Endorsements: Byrne, Schenk, Takaoka for Vernon Hills Village Board

The last three years have been personally difficult for Vernon Hills Village President Roger Byrne.

Less than a year after taking office for his eighth term, he was stricken on Feb. 4, 2022, with Guillain-Barre Syndrome, a rare but extremely serious autoimmune condition in which the body essentially attacks itself.

It is no understatement to say that despite remarkable and courageous progress on his recovery, Byrne never has been the same. His initial treatment required lengthy time on a ventilator and was followed by complications with heart disease and the COVID virus.

But while physically challenged, Byrne has remained sharp and focused mentally and his continued devotion to Vernon Hills is nothing short of inspirational. When we chatted with him recently, we were impressed by his continued grasp of village issues and by the fervor of his interest in them.

Now 75, Byrne is an institution in Vernon Hills. He is completing his 32nd year as village president, after serving six years as a trustee on the village board. All told, he has been a presence in Vernon Hills for more than half of its 67-year existence. He has had a hand in so much of the strength, vitality and sense of community you see in town.

In the April 1 election, Byrne is stepping back some in recognition of his health challenges. He is on the ballot to run for one of three trustee seats on the village board. His longtime colleague, retired teacher Thom Koch Jr. is running unopposed to take his place as village president. This seems like a seamless transition. Since Byrne's illness, Koch has acted as chairman pro tem at most village board meetings. Byrne attended digitally until his health progressed enough to allow him recently to make occasional appearances in person.

All told, four candidates are running for three trustee seats on the village board — Byrne, incumbents Michael Schenk, 51, and Craig Takaoka, 55, and Monica Lundeen, 68, recently retired after a lengthy career as a village employee.

All four are qualified, but these are easy endorsements to make: Byrne, Schenk and Takaoka. We have endorsed each of them in the past, and they have given us no reason to regret our recommendations. Each is solid, thoughtful and community minded. Each has played a role in the impressive transformation of the Hawthorn Mall campus and the diversification of the village's economic base.

Vernon Hills is a model suburb in Lake County, and Byrne, Schenk and Takaoka deserve some credit for that. Koch too, for that matter.

Lundeen has the community interest at heart and perspective on village operations, there can be no doubt. But she lacks the mastery of issues her adversaries offer and fails to make a case why any of them should be replaced.