DRIVEN TO RUN

Former Par-King miniature golf course employee and regular Jim Carris has shed his putter.

A Republican from Lake Forest and a graduate of Stevenson High School in Lincolnshire, Carris is gripping and wielding his driver now, determined to ace his bid as a first-time candidate for Illinois’ 10th Congressional District.

The election is November 5.

“It is clear that the families of the 10th Congressional District are hungry for a new leader who will be independent and work in a bipartisan manner to find real policy solutions for Americans based on logic, compassion, and common sense,” says Carris, who spent his teenage summers cutting Lincolnshire-based Par-King’s grass, managing the course, and repainting the grounds’ signature pink castle. “People in the district are hard-working, diverse, and entrepreneurial. We represent America.”

The 10th Congressional District consists of Chicago’s north and northwest suburbs, including Lake and portions of Cook and McHenry counties.

Carris is the child of an immigrant. His father, Frank, wasn’t allowed to enroll in college in his native Greece because of his parents’ political affiliation. Frank moved to Chicago, where he met his future wife, the late Alice, at a Greek church. The father of five bused tables and washed dishes at a restaurant before becoming a union house painter and, later, a tireless contractor.

“My father is an amazing man,” says Carris, executive managing director of Colliers, a commercial real estate and brokerage advisory firm in Chicago. “He took a tremendous risk, coming over here after Greece’s Civil War (1946-1949). He loves this country because of what it has provided him—the ability to live the American Dream. You know what he does whenever we’re watching a Cubs game on TV and the national anthem is played? My dad stands up and places his right hand over his heart. And you’re not going to find many who value education more than he does.”

Carris earned a trio of degrees, beginning with a bachelor’s at the University of Illinois. He then collected a law degree at Loyola University Chicago followed by an Executive MBA degree from the University of Notre Dame. Carris paid for much of his tuition, housing, and books himself by working gigs ranging from painting to construction to bartending.

Before joining Colliers six years ago, Carris worked as a real estate and environmental attorney and ran a department for the oil and gas giant BP. “I’m an environmentalist,” he says.

Carris took a leave of absence from his post at Colliers to laser-focus as a rookie politician. “My wife (Kimberly) and I had been involved in politics on the periphery, fundraising for candidates and being active voters,” says Carris, a father of three and a resident of Lake Forest since 2005. “I wanted to run because I felt strongly that a leader with a business perspective, a fresh perspective, would be able to find solutions at the local and national levels of government.”

“The first president I voted for was Ronald Reagan. You know what he did so well with (then-U.S. Speaker of the House) Tip O’Neill? Talk. A Republican and a Democrat talked civilly and resolved issues through discourse, unlike today where there’s too much vitriol. We need to get back to both parties communicating and cooperating.”

For more information, visit CarrisforCongress.com.