Hoping to inspire other city residents, a new member of the Rock Island city council has started donating his salary to non-profit groups. On Sunday, Dylan Parker from the 5th ward, presented the money from his first city paycheck to the Friends of Hauberg Civic Center.
"When the city was debating whether to sell Hauberg or not, a group of citizens, regular folk, stood up and said "No, we'll take care of that" And within a year they've raised $10,000 and they're taking over operation of the place. I just really felt that group was a good example of what we need more of in Rock Island."
Parker hopes people will volunteer their time and money, the way he has, to helping the city. His yearly pay for serving on the city council will be 6,000 dollars.
His future beneficiaries include the Rock Island County Historical Society to refurbish the Civil War monument, the Rock Island County NAACP, and Friends of Douglas Park.