On the Scene: The McCormick Foundation Blog

The Robert R. McCormick Foundation and Cantigny Park recently named Krewasky A. Salter, Ph.D., executive director of the First Division Museum in Wheaton. Salter, a U.S. Army Colonel (retired), brings more than 34 years of experience to the museum, with 25 years gained in active military duty. He served as a senior staff officer at the Pentagon before retiring from the military in 2010. Most recently, Salter was a guest curator at the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of African American History and Culture (NMAAHC). He curated the museum’s inaugural exhibition, Double Victory: The African American Military Experience . The exhibit opened in late 2016. He is also serving as curator of an upcoming exhibition, We Return Fighting: The African American Experience in World War I , scheduled to open in December 2019 at the NMAAHC. “Krewasky’s experience as an Army officer, teacher and scholar of military history and museum curator, made him an ideal choice for this leadersh...

When military veterans gather at Cantigny it’s usually in or outside the newly renovated First Division Museum, a monument to those who served. But during the growing season you’ll now find some veterans behind the park’s massive greenhouse as well. They come to learn, and they come to grow. It’s mostly about vegetables, but also camaraderie and mutual support. Welcome to the Veterans Garden at Cantigny, located between the greenhouse and Roosevelt Road. Established in 2016, regular visitors would never know it’s there. The garden is a fenced-in series of circular raised beds, or “pods,” where local veterans from various eras—usually about a dozen—spend Saturday mornings getting their hands dirty and sharing stories about their service time or anything else that comes up. This is social gardening at its best. Along the way, the vets produce some mighty fine tomatoes, peppers, squash, carrots, beans, beets and zucchini. To be sure, it’s not beginners luck. The green-thumb wanna...

by Jeff Anderson, McCormick Museum Tour Coordinator This summer, the Robert R. McCormick Museum at Cantigny Park in Wheaton, Illinois, obtained a painting by Chicago Tribune artist James Sessions. The painting depicts a meeting between Abraham Lincoln and Chicago Tribune editors, Joseph Medill and Dr. Charles Ray. Lincoln was seeking advice regarding a speech that he would be giving in New York the following year. This speech was famously known as the Cooper Union speech, which was considered to be one of his most important speeches of his career. Some historians argued that it was this speech that was responsible for his victory in the presidential election later that year. Joseph Medill and Charles Ray were fierce advocates of Lincoln. Their allegiance was formed during the senate race against Senator Stephen Douglas. During that election the Chicago Tribune published several articles and editorials praising Lincoln. On February 28, 1860, Lincoln delivered the Cooper Union spe...

In July, John Chrenka (age 94), WWII veteran from Berwyn, Illinois, received the Legion of Honor medal—the highest distinction awarded by France. This honor was given to him for his service in Omaha Beach and across northern France. John Chrenka enlisted in the army in 1942 and served until the war ended in 1945. He accepted his medal from French Consul General, Vincent Floreani at the First Division Museum at Cantigny Park in Wheaton. During the ceremony First Division Museum’s Andrew Woods performed a song that Chrenka wrote as a young soldier in England. As Andrew sang, Chrenka remembered every single word of his song and, in a soft voice, began to sing along. This is the latest honor for the already decorated Sergeant Chrenka who also has a Bronze Star and fought in the Battle of the Bulge.

by Scott Witte, Director of Golf Maintenance  In 1993, Cantigny became one of the earliest golf courses in the United States to earn the prestigious classification of “Certified Audubon Cooperative Sanctuary”. To reach certification, property owners and managers demonstrate a high degree of environmental excellence in: Environmental Planning, Wildlife & Habitat Management, Outreach and Education, Chemical Use Reduction and Safety, Water Conservation, and Water Quality Management. In recent years, Cantigny Park and Cantigny Golf have joined forces to maintain the Robert R. McCormick Estate’s Certified Audubon Cooperative Sanctuary status. In doing so, Cantigny joins over 3,000 properties including golf courses, cemeteries, ski areas, housing developments, hotels, and communities in the rigorous certification program. Through education, technical assistance, certification, and recognition, Audubon International facilitates the implementation of environmental management practic...

