NOTRE DAME NETWORKING BREAKFAST
November 19, 2003
Please Take a Seat No Later Than 7:45
So We Can Get Started on Time!
You can start networking at your table.
THANKS
7:45: Introduction
Thanks to the Plaza Club and Nancy Michaels
Announcements from the ND Alumni Club
7:50-8:10: Presentations on Volunteering
8:10- 8:22 Round I
8:23- 8:35 Round II
8:40 Open Mic [If you are looking for a job and want to get up and give your
name and what you are looking for in about 15 seconds or less, come to the
mic ASAP when this is announced. Don’t hesitate. We don’t have time to
waste. Thanks.]
8:45: Adjournment
8:45-9:00 Optional Bonus Round for those who can stay an extra 15
minutes (Gather at tables along the windows at West End of Room)/ Open
Networking.
In Each Round:
Go around the table and each person give:
Your Name / Year of Graduation
Occupation/Current Job Status (if you want) and/or what you
hope to get out of networking.
And Choose one of the following:
1.
" If I had time to volunteer, I would like to _____."
2.
"My best experience volunteering was when____."
3.
"I volunteer at ___ and I love it because___."
The Lake Michigan Federation
W. Cory Spence- Board Member, Patent Attorney, Kirkland & Ellis LLP
The Lake Michigan Federation has been THE place to go to help Lake Michigan. Since 1970, the Federation has
been working with people from around the region to promote Great Lakes-wide policy reform and site-specific
restoration in the Lake Michigan watershed. The Federation mission is taking care of the fish, wildlife, air, land,
and water that make the Lake Michigan region a national treasure and helping citizens understand how they can
help too. To that end, we draw on many resources, working with teachers, scientists, economists, legal
specialists, government representatives, communities, and individuals. And, year-by-year, individual-by-individual,
we're getting back a healthy Lake Michigan environment, thanks to supporters like you. For more info,
see:http://www.lakemichigan.org
Poder Learning Center,
Vincent Cushing, Sr. V.P. EnergyConnect, Inc.
Poder Learning Center, located in the Mexican-American neighborhood of Pilsen, is a computer based literacy
center that provides the necessary academic skills to promote human dignity, to increase employment potential,
and to facilitate participation in the larger community. Founded in 1997 by Jesuits, today Poder is a nonsectarian
nonprofit that serves more than 375 adult immigrant students daily in a variety of programs ranging from English
as a Second Language and computer training to A+ Certification classes. Volunteers may serve as teacher
assistants, student tutors, or in a supportive role to our development/fundraising
director.http://www.poderlc.org/index.html Volunteer coordinator: Margarita Valerio (mvalerio@poderlc.org)
Holy Trinity High School
Thomas V. Bednar, President, Holy Trinity High School
"Established in 1910 by The Brothers of Holy Cross, Holy Trinity was originally a boy’s school serving the
neighborhood sons of Polish immigrants. Today, Holy Trinity is co-educational and proud to serve an increasingly
diverse population of nearly 400 Hispanic, African American, Caucasian, and Asian students. Holy Trinity's
central location (1443 W. Division, two blocks east of Ashland) attracts students throughout the city including the
Pilsen, Little Village, Wicker Park, River North and Bucktown communities. According to studies of the
Archdiocese, it awards the most financial aid per student of any school in the Archdiocese of Chicago. If you are
interested in assisting high school students earn their diploma and gain entrance to college, contact Sr. Donna
Williams at Holy Trinity (773-278-4212 x304, email donnawilliams@holytrinity-hs.org.) Our website can be found
at www.holytrinity-hs.org."
United Cerebral Palsy of Greater Chicago
Elizabeth Anderson, Public Relations Coordinator UPC
United Cerebral Palsy of Greater Chicago (UCP Chicago) is a non-profit human services agency. UCP Chicago's
mission is to advance the independence of people with disabilities, enrich their lives, provide support to their
families, and advocate for their inclusion in every facet of community life. Originally founded to serve only
individuals with cerebral palsy, UCP Chicago provides services including information, education, employment
training and assistive technology to empower infants, children and adults facing the challenges of all types of
disabilities. For information about volunteering with UCP Chicago, please contact Jen Gerwing at 312.368.0380,
ext. 223 or jgerwing@ucpnet.org. UCP Chicago's website is www.ucpnet.org. If you have any questions or need
anything, please let me know!
The Partnership to Educate and Advance Kid's
Jennifer Dovidio, Volunteer and Attorney
The Partnership to Educate and Advance Kid's (PEAK) mission is to provide opportunities for at-risk youth to
achieve academic and personal success through a quality, values-based education and the guidance of caring
adult mentors. PEAK was co-founded by Notre Dame alums Eileen (Cavanaugh) Bender and Maria (Madigan)
Kelly and enjoys deep connections with many other alumni. The program was featured in the Spring 2002 edition
of Notre Dame Magazine
(http://www.nd.edu/~ndmag/sp2002/callahan.html).
Program Objectives
1) To provide at-risk students with a quality, values-based high school education.
