IL HR1373

Illinois House of Representatives congratulates Carl and Melinda Cannon on winning the Whitney M. Young Award from the Boy Scouts of America.

Carl Cannon served in the United States Army Military Police, earning the Meritorious Service Medal (3rd Oak Leaf Cluster), Army Commendation Medal (4th Cluster), and Army Achievement Medal (5th Cluster), and was designated U.S. Army Illinois Citizen of Interest in 2010.

Carl Cannon transitioned from a correctional officer at Pekin Federal Correctional Institution to youth outreach work, serving as Assistant General Manager of Recreation with the Peoria Park District and delivering motivational messages to over 400,000 youth across Illinois, Kansas, Michigan, Ohio, and Washington D.C.

Carl Cannon founded the ELITE Youth Outreach Program in 2006, which has trained over 1,100 students in soft skills across eight area high schools, and the ELITE Re-Entry Program founded in 2009 has achieved an 8% recidivism rate compared to the 60% national average.

Carl and Melinda Cannon have been married for 33 years and are parents of two daughters and grandparents of one grandson with another grandchild expected in early 2017.