Our 2025 CCL Gala was October 16th at Carnivale!

We gathered for a night of fund-raising and fun-raising! It was a joy to come together with our powerful community to celebrate the impact of Center for Changing Lives! We gathered on Thursday, October 16th at 5:30 PM at Carnivale, located at 702 W. Fulton Market. With your generous support, we hit our goal of $100,000!

We were honored to have Erika Maldonado, Emmy Award–Winning Journalist & Director of Communications at Cook County Treasurer’s Office, as our Emcee! We were graced with the presence and power of Iesha Sturdivant, a Chicago Multi-Genre Vocalist, Founder of Love is the Rhythm, and American Idol Alumna.

We experienced the joy and beauty of Brazilian culture with Samba 1 Brazilian, who had us all in a lively samba line. It was exciting to celebrate a beautiful evening and honor the power of each of us!

Wondering what it’s like to be a part of a Center for Changing Lives’ Gala? It is always a chance to remember that each of us is creative, resourceful, capable and whole! Want to see for yourself? Flip through our online photo album from our 2024 here! You’ll love reliving the joy we shared in our 360 video booth. For a a joy-filled and heartwarming recap of the 2024 Gala night, be sure to check out the fantastic video by the talented PayneDuo team! We will be sharing a 2025 photo album and video soon!

We wore our feathers and fedoras to celebrate the progress we have made towards our vision of a community where everyone thrives!

Still feel generous? It’s not too late to make a donation here!

Huge thanks to our 2025 Gala Sponsors! We were honored to have 28 sponsors of this year’s Gala, the largest in CCL’s history!

If you have any questions or are need follow up support, you can reach out to our Director of Development & Communications, Paula, at giving@cclconnect.org