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THE CHARITABLE FOUNDATION

OUR MISSION

The Magnificent Mile Charitable Foundation provides support for educational and charitable programs that strengthen the diverse North Michigan Avenue community. The Foundation also seeks to reach out and positively impact the underserved citizens and communities within Chicago, including offering additional training and employment opportunities for The Michigan Avenue District.

Originally founded in 1990, is a 501c3 organization. The Magnificent Mile Charitable Foundation has donated over $500,000 to local charities focused on improving the lives and well-being of residents in Chicagoland and The Magnificent Mile neighborhood. 

LATEST UPDATES

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Supporters of The Foundation gathered on October 8, 2024 at Semicolon Bookstore for a FRIENDraiser to learn more about The Foundation's achievements and mission.
View of The Magnificent Mile, Chicago's renowned shopping district along Michigan Avenue, featuring a variety of stores, dining options, and iconic landmarks. Charitable Foundation Check Presentation
The Foundation donated $25,000 to All Stars Project of Chicago on August 15, 2024, furthering their commitment to Bridging ONE Chicago.
View of The Magnificent Mile, Chicago's renowned shopping district along Michigan Avenue, featuring a variety of stores, dining options, and iconic landmarks.
Members of the Chicago business community came out to support the Foundation's efforts at the spring annual fundraising event at Tribune Tower.
View of The Magnificent Mile, Chicago's renowned shopping district along Michigan Avenue, featuring a variety of stores, dining options, and iconic landmarks.
Nancy Feldman, Erin Aldana, and Rebecca Polan (along with Treasurer David Macknin and Chair Donna Pugh) celebrated the success of the All Stars Project of Chicago at the annual gala fundraiser at Adler Planetarium.
View of The Magnificent Mile, Chicago's renowned shopping district along Michigan Avenue, featuring a variety of stores, dining options, and iconic landmarks.
Along with a $5,000 donation, Foundation and Association staff joined in the holiday fun with My Hood, My Block, My City's annual Be a Part of the Light Initiative which lights 500 houses along Martin Luther King Drive.
View of The Magnificent Mile, Chicago's renowned shopping district along Michigan Avenue, featuring a variety of stores, dining options, and iconic landmarks.
Board members of the Foundation volunteered time and resources to the Chicago Help Initiative. Pictured here is CHI's founder Jacqueline Hayes.
View of The Magnificent Mile, Chicago's renowned shopping district along Michigan Avenue, featuring a variety of stores, dining options, and iconic landmarks.
Sponsors and individual donations helped set a Foundation fundraising record in 2023.

The Magnificent Mile® Charitable Foundation Board of Directors

View of The Magnificent Mile, Chicago's renowned shopping district along Michigan Avenue, featuring a variety of stores, dining options, and iconic landmarks.

Donna Pugh, Foundation Chair

Foley & Lardner, LLP
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View of The Magnificent Mile, Chicago's renowned shopping district along Michigan Avenue, featuring a variety of stores, dining options, and iconic landmarks.

Kimberly Bares, President and CEO

The Magnificent Mile® Association

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View of The Magnificent Mile, Chicago's renowned shopping district along Michigan Avenue, featuring a variety of stores, dining options, and iconic landmarks.

David Macknin, Treasurer

Chicago Risk
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View of The Magnificent Mile, Chicago's renowned shopping district along Michigan Avenue, featuring a variety of stores, dining options, and iconic landmarks.

Nancy Ayers, Secretary

Alliant Insurace Services

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Alyssa Berman-Cutler, Director

University of Chicago
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Meredith Darnall, Director

Darnall RetailIntel
View of The Magnificent Mile, Chicago's renowned shopping district along Michigan Avenue, featuring a variety of stores, dining options, and iconic landmarks.

Aileen Gaspari, Director

Premier Landscape
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View of The Magnificent Mile, Chicago's renowned shopping district along Michigan Avenue, featuring a variety of stores, dining options, and iconic landmarks.

Randy Grimes, Director

FirstService Residential Chicago

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Rob Hartill, Director

BluSky Restoration 
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Jessica Sherwood, Director

Leopardo Companies
View of The Magnificent Mile, Chicago's renowned shopping district along Michigan Avenue, featuring a variety of stores, dining options, and iconic landmarks.

Jetnya Simmons, Director

Cultivating Freedom

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View of The Magnificent Mile, Chicago's renowned shopping district along Michigan Avenue, featuring a variety of stores, dining options, and iconic landmarks.

Tifanni Sterdivant, Director

Tribune Tower Residences
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FOUNDATION RECIPIENTS

2023 Foundation Recipient: All Stars Project, Inc

Founded in 1981, All Stars Project (ASP) is a 501(c)3 national nonprofit that uses a performance based approach to help tens of thousands of inner-city youth and their families create success in their lives. The Magnificent Mile Charitable Foundation raised over $50,000 for ASP in 2023, which will support ASP’s new Hub for Afterschool Development in the heart of downtown Chicago. With an anticipated 2023 opening on the horizon, the Hub will connect youth to the mainstream, create new partnerships, and highlight the transformational power of performance to grow and develop inner-city youth and communities.

2022 Recipient: All Stars Project Chicago

In ASP’s Development School for Youth, young people ages 16 to 21 experience a variety of improvisational, personal development, and coaching experiences through which they learn to perform as professionals, and they partner with business leaders across the country who conduct development workshops and provide paid summer internships at their companies. The Foundation’s donation will support ASP’s new Hub for Afterschool Development in the heart of downtown Chicago.

2018 Recipient: The Chicago Help Initiative

CHI provides meals every Wednesday evening to 150 disadvantaged and homeless individuals in the community at the facilities of Catholic Charities at 721 N. LaSalle Street. In addition to being served a nutritious meal, guests can also visit with doctors, nurses, psychologists and social workers and sign up for drug rehabilitation, job training programs, homeless shelters and literacy tutoring.

CHI partners with local businesses, residential, faith-based, social service, institutional and volunteer leaders striving to promote an atmosphere of dignity and compassion toward those in need by providing access to food, health services, shelter and employment to more than 6,500 every year.

2018 Recipient: The Alliance for Community Peace

The Alliance For Community Peace initiative is a faith-based project which seeks the following: improve academic performances and school attendance of students; to provide opportunities for demonstrating positive social skills, interactions, and relationships through educational, recreational, cultural and other programs activities; adopt positive decision making skills that discourage negative risk taking behaviours through life skills application; and develop meaningful work experiences leading to career and vocational fulfilment for students and families.
View of The Magnificent Mile, Chicago's renowned shopping district along Michigan Avenue, featuring a variety of stores, dining options, and iconic landmarks.

Help the Foundation Continue Its Critical Work in Chicago Communities