Tuesday evening the long impasse and inability of the Trustees to come to a consensus to fill the position, Mayor Derrick Burgess asked for a motion to appointed Michelle Royster as Finance Director.  The motion was made by Trustee Grant and seconded by Trustee Bell.  The appointment failed by a vote of 4 to 2 because the Trustees led by Trustee Debbie Williams opposed to anything that Mayor Burgess wants.  The matter would have continued the impasse until Mayor Burgess took decisive action and appointed Royster as “interim Finance Director”.  Under Illinois law a mayor may make indefinite temporary appointments in order to keep the business of the Village moving.  Only Home Rule communities can limit the Mayor’s appointment authority according to Statute.  Some may remember that the Village Trustees in 2012 lost a lawsuit against now former Mayor Lewis Towers when they attempted to restrict his appointment powers. 

Royster comes with good credentials having most recently worked since 2016 as a Program Manager for Cook County Planning and Development Department earning $92,000 according to public records.  Royster has an Accounting degree from the University of Illinois Chicago and a Masters in Business Administration from Loyola University.  It is expected that Royster will begin her job after giving notice to her current employer.    

McCoy resigns amid political retaliation and racial tension

TONYA McCOY

The political and racial tensions in Sauk Village have prompted yet another departure of a well qualified and professional Community Development Director Tonya McCoy.  McCoy announced she accepted a position with the Village of Matteson as Deputy Director of Community Development. 
 

McCoy announced her resignation during her report to the Village Board of Trustees calling it “bittersweet news” but blasting the Trustees for what she called “racism”.  “When I started here I did not know anyone in the Village, didn’t know the mayor didn’t know the clerk contrary to what some may believe.  I will say that the women in the front office have become my family.  I have come to love them.  They are very much under appreciated”. 

“Now as for the board I wish I could say the same, but I can’t.  It was more than a notion to come in and have people who were incompetent and racist people who would try to tear down what the Mayor built.  I cannot even explain how the atmosphere changed when you came in.  I’m going to quote Michelle Obama ‘When they go low we go high’ and I am going to walk out of here with my head held high” McCoy said.

 

McCoy was appointed to the position of Community Development Director by Mayor Derrick Burgess following the resignation of Joseph Wiszowaty in June of 2019, who served in a dual role of both Community and Economic Development Director.  The Trustees led by Debbie Williams cut McCoy’s pay $20,000 to $48,000 as political retaliation since she was appointed by Burgess.  The previous Community Development Director, now Trustee Sherry Jasinski, was generously over-paid $72,000 per year and had not written a single grant in her more than 12 year tenure as the department head.

McCoy and other appointments made by Mayor Burgess have been clearly targets of political retaliation and racial discrimination by the Trustees following their gain of their majority over Mayor Derrick Burgess in May, 2019. 

·         Joseph Wiszowaty- resigned

·         Alicia Straughter- terminated

·         Mary Klopp- terminated and eliminated from the budget

·         Christopher Williams (although not appointed by Burgess) terminated

·         Tonya McCoy- resigned

The power struggle has the Village Board, and the 5 to 1 majority they have had since May of 2019, obsessed with taking the powers away from the mayor and stopping any and all progress he had made.  The political circus has come back to Village Hall led by Debbie Williams with them focused on political nonsense instead of economic development, fixing streets, cutting dead trees, repairing infrastructure and more important the finances of the Village.

 

Photo: Gary Bell's Facebook Page

 

 

This racist post by GT Bell (Village Trustee Gary Bell) was posted on his personal Facebook account (photo provided).  Bell currently serves on the Sauk Village Fire Department and serves on the Village Board of Trustees.  Bell using a racial slur "TNT" or "Typical ni**er tramma".  

WHEELS COME OFF THE BUS: CONSPIRACY AGAINST PROGRESS

Victory at what cost? It's Costing YOU

Opinion Editorial
Shortly after their election victory in April, 2019 the newly elected and the one chosen by a “coin flip” trustees Debbie Williams, Sherry Jasinski and flip-flopper Gary Bell conspired and created a scheme with Trustees Bernice Brewer and Linda Todd to:

• First- get rid of Mayor Derrick Burgess’ hires and shut down the progress the Village made from 2017 to 2019. ---CHECK! 
• The second part of their plan was to get things back to the “old ways” on how things were done at Village Hall.  ---CHECK!
• The third part of their scheme was to bring in a hired gun someone who could lay down the law and be the antagonist to Mayor Derrick Burgess. ---UM...WELL....

