Park District of Oak Park

TO OUR SUPPORTERS As the Pleasant Home Foundation begins another year, we look excitedly ahead at the opportunities to reshape Pleasant Home as a model for what a historic house museum should be in the 21st century. Over the past few years, our visitation numbers have grown, partly because of initiatives like the Tour & Teas, Twilight Tours and an increase in group tours. But we have also worked to make Pleasant Home more than just a stiff museum where people can bring out-of-town guests once every few years. Our goal is to make Pleasant Home a place of cultural significance that our community can enjoy throughout the year. Our board, staff and volunteer efforts are being rewarded with record attendance at programs like the Silent Movies on the Porch and Jeanette Andrews' Magic Show. These are programs that are fantastic in any setting; to host them in our National Historic Landmark home adds a special meaning to them that is drawing people from all over the Chicago area. Perhaps our greatest opportunity - and challenge - lies ahead this year. In 2016, the Historical Society of Oak Park and River Forest, long our upstairs neighbor, plans to move to their new home on Lake Street. This will free up half the home and challenges us to think about the spaces as more than just bedrooms to furnish with period pieces for interpretation. Rather, it is an opportunity to continue our efforts to make Pleasant Home a cultural institution in Oak Park and the Chicago region. A special committee has been initiated to begin planning for how we will use these spaces, investigate the restoration needs and develop fundraising strategies to transform the area. We would like to thank our outgoing board members: past-President Carol Yetken and Secretary Lucy Toomey. Both have given so much of their time for many years and will be hard to replace. And of course we will dearly miss our friend and colleague John Thorpe. Most importantly, we want to thank YOU, our members and supporters, who are instrumental in keeping Pleasant Home vibrant for years to come. We have a lot of work ahead; let's get started! Douglas E. Gilbert, AIA Heidi Ruehle-May President, Pleasant Home Foundation Executive Director, Pleasant Home Foundation Pleasant Home is a historic property of the Park District of Oak Park, operated by the Pleasant Home Founda on. 2015 gran ng agencies: Landmarks Illinois, Richard H. Driehaus Founda on, Oak Park Area Arts Council, Illinois Arts Council Agency, and The MacArthur Funds for Arts & Culture at the Richard H. Driehaus Founda on.

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