My eldest graduated from high school in 2020, my middle graduated from 8th grade and my youngest turned 10. My family had car parades for both graduates and we took socially distanced photos on our front lawn.
Photos by Lisa Geiger
Mount Prospect Historical Society retools and adapts during Pandemic
The Mount Prospect Historical Society studies history, of course, and objectively knew about the Great Flu Pandemic of 1918. But its leaders didn’t expect to be struck by another pandemic today, any more than the rest of the public did. We were past those kinds of concerns, weren’t we?
But during March of 2020 it became apparent that residents of this planet weren’t past them and the Society shut its doors, just like every other entity.
During the rest of 2020 and at least the first half of 2021 the Society has adapted. Board meetings have been held online via Zoom and, during the warm months, on the Society’s driveway with everyone sitting six feet apart. They held a retirement farewell for their 17-year veteran Office Manager outside on the driveway and hired new staff via virtual first interviews and socially-distanced second interviews and by the fall of 2020 had welcomed three new staff members to their team.
Society activities were largely cancelled – no Spring Dinner; a bus trip to the Robie House and the Pullman neighborhood postponed multiple times; no 2020 Housewalk – the list goes on and on.
But the Society also got innovative. They quickly put together five different neighborhood walking tours using information collected over preceding years for the Housewalk and posted them on their website for people to download for free and enjoy while walking for exercise and entertainment. The tours’ availability was publicized via lawn signs posted along the various routes and continue to be immensely popular.
The Society’s summer camps for children were successfully done virtually with parents picking up materials in our Education Center breezeway and then having their children participate via Zoom. They also managed to have a Blacksmith demonstration on the Society’s driveway for members of the public to enjoy. Their enthusiastic new Office Manager, Amanda Marcus, even put new emphasis on the marketing and sale of unique, themed “Sammy Skobel’s Hot Dogs” and “Hotter Than Mother’s Pinball” t-shirts via the Society’s social media outlets, bringing in over $1,000 in sales during late 2020 and early 2021.
The Society also kept its membership informed by holding a virtual Annual Meeting in March 2021 (instead of the usual Soup or Chili Supper in the Village Hall) and publishing their financial report in the Society’s spring newsletter.
But the Society’s biggest victory was the Virtual Dollhouse Walk which their new director, Emily Dattilo, constructed around five wonderful Society-owned dollhouses from different eras and one fabulous dollhouse owned by a former Housewalk participant, Julie Michalik.
The Society’s videographer Board member Ed Johnson used his incredible skill, patience and equipment to create a narrated tour from a doll’s scaled-down perspective which they were able to post on the Society’s website and ask viewers around the country to enjoy for $10 per household. Their usual realtor Housewalk sponsors even chipped in sponsorship money and all-told, during the months of December, January and February, the Society pulled in $2181.53 to help keep them afloat. A total of 126 viewers paid to see the featured dollhouses.
“It has been a difficult time which has forced us to pivot and adapt, but we have done just that and have ample reason to take pride in our accomplishments,” said Deb Rittle, Society president.
“We have also forged a partnership with the Village, the Public Library and both of the Village’s primary park districts to virtually record for the future the reality of the pandemic’s impact on the people of Mount Prospect in essays, testimonials, photos, artwork and videos. That work continues,” added Marilyn Genther, Society vice president, and chairman of the Pandemic Reflections project.
Sidewalk mini-libraries sharing books and food
The concept of building and erecting small birdhouse-style structures and turning them into lending libraries for neighbors and passersby was born in Wisconsin in 2009 and since then the idea has taken off like a wildfire with numerous groups and individuals adopting the idea and both building and erecting them around the country. The idea is to take a book and leave a book, too.
Locally, Joey Carbone’s name has become synonymous with the idea. His wife, Jen, read about the concept and asked him if he would build one for her and, the rest, as they say, is history!
“I do not have a background in carpentry,” Carbone admitted. “Everything that I know, I learned from my father who doesn’t have a background in carpentry either but is the handiest person I know. When I was young, I would watch him every chance I got, whether he was fixing a hole in the wall or building a desk. He taught me everything and still teaches me to this day. He even helps build mini libraries for us.”
Once friends and neighbors saw the Carbones’ mini-library, they began asking Joey to build custom little libraries for them, as well, and he obliged as much as he could, using donated materials and volunteer help from friends and neighborhood kids. He has never accepted pay for a library.
“People call me crazy for not charging for the libraries,” he continued, “but I don’t do it for the money. I do it simply because it is nice to be nice. Since we don’t charge anything for a library, we are able to reach more families. That’s what it’s all about — spreading the love of reading and knowledge and giving more access to literature. The payment I get is seeing the happy families enjoy the libraries and that is plenty for me.”
“We have all of our mini libraries in Mount Prospect, except for a few special cases. There is one at Dewey School in Evanston, another at a community garden on the south side of Chicago, and two that are technically in Des Plaines but are very, very close to Mount Prospect. We have a total of 61 mini libraries right now.”
And they are all unique neighborhood works of art, if you will – which get neighbors sharing and talking and helping one another.
“I couldn’t have done this without some wonderful and generous neighbors,” Carbone continued. “This has been a group effort in many ways. I have an amazing group of consistent volunteers that help cut wood, paint, even dig holes to install the mini libraries.”
“I’ve met so many wonderful, kind and generous people in our community and have even gained lifelong friends. I’ve also taught my two sons so much about woodworking, art, painting and philanthropy.”
While Carbone’s mini-library pre-dated the pandemic, the worldwide health crisis had an effect on it during 2020.
“The pandemic caused people to become more interested in the mini libraries — because it was a safe and fun thing to do,” Carbone said. “They are able to social distance, be outside and stay safe. This year we even had “contactless Halloween” where we had over 35 mini library “custodians” supply treats for kids that they could find via Google map.”
The Carbones and those with Carbone-built mini-libraries have even turned them into mini pantries during these difficult times.
“I had seen mini pantries online and since the pandemic made it especially hard for people to go grocery shopping, I thought we could help our community by turning our mini libraries into mini pantries,” he related. “Many helped by stocking canned goods, non-perishable foods, toilet paper, hand sanitizer and many other items in their libraries. These items were available to anyone who needed a little help with no questions asked. Everything is shared through our ‘MP Mini Library Mission’ Facebook group.”
In early February 2021 Carbone was honored for his mini-libraries by Mount Prospect’s Special Events Commission during its first-ever VIRTUAL Shining Stars Award ceremony. He received the “Home Town Award” which recognizes a group or individual that has done something special to promote the feeling of community or to further unify the diverse groups within the community and who exemplifies the village’s motto, “Where Friendliness is a Way of Life.”
