Dean Cameron

1927 - 2017

Dean C. Cameron, age 89, died on June 20, 2017. He was born on October 23, 1927 in East Cleveland, Ohio, the middle child of three children, an older brother and a younger sister. The first of his family to attend college, he studied at Dartmouth College and then Harvard Law School, graduating in 1952. He moved to Chicago in 1957 to lead the Tax Group at the law firm of Schiff, Hardin, where he played a lead role in several high-profile cases. He also served as Village attorney for the Winnetka Park District, beginning in 1962. In 1965, he was instrumental in arranging for Martin Luther King's peaceful open-housing rally on Winnetka's Village Green. Soon after, he successfully fought off developers to assure that the Village would be able to turn a former lake front property into open space preservation, now known as Centennial Park. Dean was also a man of athletic skill. In his teens, he and his sister ice-skated competitively. In addition, he played squash, league softball and tennis throughout his adult life. As an inveterate observer of the world around him, he became a front porch fixture in whichever neighborhood he was living. Small children, young adults, dogs walking their humans-all piqued his interest. He was a dedicated husband, father, grandfather and great-grandfather, for whom family always came first. He will be missed. He is survived by his wife, Betty Cameron, daughters Liz Simon and Amy Herron, seven grandchildren and a great-granddaughter. A chance to honor Dean will be offered on July 14, 2017 from 3:30-5:30 pm at The Mather, 450 Davis St., Evanston, IL 60201. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Oxfam or Doctors Without Borders.