It was the Roaring Twenties - a time of

change. For the rst time, more Americans

lived in cities than on farms. World War
I was over, and people wanted to have a
good time despite prohibition. Women had
just won the vote, and Henry Ford and mass
production made it possible to buy a Ford for
$290. In 1925, hemlines went up, way up. So
revolutionary was this change that the
Archbishop of Naples believed
that short skirts were the
cause of an Italian
earthquake.
Oak Park was still a young suburb in 1920.
The budding community would swell to
almost twice its size by the end of the decade.
In 1921, city planners gave the go ahead to
build an elegant hotel/apartment building in
Oak Park at the corner of Washington Blvd.
and Oak Park Ave.
The hotel was named the Oak Park Arms,
and it became the epitome of style, grace and
sophistication.
The grand opening took place on a
Thursday evening in late April, 1922. Menus
for the formal dinner were written in French
on ivory parchment paper with the gold-
crusted crest of The Arms.
The local paper said,
The beauty of the
luxurious new
h o t e l
was only surpassed by the exquisitely colored evening gowns
and handsome formal attire of the ladies and gentlemen in
attendance. Throughout the evening an orchestra furnished
music for dancing and gracious selections by vocalists and
dancers were appreciatively applauded.
Many things impressed the guests that evening from the
elegant ballroom to the smartly appointed smoking room
for men. The ve-story building had elevators, 94 spacious
apartments and ten community rooms in which guests could
entertain. The new structure featured luxury style living
with units furnished with full kitchens, dining rooms, private
bathrooms and ample closet space.
The accommodations included maid service, dishes, silver-
ware and all household linens. It was a perfect place for
a long, relaxing visit, or to live permanently, which
many did.
It was only a year later that The Arms
became a pioneer in radio. WTAY (Wireless
Tunes Await You) was broadcast
from the ballroom from 6:15-
8:15 p.m., ve days a week.
See HISTORY
on page 2
OAK PARK ARMS
AT 90 YEARS OLD
Youve come a long way, baby
by jill wagner
SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION
36 Wednesday Journal, May 2, 2012 Special Advertising Section
Individual wellness is the order of the
day at the Oak Park Arms. With three
levels of care under one roof, residents
are able to have a well-balanced, active
lifestyle. The levels are Independent
Living, Supportive Options and Assisted
Living.
Independent Living
Supporting residents in an independent
lifestyle takes teamwork, and the rental
apartments are designed exclusively for
seniors. The Independent Living program
utilizes the entire building, and its tai-
lored for people aged 55 and older.
Living independently has been really
nice, said John Hein. I get all my
meals in the restaurant, the maids take
care of my linens and clean my apart-
ment and nobody bothers me. If I need
a ride somewhere, I ask the driver. If I
cannot read ne print on something, I
ask a friend or a staff member for help.
If I want to go to a concert, I just go
downstairs and enjoy myself.
I like that someone checks on me
every day, said resident Sharon Sugrue.
In my house, I had nice neighbors, but
I still felt isolated. Now I come and go
when I like. I drive to see my grand-
kids all the time, and I get to help my
daughter around her house.
Since the building was once a hotel,
there are many different apartment sizes.
People have a variety of choices for the
best t for their lifestyle. As part of the
Oak Park Arms social model of care, extra
assistance can be put in place for people
when they need a little extra help while
in an Independent Living apartment.
Supportive Options
Supportive Options is a program for
independent residents who need private
and personal assistance within their in-
dividual apartments. These care services
could include shower assistance, medi-
cation reminders and more. Frequently,
with this support, a resident is able to
remain independent.
The Supportive Options program en-
ables lots of residents to live securely
without having to be a part of a more
intensive service program, said Judy
Peterson, Life Enrichment Director.
Assisted Living
Assisted Living at the Oak Park Arms
is licensed and is fully credentialed. There
is frequent training for the care atten-
dants and administrators to keep abreast
of new trends and techniques.
