After eight years of undercover narcotics work, Adam Cates felt called by God to move his family to Oswego and pursue a career in ministry. Cates is now the Community Pastor at Big Life Community Church. “My personal goal is to meet as many people as possible and invite them to share in a fun and uplifting worship service,” he said of his new role. Cates brings a passion for music to Big Life which he'll use as a worship leader. In 2007, Cates bought a guitar and taught himself to play. That same year, he started playing at his church and writing music. “It just blew up,” he said. “I started …

Oswego resident Joe Berenyi will live his dream this summer as he represents the U.S. on the 2012 Paralympic Cycling Team. A construction accident in 1994 took Berenyi’s right arm and left kneecap. His wife, Jill Berenyi, said he had been racing about a year when the accident occurred. She said he tried riding again soon after the accident, but it wasn’t until about three years ago that he was back racing again. Berenyi will represent Team USA in the following races: 3 km individual pursuit; 1 km time trial; team sprint; road time trial; and the road race. Berenyi said the road time trial is…

Eight-year-old Natalie Catey is on a mission to provide shoes for every orphan in Haiti. Her shoe drive last year netted 270 pairs and she’s not ready to stop. It all started with a successful lemonade stand. Natalie and her sister, Amanda, 6, split the $50 proceeds between two good causes – animals and orphans. The Cateys learned of An Orphan’s Prayer (AOP) through friends who know the founders: Kelli and Chris Wilson, of Yorkville. “Kelli came to the house after the lemonade stand,” Jennifer Catey said. “She was so thankful and it was great getting to know her. She left a CD with pictures …

Since 2003, Karen Kulzer has worked diligently and passionately to bring art appreciation to the Oswego community. Kulzer is a director and founder of Oswego’s Fox River Academy of Music and Art. Kulzer said the founders specifically chose their Oswego location. “This community needed a community presence for art appreciation. There is a lot of work being done in the schools, but at the community level the town could use more focus," Kulzer said "One part of our mission is to improve the community’s appreciation of the arts. We also work to connect people, building relationships through music…

Oswego’s Justin Sather had this to say about Dos Equis’ “Most Interesting Man in the World”: “His French Never Needs Pardoning.” His line beat more than 7,000 contest entries to win a Dos Equis competition. Sather’s winning line currently adorns a Dos Equis billboard on Route 31, which he said he sees from the Route 30 overpass each day on his way to work. Dos Equis has a Facebook page where fans regularly write in witty comments about the famous fictional “Most Interesting Man in the World” who serves as the face for Dos Equis. Sather said he occasionally posted lines on the Facebook page …

Scott May tours the U.S. performing with the Ides of March, then returns to his Oswego home. The Ides of March began with four high school boys playing together in a Berwyn basement. Those four boys are still together making music and touring, 48 years later with platinum hits and Grammy awards to show for their efforts. The band took a 17-year hiatus, which ended when the City of Berwyn asked them to consider re-grouping to headline at Summerfest in 1990. May said the Ides needed a full-time keyboardist and singer. They knew May from high school and knew he knew the material, so they asked …

In early June, Emma Peake spearheaded a community-wide garage sale to raise funds for Kerry Anne Engdahl in her fight against ALS. Emma just finished 5th grade and had never met Engdahl prior to the event. The garage sale raised $4,600, and required the efforts of many community members. “I was with my mom on a date night and we were talking about all the people that need help with money, and I thought about Mrs. Engdahl and suggested we do a garage sale to help her,” Emma said. Emma said her mom, Shana, thought it was a great idea and they started brainstorming ideas. With the support of her…

Judy Reyna-O’Neil started baking custom cakes because she enjoyed the challenge. Now, Yudy Cakes is her full-time job. Reyna-O’Neil said she applied for a job at a bakery on a whim five years ago. After watching as others baked and decorated cakes, she decided to practice on her own at home. One year later, after making numerous treats for friends and family, word of her cakes had spread, and strangers were contacting Reyna-O’Neil to place orders. Since 2009, making custom cakes has been Reyna-O’Neil’s full-time job. She said she makes between seven and 13 cakes each weekend. Reyna-O’Neil …

  Amanda Mancke is a passionate Oswego working mom. What sets her apart is her commitment to service and bettering her community.   Earlier this year, Mancke unsuccessfully ran for Oswego Village Board Trustee, which would have been her first elected office. Mancke said she ran because her family instilled in her a “very strong commitment to community and country.” "I’ve been given so much in life and I want to share, to be part of the democratic process and part of the solution," Mancke said. "I didn’t want to sit on the sidelines in my community and felt the need to do something. Running …

For the ninth straight year, Dave Bucher will participate in the St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital relay run from Chicago to Peoria. To raise additional funds and awareness, Bucher's band, Finneus, created a music video about the experience. The Chicago branch of the St. Jude run starts July 20 in Downers Grove and culminates the next day in Peoria, the location of the St. Jude telethon. The run is 150 miles and will take about 30 hours. Runners take turns completing legs of the journey, which are between two to six miles. The runner then chooses whether to continue or trade off with a …

Oswego resident Tom Sharpe is a rock star, literally.  He tours with Dennis DeYoung (former front man of Styx) and Mannheim Steamroller and performs his own music with Sharpe World Music Ensemble. Sharpe created Sharpe World Music Ensemble because he realized “If I wanted to start a real professional career, the only person who could get me where I want to be is me and I needed to sit down and write music.” Sharpe said he started writing without any goals or any formulas, but to blend all his training – orchestral, rock and world percussion. The result was a full show, which he performed as a…

Josh Stumpenhorst has had quite a year. Honored as the 2012 Illinois Teacher of the Year, the Oswego resident also recently met President Barack Obama at the White House. In addition to teaching and coaching, he has spent the year collaborating with colleagues from all over the world, traveling to conferences and speaking engagements. Stumpenhorst teaches sixth-grade Language Arts and Social Science at Lincoln Junior High in Naperville. He’s in his ninth year of teaching, coaches both basketball and track and is involved with the computer club. Stumpenhorst explained that junior high requires…

Oswego resident Adrienne Giordano is an award-winning author of romantic suspense novels. Her first book was released July 2011 and she’ll have five books available come this August. Giordano said she’s always wanted to write a book and recalls having this desire as early as high school. She said life just took over as she followed a career in advertising, but the idea of writing a book was always in the back of her mind. Thirteen years ago, Giordano took a leave of absence from work to spend time with her ill father. “It was the first time I didn’t have a job to go to everyday and I just …