NEW IPO Logo - by Charles Larry Home Search Browse About IPO Staff Links

people and news

William N. Barbaro has been named the assistant general superintendent of the Chicago Park District effective immediately, Gen. Supt. Edmund L. Kelly announced. Barbaro fills the position vacated when Kelly was promoted to general superintendent on Feb. 13. The new assistant superintendent had been the park district's director of recreation since 1968, in charge of 529 parks and playgrounds.

Barbaro joined the Chicago Park District as a physical instructor in 1951. He became a playground supervisor at Brooks Park in 1958 and later served at Lindblom Park. In 1959 he was promoted to park supervisor and he was instrumental in the success of the school-park program at Bogan.

He has bachelor's degrees in physical education from the American College of Physical Education and from DePaul University.

Thomas F. Hackett has been promoted to director of recreation of the Chicago Park District, announced Edmund L. Kelly, park district general superinitendent. Hackett replaces William Barbaro who was promoted to assistant general superintendent.

Hackett, who has been in the recreation field for 28 years, started with the city's bureau of parks in 1946. At the time of functional consolidation in 1959, he was named the assistant physical activities supervisor for the Chicago Park District. In 1968 he became an area supervisor and was named an assistant director in 1970.

Hackett is a member of the Chicago Park District Employees and Supervisors Associations, the Illinois and the National Recreation Associations, the Bellamine, the American Legion, the Catholic Youth Organization, the National Industrial Recreation Society and is on the board of directors of the park district Credit Union.

Effective June 1, 1973, Mick Pope began the duties as Director of Parks and Recreation for the Elmhurst Park District. The District is composed of five divisions, with 43 full-time persons, with an annual operating budget of $1,148,000.00. The District has grown considerably within the past two years as a result of the successful passage of a $3,900,000.00 Bond Issue for land acquisition and park development in 1971.

Mr. Pope was the former Director of Parks and Recreation for the Homewood-Flossmoor Park District from 1967 to 1973. Prior to that, he was the Supervisor of Athletics, Aquatics, and Day Camp for the Topeka Recreation Commission in Topeka, Kansas from 1963 to 1967.

He received his B.S. in Recreation in 1962 from the University of Illinois, and is presently enrolled in the university's graduate extension program for a Master of Science degree. He has been an active member in I.P.R.S. Committee and Board work, and is presently serving as President-elect.

David B. Colmar, previously Superintendent of Recreation for the Homewood-Flossmoor (Ill.) park district, is the district's new Park Director.

He came to the H-F district in 1969 as superintendent of recreation. Prior to joining the H-F staff, he was Midwest regional director for the Athletic Institute and prior to that supervisor of sports and aquatics for the Arlington Heights park district. He has also served as a recreation consultant for the Olympia Fields park district.

Originally from California, he attended San Jose State College where he received his B.A. in park and recreation administration. He also attended the American National Aquatic school and the executive development program at Indiana University.

A member of the Illinois Parks and Recreation society, he has served on the annual conference, the sports and aquatic, the administrative and supervisory workshop and historical committees.

He is also chairman of the leadership institute for the Suburban Park and Recreation association and is a member of the National Recreation and Park association.

Miss Carol Smith, a 1973 graduate of Indiana University, has been selected by the Champaign Park District and the National Recreation and Park Association to serve an internship with the Champaign Park District.

Miss Smith was the recipient of the outstanding graduate senior award for the Department of Parks and Recreation at Indiana University in 1973. She worked for the Champaign Park District this summer directing the District playground program and has worked as a program coordinator in the Bloomington, Indiana Senior Citizen Center and on the Bloomington recreation staff.

During the internship Miss Smith will work as an administrative assistant to the General Manager and Director of Recreation and she will coordinate after school recreation programs, junior high activities, and assist in programming for senior citizens.

John M. Lester has been named as Director of the Bartlett Park District, Bartlett, Illinois. He graduated from Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana, with a BS degree in Recreation.

Previously Lester was with the

Illinois Parks and Recreation 20 November/December, 1973


Dundee Township Park District, Carpentersville, Illinois, as center director, and with MCK Associates, a recreational consulting agency, as a specialist.

Elaine Aden has been named to the new position of Supervisor of Girls and Women's Activities for the Northbrook Park District.

Miss Aden, a June graduate of Western Illinois University has her B.S. degree in Recreation and Park Administration.

Marilyn R. Coombs has assumed the position of Coordinator for Program Services for the Peoria Park District. Miss Coombs will be responsible for planning, organizing, promoting and supervision of various community wide recreation programs under the direction of Mr. David L. Snider, Superintendent of Program Services.

A native of Des Plaines, Illinois, Miss Coombs was graduated from Maine West High School in 1969, and received a B.S. degree in Park and Recreation Administration from the University of Illinois in 1973.

During her college years, Miss Coombs served as an intern with the Edinburgh Department of Parks and Recreation, Edinburgh, Scotland, and as President of the student branch of the Illinois Park and Recreation Society. Miss Coombs assumed her duties with the department on July 16.

Doug Skoglund has recently been hired as Assistant Superintendent of Recreation for the City of Vineland, New Jersey. He is a graduate of Southern Illinois University where he received a B.S. degree in Recreation & Outdoor Education. Mr. Skoglund previously worked for the Ridgewood Outdoor Education Program as Recreation Director in Bergen County, New Jersey. Mr. Skoglund was public relations consultant for Southern Illinois University Special Olympics Inc.

Harold E. Brown, Director of Parks and Recreation, Granite City Park District, was recently inducted into the Amateur Softball Association Hall of Fame.

Harold has been a Regional Commissioner of the association for 27 years and during this time has helped organize ten State Championship Series, including five consecutive women's tournaments.

To our knowledge, Harold Brown is the only Director of Parks and Recreation in Illinois to be inducted into the Amateur Softball Association Hall of Fame. Harold is 51, married, and has one daughter and resides in Granite City. He was appointed Director of Parks and Recreation by the Granite City Park Board in 1962 and has been active in the Illinois Park and Recreation Society and the Illinois Association of Park Districts for many years. On behalf of both organizations, we want to congratulate Harold on this outstanding award.


Faculty for the newly-created Department of Recreation at Eastern Illinois University, (L. to R., back row) Dr. Ewen L. Bryden, chairman; Richard Vaughan, and D. William Riordan. (Sealed) Miss Dorothe Johnson and Dr. Annie Lee Jones.

Illinois Parks and Recreation 21 November/December, 1973


|Home| |Search| |Back to Periodicals Available| |Table of Contents| |Back to Illinois Parks & Recreation 1973|
Illinois Periodicals Online (IPO) is a digital imaging project at the Northern Illinois University Libraries funded by the Illinois State Library