Memorial Stained-Glass Window Selected Profiles

Hospital's Memorial-Stained Glass Window remains today a bright centerpiece to the heart of our hospital's history.Stop and take a closer look at the window on your way to the Chapel or the Edward A. Block Family Library; the intricate designs of 120 individual stained-glass panels will take your breath away every time just to think about what you are looking atgenerations of people and organizations believing in and supporting the work of our hospital to care for all children.The window, officially unveiled on December 27, 1927 by Hugh McK Landon and James W. Fesler, leaders of the Riley Memorial Association (now the Riley Children's Foundation), began its mission from that time on to recognize and honor the memories of individuals, families, and organizations donating to the hospital.Each stained-glass panel tells a different story, some of heartbreak and loss, some of a desire to honor the memory of a loved one, all with the hope that no matter what, they were giving to do good for children who were patients at Riley Hospital for Children.Here are just a few of those stories:Elizabeth Sinclair (about 1773-1849), was the grandmother to William Fortune, one of the twenty-one Incorporators for the James Whitcomb Riley Memorial Association in April 1921.William Fortune founded the Indianapolis Chapter of the American Red Cross and was a successful businessman who once headed 12 independent telephone companies and actually made the first dial telephone call.He purchased the home from the estate of Magdalena Holstein where James Whitcomb Riley lived on Lockerbie Street when Mrs. Holstein