Chris Onken is a physical education teacher and freshman basketball coach at Pekin Community High School. As of Monday night, he will also be the newest member of the Pekin City Council.
Onken was chosen by the council through an application and interview process to replace Becky Cloyd, who resigned late last year.
WCBU sat down with Onken to discuss his new role.
This interview has been edited for clarity and brevity.
WCBU: What interested you in the possibility of becoming a council member?
Onken: I saw that there was a position open. I guess in the back of my mind, I've always felt a need to serve our public, our city. And I just went through the process.
And obviously, the process went well, because you’re set to be sworn in on Monday. How did that process feel from your perspective?
Onken: I was very comfortable with it. There was an application process. And then a short interview. And I just spoke how I felt about Pekin and serving the public and just being a good listener for the public.
Do you have any previous experience in local government?
Onken: Not really…I have served on some leadership teams in some of the schools that I have worked at. But as far as city government, no.
Would you tell people a little bit about your involvement in the community outside of being a teacher at the local high school?
Onken: I am involved in my church extensively, and just enjoy being out in the community. I don't really have any set involvements other than being on the city council soon. But I just enjoy Pekin and living here.
How long have you been a Pekin resident?
Onken: Well, I've been a Pekin resident all my life, I live in the same house that I grew up in, and I consider Pekin my home. My wife and I have taken vacations along with our daughter, and really to different states in kind of looking for maybe a retirement place. But we really haven't found anything that we would want to move from Pekin to.
What are some things you like about Pekin?
Onken: I just like, we're the largest town in the county. But we're more of a small town. There's a small town feel. I enjoy just taking drives around the town, seeing the different areas driving downtown, seeing what’s downtown. I've seen it grow from when I was a child. Of course, we can grow more going out towards Court Street seeing the development that we have there. It's just nice to see.
What is most important to you about the position of city council member? What do you expect out of people in a local government position?
Onken: Well, being new, I'll have to see really what items there are, and then prioritize, I would say. One of them is getting our streets, improving our streets, which I know they're in the works. And when they're finished, they're going to be marvelous. I just, as a councilman, I want to listen to people and hear what their concerns are, and do the best of my ability to help help with their concerns.
Over the past few years, council members and city staff have come and gone, there’s been moments when the council has been described as divided, they sometimes butt heads on issues the way any council might. Are you apprehensive at all about entering the council and what sort of role do you think your voice will play in difficult conversations?
Onken: Well, I think the one thing that we need to really work on is coming up with common ground. You know, there are going to be times when we agree, and there are going to be times when we disagree. I guess what we have to do here is just work through those times, rather than: ‘okay. I don't like your opinion. I don't like you.’ Okay, I think that's happened way too many times, not just in our local, but nationally, I think we need to sit down. And when there is a difficult situation, when there's disagreement, work through it, see if we can't come up with a compromise. It may not be everything one person wants. But if that person can get something, and the other person can get something, we come together.
