Winnetka Local History Digital Collections

Winnetka Weekly Talk, 25 Feb 1928, p. 42

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February 25, 1028 WINNETKA TALK a At Woman's Club The meeting of the Winnetka Woman's club held Tuesday, Febru- ary 21, was of peculiar interest. Not often does the club have the oppor- tunity to welcome in the speaker of the day one of its own members and, more- over, one who is an authority on a vital subject. Mrs. James Fentress of Win- netka, founder and present director of the Devereux Schools for Unusual Children, at Berwyn, Pa., spoke upon "Adventures with Human Nature." Although not of her own selection, the subject pleased her, said Mrs. Fentress, as the word "adventure" suggested something thrilling and pleasant, and such had been her contacts with her children. Mrs. Fentress added that they had given her far more than she could hope to give them. This com- ment gave many the first key to Mrs. Fentress' success. The attitude of the public in regard to the case of the unusual child must be changed, according to Mrs. Fen- tress. In cases of tuberculosis and other diseases, sympathy and discus- sion is free and open, but too often the case of the unusual child is men- tioned with bated breath. It has de- manded great courage on the part of parents to face their problem openly. This should not be so. The unusual child, Mrs. Fentress de- fined as "one unable to continue in nor- mal paths." Many are the causes of this lack of ability. Mrs. Fentress gave the club an idea of the care and de- tail with which the analysis of each child is made. There are three levels of human reactions: the physical, the psychological, and the social. An at- tempt is made to determine to which class the cause of the child's lack of adjustment belongs, and further, whether, it is functional or organic. 'Where the cause is physical, the analy- sis is, as a rule, simpler and swifter than in the case of the more subtle psychological causes, which may de- mand months, even years of study. It would be dangerous for a layman to attempt to give the intricacies of the classification of which this is the barest outline. In the course of her talk, Mrs. Fen- tress made several striking statements, that the percentage of "unusual" cases attributed to hereditary causes is de- creasing and that due to injury at birth is increasing; that personality defects count more than intellectual defects: that often the case of the unusual child is one of disharmony. The powers fail to develop equally. In conclusion, Mrs. Fentress pointed out that the care of the unusual child demanded systems, not a system; schools, not a school; as each child must be studied individually. Also that the problem of adjustment be- longed not only to the unusual child, but was a community problem. The many questions asked of Mrs. Fentress gave the club an interesting, but all too faint glimpse of the or- ganization of the Devereux schools. Mrs. Arthur W. Cushman, president of the club, presided at the meeting, later turning the meeting over to Mrs. Edwin E. Brown, chairman of the com- mittee on civics and philanthropy, which had charge of the program. Mrs. James Deming made an inter- esting report upon the work of the Vocational Supervision league, to which the club contributes. At the conclusion of the program, tea was served by the following host- esses: Mrs. Edgar Baumann, Mrs. Ed- ward W. Beach, Mrs. George B. Cal- kins, Mrs. John N. Ott, Mrs. Lang- don Pearse, and Mrs. Pierce C. Ward. Carol Lou Burnham has been posing for her portrait at the North Shore Art League class, conducted by George Obertueffer. The class meets every Wednesday and Thursday nights from 7 until 10, at Community House. Mrs. Ellen Lane Varney Dies at Age of 87 Years Mrs. Ellen Lane Varney, mother of Ralph W. Varney of 535 Cherry street, Winnetka, and Frederick L. Varney of Wilmette, passed away at the home of her son, Ralph, on Friday morning of last week. Brief services were con- ducted from the residence on Satur- day, following which the remains were taken to Boston, Mass, for burial. Mrs. Varney was 87 years of age, her death being occasioned by her ad- vanced years. She was born in Exeter, | direct descendant | Mass., in 1840, the of a family of patriots of the Amer- ican revolution. Her grandfather, who fought with the Colonial troops in their struggle for independence, was still living when she had reached ad- vanced childhood and she was able to recall vividly some of the stories that he had told. She received her educa- tion at the Robinson Seminary, one of the oldest of eastern girls' schools and still in existence. She was the widow of the late Charles W. Varney, formerly the head of one of the oldest established New England shoe companies, located at Lynn, Mass. Since her husband's death about twelve years ago she had resided in Boston and on the north shore and had been in Winnetka con- tinuously for about eighteen months previous to her death. In addition to her two sons, she is survived by a daughter, Mrs. George P. Faunce of | Boston. PREACHES AT FERRY HALL | Dr. J. W. F. Davies will speak at | the Vesper service at Ferry hall, Lake Forest, Sunday evening at 5 o'clock, and. on Tuesday will "address. the sophomore class at New Trier High | school, on the matter of choosing a college and vocation. Alluring Color Combinations with the new NASH deep-luster finish-to meet every possible taste EY Bearing Performance to lend NASH greater luxury to your motoring Models styled in the newest and finest mode -to meet every possible need Men to Hear Final Talk on the Baha'i Movement The Rev. Albert Vail will conclude his series of addresses on the "Pur- poses and Ideals of the Baha'i Move- ment" Sunday, February 26, at the Men's Sunday Morning class of the Winnetka Congregational church. . These talks have been interesting and enlightening, it is said, and have been well attended by the members of the Men's class and others. All those interested are cordially in- vited to attend the meeting of the class, which convenes at 9:30 a.m., in the American Legion room at the Community House, Mrs. Charles J. Eastman, 984 Cherry street, who for some weeks has been at Wesley Memorial hospital, where she underwent a serious operation, has recovered sufficiently to return to Winnetka. Li SUBURBAN NASH SALES Phone Winnetka 2707 547 Lincoln Ave. WINNETKA

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