DeKALB – Donald Krehl grew up on the north side of Chicago. Like many city-dwellers, he spent much of his life walking past monuments and sculptures without stopping to appreciate the statues or read the inscriptions near them.

When Krehl, a retired dentist from DeKalb, wanted to find a statue in Chicago’s Lincoln Park of a pioneer in the dental field, he had difficulty finding it. After inquiring at several museums and bookstores, he was surprised to learn that there was not a guide book about the statues and memorials in his hometown.

”I was told that ‘We really need one,’ and I said ‘Fine, if you need one, I’d like to make one.’ That’s how it came about,” Krehl said.