The new Fanatical Five Trustees, as they have been collectively called by residents (the new BOBBLE HEADS), settled on Christopher Williams, the former Village Administrator from Hazel Crest.  Christopher Williams worked at Hazel Crest and as a Village Administrator for five whole

Social Media Post:  July 18, 2019  Note- Trustee Rodrick Grant
was the only "NO" vote to hire Christopher Williams

months before they brought him to Sauk Village.   Christopher Williams clearly did not have the requisite experience to do the job.  Mayor Derrick Burgess had clearly seen this fatal flaw from day one.  Not to mention Mayor Derrick Burgess, who earns $20,000 per year to serve as Mayor was running the day to day operations of the Village just fine for two years at that salary in order to save Sauk Village money.  Never the less, the Fanatical Five led by Debbie Williams hired Christopher Williams for a Salary and benefits exceeding $112,000 per year.  Additionally, they even allowed him to work less than 8 hours per day and less than 5 days per week without questions nor accountability.  

Mayor Derrick Burgess tried to reason with the Five Trustees stating he did not ask for a Village Administrator to which Sherry Jasinski smugly chimed in during the election “you’re going to get one anyway”. Burgess attempted to block the measure vetoing the ill-written Ordinance that they passed to create the position to no avail as the 5 Trustees over-rode his veto. 

Social Media Post:  August 10, 2019
So PROUD the small minded
political opposition was on the hollow
judicial victory that cost taxpayers
TENS OF THOUSANDS!

Then these five trustees, led by Debbie Williams the whole time, sued Mayor Burgess to force the mayor “from interfering with the hiring of the (Trustees’) new administrator…” (Christopher Williams).  Of course all this cost taxpayers of Sauk Village tens of thousands of dollars to fight the Mayor.  The five Trustees prevailed in court and Christopher Williams was imposed in August of 2019.   Debbie Williams said following her hollow victory in August, 2019: “What we need is a ‘Kumbaya’ moment, because we need to get the politics and the personalities out of the village. It’s hurting us.”- Courtesy Chicago Tribune August 11, 2019. No kidding Debbie!  You’re the biggest political mess that has dropped on Sauk Village.  You’re an opportunist who will not just simply go away!  But that’s ok we will remind the residents of what you really and truly are! 

Now, what did Mayor Burgess say after the court room follies in August, 2019:  “What else can I say?” Burgess said Friday of the judge’s decision. “It is what it is.” He said he was willing to work with the new village administrator, but did not agree with the way he was hired, and expressed concern about what it might portend for Sauk Village’s future.  “I hope it doesn’t become a political bonfire, which it seems like it might,” said Burgess, who has repeatedly criticized what he views as the new board’s efforts to take power from him and diminish his authority as mayor. - Courtesy Chicago Tribune August 11, 2019

Even then Mayor Burgess knew that the hiring of Christopher Williams would become a “political bonfire…”  The same Fanatical Five Trustees that voted to bring him in as administrator now delivered to him an ultimatum, resign and walk away quietly or they will fire you.   Bernice Brewer, is crying “not me…. Not me…”  Brewer and her friends even tried to play the “race card”!  But Let us remind you residents, taxpayers and voters of Sauk Village this crazy big mouth woman supported Debbie Williams, Sherry Jasinski and Gary Bell during their election in 2019.  Yes she supported Gary Bell, the same person that put out more racist posts on social media that Bernice Brewer sat silent about.  But Bernice Brewer is on her own mad dash for power to clash with Debbie Williams once again over that elusive office of Mayor.  It slipped through Bernice Brewer’s fingers in 2013 and was denied Debbie Williams daughter by a two to one margin in 2017.  They thought they had this in 2019, but clearly this message speaks for itself.    

The biggest victim of the scheme to defraud the residents of Sauk Village by Debbie Williams and her crazy cohorts of bubbling buffoons and their insane peanut gallery is truly the Taxpayers of Sauk Village!  You voted for this big sloppy mess that literally “fecal mattered” all over themselves.  There is no recovering from this one the taxpayers of Sauk Village!  You screwed up ROYALLY with these clowns in this circus!   You got hoodwinked AGAIN by Debbie Williams, now you’re going to pay the price. 

Social Media Post from Wednesday, May 13, 2020
COMPLETE VINDICATION for Mayor Burgess!

The residents voted for CHANGE in 2017, but in 2019 these Trustees conspired to stop all efforts of Mayor Derrick Burgess had promised, “Getting Sauk Village back on a pathway to progress”.  Burgess and his team worked very hard for two years from 2017-2019 to do just that despite the scheme that some fell for in 2019 which brought us the Fanatical Five.  Derrick Burgess was right all along!   We told you so!  And I’m not hating to tell you this time. 

Steve LaRock

Editor of the Sauk Village, Illinois Facebook Page

Oh, PS-  If you believe a FAKE name on Facebook is providing you with factual information, think again!  If you like FAKE NEWS, the antics of Lynda Washington a rejected candidate for mayor and rejected Trustee and you like bullshit?  You'll really love the fake Bob Murphy page!