Inspiration for the Oak Park River Forest Community Foundation came from several concerned citizens: attorney Moore Peregrine, businessman Bob Follett, Oak Park Village attorney Art Thorpe, and others. Their initial goal was to improve derelict housing. In the mid-1950s residents watched a grand Victorian home along Oak Park Avenue deteriorate. Although that house was demolished before sufficient funds could be raised to save it, a small group of civic leaders and key donors forged ahead to create an organization that looked beyond housing to a broader desire to preserve the integrity of our villages.
1958 – story 1
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