Assisted Living operates on the 2nd
oor. The program offers residents the
comfort of privacy and familiarity of
home with the peace of mind that support
is nearby. Trained healthcare profession-
als are stationed on the premises 24 hours
a day for monitoring, assistance, daily
tasks and to handle emergency situations.
Everyone in assisted living has a per-
sonal care plan that is created by the
individual receiving services and with
the help of the support staff, said
Enrichment Coordinator Judy Peterson.
We value the individual spirit and enjoy
adapting our offerings to meet each per-
sons needs.
Residents receive contact at least every
two hours. In addition to wake-up and
tuck-in assistance, residents can receive up
to four medication reminders daily and a
personal escort to all meals and activities.
Assistance in bathing, laundry and house-
keeping are part of Assisted Living.
Customized packages can be added or
created to meet individual needs.
If additional assistance is needed, resi-
dents can call the caregiver from their
house phone. For added security all
Assisted Living residents wear a discrete
call button as a necklace or as a watch in
the event of a more serious problem.
One of the greatest benets to living
in the Oak Park Arms Assisted Living is
that residents are able to remain active
and social, Peterson said. Living with
assistance should not change ones life.
People can be escorted to as many activi-
ties as they choose, and there is always
something going on.
Our mission is to enable our residents
to age in a healthy and productive way,
said Executive Director Moses Williams.
THREE LEVELS
OF CARE
by jill wagner
Billiards is another way residents are able to remain active and social at the Oak Park Arms.
Courtesy of PETERWAGNER
408 South Oak Park Avenue, Oak Park, Illinois 60302
Call 708.386.4040 to schedule your personal tour,
or go to www.oakparkarms.com
EQUAL HOUSING
OPPORTUNITY
TTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT
he award-winning Oak
Park Arms has offered
the best service and value in
independent and assisted
living for more than 25 years.
Suites, Stuios, 1 Beroom
L 2 Beroom pts.
Iull Service Restaurant
300 Monthly Social Lvents
Short 7erm Stays
24 Hour Stajj ssistance
^eu rehal jacilities an 1ellness Center nou open!
In the center oj Oah Parh surroune ly shops, restaurants an cultural attractions
ITS ALL AT THE ARMS!
Sunset Boulevard
Adapted for radio and performed live on stage with music, and sound effects.
Sunday, February 17 s 2:00 PM
30
ITS ALL AT THE ARMS!
When your loved ones
need care at home, turn to
Interim HealthCare.
Weve been providing the highest quality
in-home care services for more than 40 years.
Recovering from an accident, illness or injury can be a trying time for individuals and their
families. The goal of Interim HealthCare is to allow patients to recover in their homes and to
reach their maximum independence.
Developing a successful home rehabilitation program requires a team approach. Interim
HealthCare offers a full rehab team of nurses and therapists who work closely with the physicians
and listen carefully to the preferences and unique needs of the family.
For more information about our services call us today.
Elmhurst, Oak Park, and Oak Lawn
(708) 422-2934
www.interimhealthcare.com
Trusted. By Patients
and Their Families.
People you can count on; Care you can trust.
H E A L T H C A R E
Elmhurst, Oak Park, and
Oak Lawn
(708) 422-2934
People you can count on; Care you can trust.
H E A L T H C A R E
Elmhurst, Oak Park, and
Oak Lawn
(708) 422-2934
Special Advertising Section Wednesday Journal, May 2, 2012 35
Windy City Carpet Service, Inc.
7414 W. Belmont Avenue | Chicago, Illinois
(773) 237-4100 Fax (773) 237-4159
www.windycitycarpets.com
Commercial & Residential Carpet Sales Expert Installations
Congratulations on
wonderful
years!
90
90
RADIO
from page 6
broadcast, although the number of listen-
ers is questionable.
As radio audiences switched to televi-
sion, radio stations redened themselves.
WOPA offered ethnic programming, be-
coming a more demographically specic
ratio station.
Gene Doretti, the 30-year veteran from
WGN Radio, hosted a show on WOPA
during the 50s. It is widely rumored
that Pat Sajak , of Wheel of Fortune,
worked at WOPA an engineer as well as
Ed Curran the Channel 2 weather man.
