We prioritize action-oriented solutions that seek to prevent or intervene early in addressing a challenge. We desire to work with partners who have big ambitions and bring an “activist mindset” to their ideas.

 

We are a family foundation that makes more than grants.

We foster conversations, create collaborations and work to expand access to social and economic opportunity in Chicago. Our role as a funder is to bring together communities, to empower those without a voice to be heard and to trust those we fund to do what they do best.

As a small family foundation with limited resources, our preference is to support small- to medium-size organizations where our funding will make a meaningful difference.

Guiding Principles

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Participation
Participation

Those most impacted by the issues we are addressing bring the most important voices into the conversation. Sustainable and effective solutions will only be possible when stakeholders are part of the process—from understanding the challenge to designing and implementing the solution and finally to evaluating results.

Innovation
Innovation

The challenges we seek to address require bold, creative ideas and a willingness to take risks.  With origins in a family business that brought innovative solutions to practical challenges, we aspire to spark new approaches to seemingly intractable problems.

Collaboration
Collaboration

Stimulating cross-sector collaborations and mobilizing stakeholders to create shared solutions will amplify the work of individual organizations and result in long-lasting systemic change.

Learning
Learning

We must constantly be improving and adapting to a rapidly changing, dynamic and complex world. We aspire to learn from and with our grantee partners and to share our learnings with others when useful.