Thank You, Bill Hersh

Uptown lost a long-time activist this week:  Bill Hersh stayed out of the spotlight, but worked for decades to make Uptown a kinder, gentler place for everyone.  He received the Lifetime Achievement Award from Uptown Chicago Commission in 2004 and was still an active member of the Board of Directors, and chair of several committees, at the time of his passing.  He is remembered for his generosity and endless volunteer work in the Sun-Times.  Read it here.

Several quotes that sum up Bill:

• Joseph Trendl:  “He tried to engage people. If there was a common thread, it was that he tried to use all of these outlets to better the community.”
• James Cappleman:  "I met Bill over a decade ago when I joined the Uptown Chicago Commission. He was the type of man that as you got to know him, you would slowly discover all the many lives he touched with his generosity."
• Bill himself, back in 1996, in a letter to the editor of The Reader:  "How tiring it is for people in a community to constantly be told that they cannot organize themselves and cannot accomplish any good without "Big Brother" the expert coming in to save our bacon."

Rest in peace, Bill.  Thank you for all you did.