Other radio legends, like Pervis Spann
the Blues Man also started here with
his 15 minute segment on McKeNTs All
Night Round-Up. Spann would go on
to entertain on the radio and promote
hundreds of concerts in Chicago and the
U.S. Eventually he purchased WON
1450 AM, the citys oldest urban radio
station and the only African American
talk radio station in Chicago.
In the mid 60s times were a chang-
ing. The FCC decreed that the simul-
cast AM and FM stations would have to
separate programming at least 50% of the
broadcast time. It was a perfect time
for WOPA to cater to a younger audi-
ence looking for alternative music. Once
again the Oak Park Arms station was at
the forefront of new trends in rock n
roll, R&B, jazz and blues music. Almost
overnight the station came up with the
necessary separate programing.
Some locals may recall the gravelly-
voiced Big Bill Hill broadcast his show
from his blues club The Howln Wolf
- on Roosevelt Road on Chicagos west
side. All the Chicago blues legends of the
era were featured on this show including
Elmo James and Muddy Waters. Also,
Big Bill Hill hosted a dance show on
WCIU called The Red Hot and Blues,
and its said this was the inspiration for
Soul Train.
Two of the disk jockeys were college
students, from the University of Chicago
and University of Illinois, Ryan in the
Night and Ron Collaro. In addition
a mysterious host, dressed in a black
cape, goatee and plastered hair named,
Scorpio, would spin albums. His show
aired underground psychedelic Rock. For
the rst time, night time radio waves
played the latest from Moby Grape,
the Doors, the Yardbirds, Cream and
Chicago-style music.
It was in 1969 WOPA FM changed its
call letters to WGLD-FM Solid Gold
Oldies or W-Gold. The more progres-
sive programming expanded its playing
time until 6 am. During the daytime
Luqui would play Pop hits and Top 40
hits. The new popular disc-jockey per-
sonalities were rebellious and distinctively
targeting a younger urban contemporary
market.
Another show during this time was
called The Femme Forum with Morgan
Moore and Pat Cassidy . This shocking
radio program featured everything and
anything including the forbidden. Fined
from the FCC, Sodermeyer was non-
plussed and kept the show airing week
after week. At the time Station Engineer
Len Petrulis said he received more in ad-
vertising then from the nes and was
instructed to continue to air the risky
material. Finally the show was tempered
by the FCC when it threatened to pull
the radio stations license.
Just four years later, W-Gold became
so successful that it began broadcasting
its programs on the AM side as WBMX-
AM (Black Music Experience). Some
ethic programs remained in the rotation,
mainly on weekends.
In 1986 the FM band 102.7 WBMX
(Black Music experience) was sold and
moved out of the Oak Park Arms. It
became todays V103. The AM stations
license was transferred to the Polish
National Alliance which received new call
letters WPNA which is the current
station.
WPNA AM 1490 broadcasts mainly in
Polish on weekdays. The Oak Park Arms
hosts an annual Polka Party with a live
broadcast from the ballroom of the retire-
ment community. The station still sup-
ports international cast including the Irish
music hours of the Hagerty Family Irish
Program and the Mike OConner Show.
The Isley Brothers visit theWBMX station
Congratulations
to the
Oak Park
Arms
(708) 386-3100
34 Wednesday Journal, May 2, 2012 Special Advertising Section
A
century ago, radio was the acme
of technology. Prior to Pandora,
iPods, music videos and television,
radio was king. Radio entertained
families, informed people of the news,
advertised for large corporations and
catapulted the careers of countless mu-
sicians and singers.
Oak Park was part of the pioneer-
ing legacy of radio. It was 1924 when
Oak Park became the rst suburb to
broadcast radio. It could boast a signal
that could be heard a thousand miles
distant.
This AM radio station - WTAY
(Wireless Tunes Await You) - was
broadcast from the ballroom of the
Oak Park Arms Hotel. On the stations
inaugural night, radio celebrities from
KYW and the
Edgewater Beach
Hotels WBEH
were featured, and
the public was invited to
meet these stars in person.
