During the winter months, Maywood Park is a quiet place, but in the spring and summer, it is both a cultural and recreational hub for the residents of Maywood. The southern end of the park runs along Oak Street (Fred Hampton Way), from First Avenue to Fifth Avenue.  The park is home to three sculptural works by world-renown African American Artists. The largest of the three sculptures is a work titled, “Phoenix Rising,” by Geraldine McCullough.  Ms. McCullough, a former resident of Oak Park, and art instructor at Dominican University, in River Forest, is the only female artist featured in the park. When MCC Board Member, Dan Perkins, learned the Oak Park River Forest Museum had posted a tribute to McCullough, as part of its commemoration of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, he sought the Museum’s permission to post the Museum’s tribute on the MCC website.  The Museum graciously agreed and Perkins added the Chamber’s own visual salute to Ms. McCullough. “Art is one of the of the under-appreciated points of connection between the communities of Maywood, Oak Park and River Forest,” said Perkins, who is heading up the Chamber’s participation in the Twin Villages Initiative.  The initiative was signed into effect between the Villages of Maywood and River Forest in 2021, in an attempt by both villages to usher in a new era of collaboration.

 

See the OPRF Museum tribute below.