Dear Friends and Neighbors,



Happy MLK Month!

After years of campaigning by activists, members of Congress, and Coretta Scott King, President Ronald Reagan signed a bill creating a U.S. federal holiday in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Observed on the third Monday of January; Martin was first celebrated in 1986.

MLK said: “Everyone has the power for greatness, not for fame but greatness because greatness is determined through service.”

During the month of January, many organizations celebrate MLK Day through service opportunities. Rush Generations, a free membership program that promotes health and longevity at the Rush University Medical Center, is answering MLK’s call to service with the following activities. Please consider joining one or more. 

Celebrate at a hybrid event: A lesson from Dr. King: Health Equity is Everyone's Business on Wednesday, January 17, at 1:00 pm. This panel discussion will bring together experts in the community to share how to work towards ensuring everyone has access to their highest level of health. Click here for more info.

Volunteer at the Feast of Fellowship: MLK Day Culinary Service to distribute 300 meals on Friday, January 19th, from 10:30 am-12:30 pm. Multiple volunteer roles are available (preparers, packers, and drivers)! Click here for more info.

Mentor with the Community Health Mentor Program. As a mentor, you will teach first-year graduate students about living with chronic conditions, as well as guiding them in becoming more informed and patient-centered practitioners. Community Health Mentors work with one interdisciplinary team of students to create and work towards a personal wellness goal.

All Community Health Mentor meetings with mentors and students will be on Zoom. Mentors receive up to $60 dollars in gift cards for participating in the training and all three meetings. The meeting dates are Wednesdays, January 24, February 14, and March 20, between 1 pm -6 pm for 60-90 minutes.

Click here for more info or email Hannah Weitzman, Program Coordinator, at hannah_weitzman@rush.edu.

Peace and Blessings for the New Year.

Skyline Village Chicago Board of Directors

Women's Salon

Cannabis and Health:

Understanding How Cannabis Can Help Us Live Well

with Melanie Dreher and Althea Northrage-Orr

Wednesday, January 10, 2024 7:00–8:15 pm Zoom 

REGISTER HERE

Join Melanie Dreher and Althea Northrage-Orr for a timely conversation about the long history of medical uses of cannabis and how it can improve our comfort and ability to handle some of the challenges of daily life.  

This program—cosponsored by LiveAgeWell in Edgewater, Edgewater Village, and Skyline Village Chicago—will expand our understanding of how medical cannabis works and provide practical information about how to secure and use it effectively. Email LAWProgram.RSVP@gmail.com for a Zoom link. Write “Cannabis and Health“ on Subject line.

The views expressed by the presenters are theirs alone and do not necessarily represent those of Skyline Village Chicago, Edgewater Village or LiveAgeWell .

Aging Alone Together

Monday, January 22, 2024

7:00-8:15 pm

Register HERE:

In partnership with National Council of Jewish Women and CJE Senior Life

Speakers Sharon Dornberg-Lee, Clinical Director of Community Services at CJE Senior Life, and her colleague Kate Maley, Leader of the Aging Together group and psychotherapist for CJE, will address ways to have a productive and enjoyable life as a solo ager, from both a practical and philosophical perspective. They will suggest ways to ask for and find help when it is needed, challenge the myth of independence, and engage our audience in discussion about where the stumbling blocks have been and helpful ways of dealing with them.

This program is being co-sponsored by CJE Senior Life and Skyline Village Chicago.

City Update

Alderman Brian Hopkins

Lucky Penny Lunch

Friday, January 26, 1:00 PM

Eggs Cafe

680 N. Lake Shore Drive

RSVP HERE

Join us for Alderman Hopkins’ updates on the city budget, the elected school board, public safety, asylum housing, Michigan Avenue, Redefining the Drive, the casino, Lincoln Yards, and other important city issues. There will be plenty of time for Q&A

Charnley-Persky House Museum

Tour Louis Sullivan & Frank Lloyd Wright's 1892 National Landmark

1365 North Astor Street

Wednesday, February 7, 2024, 12:00-1:00 PM

Gold Coast ✶ Streeterville ✶ Lincoln Park 

Old Town Clybourn Corridor ✶ River North

Free Tour. Tickets Limited. Registration Necessary

Register HERE

Designed by Louis Sullivan with assistance from his junior draftsman, Frank Lloyd Wright, the Charnley-Persky House (1891-1892) is recognized as a pivotal work of modern American architecture. The National Historic Landmark building serves as the headquarters of the Society of Architectural Historians. Tours are limited to 12 individuals. All visitors must be 12 or older. 

