Golf outing will honor founder of Community Resource Center
Ron Buch served as executive director of community services for Northwest Community Healthcare for more than 30 years, but it was a quote from the ancient Chinese philosopher Lao Tzu that drove him.
Hanging on the wall of his Arlington Heights office was this quote: "Go to the people. Live with them. Start with what they know. Build on what they have."
It was from that foundation that Buch would go on to help start the Community Resource Center in Palatine (formerly known as the Palatine Opportunity Center), which will celebrate its 20th anniversary next year.
Located near Rand and Dundee roads, the center houses a spectrum of agencies and organizations dedicated to serving people in need, including a large percentage of immigrant families who come from Palatine, Rolling Meadows, Arlington Heights, Schaumburg and Hoffman Estates.
The center has grown so much that last year it drew more than 200,000 client visits, says Kathy Millin, executive director of its umbrella organization, Partners for Our Communities.
On Aug. 9, officials with POC and Northwest Community Healthcare will hold their third annual golf outing. Its mission is to raise funds for educational and employment services offered at the center, but they also will honor Buch for his vision and impact on the community.
Dr. John McGillen, a former medical director at Northwest Community, who worked closely with Buch and now serves on the POC board, says, "There is no one in the Northwest suburbs who has done more to alleviate the suffering of the poor than Ron Buch."
Millin worked closely with Buch as well, and she looks forward to giving him a tour of the center before the outing, knowing that it has changed dramatically since he moved to Arizona 10 years ago. Mostly, she hopes to demonstrate how his early vision still guides its growth.
"Ron wanted to reduce the barrier of access to services for health and wellness, social services and literacy," Millin says. "He spent his career developing programs and services. It was his idea to bring them all together under one roof, which is now called the Community Resource Center."
Northwest Community Healthcare now owns the center and manages the 14 agencies under its roof. They run the gamut from education and literacy offered by Palatine Elementary District 15, Harper College and the Palatine Public Library, to fitness classes from the Palatine Park District, to an array of health programs offered by Northwest Community and Cook County's Vista Health Center's primary care clinic.
Families also have access to important counseling and social services, as well as children's enrichment programs.
Over the years, some of the partnering agencies have changed, but the center's mission to empowering people and changing lives has not, Millin adds.
"Our vision of a community of strong citizens, healthy families and vibrant neighborhoods," Millin says, "has remained constant."
Karen Baker, director of community services for Northwest Community Healthcare, says the center aligns perfectly with the hospital's mission.
"We exist to improve the health of the communities we serve and to meet individuals' health care needs," Baker says. "This means that we care not only for our patients, but for everyone who lives and works in the community."