Meet the Class of 2025! This is a dedicated group of individuals representing some amazing businesses and organizations that embody the very best of Lake Geneva. From left to right are; Left to right: Nick Vorpagel with Lake Geneva Country Meats | Dave Desimone with Black Point Estate and Gardens | Donald Driver | Daniel Kunes with Kunes Auto Group (on behalf of Gregg Kunes) | Emily Willert with SMILES, Inc. | KoKo Cooper Langan and Jennifer Grunow with Tree House Child and Family Center
Outstanding Citizen of the Year Award: Gregg Kunes
Presented to a person who represents the Lake Geneva region at its very best, consistently making a positive difference.
Call Gregg Kunes a witness to the power of faith, the joy of family, the importance of playing fair and striving to do the right things, and the difference that can be made by giving back to others as the Bible teaches.
Chairman of Delavan Holdings, Gregg oversees a large organization that includes nearly 50 automobile and RV dealerships, dealer services, fulfillment and logistics services, even hospitality through ownership of Lake Lawn Resort. There are more than 2,000 employees across the Midwest. The auto and RV group expects to sell around 40,000 units this year.
Gregg grew up in a Chicagoland car family, then struck out on his own in his 40s with his first acquisition, a Ford dealership in Delavan – a community he had never visited. He credits God for the direction of his life and any successes. Under his leadership, the business donates 10% of profits annually to a long list of charities. “We take care of the poor,” he said. “Widows and orphans and food pantries, help in schools so kids have lunch programs and things like that. We focus on families.”
Gregg prefers not to talk about himself, but when he opens up he’s passionate about what God has done in his life and how helping others is expected. “If you speak life, if you speak love, if you speak encouragement, if you speak generosity and grace and mercy, and you practice those things, usually that’s what comes back in return,” he said. “Our world today, there’s so much attack, you just have to love and forgive and move on and build up and lift people up.”
“We only have a short time on this Earth. We’re going to make a lot of mistakes. Don’t worry about the mistakes, get back up, dust yourself off, and be a blessing and just end well,” he said. “We all have limited time. Do as much as you can before you leave this Earth, and go full throttle to the end.”
Business of the Year Award: Lake Geneva Country Meats
Presented to a business or organization that exemplifies excellence in business culture and embodies social responsibility by giving back to the local community.
All new businesses start with high hopes, but the vast majority fail within 10 years. Going strong after six decades takes a special kind of commitment.
Lake Geneva Country Meats is a third-generation family enterprise. Founded by John and Rita Leahy, the shop is operated today by John and Rita’s daughter Kathy Vorpagel, owner; her husband Scott, president; and their son Nick, vice president. They exhibit that easy, close and sometimes needling relationship common to family businesses. But along with the family bond comes an iron commitment to quality and service.
“It’s hard work, dedication and sometimes saying this day will start, and this day will end, and we will get through it and tomorrow we start again,” Kathy said. “It’s having the support of the community. It’s a big trust circle.” “I’m so scared to let her down,” Nick said, “and I know how scared she was to let her parents down.”
“Nick is trying to push dad: ‘C’mon Dad, we need to do this, we need to keep modern’,” Scott said. “Eventually he brings me around to his point of view.”
Lake Geneva Country Meats carries a wide selection of meat, produce, homemade sides, spices, even wine. It’s a busy place. The business supports the community – giving back is a family priority – and the community supports the business. Each year the shop supports many worthy local causes.
“Our heart is in Lake Geneva,” Kathy said.
Hospitality Award: Dave Desimone and the team at Black Point Estate and Gardens
Presented to a person, business or organization who exemplifies outstanding customer service, care and hospitality.
“If you want to have a better understanding of why this whole community still is such a popular tourist destination, it’s because it was that way from the 1850s, 1860s on,” said Dave Desimone, site director. Black Point is open to the public, “the only property that is intact as it was during the high period of the Victorian lifestyle at the lake.”
With impeccable educational credentials and decades of experience with hospitality, historic sites, museums and more, Dave knows his subject. Perhaps more importantly, he meets the moment with a warm smile, a quick wit, a relaxed manner and the heart of a storyteller. “If we’re just taking care of the stuff and saving it for perpetuity, that’s wonderful, a very legitimate purpose,” he said. “But it’s not just about preservation. It’s about helping people have an experience, understand what a bygone era was like.”
Black Point was built in 1888 by Chicago beer baron Conrad Seipp and donated to the State of Wisconsin in 2005 by his descendants. It attracts more than 8,000 visitors on-site each season (May-October) and serves another 2,500 through off-site community programs. Visitors arrive by boat, hike 120 steps, then experience “the a-ha moment” as the historic Queen Anne cottage comes into view. The visit – “This place looks like it was frozen around 1920,” Dave describes it – leaves an indelible mark.
“It feels evocative of a bygone era, like you could sit here for a week and the world would pass you by and you wouldn’t even care.”
Rising Star Award: Emily Willert
Presented to a person, organization, or business who, in five years or less in their respective field, has made a substantial impact in their profession.
Energy. Enthusiasm. Commitment.
Emily Willert, marketing and development coordinator at SMILES Inc., is a powerful ambassador for this nonprofit organization that improves the lives of individuals with disabilities through “adaptive riding.” With 22 horses – 21 and a half, Emily says, counting Nugget the miniature horse – SMILES serves 120 clients annually through a series of 8-week programs. Clients ranging in age from 4 to 80 interact with the animals, receiving in the process both emotional and physical support.
“We have seen people take their first steps here,” Emily said. “We have seen people say their first word here. It makes your heart flutter.”
Emily was raised around horses and her mother was an administrator for nursing homes, exposing her to the needs of people with disabilities. “I knew I wanted to use my passion for horses and work with individuals with disabilities or the dementia aspect,” she said, adding when she was hired right out of college at SMILES, “I said thank you. This is my dream job.”
Safety and therapeutic impact are the primary focus. “We look for very specific traits in a horse,” Emily said. “They need to be calm, they need to be attentive, and young. A lot of people think our horses, because it’s therapeutic riding, that they’re not doing a lot. These horses work hard.”
Ever the marketer, Emily reminds all that SMILES just launched a $1.5 million capital campaign to expand the barn and cover the outdoor arena. “There’s so much good here,” she says.
Community Betterment Award: Tree House Child and Family Center
Presented to a non-profit organization which enhances and improves the quality of life in the Lake Geneva region.
In a world filled with needs and worthy causes, there’s no higher calling than protecting children from harm and offering healing to those who have suffered trauma.
Tree House Child and Family Center is there for children and families coping with maltreatment, defined as physical abuse, sexual abuse, emotional abuse or neglect. A critical mission focuses on prevention, working to educate young children about safety and boundaries; providing programs to help adults become better parents and caregivers; serving young expectant people with healthy baby initiatives, and more.
“Wouldn’t it be great if no child ever had to use it (the Tree House center)?” Executive Director Koko Cooper said. “What we want to focus on is how can we help raise awareness of child abuse before it actually happens.” Tree House works with law enforcement, child protective services and many other community partners. The center reaches more than 7,000 children and adults each year, ranging from interventions to training programs and recovery services. A key element involves serving as a clearinghouse to connect people with needs to the right agencies and services.
“We can’t do this alone,” Koko said. “It’s a mixed bag of emotions because it means there’s more work we need to do. We want to be putting ourselves out of business and I don’t see that happening in the near future. Our community needs continue to grow.”
We had an amazing evening celebrating the accomplishments of these deserving individuals and organizations, a wonderful reflection of the innovation, leadership, and community spirit that define our region.
