Dear Docents,
I just finished the last private Devil in the White City tour for the year – one of those “interesting” tours where the link between the tourees was that they were all part of a group that plays trivia games at a local bar. It was like herding cats – people talking over one another, people giggling, one woman falling down (she swore she hadn’t starting drinking yet) and no one keeping time in mind. We wandered.
But you know what, we had a grand time. So many of them said they were Chicagoans who learned “so much I never knew before.” Others were delighted to find places they had heard of – the University of Chicago campus for example – but didn’t know the history of. In short, it was a typical tour that makes so many of us love being docents. I hope your season wound down with a similar good experience.
At this, the end of the “season,” the close of the River Cruise bookings, perhaps we are all looking for leisure. Others, though, I think are looking forward to the winter walking and indoor season. For as one docent told me at Saturday’s (November 12) Docent Seminar Day, without tours on our calendars, there seems to be a void. This is not necessarily a plea for more of you to sign up for winter tours – if fact, I’d rather that you didn’t since that would mean I couldn’t find many for myself – it is an acknowledgement of how integral our touring is to our lives.
Docent Seminar Day was fabulous! As usual it is so much fun to see everyone at once. People who haven’t seen one another for perhaps months find it great to share experiences. The refreshments, by and large (salads for lunch excluded), were great and the education part ended with the marvelous magic of electronics when Jen Masengarb talked to us from Denmark. Kudos and more to Judith Kaufman, Bill Lipsman (and Wendy, who helped section those humungous muffins) and Cindy Schneider, continuing education chairs, for another really excellent learning success.
On another note, budget-wise, things were terrific for the River Cruise – good weather in November sure helps. But, truthfully, October wasn’t great for either bus or walking tours. No one is worried, but it does show that we have to continue to be vigilant about creating and maintaining excellent tours to bring more and more tourists to CAF. By the way, notice that one new tour will be on our roster – an app for a smartphone whereby connecting with a CAF partner named Detour (not to be confused with Chicago Detours, another group) you can get an architectural walking tour narrated by our own Jen Masengarb (that woman sure gets around). Try it and let us know what you think.
At the end of Docent Seminar Day, CEO Lynn Osmond clarified the situation for CAF for the next few years. Our lease at the Railway Exchange Building will be expiring March 2018. At that time we will be moving – to where is still unclear. However, we are all going to be working hard to make sure that wherever we land we will be able to continue to give tours efficiently and excellently as we do now.
I hope you find this message easily on The Bridge. I hope you enjoy using the new web site; if you’re like me you have to have some time to feel it out and get comfortable with it. But do enjoy one of its best features: one sign-on for the web site AND VolunteerMatters. Great.
Finally, I want to wish each and every one of you and your family happy holidays– Thanksgiving, Christmas, Hanukkah or whatever holiday you are celebrating during these months. Enjoy the food, the fun and the conversation. But in addition, keep in mind CAF and how either through these months or later, you are going to help people discover why design matters.
Ellen