iwshistory

The Society acquired a permanent home in October of 1997 when they moved to a brand new, specially designed 3,500 square foot facility at 320 Lake St. paid for with funds that had accrued over a fifty year period. The new facility, shared with the Oak Park Health Department, has space for both medical and dental clinics.

After lunch, the women toured the various distribution stations that made up the network. As a result of this event, Oak Park, as well as several other surrounding suburbs, began their own Infant Welfare groups

The Oak Park Society was officially added to the auxiliary as an Authorized Center in December of 1915 and was recorded in the 1915 Annual Report. The final details were completed at a January 25, 1916 meeting where officers were selected and plans were made to secure funds through yearly membership dues. Eighteen directors were elected each agreeing to form a group of twenty women who would seek contributors.

The plan proved most successful bringing in 722 paid memberships in the first year. The Oak Park Society soon became one of the more important members of the Auxiliary.

In 1919, the Oak Park Society inaugurated and helped support the St. Elizabeth Station, located on the northwest side of Chicago. By 1920 the Society assumed full support of the Station which offered baby and child wellness instruction, a prenatal clinic and services for children through age six.

The St. Elizabeth Station flourished for 50 years, until January 1, 1971, when the Station consolidated resources with the Philip D. Armour Child and Family Center located at 1931 N. Halsted, Chicago.

The Chicago Infant Welfare Society was established in 1903 as a milk commission to facilitate the distribution of pure milk to needy babies by way of a network of milk distribution stations located throughout the city.

In an effort to stimulate interest and expand the service to the suburbs, the Society created a Baby Week Camapign.

320 Lake Street Oak Park, IL 60302 Phone: 708-848-0528 Fax: 708-848-5855 Email: infantwelfareop@aol.com
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Infant Welfare Society Fundraising event, 1937

Photo Courtesy of:

The Historical Society of Oak Park and River Forest

The first such campaign was held in April of 1914 and was highlighted by a buffet luncheon held at the office of the Society. A group of women from the suburbs, including a nucleus of women from Oak Park, were invited.

The Oak Park Society also established three independant stations in Oak Park which merged, in 1925, to form the Oak Park Stations of Infant Welfare. They made their home at the Oak Park/River Forest Day Nursery building on Randolph Street in Oak Park where they resided until 1980. A psychiatric social worker was added to the list of services during this period.

In 1998, the board approved the beginning of a modest sliding fee scale while at the same time reiterating their policy that "no child would be refused services if their parents were unable to pay the fee."

In 1997, the Society was the recipient of the Nicholas Award by the Oak Park Development Corporation for its significant investment in the business community.

The Infant Welfare Clinic has added asthma education and adolescent weight reduction programs to their list of services. The clinic is also an internship site for the University of Illinois Nurse Practioner Program and the Concordia College West Suburban Hospital School of Nursing.