By Lisa Ciota, Education Guide
Every day do something that will inch you closer to a better tomorrow. – Doug Firebaugh
Happy Little Trees Ahead. What a delightful thought! It conjures images of trees, nature, and a balanced, harmonious environment.
Now, change one word in this phrase – Happy Little Students Ahead – and you just might catch a glimpse of education guide and ex-hippie John Perrecone leading a group of students on a CAC tour sand showing them how design and architecture shape the environment. For John, this “is like planting a seed in the minds and hearts of kids.”
If John appears to be in his element, well yes, he is. John has always been interested in the interplay of architecture, design, and the environment and its effects on how we live and behave. This is partly what motivated him to pursue an undergraduate degree in sociology from Southern Illinois University and, after a few years living the hippie lifestyle in Carbondale, to earn a master’s in urban and regional planning from the University of Houston.
Post-graduation, John came to Chicago to begin a 38-year career with the EPA’s Great Lakes National Program Office. Here he served as a spokesperson and community engagement leader in the EPA’s important efforts to maintain and restore the biological integrity of the Great Lakes Basin Ecosystem.
While originally from Rockford, Chicago and its architecture are really a part of John’s DNA. Virtually simultaneous with his move to Chicago in 1980, John became a CAF docent, serving for about three years when we were headquartered in the Monadnock building. During this time, he also was giving Frank Lloyd Wright Home and Studio tours in Oak Park in conjunction with the performances of renown FLW impersonator Lyman Shepard. More evidence of this DNA is that John asked for the Encyclopedia of Chicago as a birthday gift and refers to it often!
Work, family, and a short stint of living in Sacramento, California, caused John to lapse his involvement in CAF. But he came back, becoming an education guide in early 2019, shortly after his retirement. Now he’s an active member of the education team, giving student tours, developing educational tours – specifically this year’s Engineering Fest mini-tour Chicago: City on the Move—and coaching other education guides. Currently, he’s helping lead education guide training for CAC’s special family tours that are offered this fall while reading Nature’s Metropolis by William Cronon as part of the CAC’s book club.
When he’s not volunteering at the CAC, John is involved with his local church, the Roselle Food Pantry, and the housing shelter, DuPage PADS. You will also find John and his wife enjoying the outdoors riding their bikes on the many trails near their home.
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What a nice story! Thanks for highlighting John’s comprehensive background, his deep commitment to the issues of the environment and design, and all he’s done for CAC.
So glad to know more about John, having just “met” him via the Zoom book chat on Cronon’s “Nature’s Metropolis,” where John’s rich background enabled him to add many enlightening comments.
I echo Rebecca’s note, having also just “met” John in the Enrichment Committee’s book group. John’s insight into Nature obviously came from his background. Thanks to Lisa for bringing this portrait to our attention.
Lovely article. Nice to learn more about fellow education guide, John!