Official Publication of the ILLINOIS ASSOCIATION OF PARK DISTRICTS ILLINOIS PARK AND RECREATION SOCIETY OFFICERS OFFICERS President: HENRY C. DEIHL Commissioner, Salt Creek Rural President: CHARLES PAXTON, Zion Park District President-Elect: TIM G. SOLDWEDEL Commissioner, Pekin President-Elect: JOE H. DOUD, Northbrook Park District Past President: WEBSTER D. WILEY Commissioner, Kewanee Past President: RICHARD E. JOHNS, Glenview Park District Vice Presidents: GEORGE KOSTOPOULOS Commissioner, Carol Stream Secretary: FRED HALL, Palatine Park District PETER TRENCHARD Commissioner, Deerfield BOARD MEMBERS GERALD E. WERNICK Commissioner, Rockford TONY KAMBICH Lake Forest Recreation Department Treasurer: HAROLD C. HAWKINS Trustee, Springfield RONALD DODD Arlington Heights Park District Sergeant at Arms: NORMAN P. SMALLEY Commissioner, Elmhurst STEVE GONZALEZ Department of Conservation THOMAS GORDON Peoria Park District BOARD OF DIRECTORS GERALD OAKES Glencoe Park District ERWIN ROMKE Board Member, Kane County Forest Preserve ELENA RUANE Palatine Park District JAMES CUMMINGS Trustee, Peoria DANIEL NEWPORT Elmhurst Park District BARBARA STRAUS Commissioner, Olympia Fields DONALD E. PILGER Deerfield Park District PATRICIA LEONHARD Commissioner, Champaign ROBERT DUNSMUIR Wheaton Park District DONALD EARLEY Commissioner, West Chicago THOMAS RICHARDSON Glenview Park District ROBERT W. BLUESTONE Commissioner, Franklin Park HAROLD E. BROWN Granite City Park District DONALD PALZER Commissioner, Kankakee Valley RONALD SECRIST Champaign Park District JEAN M. FORAN Commissioner, Chicago KEVIN KENDRIGAN, ITRS President Northwest Special Recreation Assn. CHARLES E. WRIGHT Commissioner, Canton TOM BRIMBERRY, Student President Illinois State University EXECUTIVE STAFF Eugene Berghoff, Executive Vice President, IAPD and Managing Editor Robert A. Stuart, General Counsel, IAPD Bill Bodine, Accountant, IAPD Kay Kastel Forest, Executive Secretary, IPRS and Editor Marilyn Walters, Office Services Specialist

COVER: This carousel, the largest in the world, is located at "Marriott's Great America" Park in Gurnee, Illinois. (Photo courtesy of Marriott) MAY/JUNE 1976 VOL. VII, No. 3 Kay Kastel Forest, Editor CONTENTS FEATURES Community Gardening ........... 4 Effecting Good Legislation ........ 6 Legislative Reception ........... 10 IPRS Tour to Boston. ........... 12 Illinois Tax Facts ...............19 It Beats Math .................. 20 Utilization of Reading Materials....22 DEPARTMENTS From the desk of VP ............ 3 Society Notes .................. 3 Legal and Legislative ............ 9 People and News ............... 26 What's Up with Students ......... 27 Associate Members .............29 SOCIETY HEADQUARTERS AND EDITORIAL OFFICE 600 E. Algonquin Rd. DesPlaines, Illinois 60016 Society phone (312) 297-6261 ASSOCIATION HEADQUARTERS Suite 206 St. George Bldg. 300 East Monroe Street Springfield, Ill. 62701 Association phone (217) 523-4554 JOINT COMMITTEE Richard Johns, Chairman Chuck Paxton Joe Doud Jan Porter Webster Wiley Henry Deihl Tim Soldwedel Peter Trenchard ILLINOIS PARKS AND RECREATION is published bimonthly at Springfield, Illinois by the Illinois Association of Park Districts and the Illinois Park and Recreation Society. Subscription per year: Domestic $5.00; Foreign, $6.00. Single copies, $1.00 each. Second class postage paid at Springfield, Illinois.