Please note that the Charnley-Persky House is not wheelchair accessible. The tour route includes a short flight of stairs into the courtyard, three steps to the front door, and a short flight of stairs into the house. There are two interior staircases. Visitors will use the main staircase between the first and second floors and the service staircase between the second floor and the basement.

The Board of the Charnley-Persky House Museum acknowledges that the Charnley-Persky House sits on a threshold between ceded and unceded land that is the traditional homeland of the Potawatomi. 

Contact info@skylinevillagechicago.org for more information or registration questions. 

Shawn Wilson, Chicago author

Lucky Penny Lunch

Friday, February 23, 2024, 1:00 PM

Eggs Cafe, 680 N. Lake Shore Drive

RSVP HERE

Shawn Wilson, Chicago author, published her first novel, Relentless, at the age of 70. Shawn Wilson is a successful Chicago-based mystery writer with two books published; she is currently working on the third in the series. Her protagonist is a Washington, DC-based police detective named Brick Kavanagh, who has been described as a “Bosch-like character.” Before Sharon moved to Chicago (Shawn is her pen name), she lived for 30+ years in Washington, DC. She worked for the US Marshals Service and the US Attorney’s office; while there, she earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Administration of Justice from American University. Her work experience also includes the Federal Bureau of Prisons and the Administrative Office of the US Courts. Her journey from her DC career to published author is just as interesting as her development of the Brick Kavanagh series. Chicago is featured in several chapters of her second novel, Duplicity. Watch for more Chicago in future novels.

Holiday Sing Along

November, 2023

Grow & Hide: The History of America's Health Care State

Colleen M. Grogan, PhD

Dr. Grogan discussed her sweeping history of the American healthcare state that reveals the public has been intentionally misled about the true role of government. The US government has always invested federal, state, and local dollars in public health protection and prevention. Despite this public funding, Americans typically believe the current system predominantly comprises private actors with little government interference. Watch Interview: New Books in Public Policy interview: https://newbooksnetwork.com/grow-and-hide. 

Join a Non-Audition Choir

 For information click here 

2024 Spring Repertoire

Our House, Graham Nash, arr. Ed Lojeski

Walkin’ My Baby Back Home, Turk/Ahlert, arr. Mac Huff

Fly Away Home, PinkZebra

I Bought Me A Cat, Trad. American folk song, arr. Aaron Copland/Irving Fine

Goin’ Home, Antonin Dvorak, arr. Paul Langford

Home on the Rock, David Foley / John Parker

Big House, Kyle Pederson

Home (from The Wiz), Charlie Smalls, arr. Beck / Spresser

A User’s Guide to Health-Related Services in the Home 

Center for Life and Learning

(click to register) 

Thursday, January 11, 11:30-12:30, Hybrid

Joan Richman Ente, AM, CDP, Care Director at Renewal Memory Partners

Cost: FREE for Members and non-members

This presentation is very practical and consumer oriented. The content explains the many different (and often overlapping) services that provide health related services to those who are aging in place. We'll look at the differences between home health care, non-medical home care and companionship care and the general costs of each. Criteria for hiring and selecting providers will be discussed, as well as best strategies for coordinating services with medical providers.

The Making of The Great Museums of Paris (click to register) 

Every Thursday at 12 pm Central Time in Chicago/1 pm Eastern Time in Miami/19h Central European Time in Paris – From January 11 through February 22, 2024 Following the success of Grands Châteaux of the Loire and Ile-de-France, The Making of the French Gardens and The Great Churches of Paris series of online talks, our curator extraordinaire, Russell Kelley returns to offer an enthralling new series about an essential pillar of France’s cultural heritage: the extraordinary museums that were established in Paris starting during the Revolution and continuing through the end of the 19th century. We know you will love The Making of the Great Museums of Paris!

Life on the Pond The Photography of Bob Benenson

The Photography of Bob Benenson Showcasing the photography of journalist Bob Benenson, Life on the Pond gives us a glimpse into the thriving habitat of North Pond amid the majestic silhouette of Chicago’s Skyline. Seniors: $10 2430 N. Cannon Dr., Chicago IL 60614 | Hours: Sunday-Saturday, 10am-4pm | Search Website

Two messages from elders in retirement communities tell of serving others. We thank them for showing us how to be happy in our old age. 

