Parakkat’s transformation
Ravi Parakkat said that his time on the village board has completely changed him.
After more than two decades in the corporate world, Parakkat said he made a decision to fundamentally change the things he devoted his time to. That change led him to found Takeout 25, and to run for a seat on Oak Park’s village board as part of living a more purpose-driven life.
“I have changed so significantly in the last four years now, you should probably talk to my wife to see how much I have changed,” Parakkat said. “When somebody asked me whether I’d like to run for local office, I just saw that as a vehicle to have an impact on people’s lives.”
Now, he said the decision to spend even more of that time on a run for Oak Park’s top job is firmly rooted in those new priorities.
“It’s a thankless role and, you know, I’d have to give a lot of time and I have a young family, but I feel called to do it, right now,” he said. “But I would regret not doing it, just based on who I am today.”
Running on a platform based on attracting investment and promoting fiscal responsibility, Parakkat hopes that voters will give him the chance to lead.
“I’m here because I believe in Oak Park’s values,” he said.
A collaborator for crisis
Vicki Scaman said that if her first term as village president taught her anything, it was how to lead teams through times of turmoil.
“The first four years have really felt like setting the foundation,” she said.
Scaman took over in the midst of the COVID pandemic, and didn’t preside over her first in-person board meeting until well over a year into her tenure. She’d spent a term as village clerk before winning election in 2021 and said that the job had given her a good perspective on what had driven conflict for the previous board and how she could help the new group push forward.
“There were approaches in leadership styles that were just oil and water,” she said. “So to respond to that moment, I was that more collaborative, empathetic leadership style. Somebody who was going to be willing to listen to both sides of the aisle and find where we overlap.”
Scaman said that with the nationwide upheaval caused by President Donald Trump’s election, the Oak Park village board is again facing a time of turmoil.
“It’s so important right now, that our implementation still be very collaborative, especially since we don’t know how our revenue sources are going to change with the way the national political direction is going,” Scaman said. “The skillset you’re looking for is responsive to the times. The leadership that the community needs to come together and remember in that our values are what makes Oak Park unique and special. It’s very, very, easy to lose sight of that. Elected officials need to feel the weight on their shoulders of what it means to be elected.”