WTAY broadcast from 6:30-
8:30 p.m. ve nights a week.
Directed by Hugh B. Marshall, a
well-known studio manager, the
stations programs became wildly
popular with listeners who tuned
in from as far away as Alabama
and Oklahoma.
People felt great excitement
when the station made itself ac-
cessible to amateurs with dreams
of a radio career. Every Friday
afternoon a station representative
came to the Oak Park Arms
to audition any hopeful
musician or singer
who wished to try
out for a spot on
the program.
Pretty Miss
Helen Rauch
was the mu-
sical director
and announcer
for WTAY,
the only female
announcer in
the entire region.
She often had to
step-in and perform
herself, by singing
or playing piano, when
artists were paralyzed with
radio fright.
The Rusty Rudders was
one local group that made
it. The Rudders was com-
prised of young men from
Austin and Oak Park who
danced and entertained
accompanied by an orches-
tra and Dick Allworth on
banjo.
However popular the
radio programs were,
WTAY was purchased
in 1925 and moved to
Chicago.
Radio would contin-
ue to grow in popu-
larity and by 1935,
two out of three
American homes had
radios. All broad-
casts were AM
only; there was no
FM. Popular shows
were centerpieces
for families and
children who
adored Amos
n Andy, the
Shadow, Lux
Radio Theater,
Dick Tracy and
Little Orphan
Annie.
In 1947 there were 40 million radios
in the U.S. and 44,000 televisions, but
by the end of the 1950s, televisions
surpassed radios as the primary source of
news and entertainment. Many of the
popular radio shows and stars moved to
television including Jack Benny, Lucille
Ball, Amos n Andy and dozens of
other stars. Radio was no longer the
leading national entertainment medium.
In 1949 German-born Egmont
Sonderling became a partner in William
Kleins Village Broadcasting Company
which was granted permits for new
AM and FM bands. Radio airwaves
returned to Oak Park Arms in 1950,
and WOPA-AM and WOPA-FM were
born. Sonderling would later purchase
the stations from Kline and expand
WOPA to a successful radio operation.
Soderling quickly hired Wayne
Osborne, a 1936 Pittsburgh Pirates
pitcher, who became a radio announcer
and interviewer for the Chicago Cubs
on WIND in the 40s.
Osbornes voice would be recognized
on WOPA for the next 30 years in com-
mercials, announcements, news pitches
and at times, he would alter his voice to
give the impression that they were done
by different announcers.
Listeners in the 1950s might recall his
nightly show called The 1490 Club.
Callers, mainly teenagers would dedi-
cate songs to their girl friends, boy-
friends, or play practical jokes. Molly
Hurley King, a student at Trinity in the
late 50s recalled, You would phone
the station and if you got lucky and
got through, you could dedicate a song
to someone. Sometimes, if you were
breaking up with someone, you could
call the station and dedicate a whos
sorry now type song. You had to
listen because when you got to school
on Monday, everyone would be talking
about the names mentioned. It was lots
of innocent fun.
Osborne experimented on radio and
was the rst person to broadcast a
golf tournament. From his golf cart
in Columbus Park, he led the remote
See RADIO on page 7
Call Roz Byrne from RE/MAX In The Village
for a free consultation at 708-370-7444
HAVE YOU LIVED IN YOUR
HOME FOR 30 YEARS OR MORE?
Would you like to get moving but are afraid of the current real
estate market? Retirees real estate specialist Roz Byrne of
RE/MAX In The Village sold an impressive 30 homes last year
and more than half of them were the homes of long-time owners.
Ive held the rare Seniors Real Estate Specialist (SRES)
designation since 2006, says Roz Byrne, My favorite group
of people to serve are retirees and their families.
In e Village, Realtors

Tank you for your

dedication to the
communities we serve.