Helping Others at The Osborn

by Aunt Janet via Regan Burke

My 90-something Aunt Janet leads me on excursions through her retirement community with her lively emails. This month’s message is particularly inspiring as she describes how she serves others. 

“There are so many opportunities to help people less fortunate than oneself.

They fall into many categories:

The "newbies": newcomers who have just moved in, don't know the lay of the land, how to find the dining rooms or the exercise rooms, how to make a dinner reservation, how to meet others. Leading them onto safe ground where they can easily handle all of the above is a welcome service and takes many hours of patience.

There are also the shy ones who take much longer to acclimatize themselves to a new way of life and take more of our patience in assisting them. Then there are those at the other end of the spectrum: those who have spent many happy years here and now find themselves declining mentally and can no longer find their way around, make reservations, care for themselves, and adjust to a new way of life. They need help, and it takes patience to help them!

Life here is not: "Just relax and be catered to.” It is absolutely: "Pitch in and help yourself by helping others.  And have fun in the process!”

Welcome to The Highlands   

By Judy Karlov

By the time you read the first 2024 issue of this newsletter, I will have lived at The Highlands of Westminster Place for seven months. No one who knows me believed I would enjoy tearing myself away from the City of Chicago to move to The Burbs, but I do enjoy it, as long as the fabulous staff members and residents of Westminster Place surround me. I have made many friends in Assisted Living at The Highlands and Independent Living in the many other buildings on campus.



The one exception was when I found myself at Jewel-Osco without a way home and money on my MasterCard for a Lyft, thinking someone would arrive in a taxi and I would hail it. After twenty minutes, I realized people in the suburbs don’t take taxis to the Jewel. I called a staff member, who paged a driver, who came a short time later. Problem solved!

Having people to do my laundry, cooking, and trash removal has immeasurably reduced the pain in my crooked spine. Exercise classes in Chair Zumba, Balance, and Warm Water Exercises have kept me limber. Group meetings, including monthly book and topical discussion groups, keep my mind active. Having lively discussions at lunch and dinner daily keeps me from the loneliness of post-pandemic solo living. 

Four group outings to Ravinia kept me from missing Millennium Park in the summer, and one group outing (so far) to Lyric Opera kept me from missing the autumn culture season in Chicago.

If you can call it a regret, my one regret is that writing a lengthy document about things new residents should know caused me to become Chair of the Welcome Committee, eliminating my spare time in one fell swoop.

What did I look for in choosing an Assisted Living community? Number one for me was being told in 2017 that I would be a first-class citizen, as welcome in Independent Living activities as in Assisted Living ones. Best of all, finding that to be true. Another unique thing is that people, even those who have been here for many years like to move around at meals to get to know many others.

Come out for lunch and a tour of the campus. Bring a swimsuit if you wish. I want to show you around.

Palm Springs

Phyllis Mitzen

This December we traveled to Palm Springs for a week where we delighted in visiting Sunnylands, the Annenberg Estate with its glorious desert gardens. We sat on a replica of the Redwood Bench that President Obama presented to President Xi during their visit and meetings at the Sunnylands retreat. 

Then off to Joshua Tree National Park, a haven for rock climbers (note the person jumping from one rock to the next), and we stood in awe of overlooking a portion of the San Andreas Fault. We want to go back someday soon to do more hiking and picnicking there.    

Many of our friends are back to in-person as well as hybrid and

online classes and events.

Click into their newsletters and websites for information

• Beth Finke Memoir Writing Classes: Website
• Center for Life and Learning 4th Presbyterian Church: Website
• Mesulam Center for Cognitive Neurology and Alzheimer’s Disease: website
• Rush Generations Center for Excellence in Aging:  Website
• Streeterville Organization for Active Residents: Website 
• The Chicago Covenants Project: Website

The Chicago Covenants Project

The Chicago Covenants Project has found racial restrictive covenants on deeds in Streeterville, the Gold Coast and River North. If you live in these neighborhoods, you probably have a document attached to your deed stating that the owner will neither sell nor rent to “Negroes”. Like redlining, racial restrictive covenants perpetuated segregation across the city. Many of these covenants are still on property deeds, even if they are no longer enforceable.

Check your property deed at the Cook County Clerk’s office https://crs.cookcountyclerkil.gov/Search You can remove the racist language from covenants on your deed for no more than $10 within 30 days.

Thank you to our Donors:

We are grateful to all of our members and donors for your on-going support.

Artist: Anna Rappaport