ILA To Kick Off Its Inaugural Chauffeur Appreciation Day

Carol Stream, Ill. — Chauffeur Appreciation Day is coming to the Windy City on October 14, thanks to the Illinois Limousine Association (ILA).

From 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Catherine Chevalier Woods—roughly 10 minutes east of Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport—the ILA will host its first-ever thank-you event for chauffeurs in the forest preserve’s picnic pavilion. In addition to the free lunches and drinks available to the area’s chauffeurs, there will also be goodie bags and vendors.

According to the association’s executive director Barbara Simkus, the event was the brainchild of new ILA president, Tracy Raimer of Your Private Limo.

“It was actually our president, Tracy, who had heard about how they do it on the East Coast. She thought, ‘Well, why can’t we do that?’,” Simkus says, referring to driver-appreciation events like those held annually by the New England Livery Association. “The chauffeurs have to put up with a lot, and this is a thank-you for what they do for all the companies in the area.”

The idea took root about a month ago, but the ILA has already drummed up quite a bit of support from the industry, with the likes of Battisti Customs, Midwest Automotive Designs, and Second City Leasing already committed to serving as vendors for the event.

While Chauffeur Appreciation Day is still a work in progress, the ILA is already hoping that their inaugural event is a well-attended success that becomes an annual celebration.

“Hopefully, it will turn out well and we’ll get a lot of chauffeurs to come and enjoy lunch and meet everybody, including the owners and the people who are with the Illinois Limousine Association,” Simkus says.

Visit illinoislimousineassociation.com for more information.

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