Jeanette Fields: A Community Life

Jeanette Fields: A Community LifeJeanette Fields (1920 2014) lived at the forefront of Chicagos cultural life for more than 75 years. The list of organizations that Mrs. Fields nurtured, encouraged or led at their inception includes the South Shore Commission, Glessner House, Chicago School of Architecture Foundation (later Chicago Architecture Foundation), Frank Lloyd Wright Building Conservancy, Oak Park Visitors Center, Historical Society of Oak Park and River Forest, Pleasant

Jeanette Fields (1920 - 2014) lived at the forefront of ChicagoÕs cultural life for more than 75 years. The list of organizations that Mrs. Fields nurtured, encouraged or led at their inception includes the South Shore Commission, Glessner House, Chicago School of Architecture Foundation (later -Chicago Architecture Foundation), Frank Lloyd Wright Building Conservancy, Oak Park VisitorÕs Center, Historical Society of Oak Park and River Forest, Pleasant Home Foundation and Ernest Hemingway Foundation of Oak Park.
These organizations were founded on a shoestring and struggled for years. Their founders fought to keep the lights on; to keep the doors open, to gain visibility and public support. Some have grown to manage multi-million dollar budgets. Collectively these institutions contribute enormous value as catalysts for community development, tourism and education. They enhance ChicagoÕs reputation as an internationally respected cultural powerhouse. JeanetteÕs civic legacy was simply invaluable.