Midway Village Update
Patrick J. O'Keefe was born and raised in Rockford Illinois. He is a graduate of Rockford West High School and Northern Illinois University, DeKalb Ill., living in Rockford most of his life. Patrick continued executive education in business and marketing at Rockford University and the University of Wisconsin, Madison WI.
He worked for over twenty-five years at Eclipse Inc. which was headquartered in Rockford Ill. for 108 years. Eclipse was a global manufacturing company involved in the development and production of industrial heat processing equipment and systems. He worked in various areas of the company including Sales, Business Development and lead the Corporate Marketing group.
He worked with Transform Rockford for two years in the development of the community vision. The initiative mission is “To facilitate the Rockford Region’s transformation into a Top 25 community”. In 2021 he became the Executive Director of Midway Village Museum. Midway Village Museum, collects, preserves and interprets the diverse history of the Rockford region and is committed to educating and enriching our community by providing high quality exhibits, programs and events.
Patrick is an active community volunteer and promoter of the Rockford region. He has served on a variety of boards over the past decades including, Family House of Rockford, World Trade Council of Northern Illinois, YMCA Rowing Club, Rockford Coronado Concert Association (RCCA), Rockford Area Convention and Visitors Bureau (RACVB), Rockford Art Museum (RAM) and the Friends of the Coronado Foundation.
He currently serves on the boards of the Rockford Historical Society, Mercy Health System Community Board and as the Foundation Chair of the Mercy Health Foundation.
Patrick will talk about Midway Village and his plans for the future. This will an interesting and informative program and one to invite a guest or prospective member to join us. Dave Byrnes will introduce our presenter and act as Rotary host.