STACI WILKEN
ABOUT OUR founder
Hi friends! Meet Experience Edit Founder, Staci. Proud mother, and now seasoned empty-nester, daughter, sister, aunt, granddaughter, dog mom and friend. Lover of quaint experiences, chai tea lattes, Stefari Cafe avocado toast and road trips.
Who am I on paper? I graduated from Millikin University (go Big Blue!) long enough ago to be able to run into an intern at Homecoming. My career started in a cubicle punching a timecard and, in the blink of an eye, I’ve built a 20ish-year portfolio of experience-based work. Whether that was managing client accounts on the trading floor, creating community events, advocating for small-business or driving visitor-centric destination development initiatives for a not-for-profit tourism organization, one thing is for certain…experience is now a word that I’ve come to incorporate into all my decisions.
Who am I behind the curtain? A work in progress! I recently sold my home, took a solo cross country #eatpraylove roadtrip and sold (almost) everything I own at a garage sale. My son, Cole, is a student athlete at Aurora University exceling in the classroom and on the football field. Our pup, Rizzo, is my BFF and totally rules the roost. I fill my cup encouraging the next generation of female leaders, spending time on my yoga mat and brainstorming ways to improve systems for my clients.
Active member on the Kankakee Riverfront Society, Inc. Board of Directors (Chairperson 2020-2022)
Riverside Healthcare Foundation Board of Directors
Riverside Healthcare Heart Ball Planning Committee (Co-Chair 2018)
Illinois Council of Convention & Visitors Bureau Board of Directors (Sports Illinois Liaison 2019)
City of Kankakee Riverfront Implementation Team
Grundy, Livingston, Kankakee Workforce Board Talent Outreach Sub-Committee
City of Kankakee Schuyler Avenue Streetscape Committee
Kankakee County Convention & Visitors Bureau Chicago Bears Hospitality Committee
In 2014, received the 40 Under Forty recognition by the Kankakee County Chamber of Commerce.
Community Involvement
It's simple. I want to help people—small businesses, non-profits, big corporate, the dreamers and the doers that this world desperately needs more of. For years, I found myself encouraging friends and colleagues over coffee (tea for me) to jump. I could identify ways to help grow their business. I was able to find solutions that would improve systems. I incorporated the simple touches to improve an experience. I was a list of strengths that I wrote in the notes on my phone when considering my next career move. I was Experience Edit.
— Staci Wilken on the story of Experience Edit
