On Friday, May 6, more than 200 guests attended the CBF’s 3rd Annual Passport to Chicago at Kendall College and enjoyed dishes representing different Chicago neighborhoods that were conceived and prepared by members of the Kendall College Competition Club. The creations were paired with a selection of local beers and regional wines, with special tastings provided by Chicago’s Midwest Wine Selections and Koval Distillery.
The event, co-chaired by Nancy Linder of Linder Legal Staffing and Maureen Schlade of LexisNexis, culminated in a competition for the Top Chef judged by both the guests and a Culinary Professional Panel. This year, the student chefs were competing for one of two $1,000 scholarships one from the CBF and the other generously sponsored by Linder Legal Staffing. The Culinary Professional Panel chose Giovanna Cirilo for her apricot lamb tagine and koeksister (Edgewater), and Velton Saldanha won the People’s Choice for his phyllo stuffed with chicken shawarma (Albany Park). A special thanks goes to Curtis Linder for the wonderful event photography.
This year, we tied in some of the great legal aid work being done in each of the communities featured at the event. These highlighted programs are just a taste of the impactful work pro bono and legal aid organizations are doing every day in every Chicago neighborhood. Thanks to the generosity of our guests and sponsors, Passport to Chicago again will help the CBF continue to support this work, improving access to justice for people in need and making the legal system more fair and accessible for everyone.