AFFI Staff
Associated Fire Fighters of Illinois
Office Manager Sue Smith
Office Manager Sue SmithSue Smith lives in Franklin with her husband, Rick, and daughter, Sharon. Sue was hired in 2006 and is our Office Manager. Sue’s primary duty is bookkeeping. Sue was hired by AFFI President Emeritus Dave Foreman and during the two weeks before she actually started the job, Dave left to be the Illinois State Fire Marshal, so she never got to work with him.
Sue also serves as Chairman of the Comptrollers Merit Commission and Treasurer for the Village of Franklin.
Call the office anytime 217-522-8180 or email Sue directly at office@affi-iaff.org
Office Secretary Mychelle Harbauer
You can contact Mychelle at: secretary@affi-iaff.org
Chief Technology Officer Shawn Gillis
Shawn Gillis was hired by the AFFI as the Database Manager in November 2006 after serving as Secretary, Vice President, and President of Midlothian Professional Fire Fighters, IAFF Local 3148. He continued in that role until being promoted to the position of Assistant to the President of the AFFI and now serves the AFFI as the Chief Technology Officer, overseeing a technical staff of 3 analysts and the Director of Technical Services.
In addition to his role with the AFFI, Shawn serves as a District Field Service Representative to the 8th District of the IAFF which includes Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Michigan, and Kentucky bringing international resources back to our membership.
His favorite union experience(s) are twofold: in 2009 when his local rose up in the face of a looming recession to unite and invest 7 days per week, over 9 weeks, meeting with residents throughout the community in support of a job-saving referendum and in his current role as CTO for the AFFI, investing time to study and create new and innovative ways to support collective bargaining for firefighters across the state of Illinois.
Currently a Lieutenant with the Midlothian Fire Department, Shawn continues to serve his community as well as his local and in his free time spends time with family and friends, tinkering around in his woodshop on various projects and researching the relationship between communication and collecting bargaining with his ongoing studies at Illinois State University.
You can contact Shawn at: sgillis@affi-iaff.org
Director of Technical Services Matt Campbell
Matt began his fire service career with the Northwest Homer Fire Protection District in 1999 and has been a member of the Downers Grove Fire Department since 2005. Matt currently holds the rank of Lieutenant with the Downers Grove Fire Department and is a proud and active member of Downers Grove Local 3234. Matt joined the AFFI in May of 2020 and his responsibilities include assisting the Chief Technical Officer with all items related to collective bargaining exhibits and database research. You can contact Matt at: mcampbell@affi-iaff.org
Director of Health & Safety, Education John Sergeant
John Sergeant was hired in 2016 as a staff representative, with duties primarily focused on Mobile Integrated Healthcare and advising locals with Health Insurance issues. Recently, John was moved into the position of Director – Health/ Safety/Education where his focus is assisting with planning/developing educational content. He has previously served the AFFI on the Health Insurance Committee in 2010. John also is an IAFF service representative for the 8th district.
John started in union leadership with Naperville Local 4302, helping to organize the local in 2003, and serving in the positions of shift rep/shift steward (2003-2010), Vice President-Contract Enforcement (2010-2016), and Union President (2016-2018). John was a founding member of L4302’s PAC, and was part of the creation of L4302’s 501c3 charity, The Naperville Professional Firefighters For a Cause. He has participated in the Creation of the union/department safety committee, cancer committee, and wellness initiatives.
John is presently a Lieutenant with the Naperville Fire Department, having served on the fire department since 2001.
You can contact John at: jsergeant@affi-iaff.org
Director of Communications Kurt Snow
Kurt Snow was hired in August of 2018 as a Staff Representative whose main focus was on communications. He attended the IAFF Communication Training Acadamy in Silver Springs, Maryland, and has served on the AFFI Labor History Committee since 2012 and the AFFI Political Education Committee since 2014. His primary objectives are overseeing our social media platforms, website, and both internal and external communications. Kurt was hired by the Streator Fire Department in 2002 where he currently holds the rank of Lieutenant and has served as the President of Streator Fire Fighters Local 56 since 2010.
You can contact Kurt at: ksnow@affi-iaff.org
Director of Governmental Affairs Tim Hunter
Tim joined the AFFI in May 2020 as a Staff Representative and moved into his current position in July of 2020. Tim works in conjunction with the President and Legislative Committee on legislation and coordinates the AFFI Political Education Program. Tim has been a member of the Joliet Fire Department since 2001 and is going on his 10th year as Joliet Firefighters Local 44 President. Tim was a founding member of the Joliet Firefighters PAC and has been very politically active his entire career.
You can contact Tim at: thunter@affi-iaff.org
Data Analyst Tony Peloso
Tony Peloso was hired by the AFFI in 2020. Tony has served the Village of Bolingbrook as a member of the Fire Department since 2002. He holds a Bachelors Degree in Fire Administration. Tony has held the position of Secretary-Treasurer for Bolingbrook Fire Fighters Local 3005 since 2011.
You can contact Tony at: tpeloso@affi-iaff.org
Data Analyst Mark Kolar
Mark Kolar has been a member of Waukegan Firefighters IAFF 473 since 2006. He served as an elected officer of L473 from 2009-2020 with the last 8 years as president. Since 2017, Kolar has been the Assistant to the AFFI 5thDistrict Vice President and has also served on the AFFI’s Consolidation Committee since 2012. Prior to joining the fire service in 2006, Mark obtained a Masters Degree in Public Administration/City Management from Northern Illinois University and worked over six years in governmental administration at both the municipal and county level. You can contact Mark at: mkolar@affi-iaff.org
Data Analyst Dan Klendworth
Dan Klendworth was hired by the AFFI in 2020. Dan has served the City of Jacksonville as a member of the Fire Department since 2009. He currently serves as a Lieutenant. He holds a Masters Degree in Public Safety Management and a Bachelors in Business Administration. Klendworth has held the position of President for Jacksonville Fire Fighters Local 637 since 2011. He serves on the 2% board as treasurer and is an elected member of Jacksonville’s Pension Board.
He recently started on as an Instructor at The Illinois Fire Service Institute. Dan enjoys helping his fellow brothers and sisters within the AFFI with numerous Data and Bargaining issues. He relishes the opportunity to work for a Union that has all of its staff and administration literally work the positions for which we strive to improve through collective bargaining.
You can contact Dan at: dklendworth@affi-iaff.org
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