Haeger Bricks, founded by David Haeger, was a former brickyard and manufacturer of the unique “Dundee Bricks.” These bricks were used to build local homes and businesses including many buildings in downtown Chicago after the Great Fire in 1871. In 1914, Haeger Bricks, under the leadership of Edmund Haeger, evolved into Haeger Potteries, an internationally-renowned manufacturer and designer of fine pottery.
Lexy Haeger Estes, great granddaughter of the founder, can remember her early influences in art, design and the creative process that her grandfather and father imparted on her. Today Lexy and her husband, Craig, continue the tradition of fine craftsmanship at Haeger Potteries and have recently introduced a new line of kitchen cookware called Natural Stone. Stop in and experience a part of our Dundee history and leave with a piece of quality craftsmanship you can use every day.
If you ask Chicagoans what they think of when they hear of the town, “East Dundee,” they might just respond with an enthusiastic “Santa’s Village!” Don and Sue Holliman, East Dundee residents for 44 years, have been an integral part of operations at Santa’s Village. Sue even taught at the Polar Dome Ice Arena. Don and Sue have many fond memories of the park over the years and share those stories with the community at
our historical speaker series during the Depot Market on Saturdays. They are very excited to be a part of the revitalization of Santa’s Village Azoosment Park where new memories are created every day!
There’s a small sign that hangs on 206 N. River Street that reads, “Butcher on the Block” and if you look around, you might scratch your head and wonder, “Where’s the Beef?”
This small town business is in big business when it comes to brats. When East Dundee resident, Tom Yucuis opened his butcher shop in Lake in the Hills, he had no idea that one day his “Butcher on the Block” brats would be sold in over 4,000 retail and restaurant locations in 32 states. With the help of his daughter, Brynn, Tom is doing his best to keep up with the orders. Tom and his wife, Jill (a former Village President), have lived in East Dundee for over 35 years and are thrilled to see the revitalization in town. Be sure to taste one of Tom’s famous brats at our next Heritage Fest in September!
Ever wondered what the encircled “Z” stood for on the front windows of 322 N. River Street in downtown East Dundee? Celebrating its 25th anniversary this year, Joe Zeller II started Zeller Marketing and Design in 1989. Joe and his wife, LouAnn, have been influential, behind-the-scenes community supporters of East Dundee for years creating logos, websites and complete marketing campaigns for many area businesses, municipalities and non-profits. He and his team also provide marketing and design services to companies like Kodak, Hitachi, American Academy of Pediatrics, Koenig and Strey, Navistar and Feldco to name a few.
Whether you’re planning a wedding or not, Complete Bridal is an East Dundee business you need to be aware of. David Gaffke and his all-male staff are the stars of a new reality show, “Best in Bridal” on FYI, A&E’s new cable channel. Filming took place earlier throughout East and West Dundee as these men took on the all-female staff of Shelley’s Bridal in West Dundee.If you do not have cable, check out the latest shows on the FYI YouTube channel.
If you are an avid outdoorsman or woman, you may appreciate the need for just the right duck call or decoy. The days of carving duck decoys by hand has long given way to slick, new inexpensive manufacturing processes. But in East Dundee, a duck decoy dynasty of museum quality and workmanship is what Harold Haertel embodied. Harold Haertel is perhaps best known for his dove decoys; he produced hundreds of these delicate carvings which bring very respectable prices at auction today. Tom Haertel still maintains a rare collection of carvings his late father Harold had created in his home.
Stephan Pickett
If there is one person that knows the Fox River Trail like the back of their hand, it would be Stephan Pickett. Spend just a few moments with him and you’ll soon learn that it is his passion. You can see Stephan’s love for the community through his work as the President of the Dundee Township Visitor’s Center and as the Village President in Sleepy Hollow, where he and his wife have been residents since 1983.
John Brewer
John has served the East Dundee community in various capacities over the years. He’s been a part of the Planning and Zoning Commission and Historic Commission for seven years, serving as Chairman of the Commission for the last two. He has overseen most of the new developments and historic rehabs in the Village. Also, for the last six months he has volunteered with various events including the Farmers Market, running a fundraising event for the Fish Food Pantry and many other events. Outside the community, John has also been an active participant serving as a board member for the Construction Specification Institute and sitting on the board of Preservation Partners for the Fox for the last ten years. John’s service and dedication to East Dundee and the surrounding areas is why we’re proud to nominate John for the Northern Kane County Chamber of Commerce Community Service Award.
Clark Ganshirt
While living in East Dundee you learn to commune with nature and its inhabitants. Clark is no stranger to the area of conservation, having worked for the Max McGraw Wildlife Foundation for the past 44 years. McGraw is a research and education organization and a partner in many state, federal and local funded research studies on our native fisheries, wildlife and habitat. As part of the management team, Clark oversees many aspects of the Foundation including land management, conservation, fisheries, and wildlife along with administrative duties and the operation and maintenance of the facilities and programs. Clark and his wife, Deborah have lived in East Dundee since 1972. They raised two children who spent much of their early years in the woods at McGraw and now their two grandsons are exploring the same woods.
