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SPRINGFIELD — Inga Carus, chairman of Carus Group Inc., a leading global provider of specialty chemistries for water treatment, soil remediation and air purification, was recognized by Gov. Bruce Rauner during his State of the State address.
Rauner invited Carus and other directors of Intersect Illinois to attend the address and thanked them for their leadership in helping to create jobs in the state. Intersect Illinois is a public private partnership formed by the governor to help increase job creation and investment.
“We created a partnership that draws upon the wisdom and experience of our state’s top business executives to recruit employers,” the governor said of Intersect Illinois.
He introduced Carus and two other directors individually, gaining applause from the General Assembly. “Let’s thank them for their service to our state. They’ve already been successful in recruiting employers like Amazon to expand here in Illinois – creating thousands of new jobs across our state,” said Rauner.
Carus is a founding member of Intersect Illinois, which launched under the name Illinois Business and Economic Development Corporation in early 2016. Her dedication to economic development in Illinois goes far beyond growing her family’s 102-year-old multinational manufacturing company. She is a co-founder of the Starved Rock Country Alliance, a group dedicated to promoting the region immediately southwest of Chicago, and a founding member of the incubator Starved Rock Country Capital Fund, which encourages and supports regional entrepreneurs.
With her husband, Peter Limberger, Carus has started and invested in several businesses in Starved Rock Country, recently creating more than 150 new jobs in manufacturing, farming, agribusiness, brewing and real estate development. One of their current projects is the renovation and re-opening of the historic Kaskaskia Hotel and Conference Center in LaSalle, which is expected to create roughly 300 jobs and inject millions of dollars into the local economy.
“Economic development is something in which everyone has a role to play. It involves business, education, the arts, and tourism. Bringing people together around the goal of promoting and growing our incredible region is what drives me to continue investing time and money in my home state of Illinois. Intersect Illinois provides a phenomenal opportunity to join with leaders across the state who share this vision,” said Carus.
Carus is a member of the executive committees of the America Chemistry Council and the Society of the Chemical Industry. She is chair of the OmniArts Trust, serves on the boards of the American Chemistry Council, the Hegeler Carus Foundation, the Canal Corridor Association, Landmarks Illinois, and the Starved Rock Country Community Foundation.