By Kelly White
Residents at Smith Village residents and employees celebrated the 100th year of the senior living community by forecasting the future.
Hundreds of Smith Village residents and employees at Smith Village, 2320 W. 113th Place, Chicago, along with community leaders and elected officials, marked the senior living community’s anniversary by looking into the future with a centennial time capsule event that allowed imaginations soar to envision life in the year 2074.
During 30-minute workshops throughout the day, that began with a segment from Popular Science’s 1967 video looking at how Walter Cronkite predicted what would occur in the 21st century, residents and employees took time to write 100-word predictions of life in 50 years, using non-fade ink on acid-free archival paper, and place them in a time capsule to be opened a half-century from now, in the year 2074.
“I like this time capsule event because it has provided an opportunity for residents and employees to think about their hopes and dreams for the future and to also share a portal into their daily life here at Smith Village today,” Marti Jatis, Executive Director at Smith Village, said.
As Jatis said, the time capsule was conceived as an entertaining, thought-provoking way to bridge Smith Village’s past with its future, to honor its past and continued liveliness. Members of Smith’s Centennial Team were available to offer residents suggestions about how to get started creating the perfect message for the future.
Smith Village resident, Mary Ellen LaVoie, has a positive outlook for the future.
“We have made great strides in medical research and I hope that continues,” LaVoie said. “I also have hopes for the White Sox, hoping things improve for them.”
There was one large stainless steel heritage time capsule, 19” x 15” x 9”, filled with the predictions of residents and staff. Also included in the time capsule are items and objects from the Centennial collection, including a shirt, created for the 100th, and donated by Marathon Sportswear. Marathon Sportswear generously donated 700 shirts, for all Smith Village employees.
On August 12, the time capsule will be placed inside a new column situated near Smith Village’s main entrance and clad on all four sides with a mosaic mural depicting the Beverly neighborhood. This mural was created by the Chicago Mosaic School.
The goal of the project will show results in 50 years when Smith Village residents and employees will open the capsule to read their predecessors’ best guesses about the future.
“We chose the year 2074 to open the time capsule because it is 50 years in the future,” Jatis said.
Highlighting the day was 101-year-old Smith Village resident, Marilyn Stone, who reflected on a century of change will guide her thoughts about her life at the senior living community. Stone was one of the community’s first residents in 2008 and still continues to live independently.
Opened originally as the Oakhaven Old People’s Home in 1924, Smith Village has grown and evolved over the decades to meet the ever-changing needs of seniors. In 1929, Oakhaven was renamed Washington and Jane Smith Home, at the bequest of their daughter, Emilie Smith, who donated $1.75 million, which made a difference in the future of Smith Village today.
In 2004, Smith Village Board of Directors announced a $65 million complete renovation and the renaming of the community to Smith Village.
Today, Smith Village serves more than 250 residents and employs close to 275 staff members. Smith Village’s sponsor, Smith Senior Living, also celebrated its centennial, and this year, its sister community, Smith Crossing in Orland Park, marked its 20th anniversary.