Blog

Compiled by Brent Hoffmann, 2005

In addition to their love of architecture, education and the city, some of our docents, education guides and exhibit hosts find love among their compatriots at the Center.  Here are their stories:

Deborah Garber (2012) & John Tielsch (2015)

Where do you meet your true love in your 40s?

At work, of course.  John and Deb met at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) legal office in Chicago in 1990, when newly hired John was assigned to Deb’s legal section.   “We soon became enamored with more than each other’s legal skills,” she says.  At an after-work get together they discovered loves that they had in common: Cubs baseball, 1970s rock music, jazz, stick-shift cars and travel.  “As they say, we never looked back,” says Deb.  In July 1994, they married in the garden at Pops for Champagne, a jazz club in Chicago’s Lakeview neighborhood.  Says John, “We then survived the renovation of a two-flat to a single-family home while living in it, without getting divorced.  We got our first dog during the 1995 government shutdown, and named him, appropriately, Furlo.  We even got season tickets to the Cubs!”  Fast forward to 2011 when Deb retired and graduated with the 2012 CAF docent class.  “I had so much fun studying and practicing tours that winter,” continues Deborah, “that John joined up in 2015, after retiring and becoming an interpreter with the Frank Lloyd Trust in Oak Park.”  They trained together for the CAF Neighborhood Bus Tour in 2016 and the river architecture tour in 2017.  During their years at EPA Deb loved having a glass of wine with beer-drinker John after work and discussing environmental law and their cases.  Now, they have that glass of wine and beer in the evening, enthusiastically discussing architecture and their tours.  “Erik, our current dog, accompanies us on one of his squeak toys, as loud as possible,” concludes John.  “It’s hard to believe that 25 years have passed and we’re still best friends.”

 

Sabra Goldman (2010) & Harvey Goldman (Education Guide)

Lightning Struck Lovers in New Orleans.

 It happened at a business conference in New Orleans, the ‘Big Easy.’  Harvey, the meeting chairman, was on the receiving line greeting attendees.  He says, “I took special notice of a blonde who was lovely and introduced herself as Sabra.  She invited me for a drink in hopes of getting a leg-up on future business deals.  I looked into her blue eyes and said ‘yes’.”  So, we were ‘newlymets’: Sabra from Chicago and me from New York City.  We didn’t talk business but focused on the most important thing in our lives, family.”  Two years later, Sabra and Harvey married in St. Thomas, Virgin Islands, and cruised and explored the islands on a trimaran boat on their honeymoon.  Although living in New York, they often came to Chicago to visit family.  “We also became members of CAF and took many tours.” says Sabra.  “That was the way that Harvey learned to love Chicago. The tours were one of the influencers of our retirement.  I joined the docent class of 2010, and Harvey became an exhibit host a few years later.”  In 2020, Sabra led nine tours.  They enjoy Facetime and Zooming with family, including a graduation Zoom party for their grandson.  They listen to audiobooks together.  “We look forward to giving tours and exhibit hosting again,” says Harvey.  “And when we’re again able to travel the world we want to pick up our last continent, Antarctica!”

 

Lynn Osmond (1997) and Chris Multhauf (2003)

A CAF Love Story.

Lynn found romance while working with the Chicago Architecture Board of Trustees. It was with Chris Multhauf, an active member of the board and set to become its new chair in 1997.  “As I interviewed Chris for the position,” says Lynn, “I thought he was so attractive that I’d try to set him up with my girlfriend.” But Chris had other ideas. He says, “It looked like there were two positions available: chairman of the board, or Lynn Osmond’s boyfriend. I chose the latter, and thus began a CAF love story.”  Chris recused himself from the chair position, and eventually from the board, to avoid any conflict of interest after they married. He then joined Lynn (docent class of 1997) and took the training.  Chris subsequently created our Devil in the White City tour, to dovetail with the publication of Erik Larson’s popular book of that title.  But health issues led to Chris recently retiring from active docenting.  He and Lynn safely hunker down in their West Loop home on Green Street.

 

Carol Muskin (2016) & Chuck Pierret (Education Guide)

They Guide Architecture Education, Together.

“In 2015, after 20 years in the Washington, D.C. area, Carol and I moved back to Chicago to be closer to family,” says Chuck.  They’d both attended graduate school at Northwestern University, had lived in Chicago in the 1980s and early 90s, and loved the city.  According to Carol, “I was mostly retired from a career in education and looking around for fun and meaningful volunteer activities.  I was drawn to the education guide program because it allowed me to interact with children and teach them about our great city.”  When Chuck retired in 2018, he saw how much fun Carol was having, and decided to join her as an education guide.  “The CAC Education Guide program is perfect for couples like us,” Chuck continues.  “School groups often need several guides, so we sign up for the same tour and commute together.  In the fall of 2019, we led tours for the Chicago Architecture Biennial at least once a week.  Now, with schools closed, it’s been a very slow time for guides, though we did lead an in-person family tour, a virtual tour, and helped with virtual summer camps in 2020.  We can’t wait for kids to get back to CAC for field trips this fall.”

