NONPROFIT ORGANIZATION SERVING CHICAGO’S YOUTH PREPARES TO CELEBRATE 150TH ANNIVERSARY

Bright Promises Foundation will soon celebrate their 150th anniversary with the Elevating Youth Voices Nonprofit Fair that will take place on June 1 at Columbia College’s Conaway Center. Photo Credit: Bright Promises
Bright Promises Foundation will soon celebrate their 150th anniversary with the Elevating Youth Voices Nonprofit Fair that will take place on June 1 at Columbia College’s Conaway Center. Photo Credit: Bright Promises

Nonprofit Organization Serving Chicago’s Youth Prepares To Celebrate 150th Anniversary

BY KATHERINE NEWMAN

Almost 150 years ago, the Bright Promises Foundation, originally known

as the Illinois Humane Society, came into existence with the purpose of providing a voice and assistance to those who needed their protection the most which at the time were children and animals.

Over the years, the Bright Promises Foundation has evolved to meet the changing needs of Chicago’s children. Today, the organization uses innovative grant-making to support community programming that provides a positive and life-long impact on young Chicagoans.

“Bright Promises Foundation is the biggest little foundation that you’ve probably never heard of and we are making the biggest impact that we possibly can in the lives of vulnerable children,” said Katherine Korey, director of development and marketing for Bright Promises Foundation.

“Over the years our mission has grown and evolved and very quickly the majority of cases that we were taking on dealt with protecting children.”

Bright Promises currently serves over 10,000 children through partnerships with organizations across Chicago including After School Matters, The ARK of St. Sabina, the Gary Comer Youth Center, and Mikva Challenge.

These partnerships help the organization fulfill their mission of creating opportunities for all children, no matter their background or zip code, to reach their full potential, according to information provided by Bright Promises Foundation.

Bright Promises Foundation provides multi-year grants to their partnering organizations that range from $10,000 to $40,000 per year for multiple years to ensure that they are able to continue supporting the city’s vulnerable children.

On June 1, Bright Promises will host the Elevating Youth Voices Nonprofit Fair at Columbia College’s Conaway Center. This event will feature more than 100 youth leaders who will be representing upwards of 20 organizations.

The youth leaders will educate the public and other civic leaders on how they are working to bring about positive change and tackling the most prevalent issues in their communities.

“We put out a call for proposals asking young people from across the city what they would do with $10,000 to improve their communities. Part of the way that they answered that question was through a series of videos where these young people give a snapshot story of how they would use the money to improve their community while sharing some of the work they are already doing,” said Korey.

The event is free and open to the public. Attendees will be able to explore interactive displays that have been created by the youth leaders and show how they would use $10,000 to create change in their communities.

There will also be performances from the young leaders including DJ sets, live podcasting, and original plays. In addition, those who attend the event will also be able to participate in a collaborative art project that celebrates the power young people can have when their voices are heard.

To learn more about Bright Promises Foundation and their 150-year anniversary celebration visit www.brightpromises.org.

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