2) To serve academically average to below average students-those who are typically overlooked in the
scholarship process.
3) To develop a four-year partnership involving the PEAK student, their parent/guardian, the PEAK mentor and
our partner school, Holy Trinity High School.
4) To support our partner school in providing a challenging and rewarding educational experience.
PEAK is unique among high school scholarship programs as we pay 100% of each student's tuition. There are
currently 51 students attending Holy Trinity High School on full PEAK scholarships.
Please visit PEAK at www.peakchicago.org.
Leap of Faith Foundation
Barbara Rapchak, Co-Trustee, CEO, Leap of Faith Technologies, Inc.
The Leap of Faith Foundation supports projects in social computing that use the Internet and other emerging
technologies in an integration of technology, information, and social need. One focus of the Foundation is on
healthcare, where the goal is to provide a forum and mechanism for the exchange of health-related data among
groups and individuals. Through its contributions, the Foundation strives to create and sustain opportunities in
social computing in an effort to enrich the healthcare experience and contribute to the quality of life for individuals.
The Leap of Faith Foundation currently supports the @neWorld program. @neWorld a virtual community for
children with cancer developed with a grant from the National Cancer Institute, fits with the Foundation's mission
of using the Internet and other technologies as socialization intervention in healthcare. It uses relevant behavioral
models as a basis and framework for its design, resulting in a program that creates and fosters a spirit of
community and survivorship.
Foundation support of @neWorld includes providing state-of-the-art computer hardware for patient use, Internet
access for patients and their families who need it, technical support for patients, hospitals, and schools, and
ongoing maintenance and support of the @neWorld application. Donations of cash, equipment, services, and
labor are directed toward these activities.
The Leap of Faith Foundation is a 501 (c)(3) non-profit organization, IRS Tax ID 31-6667748. All donations are
tax-deductible as allowed by law. For more info, see: http://www.leapfoundation.org
Make-A-Wish Foundation of Northern Illinois
Jeremy Joslin, Volunteer
The Make-A-Wish Foundation of Northern Illinois is dedicated to granting the wishes of children with
life-threatening medical conditions to enrich the human experience with hope, strength, and joy.
Founded in 1985, MAW recently granted it's 5000th wish and expanded from the 24 northern-most
counties in the state to the northern-most 70. With this in mind, there are several ways to become an
involved volunteer at MAW and more help is always welcomed and appreciated. For more info, see
http://www.wishes.org.
The Gus Foundation
Elizabeth A. Brown, Wells Fargo Securities, LLC
The Gus Foundation is a tax-exempt, non-profit organization established in 1995 by the family and friends of Gus
Evangelides. After a courageous battle with a malignant brain tumor, Gus died in April 1995--three months shy of
his second birthday
The Gus Foundation is dedicated to providing hope for children with brain tumors by advancing Children's
Memorial Medical Center, Chicago as a leader in the research and treatment of pediatric brain tumors thereby:
· Providing the children and their families of the Chicagoland area and the Midwest with the most
current treatments available
· Honoring the courage and spirit of all children who have been afflicted with brain tumors
Through a partnership with Children's Memorial, the Foundation raises funds to support critical research centered
or collaborated through Children's. This research offers the best opportunity to develop cures, and in the
meantime, to provide all children with the most sophisticated, appropriate, and prevailing treatments available
Funds contributed to date have led to the:
· Discovery of an enzyme specifically expressed on brain tumors
· Determination of the location of the gene on which this enzyme can be found. The
clinical
implications of this research are powerful, as it holds promise to provide important
benchmarks for the
diagnosis and treatment of brain tumors
· The synthesis of an anti-sense molecule, which in laboratory tests, has provided gene therapies
resulting in higher cure rates at lower doses of chemotherapy
The Gus Foundation has recently completed the funding for a $1 million endowed fellowship in Neuro-Surgery
and Neuro-Oncology at Children's Memorial Medical Center. This two-year fellowship will train the next
generation of pediatric brain tumor specialists in treatment and research. It has committed to fund a $1.5 million
Chair in Neuro-Oncology. This chair will assure that a world-class pediatric oncologist who specializes in brain
tumors will have the time and responsibility to both treat patients and to be actively engaged in research. The
website, www.gusfoundation.org, is currently in the process of being updated.
Chicago Coalition for the Homeless
Mary Ellen Woods, Past President, Notre Dame Alumni Club
The Chicago Coalition for the Homeless works to understand the causes of homelessness in Illinois and to
eliminate homelessness through attacking the causes.
Mission
The Chicago Coalition for the Homeless (CCH) organizes and advocates to prevent and end homelessness
based on our belief that housing is a human right in a just society.
Facts and Figures
- In no state in the U.S. today does a full-time minimum wage job enable a family to pay fair market rent for a 2bedroom apartment.
- In 2000, 16.8% of full time workers working year round, earned less than the official poverty level for a family of
four.
- Chicago reported a 35% increase in demand for shelter for families in 2001 compared to the previous year.
For more info, see their website: http://www.chicagohomeless.org/IndexNew.asp
from which this information was taken.