Unity Fund: A Look at Impact in 2025
The Chicago Community Trust’s Unity Fund is a testament to the power of collective giving. Since its founding in 2008 at the height…
Stories
Spotlights on community issues, the people, and the organizations who contribute to effective philanthropy as well as a stronger Chicago region and world.
Recent Stories
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Financial Health in Cook County: Why it Matters and How Policy Impacts Financial Well-Being
In 2025, The Chicago Community Trust, with support from JPMorganChase, commissioned the Financial Health Network to update the findings of its Financial Health…
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Responding to Chicago’s Urgent Needs in 2025
As the region’s community foundation, The Chicago Community Trust exists to respond to the needs of our region and the people who call…
All Stories
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Changemakers Network Building Trust, Muscle—and Power
What does it take for a group of strangers to build trust among one other when they can only gather virtually? How can philanthropy help…
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Why Community Media Matters
Just about 18 years ago, I received a call from Torey Malatia, a man many consider to be a true visionary of public radio. Malatia…
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This Moment in Time
A week ago, a family began mourning George Floyd. Described by friends and family as a “gentle giant,” he was killed in broad daylight by…
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Uniting Funders to Help Businesses of Color Grow and Thrive
When it comes to closing the racial and ethnic wealth gap, small businesses can be a force multiplier, helping people build wealth, creating jobs and…
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Creating a Sustainable Grain Hub
Illinois is known as a major producer of corn and soybeans for the world market. But if more grains like barley, wheat and oats were…
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Kim Kamin Creates Value in Connections
Born and raised in Chicago, Kim Kamin grew up seeing and hearing the Trust’s name all over the city in connection to the programs it…
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Joe Pedott Pays it Forward
Joe Pedott knows firsthand the life-changing difference philanthropy can make in a person’s trajectory. When Pedott found himself living on his own as a teenager,…
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Fighting the Cause and Effect of Hunger
How does an organization feed more than 800,000 people each year and tackle the root causes of hunger? Since 1979, the Greater Chicago Food Depository—a…
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Amplifying Voices to Stop the Spiral of Debt
For Chicagoans with low incomes, a parking ticket can be so much more than an annoyance. It can be a penalty that forces gut wrenching…
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Fueling Economic Growth in the South Suburbs
It takes a lot to revitalize a community. Beyond ambitious development plans and the right lenders and agencies, it requires a central player—the glue binding…
