Blog

Karen Dimond-40 years
Since 1979, I have enjoyed learning and giving many tours – some of which, sadly, no longer exist, such as Towers of Finance, Temples of Culture, Seats of Power, the Field Museum tour, the Marshall Field’s tour, the north side horse and carriage tour, the children’s tour, “the” loop tour, and many other great hits from the past. Then there were other tours I learned which never did leave the dock – like the canoe tour!

All these tours were inspired by Chicago’s fabulous architecture and our love of sharing our knowledge about it. I think we find that tours may run their course, but great buildings will resurface in other reconfigured tours. So I look forward to learning more tours in the future and meeting hundreds more delightful tourees.

Deb Frels-30 years
30 years and in that time we moved at least twice, not including our most recent one. Our class trained at Glessner learning both Clarke and Glessner as well as the loop buildings.

The historic and modern were one tour back in the day. I’ve seen tours grow and adapt to new starting/ending locations.

I was active with many neighborhood tours and lost track of the modern renditions as I was rarely downtown when they occurred.

I want to congratulate those who “survived” from 1989 and thank those docents who were my certifiers, friends, teachers and comrades. I’ve learned a lot from each and every one of you. You are part of my treasured memories of this organization. And I look forward to more memories to come.

Huette Kaplan-Emeritus
My years as a CAC docent have been my best volunteer experience…highlighting the many gems of the city to many tourists. One of my favorites was a Macy’s tour. One of the tourists had a diabetic assistant dog..reminded me of the pet therapy program when I volunteered at Anti-Cruelty Society.

Henry Kuehn – Emeritus
How do I reflect on an involvement that has covered well over half my life? Little did I know when I attended my first docent class at Glessner House in 1974 that the Chicago School of Architecture Foundation (as it was then known) would become such a vital part of my life. Why did it?

First, I had a chance to expand my knowledge of the world of architecture that I was fascinated by. Then I had a chance to share this information with, over the years, literally thousands of people. In the process I gained a cadre of friends within CAF who shared this interest. All the while the CAF was growing from a true fledgling, with a staff of three and an annual budget of $250,000, to the organization we all know today.

From the first downtown tour which began on the step of the Cultural Center (closed on Sundays) to an organization that now supports over 80 different tours, the CAF has been truly extraordinary. I am proud and truly fortunate that I have been able to play a part in this remarkable adventure.

Kathy Maynard-35 years
For 35 years, it has been an honor to be a CAC docent. From the very beginning, the training at Glessner House was an incredible thrill. Spending over a dozen Saturdays in this grand home made the extensive college-level required coursework a joy to complete. In addition, I will always remember the lessons learned from fellow docents – especially Lyman Shepherd – on how to deliver engaging stories about our city’s architecture whether enduring a driving rain/snow storm, blistering heat or sub-zero cold temperatures, or while holding a microphone and delivering a tour while we circled the Loop 12 times on the original EL tour and prayed that there weren’t any unexpected delays.

While always a continuous learner, being a docent has led me and my family to seek out cities and buildings of architectural significance throughout our international travels. As lovers of Frank Lloyd Wright’s work, we have never passed up an opportunity to check out one of his many creations wherever we go. When I add in the information gleaned from the people whom I have had the privilege of leading on a tour, my CAC docent time has been and continues to be an exciting learning adventure. As a newly retired professional, I look forward to spending more time giving tours and loving every minute of it.

Thomas Rodgers-30 Years
One strong memory, or bundle of memories, comes to me in response to you email message. These thoughts involve the training program for would-be docents back when I started in 1989. This training deeply expanded my interest and concerns regarding architecture (and architecture in Chicago especially). For me it was a revelation, and the conspicuous agent of that revelation was the director of training [not sure of the exact title] at that time, Paul Glassman. This training, this experience, transformed my ability to look at the built environment as it stood, stripped of the mental, studiously learned, cobwebs that we all carry through life.

So that has been the my guide in leading tours of architecture over these past 30 years—-to unveil the building (or at least its facade), and encourage the tour-goers to recognize, truly, exactly, what is visible in front of them, and to decide for themselves which facades are good, and which are not so good, and which have an emotional impact that stays.

I enjoy giving tours. Now, I only lead the Wright in Oak Park tours. My hearing is failing, my hands shake, and my memory for recently received names, places, and events is totally unreliable. But on a good day, the positive responses of two or three of the tourists persuades me that it is still worthwhile.

Bill Shapiro-Emeritus
Bill retired after 17 years as an active docent. He has conducted many different tours covering the major styles of architecture represented in the Chicago area. He served in leadership positions in the docent organization and contributed to the development of docent educational programs. He organized seminars on various architectural topics, lectured at docent training programs, and participated in the creation of new tours. He has received three annual service awards for these activities.

Bill’s principal interest is Modernism, with particular focus on the work of Mies van der Rohe. He created CAC’s first tour of Mies highlights in the Chicago area (including Farnsworth House, 860-880 Lake Shore, and Crown Hall) and served as director of the tour for eight years. He regularly conducted tours of the campus of Illinois Tech, originally designed by Mies. He managed the revision and updating of CAC’s core tour of modern architecture in downtown Chicago and served as co-director of the tour. He has written articles on a wide range of topics for docent publications, and most recently co-authored a historical note on the 100th anniversary of the Bauhaus.