Best Under 40: Meagan Schoenrock a community manager for 25N Coworking in Geneva

It wasn’t that long ago that Meagan Schoenrock graduated from college and was only beginning her career as a graphic designer. All appeared to be right in her world, until her marketing agency decided to close.

Suddenly, Schoenrock was unemployed and seemingly all alone.

“The company closed up, so I became a freelancer, but I had no idea of how to run my own business,” she said. “I really would’ve loved to have something like 25N Coworking for support, but I didn’t. So, now it’s interesting because I can relate to so many people here.”

Schoenrock is the community manager for 25N Coworking in Geneva, a home for freelancers, entrepreneurs and virtual employees to work, network and collaborate.

“She may have lost her first job, but she’s really determined to get what she wants,” said Ashley Mayer, mission manager at JJR Marketing, who nominated Schoenrock for a Kane County Chronicle Best Under 40 award. “Nothing’s going to get in her way and now she’s in a position where she’s helping others who faced similar adversity.”

Rather than work out of a home, library or coffee shop, members of 25 Coworking have access to desks, meeting spaces and community events, and enjoy many other amenities. Schoenrock makes sure everything runs smoothly.

“A normal day here is really big in the community and making sure the people here have everything they need,” Schoenrock said. “I’ll handle all of the workshops and community events. We do a lot of programming for business and make connections and referrals. We provide a lot of support so they can be successful, and we also do some advertising and design.”

She’s relatively new to the area. Originally from Sylvania, Ohio, Schoenrock attended Northern Illinois University, where she shined on the volleyball court, as well as in the classroom. She was an All-Mid-American Conference and All-MAC-Academic selection her senior year.

“She really fell in love with this area,” Mayer said. “And now she’s bringing Coworking to the forefront in Geneva. She’s really so inspirational, so young and awesome to work with. She’s been a catalyst for this change in the community, and she’s bringing the community together.”

It hasn’t taken 25N Coworking long to become successful, despite just opening its doors in February.

“We had a vision of how this would work and how people would use it, so it’s been rewarding to see it happen,” she said. “This building sat vacant for three years, and now it’s full of activity. And next door at the old Great Harvest Bread building that had been closed ... now someone is moving in there, so it’s an exciting time for the community.”

Interestingly, had Schoenrock never lost that graphic design job, she likely wouldn’t be where she is today.

“I plan on being here for the long haul,” she said. “It’s exciting to see something grow and thrive in the community. Our team is an amazing pleasure to work with, and I’m going to stay involved with 25N Coworking as long as I can.”