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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Runner Finds a New Path as a Mentor for Cancer Survivors
Running has been an integral part of Janett Ortiz’s life for years, and has seen her through some of the toughest times of every part…
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The Power of a Good Conversation: On the Table 2015
What is the value of a good conversation? Should it help people make connections, find common ground, or even just allow people to share stories?…
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Think Good, It's Friday! 9.18.15
September is National Family Meals Month. Whether you’re discussing the toughest issues facing your community or what happened that day on the playground, bringing family,…
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Film Festival Provides a Platform for Exposing Social Challenges and Celebrating Changemakers
Finding a public platform to shed light on people’s personal stories and struggles was what led Todd Belcore and Emile Cambry, Jr. to found the…
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The Albany Park Storefront Where Kids Find Inspiration – and a Warm Meal
In a cramped storefront in Albany Park, 35 schoolchildren get a little bit of magic nearly every day. They eat hot food after school. They…
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Fifteen Years Later, a Dentist Supports the After-School Program That Supported Her
When Yaa Owusu participated in the Metro Achievement Center for girls program as a teenager, no one could have guessed how it would impact her…
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The Variety Show Bringing Laughter to a Chicago Senior Center
Krista Atkinson has two passions. She has had a special bond with the elderly from a young age. As a young girl, she often visited…
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Think Good, It's Friday! 9.11.15
One of my favorite things to do with my free time is curl up with a good book. With a cooler, fall-like weekend in the…
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How the Former Jewel CEO Paid It Forward
Long before becoming the CEO of Jewel Companies, Inc., Donald S. Perkins learned the importance of community philanthropy. Born in St. Louis two years before…
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From the Archives: 10 Moments in Chicago School History
Students from across the Chicago region have returned to school, bringing with them much excitement and hope for a successful year of learning and enlightenment.…
