I'm proud to serve on the Associate Board of the Chicago Public Library Foundation, supporting lifelong learning to Chicagoans of all ages.

Libraries go far beyond books - it is a place of hope and empowerment. 81 branches serve every Chicago neighborhood, and averages 8 million visits a year.

Highlights of what money raised from the CPL Foundation has gone to support:

Teacher in the Library program, which provided 9,619 sessions of free 1:1 homework help to K-12 students across Chicago, in-person and online.

YOUmedia spaces, where over 7,700 teens have been able to explore fashion design, photography, sound recording, and much more alongside their peers.

Free internet and computer services, there have been over 1,688,395 free WiFi sessions and 508,292 free computer sessions

Chicago DigitalLearn, which helps adult learners navigate computer fundamentals like using a search engine and opening an email account, has served more than 2,200 Chicagoans this year

I hope you'll donate and help reach my fundraising goal, which will help keep these, and so many other, critical resources available for all Chicagoans.