by Jeff Reiter, Senior Communications Manager The Robert R. McCormick Foundation is marking 60 years by inviting visitors for a special day at Cantigny Park on Thursday, July 30. Annually celebrated as the birthday of Col. Robert R. McCormick, the day will offer guests extra special experiences including behind-the-scenes tours, and a free evening concert by the renowned Chicago Sinfonietta. As McCormick’s former home located in west suburban Wheaton, Cantigny enriches our community every day and is enjoyed by more than 350,000 visitors each year. On July 30, visitors will get a special glimpse of everything Cantigny has to offer: including the formal gardens, the walking trails, the McCormick Museum and the First Division Museum, dedicated to the history of the Big Red One, the famed 1st Infantry Division of the U.S. Army. “This is our birthday celebration with the community,” said David Hiller, President and CEO of the Robert R. McCormick Foundation. “Sixty years ago, Col. M...

by Phil Zepeda, Director of Communications Robert R. McCormick was one of Chicago’s first major philanthropists, with his generosity helping to shape the city he loved. In 2015, the Foundation that bears his name will mark the 60th anniversary of its establishment. Over that time, the McCormick Foundation has touched the lives of thousands of people, contributing more than one billion dollars to journalism, education, community action, social and economic services and civic engagement. The McCormick Foundation is marking the year with special partnerships and events for the communities in and around Chicago. Also celebrating 60 years of its commitment to Chicago is WTTW/Channel 11. Through special support of their premiere news program Chicago Tonight, regular pledge drives, and special community screenings, the Foundation will help trumpet the tremendous value that the station has added to our lives since its first broadcast. Through an enhanced partnership with the Donors For...

by Jeff Reiter, Senior Manager of Communications&nbsp In June, Cantigny Golf was pleased to receive RevelationGolf’s Humanitarian Award for its work helping veterans through their rehabilitation programs at Cantigny. Elk Grove-based nonprofit RevelationGolf is small but it does big work, especially with disabled veterans. Cantigny Golf has been a RevelationGolf partner since 2010, conducting monthly clinics for veterans with disabilities. The clinics serve veterans from Edward Hines Jr. Veteran Affairs Hospital in Maywood and Jesse Brown Veteran Affairs Medical Center in Chicago. Cantigny’s head golf professional, Patrick Lynch, works with veterans personally and considers it an honor. The partnership with RevelationGolf shows once again that golf is more than just a game – it can be transformative. Some of the veterans are just getting back to golf while others are new to the game. Some participants are blind or struggle with PTSD. Many rely on modified and adaptive equi...

In time for the observance of the 100th anniversary of World War I, Dr. Jeff Gusky launches a wonderful photo exhibit, The Hidden World of WWI . The exhibit reveals the folk art of World War I soldiers of all nations left in long-forgotten bunkers, fortifications and caves that Gusky has explored. Included are images from an abandoned root cellar at Cantigny, France, that once was occupied by doughboys of the US First Division.  Former underground city beneath the trenches. Picardy, France. © 2013, Jeffrey Gusky. All Rights Reserved. Jeffrey Gusky, c/o attorney at P.O. Box 2526, Addison, TX 75001-2526. photos@jeffgusky.com Gusky has discovered simple graffiti by soldiers who recorded their presence and their survival thus far, as well as elaborate evocative sculptures by soldiers who surely spent weeks or months underground. His work is two layers of art – the poignancy of the soldier art itself, and the excellence of his photographic images. Carving reads 'Liberty leav...

On Saturday, March 8, 2014, Staff Sergeant Walter D. Ehlers, an honorable man, soldier, mentor and Medal of Honor recipient, was laid to rest at Riverside National Cemetery near Los Angeles, CA. Among the many dignitaries who came to pay their respects were about a dozen Medal of Honor recipients. Staff Sergeant Ehlers received his Medal of Honor for conspicuous service above and beyond the call of duty on June 9 and 10, 1944, in Normandy, France, just past deadly Omaha beach, which he had crossed on D-Day, June 6. Walt was a devoted veteran of the 1st Infantry Division and a friend of our First Division Museum at Cantigny Park in Wheaton, Illinois. We owed him this final farewell. The weather was beautiful, the setting sublime, the eulogies touching, the 1st Division honor guard perfect. The day was not about the Medal but the man. Walt fought in many campaigns besides Normandy, and was wounded and decorated many times. Walt was proudest of getting his squad over Omaha beach ...