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The
History of the Sheil Catholic Center Epilogue
No history of an
institution can ever adequately record "the spirit of
the place," which is a product of the people who compose
it. Calendars, building specifications, financial accounts,
even correspondence never do justice to the people behind
them. Individual memory is usually a very personal thing involving
the impact and interplay of other persons; the historian's
chronicle, restricted to data, misses most of that. A place
may bear its own address, present its own configuration of
space, publish its own calendar, but the reality of what goes
on there will vary according to the special qualities of those
who shape the experience within it. A recorded name from the
past can be linked to an office, a committee or an event,
but it remains only a name: The persona is missing. The only
authentic history of Sheil would be one that gathers together
the personal testimonials of all those who have played a part
in its life -- an impossible task. Our modest hopes must be
that recalling some of the names and events will trigger the
more significant memories of persons present to one another,
sharing both common goals and special gifts, needs and dreams.
Sheil Mothers
Association
Mothers. Where
would we be without them?
What's true of
families in general is also true in a special way of the Sheil
family because of a certain group of mothers of Northwestern
students have played an extraordinary role supporting the
establishment of a Catholic "home" on campus.
When the residence
at 1922 Sheridan became the Sheil Club, Father McGillicuddy
knew it would take more than the good will of the students
or the generosity of Bishop Sheil to maintain it. In November
1948 he suggested to about a dozen local women whose children
were attending Northwestern that they form an auxiliary association
for Sheil.
The idea met with
enthusiastic response. Formed that same year, the Sheil Mothers
Association grew to more than 300 members in the following
year. In the spring of 1949, under the leadership of its first
president, Mrs. William Templeman, the group held its first
annual card party and in the course of the year arranged other
events, including monthly meetings with featured speakers,
to benefit the club.
The range of their
programs became quite imaginative. Aside from the usual luncheons,
fashion shows, bridge parties, rummage sales and lectures,
they sponsored extraordinary events such as the November 1950
concert at Orchestra Hall, a Chicago debut, of the American
lyric soprano Lilly Windsor, who was then singing with Rome's
Royal Opera Company.
In April 1951,
with the help of Northwestern students and recent alumnae,
they sponsored a "three-ring" party at the Michigan
Shores Club: a fashion show, a water ballet and diving show
arranged by alumna Carol Bentley (who had performed with the
Dolphin Show when it was still true to its name) and a collection
of vaudeville acts performed by Northwestern students from
the schools of Speech and Music. The master of ceremonies
for the event was Sheil alumnus John Coughlin, himself a veteran
of Waa-Mu shows in 1948 and 1949 and at the time an announcer
for the Chicago radio station WAAF.
The many benefits
sponsored by the Mothers Association raised sufficient funds
to help make Sheil a self-sustaining institution by May 1954.
By the late '50s, the group was providing more than half of
Sheil's annual operating budget.
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