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• CTPA at the National Public Housing Museum

  • When
    19 Nov 2025
  •  
    10:00 AM - 11:30 AM
  • Location
    National Public Housing Museum, 919 S Ada St

  Register

  
  

  CTPA at the National Public Housing Museum
  

  Wednesday, November 19 from 10:00-11:30am

  919 S Ada St
  

  
  

  The long-anticipated National Public Housing Museum opened in April in the last surviving building that was once part of the Jane Addams Homes. This one-of-a-kind museum is filled with an amazing collection of historical artifacts, wonderful art, powerful stories from current and former public housing residents, and so much more.

  
  

  The National Public Housing Museum has put together a fantastic program exclusively for CTPA members:

  • It begins at 10:00am with some opening remarks on the background of this cultural institution.
  • Then we will experience their Historic Apartment Tour discovering stories from back when it this was part of the Jane Addams Homes, which includes recorded oral histories from the Turovitz and Hatch families who used to live here (side note from Mike, the event organizer: this is one of THE BEST tours I have ever been on).
  • After the tour concludes, CTPA members are free to explore on their own all of the other exhibits found throughout the museum.
    
  • The National Public Housing Museum is sharing this experience for free with the CTPA, so please consider making a donation or buying something from the gift shop.

  
  

  If traveling by car, there is limited parking located in the National Public Housing Museum’s lot on the north side of our building. A handful of spaces in the lot are designated for residents of the building—please avoid parking in any spot marked with a reserved sign. Metered street parking is also available on Taylor Street. 

  
  

  Capacity is limited to the first 35 registrants, and a waitlist will be enabled. If you can no longer attend the event, please cancel your own registration on the calendar tab of the CTPA website or through the WildApricot app. If you have any questions, please reach out to the event's organizer, CTPA member Mike McMains (mike@tourswithmike.com).

  
  

  I hope you can join us at the National Public Housing Museum for this special experience!

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• CTPA Holiday Party Potluck

  • When
    2 Dec 2025
  •  
    5:00 PM - 7:00 PM
  • Location
    130 E Oak Street, 10th floor party room

  Register

  
  

  CTPA Holiday Party Potluck
  Tuesday, December 2 from 5:00-7:00 pm
  130 E Oak Street, 10th floor party room

  Joel Freedman's condo building party room

  
  

  The Chicago Tour Guide Professionals Association (CTPA) is celebrating the holiday season with an in-person party! This is a great opportunity to get to know your fellow members better and celebrate the year. There will be an array of activities:

  • Potluck: We are hosting a coordinated potluck where hopefully everyone will bring food or drink to share. If you need to use it, the party room has a full kitchen with a microwave,  stove, oven, refrigerator, and freezer in case you need to use it. When you decide what you would like to contribute, please add it to this Google Doc. If you cannot access this Google Doc, please email CTPAofficers@googlegroups.com and we will update the spreadsheet with your potluck contribution.

  • Book Swap: You can also participate in a book swap. You are welcome to bring a book you are ready to pass along and exchange it for one that is new to you. Please focus on books you think would interest Chicago tour guides.

  • Winter Clothing Drive: Do you have any extra coats, gloves, hats, scarves, boots, or other winter clothes? Please bring them for our winter clothing collection drive. They will all be donated to an organization who can get them to those in need.

  • 2025 Tour Highlights: What were your most special tour experiences of the year? Be ready to share them with your fellow CTPA members as we get to know each other better.

  Parking is available inside the building (entrance on Oak Street) and you can get a validation sticker if you request it from Joel Freedman bringing the price down to $11.

  We hope to see you soon for holiday celebration!

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• NFTGA Education Program - Partnering with Bloomberg Connects

  • When
    18 Dec 2025
  •  
    7:30 PM - 8:30 PM
  • Location
    Zoom (register to get the link)

  Register

  NFTGA Education Program - Partnering with Bloomberg Connects
  

  Thursday, December 18

  Starting at 8:30 pm EST / 7:30 pm CST / 6:30 pm MST / 5:30 pm PST

  Register to get the Zoom instructions for this virtual event

  
  

  
  

  
  

  For the NFTGA's next educational program, we welcome Alex Costas from Bloomberg Connects who will describe how this free app can get integrated into your tour experiences. You can also download the app from their website in advance to follow along during the program.

  
  

  This virtual meeting is open to all NFTGA member organizations, and if you are an officer for your local tour guide association, please forward the registration email invitation to all of your members. If you get an email about login information for the CTPA website, you can ignore it (unfortunately there is no way to disable these automatically generated messages).

  
  

  If you are unable to attend the live-stream, the recording will be available to watch for the following 30 days. If you have any feedback, including changing the contact information for future NFTGA Education Programs, please email Mike McMains (mike@tourswithmike.com) from the Chicago Tour Guide Professionals Association.

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