Nov 21, 2010

All in the family: Mayor's family holds 17 government jobs

Go to the town in Cook County with the fewest people, the village of McCook, and it's easy to run into a relative of outgoing Mayor Jeff Tobolsk.

There's Tobolski's sister Janeane Hanus, who drives a school bus for the town.

At the police station, Philip Pilch, a relative on Tobolski's mother's side, works as the deputy chief.

Over at the village-run McCook Athletic and Exposition Center, a huge indoor athletic facility known as the Max, three of the four top administrators are Tobolski family members.

There's the mayor's wife, Cathleen, the administrative clerk who takes care of the accounting at the Max.

There's his second cousin Derek Molis, who is director of operations and special events at the Max, and who also runs his privately owned business out of the facility.

And there's Eric Barofsky, the facility's general manager -- and a Tobolski relative through marriage.

Tobolski family members have a history of serving the village of McCook, a tiny west suburb near Lyons and Brookfield with large sections of industrial areas.

In fact, in 2009 alone, the greater Tobolski family had 17 government jobs and received about $350,000 in compensation from the village, as well as from the library and park districts.

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