Craig and his family have served the area for over 100 years. Since the late 1800’s the Rakow (correctly pronounced “Rocco” after the German town) family has provided residents with everything from dry goods to furniture. If you work out at the local recreation center, it was just recently named after the Rakow family and is now known as the Rakow Center. Craig and his brother, Gene, both served on the Dundee Township Park District Board for a combined 45 years. Having started in the home furniture business with his father, Len, Craig expanded into the business office interiors and design industry. While formerly on River Street in the downtown district, Craig can be seen working out of their family-owned and operated Solutions Design Group on Heinz Drive in East Dundee.
Known to locals as the place that has that bug on top of their roof, Chuck Motl has been “bugging” others to get their taxes filed on time for over 45 years. As a family-owned business, MOTL Accounting first started their business in Schaumburg, moved their offices to West Dundee, then finally settled in East Dundee in 2007. They have experienced a steady growth since and serve over 600 clients throughout the Chicagoland area. Three of Chuck’s sons got “the bug” for the business. Blake, Blair and Brent now share office space with him and offer additional services such as payroll, bookkeeping, and accounting. For the record, Blair Motl created the dragonfly that adorns the roof of their building and Blake put the lights on it.
As you stroll the sidewalks of River Street you might have wondered what is J. Oxford Studios? What started out as a side business in 2006 has turned into a full-time boutique creative agency for its principal and creative director, Jesse Oxford. OX Creative has won several Telly Awards for their work. Partnering with socially-minded organizations and businesses that “do good,” their projects have taken them all over the world including Jordan, Indonesia, the Philippines, and seven different countries within Africa. They were honored in a speech by the President of the United States for their work on a short documentary about immigration. No strangers to the area, Jesse and his wife, Jennifer, live just up the hill in East Dundee and have enjoyed seeing the changes in the downtown district.
You’d be hard-pressed to find another person who loves snow as much as Jeff Tovar. As founder and owner of Tovar Snow Professionals, Jeff has been a self-employed entrepreneur since his youth. Starting out of his father’s barn in Elgin, Tovar now has facilities in six locations that serve over 225 clients with 1600 sites. They recently moved their corporate offices to the corner of Routes 68 and 72 in East Dundee and will soon be celebrating their 25th anniversary. Jeff recently published a book, “Success Leaves Clues,” that details the 22 fundamentals that create the “Tovar Way” culture. We’re thankful to Tovar as a community partner, and witnessed first-hand the value of Tovar’s snow-making equipment during our “Love and Lincoln” event as we delighted in the 8-foot bust of Lincoln—made entirely of snow!
DeLoris has been a lifelong resident of East Dundee and wife of 58 years to her late husband and owner of Doederlin Lumberyard, Fred “Papa” Doederlein. Residents and travelers along the Fox River Trail would easily recognize the yellow walls of the Doederlein lumberyard in the downtown area. The main lumberyard building has been there since 1926, but the original building can be traced back to 1868. With the generous help of the Doederleins, the Visitor’s Center was erected in 1985 and is modeled after a mid-1800’s passenger depot by architect, Rick Gilmore. DeLoris is a respected community leader and served three-terms as an Illinois State Representative from 1986-1992. Stop by Piece-A-Cake Bakery on a Friday morning or attend the Bethlehem Lutheran Church and say hello to DeLoris—she’d love to meet you! You’ll leave with a sense of community pride and a big ol’ smile on your face.
Tom Roeser
You’ve heard about him in the news, and you’ve seen the changes to our downtown, but did you know he has been the President of OTTO Engineering in Carpentersville since 1987? He has been the catalyst of change with the ongoing restoration of OTTO’s corporate offices and surrounding community through Homes by OTTO. “I’m not a philanthropist. I’m a businessman who is investing in our community, which in turn cultivates positive changes and over time, increases the value of everyone’s investment. I guess that makes me an investor in people." Tom has been instrumental in cultivating positive changes to our downtown development plan. His recent purchase of one of East Dundee’s historical buildings, The Anvil Club, is proof of this commitment.
If you ever have the opportunity to visit River Trading Post at 314 River Street, you will be greeted with a warm welcome by wonderful folks to help you enjoy your visit and a cup of Arbuckle’s Cowboy Coffee. During his years as an advertising executive, Joe became an avid collector of Native American art, especially art of the Navajo, Hopi, and Pueblo people. River Trading Post has been a fixture on East Dundee’s River Street for 14 years, and he also has another location in Scottsdale, Arizona. River Trading Post specializes in museum-quality authentic American Indian art that represents over 60 different tribal groups—some pieces date back nearly 1000 years! Some of Joe's collection ends up in our national museums or with collectors from all over the world. Prior to opening River Trading Post, Joe was instrumental in the community creating printed materials for both East and West Dundee.