WBMX (standing for Black Music Experience) started broadcasting
out of Oak Park in 1973 and later became todays V103.
by jill wagner
Special Advertising Section Wednesday Journal, May 2, 2012 33 32 Wednesday Journal, May 2, 2012 Special Advertising Section
E. W. CUMMINGS
REAL ESTATE OFFICE
OAK PARK
VILLAGE HALL
SCOVILLE INSTITUTE
EISENHOWER
EXPRESSWAY
LAKE STREET
GILMORES
DEPARTMENT STORE
LAKE STREET
LAKE STREET
YMCA BUILDING
OAK PARK
POST OFFICE
RANDOLPH AND
MAPLE PARK
MARION STREET
WORLD WAR I
MONUMENT
E.A. Cummings Real Estate ofce designed by
Frank Lloyd Wright in 1905 located at the northwest
corner of Lake Street and Harlem Avenue.
Photo courtesy of Oak Park River Forest Historical Society
Oak Parks original Village Hall
located at the southeast corner of
Lake Street and Euclid Avenue
Photo courtesy of Oak Park River Forest Historical Society
The original Oak Park Public Library, the Scoville Institute
was built in 1888 and was located at the northwest
corner of Lake Street and Grove Avenue
Photo courtesy of Oak Park River Forest Historical Society
View of Lake Street looking west
from Marion Street in 1941.
Photo courtesy of Oak Park River Forest Historical Society
Eisenhower expressway under construction in the
late 1950s when the Oak Park Arms was busy
with guests, receptions and showers.
Photo courtesy of Oak Park River Forest Historical Society
View of Lake Street looking east from
Marion Street in 1941.
Photo courtesy of Oak Park River Forest Historical Society
Streetcar looking west on Lake Street
at Forest Avenue in 1947.
Photo courtesy of Oak Park River Forest Historical Society
The original YMCA building was located at
Oak Park Avenue just north of Lake Street
on the east side of the street.
Photo courtesy of Oak Park River Forest Historical Society
The original Oak Park Post Ofce located at the northeast
corner of Lake Street and oak Park Avenue, replaced in 1936
by the current post ofce on Lake Street a few blocks west.
Photo courtesy of Oak Park River Forest Historical Society
This Tot Lot was a great place for children
to play in the 1920s located at the south west
corner of Randolph and Maple.
Photo courtesy of Oak Park River Forest Historical Society
View of Marion Street in 1923 looking north,
one year after the Oak Park Arms opened.
Photo courtesy of Oak Park River Forest Historical Society
The World War I Monument, Peace Triumphant, located
in Scoville Park, was dedicated on Armistice Day in 1925,
just three years after the Oak Park Arms opened.
Photo courtesy of Oak Park River Forest Historical Society
Gilmores Department Store located at
the southwest corner of Lake Street
and Oak Park Avenue circa 1930.
Photo courtesy of Oak Park River Forest Historical Society
OAK PARK ARMS
PRESENT DAY
Special Advertising Section Wednesday Journal, May 2, 2012 31
One of the top fears of aging people
is becoming isolated and/or disabled.
New research points to social activities
being one of the preventative ways to
age gracefully. Physical activity, proper
nutrition, mental stimulation, personal
safety and socialization are all necessary
for a healthy life.
Reaching out to others and spending
time socializing is fundamental to a pro-
ductive, healthy life. In fact, the most
socially connected older adults are three
times as likely to report very good or
excellent health.
Social activity has long been rec-
ognized as an essential component of
healthy aging, but now we have strong
evidence that it is also related to better
everyday functioning and less disability
in old age, said lead researcher Bryan
James, Ph.D., postdoctoral fellow in the
epidemiology of aging and dementia at
the Rush Alzheimers Disease Center, in
his report.
Experts say that seniors who enjoy
an active social life often extend their
lives by years. There are an abundance of
benets for socializing other than life
extension - stress reduction, a feeling
of importance, and a feeling of high
self esteem. Also an active social life
appears to delay memory loss as people
age. Strong social ties, through friends,
family and community groups, can
preserve brain health in older adults.
Having access to social engagements
becomes more challenging as people age.
They may not be able to drive, walk long
distances, hear or see very well or may
have lost friends and family to death.
