Pilot Light is excited to be the recipient of the Acting Up awards, one of 37 grants from The Chicago Community Trust’s fifth annual On the Table forum. The On the Table forum took place in May 2018, wherein Pilot Light and other organizations gathered with Chicago residents for one day to engage in meaningful dialogue and inspire action to make a difference in our communities over a meal. The forum’s Acting Up awards is designed to help turn ideas generated through On the Table into tangible activities that will benefit Chicago’s neighborhoods.
Winners of the Acting Up awards are scattered across the Chicagoland region and focus on issues such as education and youth development, community engagement, health and wellness, and food access. From our discussions with community leaders, Pilot Light was able to craft three proposals to advance health and wellness in the communities of Bronzeville, Englewood, and Hyde Park.
With our Acting Up award, Pilot Light will be able to implement projects in Englewood, Bronzeville and Hyde Park – each tailored to the neighborhood’s unique strengths and needs – to connect neighbors and solve community problems. Projects include wellness activities, such as healthy meal assembly, cooking classes and community gardens. We’re confident that these projects, because they were designed by the people who work and live in the communities we serve, will not only advance our mission but will bring people together.
Pilot Light would like to thank the following for helping make our initiative possible: the Chicago Community Trust for their generosity and the opportunity to participate in On the Table; the Bronzeville, Englewood, and Hyde Park communities for their commitment to advance wellness; and the lead teachers who helped us plan our On the Table strategy: Ms. Chandra Garcia-Kitch and Ms. Vicki Drewa at Ray Elementary, Ms. Nicole Kerr at Bass Elementary, and Donyale Wallace at UChicago Charter’s Donoghue Campus.