 

Brent Hoffmann (2005) & Susan Robertson (2009)

It was Fate at Fallingwater.

“I first noticed Susan standing on the terrace of the Fallingwater house,” says Brent. “We were on a docent enrichment tour to Pittsburgh in August 2012.  She was attractive, tall, dressed in black and looked vaguely… European.”  (Susan worked in Geneva, Switzerland, before retiring to Chicago in 2007.)  Brent invited her out for a coffee.  “I thought he’d called me to do an interview for one of his docent profiles in the newsletter,” says Susan.  “But it was actually our first date.”  In mid-March 2020 they got engaged in a brief ceremony, surrounded by tourists, at the Parthenon in Athens.  Although foregoing travel during the pandemic, they’ve been busy – with Zoom meetings, CAC Live presentations, the CAC book club (Susan), writing docent profiles for The Bridge (Brent), and riding in place on a Peloton bike (both).  As for their architecture tours, they look forward to leading them when it’s safe.

 

Maria Corpuz (1996) & John Hug (1999)

“Destiny created our marriage, not one single historic moment.”

John and Maria — both CAF docents for over 20 years — knew each other prior to their loving relationship.  “Our relationship was enhanced in 2003,” says John, “when I moved to Hyde Park, where I’d lived long before as a grad student at the University of Chicago.  And Maria had lived in Hyde Park since emigrating from the Philippines at age 13.”  One of John’s first activities, after his move, was to return a phone call from Maria, who asked if he’d substitute for one of her CAF tours. They didn’t know that they lived next door to each other.  John continues, “Things progressed to our UofC/Hyde Park marriage in 2006, with our ceremony in the University’s Bond Chapel and receptions at the Quadrangle Club and Smart Museum of Art.  We’re among the limited few who walked home in our wedding attire after the reception.  Since Covid, our lives have changed.  We’ve reduced or eliminated our culture-junkie lives and had to forgo most of our CAC tours plus the tours we used to lead for the Frank Lloyd Wright Home and Studio and the Glessner House.  As we’re also travel fanatics, we lost seven planned trips in 2020.  But we did get to visit four new national parks (43 cumulatively) and made a Midwest architecture driving tour of Iowa, Minnesota and Wisconsin.”

 

 

Donald (1996) and Joyce Wiberg (1996)

They’re docents, magicians, too.

 “We met over 60 years ago while students at Chicago Teachers College (now Chicago State Univ.),” says Don.  “Joyce was a cute, freckled redhead.  I was redheaded, too.  What a match! From our first date to all the years as docents for the CAC,” he continues, “we’ve always enjoyed doing things together. “When we attained docent emeritus status together in 2016, we were very honored. After almost 20 years of volunteer service, it was time to move on.”  During their years as docents, they served as tour directors (Bike the Lakefront), trivia champions, and authors of “Tour Tips” in the old Docent News. Their favorite tour?  The Chicago Architecture Boat Tour.  Another love?  Magic. “Joyce and I performed magic at corporate events,” he says, “and we made six appearances on WGN-TV’s The Bozo Show.”  Concludes Joyce, “Although we’re no longer involved in the CAC or magic, we look back on those years as some of the most interesting and gratifying of our lives. We’re enjoying life and looking forward to celebrating our 62^nd wedding anniversary next July.”

 

 

 

Lynne Hensel (2010) & Larry Kameya (2013)

Together 24/7 and they still like each other.

“We’re together 24/7 and we still like each other,” says Lynne.  “We met many, many years ago when I was a mere child (23) and Larry a much older man (29).” They both taught at the same Detroit-area college for a year, after which Larry left for Cleveland. Twenty-five years later, after life and job changes, Larry returned to Detroit.  Says Larry, “I called Lynne, invited her to lunch, and the rest is history.”  Retirement for Lynne and another job opportunity for Larry brought them to Chicago in 2008.  In 2010, Lynne joined the docent corps and Larry joined three years later after he retired.  “Retirement has proved to be good preparation for pandemic sequestration,” insists Lynne.  “We’d already laid claims to different parts of our condo so we can work without irritating each other too much — but the pandemic dramatically increases our togetherness.”  Explains Larry, “Changes have been made.  We converted our dining area to a yoga/exercise studio for streaming classes.  And I now spend more time than before in our large storage unit across the hall.”  Planning for DAN 2020 took up much of the couple’s time at the start of the lock-down.  But they stay busy with Zoom meetings, church activities, and leading the river and Fulton Market tours.  “Throughout it all,” concludes Lynne, “our nightly happy-hour ritual has remained a constant.”

 

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