For Andrew Faville, the quarterly meetings of the Waubonsee Community College Foundation Board of Directors may not quite compare to the emotions produced while standing on the tarmac, readying his aircraft, as tearful parents prepare to commit a sick child to his care for transport to distant hospitals for lifesaving treatment.
But Faville, of Geneva, said the meetings still often produce tears of joy, as the members of the WCC Foundation board take a few moments at each meeting to hear the tale of a Waubonsee Community College student whose life had been changed for the better, thanks to their efforts.
“To hear these stories, from people who overcame so many hurdles, it’s really incredible,” said Faville. “It’s really poignant for us to take those moments, to hear from them what it means to them. There’s usually not a dry eye in the place.”
For the past nine years, Faville, CEO and President of Sugar Grove-based Falex Corporation, has dedicated himself to helping deserving students obtain the help they need to succeed in college and make their academic and career dreams real through the WCC Foundation.
For all of his efforts, Waubonsee is proud to recognize Faville as its 2014 Distinguished Contributor.
Since 2005, Faville has served on the Board of Directors of the Waubonsee Community College Foundation, which works to raise funds to provide scholarships for deserving area students. For 2014-15, the Foundation has awarded more than $154,000 in scholarships to 192 recipients.
Since 2007, Faville has served as chairman of the Foundation’s Investment Committee, which works to keep the Foundation’s mission sustainable through prudent oversight of the funds it raises.
He and his wife, Julia, have established an endowed $25,000 scholarship, and the couple often serve as table hosts at Waubonsee’s Scholarship Fest, among other efforts in support of the Foundation’s work.
Faville said he views his service to the Foundation as yet another extension of his desire to serve the communities he and his businesses call home.
Since 1982, Faville, who graduated from Arizona State University with a degree in aeronautical engineering, has worked at Falex, managing various aspects of the company established by his grandfather in Chicago in 1927.
In 2004, he was appointed to serve as the company’s CEO and president.
Faville is a principal in three other complementary businesses, including a Falex affiliate in Belgium. The various business operations often lead Faville to travel extensively, both within the U.S. and internationally.
Faville currently serves as chairman of the Illinois Manufacturer’s Association, a position to which he was elected this year.
Yet Faville also finds extensive time to dedicate to a number of charitable causes and community service projects.
“I’ve always felt it was very important to keep one job you never get paid for,” said Faville.
However, for Faville, that commitment to voluntarism has produced more than one unpaid job at any given moment.
Faville has served on various boards and committees associated with Delnor Community Hospital in Geneva and the Geneva History Museum, among others in the city in which he lives.
He served as Kane County Chairman for the capital campaign to support the Northern Illinois Food Bank’s effort to build a new headquarters and distribution center in Geneva.
He also volunteers at times to fly aircraft through Air Life Line, an organization coordinating free air transportation for individuals in need of medical care at facilities very far from home or other humanitarian needs.
Often, the passengers are very sick and infirmed children, Faville said.“This is the most amazing thing for me, to meet the people and be a part of this experience for them,” Faville said. “I really enjoy flying younger people on these missions. But it is very difficult to watch parents say goodbye to their children.”
Yet, among his other endeavors, Faville said he feels compelled to dedicate time to support education, as well.
Faville serves on the Engineering Academic Advisory Board at Northern Illinois University in DeKalb.
And he said his service on the Waubonsee Foundation board stands very close to his heart.
“It’s simply the right answer to support education,” Faville said.
He noted the endowed scholarships the Foundation funds “really do open doors to a much broader group of people.”
Faville noted his company has enjoyed a “good relationship” with Waubonsee, supporting the college’s work to help students attain the education and skills they need to contribute to their communities as productive members of the local workforce.
He said Falex has itself hired Waubonsee students through the years, with great results.
In 2006, Faville, as chairman of the board at the Institute of Tribology and Coatings, was instrumental in obtaining a $68,000 High Technology School-to-Work Training Grant to enable eight Waubonsee students and four Indian Valley Vocational Center students to serve internships at the ITC, obtaining business and technology training.
Faville said he believes the work of the Foundation in recent years to improve its investment policy will be key to ensure those doors to opportunity remain open at Waubonsee.
“We want to have the Foundation here, with scholarships for students, forever,” Faville said. “We’re arranging it so it lasts for perpetuity.”
Katharine Richards, former Director of Fund Development at Waubonsee, said Faville’s contributions have enhanced the mission of both the Foundation and the college.
“In a word, Andrew Faville is a man with a generous heart and spirit,” Richards said. “He has worked tirelessly to support his community and his industry, using his considerable talents for the benefit of the many.”
