500 LEVEL on Kickstarter!

Junior Council partner and supporter, 500 LEVEL, is on Kickstarter! Check out their project page! Officially licensed sports t-shirts, unique designs - we love the shirts!!

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/497899554/500-level-unique-officially-licensed-sports-tshirt

Artists create unique, one-of-a kind designs, the designs are voted on by fans, and soft, great to wear shirts are printed! The shirts include players from our favorite Chicago teams.

500 LEVEL thank you for your ongoing Junior Council support, good luck with the Kickstarter project!

Giving Hope to the Little Ones & Their Families

I came across this as I was searching for an email. This note came from a great individual we had reached out to while preparing for Snowball last year. Such a nice reminder why we work so hard to support the cause!

"Last year, my family was faced with the challenging news of my 11 month old niece being diagnosed with Neuroblastoma Cancer (2 weeks before her 1^st birthday)!  She had a tumor in her neck the size of a grapefruit!  With the incredible knowledge and support from the doctors / staff at Children’s Memorial, my niece is now on her way to 100% recovery after many tests, multiple chemo treatments and smiles / encouragement of the wonderful people there.  The tumor is the size of a bean and she continues to have her regularly scheduled checkups.  I am grateful for people like you and organizations such as this that help the people of Chicago and beyond understand how Children’s Memorial continues to give hope to the little ones and their families!"

July Corporate Showcase: The Parking Spot

We'd like to thank The Parking Spot for their recent support and donation to the Junior Council!

The Parking Spot was highlighted during our July member meeting in our Corporate Showcase.

Founded in 1998, The Parking Spot is the leading near-airport parking company in the United States with 34 locations at 22 airports. They pride themselves on hospitality, making it easy, comfortable and affordable to get a superior airport parking experience.

4 Reasons Introverts Can Be Successful Fundraisers

JC Member Anne Peterson passed along this great article we wanted to share!

From the Philanthropy Front and Center-Cleveland blog, written by Andrea Kihlstedt...

It’s time to broaden our thinking about what kind of personality it takes to reach out and make a positive impact with donors. According to my experience and research, introverts bring the following specific gifts to the fundraising table:

1. Introverts are great listeners – and aren't we always saying that listening to donors is one of the most important aspects of the fundraising process?
2. Introverts are sensitive to the people around them — often more  sensitive to their needs than their extroverted counterparts.
3. Introverts are willing to cede the limelight to others without feeling dismissed.
4. Introverts are great observers and take in all-important details of a conversation.

If you are an introvert, or you are managing staff members and volunteers who are eager to help but are not the life of the party, how can you build on the inherent strengths of introversion to enhance self-confidence and build fundraising success?

Read the whole article on  the Philanthropy Front and Center-Cleveland blog.

Charitable giving at PeopleFoundry

A special thank-you to ongoing corporate sponsor and supporter PeopleFoundry! PeopleFoundry's Michelle Joseph served on the JC Executive board for many years and now continues to support our cause with her company. Our donations to the clinic would not be possible without the support of company's like PeopleFoundry. Thank you!!

{The below content is re-posted from http://www.peoplefoundry.com/blog/charitable-giving-at-peoplefoundry/}

We believe in the importance of giving back to our communities and helping others whenever we can. That’s why as a former Junior Council co-chair of Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago, Michelle Joseph wanted PeopleFoundry to show our support. We did so by making a charitable donation to the Junior Council’s 15-member team who ran in the “Move for the Kids” 5k race.

The Junior Council supports the Pediatric and Adolescent HIV and AIDS programs at the hospital—a program that cares for more children and adolescents than any other pediatric service in the region.

“PeopleFoundry is a long-time supporter of us and it’s donations like this that make it possible to gain the interest and support of the community.” — Diana Arand, Junior Council President

The race itself saw over 3,500 participants raise funds to help heal and save more children’s lives and to support the patients and their families. Beyond our close ties to Children’s Hospital we choose this event in particular because you really get to see the bigger impact that the Council works towards.
In 2012 charitable giving by corporations increased 12.2 percent, totaling $18.15 billion. This is definitely a trend that we hope continues.

Toews & Dr Yogev...

Spotted! Toews & Dr. Yogev! Congratulations to the Chicago Blackhawks - 2013 Stanley Cup Champions!!

Captain Jonathan Toews hoists up the Stanley Cup - what do ya know - we found Dr. Yogev in the same pose - hoisting up our team's hard work trophy at Snowball!