Back in 2006, Leon Logothetis trekked across the States on only $5 a day and the generosity of strangers, and then he turned it into the TV show Amazing Adventures of a Nobody. Well, he’s up to his nomadic antics again, this time traveling from NYC to LA in the Kindness Cab and giving away free taxi rides along the way. more ›

"More than learning how to bake, I want our youth to learn how to have a job," says Lisa Thompson, founder of Blue Sky Bakery. As Mayor Daley noted on Wednesday night, Chicago's chefs are wonderful citizens of the city. But rarely do we encounter an organization so perfectly positioned at the intersection of "serving great food" and "helping the world" as Thompson's Blue Sky Bakery. Blue Sky trains homeless and at-risk youth to become bakers, helps them learn to hold down a job, pays them a good wage and supports their education. The youth staff the bakery's retail establishment, work at farmers markets and get a real connection to the products that they create - and often go on to brighter futures. more ›

Still looking for ways to give back this holiday season? The Resurrection Homebound Elderly Program – a program that supports Chicago’s “low-income, socially isolated and chronically ill” homebound elderly – makes it possible to provide a little holiday happiness for these seniors in our community. Calling (847) 568-8531 will get you the name and information of a program participant who will need a gift this year, or a contribution of $25 will be enough to purchase a hot holiday meal and gift box delivered directly to their door. You can also always make a tax-deductible donation to the program, which services patients regardless of their ability to pay. For those who have a little extra time to volunteer, help is needed to drive and distribute gifts to each home and with helping to write the program’s handwritten holiday cards. more ›

The holidays have arrived, and though we always encourage our readers to Give Back, please consider doing what you can this season to spread a little extra holiday cheer. more ›

Buckingham Fountain was shut down last month to undergo a major restoration effort. Parkways Foundation, whose mission is to help raise private funds for projects encompassed by the Chicago Park District, has orchestrated a donation campaign to assist with the cost of repairs and restoration via restorethefountain.com. Donations can be accepted for general repairs, or for some of the fountain's more specific embellishments: the cattails and lilies in the lower basin, for example, or a planter in Buckingham Plaza. more ›

This Thursday, Harold Washington Library will participate in Jumpstart’s Read for the Record, an event aiming to break a world record for the largest shared reading experience by encouraging children across the country to read the same book with an adult on the same day. The official campaign book is children’s classic Corduroy, which is celebrating its 40th anniversary this year. more ›

We were just informed of another local connection to National Childhood Cancer Awareness Month: the Chili’s at 2 E Ontario St. is participating in the restaurant chain’s fifth annual Create-A-Pepper campaign, running now through the end of September. Chili’s has pledged to raise $50 million over a 10-year period for St. Jude’s Children Research Hospital. The campaign will culminate with an all-day event on Monday, September 29, when Chili’s will donate 100% of the profits from the day’s restaurant sales to St. Jude’s. Last year’s Create-A-Pepper campaign raised more than $5.2 million for the hospital.
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September is Childhood Cancer Awareness Month, and there are a few local events coming up in support of pediatric cancer awareness. If you can't attend any of the below events, but still want to help with the fight against leukemia -- the most common cancer among children and teens -- consider making a bone marrow donation or registering to become a donor at the National Bone Marrow Registry. more ›

Do you know someone who "through personal effort and tireless dedication, improves the lives of others and makes a positive impact on their community"? Nominate him or her for the White Sox's Roland Hemond award. It honors extraordinarily philanthropic Chicagoans with a trip to the All Star Game, which will be in St. Louis in 2009. Nominations are due August 22, but the form is really, really basic. [White Sox] more ›

Harry Potter fans from around the world will be converging on the Hilton Chicago Hotel this weekend for Terminus, a five-day conference revolving around all that is "wizard". Attendees can expect “academic presentations and lectures, educational workshops, a Quidditch tournament, a bon voyage ball, and certainly, lively discussion about Harry Potter.” Other planned events: a pre-conference Wrock (wizard rock) concert, featuring over 30 wizarding bands over three stages, and the chance to attend the wedding of two Potter fans. more ›

Father Carl Morello, the priest at St. Paul of the Cross in Park Ridge, recently suggested turning the school's gymnasium into shelter on Sunday nights, from October through April, as part of the PADS ("public action to deliver shelter") program, a network of faith-based shelters throughout Cook County. And his plan hasn't gone over so well. more ›

