When he became chairman of the Village's Zoning Board of Appeals, Jon realized that he could effectively bring his dream of a gravel pit Cary to life. As chairman, he worked tirelessly trying to entice mining companies to Cary once again.  When Meyer Material Company expressed a wish to expand a pit into Cary's boundaries, Jon jumped at the opportunity. "This is more than a gravel pit," he told residents. And, using his charm and beguiling personality, Jon was able to convince the Village Board and many of Cary's residents that bringing gravel pits back to Cary was the right thing to do.

He so enjoyed his tenure as the Chairman of the Zoning Board of appeals that he legally changed his first name to "Chairman." It was what everyone called him anyway.

Today, Chairman is the Village's PIT CZAR, in charge of regulating and monitoring all of the pit applications that come into Cary. The Village gets so many requests for mining rights, that Chairman finds himself working long hours just combing through the paper work.

But it is worth it, he says.