Effort Begins To Honor Pair At Mt. Greenwood Park

CHICAGO (MT. GREENWOOD) — An effort has begun to honor two people who put in years of service at Mt. Greenwood Park and are to this day beloved by people who grew up in the neighborhood.

Maureen Stanton, a Mount Greenwood neighborhood native and current Oak Lawn resident, says she and her friend, Patty McCullum Ryan, are hoping to gather support to honor Gerald Tourville and Harriet Brown at the 111th Street park in some way.

She says currently there's nothing there noting the accomplishments and dedication of Tourville, the park supervisor for many years and Brown, the activity director of the park for decades who taught several classes and organized a variety of girls sports leagues.

"Ms. Brown was a great instructor, taught a lot of kids in Mt. Greenwood respect and gave us all a safe place to go and learn things," said Stanton, who grew a few blocks away from the park and right down the street from Willy's Wayside Wagon at 113th and Drake.

Brown, who died in 2016 at age 95, was a longtime Mount Greenwood resident who worked for the Chicago Park District for 37 years her obituary states.

Tourville, a Korean War veteran, lives in a V.A. facility in Manteno, Stanton said.

"He's a guy who taught boys that you don't walk into a building with your hat on," Stanton remembers. "He loved all the kids."

Tourville was a star football player at Leo High School in the 1940's and went on to play at the University of Colorado. He's a member of the Leo Hall-of-Fame, longtime Chicago Park District supervisor and in 1970 was given a merit award by the Park District for saving the life of an infant.

Stanton said she has reached out to the Park District about the possibility of constructing a memorial bench at the park in memory of Brown and in honor of Tourville, but she was told that could cost up to $5,500.

"So we are looking into other things we could do," she said. "I'd actually rather see something inside the park house. Maybe even just a plaque right inside the front door because they both did impact the community a lot."