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Groups to hold benefit for Markley brothers
By Hillary Gavan
Daily News staff writer
POPLAR GROVE - The Markley Committee along with the Leroy Grange is gearing up for what may be its biggest fundraiser ever.
The groups will sponsor a Classic Car and Motorcycle Show 10 a.m. - 3 p.m. July 13 at the Poplar Grove Vintage Wings and Wheels Museum, 5151 Orth Road.
The show will feature a wide variety of classic cars, motorcycles and motorized vehicles. Seventy trophies will be presented to winning registrants at 3 p.m. Tom Bonacorsi, owner of Tom's Auto Sales North in South Beloit, will give out special dash plaques to the first 150 people who register for the event.
Although last year's car show attracted 125 people, Sandy Bonacorsi is hoping this year's fundraiser will bring in more than 250 attendees. A 1969 Judge, owned by Ted Crystal of Rockford, will be displayed at the event. Baked potatoes and pork chop sandwiches will be sold by the Leroy Grange, with proceeds going back to the Markleys.
The Markley family urgently needs support. Their two sons have Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD) and medical expenses exceed $300,000 per year. All proceeds from the benefit will go to the family to help with expenses, especially medical expenses, Bonacorsi said.
Parents Dean and Sylvia Markley are struggling to raise their sons Ken, 22, and Phil, 20. Both wheelchair bound, the two boys need almost constant nursing care. They rely on tracheotomy airway devices to talk and can only move their fingertips. It's extremely difficult for the family to survive on husband Dean's income as a postal employee.
The Leroy Grange in Poplar Grove, Ill., along with area businesses have been rallying together for two years to get the Markley family on ABC's “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition.”
The two boys have difficulties getting their wheelchairs through the home stacked with equipment and supplies. The Markley home has several problems including a leaking window and roof, according to Leroy Grange member Sandy Bonacorsi.
Although the family hasn't been chosen for an episode of “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition,” the Grange is still pressing on. Last year the group held a chili dinner in Poplar Grove. With help from the dinner and support from all the granges across Illinois, the group was able to raise a total of $12,000 for the family last year.
Some of the money raised so far has been going toward medical bills of the boys. At the Classic Car and Motorcycle Show there will be raffles, bake sales, kids' activities and more.
“We are going to do everything we can to raise money. If we need to start saving money to build a house, that's what we'll do - anything we can do get them through the doorway,” Sandy Bonacorsi said.
The event will cost $2 a person or $5 a family. Entry prices include a visit to the Poplar Grove Vintage Wings and Wheels Museum, next to the Poplar Grove Airport. For more information about sponsoring a trophy for the event contact Sandy Bonacorsi at (815)397-3854.
The groups will sponsor a Classic Car and Motorcycle Show 10 a.m. - 3 p.m. July 13 at the Poplar Grove Vintage Wings and Wheels Museum, 5151 Orth Road.
The show will feature a wide variety of classic cars, motorcycles and motorized vehicles. Seventy trophies will be presented to winning registrants at 3 p.m. Tom Bonacorsi, owner of Tom's Auto Sales North in South Beloit, will give out special dash plaques to the first 150 people who register for the event.
Although last year's car show attracted 125 people, Sandy Bonacorsi is hoping this year's fundraiser will bring in more than 250 attendees. A 1969 Judge, owned by Ted Crystal of Rockford, will be displayed at the event. Baked potatoes and pork chop sandwiches will be sold by the Leroy Grange, with proceeds going back to the Markleys.
The Markley family urgently needs support. Their two sons have Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD) and medical expenses exceed $300,000 per year. All proceeds from the benefit will go to the family to help with expenses, especially medical expenses, Bonacorsi said.
Parents Dean and Sylvia Markley are struggling to raise their sons Ken, 22, and Phil, 20. Both wheelchair bound, the two boys need almost constant nursing care. They rely on tracheotomy airway devices to talk and can only move their fingertips. It's extremely difficult for the family to survive on husband Dean's income as a postal employee.
The Leroy Grange in Poplar Grove, Ill., along with area businesses have been rallying together for two years to get the Markley family on ABC's “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition.”
The two boys have difficulties getting their wheelchairs through the home stacked with equipment and supplies. The Markley home has several problems including a leaking window and roof, according to Leroy Grange member Sandy Bonacorsi.
Although the family hasn't been chosen for an episode of “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition,” the Grange is still pressing on. Last year the group held a chili dinner in Poplar Grove. With help from the dinner and support from all the granges across Illinois, the group was able to raise a total of $12,000 for the family last year.
Some of the money raised so far has been going toward medical bills of the boys. At the Classic Car and Motorcycle Show there will be raffles, bake sales, kids' activities and more.
“We are going to do everything we can to raise money. If we need to start saving money to build a house, that's what we'll do - anything we can do get them through the doorway,” Sandy Bonacorsi said.
The event will cost $2 a person or $5 a family. Entry prices include a visit to the Poplar Grove Vintage Wings and Wheels Museum, next to the Poplar Grove Airport. For more information about sponsoring a trophy for the event contact Sandy Bonacorsi at (815)397-3854.
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