Well, nobody is better at social inter-
action that the Oak Park Arms which
offers more than 300 monthly activities
and events. Almost all events are free
and open to all members of the local area
as well as to residents of the Arms.
Some Oak Park Arms activities are
geared to pleasure such as musical pro-
grams like the Monday Night Concert
Series, plays, movies, recitals or the radio
theater productions. Sharing some of
these pleasures leads to companionship as
well as relaxation.
Building relationships occurs through
interactive games such as BINGO,
Scrabble, Chess, Pinochle, Bunco, Billiards
and Kings in the Corner. In addition,
card and game groups meet several times
during the week and give the players
an opportunity to use mental power and
strengthen friendships.
Arts are very important at the
Oak Park Arms. The Narrow Gallery
features the works of local artists with
an art opening and reception every other
month. Guest artists also make special
presentations during their exhibit to the
residents to teach techniques or introduce
a new medium. Residents and the public
enjoy a myriad of art classes.
Using the Oak Park Arms Lifelong
Learning Center, residents can stimulate
their own creativity through weaving,
dancing, ceramics, jewelry making,
painting, singing in the Oak Park
Arms Chorus, needlepoint and/or wood
working.
So not only does having friends make
a person feel good, it makes him or
her healthy, too. It may take a little
planning and effort to stay engaged,
but the rewards are great. Taking steps
everyday to maintain, increase or
improve ones social life is healthy, wise
and wonderful.
FRIENDSHIPS
FLOURISH AT THE
OAK PARK ARMS
by jill wagner
Sheryl E. Fuhr
& Associates
Experience. Dependability. Knowledge.
Attorneys specializing in Wills, Trusts, Estates, Elder Exploitation,
Will and Trust Contests, Probate and Guardianship Litigation
SuiTE 2200
20 N. CLArk STrEET
ChiCAGo, iL 60602
TEL: (312) 263-1234
FAx: (312) 263-4321
SuiTE 3
oAk PArk ArmS
oAk PArk, iL 60301
TEL: (708) 848-8484
FAx: (708) 848-8485
Dancing, just one form of exercise and entertainment that comes with living at the Arms.
Courtesy of PETERWAGNER
30 Wednesday Journal, May 2, 2012 Special Advertising Section
HISTORY
from page 1
The station broadcasted nothing but
high class talent. Name bands would
play everything from light classics
like Parade of the Wooden Soldiers
to 20s jazz hits like Avalon and
Whispering.
WTAY was directed by well-known
Studio Manager Hugh B. Marshall, and
his program became wildly popular with
listeners tuning in from as far away as
Alabama and Oklahoma.
The hotel quickly became recognized as
a key social center in Oak Park. Galas,
card parties, luncheons, wedding recep-
tions and meetings of all kinds were
routinely held at The Arms. Each week
various groups such as the Lions Club
met in the Georgian Room for lunch.
By the late 1920s, the Oak Park Arms
was doing so well that a massive expan-
sion project was begun. An annex, which
would virtually double the size of the
building, was started just as the 1929
stock market crash happened, and the
Great Depression began.
The expansion was halted, and the
steel structure would stand for nearly
two decades before investors returned
and building resumed in the late 1940s.
In 1936 First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt
stayed at The Arms while in town for
speaking engagements at Rosary College
and Oak Park River Forest High School.
According to the Chicago Tribune,
Mrs. Roosevelt said, We citizens should
familiarize ourselves the needs of our own
communities and understand governmen-
tal procedures. If we know these needs,
we can tell if there are differences in
working conditions. We may know those
who govern our own jobs but not those
of others.
She then returned to the Oak Park
Arms and found a Cicero couple, the
Alloways, celebrating their golden wed-
ding anniversary. Mr. Alloway kissed
the rst ladys hand, and Mrs. Alloway
kissed Mrs. Roosevelt on the cheek.
When this addition was completed
in 1949, it provided additional banquet
rooms, meeting rooms, a medical center,
drug store and beauty shop. The hotel
had expanded by 60 percent.
In 1952 a transmitting tower was put
on top of the Arms, and station WOPA
began to broadcast as did WOPAs
sister station - WGLD-FM. Teenagers
especially were entertained by the
modern radio station and would call in
to request songs.
