Board of Directors - Bios

Ginger Williams - Executive Director

Ginger is a founding member of Edgewater Village Chicago where she focuses her efforts on results-oriented programs for older adults. Motivated by helping others, she brings her life experiences as a former registered nurse in psychiatry and geriatrics and directs them to supportive and practical goals. She sets her goals in alignment with the mission of Edgewater Village Chicago – to engage and support older adults. She chairs the Community Relations Committee, reaching out to aligned programs in our neighborhoods. She is the chief Editor for Edgewater Village’s newsletter. As a caseworker for former Alderman Harry Osterman in the 48th ward, she shares her values of compassion and understanding with a focus on housing and mental health issues. She has been an active volunteer for various community organizations and was named a Living Treasure of Edgewater by the Edgewater Historical Society in 2019. Photo courtesy of Edgewater Historical Society.

Rich Norman - President

Rich Norman is a retired Chicago Public Schools Principal at Nicholas Senn High School in Edgewater. He has lived in the community for 16 years. Rich studied history at Loyola University of Chicago. Rich also worked in the Beach and Pool (Lifeguard) Unit of the Chicago Park District for 25 years. He is a member of the Edgewater Historical Society and Friends of the Edgewater Library. He participates in the No Book Club and Coffee and Conversation programs sponsored by the Edgewater Village. Rich lives in Thorndale Beach North, also known as the Bob Newhart building. Rich joined the Board in July 2022. Current term expires September 30, 2024.

Gerhard Schutte - Vice President

Gerhard has taught anthropology and sociology at universities in South Africa, Germany and the United States. As a member of Edgewater Village Chicago, he enjoys working with the senior community sharing their life experiences and wisdom. It provides him with the opportunity to apply his lifelong interest and concern about race and ethnic relations and social inequality to the realities of our community. As a member of the Program Committee and the Community Relations Committee, he looks forward to fostering greater diversity in the membership of the Village and making it more representative of the larger geographic area it serves. Gerhard was appointed to the Board when it was initially formed in August 2018. Current term expires September 30, 2023.

Lisa Skemp - Secretary

Lisa is a Professor at Loyola University Chicago Marcella Niehoff School of Nursing with a secondary appointment in the Parkinson School of Health Sciences and Public Health. As a gerontological nurse with expertise in ethnography and public health, she has worked in Wisconsin, Iowa, the Caribbean and south India on community programming to promote health. This has included the development of the culturally informed healthy aging community partnership model. Upon her move to Edgewater, she began collaborating with with community partners on local health-related projects. Lisa’s Health Systems Management students helped with an initial community survey and an intergenerational book club regarding “Blue Zones.” Lisa enjoys the rich experiences Edgewater Village Chicago provides for her students to not only destigmatize aging but foster intergenerational relationships and healthy aging. Lisa is a member of the Community Relations Committee. Current term expires September 30, 2023.

Tom Murphy - Treasurer

Tom is a longtime member of Edgewater Village Chicago where he is the treasurer and a member of the Program Committee. He was attracted to the Village by the variety and quality of its programs. He is a retired scientist and has been involved directly and indirectly in bringing science-based programs to the Village. Tom likes the outdoors and has long been involved as a volunteer in the restoration of the Forest Preserves of Cook County. More recently, he joined the Chicago Park District’s Park Advisory Council for the new West Ridge Nature Preserve on Western Avenue where he serves as the site steward. His focus now is working with other EVC members to enhance the appeal of the Village to Chicago’s residents. Current term expires September 30, 2023.

Josephine Chaparro

With her solid background as a real estate broker, Josephine brings a rich knowledge of Chicago’s neighborhoods and understanding peoples’ needs. Among the professional practices and values that she gained in the business world are strong organizational skills and the art of being a good listener. As a practicing professional, she belonged to several real estate organizations and became involved in revising bylaws, policies, procedures manuals and other organizational documents. She also volunteers with a Wisconsin humane society to coordinate securing grants for the organization. For several years, Josephine was a volunteer at Chicago Methodist Senior Services where she organized art lectures for residents. She also serves on the Edgewater Village Finance and Program Committees. She joined the Board in November 2020. Current term expires September 30, 2024.

Betsy Kane

Betsy is the chair of the Program Committee for Edgewater Village Chicago and is a founding member of the organization. A graphic designer, she created the Edgewater Village logo and has designed many of our program posters. As a member of the Program Committee, Betsy has planned and hosted most of our monthly social meet-ups at local restaurants. During the COVID shutdown she even hosted a series of Zoom “Quarantinis.” Betsy also volunteers with the Edgewater Historical Society and has been a board member of the West Andersonville Neighbors Together group. She joined the Board in October 2022. Current term expires September 30, 2024.

Katy Linehan

Katy is a member of the Program Committee for Edgewater Village Chicago and is the Adult Services Librarian at the Edgewater Branch of the Chicago Public Library. Katy originally became involved with Edgewater Village Chicago through library programming and has enjoyed the variety of consistently high-quality presentations that Edgewater Village Chicago has provided to North Side residents. She will continue to support free or low-cost programming to all ages, but especially older adults, through her involvement on the Program Committee. Current term expires September 30, 2024.

Ben Polk

Ben is an active member of Edgewater Village Chicago exploring his interests and meeting new people. He enjoys the diversity of the programs from Armchair Travel to poetry to science. Ben brings his writing and editing background to the position of Chair of the Communications Committee to boost publicity. He applies his values of learning and teaching in The Craft of Writing creative nonfiction writing classes. On a parallel path with his values is his focus on reaching out to people with social media and program events as a member of the Program Committee. Current term expires September 30, 2024.