The United States Department of Agriculture Rural Development's Illinois State Office has selected Kane County as a recipient of a $70,000 Rural Business Development Grant to support and expand the County's Food & Farm Technical Assistance Program.
Administered by the Kane County Development and Community Services Department, the program provides support to small and midsize farm businesses in rural areas of Kane County. Services include feasibility studies, business and marketing plans, branding, grant and investment readiness, business expansion assistance, financial and legal services, idea generation, job creation and retention, and broader economic development support.
Since February of 2026, the Food & Farm Technical Assistance Program has helped Kane County farmers collectively secure $152,500 in outside grants to fund projects like a cheese processing facility, a refrigerator truck for produce transportation, and an on-farm cold storage facility for meat.
Agriculture remains a significant part of Kane County's economy. According to the 2022 USDA Census of Agriculture, Kane County is home to 509 farms operating across 146,717 acres of farmland, with approximately $284 million in annual agricultural sales.
Farm businesses interested in participating in Kane County's Food & Farm Technical Assistance Program are encouraged to contact Sustainable Agriculture Consultant Ellen Kamps at KsustainableAG@gmail.com to discuss eligibility and available services.
Pictured above from left to right:
Chris Toth, Kane County Planning Division Manager
Janice Hill, Kane County Land Transfer Navigator
Lesie Juby, Kane County Agriculture Committee Chair
Molly Hammond, Deputy Director of Illinois USDA Rural Development
Jesus Ortega, State Director of Illinois USDA Rural Development
Ellen Kamps, Kane County Sustainable Agriculture Consultant
John and Dana Boswell, Kane County Farmers at Forest Edge Farmstead
Twelve volunteers recently joined the ranks of the Kane County Office of Emergency Management’s Search and Rescue Team after completing 70 hours of specialized training.
The volunteers were recognized during a graduation ceremony, where they received words of praise and a specially engraved compass in recognition of their commitment to serving the community and strengthening Kane County’s emergency response capabilities.
The 12 graduates are Peter Rome, Mark Biewald, Alexandra Tsang, Susan Woodill, Jared W. Hamm, Lilia Guralnik, Brian K. Schopp, Kevin Cutts, Dariya Dobreva, Arnel Hammond, Allen Mulford and Peter A. Dudeck.
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The Kane County Search and Rescue Team is a division of the Office of Emergency Management (OEM) and assists governmental agencies in locating lost or missing people. The team responds to a variety of situations, including searches for missing children, older adults, suicidal individuals, disaster victims and human remains.
During the ceremony, OEM Director Scott Buziecki encouraged the graduates to continue learning, support their fellow volunteers and recognize the importance of every role within the organization.
“Every organization needs good leaders, but it also needs good followers, good teammates, and people who simply do the work and do it well. Whatever role you take, I want you to understand that you matter to this organization,” Buziecki said.
Kane County Board Chairman Corinne Pierog applauded the graduates.
“There's no bigger job than running toward a disaster when everyone else is being told to run away,” Chairman Pierog said. "Thank you for answering the call."
Also in attendance were Kane County Board members Deb Allan, Jon Gripe and Bill Roth.
As mentioned, among the graduates is Dr. Alexandra Tsang, whose professional background brings valuable expertise to the team. She is a licensed clinical psychologist specializing in forensic psychology and serves as Director and Chief psychologist at the Kane County Diagnostic Center. The center is the designated psychology department for the 16th Judicial Circuit Court, serving juvenile and adult offenders from pretrial through post-sentencing.
Dr. Tsang has spent five years serving as a mental health consultant with the Kane County Sheriff’s Office Crisis Negotiation Team and says she is always looking for new ways to apply her expertise. She says she was drawn to the Kane County Office of Emergency Management’s Search and Rescue training because of its hands-on, physical nature, which allows her to apply her understanding of human behavior in real-world environments. "While searching for a missing person, I can help develop a profile of the individual based on behavioral patterns and clues discovered in the field, potentially providing valuable insights to guide the search efforts," said Dr. Tsang.
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She joines a teams of volunteers that contribute thousands of hours each year to help protect residents and support emergency operations.
Through the end of September, volunteers had logged approximately 9,700 hours during fiscal year 2026. Using the most recent Illinois volunteer-hour valuation of $35.73 reported by Independent Sector, those hours represent an estimated $346,000 in community value.
In each of the past three years, Kane County OEM volunteers contributed between 12,000 and 14,000 hours annually.
The graduation ceremony also included a solemn recognition of two former leaders who helped shape Kane County’s emergency management program.
Donald H. Bryant, who recently passed away, served Kane County for 25 years, including 23 years as director of emergency management. His decades of service reflected a deep commitment to the organization and the residents it serves.
The office also recognized the passing of William J. “Bill” Diamond, Kane County’s second director of emergency management, whose leadership helped establish the foundation of the organization.
As the newest Search and Rescue volunteers begin their service, they join a longstanding tradition of community members stepping forward to help others during some of their most difficult moments.
Leare more about the Kane County Office of Emergency Management at https://oem.kanecountyil.gov/
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