Chicago Community Loan Fund celebrated 30 years of providing access to capital in underserved communities throughout metropolitan Chicago virtually October 28. The event lauded the accomplishments of CCLF’s customers and partners engaged in community transformation through community development and also honored the recipients of the 2021 Fannie Lou Hamer Awards for Grassroots Community Development.
(from left) CCLF President Calvin L. Holmes, Board Chair Matthew Reilein and Board Vice Chair Erik Hall celebrated CCLF’s 30th Anniversary by honoring its work with customers and partners working to transform Chicago’s communities.
Themed “One Chicagoland: All Communities Rising,” the virtual celebration was emceed by ABC-7’s Samantha Chatman. Guests were entertained with performances by Evolucion Latina Dance Company (which included CCLF Portfolio Management Associate, Amorita Falcon), Deeply Rooted Dance Theater, while DJ Carl Jenkins provided House Music spins that kept the audience moving in their virtual space. Guests were also engaged with the Chat feature as well as a Virtual Photo Booth, allowing photos to be taken with custom frames and icons featured during the program.
The evening began with welcoming remarks from Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle and Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot. Both commended CCLF for 30 years of community development to the greater Chicago region and as a partner in expanding public economic and development plans. CCLF served as administrator of Cook County’s Community Recovery Fund and as a lending partner for the city of Chicago’s Small Business Recovery Fund.
Throughout the program, CCLF’s Fannie Lou Hamer Awards for Grassroots Community Development were presented. The award recognizes an individual whose leadership, sacrifice and multi-faceted contribution to community revitalization resulted in significant positive change. Civil Rights leader Fannie Lou Hamer challenged a host of cultural expectations about race, gender and leadership during the Civil Rights Movement. She believed that for a social movement to have lasting success, its leaders must be interchangeable. CCLF’s Fannie Lou Hamer Awards recognize those who not only lead, but who shape the future by empowering others to assume that vital role.
Four awards were presented, one in each category of CCLF’s loan sectors. A $5,000 prize accompanied each award to provide the recipient with modest funds to support their work. The prize and award trophy were delivered to winners following the ceremony.
The 2021 Fannie Lou Hamer Award Winners included:
- Commercial Real Estate – Joe Williams, Arches Retail Development, LLC, presented by Lindsay Durr, Senior Vice President, National CRA Practice Lead for Northern Trust Bank’s Community Development & Investments Division.
- Social Enterprise – Nikki Bravo and Tracy Powell, Ignite Technology & Innovation, Inc. for Momentum Coffee and Coworking, presented by Andrew Hugger, CCLF’s Board Member and Senior Vice President for Community Development Banking at Bank of America.
- Housing – Lissette Castaneda, Tierra Linda, presented by Levoi Brown, Head of Economic Equity Advisory Group for BMO Harris Bank.
- Community Facilities – Kamau Murray, XS Tennis and Education Foundation, accepted by Renell Perry and presented by Lovetta Spencer, Vice President of Healthcare, Higher Education & Nonprofits Division for US Bank.
A memorable moment of the evening was the announcement of CCLF’s newly established Communities of Color Fund announced by Calvin L. Holmes, President. “CCLF decided to create a Communities of Color Fund that will provide a dedicated pool of low-cost loans (lower than what we have historically charged) and modernize underwriting to specifically support Black and Latinx communities and borrowers and others seeking to improve those communities,” Holmes stated in the announcement. “Some of these potential borrowers may not check everything in the credit-box, but they, like CCLF, are committed to fight for justice, equity and lasting, positive change in our communities.” The announcement was highlighted with a “Theory of Change” animation created by Brightseed.
To complement the 30th Anniversary Virtual Celebration, CCLF published its commemorative, 30th Anniversary photo book entitled Vision in Action: 1991-2021. Presented in a comprehensive “flipbook’ format and distributed prior to the virtual event, Vision in Action highlights CCLF’s borrowers and their projects across the Chicagoland metropolitan area through the fund’s 30-year history. Also included in the book is a historical timeline of CCLF’s milestone achievements throughout its history.
Vision in Action was designed and developed by Blue Daring, a Women’s Business Enterprise (WBE), in conjunction with Calvin L. Holmes, CCLF President; Juan Calixto, Vice President of External Relations; and Pamela Graves, Marketing and Communications Manager. Select photography was provided by Steve Becker Photography and Ana Miyares Photography, LLC. (To request a copy of Vision in Action-1991-2021, please email: [email protected].)
Sponsors of CCLF’s 30th Anniversary Virtual Celebration included: Visionary Sponsor: Wintrust; Innovator Sponsors: Bank of America, BMO Harris Bank, Northern Trust Company, US Bank; Champion Sponsor: Loop Capital; Leader Sponsors: Associated Bank, First Eagle Bank, GCM Grosvenor, JPMorgan Chase, Pritzker Traubert Foundation; Partner Sponsors: Blue Vista Capital Management, LLC, CIBC, DL3 Realty, L.P., First Midwest Bank, Matanky Realty Group, National Equity Fund, Sonya Malunda and Dr. E. Charles Lampley; Advocate Sponsors: Community Insurance Center, John and Anne Tuohy, Marquette Bank, MetroAlliance, Inc., Net-Telligence Group Inc., G. Sequan Lawrence and Teresa Prim Charitable Fund, SB Friedman Development Advisors.
Event planning was conducted by The Revel Group with video streaming technology and graphics provided by Sound Investment. A replay of CCLF’s 30th Anniversary Virtual Celebration is available on the home page of CCLF’s website. To view, visit www.cclfchicago.org and follow the directions noted on the 30th Anniversary page.