The Greater Champaign County AMBUCS

06/09/2026

GCC was honored to have our current National President Gordon Shaw and current National Big Hat Secretary Jenny Clement at lunch today. Gordon brought us updated information from national headquarters and Jenny told us about an online auction that will be happening soon (more detail coming). Thanks for coming, Peeps! Looking forward to seeing you in Myrtle Beach in a couple months. 🦀🦞⛱️

06/02/2026

It’s a great day to be an Ambuc! ❤️

Coen received his new Amtryke today. This therapeutic bike will help with his low muscle tone and motor skills as a result of a chromosomal deletion affecting him. We look forward to watching him grow into a bike-loving kid!

While at lunch, his dad Mike decided he needed to join and become an Ambuc. Yay Mike! You’ll hear more about this in a week or two so stay tuned!

Giveaways like this are only possible through donations and partnerships with individuals and organizations in our community. We received a grant from the student organization Orange Krush at University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign which provided about half of the cost of this specific Amtryke. Thanks to their fundraising efforts throughout our community Amtrykes can be given to the recipients without the family having to provide funding. Donations like these keep our mission in motion - providing mobility and independence to those who need help. It’s a great day to be an Ambuc! ❤️

06/02/2026

Congrats to Kaitlynn for earning the review of the month for May! To recognize Kaitlynn and her dedication, we have made a donation in her honor to AMBUCS!

Keep making an Impact, Kaitlynn🤩

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05/29/2026

A little peek into where we started and how far we’ve come. Proud to have been on this journey for 45 years strong!

05/26/2026

Harrietta traded in her smaller Amtryke for a bigger one now that she’s grown some, and she was ready to ride. Just a wee bit more practice and she’ll be riding faster than her parents can keep up! 😊🚲

Thanks to Carle Health for honoring our chapter with an impact donation. Donations of funds like these allow us to fulfill our mission of providing mobility and independence to our recipients.

If your organization would like to know more, contact any of our chapter members or message our page. We’d love to talk with you!

05/19/2026

Tessa was very happy to get her new today! Dad (Steve) says they live close to a park so she’ll put a BUNCH of miles on it. Happy riding, Tessa!

05/15/2026

Last night was our annual awards banquet and officer installation which was held at Manzellas Italian Patio in Champaign. Although these newly elected members don’t pick up their new mantle until June 1, they’ve all sworn to uphold the Ambucs’ mission - inspiring mobility and independence.

Incoming officers:
Will Wade - Board Chair
Sally Denhart - President
Renaé Strawbridge - Secretary
Elaine Windingland - Treasurer
Pat Webb - Sargent-At-Arms
Keith Jamieson - Big Hat President
Board Members - Scott Price and Ray Griest
Andrea Betzler - President-elect
Continuing Board Members are Deb Griest and Kyle Moe

President Will Wade also presented awards to the following recipients:

New Ambuc Member of the Year - Steve Lawson
Steve embraced our mission from day one. He was instrumental in organizing the car show at the Scarecrow Festival and has been an active participant in our meetings, events, and fundraisers. His contribution of printing barstool golf scorecards was a great asset and time-saver to the project manager. Thanks Steve!

Project Manager of the Year - Jodie Harmon
Jodie led the effort to have Adams Advertising create and install billboards in the Champaign-Urbana area and beyond, resulting in almost 10 MILLION local views of our chapter! This program has been recognized by Ambucs leadership at both the National and Regional levels, and has increased the community's awareness of Ambucs. Thank you, Jodie!

Ambuc of the Year - Renaé Strawbridge
Renaé received this award for embodying what it means to be an Ambuc. She is active in meetings, committees, fundraisers, assists in managing our social media, and has sponsored two new members this year. She also manages our Road rally event. Thank you, Renaé!

Congratulations to our award recipients and good luck to our incoming leaders!

05/13/2026

Many of our GCC Ambucs spent the night last night under the lights…with the Tom Jones Challenger League players! Our chapter volunteered to be buddies with those players who needed or wanted one. We helped them bat, run the bases, retrieve balls and generally have a great time. These kids were so excited to get to play and we shared in that excitement. Here are a few photos to show you how much fun you can have when you’re an Ambuc. Come join us!

05/12/2026

Aahan got his highly anticipated, much desired, can’t-wait-to-get-on-it Amtryke! He was a little unsure about the pedaling thing, but have no worry, he’ll master it soon and be off like a flash.

(See pictures in comments)

05/09/2026

Remember GCC Ambucs - we’re buddies on Tuesday, May 12th beginning at 6:00pm at Ambucs Park in east Urbana. See you there!

Special thanks to the members of Kiwanis Club of Champaign-Urbana, Illinois, TJCL’s primary and founding sponsor, for providing awesome buddies this morning!