Oak Park group reevaluating goals

HELPING THE COMMUNITY—Oak Park Community Foundation members are, from left, vice president Risa Littman, president Eva Larson, past president David Ross, treasurer Diane Milavetz, and secretary Harvey Kern. Not pictured are Elaine Benditson, Sherwin Samuels, Karen Onifer, Mary Pallant, Jay Kapitz and Jerry Kaman. In existence since 1979, the Community Foundation for Oak Park is in the process of reevaluating its goals and is seeking advice from residents.

The Community Foundation's 11-member board also is seeking new participation.

"We would like input from new people and have them be part of this process, as opposed to bringing them on midstream or after we finish the process," foundation Vice President Risa Littman said. "It's a typical activity in a healthy organization to take a look at mission and strategy every few years. It hasn't been done in a long time."

The foundation recruits volunteers and raises money for community programs, including Friends of the Oak Park Library, parent-faculty clubs at Oak Park High and Medea Creek Middle schools, the Oak Park High Grad Night Committee and Oak Park Performing Arts Boosters. The group also conducts community election forums and provides college scholarships.

These organizations don't need to go through the paperwork and expense to file their nonprofit status and IRS forms, Littman said. The foundation manages their insurance to make sure they remain in compliance with the law. Each group submits minutes and financial reports, and the foundation reports on behalf of all the organizations that fall under its umbrella.

"The foundation does an important thing in maintaining nonprofit status and the political forums, but (we) need to take a look at what else we should be doing," said foundation President Eva Larson. "Getting a couple of new trustees on the board will be a shot in the arm."

Littman would like to see a broad swath of residents on the board, including single and married people, business owners and commuters, retirees, young people, emptynesters and stayathome parents. The needs, opportunities and future challenges facing the community need to be evaluated, including demographics, economy and aging infrastructure, she added.

"We want Oak Park to continue to be safe, healthy, welcoming, clean, providing a great education—all of those pillars that make the community a place that people want to live. But that doesn't happen by itself," Littman said.

Since the foundation was established in 1979, the community has grown and developed, Larson said. A recent change in leadership prompted the call for reevaluation, Littman said. After 17 years as president David Ross stepped down, and Larson was named to the leadership role. Ross remains on the board.

"People change, demographics change. Our home prices went through the ceiling, and young families couldn't buy a home in Oak Park. Some of the challenges come from the fact that we need to look at who makes up our community," Larson said. "We just need to sit down and say, 'Where are we, what are we doing, and where do we go from here?'"

Littman, who manages a corporategiving program at Countrywide and has a 3-year-old daughter, has been on the board for four years after responding to an ad for new trustees. Littman grew up in Agoura Hills and has lived in Oak Park for more than five years.

Larson, who provides archaeological monitoring for the National Park Service and has three children, has been a trustee for eight of the 10 years she has lived in Oak Park.

The foundation meets the second Tuesday of every fourth month at the Oak Park school district offices. The next meeting will be in November.

For more information, e-mail info@oakparkfoundation.org by the end of October.