Community Corner
Literature for All of Us awarded more than $30,000
Literature for All of Us, a nonprofit literary organization located in Evanston, was awarded a combined $30,500 this spring after receiving three prestigious community awards. Funds from these awards will go toward supporting their transformative programming. Literature for All of Us received the Impact 100 Greater Chicago Chapter Culture Award, the Alford-Axelson Award for Nonprofit Managerial Excellence – Small Category, and the 2014 Susan F. Berkowitz Award for Outstanding Service to Children.
On June 10, Literature for All of Us was awarded a $13,000 grant from Impact 100 Greater Chicago Chapter. The award recognized the organization’s cultural contribution to the Greater Chicago Area. Impact 100 funds high-impact grants that have a transformative effect on the receiving organizations and the populations or communities they serve.
Earlier in June, Literature for All of Us was presented with the 2014 Alford-Axelson Award for Nonprofit Managerial Excellence in the Small Category, for nonprofits with an annual budget below $1 million. Literature for All of Us was selected for its well-defined mission, inventive programs, strong volunteer and client engagement, and strong commitment from the board of directors – strong examples of managerial excellence. A $7,500 prize was presented to the organization at a symposium on June 4.
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In May Literature for All of Us received the Susan F. Berkowitz Award for Outstanding Service to Children from the Francis W. Parker School. Parker students attending the Upper School (grades 9-12) were engaged in the nomination and selection process for the $10,000 award.
“We’re very grateful for all of the recognition we’ve received this spring,” says Karen Thomson, founder and executive director of Literature for All of Us.
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“We are so fortunate our community shares our belief that reading and writing can have a big impact in the lives of our city’s young people.”
About Literature for All of Us
Literature for All of Us is an award-winning 501(c)(3) organization that serves teens and young adults who live in some of Chicago and Evanston’s most under-resourced neighborhoods. Participants contend with the enormous stresses of poverty, violence, and early parenthood. With the guidance of professional book group leaders, they read books relevant to their lives and increase their reading, writing, and critical thinking skills. To date, Literature for All of Us has reached more than 7,000 urban teens and young adults, ages 12-21.
For more information about Literature for All of Us, visit LiteratureforAllofUs.org.