The number of Meals on Wheels volunteer drivers is waning. This trend is another unfortunate side effect of rising gas prices, and is a nationwide problem for Meals on Wheels programs, which typically operate at the county level. Community Nutrition Network, which runs suburban Cook County's Meals on Wheels, hasn’t yet seen a substantial drop in service, since remaining volunteers are offering to drive extra shifts. more ›

Apparently finding a summer job is not as easy as it used to be. Kids looking for part-time employment are facing a shrinking job market, and it's already difficult to land a job without experience or job history. And on July 1, the state will increase its minimum wage from $7.50 to $7.75, possibly increasing the squeeze on the number of available jobs. more ›

There have been recent depressing reports of food banks like the Greater Chicago Food Depository suffering from some negative effects of rising gas prices. But the month of June holds some fun and alternative ways to support this particular organization and help to fight hunger in Chicago: more ›

Oh, Charlie Trotter’s. It is so choice. But recently, diners at Trotter’s were not only sophisticated foodies, but the kids from Mercy Home for Boys and Girls, who were enjoying a signature eight-course meal, compliments of the house. more ›

Operating under the belief that a future can start today, Minds Matter is a non-for-profit mentoring program that helps to jump-start the academic aspirations of inner city high school students. Since its 1991 inception in New York City, Minds Matter has branched out to chapters in Boston, Denver, and Portland, and now Minds Matter of Chicago is celebrating its second year with due fanfare, having achieved some major objectives for 2007 – sending all student mentees to summer college programs and exceeding fundraising goals. more ›

Aiming to bring down Google Adwords (not likely) by keeping online ad revenue local (quite likely), SaveChicago.org is connecting businesses, consumers and the nonprofits they love, turning bargain hunting into desk-chair philanthropy. more ›

If you’ve played along Chicago’s lakefront this summer, then you may have noticed the 124 sculpted, painted globes designed by artists with the intent to inspire and empower the public to take action against global warming. Cool Globes: Hot Ideas for a Cooler Planet dots the lakefront north of the Field Museum and at Navy Pier. “Cool Globes presents a vast array of solutions with a clear message: We can solve the problem,” the exhibit’s... more ›

After reading through today's news stories consisting of a child beaten to death, a shooting leading to a car plowing into a home, stabbings in Edgewater, and a human skull discovery, Chicagoist yearns to enlighten you about something a little lighter, a little prettier, a little less riddled with death and violence (well, on the surface, at least). Because we care.
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Our apathy towards Fat Tire aside, Chicagoist quickly discovered that the New Belgium Brewery would be our idea of a dream brewery, and working quality control there is in our top five dream jobs, if we didn't have to pull up stakes and leave Chicago in order to do so. more ›

The Target Corporation has had as much red as it can stand, apparently. They're dissin' the Salvation Army ringers again this year. It's not to say they're going entirely AWOL, though. They set up a site where you can purchase virtual angels and donate to the Salvation Army. more ›

We here at Chicagoist just get all tickled inside, if a little bit conflicted, when we get to tell you about multiple great literary events happening in the same evening. Tomorrow night gives the local literatista (why yes, we do love making up words!) not one but two opportunities for some non-traditional literary edification--both lubricated with a little bit of beer and and a lot of the sweet, sweet pleasure of philanthropy. more ›

Buckingham Fountain's Water Supply? more ›

Sherry Craigie-Curtis relocated to Decatur last week because HurTrina threatened her house in suburban New Orleans. Unfortunately during the hustle and bustle to get out she didn't ">think to grab her wedding ring. On Tuesday Craigie-Curtis mentioned this during an interview that ran that night on Decatur's own WAND-TV. On Wednesday morning someone called the Mid-Illinois Chapter of the American Red Cross citing the interview and asking for details about the ring (and for Craigie-Curtis'... more ›

We admit it, we give money to panhandlers. But we like to think of it as "tipping" the homeless. They're usually colorful characters and put on quite a show. more ›

Seventeen-year-old Michael Hall was charged with a number of counts early this morning for his alleged involvement in a biting incident Saturday night on South State Street. more ›