TRP’s Forgivable Loan Supports Longtime Homeowners on Chicago’s West Side
Homeownership has been a cornerstone of financial security and wealth for many families, but aging housing stock, costly repairs, and market pressures threaten…
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
-
-
As 2025 Winds Down...
A Note from Our CEO As 2025 winds down and we gather for holiday celebrations, I’ve been reflecting with friends and colleagues on…
-
Turning Houses into Homes: The Impact of 3C’s First Three Years
Launched in April of 2022 as a three-year program, Connecting Capital and Community (3C) Chicago is a collaborative effort between lenders, developers, and…
All Stories
-
The Trust Receives a Saloon
Before he became its first executive director, Frank Loomis gave the Trust a unique gift: a saloon. Trust chair Clifford Barnes first met Loomis while…
-
The Searles Are Making a Better Future
John G. Searle felt that personal success created an obligation to help others. Inherited from his father, Gideon Daniel Searle, while it was still a…
-
Inspiration in Practice: Barbara Austin Foote
In 1978 Barbara Austin Foote became the first woman to lead the Trust’s Executive Committee. The eldest daughter of Edwin C. Austin, the former legal…
-
The Quiet and Patient Leader: Frank Loomis
Relief was the goal of early 20th century philanthropy. An annual report at the time described the Trust’s involvement as “community-wide humanitarian work” for residents…
-
How One Man Revolutionized Market Research and Philanthropy
Great success in marketing research enabled Arthur C. Nielsen to pursue his philanthropic interests. By rethinking the practices of audience monitoring and measurement more scientifically,…
-
Trust's First Social Survey Reflected Turmoil in Chicago
In the 1920s, “Americanization” was the catch-all phrase used to describe efforts to assimilate immigrants into the American way of life, narrowly defined by the…
-
A Coal Magnate’s Charitable Legacy: More Transparent Foundations
As chair of the Sahara Coal Company and trustee of the Woods Charitable Fund, Inc., Frank H. Woods combined his business interests with his philanthropic…
