EPCHS Alum In The Spotlight: Gilbert Izzo, Class Of 1989

EVERGREEN PARK, IL — Proud Evergreen Park Community High School alum and current EPCHS parent Gilbert Izzo realized while in college that “sitting in a classroom behind a desk is not something I wanted to do.”

“I didn’t want to be stuck in an office for work all day,” he said. “I wanted to be out doing something physical for a living.”

So he entered the trades and, as a member of Pipefitters Local 597 since 1999, has never looked back on the decision.

“Working there has really good benefits,” Izzo said. “They pay for your schooling, it pays really well and if you are good at what you do, you’ll never be out of work.”

Additional benefits at 597 (and many other local trades) include a pension plan, generous 401K contribution and free family coverage for health insurance.

“The training at 597 is also world-class,” Izzo said. “We have an amazing training center not far in Mokena. It’s a really great place to work.”

Izzo’s experience with hands-on work goes back even further than his days at 597.

“Even as a kid I would work on cars with my dad,” he said. “I started carpentry as a teen and worked in supply houses.”

At 597, Izzo has focused on HVAC service work with heating and air conditioning. Over the years he’s transitioned into controls, describing that work as “building automation that takes care of the heating and cooling systems.”

Yet with decades of professional experience in the HVAC field, Izzo is putting part of his focus back on the needs of the students at his alma mater. He plans to volunteer his time and expertise to help jumpstart classes in the new HVAC lab that was recently constructed adjacent to the metals room at EPCHS.

“I love Evergreen Park High School,” Izzo said. “I’ve already spoken with Mr. Dugan about it and look forward to starting this.”

Izzo’s love for our school now dates back more than four decades. Attending in the 1980s, Izzo remembers his favorite teacher, Joyce Mistina, as someone he always looked up to.

“I liked all the classes I took with her,” he said. “Everything she did was great, especially the way she interacted with the students.”

Izzo was a football player and wrestler at EPCHS, but remained well-rounded outside of athletics as a member of the chess team who performed in many of the school musicals and plays.

He likely would have played soccer here, too, had Evergreen Park had a team at the time. As an avid player in grade school, Izzo did have the chance to pick up the sport again in college when attending nearby Saint Xavier. At what was then called Saint Xavier College, Izzo was a member of the school’s first-ever men’s soccer team.

“Tim Donoghue, one of the coaches I had in grade school, started the team at Saint Xavier when I was there and he asked me if I was interested in playing,” Izzo remembers. “I hadn’t played soccer in years, but since I was a goalie I didn’t have to do a ton of running.”

Now, his athletic focus has shifted to softball. Having coached locally for both the Evergreen Park Girls Softball League and the Evergreen Park Eclipse over the past two decades, he now coaches for the New Lenox Lightning program.

Izzo has had five children or step-children who have attended EPCHS, including his daughters Shelby and Sophia, both current members of the Mustang freshman class.

Making an impact in the town he’s called home since childhood is extra special.

“I really love Evergreen Park,” Izzo said. “It’s a great town where everyone seems to know each other and support each other. Even when people move away, most end up moving back at some point in their lives.”