The 1950s and 1960s were the glory
days of The Arms. Once again it was
the premier place for banquets, meet-
ings, proms and wedding receptions.
In 1953 the national trade publication
Hotel Monthly highlighted The Oak
Park Arms and in the article, The Arms
Manager Tracy Kohl commented on the
new artistic dcor of the Carolina Room
which was often the setting for social
and business gatherings.
It is not unusual to have as many
as 15 functions in the nine available
rooms on a single Saturday, Kohl said
in the story.
However, by the 1970s new hotel
chains were springing up in nearby sub-
urbs, chains that could offer lower rates,
perks and entertainment with liquor. Oak
Park itself was undergoing personality
changes and alterations in its social order.
In 1973 the hotels future was in doubt
when the building changed hands to a
group of owners, two of whom had links
to the Chicago crime syndicate.
The hotel changed hands once again in
the mid-1970s when it was purchased by
two friends who wanted to create active
retirement living in a community that
would be full of life, service and spirit.
The new management recognized the
value of The Arms and was on the fore-
front of a trend. The building had always
featured full apartments with kitchens
and dining rooms. It was a natural step
to refocus and serve the people who were
permanent residents and build a commu-
nity around their needs rather than serv-
ing visitors.
The partners decided to add services and
hire a full time activity director to bring
events and activities to the community. By
1977, a full lifestyle was offered which
included maid service, three meals a day
and a busy schedule of social activities.
The vision and experience of the two
men created The Arms of today, an ideal
combination of exceptional senior care and
an ideal setting. For 30 years, the Oak
Park Arms has been the leader of senior
living and the model in the development
of other senior communities.
Todays activities include day trips, lec-
tures, art classes, movie discussions, en-
tertainment, dance classes, an array of
tness opportunities, religious programs
and socials.
The Arms shares space with the Oak
Park Township Senior Services and the
Lifelong Learning Center (the local
Senior Center). It provides ofce space
for more than ten other providers of se-
nior-centered care.
Winner of multiple awards, the Oak
Park Arms has maintained its original
charm. It is an affable and affordable
home for older adults and a great resource
to Oak Park, River Forest, Forest Park,
Berwyn, Cicero, Riverside, Elmwood
Park, Maywood and Chicago.
The Oak Park Arms events and activ-
ities draw people of all ages. Frequently
the large ballroom is alive with the
sound of music at monthly ballroom
dances for residents and the public.
The original vision continues to this
day as the Oak Park Arms is still owned
and operated by the same two men who
created it. Each remains involved and
committed to excellence. Together, they
offer strong support to the management
and staff, ensuring that The Arms con-
tinues as an industry leader with a legacy
of eminence and distinction.
Providing Neuropsychological
Evaluations for various neurological,
medical, and emotional concerns. In
older adults, assessment determines
whether cognitive changes are due to
normal aging or represent a specifc
dementia, and offers recommendations
to improve functioning. Medicare and
other insurances accepted.
137 N. Oak Park Ave., Suite 207A
Oak Park, IL
PH(708) 434-1264
F (708) 434-0494
erinhill@sageneuropsychology.com
www.sageneuropsychology.com
Sage
Neuropsychology
Consultants
Erin K.
Hill
PsyD, ABPP
Board Certied
Clinical
Neuropsychologist
AGE-OLD
AD-AGE
Coinciding with the opening
of the Oak Park Arms,
advertisements exclaimed that
no expense was spared in
the construction of the hotel,
equipped with automatic
electric elevators, vacuum
cleaning systems and
articial refrigeration systems.
During construction, ads
invited investors to take
advantage of a local security
of real merit with 7%
serial gold bonds. Another
advertisement emphasized the
Oak Park Arms cosmopolitan
restaurant as an alternative
to hosting a dinner party
at home, if, for instance,
the maid were out.
CONGRATULATIONS
1003 Madison St.
Oak Park IL
708-386-6304
to the
on your
from
90
th
Anniversary